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A man was found dead in a ditch near a gas station in Bend on Thursday morning, police said. 

Bend Police officers found David Caroll Hickman, a 62-year-old Bend resident, around 9:30 a.m. in a ditch just west of the Pacific Pride gas station on the 3300 block of N. U.S. Highway 97, Bend Police spokesperson Sheila Miller said in an news release.

“Because the cause of death isn’t clear at this time, it’s important for us to investigate and determine if it’s homicide,” Miller told The Bulletin.

Officers initially responded to the area to conduct a welfare check because a caller had seen someone who looked like they needed help, she said. 

Police are treating the death as suspicious.

“The circumstances surrounding Mr. Hickman’s death are being investigated by the Bend Police Department,” Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels said.

He added, the investigation will include a determination of the cause of Hickman’s death and, therefore, whether criminal charges ought to be pursued.