The body of a Phish fan found in a tent at this weekend’s Coventry festival has been identified as that of Ian Niles Gardiner, a 25-year-old from Bristol, Connecticut, according to Vermont State Police. The body was identified though fingerprint comparison conducted by the state’s forensic laboratory in Waterbury, Vermont.
Gardiner’s body was discovered by fellow concertgoers when they returned to their tent after Phish’s final set early Monday morning. He was not carrying any identification.
“It was quite obvious that he was dead,” State Police Sergeant Bruce Malindy said. “The ironic thing was that [the body] was found in a tent not far from where the medic tent was. It appears he just wandered into the wrong person’s tent. But he could have been in his own tent and he would’ve died.”
No cause of death has been released.
A friend had originally reported Gardiner as missing Monday morning when he failed to return home from Coventry. According to Malindy, there were as many as 36 people reported missing after the festival, but as of Wednesday morning, that number had decreased to 18: 15 males and three females.
More than 65,000 fans attended the Coventry festival, braving mud, heavy rains and traffic snarls to witness the final shows by Phish.
