Man’s body found behind Ellsworth mall

ELLSWORTH – Foul play is not suspected in the death of a man whose body was found Wednesday morning in the woods behind a local mall, police said.

The body of Dennis Grindle, 43, has been sent to Augusta so that state authorities can determine the cause of death, Ellsworth police Lt. Harold Page said. The state Medical Examiner’s Office will investigate.

Page said Grindle, a transient, was well-known to Ellsworth police. They suspect he died from a combination of poor health and bad weather. Temperatures dropped below freezing Tuesday night in Hancock County as cold winds blew and a small amount of snow fell.

The homeless man was known to spend nights in the woods behind Maine Coast Mall, according to Page.

“He was in the mall [Tuesday] intoxicated and [mall security] kicked him out,” Page said.

A mall employee who went to look for Grindle in the woods around 6 a.m. Wednesday found his clothed body covered only with a light jacket, he said.

“That’s all he really had was that light jacket – and he was laying right on the ground,” Page said.