Brother of Ozarks doctor found dead opens up on trailer and child support claims

By Germania Rodriguez Poleo for Dailymail.Com and Emma James for Dailymail.Com

17:00 09 Jun 2023, updated 17:47 09 Jun 2023

• dr John Forsyth, 49, was found dead in a lake in Arkansas after his disappearance
• The doctor had an RV in the parking lot of the Missouri hospital where he worked
• His divorce was finalized in May and he was ordered to pay $19,000 a month

The brother of an emergency doctor found dead in the Ozarks has denied allegations he was living in an RV because he couldn’t afford the $19,000-a-month upkeep of his eight children.

The body of 49-year-old Dr. John Forsyth was found with a gunshot wound in Beaver Lake, northeast Arkansas, nine days after he was reported missing when he unusually failed to show up for work.

On May 21, the day of his disappearance, surveillance footage showed the father walking toward a luxury RV he had parked in the parking lot of the hospital in Cassville, Missouri, where he worked.

Speaking to DailyMail.com, his brother Richard said claims that Forsyth lived in the trailer because he couldn’t afford upkeep were “not at all” true and “just plain ignorant”.

“He had an RV that he stayed in when he was on duty for you. “There were periods when he was working but not needed and needed to be available,” Richard claimed.

The corpse of Dr. John Forsyth, 49, was found with a gunshot wound in Beaver Lake in northeast Arkansas. His brother Richard told DailyMail.com the doctor would use the luxury motorhome to rest while he was on call or on duty because he had been working late Pictured is his pregnant fiancee Laura Barnett, whom he is married to his brother Richard said she was the “love of his life”.

“And so the RV was in the hospital parking lot where he was on duty — he went there to rest, to rest where he could because sometimes he was working, you know, 9, 10, 12 hours at a time.” Row.

“And even during the times that he was theoretically not on duty, he could be called and so he had to get a sleep break code, so he had this RV, but he had other houses and buildings too.”

Forsyth had seven children with his wife and another with another mother. According to Richard, they range in age from a year to about 25 years.

His divorce was finalized last month, and he was ordered to pay about $19,000 a month in alimony and child support. Many online commentators have suggested his death may be related to the payments.

Forsyth was last seen getting into a car in the parking lot of a public pool in Cassville. He was then seen exiting the vehicle and walking around the parking lot for 10 to 15 minutes.

At the time of his death, many family members were unaware that Forsyth was engaged to 39-year-old Laura Barnett.

The doctor had proposed to Barnett, who is reportedly eight months pregnant, just days before he disappeared. The couple worked together at Mercy Hospital, where she is a registered nurse.

His brother explained that Forsyth had kept his relationship with his fiancee a secret during the divorce out of respect for his ex-wife.

“I think both of them were aware of the sensitivity of disclosing such information during a divorce,” Richard told DailyMail.com. “And they also have their professional lives and their reputations, and I think they wanted to handle things appropriately.”

“They wanted to try to show as much respect as possible for the communities to which they belong. And it’s strange to say that sometimes we show respect by omitting important facts.”

Richard also said that police are considering the death a homicide but have not given the family any further details.

Police have not said whether they are considering the death a homicide or a suicide, and have not revealed the location of the gunshot wound. The results of the autopsy will not be announced until the investigation is complete.

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office for comment.

The brothers had dinner just days before Forsyth’s disappearance and Richard said his behavior before his death was not “the acts of a person who kills himself”.

He said: “On May 17, four days before my brother’s disappearance, he and I had dinner for three hours. In hindsight, I think we had a very long goodbye.

Forsyth’s body was found near the shore across from the Lost Bridge South area of ​​Beaver Lake, about 20 miles south of Cassville, police said. Shortly after, the Cassville Police Department conducted an extensive 90-acre search, but it failed. By the time a kayaker found his body last month, all results have soared. His stethoscope can be seen dangling from the rearview mirror of his Infiniti sedan in an eerie new picture

“It was at that dinner he told me about.” [his fiancée] Laura and he is very happy to have found her and they are very much in love. And I congratulated him.

“He really seems to have found something to make her happy.” And I told him I was really happy about that. And he was very optimistic about the future

Authorities have found Forsyth’s abandoned black Infiniti sedan at Cassville Aquatic Park. Inside were the car keys, as well as Forsyth’s wallet, passport, and briefcase. Both of his mobile phones were found in the hospital’s mobile home.

Shortly after, Cassville police conducted a full-scale search covering 90 acres that yielded no results until a kayaker found his body last month.

The body was found near the shore across from the Lost Bridge South area of ​​Beaver Lake, which is about 20 miles south of Cassville.

New images show officers’ search efforts across the lake, where his body was found with a stethoscope hanging eerily from his car’s rearview mirror.

In a bizarre revelation, Richard had previously revealed that his brother had been kidnapped and threatened by unknown assailants in February 2022.

Richard, who founded crypto company OnFo with his brother, said that despite the horrific ordeal, John never reported it to the police.

He said he first learned of the kidnapping from a mutual friend who only came forward to tell the family about the incident after John’s mysterious disappearance.

Richard warned that there is still no evidence linking the 2022 incident to John’s death, but added: “In the fact tables that have come to light on the case, this is very evident.”

‘It was cold. He was tied with a zipper. They made him very insecure and drove a car with some people to a bridge, where he was threatened.

“He has not made a report to the police because he believed he was still in danger.”

The family say they would rather be “kept in the dark” during the police investigation if it means they get “justice” for the doctor.