Body Discovered In Indio Canal

A man’s body was recovered from an Indio canal on Friday, but police held off on calling his death suspicious pending the results from the coroner.

Coachella Valley Water District personnel stumbled upon the body while doing service work on a canal at Highway 111 near Madison Street.

“You have to be aware that it’s an area that’s prohibited,” said Ben Guitron, with the Indio Police Department.

As day turned to night, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Dive Team geared up in wetsuits, snorkels and goggles to recover the body.

“The water is deep, and it moves very quickly,” said Heather Engel, a CVWD spokesperson.

The body was trapped near a gated area of the Coachella Branch of the All American Canal, where the water passes underneath Highway 111.

Once the body was retrieved in the evening, the Riverside County Coroner’s Office took possession.

“They will work with our detectives to hopefully find out the cause of death,” said Guitron. “Find out hopefully how long the body’s been submerged in the water.”

It’s possible that the body flowed from another part of the canal, miles away.

At this point, authorities will not say the death is suspicious.

Police were at the scene from just after 11 a.m. until after 6 p.m.

No witnesses have come forward.

“We don’t know the specifics of what happened today, but it does serve as a reminder that there are ‘no trespassing’ signs along the canal for a reason,” said Engel.

Detectives said they will also review current missing person reports to possibly help shed light on this case.