Editor’s note: This story was updated Wednesday with Castillo’s cause of death.
A man who was found dead in the water near the end of the San Gabriel River in Long Beach had disappeared a week earlier from Fontana, according to authorities.
It’s still unclear how 30-year-old Rene Castillo went missing, but coroner’s official said he died by drowning. It was ruled an accident.
Authorities found Castillo’s body after someone spotted it on Feb. 21 floating in the channel that separates Long Beach and Seal Beach.
When a Seal Beach lifeguard got to Castillo near a jetty, rescuers realized he was dead, authorities said.
Hours after his body was found but before it was publicly identified, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department posted on Facebook asking for help finding Castillo, who lived in Whittier.
“His loved ones have not seen or heard from him. They are very worried and asking for your help in locating him,” the post said.
The last time anyone had seen Castillo was Feb. 14 around 1:30 a.m. at his job in the 11200 block of Hemlock Avenue in Fontana, authorities said.
Social media posts from family members said Castillo’s car had been found abandoned in the La Mirada-Santa Fe Springs area.
At this point, there aren’t any signs of foul play in Castillo’s death and sheriff’s investigators have closed the missing-person case, Deputy Kimberly Alexander said.
Long Beach police deferred any questions to the coroner’s office.