Suspicious Death Near Hike & Bike Trail

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One eastbound lane of W. Cesar Chavez Street  is shut down and part of the Hike and Bike Trail is closed as Austin Police investigate a suspicious death.

APD says a bicyclist called police just after 8 a.m. when he found a man lying near the trail. The man was dead in a sleeping bag with obvious trauma. Officers say he appears to have been homeless.

Senior Police Officer Veneza Bremner says it’s unclear how long the man was there but says the location is noteworthy because it’s very public area.

“The body was just south of the railing by the sidewalk on the south end of Cesar Chavez and up on the hill on a grassy area from the trail. So kind of right in between the trail and the street," Bremner says.

A homeless woman was found beaten to death in an Austin park last month. Police aren’t drawing any connections right now.