Man found dead inside an Abbotsford business

WATCH ABOVE: Police believe the man died while trying to break into the restaurant. Darlene Heidemann reports.

Police are investigating after a man was found dead at a business in Abbotsford early Saturday morning.

It happened at 6:30 a.m. in the 31000 block of Peardonville Road.

An employee arrived at the site and immediately noticed that a side door was damaged and that there was something strange about the interior “accordion” security gate.

She then saw what appeared to be an unresponsive man stuck under that gate.

When police officers arrived, it was confirmed that a man, believed to be in his 30s, was in fact dead.

The victim has not yet been identified.

“It’s an unusual circumstance,” said Cst. Ian MacDonald with the Abbotsford Police. “A woman shows up to work on a Saturday morning, unfortunately discovers a deceased man inside the workplace.”

Police do not know how long the man was stuck there.

The coroner is investigating to determine the cause of death.

It is unclear what the man was trying to steal.

“People break in and try to steal, look for cigarettes, which we have signs everywhere ‘no cigarettes’, and they try to steal money, but no one keeps money anymore,” said Larry Chow from Tony’s Place Restaurant.

“Everything’s done by debit and credit card.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Abbotsford Police Department at 604-859-5225 or text us at 222973 (abbypd).