The cause of death for Stanley KotowskiA Massachusetts man who went missing while on vacation in South Carolina has been confirmed as a suicide by asphyxiation via hanging, according to the Beaufort County coroner David Ott. Kotowski, 60, was found dead Monday (Aug. 26) in a small crawl space beneath two townhomes at the Sea Pines Resort on Hilton Head Island, about 450 to 600 feet from where he was last seen on video.

Kotowski was last seen on August 16 at around 10:30 a.m. local time when he left his family’s vacation home in the South Sea Pines Drive area. He was barefoot at the time and left the house without a cell phone or wallet. His wife, Jackie Kotowskireported that her husband had suffered increasing anxiety and paranoia in the days before his disappearance.

The discovery of Kotowski’s body came after a security guard at the Sea Pines Resort noticed a foul odor and flies near one of the buildings and contacted the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office. The area where Kotowski was found is described as “very remote,” and the sheriff PJ Tanner acknowledged that he understood how the area “could have been overlooked.”

Kotowski’s death was ruled a suicide and authorities believe he died the same day he disappeared, although the exact time of death is not yet known. His body was found wearing the same clothes he was wearing when he disappeared.