A body recovered from Neptune Beach in Washington state has been identified as a Richmond man who went missing from a float home in Ladner in April.
Working with the Delta Police Department and the Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office was able to identify the man through dental records as 47-year-old Kuljit “Steve” Boparai.
Police line/Shutterstock
According to the medical examiner, the cause of death was freshwater drowning and the death was determined to be accidental.
A beachcomber found the body while walking on Neptune Beach, northwest of Bellingham, on July 22 and contacted the sheriff’s office.
According to a news release, the area where the body was found is southeast of the Fraser River outflow.
The sheriff’s office put out a bulletin to regional law enforcement in hopes of identifying the man due to some unique tattoos.
Boparai went missing on April 25 when it is believed he fell off a float home moored in the Fraser River in the 3400-block of River Road West.
DPD conducted an exhaustive search over several days with assistance from the Canadian Coast Guard and an RCMP dive team after Boparai was reported missing.
