Divers from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources recovered the body of missing Lake Station teen Rodrigo Montes in Deep River Thursday morning.
Lake Station Police Chief James Richardson said divers located Montes about 11:20 a.m., downstream from 29th Avenue and Wyoming Street.
Police said Montes, 18, a River Forest High senior, was involved in a single-car crash Sunday night.
Richardson said one suspect was in custody and charges were pending. Richardson didn’t identify the suspect. Family members said Rodrigo received a ride home from an acquaintance after a gathering on Sunday.
The recovery ended more than three days of waiting for the anguished Montes family, who live about four blocks from the Deep River crash scene. Rodrigo is the youngest of four boys and eagerly awaited his graduation in a few months.
Kevin Trezak, superintendent of the River Forest Community School Corporation, said in a Thursday statement that the entire River Forest community is saddened by the news that one of its students has passed.
Out of respect for the family, Trezak said school officials are not sharing additional details at this time and asked that the community honor the family’s privacy during this difficult time.
While Thursday’s recovery of Montes brings a certain level of closure to his family and the River Forest family, Trezak said, the schools will have counselors and support staff available on Monday when students return from spring break, for any student who may need support. Parents may contact their child’s school if s/he is in need of additional support.
Trezak also asked that parents remind their students to avoid spreading rumors or unverified information, particularly on social media.
“This is a difficult situation; one made more difficult by the fact that this is a great family who is now in the process of saying goodbye to a truly outstanding young man,” Trezak said.
The Lake County Coroner’s Office arrived at the scene about 11:15 a.m. and reported a family member identified Montes’ body. It listed the cause of death as pending, with an autopsy scheduled for Friday.
Rodrigo’s family, friends and classmates have gathered each day since Sunday near 27th Avenue and Wyoming, near the river.
Rodrigo’s cousins Gustavo Sanchez and Aaron Padilla, both of Lake Station, comforted each other near the site.
“We’re just glad that they found him,” said Sanchez, a 2014 River Forest graduate. “It took so long, but I know what the process is and how it works, but I wish we could have found him sooner.”
Sanchez said Rodrigo looked forward to planning his graduation party.
“It’s just heartbreaking. He was just so young and doesn’t deserve any of this,” Sanchez said.
Roberto Herrera, a 2025 River Forest graduate and friend of Rodrigo’s, said he’s been at the scene since Monday.
“We grew up together since kindergarten… So we’ve always been together and played sports together.”
Herrera said he’ll miss his friend and his love of sports.
“He was good at everything. He would put his mind to it and he’d do it,” said Herrera, who added Montes was an IHSAA sectional wrestling champion this season.
Richardson extended condolences on behalf of the city and thanked multiple organizations that aided Lake Station police and fire departments in the search.
They included: dive teams from Crown Point and Hobart rescue units, Lake County Eagle Units, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and its dive team, Hobart police, the Lake County Sheriff’s police, the Indiana State Police, NWI K9 Search and Recovery, and drone operation units and local businesses that cooperated with the investigation.
The incident unfolded when Lake Station police found a black pickup truck about 4:20 a.m. Monday submerged in the river near 27th Avenue and Wyoming Street. No one was inside.
Saul Montes, Rodrigo’s older brother, said the family home is about four blocks from the river.
Saul Montes said he learned Rodrigo’s friend, who was bringing him home, left the scene and went home after the crash.
He said the friend had a broken nose and bruises but declined to talk to the family.
All four of Lupita and Delores Montes’ sons graduated from River Forest.
Saul Montes said graduation and college awaited his brother in a few months.
Rodrigo planned to attend Purdue Northwest in Hammond and study construction management.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
