Marion County Sheriff's Office finishes review of June drowning death in Lake Weir
The Marion County Sheriff's Office has concluded its review of a man's drowning death in June in Lake Weir.
On June 21, Joseph Evan Cruz, 32, of Citrus Springs, and his three children ate at Gator Joe's and then were boating on the lake, according to Detective Donald Carpenter's report. Carpenter interviewed two of the children, a boy and a girl, both younger than 16.
The girl said they went to Lemon Point at Carney Island, where they went swimming. She said she and her father were on the boat and her brother and sister were swimming. She said her father noticed the boat was drifting away from her brother and sister.
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She said her father told her to start the boat and bring it closer to her siblings who were in the water. She said her father grabbed a life jacket and jumped into the water, swimming to the children.
The water was rough and waves were forming, according to the report. Reaching the children, Cruz told them to hold onto the life jacket. The older girl said she maneuvered the boat over to her father and the children when the engine died.
The girl said her brother made his way to the boat and she was able to pull him up. She said she noticed her father struggling and 911 was called. Starting the boat, the girl said she noticed that her father was missing. She was able to pick up her sister. She said her father knew how to swim.
The boy said while he and his sister were in the water, the water was choppy. He said the boat drifted away from them. He said he and his sister held onto the life jacket that their father brought to them. He said he called 911. The boy said his father went under before the boat was re-started.
The Sheriff's Office's Underwater Recovery Team and other first responders began a search. Cruz's body was found a little more than a day later.
Authorities said the water temperature was 84.9 degrees and the depth measured 19.7 feet. Officials did not see any signs of trauma. The death was ruled accidental.
Cruz's father declined comment.
Contact Austin L. Miller at austin.miller@starbanner.com
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Drowning in Marion County, Florida's Lake Weir ruled an accident
