Body found in river confirmed to brother of Baltimore Ravens’ Ed Reed
After Baltimore Ravens’ Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed’s brother went missing, most had given up hope of finding him alive.
Brian Reed had jumped into the Mississippi River in New Orleans after being confronted by police about a stolen vehicle charge. The details were made clear after Brian’s body was found in the river, following extensive searches, and an autopsy to confirm
the identity of the body.
The autopsy performed at the Jefferson Parish coroner’s office concluded that the death was from accidental drowning and that the body was, indeed, Brian’s.
In a news conference on Wednesday, Ed brought to light the specific details of what had happened on the morning of January 7.
Ed said that his brother had been having some “mental issues” on the day of his disappearance. He had left their home in his brother’s car to get away from things. While he was out, the family reported to the police that the car was being driven without
permission to “basically slow my brother down and just bring him in, bring him home,” according to Reed.
"Unfortunately, he thought otherwise," Reed said of his brother. "There was nothing illegal going on or anything like that."
Brian was sitting in the vehicle on the side of the road after it had run out of gasoline. St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne said that a deputy officer approached Brian and had a friendly conversation with Brian, offering to help him get gasoline.
But Brian declined the offer.
As the deputy was leaving, a call came in over the radio that the car that Brian was occupying was being driven without authorization. The deputy the ordered Brian to get out of the vehicle and started to pat him down. Brian then pulled away from him and
ran over to a levee. The deputy witnessed him running but did not see him enter the water.
"For reasons that only Brian would know, he chose to go into the river," Champagne said.
Witnesses said that they saw Brian’s hands and head come up over the surface of the water before re-submerging. The family said that the police had been able to recover Brian’s jacket and shoes at the location where he entered the water but there was no
sign of him until this week.
On the Sunday following the incident, Ed hired private search team Texas EquuSearch to search the river where they believed Brian’s body to be. The body was spotted on the same Sunday with sonar but when divers went down to recover it, it was gone. Tim Miller,
director of EquuSearch, said that the body could have been dislodged when divers were removing debris.
"And if they did it could have moved five feet or five miles. The current out there is pretty swift", said Lieutenant Wayne McInnis of the Kenner Police Department.
Champagne said that the body was stuck in a “jungle of debris” and he thought that it would not be possible to recover the body for a time.
"We're just hopeful the Reed family can have some peace now," he said.
Brian left behind his two year old son.
Ed said of his brother: "He was a loving kid. He had a son who he cherished and loved. That was his reason for living."
Ed said that he was thankful to his teammates for their support in keeping his head in the game while the Ravens were in the NFL playoffs. They were eliminated in the divisional round of the playoffs after losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
"We are not immune from trials and tribulations that go on through life," Reed said.
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