Kingston Police investigating death on Battersea Road

After a sudden closure of a stretch of Battersea Road due to an investigation on the morning of Thursday, Jul. 20, 2023, Kingston Police have provided an update disclosing the reason for the investigation.

According to police, at approximately 9:30 a.m. on July 20, officers responded to the area of Battersea Road between Kingston Mills Road and Thompson Crescent after “a City of Kingston employee observed a body in the ditch.”

“On arrival, officers located a 44-year-old Kingston man deceased off the roadway on Battersea Road near Kingston Mills Road,” Kingston Police said in a press release issued at approximately 1:15 on Friday, Jul. 21, 2023.

Detectives from the Kingston Police Major Crime Unit took over the investigation from the Patrol Division, according to the release.

“As a result of the subsequent investigation, no foul play is suspected and the cause of death is not being treated as suspicious.”

Kingston Police did not disclose the identity of the deceased man. In response to Kingstonist inquiries, Constable Anthony Colangeli, Media Relations Officer for Kingston Police, said that police would not be disclosing the identity of the deceased at the request of family members. Police noted that their investigation continues in cooperation with the Office of the Coroner, and reiterated that this was an isolated incident and posed no risk to public safety.

As noted in coverage of this matter yesterday, while a City of Kingston garbage truck appeared to be central to the investigation, it was not involved in the incident. Given that police have disclosed that a City of Kingston employee reported seeing the body – and that the City of Kingston expressed that the garbage truck was only involved in a witness capacity – it is safe to assume the employee driving the truck was the person who alerted police to the incident.