The four-day search for a Massapequa resident who had while swimming at Jones Beach was called off Wednesday night after authorities were alerted that he was alive nearly 800 miles to the south in Florida.
Raymond Roth went with his son to Field 6 at Jones Beach for a swim Saturday afternoon. By 3:30 p.m., Roth's son reported his father missing.
A four-day search by the Coast Guard and Nassau County Police yielded no results for the the 48-year-old Massapequa resident.
Det. Sgt. Thomas Duignan of the New York State Park Police told Newsday [paid link] that the search "had shifted to the recovery of a body," until Wednesday night when new information arose.
According to Newsday, Roth's brother contacted police and told them that Roth had reached out to him from Florida.
Duignan said Florida authorities went to the location where the brother said Roth was staying, but have not made contact with him as of Wednesday night.
The search was called off at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Duignan told Newsday.
Nassau County Police had not confirmed that Roth had been located as of 2 a.m. Thursday.
This is a breaking news story. Patch will provide more details when they are made available.
