Authorities give update on missing man’s death

2024-08-28 06:15:02

A Massachusetts man who disappeared more than a week ago on Hilton Head Island has been found dead.His family confirmed the news Monday afternoon, saying his body was found four houses down from their rental unit underneath the home.Stanley Kotowski, 60, was last seen August 16 around 10:30 a.m. leaving the family’s vacation rental at 226 South Sea Pines Drive, shoeless and without his phone or drivers license. “He just walked out the door. He had really bad insomnia for about a month. He doesn’t have dementia. His anxiety just kept getting worse and worse and worse and he started to get a little paranoid,” his wife, Jackie Kotowski, told WJCL 22 News. Below video: the last time Stanley Kotowski was seen An extensive search lasted for 10 days until a Sea Pines security officer noticed a foul smell and bugs Monday.Deputies found Kotowski in a crawl space of a home just four doors down from where his family was staying.Beaufort County Coroner David Ott confirmed Tuesday that Kotowski killed himself the day he went missing. Ott said Kotowski hung himself and died by asphyxiation. The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office responded to the home at 12:42 p.m. the day he went missing. They mobilized a substantial search effort, deploying canines, drones and helicopters to locate Kotowski. According to a report from the BCSO, Jackie Kotowski told deputies that her husband “believes Sea Pines is a ‘set up’ and has a conspiracy that the people here are out to get him. She stated that Stanley has made several statements of people at this place “watching him.””She also told deputies that, before he left, Stanley told her “Promise me you will go on without me.” Support for the family flooded in on social media, where people offered up their homes for the family to stay as search efforts continued. Below video: The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office shared additional details Tuesday following the discovery of Stanley Kotowski’s body. TRENDING STORIESFamily: Missing Hilton Head Island vacationer found deadUSGS confirms weekend earthquake in GeorgiaDaufuskie Island residents demand action against troubled ferry service