Authorities now say the body of a woman found in Owensville is that of 29-year-old Hermann resident Kristin M. Hughes. Preliminary results of the investigation and autopsy results indicate that Hughes' injuries are consistent with that of a fall into the creek resulting in a drowning.  But, officials note that foul play has not been ruled out.

OWENSVILLE POLICE hold up a large blue tarp Tuesday evening to shield passing motor-ists from the transfer of the recovered body to an Owensville ambulance. County deputies and Owensville firemen assisted Coroner Ben Grosse (second from right) in the recovery.

Owensville Police Chief Robert Rickerd said the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control was called into assist city police with the recovery of the woman’s body and conduct an investigation into her death. The fully-clothed body was discovered face down in the water shortly before 4 p.m. July 1. Investigators were treating the area around the discovery as a possible homicide scene but stopped short of saying the woman was the victim of foul play.

“We just don’t have anything to go on right now,” said Rickerd. “We have no known cause of death. There was no identification on the body and no identification has been made yet.”

Gasconade County Coroner Ben Grosse was meeting at 9 p.m. with investigators outside Gottenstroetter Funeral Home in Owensville where the body was transported for a preliminary examination in an effort to learn the woman’s identity. Grosse said he would transport the body to the Boone County Medical Examiner’s Office in Columbia where an autopsy was to be performed this morning (Wednesday).

Rickerd said they believe the woman’s body was partially submerge in the creek bed for approximately 24 hours before being discovered by a young couple walking along Highway 28. They called for an ambulance from a residence on Oakbrook Drive. Police were then called to the scene.

Following their arrive shortly after 6 p.m., patrol investigators worked out of their Crime Scene Investigation vehicle until around 8:45 p.m. Assisting them were members of the Gasconade County Sheriff’s Department, the Owensville Fire Department, and Owensville police. The body was recovered by 7:45 p.m. and Owensville Area Ambulance District personnel transported it to the funeral home.

MSHP investigators along with Deputy T.J. Heidbreder searched the creek bed until around 8:35 p.m. Several grocery- sized paper bags worth of potential evidence was removed from the creek bed. Several plaster casts of foot prints found in the mud around the creek bed were also made by the patrol’s investigators.

Rickerd said the patrol would serve as the lead agency for the duration of the investigation.

The body was located several feet away from a concrete slab extending out from the box culvert which runs under Highway 28. Investigators began their investigation with a wide sweep of the area on either side of the highway before narrowing it the area immediately around the creek bed where the body was discovered.

Westbound traffic heading into town on Highway 28 was diverted through Memorial Park on Red Oak Drive. Eastbound traffic was allowed through the area in the westbound lane.

Rickerd expressed his appreciation for the help provided by the fire department for traffic control and to the county and state lawmen who responded to assist with the investigation.

Once a positive identification is made, an update will be posted on The Republican’s web site: www.GasconadeCountyRepublican.com