DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A metro Atlanta family shared heartbreaking news Saturday, telling 11Alive a 57-year-old man who'd been missing for a week was found dead.
A community-wide search effort had been ongoing for James "Bud" King, who went missing on Feb. 24. Richard King, Bud's brother said he viewed and identified the body.
"If anybody ever has to do that, I feel sorry for you, because it's tough," Richard said.
DeKalb County Police said they had not yet confirmed an identity, but that they found a deceased male in a wooded area near Mariners Court just before 2 p.m. and that King's family had been on scene. Jerry King is Bud's brother.
"These people have walked in the rain, walked down railroad tracks, looked under bridges. And I'd just like to thank everybody from the bottom of my heart," Jerry said of search efforts by the community.
Jerry and his family walked back into the woods where police found Bud. Jerry said he was found in the creek in bad shape.
Now that the search efforts are over, the family is looking for answers.
"I don't think it happened right there. Bud didn't go off to mud for nothing in the world. He didn't like bushes. Bud didn't like walking in the dirt," Jerry said. "And I just hope he didn't suffer."
Jerry believes there is something more and wants justice.
"The kind of people that would hurt people like this don't need to be walking around," Jerry said.
Richard said Bud didn't have any enemies.
"Bud is not a violent person," Richard said. "He wouldn't hurt nobody."
His loved ones describe him as a staple at Tucker High School, who touched many lives. Jerry said that when Bud couldn't help himself, the community came together to help him.
"We miss our brother but he lives on in our heart," Richard said.
The family tells 11Alive they're thankful for the prayers and community support they received while the search was ongoing.
DeKalb Police also said they had not yet determined a cause of death at this time.
A Mattie's Call was issued for King on Friday, and his family said that MARTA Police detectives reviewed surveillance footage from where he got on a bus in Tucker last Saturday night. They saw that he had fallen asleep and missed his stop, but the driver made him get off at the Kensington bus station, which was the end of the line.
King was then spotted hopping onto the next bus trying to get back home, but his family said he once again fell asleep and missed his stop.
The family said the MARTA bus driver made him get off in front of the Texaco at 1525 Mountain Industrial Boulevard in Tucker.
The family said they drove to the Texaco, but the gas station did not have cameras to watch. A family member said they then walked across the street to the Speedway at 5448 E. Ponce de Leon Avenue.
The clerk said they were working there at midnight on Sunday when King walked in and asked if they were able to give him a beer. After they told him no, he left, his family said.
It remains unclear what might have happened to King after that point, but the Speedway address is a little less than a mile and a half from Mariners Court.
The family is planning a memorial at Tucker High School soon.
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