Cocaine is suspected in the death of a 42-year-old Bradenton Beach man found near the surf at Coquina Beach over Labor Day weekend.
Samuel Collins Jr. was found dead at about 7 a.m., Sept. 4, lying in the sand on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico by a beach walker, who called police, Bradenton Beach Police Detective Sgt. Lenard Diaz said.
It was the second time in about four hours the Bradenton Beach Police Department had responded to the 2600 block of Gulf Drive at Coquina Park.
Answering a 2:46 a.m. call from a maintenance worker at the park, Officers Eric Hill and Tom Ferrara observed a man running naked on the beach. They described him as disoriented.
The officers took Nathan Swann, 25, of Palmetto, into custody under the Florida Mental Health Act. Known also as the Baker Act, it allows involuntary commitment and examination for people who pose harm to themselves or others.
Swann was transported to Blake Medical Center in Bradenton by Manatee County Emergency Medical Services.
Swann was questioned by police at Blake, where Diaz said he tested positive for cocaine.
“We know they were out there together. We know Nathan brought him there,” Diaz said, adding that Swann’s gray Infiniti had been parked near Leffis Key, across Gulf Drive from Coquina Park.
“We know they did drugs. And that we have a dead man. That’s about all we know,” Diaz said Sept. 4.