Authorities have recovered the body of a man who appears to have drowned in Pine Lake in LaPorte.
Department of Natural Resources Sgt. Shawn Brown says 21-year-old Jeremy Dabney of Gary apparently drowned on Friday, June 10, after jumping from a pontoon boat for a swim with friends.
Divers with the LaPorte County Sheriff’s SCUBA Team along with the Michigan City Police SCUBA Team made entry into the water and searched the area where the victim was last reportedly seen however they were not immediately able to locate the victim.
Sonar equipment was brought in by Indiana Conservations Officers and a methodical grid search was conducted. Shortly after midnight (CST), the victim was located by the sonar device and recovered by divers. The victim was found in approximately 30′ of water and approximately 300′ from shore.
Dabney was at the lake with friends who had rented a pontoon. The group has all jumped off of the pontoon for a short swim and as they returned to the boat, the victim began to struggle. Two of the group attempted to help however they began to be pulled under by the victim so they returned to the pontoon to call for help.
The (Munster) Times reports that an autopsy was scheduled for Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.