OCEANSIDE, Calif. (KGTV) - A man who jumped off the Oceanside Pier early Friday morning, prompting a search by lifeguard and Coast Guard crews, was found dead, Oceanside Fire Department officials said.
At about 3 a.m., a woman called 911 and said her 27-year-old boyfriend, who had stripped down to just his underwear, jumped off the Pier but was struggling in the water. Fire officials said the man, believed to be a former Marine and reportedly a good swimmer, had been joking with the woman prior to jumping and told her he was going to swim to shore.
Fire officials said: "Immediately after hitting the water he was pulled northward under the pier where he tried to hold onto the pilings before the current carried him out from under the pier and into the open water."
A bystander, 18-year-old Michael Cervantes, heard the man calling for help and jumped into the water to look for him but could not locate him.
Following a search involving lifeguards, fire and police crews, and a Coast Guard helicopter, the man's body was found just before 6:30 a.m. about a quarter-mile north of where he had jumped.
The victim was not immediately identified.
