William R. North's body was found not far from where he entered the water, according to officials
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NEED TO KNOW
- A 64-year-old prosecutor was found dead after he fell into an Alabama lake during a sailboat race on Sunday, June 28
- William R. North was an assistant district attorney for Bessemer Cutoff in Jefferson County, and had been working as a spotter when he fell into the water
- His body was found on Monday, June 29, not far from where he entered the water
An Alabama prosecutor was found dead after falling into a lake during a sailboat race over the weekend.
Around 3 p.m. local time on Sunday, June 28, William R. North, 64, was working as a spotter for a Pell City Sail Club sailboat race at Logan Martin Lake when he fell into the water, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency confirmed to PEOPLE in a statement.
Officials confirmed that North attempted to move from a sailboat to an unoccupied jon boat, or a flat-bottomed vessel made of aluminum, when he went overboard and disappeared in the water.
The incident occurred near the Pell City Sail Club, which is located at the southern region of the more than 15,000-acre lake.
North was an assistant district attorney for Bessemer Cutoff in Jefferson County, where he'd worked for nearly three decades, AL.com reported.
His disappearance prompted a multi-agency search operation, including local police and fire departments as well as the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s aviation unit and marine patrol troopers.
The search continued on Monday, June 29, when he was found dead around 11:12 a.m.
Officials said his body was found near the same location where he entered the water.
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The District Attorney’s Office for Bessemer Cutoff, a jurisdictional area of Jefferson County, did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for additional comment.
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