A body was recently found in an abandoned motel in Columbia, police say The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.
The body was discovered Monday at the former Motel 6 at 1776 Burning Tree Drive, deputies said in an incident report. Listed as permanently closed, the former motel is near Exit 106 on Interstate 26, the intersection with St. Andrews Road in the part of Columbia that falls into Lexington County.
A 38-year-old man told deputies he found the body in a third-floor room of the former motel while looking for his girlfriend, according to the incident report. Information as to why his girlfriend was believed to be in the building was not available, and it was not known if anyone else was in the former motel when officers entered.
The man told deputies he couldn’t remember which room the body was in, but said they were able to find it because it was next to a room that had many mattresses, the incident report said.
Two deputies found the room and when they tried to push open the bathroom door, they saw a hand, according to the incident report.
The body leaned against the door, making it impossible for deputies to gain entry, so they called the Lexington County Fire Department to force the entrance, the incident report said.
Although the body has been recovered, due to its deteriorated condition, the victim has not been identified and a cause of death has not been determined, the incident report said. The emergency services did not say whether the victim was a man or a woman.
The Lexington County Coroner’s Office was among the emergency services called to the scene by the sheriff’s department, but the victim has not been publicly identified.
Information about a possible autopsy or other forensic examination was not available.
There was no word if foul play was suspected in the death, or if there is an ongoing investigation.
