Body of Swimmer Missing off Westbrook Found

The body of a man who went missing in the waters off Westbrook was found Tuesday morning.

 

According to State Police, the body of Benji "B.J." Aven, 32, was found around 11:30 a.m.

 

Aven, of Texas, was last seen around 1:30 a.m. Monday after he and a group of co-workers waded out to Salt Island during low tide.  The group tried to return to the beach at high tide when Aven disappeared.

 

His disappearance wasn't reported to authorities until 8:15 a.m. Monday, according to police.

 

The Connecticut State Police Dive Team, U.S. Coast Guard, area fire departments and Department of Energy and Environmental Protection personnel searched for Aven until Monday evening.  They suspended the search after exhausting all resources.

 

It was unclear where Aven's body was found Tuesday.. 

NBC Connecticut spoke with his mother on the phone in Texas Monday during the search for her son.

“Right now, I can't tell you what I'm going through,” Cindy Aven-Whittle said. 

She received an unexpected call from police, who said he was missing. For Aven’s family, being thousands of miles away has been unbearable. 

“If I had a million bucks, I would be right there. To just find out where he is, I would probably be screaming at the top of my lungs,” Aven-Whittle said.

Aven left his two kids behind and moved to Connecticut for a roofing job, she said.

“I don't know what to think, I don't want to believe this,” his mother said.