After nearly a week a weather delays, authorities in Virginia Beach recovered the SUV that drove off the city’s fishing pier on Saturday.
Inside, they found the body of an adult male, Virginia Beach Police spokesperson Jody Saunders told the Virginian-Pilot.
The red Nissan Kicks had come to rest upside down in the waters off the end of the pier, but harsh conditions on the water, including a strong ocean current, kept officials from raising vehicle until Friday morning. The SUV was in about 17 feet of water at high tide, swaying in the strong current that made reaching it to attach lines dangerous.
Investigators have not yet identified the man inside the vehicle, but they have said that the crash may be connected with a man who was reported missing earlier this week.
“We have strong evidence to suggest that they’re one in the same, but we won’t know for sure until we go through the medical examination process,” Saunders said.
A pair of teens running on the boardwalk Saturday morning captured video of the vehicle after it broke through two gates to gain access to the 650-foot pier, as CrimeOnline reported. The video showed the SUV drive the length of the wooden structure, appearing to brake briefly before crashing through the rails at the end.
After securing the vehicle on the barge Friday morning and covering it with a tarp, crews took it to calmer waters for the investigation.
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[Featured image: WAVY screenshot]
