Search in national park suspended after body found near Overall Run Falls on Sunday

~ Press release issued by Shenandoah National Park

LURAY, May 21 — Based on a preliminary identification of remains found Sunday, May 21, 2023, the search for Mateo Cobo Zevallos conducted by Shenandoah National Park with support from Virginia Department of Emergency Management has been suspended.

The body of a male believed to be Mateo Cobo Zevallos was discovered by searchers on Sunday at 12:15 p.m. The body is being transported to the Office of the Medical Examiner in Manassas for positive identification and determination of cause of death.

Mr. Zevallos was reported missing to the Fairfax County Police Department on May 6. He was last seen leaving his home in Oakton, Virginia on May 5 en route to George Mason University.

Based on information received Tuesday evening, May 16, Shenandoah National Park Rangers began looking for Mr. Zevallos’s vehicle. They located the car in the northern area of Shenandoah National Park in a parking lot that serves the popular Overall Run Falls Trail.

The park established a search operation Wednesday morning, which continued through weekend. The remains were found in the park about 1.6 miles from where his car was parked in steep terrain near several rock outcrops.

Trails in the Overall Run area that were closed for search operations have been reopened.

Shenandoah National Park joins Virginia Department of Emergency Management in thanking the many organizations that were involved including Virginia Department of Emergency Management, Fairfax County Police, Virginia State Police, as well as numerous volunteer SAR organizations including Piedmont SAR, Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group, Old Rag Mountain Stewards, Virginia Rescue Dog Association, Christian Ministries SAR, SAR Tracking Institute, Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad, Shenandoah Mountain Rescue Group, Blue and Grey Rescue Dogs, TrotSAR, K9 Alert, Frederick County Sheriff’s Department, and Virginia State Parks.

For more information about Shenandoah National Park,

visit https://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm

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