First responders searched the Mississippi River in Sartell, Minn., on Wednesday, Aug. 13. (Sartell Police Department)
A central Minnesota dive team on Wednesday discovered a circa 1960s vehicle at the bottom of the Mississippi River in Sartell, just a few miles north of St. Cloud.
The Stearns-Benton Sheriff’s Office dive team searched the area after a fisherman “observed an anomaly” on his sonar on Sunday, according to a release from Stearns County.
The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office water patrol responded and observed the same abnormality. The dive team located the car, which was half full of sediment, at about 10 a.m. Wednesday. A local towing company is assisting in removal of the car.
Benton County Sheriff’s Office reached out about a possible missing person case from September 1967, but it is unknown if the car is related to that case, the release states.
According to Tri-County Crime Stoppers of Minnesota, Roy Benn went missing in September 1967 and was last seen driving a 1963 metallic blue Buick Electra. Benn was “reported to have been carrying a large sum of money when he was last seen,” states a post on the Tri-County Crime Stoppers Facebook page.
Stearns County officials did not list the color or make of the vehicle in the river.
Officials are not aware of any other missing person cases of interest in the area.
The Sartell Police Department shut down Riverside Avenue and a nearby bike path during the search. The police and both sheriff’s offices continue to investigate the unearthed vehicle.