Missing Neepawa senior found dead: RCMP

George Haslen, 81, was last seen leaving his Neepawa-area home Friday afternoon. (RCMP handout)

An 81-year-old man who went missing Friday has been found dead, Spruce Plains RCMP said.

Police said George Haslen was found Saturday inside his white pickup truck on a rural road northwest of Rapid City – located nearly 240 kilometres west of Winnipeg.

Haslen was last seen around 3 p.m. Friday when he left his Neepawa-area home. According to RCMP, he was located six or seven kilometres away. 

Local first responders provided Haslen with immediate medical care, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

RCMP said Haslen's death isn't considered criminal in nature. 

"We don't suspect any foul play or criminality or anything like that," said RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Paul Manaigre in an interview with CTV News.

Manaigre also said Haslen didn't have any cognitive impairment or medical condition leading up to his disappearance. 

"We're not sure if he got lost and then just stopped his truck on the side of the road ... we don't know if it was medical," he said. 

Manaigre said it's believed Haslen went to the bank to take out money but never made it back home. 

"He has a family member that lived in Brandon," Manaigre said. "So the initial thought maybe is he was going to go to Brandon."

Manaigre added that responding officers said the truck was found "off the beaten trail."

When Haslen was still missing, police and family were concerned about the senior’s wellbeing and worried he wasn’t dressed for the weather. He was wearing a red plaid flannel shirt, grey pants, a blue hat and winter boots.

The area where Haslen was found has been under a snowfall warning since Saturday morning and could receive totals of 15 to 25 centimetres of snow.