Photo: Placer County Sheriff's Office
Her car was reportedly recovered from a reservoir.
By Isaac Serna-Diez — Written on Aug 22, 2022
A volunteer diving group says they found Kiely Rodni's body after joining the search for the California teen who has been missing since August 6.
While authorities have not officially confirmed the group's findings, a Facebook post from "Adventures With Purpose" say the teen and her car have been uncovered.
Kiely Rodni's body was reportedly found in the Prosser Reservoir.
"We just found Kiely Rodni," the volunteer group wrote on Facebook on Sunday.
The group claim the 16-year-old's car was submerged in 14 feet of water in Prosser Lake and added that the license plate of the vehicle matches the one that was previously released by police to help identify Rodni's car, a silver 2013 Honda CRV.
"We have confirmed Kiely is inside," the post continues.
Rodni was last seen leaving a party at the Prosser Family Campground after around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday, August 6th.
Her cell phone last pinged around 12:30am near the campground's reservoir after she texted her mother to say she was on her way home.
Rodni’s family runs The Lost Trail Lodge, which is a small hotel located on the property on which they live, around 12 miles away from the Prosser Family Campground.
Kiely Rodni's car was reportedly found within minutes of the dive team arriving.
"Police told us they did a rigorous search of this body of water. They gave us a grid map and made us confident we didn't need to search here," a spokesman for the dive group told The New York Post.
"I went down and did my inspection. I saw the vehicle upside down, verified the license plate and that there were remains in the vehicle. Then I came out, we called the family and authorities and let them take it from there."
On Sunday, Placer County Sheriff's Office confirmed that a body had been found in the water but did not disclose any further details or connect it to Rodni's disappearance.
The group's findings bring a tragic end to the two-week search for Rodni. Prior to their discovery, her mother had been vocal about wanting to bring her daughter home safely after police confirmed that they were investigating the idea that Rodni's disappearance was an abduction.
“Please, we just want to see our daughter home,” Lindsey, pleaded with the public in a video posted to their Facebook page. “We are so scared. We miss her so much and love her so much. If you see this, please just come home. I want nothing more than to hug you.”
“If you know where she is or know anything about where she might be... please come forward,” Lindsey continued in her video. “We're not looking to arrest anybody or get anybody in trouble we just want to see our daughter home.”
Isaac Serna-Diez is an Assistant Editor who focuses on entertainment and news, social justice, and politics. Keep up with his rants about current events on his Twitter.