Shane Montgomery's Body Pulled From Schuylkill River
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The family of Shane Montgomery confirms a body pulled from the Schuylkill River Saturday is the missing West Chester University student.
The body was found by a group of volunteer divers just before noon in waist-deep water behind Manayunk Brewery Company along Main Street, not far from where the 21-year-old disappeared after leaving Kildare's Irish Pub early Thanksgiving morning.
Shane's parents made the announcement Saturday that their son had been found, 37 days after his disappearance.
The discovery of Shane's body ends a more than five-week search, which included efforts from local dive teams, Philadelphia Police, the FBI and thousands of volunteers -- both on the streets and through social media.
"That's what we do. That's what we're here for. That's why we do this -- to find families loved ones and bring them back to them," said Tom with the Garden State Underwater Recovery Unit.
Surveillance video was released last month showing Shane walking across a bridge spanning the Manayunk Canal toward a parking lot that is next to the Schuylkill River. Shane's keys were found in that same area shortly before Christmas.
Shane's family, filled with both sadness and relief, released the following statement Saturday:
"Today we did what we promised. We found and brought Shane home. We want to thank the Garden State Underwater Recovery Unit, Philadelphia Marine Unit, Northwest Detectives, the Philadelphia Police Department, Saint John the Baptist, Mike Rose and the Brew Pub and their employees. We want to thank everyone for their support, prayers and love and ask that they continue to pray for our family during this trying time. At this time, we ask that you please respect our privacy. We need time to mourn together as a family."
Missing person flyers started appearing all throughout Manyunk shortly after Shane's disappearance along with green ribbons symbolizing hope. Just a few days ago, the Philadelphia Mummers went green as well to show their support for Shane.
A Christmas tree now stands outside Manayunk's Saint John The Baptist church, also containing green ribbons in Shane's honor. The church served as a home base for all the search parties.
The reward in the search eventually reached $65,000.
No formal funeral arrangements have been announced yet, but services are expected to be scheduled shortly.
Police will continue their investigation into how Shane died.
Search For Shane Timeline:
Thanksgiving Morning, 2014: Shane was last seen.
November 30, 2014: The Manayunk Canal was first dredged and the FBI joined the investigation.
December 10, 2014: Surveillance video showing Shane near the river was released.
December 21, 2014: Shane's keys were found by search teams in the water.
January 3, 2015: The body of Shane Montgomery was pulled from the river.
CBS3's Matt Rivers contributed to this story...
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