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Dawson assistant DA found dead
GBI began investigating Wilbanks, who as of recently was no longer with the DAs office
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The supervising attorney in the Hall-Dawson District Attorney’s Dawson County office has been found dead.The District 4 Florida Medical Examiner’s Office in Jacksonville confirmed Thursday that it has the body of John G. Wilbanks Jr.Wilbanks was being investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, with the cooperation of District Attorney Lee Darragh’s office.The scope of the investigation wasn’t immediately known, but GBI spokesman John Bankhead said the death, which he couldn’t confirm, would close any investigation.An official with the Fernandina Beach Police Department has said the earliest any incident reports about the death could be released is today.The Dawson office was closed on Thursday.Darragh extended his sympathies to Wilbanks’ family and called the death “horribly tragic.”“Mr. Wilbanks was a dedicated public servant with a decadeslong history of effective prosecution and the administration of justice, and his life should be honored without regard to the investigation being reported,” Darragh said. “My entire office is very saddened by these events, and John will be missed as our colleague and friend.”Earlier Thursday, before news of the death, Bankhead said the investigation had started upon the request of a superior court judge in the judicial circuit. He didn’t name the judge.“Once we complete our investigation, it’ll be turned over either to the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council (of Georgia) or the (state) Attorney General’s Office,” Bankhead said at the time.