MADISON COUNTY, Mo. - After a six hour search Saturday, a body has been recovered from the popular 'Offsets' recreation area in Madison County.
Madison County sheriff Richard Spain says 18 year old Devron Looney jumped off one of the cliffs, hit the water and never came back up.
First responders got a call about a possible drowning around 12:50 Saturday afternoon. According to witnesses, Looney jumped off a 25-foot cliff, apparently struggled after hitting the water, and did not appear to know how to swim. Five different law enforcement agencies joined forces to search the waters for Looney over a six-hour period. Looney was found roughly 50 feet from where he originally jumped.
Morgan Alvarez was also at the Offsets Saturday afternoon. She says she recognized Looney's soccer shorts and the two struck up a conversation. The two both played for Scott Gallagher soccer teams. Ultimately, she believes she was one of the last people to talk to Looney before he jumped into the water.
"One of my friends watched him and his friends jump off a cliff and she said his friends came up bawling their eyes out because he never came back up," said Alvarez.
The rescue mission turned into a recovery mission after Looney was missing for approximately an hour, says Madison County Sheriff Robert Spain. Fifteen searchers and at least two boats were deployed to search and recover Looney. Spain says he does not know if Looney is from the Madison county area.
"There was some family here with his and some family has arrived on the scene since then throughout the time we've been here for this recovery. They had been here about 15 minutes, it was their first jump off the cliff. It was their first jump and that's from statements by the staff," said Spain.
The coroner will determine the official cause of death.
