The bodies of three men who disappeared after leaping into Northern California Falls are now recovering, authorities said.
“Our heartfelt sadness of dol’s mind goes out to family, friends and everyone affected by this tragic loss,” the Placer County Sheriff’s Office posted on social media on Sunday.
The sheriff’s office has identified two men as 50-year-old Matthew Schoencker and 59-year-old Valentino Cruz as originally from the Los Angeles area. The third was identified as 44-year-old New Yorker Matthew Anthony.
The three men missed the afternoon of June 18th after they reportedly entered the water at Rattle Snake Falls in Soda Springs and did not resurface. The area is located about 40 miles west of North Lake Tahoe.
According to the sheriff’s office, the three men were part of a group of six who tried the waterfall. The other three were airlifted from the area that night.
Sheriff’s diving and search and rescue team personnel, with the support of the California Highway Patrol and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention Technical Rescue Team, consolidated the area in search of a missing trio. However, authorities said these efforts were hampered by low visibility underwater, caused by debris and strong winds.
Juan Heredia is a diver with the Stockton-based Angels Recovery Dive team, a nonprofit specializing in recovering drowning bodies for grieving families, and discovered the trio on Saturday morning.
Heredia said he placed Anthony’s body in the waterfall pool leading to the North Fork American River about 45 feet underwater. He found the bodies of Shanecker and the crew together under the waterfall, about 47 feet deep.
Heredia said he would be hired by a family friend and hiked about seven miles through the sturdy terrain to find the site and body.
According to Heredia, the crew, the trio with the least experience in the trio when it comes to diving, initially hesitated before diving into the waterfall.
“Big mat [Schoenecker] Heredia said Schoencker was a former high school diving champion who knew the waterfall well.
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