By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
This news story was first published at 2:21 p.m., and was updated at 6:42 p.m.
CHEHALIS – The homeless man found dead in a tent in Chehalis on Monday has been identified as 67-year-old Eugene Briese.
The Lewis County Coroner’s Office said he also went by the name Gene Wayne Briese.
Briese lived in the wooded area east of Kresky Avenue along the 2200 block. He was a convicted felon required to check in regularly at the Department of Corrections office located in the nearby Lewis County Mall.
The Chehalis Police Department has said there were no obvious signs of trauma or a struggle.
An autopsy today concluded Briese died from massive bleeding related to cancer in one of his lungs. Chief Deputy Coroner Dawn Harris said it appeared to the forensic pathologist coughing caused the mass to tear an artery.
Scott Albert, the supervisor at the DOC Chehalis office, said Briese had never mentioned anything about having cancer; he suspected Briese didn’t know it.
“The last time we saw him, he had a cold, and we were all coming down with colds,” Albert said today, noting Briese offered them advice on taking care of themselves. “He’d seen a doctor.”
Briese has been homeless since he got out of prison two years ago and has been under their supervision, according to Albert.
Despite being a registered sex offender who turned to residing in the out of doors, he would comment there were people worse off than him, Albert said.
“The guy, for the most part, was pretty positive,” Albert said. “He was pretty upbeat, doing the best with what he had.”
Chief Deputy Coroner Harris said she wasn’t able to find that he had any family.
A pair of community corrections officers found him dead when they went to check on him after he missed an appointment Monday morning.
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Read “Man found dead in tent off Kresky in Chehalis” from Tuesday Dec. 7, 2010 here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter