Missing 29-Year-Old Rohnert Park Man Found in Submerged Tesla at Bottom of Bodega Bay

"The 10-day search for a man gone missing in Rohnert Park has come to a heartbreaking end, as the missing 29-year-old was found dead and submerged in a Tesla at the bottom of Bodega Bay, though foul play is not suspected. 29-year-old Rohnert Park resident Kale Gonick-Hallows, 29 went missing on January 5, last seen leaving his apartment and driving off into a storm."

"He was described as being in the midst of a mental health crisis, and disappeared driving a blue Model Y Tesla similar to the one seen below. Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety officials distributed that vehicle's license plate number to the public as the search dragged on for over a week. Local automated license plate readers identified the vehicle traveling west in Bodega and then north on Highway 1 in Bodega Bay."

"Rohnert Park Police, Sonoma County Sheriff's Office deputies, the California Highway Patrol, and California State Parks personnel all joined in the search, and on Friday, CAL FIRE officials found a disjointed piece of a Tesla lying near Schoolhouse Beach in Bodega Bay. That was the 10th day of the search, and a Sonoma County Sheriff's Department's helicopter started a hovering mission over Bodega Bay."

Kale Gonick-Hallows, a 29-year-old Rohnert Park resident, went missing on January 5 after leaving his apartment and driving into a storm while in the midst of a mental health crisis. Automated license plate readers tracked his blue Model Y Tesla west in Bodega then north on Highway 1 in Bodega Bay. Multiple agencies joined the search, and CAL FIRE found a disjointed Tesla piece near Schoolhouse Beach on the tenth day. Divers later located the submerged Tesla with Gonick-Hallows deceased behind the wheel; identification confirmed his identity and authorities indicated no sign of foul play. Authorities believe a crash near the north parking lot of Schoolhouse Beach likely occurred within the first few days he was missing. He was a 2024 Sonoma State University psychology graduate.

Read at sfist.com