WEST SILOAM SPRINGS, Okla. (KFSM) -- West Siloam Springs police are investigating after a body was found Thursday (Aug. 2) on U.S. 412, according to Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
Law enforcement officers received reports from several people about hitting a deer between the West Siloam Springs and Natural Falls exits, Oklahoma City affiliate KFOR reports.
When officers arrived in the area, they quickly realized the drivers had not hit a deer. Instead, several drivers had run over a body near the road.
The body was found mangled and without a head, KFOR reports.
"My sons and I thought it was a deer until we walked up and saw it was a person," Brett Crawford, a driver at the scene told 5NEWS. "My youngest son said, 'no dad, there's some tennis shoes in the road.' So we went back out to the road, and it was very obvious when we got there it was a person that had been hit, so we just flagged traffic."
According to Crawford, the body was so mangled from being dragged by vehicles up and down the highway it was unrecognizable. He says the road was covered in blood, and body fragments were scattered everywhere.
Later a wallet was found about 400 yards from where they believe the victim was initially struck.
Police and fire crews shut down part of the highway for nearly five hours to clean and investigate, parts of the road are still stained from the blood.
The victim has not been identified, and the cause of death has not been released.
