The search for two men, who jumped into a central Florida lake to save a woman, came to an end on Monday afternoon when police found their bodies.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd announced at a news conference that authorities found the bodies of Orlando Ortiz, 30, and Jeffrey Marrero, 34, after searching Lake Eloise in Winter Haven, Florida, for nearly 48 hours.
TWO PEOPLE MISSING AFTER JUMPING INTO CENTRAL FLORIDA LAKE
Police say they found Marrero’s body at 1:30 p.m. and then located Ortiz’s body hours later, with their bodies being located roughly 300 to 400 yards away from where the boat they had been on was located. Marrero’s and Ortiz’s bodies were found 150 yards apart, according to authorities.
“If this had been the middle of the summer, we would have found them quicker because they would’ve floated quicker,” Judd said, according to WTSP. “But we could not have searched for them anymore diligently in the summer than we did now.”
Authorities previously said the two were in the water to help Velcky Velasquez, 38, after the boat began floating away during choppy conditions. Police said Velasquez told them she jumped into the water with the anchor in order to secure the anchor to the boat.
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Police said one of two children on the boat, the 10-year-old daughter of Marrero, called 911 to report they were alone on the boat in the lake, which is adjacent to the Legoland theme park. Deputies Glenda Eichholtz and Jonathan Munoz arrived on the scene shortly after and got to Lake Eloise with the assistance of a good Samaritan.
“The deputies and Good Samaritan found the boat with the two little girls in it. Deputy Munoz got onto that boat and drove them to the nearby Legoland dock. The deputies then found Ms. Velasquez treading water a distance away from the boat,” a news release from Sunday said.
