There's Been a Death at the Gathering of the Juggalos
The 14th annual Gathering of the Juggalos is currently underway at HogRock Campgrounds in Cave-In-Rock, Illinois. This afternoon, a body was found in one of the tents camped on site.
Sources tell us the deceased was a male in his late 20s or early 30s, who the coroner determined had been dead for about eight hours. The cause of death has not been determined, though a heroin overdose is suspected.
The Hardin County Sheriff's office couldn't officially confirm the death, but acknowledged there'd been an early afternoon "incident."
For the last six years, a "Drug Bridge" has existed at the Gathering of the Juggalos. As long as there's no violence, privately hired security doesn't interfere with the underground economy—though this year, all cars were searched for large quantities of drugs. Two related arrests were made, one for an unspecified amount of meth, one for pounds of marijuana. But once news of the body spread, private security closed down the walkway, blocking the path with trucks.
Update: He's been identified as 24-year-old Cory Collins from Harrisburg, Illinois. We'll continue updating with additional information over here.
[top photo by Nate "Igor" Smith; more of his photos from the Gathering are here.]
To contact the author of this post, email camille@gawker.com.