Body found on side of Visalia road prompts homicide investigation

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- A homicide investigation is underway in Visalia after a man was found dead on the side of a road.

Visalia police say people working near Douglas Avenue and Burke Street discovered a man unresponsive on the side of the road around 7 a.m. Monday. They called police, and officers determined the man was dead -- the victim of a homicide.

"Our detectives currently are canvassing the neighborhood, looking for any type of witnesses that may have seen what happened this morning," said Sgt. Damon Maurice with the Visalia Police Department.

Maurice says they didn't receive any calls for fights or gunshots in the area overnight.

But a woman who lives nearby says she did hear something. "We heard 10 gunshots last night, around 3 o'clock in the morning, and they were really rapid and fast," she said.

The woman says she didn't report the gunfire because she says it's a normal sound in the area. "There has been a lot of police presence the last month, so I just figured they'd be out here out just circling the way they normally do," she said.

It's unknown right now how the man died. Police say he has visible injuries, but they aren't saying what kind. We do know he is in his late 20s or early 30s.

Later in the day, detectives took several bags of items from a home near the crime scene. Visalia police say those items belong to the victim.

Investigators are also looking at surveillance video from neighboring businesses. They're hoping all the evidence will help them solve this case.

The coroner will also be conducting an autopsy to determine how the man died.

Anyone with information on this case should call the Visalia Police Department at (559) 734-8117.