CORINTH – A body was found inside a car pulled from the Tennessee River about midday Wednesday, according to Corinth Police Chief David Lancaster.

The body has not been identified, but could be Christopher Richard Bonds, 37, a Corinth man who has been missing since Jan. 8 and owner of the silver 2010 Toyota Camry that was recovered.

The Tennessee medical examiner will conduct an autopsy and make an identification based on dental and other records, said Lancaster.

Bonds reportedly left home about 5:30 p.m. Jan. 8. After he was reported missing to the Corinth Police Department, statements from the family led to searching several areas in Hardin County, Tenn., including the Fishermans Loop Road area in Savannah.

A week after Bonds was last seen, the signal from a call placed from his cell phone led to further ground and air searches, with no success.

On Monday the Bonds family hired Equusearch to extend the search, Lancaster said. Equusearch then sent Team Watters Inc., a group that specializes in water search and rescue, to Corinth.

Searchers focused on the Tennessee River in the Shiloh area with the assistance of the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department, Hardin County Volunteer Fire Department, Tennessee Valley Authority Police, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks and Corinth police.

On Tuesday, they found three submerged vehicles and determined that two of them weren’t the missing Toyota belonging to Bonds.

About three hours after the search resumed Wednesday, diver Herb Murphy located the car in about 27 feet of water.

Further investigation will be handled by the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department, Lancaster said, which can be reached at (731) 925-3081.

Contact Lena Mitchell at (662) 287-9822 or lena.mitchell@djournal.com.