September 8,2005 - Law Enforcement Evidence Recovery Operation
Conroe, Texas - Details of this operation are not available at this time for public release.

August 17, 2005 - Divers search for missing man in Recreational Area.   
23 year old Venancio Sanchez was fishing with his nephew at LakeWood Recreational Area outside of Gonzales when he was swept away by currents.  Sanchez's nephew was wearing a life jacket and was also swept down river below the dam when both attempt to wade across the river.  The nephew was able to reach shore and call authorities to report his uncle missing.  SMART searched the San Marcos River bed at Lake Wood Recreational Area late into the evening until calling the search due to darkness.  Early the next morning before putting divers back in the water, a topside boat and shoreline search discovered Sanchez body in a debris field approximately 200 yards down stream from where he was last seen. 
 

July 29, 2005 - Search for missing woman in Hays County
SMART K-9 handlers and topside search teams assisted the Hays County Sheriff's Department along Ranch Road 12 near the Freeman Ranch to search for a missing Wimberley woman.  Margaret Wilson White, 58, was last seen by her family July 20, according to Sgt. Allen Bridges, spokesman for the Hays County Sheriff's Office.
Her gray Chrysler mini-van was found Monday night along Ranch Road 12 past the Freeman Ranch, but the woman wasn't in it.  The minivan had possibly been parked at the spot about a quarter mile west of County Road 213 (Freeman Ranch Road) since July 21.  He body was found 400 yards from the roadway and autopsy later determined she died from two snake bites.

July 4, 2005 - San Antonio boy drowns at Canyon Lake
For the second time in two days SMART Divers returned to Canyon Lake to search for missing swimmers.   Technicians spent 5 hours on the lake operating the SSS before returning to the office to analyze the data.  At 3pm the dive team was again called out to the lake for a missing  swimmer at Comal Park.   Julian Bocanegra, age 14,  from San Antonio entered the water at Comal Park in an attempt to rescue his 9 year old brother whom was in distress and calling for help.  The 9 year old brother was rescued by a good Samaritan however Julian Bocanegra drowned attempting to save his brother.  SMART Divers were called at 3pm, put 6 divers in the water in teams of two, and recovered Julian's  body in 74 feet of water at 4:06pm . 

July 3, 2005 - SMART uses a Side Scan Sonar (SSS) in lake search.
On what began as a training day for SMART, turned into a search operation at Canyon Lake when a 35 year old woman did not return to her boat during a midnight swim with two companions near Overlook Park.  Divers, support team members, and K-9 handlers were scheduled to be at Canyon lake to test and evaluate a side scan sonar for possible purchase.   The SSS was put into practical use to search for the woman.  Her body floated approximately two weeks later nearly 2 miles from the original search area.

June 30, 2005 - Divers search for a missing British tourist in Mexico
Five members of SMART boarded a flight in San Antonio  for a recovery operation in southeast Chiapas, Mexico. The team was searching for the body of a British tourist who has been missing 16 days, and his body was believed to be somewhere in a 75-foot deep pool at the base of a "multi-tiered waterfall" at Aqua Azul.  A bilingual SMART team member  served as an interpreter, and the team's cadaver-sniffing dog also made the trip.  The tourist was last seen at the top of the falls, directly above a sump cavern known as the "Liqudora", a 30 foot wide, 70 foot deep cavern.  This was one of the most physically and technically challenging dives ever performed by SMART.  The surface current and downward water flow was extreme, however at depth the water is very calm.  After a 22 minute underwater search, SMART concluded the victim was not inside the cavern.  Search efforts were abandoned at the falls and local officials now focused the search down river from the falls. VIDEO

June 6, 2005 - Topside Technicians search for infant in landfill
After receiving a request for assistance from the Williamson County Sheriff's Department, SMART Tech's search a landfill for an infant believed to have discarded at birth in Taylor.  Ten members of SMART searched with cadaver dogs for 6 hours to find possible evidence.  The search ended at 5pm.  This case is still under investigation in Williamson County.

May 19, 2005 - SMART K-9 requested by San Marcos PD
After some bone pieces were found by the Blanco River, one of SMART's cadaver K9 dogs is requested by San Marcos PD detectives to determine if any of the bone fragments were human.  K9 Handler Kevin Roles reported that his dog "Bok" showed no interest in the bones which concluded the bones were that of an animal.

April 21, 2005 - TSU Student drowns at falls
Jason Lee Bonnin, a 22-year-old Texas State University-San Marcos student drowned Thursday night, April 21, in the San Marcos River at the spillway adjacent to Joe's Crab Shack restaurant.  According to reports from the University Police Department, Bonnin and three other employees of Joe's Crab Shack were jumping from the deck railing after the restaurant had closed. The four male employees jumped once and returned to the deck to make a second jump.  Bonnin did not surface after the second jump. UPD 911 was called at 10:57 p.m. and university police personnel responded to the scene immediately.  Subsequently, San Marcos Fire Department and the San Marcos Area Recovery Team were also called. Bonnin's body was recovered by the San Marcos Area Recovery Team at 12:47 a.m.  An autopsy has been ordered and will be conducted by the Travis County Medical Examiner's Office.  Bonnin was a senior at Texas State majoring in finance and is from Sugar Land, Texas.
Video courtesy of News 8 Austin  

March 11, 2005 - Suspect vehicle recovered
Battling very strong river currents, SMART Divers returned to the Blanco Crossing subdivision outside of Kyle to recover a Mazda 626 which had been used by a man charged with multiple felony offenses.   Divers documented the vehicle with underwater photography before removing the vehicle from the water.  A knife, keys, and video tapes were found on the front floorboards.  The vehicle was in neutral and the ignition keys were found in the "ON" position.  Photos and Video below by Dan Misiaszek.
 

March 10, 2005 - Vehicle Investigation
SMART investigates a submerged vehicle possibly used in a aggravated felony offense near Kyle, Texas.  Full details of this operation are not for public release pending the outcome of the criminal investigation. (Photos enhanced for clarity)

February 20, 2005 - Training
Using aluminum foil to obstruct the divers vision and create a zero visibility black water environment, SMART Divers practiced search patterns with ropes while searching for a .44 magnum handgun in a simulated underwater crime scene.

January 22, 2005 - Vehicle Recovery
Divers with the San Marcos Area Recovery Team investigated a submerged 1994 Jeep Cherokee upside down in the Blanco River outside Wimberley on Saturday morning.  SMART Divers was requested by the Hays County Environmental Health Code Officer Bobby Douglas to remove the vehicle which was ¼ mile upstream from FM 1492 next to River Road.  The topside investigation determined a 17 year old male driver lost the vehicle upstream at a private low water crossing during flash flooding in October of 2004.  The driver swam to shore uninjured but there was a delay in notifying authorities about the incident.    The code officer became involved when neighbors along river road noticed the vehicle in the Blanco River and became concerned about possible environmental damage from petroleum products.   Since there were no injuries and the history of the vehicle was known, SMART took the opportunity to use the vehicle for diver training and sent in three teams of divers to investigate.  Divers used underwater video and digital cameras to record the dives and critique the operation.  SMART put a total of 8 divers in the water in three teams accompanied by 6 topside support personnel monitoring the live video feed to the surface.

© 2004 San Marcos Area Recovery Team