Investigators Call Tuscaloosa County Motorcyclist’s Death Suspicious, Seek Witnesses

Police in Tuscaloosa County are asking for witnesses who may have any information about a motorcyclist found dead under suspicious circumstances on Wednesday.

Captain Jack Kennedy, the commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit, said volunteer firefighters and sheriff's deputies were called to Sylvan Loop Road at about 5 a.m. Wednesday, where a man had been found dead on the roadside.

Kennedy said the deceased is 55-year-old Michael Lee Jordan, who was found near a parked motorcycle.

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The vehicle was upright on its kickstand, with no signs of damage to the machine and no apparent signs of injury to the rider.

Kennedy said an autopsy showed Jordan died due to internal injury from "some kind of blunt force trauma."

"It is believed that the rider’s helmet protected the subject, as the injuries are internal," Kennedy said in a release. "Anyone who was in the area of Sylvan Loop Road in the early morning hours of Wednesday, October 8th, who believes they may have witnessed anything related to this motorcycle and its rider, or has any information concerning this case, is asked to contact the VCU at (205) 464-8692."

No other information was available Friday morning.

The Violent Crimes Unit is a team comprised of detectives from the Tuscaloosa, Northport, and University of Alabama Police Departments and the County Sheriff's Office. They forego jurisdictional boundaries and investigate almost all local deaths that occur outside of a hospital setting, as well as assault cases and sex crimes. Their involvement in a death case does not necessarily indicate suspicion of foul play.

For more coverage of this case and other news in west Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.