LAKE SHASTA — Despite an extensive search led by the Shasta County Sheriff”s dive team, Kelseyville native Ashlee Rodrigues, 22, remains missing after she fell off the bow of a speed boat on July 14 while not wearing a life vest.
The Shasta County Sheriff”s official report was released to the Lake Shasta District Attorney”s office the first week of August.
“The investigation into Ashlee”s disappearance has been completed, submitted and discussed with the DA”s office, and is now being kept on file with the sheriff”s office in the records division,” said the case”s lead investigator, Sgt. Mark Lillibridge. “There are no criminal charges being sought or filed. The determination has been made that the operator of the boat is not at fault and there was no criminal negligence involved.”
The underwater search is scheduled to resume on Aug. 23 if Rodrigues” body has not surfaced by that time, said Lillibridge.
Regarding the cost of the search efforts, Lillibridge said, “Our office did not choose to bill Lake County.”
Supervisor Rob Brown, who is a friend of the Rodrigues family, said donations to the family are intended to help defray personal costs associated with the search, such as time taken away from work, the cost of traveling back and forth to Lake Shasta, and for overnight stays in hotels and motels.
For the past several weeks Lakeport”s Inspirations Gallery by Salituri has been selling raffle tickets for two framed prints (numbered, signed, framed and valued at $200 each), with all the proceeds going to the account established at Umpqua Bank for the family.
The raffle event will be held today at 11 a.m. at the gallery”s location, 165 N. Main St. The winning ticket will be drawn by Lakeport Chief of Police Kevin Burke, who said, “I think this is a very worthy cause.”
Tickets for the raffle may still be purchased at the gallery”s location for $3.50 each or two for $5, according to gallery manager and co-owner, Sheri Salituri.
“We sold roughly around 400 raffle tickets so far and we raised about $915 for the Rodrigues family account,” Salituri said.
Donations to the account may still be made at Umpqua Bank”s local branches in either Kelseyville or Lakeport. For more information call the bank, 263-7500.
Contact Cynthia Davis at cdavis@record-bee.com.
