Bodies recovered in search off Sandpoint Beach
Windsor police report the bodies of two young men swept underwater by the current near Sandpoint Beach have been recovered.
According to investigators, both were found shortly before 8 p.m. on Friday — a little more than a day after a 911 call came in to report they had gone missing.
Police reported the two men, both in their 20s, and a third had entered the water of Lake St. Clair before the third watched them both get swept away.
The day that followed was one rife with agony for the friends and family waiting on the shore.
“As of now, we don’t have any hope,” Chuda Bajgai, the uncle of one of the victims, told CTV News around 7:00 p.m. — shortly before the search concluded.
The beach is officially closed to swimming with signage posted along fenced-off portions of the shoreline warning residents of the dangers.
Lifeguards are not scheduled to take their post until mid-June.
Police said foul play is not suspected.
Yogesh Bajgai, pictured, was one of two victims to drown in waters off the shores of Sandpoint Beach on May 23, 2024. (Photo courtesy Facebook/YO Gesh Bajgai)
Victims identified
Bajgai said his nephew, 26-year-old Yogesh Bajgai, was one of the two men lost to the water.
“The family is not doing well. Especially Yogesh's mom, who is in poor health,” he said. “He was the one who supported his family and siblings.”
Bajgai said his nephew was a hardworking man. So much so, that he had only just started to take advantage of the time he wasn’t working and getting out to have fun with friends.
That’s what he sought to do Thursday when he went to Sandpoint Beach.
In a social media post from St. Clair College, the second victim was identified as graduate Rohit Dheer.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of both during this difficult time," the college wrote.
Recurring issue
Angelo Marignani, the Windsor city councillor in the area, said the stretch where the men entered the water is infamously dangerous. Marignani said the pair recovered Friday are the seventh and eighth lives to be claimed by the current along the Sandpoint shoreline.
He stepped away from his conversation with CTV News on Friday to warn others at the beach of the fenced off area.
"There's been two times — you just saw the third time — that someone's gone to the area,” said Marignani.
“People usually say, 'We got pulled this way,’” added Marignani. “Well yeah, and if you go further, you're going to get pulled quicker."
Marignani said city hall is already working towards bolstering the safety features employed at the beach, with work being done to shift the high-traffic part of the beach even further east from the dangerous current.
He plans to raise a question at Monday’s regular meeting of council to see if that process can be sped up.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6978649.1722015109!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Missing 3-year-old boy found dead in creek in Mississauga, Ont.: police
A three-year-old boy has been found dead a day after he went missing in a park in Mississauga, Ont., Peel police say.
Celine Dion delivers stirring comeback performance at Paris Olympics opening ceremony
Against the rainy Paris night sky, Celine Dion staged the comeback of her career with a powerful performance from the Eiffel Tower to open the Olympic Games.
Jasper wildfire: 'Several weeks' before residents can return, premier says
Premier Danielle Smith said Friday afternoon in Hinton while weather conditions are cooler, the Jasper fire is still considered out of control and that Jasper residents can expect to be away from their homes 'for several weeks.'
Irish museum pulls Sinead O'Connor waxwork after just one day due to backlash
An Irish museum will withdraw a waxwork of singer-songwriter Sinéad O'Connor just one day after installing it, following a backlash from her family and the public, it told CNN in a statement on Friday.
Winnipeg senior's account overdrawn for $146,000 water bill
A Winnipeg senior is getting soaked with a six-figure water bill.
FBI says Trump was indeed struck by bullet during assassination attempt
Nearly two weeks after Donald Trump's near assassination, the FBI confirmed Friday that it was indeed a bullet that struck the former president's ear, moving to clear up conflicting accounts about what caused the former president's injuries after a gunman opened fire at a Pennsylvania rally.
Driver charged after flashing high beams at approaching police
Orillia OPP arrested and charged a driver with impaired driving after flashing their high beams.
Powerful cartel leader 'El Mayo' Zambada was lured onto airplane before arrest in U.S., AP source says
A powerful Mexican drug cartel leader who eluded authorities for decades was duped into flying into the U.S., where he was arrested alongside a son of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, according to a U.S. law enforcement official familiar with the matter.
Turpel-Lafond won't sue CBC over Cree heritage report that took 'heavy toll': lawyer
The lawyer for a former judge whose claims to be Cree were questioned in a CBC investigation says his client is not considering legal action against the broadcaster after the Law Society of British Columbia this week backed her claims of Indigenous heritage.