By JUSTIN STORY, Bowling Green Daily News

A week after he was last seen and nearly a week after he was reported missing, Shawn Faulkner’s body was found by authorities Sunday.

According to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office, the body of the 46-year-old Smiths Grove resident was located in the general vicinity of where his vehicle was left parked near Barren River at Martinsville Road.

Warren County Sheriff Brett Hightower said a member of the search party found the body Sunday night and notified deputies at the scene.

An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the cause of death, but Hightower said that the death does not appear to be suspicious.

Faulkner was last seen Sept. 3, when he left his home that day.

Faulkner’s spouse, Martina Faulkner, previously told the Daily News that Shawn Faulkner was upset about a conflict he was having with another person when he suddenly left their Smiths Grove home Sept. 3, leaving behind his wallet.

Family members reported him missing Sept. 5 after failing to hear from him and then finding his locked car at the dead end of Martinsville Road near the river, with his cellphone in the front seat.

The section of the river where the car was found, near some woods and caves, was a spot Faulkner enjoyed frequenting with his children, and family members said they had spent time out there together Sept. 2, the day before he disappeared.

The sheriff’s office was able to unlock the car, learning that a backpack belonging to his spouse that contained a first aid kit and flashlights was missing.

Several volunteer fire departments took part in the search for Faulkner along with the sheriff’s office and private citizens.