A beloved Michigan father was found dead after he went to get something from his car during a family trip and never returned.
The body of Robert Loren Bacon, 52, was recovered from the Cass River in Frankenmuth around 2 p.m. Saturday. He was last seen at a resort pool on the night of December 27.
His ex-wife, Melissa McLenna, said the father-of-two met his daughters, ages 15 and 13, and their mother at the Bavarian Inn around 6:40 p.m. that day.
“(He) would go to his car to get something and go back to the pool area to meet his family,” she said. told McClatchy News. “He never returned to his family in the pool.”
Although Bacon said he was heading to his vehicle, surveillance footage showed a different story.
“(Investigators) have video that shows him going to the amusement center after leaving the hotel room and never returning to his car,” McLenna he told WNEMpointing out that there are some exits that do not have cameras. “They don’t have any video showing him leaving the building.”
Bacon was officially reported missing on December 30, when McLenna and other concerned family members took to social media to spread the word about his disappearance.
Tragically, the Frankenmuth Police Department announced Saturday that dive teams found his body in the river near Heritage Park.
Robert Loren Bacon, 52, was recovered from the Cass River in Frankenmuth around 2 pm Saturday after going missing the night of December 27.
He had told his family that he was going to meet them at the resort pool after grabbing something from his car.
The preliminary cause of his death “appears to be drowning,” the department said, adding that the Saginaw County Medical Examiner’s Office will make a final determination.
After days of searching for her ex-husband, McLenna took to Facebook on Sunday to mourn his death.
‘I have no words to describe how we feel. We are very sad. I just want to thank everyone who helped look for Robert. Thank you to everyone who prayed for us and continues to pray for us,’ he wrote.
In a later post, McLenna said: ‘Today I turned off my phone. We need to spend time together without the phone,” while again thanking the community for their help.
After Bacon did not return from his car, McLenna said his vehicle was found in the parking lot and his phone was still “straight to voicemail.”
His car, a silver sedan, was photographed inside the resort’s parking lot on January 1. Nothing suspicious was found inside the vehicle, police said.
After Bacon did not return from his car, McLenna said his vehicle was found in the parking lot and his phone kept going “straight to voicemail.”
The department also determined that his personal belongings, including his keys, wallet and phone, were with him, but his phone had been turned off since he was last seen.
“They told me he was wearing a jacket with a hoodie that’s like a gray, black and white plaid jacket, with white fur inside, a blue cap, dark blue, blue jeans and he was wearing his Nike flip flops,” he said. McLenna in the middle.
Prior to her ex-husband’s discovery, McLenna expressed concern for him and her children amid his disappearance.
‘My poor children, our children, I don’t know what to tell you. They ask: “Mom, have they found it yet?” and I just say, ‘No, we’re still looking,'” he recalled.
DailyMail.com has contacted the Saginaw County Medical Examiner’s Office and the Frankenmuth Police Department for comment.