A 19-year-old former University of Maine student was found dead Tuesday after being declared missing in January.

The Orono Police Department responded to a retention pond near an apartment complex and found an individual in the water deceased, the department stated in a news release on Wednesday.

The Maine Warden Service helped police recover the body. It was later identified as Chance Lauer by the Chief Medical Examiner’s office, the police department said.

There is “nothing suspicious about the death,” police said.

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife announced the 19-year-old was missing in a social media post in January. Lauer was last seen on Jan. 19 at the Orchard Trails Apartments in Orono where he lived, the department said.

Orchard Trails provides housing for University of Maine students, according to its website. UMaine confirmed in a message to the college community that Lauer’s body was found in the pond near his apartment.

Multiple searches in the area, including on the UMaine campus, were conducted but later suspended, officials said.

Lauer studied at UMaine from September 2024 to December 2025, majoring in journalism and international affairs, according to University of Maine System spokesperson Samantha Warren, but was not a student when he was pronounced missing in January.

“On behalf of the university, I extend our deepest condolences to Chance’s family, friends, and loved ones,” Andrea Gifford, dean of students, wrote in a letter to the UMaine community on Wednesday. “Our thoughts are with them during this profoundly difficult time. We are also grateful to the local, state and community partners who assisted in the search.”