Youngstown police say a the body of a 22-year-old man was found at an home on the city's East Side Wednesday morning.

Youngstown Police Captain Brad Blackburn tells us a friend made the discovery when he stopped by to visit. "The friend went to the house on what sounds like a regular basis. It sounds like it is pretty normal for his to stop by occasionally. When he came here today he found the door open and the victim deceased."

Mahoning County Deputy Coroner and Medical Examiner Dr. Joseph Ohr  tells 21 News that Christopher Bridges was shot inside the home at 1128 Republic Avenue.

"The victim was shot multiple times, at least of those are gunshot wounds to the chest.  From here at the scene it appears the victim had been shot about 12 hours prior to his friend finding him. This is preliminary and I will conduct an autopsy on Thursday," said Dr. Ohr.

Bridges had a prior arrest record. The 22 year old was on placed on probation in Youngstown Municipal Court in 2016 for possession of marijuana, and ordered to find a job. Bridges also had a new criminal charge and had court hearings scheduled on February 23, 2017.  Bridges had been charged with possession of drugs.

Noting that this was Youngstown's first recorded homicide of 2017, police confirm the homicide rate in the city has been declining over the past 20 years. "We're hoping to keep that trend, obviously with the grief of the family, you realize that one murder, is one too many, said Blackburn."

Detectives took potential evidence from the scene. Their work just beginning to find a killer.