RALEIGH, N.C. — A man exited a small airplane Friday afternoon as it was making its way to Raleigh-Durham International Airport, prompting a missing persons search that ended hours later with the discovery of a body behind a house near Fuquay-Varina.

Wake County officials at a news conference Friday night announced the body of a man had been found near Sunset Lake and Hilltop Needmore roads near Fuquay-Varina at about 6:45 p.m. A resident found the body behind a house and notified authorities, said Darshan Patel, operations manager for Wake County Emergency Management Services.

Fuquay-Varina police late Friday identified the man as Charles Hew Crooks, 23, of Raleigh. Hooks was a co-pilot, the police said in a social media post.

The twin-engine plane reported having landing gear issues as it approached RDU about 2:40 p.m. and went off the runway and into the grass.

The Federal Aviation Administration identified the plane as a CASA CN-212 Aviocar.

The one person aboard the plane was taken to hospital with minor injuries, RDU officials said. The runway was temporarily closed.

No parachute was found near the body.

The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.