Family of contractor: Another body found in Iraq

The family of a contractor kidnapped in Iraq said Sunday that U.S. officials have notified them they've found a body that could be his.

The family of Jonathon Cote said on the Web site Free Cote that an unidentified sixth body has been recovered near Basra, in southern Iraq.

Cote was one of six Western contractors kidnapped in two separate incidents. The Getzville, N.Y., resident was working in Kuwait for Crescent Security Group when he and four colleagues were abducted in November 2006.

Their disappearance received new attention last month when the severed fingers of several men were sent to the U.S. military in Iraq, followed by the discovery of two bodies.

Cote's family declined to comment until the body is identified. A message left with the FBI on Sunday evening was not immediately returned.

The body will be flown to Dover Air Force Base, where it will be identified and an autopsy performed, according to the Web site.

The FBI has already identified the remains of CSG employees Paul Johnson-Reuben of Minneapolis; Joshua Munns of Redding, Calif.; John Roy Young of Kansas City, Mo.; Bert Nussbaumer of Austria; and Ronald Withrow of Roaring Springs, Texas, who was working for JPI Worldwide and was abducted on Jan. 5, 2007.

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On the Net:

Free Cote: http://home.freecote.com