May 03, 2022

Sheriff's Department identifies suspected drowning victim

Posted May 03, 2022 11:28 PM
photo courtesy WIBW TV
photo courtesy WIBW TV

UPDATE:

Three days of searching have not produced any results, but authorities have identified the suspected drowning victim that they have been searching for at Milford Lake, as Jesse Paul Sockness (white man, 41,  brown hair, brown eyes) of Lawrence, Kansas. He was last seen swimming to shore in Milford Lake on Saturday

According to Captain David Gilbert of the Sheriff's Department the search continued Tuesday as boats from the Geary County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit, Wildlife and Parks/Milford State Park, and Wild Life and Parks Law Enforcement Division took to the waters.  The area where the subject was last seen was thoroughly searched with side scan and live view sonar east across the lake to the area of Milford State park where a makeshift water vessel was located along with the female passenger who had ridden on it with the suspected drowning victim. A couple articles of clothing believed to belong to her and Sockness were located.  

The Geary County Sheriff/Junction City Fire Department Dive Team deployed into the area where Sockness was last seen and conducted several large area grid searches.  All searches to this point have been met with negative results.  Moving forward the Sheriff’s Office will continue to search the area throughout the coming days by land and by water multiple times each day/night.

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Multiple agencies deployed personnel to Milford Lake on Tuesday in the search for a possible drowning victim. So far, they have been unable to locate the man who was last seen on Saturday in the lake.

According to Captain David Gilbert of the Geary County Sheriff's Department, the agencies participating in the search on Tuesday included the Sheriff's Department personnel and their marine unit, the Geary County - Junction City Fire Dive Team, Kansas Wildlife and Parks personnel and their law enforcement division.

The search began in the Curtis Creek area on the northwest side of the reservoir on Saturday. It has continued there and also shifted farther east.