Body missing a leg found in Grand River
LANSING — Divers found a human body in the Grand River this afternoon, police said. It is missing part of one leg.
The body was discovered at about 1:30 p.m. after a cadaver dog pointed authorities to the area of the Brenke Fish Ladder and a sonar device confirmed there was something in the water, Lansing police Public Information Director Robert Merritt said.
The part of the leg that’s missing seems to match the part of a leg pulled from the river last month by a fisherman, police said. That leg belonged to Manuel Peña, a Lansing man missing since April.
“At this point we cannot make the determination that the body is of the missing person, Mr. Peña, but, for all intents and purposes, it is looking like it is,” Merritt said.
Peña, 56, was last seen April 25 with his girlfriend, Josephina “JoJo” Betancourt, 38. Betancourt’s car was found in a city parking lot adjacent to the fish ladder. Her body was pulled from the river on May 8. Police believe they disappeared together.
Leg pulled from river belongs to missing Lansing man
Wednesday’s discovery occurred during a scheduled search for Peña. It was the 11th search by water or land for the couple since they went missing, Merritt said. The Capital Area and Michigan State Police dive teams, along with Lansing police and fire officials were at the scene. The Lansing Board of Water & Light authorized the lowering of the river.
The body will be delivered to Ingham County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
Daniel Peña arrived at the fish ladder minutes after what appears to be his brother’s body was pulled from the river. He said the discovery answers some questions but that Manuel Peña’s disappearance remains a mystery.
Body pulled from river believed to be missing woman
“It does give us some closure, but it also opens up questions that you want answered,” he said. “I’m sure that everyone involved, the police, the examiners and everyone believe that they will give us all the answers that they can.
“There’s a lot of people that are going to miss him and are going to mourn his loss,” Daniel Peña said. “He had a lot of friends that knew him and loved him also.”
Contact Christopher Behnan at (517) 377-1261 orcbehnan@lsj.com . Follow him on Twitter@LansingCB.