Medical Examiner: Missing Wall Street Journal Reporter's Death a Drowning

A medical examiner in New Jersey says the death of a Wall Street Journal reporter whose body was found in a river 14 months after he disappeared was an accident.

The medical examiner determined that 55-year-old David Bird accidentally drowned when he fell into the Passaic River.

Bird's widow, Nancy, tells the Daily Record of Parsippany she believes her husband was scrambling to return home as a storm approached and lost his footing on the banks of the river.

Police have said Bird’s remains were found about 20 feet from the shoreline in water approximately seven feet deep.

 There has been no explanation, however, of how Bird's credit card ended up being used in Mexico.

Originally, the family feared that his coverage of OPEC for WSHl may be connected to his disappearance.

-RW