Body found in ICW identified as missing boater Matthew Otis

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission led the investigation.

By Ray Boone
| 10:50 a.m. July 31, 2018

Palm Coast Observer
News

After a two-day search, the body of a 20-year-old man who law enforcement presumed drowned in the Intracoastal Waterway was recovered at 3 p.m. Monday, July 30.

The victim was identified as Matthew Otis, of Palm Coast.

Otis and five other people were drifting in a 1993 19-foot Mako south of Gamble Rogers State Park in Flagler County when the other five occupants jumped off the boat to go swimming, leaving Otis on board alone. When they returned to the boat, Otis was not onboard and could not be found.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission led the investigation. A FireFlight helicopter scanned the nearby wooded areas. Dive teams from the Flagler and Volusia County Sheriff’s Offices, the Flagler Beach Fire Department, the Flagler County Fire Rescue and the U.S. Coast Guard also assisted in the search.