Seneca County Sheriff W. Timothy Luce reports the conclusion to a large-scale search effort for a missing endangered adult in the Town of Fayette that spanned about sixteen hours. On July 26, 2022, at about 12:00am, Sheriff’s Deputies were alerted to an area along West River Road where it was believed that a missing endangered adult was in a wooded area. Responding Sheriff’s Deputies initiated a ground search using foot patrols, an all-terrain vehicle, K-9 unit, and a marine unit with unsuccessful results. Following this phase of the search, further efforts to locate the missing endangered adult using the Sheriff’s Office Drone Unit, New York State Police Aviation Unit, and LifeNet Air Ambulance were deployed. These efforts were also unsuccessful. Due to the thick terrain and challenging environmental conditions, a joint operation between the Sheriff’s Office, numerous Fire Departments, and the New York State Park Police was deployed using coordinated line searches. In the late afternoon, the missing endangered adult was found deceased in a heavily wooded area within the search area. Sheriff’s Investigators have determined that the death appears to be self-inflicted and does not involve foul play. The Seneca County Coroner’s Office also responded to the scene and Sheriff’s Investigators will be partnering with them to determine an official cause of death. The name of the victim will not be released out of respect for the family.
The following agencies assisted the Sheriff’s Office in response to this incident:
Border City Fire Department
Canoga Fire Department
Fayette Fire Department
Geneva Fire Department
Geneva Police Department
LifeNet Air Ambulance
New York State Park Police
New York State Police
North Seneca Ambulance
Ontario County Sheriff’s Office
Seneca County E-911 Center
Seneca County Fire Coordinator’s Office
Seneca Falls Police Department
Varick Fire Department
Waterloo Fire Department
Waterloo Police Department
Sheriff Luce would like to thank all agencies for their assistance in this incident. Additionally, the Sheriff’s Office extends its deepest condolences to the family of the victim.
Seneca County
Sheriff
New York