Family Identifies 17-Year-Old Found Off Urca After Copacabana Disappearance

Overview

• Rescue crews from the Corpo de Bombeiros recovered a body in the sea off Urca on Saturday, July 18, after the teenager went missing at Copacabana earlier in the week.
• Family members recognized the body and the Instituto Médico-Legal confirmed the identification on Sunday, July 19.
• Friends and witnesses say the 17-year-old was swept away by a sequence of waves and a strong current near the Copacabana Palace while a red-flag bathing warning was posted, with some friends saying the presence of other bathers made the water seem safer.
• Search operations used lifeguards, divers, boats, helicopters and drones over several days, and the case has been registered as a disappearance in the water at the 12ª Delegacia de Polícia (Copacabana).
• The body was flown back to Bom Jesus de Goiás for burial and the episode is prompting public attention to how beach safety warnings are heeded and how quickly aerial and sea rescue assets are deployed during strong currents.