Man found shot to death on Seattle's Beacon Hill

Seattle police are investigating the shooting death of a man whose body was found on Beacon Hill early this morning.

Around 12:50 a.m., an officer traveling west on the 700 block of South Dearborn Street was flagged down by a witness who said there was an injured man just off an access road near the 1100 block of South Atlantic Street, said department spokesman Mark Jamieson.

The officer was directed to a wooded area east of Interstate 5 and south of the Interstate 90 onramp known colloquially as "The Jungle," a site popular with transients, Jamieson said.

Authorities located a person who was not breathing and was unresponsive, he said. The man had been killed by an "apparent gunshot wound to his chest," he said.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office identified the slain man as Major Lee Gay. He died of a gunshot wound to his chest.

Police said Gay was a 51-year-old transient who lives in the "The Jungle."

Officers searched the area but found no suspects, Jamieson said. They determined that the crime was "probably several hours old," he said.

Homicide and CSI units were called to the scene.