Homicide Detectives Called in to Probe Death of Man, 25, Found Outside Grocery Store

A 25-year-old man died under suspicious circumstances Thursday outside a Mission Valley grocery store, authorities said.

Officers responding to a report of an unconscious person found the man on the east side of the Food 4 Less in the 7700 block of Hazard Center Drive about 7:30 a.m., according to the San Diego Police Department.

Medics attempted first aid, but the man, whose name was withheld pending family notification, died at the scene, Lt. Lou Maggi said.

Based on unspecified “items” found near the man, officers initially believed he had succumbed to a drug overdose. However, after further examination, officers suspected the man might have been assaulted and alerted homicide detectives “out of an abundance of caution,” the lieutenant said.

A ruling on the man’s cause of death was on hold pending autopsy results.