POLK COUNTY, Fla. – After a 21-year-old Winter Haven man was found dead in an orange grove Tuesday, Polk County Sheriff’s Office officials say he was likely the victim of a homicide.
Danne Frazier was found dead in an orange grove off Helicopter Road in Lake Wales, according to the sheriff’s office. An autopsy will be performed Friday to determined his cause of death, however, deputies say the circumstances surrounding his death are suspicious. Sheriff Grady Judd said he was “brutally murdered.”
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Frazier was reported missing on Nov. 4 by his family to the Lakeland Police Department. Officers said he left the Publix warehouse in Lakeland where he works around 2 a.m. on Nov. 4 and was last seen about 20 minutes later at a WaWa gas station on Edgewood Drive.
Authorities said Frazier never made it to his Winter Haven home.
“As you might imagine, this is a difficult time for the family of Danne Frazier and the Publix family as well. Our thoughts are with his family. As this is an open investigation, we are unable to provide further comment,” Publix said in a statement.
Judd said detectives are working to recreate Frazier’s final days to determine what happened to him.
“We know that there are those out there who know what happened to him. You can remain completely anonymous - and get cash - for your information. All you have to do is contact Heartland Crime Stoppers," Judd said in a statement. "He was brutally murdered, and then dumped in an orange grove, and his family deserves justice.”
Anyone with information about Frazier’s disappearance and death is asked to contact the Polk County Sheriff’s Office at 863-298-6200. To remain anonymous, tipsters can contact Heartland Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-226 TIPS (8477) or online at www.heartlandcrimestoppers.com.