Body of man missing since December found stuck inside chimney

MACON, Ga. — The body of a Georgia man who had been missing since late December was discovered decomposing in the chimney of a residence on Friday, authorities said.

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Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones on Saturday identified the dead man as 43-year-old Anthony Rumplik, WMAZ-TV reported. Rumplik had been missing since Dec. 28, the homeowner, Mike Hammett, told WGXA-TV.

Hammett told the television station that Rumplik had been living there with his family.

In a release, the sheriff’s office said they received a call from the homeowner on Courtland Avenue shortly after 9 p.m. EST on Friday. Officials discovered Rumplik’s body in the chimney and called the Bibb Fire Department to help them remove it.

A community-wide search was organized by Rumplik’s family last week, WMAZ reported. The public was notified about Rumplik’s disappearance on Jan. 1.

Family members said that Rumplik traveled from his Ohio home in February 2023 on his motorcycle when it broke down in Macon and was eventually stolen, according to the television station. His destination was Florida, but he never made it to the Sunshine State, remaining in the Macon area and receiving financial assistance through Social Security Disability Insurance and from his family, WMAZ reported.

Family members said that Rumplik suffered from several health issues, including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and kidney failure.

“My family needs my brother either to get him help, medical help right away, or to go into burial arrangements,” the man’s sister, Marlo, told WXGA last week.

Jones and the sheriff’s office said that Rumplik’s body will be sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for an autopsy to determine the cause of death, WMAZ reported.

An investigation is ongoing.

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