Port Orchard Independent
PORT ORCHARD — A woman’s body discovered washed ashore Tuesday afternoon on Blake Island has been identified by law enforcement.
According to Deputy Scott Wilson, a spokesman for the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, the woman is Collete Scotta Russell, 46, of Brinnon.
Blake Island lies north of Vashon Island and east of Manchester.
It is reachable only by boat and has a small marina.
Wilson said about 7:45 p.m. on Jan. 16, the woman was reported missing and entered into the National Crime Information Center and Washington Crime Information Center computer systems.
As a result of media exposure, Wilson said Port of Seattle police contacted the Kitsap Sheriff’s Office about the woman’s body.
A Port of Seattle detective came to county’s morgue to help identify the body.
“Through pictures and other documents we were able to make a positive identification,” Wilson said Wednesday.
He said the woman is believed to be a crew member on a fishing trawler docked at the port.
“There is speculation the woman fell, hit her head and fell overboard,” said Wilson.
The coroner’s office will wait on results from the autopsy they conducted to determine the cause of death.
On Tuesday, the woman’s body was discovered by a hiker on the southside of the island. The hiker contacted the Kitsap Sheriff’s Office about 3 p.m.
Investigators from the Sheriff’s Office and the County Coroner’s Office arrived on the island about 4 p.m. to examine and retrieve the body.
They arrived back ashore in Manchester about 6:10 p.m. and transported the body to the county morgue.
