DAYTON, Ohio — A missing man from Cincinnati was identified as the man whose body was discovered Monday morning by demolition crews in northwest Dayton at a site near the Gem City Market.
The man was identified Thursday afternoon as 31-year-old Brandon J. Lacinak by Montgomery County Coroner Dr. Kent Harshbarger.
He was reported missing Feb. 17 and reportedly was last seen around Jan. 27, said Dayton Police Department spokesman James Rider.
A missing person poster for Lacinak said he was missing from Montgomery County but that he normally resides in Cincinnati. Posts in the Facebook page Ohio Missing Persons Alerts said Lacinak was last seen in downtown Dayton.
Lacinak’s body was found while Bladecutter’s Demolition crews used an excavator to remove debris from a property at 402 Salem Ave. that had been damaged by a Jan. 28 fire. The property, which was a two-story house, was formerly home to PowerNet of Dayton.
The intensity of the fire and signs of impending collapse prevented firefighters from searching the structure, said Brad French, assistant chief of the Dayton Fire Department.
Once the fire was extinguished, an emergency demolition was ordered due to the extent of damage and danger of additional collapse, he said.
The report of a body found led officials from the fire department’s fire investigations unit, the police department’s homicide unit and county coroner’s office to respond.
Dayton police Maj. Brian Johns said an autopsy was conducted Tuesday morning and that they are awaiting a determination of whether the person was killed as a result of the fire or was deceased before then, he said during a Tuesday afternoon media briefing.
Lacinak’s cause and manner of death have not been determined, the coroner’s office said Thursday.
The Gem City Market, which is just south of the demolition site, posted a message on social media Monday saying it was aware of the discovery of the body at the site.
The post says police confirmed “this situation is not linked to any incidents within our store.”
The Gem City Market also wrote, “Our thoughts and sympathies are with the family and friends of the deceased during this difficult time.”
Watch Live:
