Officials release name of Massachusetts man who died after drowning despite rescue attempt

The body of a Massachusetts man who drowned on Monday has been recovered.

According to Dave Procopio of Massachusetts State Police, shortly after 9:00 a.m. this morning, the Massachusetts State Police Underwater Recovery Unit recovered the body of an apparent drowning victim in Upper Mystic Lake.

The victim, identified as Alford Garcia, 52, of Lynn, was witnessed going under the water yesterday off Shannon Beach in Winchester after he fell off an inflatable float at approximately 5:50 p.m.

The investigation to date by State Police detectives assigned to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office suggests that Garcia attempted to make it back to shore, became tired and began to struggle in the water, and then went beneath the water. Witnesses attempted to rescue Garcia, but were not able to locate him. State Police divers and patrols, Environmental Police officers, and personnel from the Winchester and Stoneham Fire and Police Departments conducted an extensive search mission until late into the night yesterday but did not locate Garcia.

This morning, MSP divers deployed a side-scan sonar device, which detects anomalies or objects underwater. The sonar detected an image at a depth of about 13 feet in an area with practically zero visibility to the human eye. Divers then dove onto the target image, determined it was Garcia’s body, and recovered him. The State Police Crime Scene Services Section documented the recovery area.

The area in which Garcia was on the float was posted as an unsupervised area.

The investigation into the incident is being led by State Police detectives assigned to the office of Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct a post-mortem examination.