Volp’s body found
By LISA M. HOFFMANN, Staff WriterArticle Photos
MARINETTE, Wis. - Officials have positively identified the body found in a creek in Dunbar on Monday as Eric M. Volp of Iron Mountain.
At a press conference Thursday, law enforcement officials said Volp died an unnatural death that can be classified as suspicious.
Volp, 28, was reported missing in October 2008.
Marinette County Sheriff Jim Kanikula said the body was discovered in K.C. Creek in the town of Dunbar. K.C. Creek crosses U.S. Highway 8 and is located approximately 1.5 miles from the town of Dunbar, approximately 20 miles from Iron Mountain.
Kanikula said the body was found some 150 yards south of the bridge by a trout fisherman on Monday.
Marinette County Chief Deputy Jerry Sauve said Volp's body was identified by a unique tattoo and dental records.
"Iron Mountain Police Department did a wonderful job on their missing persons case. Fortunately the tattoo was preserved," Sauve said.
He said the tattoo on the back of Volp's neck was distinctive - two faces, one smiling one frowning. Dental records were also examined. The body was partially clothed.
The case is an ongoing investigation by Marinette County law enforcement and the Iron Mountain Police Department. Police are referring to the death as unnatural, but not a homicide.
Kanikula said the forensic pathologist's opinion after the examination of the body, confirmed the remains could have been in the creek since last October.
He added the doctor's findings are consistent with the nine-month time frame since Volp was reported missing.
Although the cause of death is listed as undetermined, officials said it was not from drowning.
Kanikula also said there was significant trauma to the remains.
Sauve said there were fractured bones, and "due to decomposition they were not completely intact." The autopsy results show Volp had some broken bones. Volp suffered blunt trauma to his chest, some trauma to his head and several broken bones but the exact cause of death is unknown.
Several tissue samples have been taken from Volp's body and will be submitted to the Wisconsin Crime Lab. Any new information on what type of drugs or alcohol, if any, were in his system could take four to six weeks.
Police said there is no person of interest at this time, but they are not ruling out foul play.
Marinette County Sheriff's Department will continue to work with the Iron Mountain Police Department.
When it is determined where the crime was committed, if in fact a crime did occur, charges will be determined by the prosecuting attorney in Michigan or the district attorney in Wisconsin.
Iron Mountain Police Chief Pete Flaminio confirmed Volp was last seen on foot and alone at the North Stables Pub in Iron Mountain. He had made numerous calls of short duration between 2:19 a.m. and 2:42 a.m. Oct. 12.
Flaminio said the last call was at 2:42 a.m. with no calls made after that time. Because of the short duration of the calls, police do not believe Volp made contact with anyone he called.
Volp's cell phone was never recovered.
Police said numerous people, including bartenders, were contacted and all leads were followed-up, resulting in unconfirmed sightings.
Police do not believe Volp, who was insulin dependent, ever made it back to his Iron Mountain apartment.
Kanikula said they are not going to rule out any possibilities.
Police said the heavily-wooded area where the body was found makes for a difficult investigation because of the tall grass, big ants, and numerous trees. The area continues to be searched for evidence.
Flaminio said there is no indication of foul play other than Volp disappeared. What crossed investigators' minds is Volp got a ride.
"He was somebody that would engage in conversation," Flaminio said.
Volp's family members, including his aunt, Maria Volp of Iron Mountain, were notified of the identification prior to the press conference on Thursday. Maria Volp told The Daily News the family is grateful Volp's body has finally been found.
"Finding his body does not give closure, but it does comfort us to be able to put him to rest in a more worthy place," she said. "Finding his body will also allow police to investigate his disappearance and death once again to hopefully find answers as to who caused it."
Volp was a nearly lifelong resident of New Berlin, Wis., and moved to Iron Mountain in December 2007 to live with his aunt.
"He came here to build work skills and gain some job experience," Maria Volp explained. "During the 10 months he was here, he gained experience not only in work skills, but also in his faith, going to church regularly."
The Volp family held a memorial at the end of October when they assumed he had died.
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ElmerA
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07-10-09 3:44 PM
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Truthseeker, that sounds good BUT the court house HAS camera's pointed towards that building.. It would be on tape.
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Servai
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07-10-09 3:41 PM
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Kelly, so you're all for open discussion as long as no one disagrees with you and your buddies?
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KellyJ
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07-10-09 3:36 PM
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Nobody said he was great or anything else. We were having a decent discussion until blowhards came by. Because of his profession, he gets information. It's a matter of sifting through the information to reach a conclusion. Apparently, some people have a problem with that.
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thedrake
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07-10-09 3:35 PM
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aye! those darned sockpuppets!
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thedrake
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07-10-09 3:23 PM
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Wait a minute, I AM Jimmybutterman. What the heck, man?
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thedrake
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07-10-09 3:15 PM
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sammy, are you smoking carpet fragments you find in your parents' basement?
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sammyto
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07-10-09 3:05 PM
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what's wrong with you people? your like sheep that have lost their shepherd. The great butterman "signs off" and you turn to attacking others. Yes I am questioning his credibility. As should you all. He knows everything. Why would that be? As I said last night reread it all from the beginning. He reworded what was known. Wake up he is not the messiah. And for those not smart enough to realize I was being sarcastic when I said he was a teenager. But I still stick with him being a very lonely man looking for attention.
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StormyClearweather
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07-10-09 2:58 PM
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I am the REAL Jimmy Butterman
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thedrake
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07-10-09 2:57 PM
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I didn't know butterman signed in under a different name. Which one is he?
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thedrake
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07-10-09 2:54 PM
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Sammy, you obviously live in fantasy land.
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KellyJ
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07-10-09 2:51 PM
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We're lucky you're not investigating this. I'd be really p!ssed that my taxpayer dollars would be wasted yet again. FYI, Butterman isn't here as a journalist. Here's here to discuss and share the information he has. *Most* of us appreciate it. Then there's the few blowhards who think they have to be thought and speech police.
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sammyto
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07-10-09 2:44 PM
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If butterman is indeed a great journalist then where is he? Why did he go into hiding(or sign in under another name)? A great journalist should be able to handle criticism as well as praise. And as far as the people on here saying "I know something you don't know" if I were investigating this I would be at the daily news with a warrant for all the ip addresses and go rounding up you all up for questioning.
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thedrake
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07-10-09 1:28 PM
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I think there will always been a few people that will try to discredit others, especially the ones that the majority is listening or turning to for information. Butterman has lashed out in the past, but from I have seen it has been against those who have thrown daggers at him. Bigduke seems like someone who simply doesn't care who he makes uncomfortable. And I see nothing wrong with that, certainly not in a forum like this.
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Servai
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07-10-09 1:26 PM
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Anyone who disagrees or tries to discredit will just be proven wrong when it does come to light, won't they? Anyone should be able to disagree to our hearts content without being called names. It's called having an opinion.
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BigDuke
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07-10-09 1:22 PM
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Well, there is a difference between disagreeing and trying to discredit someone's knowledge or willingness to share inside information without readers having to wait until the evening news finally reports on it.
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Servai
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07-10-09 1:17 PM
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I have no issue with any of it. “Social Commentary” … “Entertainment” But, if one‘s ‘commentary’ disagrees with another‘s, are they a moron or an idiot? If some choose to see it as entertaining and treat it as such, should they be considered trouble-makers? Are those who are posting their version of facts deserving of being called liars or accused of being criminals? People tend to take things so seriously; and resorting to name-calling is so anti-social! People should be able to disagree without resorting to childish name-calling. As far as discussing a murder, that has not been brought to light yet. Meanwhile, I happen to find the back-and-forth banter on here very entertaining.
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BigDuke
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07-10-09 1:05 PM
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If anyone is getting entertained in the traditional sense listening to readers talk about murder, then I guess that's their right, but the purpose for comment forums is not help those reading the posts pass their time. There are gamer sites for that.
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BigDuke
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07-10-09 1:01 PM
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Well, if someone posts something and it turns out to be true, then it's a fact, correct? And these forums are not for entertainment purposes. They are social commentary sections. They allow the community to have a voice about the news-related topics that appear in the media. It's not entertainment. It's part of the ever-so-growing social media that isn't going away any time soon.
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Servai
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07-10-09 12:52 PM
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I stated yesterday that this is mainly for entertainment, and I got trashed for not being supportive of the 'fact tellers'
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Servai
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07-10-09 12:48 PM
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Kelly. I agree it is a discussion board... unfortunately many take these discussions VERY seriously and believe all of the supposed facts being posted.
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KellyJ
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07-10-09 12:46 PM
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Oh yeah. Really hindering an investigation. You're reaching on that one, Servai. Go figure. This is a discussion board and people are discussing things. Can't figure that one out. lol
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Servai
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07-10-09 12:05 PM
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Why does everyone want to play “junior detective” and speculate on what happened? People pick up bits and pieces and pretty soon the rumor-mill is running rampant and people are repeating things as though they are fact. The national media does the same thing. They are so determined to be first to break a story that they go ahead and report theory/GOSSIP that just confuses the issue. That, in my opinion, it not reporting; which should first involve fact finding. If the police are keeping things quiet, as some of you claim, they must have good reasons for doing so. Why would you want to spout on about it in here? Wouldn’t that be hindering the investigation?
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jdm909
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07-10-09 11:59 AM
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Wow your such a great detective varda.. maybe you should go work for the cops.
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StormyClearweather
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07-10-09 11:59 AM
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Why are you on here wasting your time varda??? If you are so sure bigduke is guilty, go to the cops d ouchebag!
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jdm909
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07-10-09 11:58 AM
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Yet again all speculations because of other information that has already been gathered put together with some thought. So why did you pick bigduke out of all the other people coming up with ideas? Others have said what they think happened also.
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