Lake Being Searched by FBI for Bodies

FBI organized crime investigators are searching for bodies in a remote mountain lake 60 miles west of Yosemite National Park and have called for special equipment to help them scour the deepest areas.

The search began Monday morning when 22 divers from five county sheriff’s departments were called to help locate at least one body that may have been dumped in Lake Don Pedro, an FBI spokesman said Wednesday.

No human remains were found during Monday’s eight-hour search of the Tuolumne County lake, a 13,000-acre reservoir with a 160-mile shoreline, but sonar equipment showed several deep areas that divers could not reach.

Officials have now decided to bring in a small remote-controlled submersible vehicle to help in the hunt, but it could take several days for its arrival and resumption of serious search efforts, said Nick Rossi, spokesman for the FBI’s Sacramento office.

Rossi said he could not reveal any details about who the possible victims might be or discuss the organized crime investigation at all, saying the case originated in another FBI field office that has requested secrecy.

“We were diving Monday in an area beneath the Jacksonville Bridge, where the water is about 140 feet deep,” Rossi said. “We know from sonar that there are deeper pockets of the lake, so we may resume when we have the right equipment to search deeper.”

The search efforts Monday began after the FBI asked the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to contact search and rescue teams in mountain counties around Lake Don Pedro.

Divers and boats were provided by sheriff’s departments from Tuolumne, Calaveras, El Dorado, Mariposa and Placer counties.

“We are remaining in constant contact,” said Sheryl Tankersley, information officer for the state emergency services agency.

Mariposa Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Doug Bimmewies said Mariposa County provided seven divers, one boat and one boat operator. His team started out at 4 a.m., and the actual search began about 8 a.m.

“Visibility was fair, about 4 to 5 feet at 140 feet,” he said. “Bringing in a submersible vehicle should help. They are like a miniature version of a mini-sub, maybe 3 feet by 2 feet, with a camera that can go very low.”

Last fall, authorities found a body in Lake Melones, in nearby Calaveras County. The body was male, between 40 and 60 years old, and was found floating with hands bound and a plastic bag over the head. Officials are looking into whether the cases are connected.

In 1999, the body of 15-year-old Juli Sund, one of three Yosemite tourists allegedly murdered by motel handyman Cary Stayner, was found at Lake Don Pedro. Area residents recalled that Wednesday while discussing the newest FBI search.

“I’ve been living around here for 21 years, and now it’s happened twice in just a short time,” said Lynne Hazelwood, an employee at Lake Don Pedro Marina. “Quite a few of our customers were talking about it today.

“But the murder of that girl was scary,” she added. “There’s not a lot of worry about this, at least not yet. I suppose there will be if they start fishing out bodies.”