MOUNT VERNON — The Knox County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday it was contacted by the Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office concerning a male that was discovered in the Muskingum River near Dresden.
Knox County Sheriff David Shaffer said in a press release that officers traveled to Columbus to meet with family members of 15-year-old Darnal Narayan, who disappeared while swimming in the Kokosing River on June 11. In an attempt to make an identification, photos that included clothing from the victim in Dresden were shown to family members of the missing boy.
“Although it is possibly the same person, a positive identification has not yet been made,” the press release stated. “The Muskingum County Coroner’s Office is assisting in the investigation and an autopsy is planned.”
Narayan went missing in the Kokosing River on the afternoon of June 11. He was last seen swimming and wading near Honey Run Park.
Earlier reports indicated that Narayan’s father was on the scene at the time of his disappearance, and that the father had spoken with 911 dispatch about what had happened. Shaffer confirmed that it was instead a camp counselor who was on the scene, and that the Columbus Police Department made contact with Narayan’s parents after the boy had been reported missing.
Narayan was one of four boys on the river that day, Shaffer said.
A bystander called the Knox County Dispatch Center on June 11 at 3:28 p.m. to report a missing person. Shaffer said the counselor did not have a phone on him at the time of Narayan’s disappearance, so he asked the bystander to call for him. The counselor eventually came to the phone and offered an account of what he’d seen.
“He was swimming with his friend. They got separated just below the falls, where the river narrows,” the counselor told dispatch. “I was swimming after them, but I don’t have my glasses on … the boy who was swimming with him said he was trying to pull up, but he couldn’t.”
Narayan was last seen wearing a blue swimsuit, the counselor said. The counselor told dispatch people had stopped by the park to help search.
Local and state rescue agencies searched the Kokosing River for three days – five hours on Tuesday, 11 hours on Wednesday, and all day Thursday – but could not locate Narayan.
