FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — A month-long search has come to a grim end for Whisper Owen and her 8-month-old daughter, Sandra McCarty.
The family says they were found in a canal in Stanislaus County on Sunday.
They explain that Whisper’s phone last pinged on Victory Avenue and Highway 120.
“Our dive team has responded, and they did locate one adult in the vehicle and one infant in the vehicle,” Heather Brent with the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office told KXTV in Sacramento.
Whisper and Sandra went missing on July 15.
Surveillance footage shows Whisper’s SUV driving in Oakdale the night of their disappearance.
The family says the two left Fresno to head back home to Sacramento after a doctor’s appointment.
When the mother and daughter didn’t arrive back home, the family alerted Fresno law enforcement.
Since then, they have done all they can to find Whisper and Sandra.
“Our sonar was able to shoot a beam underneath and identify that we have an object that appears to be in the size and shape of the 2006 Trailblazer,” Jared Leisek with Adventures with Purpose told KXTV in Sacramento.
Authorities were alerted to the canal after Adventures with Purpose, a nonprofit that specializes in clearing waterways for missing people, stepped in to help the family.
“It appears as though Whisper was making her way to the backseat to save her daughter, Sandra,” Leisek said.
Richard Owen, Whisper’s brother, says he’s grateful for the outpouring of support, including from Adventures with Purpose.
“Not once, but twice driving down from Oregon and donating their time, efforts and resources,” he said. “Reaching out to a dive team that’s local to Stockton and getting them out to help identify and get my sister and niece out of the water.”
As the family grapples with this devastating loss, they hope to keep Whisper and Sandra’s memory alive.
“They were beautiful people who made a very big difference in this world and a lot of people’s lives,” Richard said. “That’s what they deserve to be remembered as.”
The family has set up a donation page to help with funeral costs.
The Fresno Police Department is handling this case as this investigation continues.
