JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The active-duty service member who was found dead Tuesday has been identified as 26-year-old Zechariah Stanton by the Naval Air Force. Stanton was stationed at NAS Jacksonville.
Stanton, who was assigned to Patrol and Reconnaissance Squadron (VP) 30 in Jacksonville, was found dead in Leon County.
The entire VP-30 squadron offers their "condolences and sympathies to the family, friends, and shipmates of the Sailor during this difficult time."
Stanton was considered missing after a welfare check. Police checked their apartment several times. The sailor's mother told police it was unlike her child to go missing, and they had no known mental or medical problems, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office incident report.
Grief counseling services and support will be made available, according to the public affairs officer for the Naval Air Force.
First Coast News obtained the incident report from the Leon County Sheriff's Office but it is almost entirely redacted.
LCSO is actively investigating the sailor's death that occurred on May 9, around 1:40 p.m. in the 3000 block of Meginnis Arm Road. When deputies arrived, they discovered Stanton dead in a vehicle. No foul play is suspected and the cause of death is still being determined, pending an autopsy.
