OCEAN BEACH (NEWS 8) - A man's body washed ashore in Ocean Beach early Monday morning about three hours after witnesses reported that a man jumped off the pier, police said.
Investigators believe the body that washed ashore was that of the man who jumped off the pier, but were still working to confirm that, San Diego police Sgt. Robert Hawkins said. It wasn't immediately clear if the death was a suicide, an accident or something else.
Witnesses reported the man jumping off the pier just after midnight, prompting an ultimately fruitless search of the water, Hawkins said. Lifeguards and police searched for the man in boats and from above on the pier and in helicopters.
At 2:53 a.m., after emergency crews had already completed their initial search, a person flagged down police and pointed them toward a man's body that washed ashore, Hawkins said. There are reports that a witness told police the body was that of the man who jumped off the pier.
Lifeguards and police were investigating the incident and the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office responded to take custody of the victim and determine the cause and manner of death.