A Johnston man died in an apparent drowning over the weekend at Lake Red Rock. After several hours of searching that started Saturday evening, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office say 21-year-old Urias Gbarjolo was located using side scan sonar installed in the Sheriff’s Office boat and was brought to shore by rescuers, where he was pronounced deceased. On Saturday at 7:27 p.m., the Marion County Law Enforcement Center took a 911 call from an individual at the Whitebreast boat ramp at Lake Red Rock. The caller advised a group of young males were swimming outside the designated swimming area when one of the individuals went under water and failed to resurface. Multiple Agencies responded to the scene to try to rescue the individual. Search efforts were suspended at about midnight and resumed a little before 6:00 am Sunday. Gbarjolo was transported to the State Medical Examiner’s office, in Ankeny, where an autopsy will be performed.

Sheriff Jason Sandholdt stated, “My heart goes out to the family of this young man. It is always sad when an individual with such a promising future is taken from us at such a young age. Please keep his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.”

Agencies that assisted in the rescue efforts and recovering were the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Knoxville Fire and Rescue, Pleasantville Fire and Rescue and dive team, Knoxville Rural Fire Department, Pella Rural Fire Department, and the Central Iowa Dive team and the Marion County Medical Examiner’s Office.