Homeless Man Drowns In Cumberland By Jefferson St Bridge

Friday, 07/06/07 Police believe body found in Cumberland to be that of homeless swimmer By TIM GHIANNI Staff Writer Police belielve the body of a homeless man they retrieved from the Cumberland River at about 4:45 p.m. today was that of Randy Lee Rogers, 45, a homeless man who went for a swim this afternoon. According to Metro police spokesman Don Aaron, "a few minutes before 1 p.m. today, a man we believe to be Randy Lee Rogers ...told a friend he was going for a swim. "He entered the river there under the Jefferson Street Bridge and began swimming and made it a good distance across," Aaron said. "There was a barge in the water. A person on or near the barge told officers that he saw a man swimming and saw him go under and he didn’t resurface," Aaron said. The Office of Emergency Management began searching for the body in the Cumberland River and a man's body, apparently that of Rogers, was recovered. "They are taking it to the Shelby Boat Ramp, where the medical examiner is going to pick it up," said Aaron. It's normal procedure for the M.E.'s office to take custody of a body of a person who did not die in a hospital setting, he added.