PORTLAND, Maine — The body of a missing Scarborough man was found early Wednesday morning in Portland Harbor, ending a search that started after the 23-year-old vanished after a night in the Old Port, authorities said.
Firefighters pulled the body of Matthew Foster from the water around 5:20 a.m. after witnesses spotted it between Union and Widgery wharves, Portland police said.
Police had suspended the search for Foster on Friday, after divers spent multiple days searching the waterfront for him. Police dogs had tracked his scent there, according to the Portland Press Herald.
On June 10, the day he was last seen, Foster attended a wedding, went home to change, then headed to downtown Portland with a roommate, his father told Portland television station WGME, CBS 13.
Foster was seen that night on video in the Wharf Street bar Oasis, police said. He was supposed to meet friends later but never showed. He was reported missing the following Monday.
Friends and family were worried because Foster had diabetes and left home with only one dose of his medication. He left his car and cellphone at home, as well.
Police declined to comment on how the body was identified but confirmed they were in contact with Foster’s family.
“Our thoughts are with them,” Lt. James Sweatt said. “This is a really tough time for them.”
The medical examiner’s preliminary findings regarding the cause and manner of Foster’s death likely will become available in the coming days, but final determination will require laboratory testing, which may take weeks, police said.
The news comes just a few months after the body of another man, James Dyer, 23, of Saco, was found in the water near DiMillo’s Marina. Dyer was last seen Jan. 1 leaving the Pearl Night Club in the Old Port. His body wasn’t found until late February.
BDN writers Jake Bleiberg and Ryan McLaughlin contributed to this report.