Body of missing Monongahela man found after more than a month
Courtesy of C.J. Pearce
The body of a missing Monongahela man was recovered Saturday more than a month after his disappearance.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Sunday morning the body of Shelby Rhodes, 26, was found in a riverbed along Bunola River Road in Forward Township shortly before 7 p.m.
The cause of death has yet to be determined.
Rhodes was found more than 6 miles from the spot in Monongahela where he was last seen on Feb. 7, when fellow guests at a gathering in the Black Diamond neighborhood saw him walking toward the woods and Monongahela River.
His sister’s boyfriend found Rhodes’ cellphone resting against a canoe several days later, along with footprints leading to the water.
Local agencies mounted an extensive search for Rhodes for several days, sending out sonar-equipped boats, a cadaver dog, underwater drones and dive teams.
“I’m just disappointed it ended this way,” said Jessica Rhodes, Shelby’s sister, of Ambridge. “I really had hope he was out there somewhere. He’s loved and missed by so many. Now he’s with our mom, dad, stepdad, aunt, uncle and grandma, and I hope he was welcomed with open arms.”