MARTINSVILLE, Va. (rbs news now) — Authorities are investigating after a man was found dead Wednesday afternoon behind the Salvation Army located at 603 Memorial Blvd. South in Martinsville.

Acting Police Chief Chad Rhoads said officers were called to the scene shortly after noon on November 12 after a report of a deceased man discovered behind the property.

“We’re going to do a good, thorough investigation of the scene. There’s no obvious signs of foul play. At this time, it just appears that the man died in the shed,” Rhoads told rbs news now at the scene. “His body will be sent to the medical examiner’s office to determine a cause of death. That may take a while due to toxicology, but that’s the direction the investigation’s going to go.”

He added that the man’s identity is known but will not be released publicly.

“The folks at the Salvation Army are familiar with him,” Rhoads said. “Unless something comes out to say otherwise, we’re going to treat it as a natural death.”

Lieutenant Richard Li with the Salvation Army described the loss as deeply felt within their organization.

“There’s an unfortunate event that happened here at the Salvation Army property,” Li said. “This individual was a well-loved, friendly, and even a volunteer in our programs, and we’ll miss him.”

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