Last week, we brought you the story of Michael Doherty, a 20-year-old Duke University student who went missing in Massachusettes. After being missing for a week, police found a body on Saturday, May 20, and confirmed that it was Doherty on Monday, May 22.
The Franklin Police Department said that Doherty, a Duke University student, was not been seen or heard from since the early morning hours of Sunday, May 14.
According to a press release from the Franklin Police Department, 20-year-old Michael Doherty, a graduate of Xavier High School, was last spotted in the Phyllis Lane area at 1:30 A.M. Sunday, May 14, after attending a house party with some friends.
Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey said that the state medical examiner has informed him that the body found Saturday afternoon in dense woods and thick underbrush near Interstate 495 was 20-year-old Doherty, of Franklin, Massachusetts.
Via CBS:
Two people searching near Interstate 495 found the body of a white male around 2:30 P.M. on Saturday. Franklin Police said a positive confirmation will not be available until an autopsy is performed, but the body is believed to be Doherty’s.
Police from around the area spent every day this week searching for Doherty in Franklin and nearby Bellingham. Searchers found one of Doherty’s shoes and his shirt Sunday in a nearby marshy area. The focus of the investigation shifted to nearby Bellingham after they found his other shoe on the side of a brook there later in the week.
Doherty’s parents said earlier in the week that their son had a planned ride home from the party. But when he decided to stay late and did not receive a response from his brothers, who were sleeping, he decided to walk home.
Authorities say they’ve found no evidence of foul play in Doherty’s death, however, the investigation continues.
The Franklin Police released a statement on Doherty’s death:
“The thoughts and prayers of all the members of the Franklin Police Department and all of the other agencies that participated in searching for Michael go out to the Doherty family in this time of great tragedy,” Franklin Police said. “We would also like to thank the residents who helped search, and those who provided support to all the personnel who worked tirelessly to find Michael.”
Doherty was junior in the Pratt School of Engineering and a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity at Duke.
