A statement from the Dane County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the body found in Lake Mendota Saturday afternoon to be 23-year-old Jacob D. Payne of Fitchburg.
A forensic autopsy Sunday discovered Payne died from wounds inflicted by an "edged weapon," director of operations for the Dane County Medical Examiner's Office Barry Irmen wrote in the statement.
The wounds suggest Payne could have been stabbed to death. The Dane County Sheriff’s Office will continue to investigate the case as a homicide instead of a death.
Wisconsin Circuit Court records show that a man named Jacob D. Payne, who would currently be 23 years old, was charged with a felony for armed robbery and threats to use force in March 2008. Payne pled no contest to the charges during his trial in January 2009. He was sentenced to a year in state prison for these charges.
According to court records, Payne had an extended supervision period of three years following the completion of his sentence. The extended supervision was later transferred to Mississippi and it is unknown when Payne returned to Wisconsin.
While officials at the Madison Police Department declined to comment on the criminal history of the man found in the lake, the court records suggest the two men could be the same person.
