SKOWHEGAN — A body found Saturday morning in a backyard on Bennett Avenue is the local man who has been missing for a week, a friend said.

Jeff Godin, 42, was last seen on May 26 and an extensive air, ground and water search was launched by the Maine Warden Service and police Friday. A friend, Jennifer Archer, said Saturday that the body found Saturday morning in the backyard of 37 Bennett Ave., roughly halfway between Godin’s home on Beech Street, and the South Side Tavern, where he was last seen, is him.

No law enforcement agency would confirm the information Saturday.

Archer said his body was taken to Augusta for an autopsy. The cause of death is not known, she said.

A resident of Bennett Avenue, who asked to remain anonymous, said he saw wardens from the Maine Warden Service and police in the backyard of 37 Bennett Ave. on Saturday morning. Vehicles at the scene included a hearse, he said.

Later in the day, the site was empty and there was nothing to indicate it was being treated as a crime scene.

Godin was last seen at 1 a.m., Saturday, May 26, at the tavern on Waterville Road. The site were the body was found is roughly halfway between his home and the tavern.

Archer, who works at the tavern, said she saw Godin the night he disappeared and he seemed well.

“He was very happy,” she said.

A person who answered the phone at Godin’s mother’s house Saturday afternoon said she was not able to talk.

Gail Edwards, an employer of Godin said she spoke with his mother by telephone to offer condolences. Edwards owns Blessed Maine Herb Farm in Athens, where Godin worked as a handiman for more than three years.

“The most outstanding thing about Jeff Godin was how he always had everyone’s best interests in mind,” Edwards said Sunday. “He was a good, loyal friend to many people.

“He was an exemplary worker; very smart, innovative and creative. He was a stand-up, responsible guy and he was loved by everyone who knew him.”

Several calls to Skowhegan police and the Somerset County Sheriff’s Office were not returned by press time Saturday. Department of Public Safety Spokesman Steve McCausland said he had no information on the case.

On Sunday morning, a dispatcher for Skowhegan police said Deputy Chief Dale Lancaster would issue a press update on the case Monday.

Police and wardens Friday searched by air, water and ground for Godin, including both sides of the Kennebec River from Hinckley to Fairfield.

Friends said it was unlikely he’d leave his dog, Taz, for any length of time and his mother said she normally heard from him regularly but hadn’t recently.

The fire department searched the Kennebec River from Skowhegan to Hinckley. Flyers displaying Godin’s picture had been posted around town.

Ben McCanna — 861-9239

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