AUBURN — Authorities began searching the Little Androscoggin River on Tuesday morning for the body of Mark Conley of Naples, whose SUV was discovered in the water Monday afternoon.

Conley, 67, who was last seen driving his silver 2016 Jeep Patriot in Lewiston, was reported missing Dec. 25 after his family said he failed to show up at a Christmas gathering.

Maine State Police and Maine Warden Service dive teams arrived at 9 a.m. Tuesday to search the water and riverbank, according to Shannon Moss, public information officer for the Maine Department of Public Safety. 

The vehicle was discovered in the river by two Maine State Police detectives Monday afternoon while on their way to interview those close to Conley in Lewiston. They noticed a dented guardrail on Broad Street and turned around to investigate, Moss said.

The detectives found debris from the vehicle and, after launching a surveillance drone, discovered the wreckage in the water. It was pulled from the water and law enforcement found the driver’s side window was smashed and Conley’s body was not inside.

Moss said if the body was not found by sundown, the search would continue dependent on the weather.

The section of Broad Street where the search is being conducted remains closed. Maine State Police continue to assist the Auburn Police Department with the investigation.

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