Authorities are investigating an apparent murder at Nevada’s Burning Man Festival over the weekend.
The Pershing County Sheriff’s Office said one of its deputies was flagged down by a participant in the largely affluent, avante garde festival in the Nevada desert Saturday night and reported finding “a male subject lying in a pool of blood.”
Deputies and rangers from the Bureau of Land Management responded to the campsite and found a man “lying on the ground, obviously deceased” at the festival site, about 110 miles north of Reno in the Black Rock Desert.
On Sunday, the sheriff’s office said that the festival would see “heavy law enforcement presence” until their investigation is completed. The festival ends on Monday.
As of Sunday, police said they had not identified the victim, nor had they released a cause and manner of death. They did say they had “interviewed several participants in the immediate area.”
The victim’s body was sent to a medical examiner’s office.
The Associated Press reported that the festival said in a statement it was cooperating with the investigation and asked participants not to interfere.
“The safety and well-being of our community are paramount,” the statement said, adding that support services were available to assist participants.
The annual Burning Man festival, which attracts thousands of participants for a mix of performances and camping, is highlighted by the burning of large wooden effigy of a man, which gives the festival its name.
No other information about the murder has been released.
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[Featured image: FILE, The titular burning man before the fire in 2002/AP Photo/Debra Reid, File]