Body Found Near Vista Courthouse

VISTA, CA — A 53-year-old man was found dead Thursday near a makeshift encampment alongside state Route 78 in Vista.

A pedestrian flagged down a California Highway Patrol officer about 1 p.m. to report spotting the body, which was in an open area between Hacienda Drive and the freeway, just east of Vista Courthouse, CHP public-affairs Officer Hunter Gerber said.

Preliminary evidence suggested that the man, whose name was withheld pending family notification, might have died of a drug overdose, Gerber said.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office was called in to take custody of the body for autopsy purposes.

— City News Service