Veteran Found Deceased in Walk-In Freezer at Assisted Living Facility

An elderly man with dementia was discovered dead inside a walk-in freezer at an assisted living facility after his daughter noticed he was missing from his room.

William Eugene Ray, 83, a retired US Navy veteran who served for 36 years, was seen on security footage leaving his room during the night and did not return. His daughter, Kristen Spencer, who had installed a security camera in his room, observed that he had left around 12:30 a.m. and was not seen coming back.

When Spencer checked the footage again, she saw her father was absent from his room, and later, staff at the Waverly Assisted Living and Memory Care in Trinity, Florida, found his body in the freezer. She recounted, “The next words out of her mouth were, ‘He’s in the freezer,’” raising concerns about how long he might have been there unseen.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office stated that their preliminary investigation revealed no signs of foul play. The family expressed their shock and grief, questioning how long her father had been inside the freezer and emphasizing the importance of securing vulnerable residents.

“When you have vulnerable people in a place, you have to secure these areas,” Kristen Spencer said. She also expressed concerns about the lack of oversight, asking, “If we had not called the facility, when would they have found him?”

The facility defended its staff and asked the public to refrain from leaving unverified online reviews. In a statement, Waverly expressed its condolences, emphasizing that such an incident was unprecedented in their operations and praising their staff’s immediate response. They reaffirmed their commitment to providing quality care and services.

Ray, known as Gene among friends and family, joined the Navy at 17 and retired after more than three decades of service. After returning home, he worked in land surveying and for the Department of Transportation in Florida, according to his obituary.