The case of a missing Latham man may finally be solved, as a man's body was found in the Hudson River yesterday. An autopsy today will confirm its identity, and police say all indications are that it's the body of 21-year-old Joshua Szostak.

Szostak was last seen December 23rd, leaving the Bayou Café on North Pearl Street in downtown Albany.

Today's autopsy could also help answer lingering questions for the Szostak family. NEWS10's Eric Egan reports.

After four months of searching, posting flyers and hoping for his return, the family of Joshua Szostak may finally find out what happened when their son disappeared.

"Early this afternoon a boater in the Hudson River, just off the Coxsockie point, observed a white male, deceased, floating in the river," said Scott Youngblood, of the Catskill New York State Police, the day of the discovery.

Detectives tell NEWS10 that fishermen spotted the body around three o'clock Tuesday afternoon, just south of the Coxsackie Boat Launch, which is near Thruway Exit 21B in Greene County.

Abruptly spoken, Albany Police Detective James Miller said, "right now all indication is Joshua Szostak,"

Yesterday, Szostak's father told NEWS10 that he hoped the body was his son, to bring an end to this tragic chain of events. 

Right now, state police investigators cannot confirm the body belonged to the missing student, but again they say it's a strong possibility

"We are fully aware of the individuals that are missing in the area, and we are obviously, first and foremost, looking at them as possibles for what we have here in the Hudson River," Youngblood continued.

Found along with the body in the middle of the Hudson, was a wallet that contained identification belonging to Szostak.

Now an autopsy will be performed this morning by examiners at St Peter's Hospital. Those results could shed light on why he disappeared in the first place

"Right now we're still dealing with a missing persons case, there's nothing criminal at this point," Miller said, "but obviously we don't have confirmation until the autopsy is complete,"

And if the autopsy does confirm the man found is Szostak and reveals the cause of death, exactly what happened on the night of December 23rd may no longer be a mystery.

Investigators would not give the condition of the body when it was found or how it may have traveled down the river, from Albany into Greene County.