Man evading police vanishes in woods, then body found days later in river, WI cops say

A missing man who was last seen running into the woods to escape police has been found dead, Wisconsin officials say.

The body of Ryan Lahti, 43, of Duluth, was discovered “partially submerged” in the Pokegama River, near Superior, in the afternoon on Monday, June 17, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said in a June 18 news release.

Lahti vanished on June 8, while escaping from deputies, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies attempted a traffic stop but Lahti ran away on foot, disappearing into nearby woods.

“An extensive search using multiple K9’s, aerial drones and thermal imaging were unsuccessful in locating Lahti at the time of that incident,” the sheriff’s office said.

Six days passed without any sign of him, spurring Lahti’s family to report him missing on June 14, according to the office.

A search was launched and, “working with friends and family of Lahti,” search crews located him three days later, officials said.

Though Lahti’s body has been retrieved, officials are currently awaiting autopsy results to determine his cause of death.

Superior, with a population of about 26,000 people, sits on the northwest border between Wisconsin and Minnesota. It is a roughly 390-mile drive northwest from Milwaukee.

This story was originally published June 18, 2024 at 3:03 PM with the headline "Man evading police vanishes in woods, then body found days later in river, WI cops say."