Man whose body was found in a barrel in Malibu is identified by authorities

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Authorities on Wednesday have identified the man whose naked body was found inside a barrel in Malibu, California.

The man was identified by the coroner’s office as 32-year-old Javonnta Marshann Murphy, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.

No additional information was immediately provided.

Murphy’s body was found inside a black plastic 55-gallon drum on Monday and homicide detectives are investigating.

The barrel was first spotted over the weekend floating in a Malibu lagoon and brought in with a kayak by a maintenance worker, but was not opened.

The Sheriff’s Department said the barrel was opened Monday morning by a lifeguard at Malibu Lagoon State Beach, who had retrieved it after it washed back into the lagoon.

It was not immediately known how long the body had been in the drum.