Police Identify Man Found in Patapsco Valley State Park

Maryland state police have identified the body of a man they found in during a search for a missing teenage girl this spring.

Police say John H. Hagegeorge, 55, of Catonsville, died from natural causes and exposure; no foul play was involved.

Hagegeorge was found on April 9 , a teenager who had been missing since December. Barnes was not found that day, but police announced they had found a man’s body in the park.

Police said the man was dressed in several layers of clothing, and at the time, no foul play was suspected. Investigators did not find a match on the man’s fingerprints or other forensic tests, according to a statement released Monday by the Maryland state police. 

During the autopsy, however, the medical examiner noted that the man had had a knee replacement surgery. A criminal investigator used the serial numbers on the replacement knee to find the hospital the replacements had come from, according to police, and from there, the patient’s name and a photo.

Using that information, police said they were able to find Hagegeorge’s wife, from whom he had been separated after they moved from Catonsville. The two were not in contact, police said, and so the woman did not know he was missing.

Barnes, the teenager who was the subject of the initial search,  on Wednesday, April 20. 

This article has been edited to correct the name of Patapsco Valley State Park.