Overview

• The South Kingstown Police Department confirmed on June 13 that human remains washed ashore May 14 in Westerly’s Watch Hill neighborhood belong to 31-year-old Eric Wein of Massachusetts.
• Wein’s vehicle was located on Ocean Avenue in South Kingstown on April 10 and he was officially reported missing on April 18.
• In a press release, authorities extended their condolences to Wein’s family and declared the case closed after coordinating with the Rhode Island Office of the State Medical Examiners and Mansfield Police.
• His remains were the third discovered in Rhode Island and one of 13 bodies recovered across Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut since March, an occurrence that had fueled online fears of a serial killer.
• Westerly Police Chief Paul Gingerella asserted that the case is isolated and unrelated to serial-killer rumors circulating on social media.