PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 8 (UPI) -- Police said Thursday investigators located the next-of-kin of a familiar Portland, Ore., street musician who died last weekend.
A tip from a member of the public led the Oregon State Medical Examiner to the sister of Kirk Reeves, a 56-year-old trumpet player who was well known to Portland residents for his trademark white jacket and Mickey Mouse ears.
"Many Portland Police officers also knew Kirk as he often had a wave and a smile for officers who saw him playing music," the Portland Police Bureau said in a written statement.
Although he was a musical fixture at Portland's Hawthorne Bridge, authorities did not know where to find Reeves' family to notify them of his death. Police issued a public appeal this week for any information on his next of kin.
Reeves was found dead Sunday near a lake in North Portland Sunday. The Police Bureau revealed Thursday that Reeves had died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The bureau said in its statement help was available in Portland for people with suicidal thoughts or other mental health issues.
