Graham McGrath.Photo:Lee County Sheriff’s Office
Lee County Sheriff’s Office
The body of a college student who was reported missing on Wednesday night after he went boating has been recovered from a Florida lake, according to authorities.
Graham McGrath, a 19-year-old Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) student, was identified as the missing boater, according to anews releaseon social media from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.
“We were hoping and praying that we were going to find him in good health,” Sheriff Carmine Marceno said at apress conference. “Unfortunately, that was not the case.”
Marceno said that investigators believe McGrath had fallen from a wake boat into Lake Como, which is located adjacent to the FGCU campus, around 7 p.m. on Wednesday while boating with friends.
“I can tell you that they were swimming, they were recreating — as we want Floridians to do,” he said. “It’s a very, very unfortunate situation and accident.”
He noted that police do not suspect foul play at the time, but haven’t ruled it out. He said police are in the process of interviewing 13 other people who had been on the private boat with McGrath before his death.
Marceno said that McGrath’s body was found “intact” and there were “no physical signs of trauma” visible on his body. The official cause of his death is still pending.
“We don’t know if someone had a medical event,” Marceno said. “We don’t know exactly what we’re faced with but we will know those answers.”
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday night that it hadlaunched a searchfor a missing boater in Como lake, located between Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club and FGCU on Wednesday night. Police said dive teams, a helicopter, marine boats and drones were initially deployed in the search.
On Thursday morning, deputiesutilized a side-scan sonar, which is used to detect & image objects on the lake floor, and his body was announced to have been found hours later.
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Timur added that on-campus student resources are available, including Counseling and Psychological Services, which are accessible without an appointment as well as Student CARE Services.
source: people.com
