For those who had prayed earnestly for a favourable outcome, the two-day search for missing acting deputy commissioner of rehabilitation and probation aftercare services at the Department of Correctional Services (DCS), Reverend Orville Moore, ended in gloom yesterday when his lifeless body was found.

For hours, police officers and members of the Jamaica Defence Force scoured sections of a precipice along the main road of the Eglinton Community, Spur Tree, in Manchester, where Moore’s body was reportedly found near his mangled motor vehicle.

The police theorise he was involved in a vehicular accident.

For decades, the section of the roadway has been labelled as a serious accident zone, with numerous heavy-duty units, among other vehicles, losing control and veering off the cliff.

One resident from the community said there was a helicopter circling the area from as early as noon prior to the convergence of other lawmen and curious onlookers.

“When I heard they were looking for a body, me come up here come look to, but for a while they were there, and it never looked like they saw anything. But then I saw more police, more soldiers, and people start come, and I knew something was found and it wasn’t good,” the resident said.

Individuals close to Moore said they have now been left with more questions than answers as the acting director, who went missing on Monday, had called to confirm he was in Kingston the day before.

According to reports, Moore, who resided in Black River, left home on Sunday en route to Kingston in preparation for a meeting on Monday morning.

When he did not show up for the meeting, concerns were raised.

Reports were later made to the Half-Way Way Tree Police Station as efforts to locate him proved futile.

“We don’t understand why he would be here in Manchester ... something is not adding up and our suspicions are raised,” said an individual, who requested anonymity.

In a release from the DCS, acting Commissioner of Corrections, Dr Marc Thomas, said it was a very challenging time for the entity and Moore’s family.

“... Reverend Moore delivered exceptionally and was professional in the execution of his duties across two decades.”

The release further stated that members of the DCS’ chaplaincy unit had been deployed to provide counselling to his family and staff members.

Moore began working with the DCS on February 1, 2003, as a probation officer and was appointed on October 1, 2004. He was promoted on October 1, 2017, to chief probation aftercare officer and was assigned the position of acting deputy commissioner, rehabilitation and probation aftercare services, on May 12.