Body of man, 29, who went missing five weeks ago when he was filming himself jumping off a rented boat but accidentally 'left it in gear' is found more than 1,500 feet down in Lake Tahoe

The body of a man, 29, who went missing five weeks ago when he was filming himself jumping off a rented boat and accidentally 'left it in gear' has been found more than 1,500 feet deep in Lake Tahoe.

Ryan Normoyle, from Closter, New Jersey, drowned after he left the boat in gear when he leaped into the water on August 10 and was unable to catch back up with it. 

Authorities finally recovered his body Sunday by tracking his location through his cellphone GPS data.

Bruce's Legacy, a nonprofit that provides search and recovery operations for drowned victims, said it was the deepest recorded recovery ever carried out in the US and Canada after crews pulled his body from the deepest section of the lake.  

The body of Ryan Normoyle, 29, who went missing five weeks ago while filming himself jumping off a rented boat has been found more than 1,500 feet deep in Lake Tahoe

Normoyle was on a three-week vacation to California in August when he visited Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada mountains bordering California and Nevada. 

He rented a boat on the lake for two hours on August 10 so he could explore the waters.

The 29-year-old, whose mom told CBS Sacramento he was a talented woodworker with a big heart, was recording himself jumping off the boat into the lake.    

Investigators said the tragedy unfolded as he left the empty boat 'slightly in gear'.

This meant the boat continued to slowly accelerate forward while he was swimming in the water.

'The cellphone video basically shows him jumping off the boat. It looks like he was playing around in the water didn't know the boat was in gear and he wasn't able to make it back to the boat,' Lt. Travis Cabral with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department said. 

Normoyle, from Closter, New Jersey, drowned after he left the boat in gear when he leaped into the water back on August 10 and was unable to catch back up with it. Pictured the search for his body

Underwater footage from the search which crews said was the deepest recorded recovery ever carried out in the US and Canada 

Authorities believe Normoyle tried to swim after the boat but could not catch up with it in the rough waters and drowned. 

The boat washed ashore in Glenbrook, Nevada, later that night without Normoyle on it. 

South Lake Tahoe Police launched an investigation and found Normoyle's cellphone had captured GPS data while he was recording himself jumping off the boat. 

The data was used to track down a possible location for a search and rescue operation.

Authorities finally recovered Normoyle's body from the deepest part of the lake Sunday by tracking his location through his cellphone GPS data

Crews from Douglas County Sheriff's Office Marine Unit, Washoe County Marine Unit and a UC Davis Research Team were all drafted in using Remote Operated Vehicles and an unmanned submarine to scan for signs of Normoyle.

Bruce's Legacy joined in another search with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, Washoe County Sheriff's Office and the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department on September 24 after the victim's family got in touch with the nonprofit.

Crews eventually located his body two days later 1,565 feet under the water and it was recovered on September 27, South Lake Tahoe Police Department said on social media.

The previous record for the deepest recovery in Lake Tahoe was in 2018 at a depth of 1,062 feet. 

Several marine units joined in the search for Normoyle and his body was recovered about five weeks after he went missing. Pictured Lake Tahoe