Backpack leads rescuers to find body of dad who vanished on hike days earlier in NY
A 45-year-old dad was found dead in a New York wilderness preserve days after he went missing, officials said.
The man was later identified as Brooklyn resident Victor A. Martinez, the Daily Freeman reported.
Martinez, who left his home on March 11, was last heard from by his daughter before he began a solo hike in the Bonticou Crag area of the Mohonk Preserve, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said in a news release.
The New York State Police discovered Martinez’s vehicle in the Spring Farm parking lot of the preserve on the night of March 14, prompting a ground search, according to the release.
Ten forest rangers, Mohonk Preserve patrol rangers, Sam’s Point Search and Rescue, and Marbletown Rescue joined the New York State Police in the three-day search, which involved “steep, rocky, technical terrain” and challenges due to the recent snowstorm, according to the release.
Officials found Martinez’s backpack and phone at the foot of a 50-foot cliff on March 17 around 10:15 a.m., according to the release. At 4:32 p.m., Martinez’s body was found 400 feet from the spot officials believe he first fell, according to the release.
Martinez’s body was taken to the Ulster County Medical Examiner’s Office, the release said.
Mohonk Preserve is about 70 miles southwest of Albany.
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