Police say his death appears to be an accident

NEW MILFORD, NJ (TIP): In a tragic incident, an 18-year-old Indian high school student drowned in a pond in the US state of New Jersey after he went into the frigid water to retrieve a soccer ball for children playing nearby, according to media reports. Clinten G Ajit, who hailed from Niranam in Kerala, went into Hardcastle Pond in New Milford on Friday, April 22,  around 7 pm to retrieve the soccer ball and apparently drowned after he suddenly went underwater, northjersy.com, a digital news content provider, reported. However, NJ.com, another digital newspaper quoting police, said emergency officers responded to a call at around 7:15 pm that someone went swimming in the pond and did not return. First responders recovered Ajit’s body in about three hours.

“The water went up to his waist. Then it went up to his neck. Then he had his whole, full body in the water,” CBS news channel quoted 10-year-old Sam Rueda, who saw the tragedy unfold with his family, as saying.

“After he put his hands down, that was the last we ever saw of him. Then his friends started to panic,” Sam said.

Borough police confirmed Ajit’s identity late on Saturday afternoon.

The Bergen County Medical Examiner’s Office and New Milford Police Department are partnering to determine the cause of death, according to a news release from the Borough Police Department.

Police say his death appears to be an accident. “There are no words that can describe the pain that this family is going through right now,” New Milford Mayor Michael Putrino said. “Our hearts are broken.” Ajit was studying at New Milford High School. Friends and strangers stopped by the pond on Saturday to leave flowers at a small memorial. A GoFundMe fundraiser campaign was organized by Gabriella George, a family friend from Weehawken, according to NorthJersey.com. George described Ajit as a “loving son …and brother”. The GoFundMe for the family raised over USD 50,000 as of Sunday morning. According to NJ.com, the pond in which Ajit died has a depth of about 12 to 15 feet and swimming is banned. A funeral service for Ajit was  held on Monday, April 25.

(Source: PTI)