LAKE COUNTY — A driver on Highway 20 found the body of a missing Lakeport man just before 11 a.m. Thursday floating near the shore between Lucerne and Glenhaven, the Lake County Sheriff”s Office reported.
William Michael Farrell was reported missing March 8, LCSO reported. He set out on the lake to celebrate his 49th birthday with a friend.
The driver stopped to verify what he saw and called the Sheriff”s Department, which responded by land and lake, LCSO reported. Deputies recovered the body of a white male adult wearing similar clothing Farrell was reported as wearing. Officers also found a wallet and noticed tattoos that positively identified the remains as Farrell”s.
Farrell told friends he planned to leave the Konocti Vista Casino Resort Marina on his older 14-foot wooden boat late March 7 but he did not arrive for his informal birthday party at his friend”s house, LCSO reported. The Sheriff”s Marine Patrol searched but could not find him. Sheriff”s Marine Patrol found his capsized and partially submerged boat March 10 about 400 feet off the Buckingham Peninsula.
Officers found no obvious signs of trauma to the body or signs of a collision or other damage to the boat when it was recovered, LCSO reported. The cause of Farrell”s apparent drowning is pending further investigation and an autopsy will be scheduled to try to determine the manner and cause of his death.
