MONROE COUNTY — Indiana Conservation Officers have recovered the bodies of two missing Indiana University students at Monroe Lake.
The bodies of Siddhant Shah, 19, and Aryan Vaidya, 20, were recovered Tuesday morning at approximately 11:23 a.m. in 18 feet of water in an area east of the Paynetown Marina.
Shah and Vaidya were boating with friends on Monroe Lake on Saturday afternoon when the group anchored to swim, according to DNR.
Both men went underwater and did not resurface causing the friends to try and rescue them, but the friends were unsuccessful.
Rescue units using side scan sonar and scuba divers responded to the scene to search the area, but operations were suspended multiple times during the search due to darkness and weather conditions.
According to DNR, Indiana University is providing counseling services to the group of friends.
The hearts of the IU community are heavy as we learned the news that Siddhant Shah and Aryan Vaidya, both students in the Kelley School of Business, have been found deceased at Lake Monroe. Our deepest sympathies go to their families during this most difficult time. Support resources and counseling services continue to be available to IU students through the Division of Student Affairs.
We are extremely thankful for and appreciate the ongoing work and dedication of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, IUPD, and other agencies over the last several days to lead this search.
