Neighbors and onlookers watch San Bernardino County Fire Department and other agencies recover a body from the California Aqueduct near Halinor Street on Monday night.
HESPERIA — A deceased male was discovered in the California Aqueduct near Halinor Street, but as authorities worked through a recovery effort Monday evening, it was unclear whether the body was that of a man who went missing early Saturday.
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Cindy Bachman said units from the Hesperia Sheriff’s Station were notified at 5:17 p.m. by a citizen who observed a body in the aqueduct.
“San Bernardino County Fire (officials) responded to assist with the recovery of the body,” Bachman said.
The San Bernardino County coroner was also on scene Monday evening as residents stood behind police tape and watched the drama unfold.
A woman within the group told the Daily Press she called 911 after seeing the body. She said she regularly walks in the area near where the aqueduct moves underground, but declined to comment on details related to the discovery out of respect for the victim’s family.
On Saturday, the search began for a man who was reportedly last seen shortly after 9:30 a.m. when a witness traveling Main Street told sheriff’s officials they saw a man bobbing his head up and down in the aqueduct before disappearing under water, according to a previous Daily Press report.
Hesperia Sheriff’s Station units and the sheriff's dive team were dispatched to search the waters for the victim, as was a sheriff's helicopter. Crews suspended Saturday's several-miles-long search in the evening, picking it up again at 8 a.m. Sunday, San Bernardino County Sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Bachman previously told the Daily Press.
Authorities suspended a search-and-rescue operation again late Sunday afternoon. Bachman said Sunday that 11 personnel, including divers and support staff, covered more than a mile of underwater terrain, searching "well outside the point the man was last seen."
Just after 8 p.m. Monday, Bachman said positive identification had not yet been made; however, Michael Croy, 34, of Hesperia, previously told the Daily Press the missing man was his father.
Croy said he believed his father had been walking his service dog for exercise per his morning routine, and he suggested the dog may have fallen into the water first, leading his father to go in afterward to save the dog.
Croy added that he found his father's truck running and the dog covered in mud upon arriving on scene after receiving the call that something had happened. His father's glasses were located near the aqueduct shore.
"He loves his dog and treats him like his own kid," Croy said.
At approximately 8:20 p.m. Monday, a yellow bag was observed being pulled from the aqueduct, but sheriff’s officials had not confirmed recovery of the body as of 9 p.m.
This story is will be updated as more information becomes available.