MONROE COUNTY - At approximately 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Indiana DNR Conservation Officers located the body of a man who went missing on Lake Monroe during a storm squall on Friday evening.

Conservation Officers searching Lake Monroe. Photo Courtesy Indiana DNR.

In a press release issued around 8 p.m. Sunday, the DNR reported the body of Anup Thota, 26, of Bloomington, was located in approximately 15 feet of water near the area where he had been swimming from a boat. After searching since Friday night, Thota was located by officers using side scan sonar equipment.

Early Saturday, information was released about the initial incident and the start of their search. They said they were searching for a 26-year-old male but his name was not released at that time, pending notification of family.

The man was boating and swimming with co-workers on Monroe Reservoir Friday evening. The friends were caught on the water when a storm squall passed over the area at approximately 8:30 p.m. After it began raining, the victim’s friends realized he was no longer on the surface of the water. They immediately called 911 to get help to search for him.

Indiana Conservation Officers, the Monroe County Dive Team, Monroe County Sheriff’s Department and Perry-Clear Creek Fire Department all responded, using side-scan sonar in an effort to locate the man. The search was called off after dark Friday night and resumed early Saturday morning.

Late Saturday, officers reported they were continuing to search, using an underwater camera in addition to sonar. The search was hampered by the large area they were having to search but it continued until dark then they started again on Sunday morning.