Body found on hiking trail

ASHEVILLE Investigators say the dead man was carrying the driver's license of Thomas William Shell - a Tennessee resident who has been missing since November 29.

The body was sent to the medical examiner in Chapel Hill for a positive identification and full autopsy.

Shell, 52, was from Washington County, Tennessee. Authorities have not said what he may have been doing in the area.

The Mitchell County Sheriff's Office says the body was lying along the Grassy Creek Bald trail. Detectives say there were no signs of foul play.