HUDSON, Wis. — St. Croix County sheriff's officials have identified two men whose bodies were recovered from the St. Croix River near Hudson Tuesday evening, hours after a witness reported seeing a boat circling with no one inside.
According to the St. Croix Sheriff's Office, a boater reported seeing a fishing boat going in circles at around 9:35 a.m. near Troy Beach. The witness also said they saw a body near the boat floating in the water.
When deputies arrived on scene they found the 18-foot Smokercraft had stopped after apparently running out of gas. The sheriff's office says the water in that area is approximately 30 to 40 feet deep.
The first body was discovered just before 12:15 p.m. by the Washington County Dive Team, which was assisting the St. Croix County Sheriff's Office in rescue efforts. Sheriff's officials say the body of a second victim was recovered just before 6 p.m.
The sheriff's office on Wednesday identified the victims as 51-year-old Demetrius Kekedakis of Hudson, Wisconsin, and 65-year-old Perry D. Montpetit, also of Hudson. Investigators say Kekedakis was the owner of the boat, adding that neither of the men was wearing a life jacket when they went overboard.
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