Missing Worker Found Dead at Lake Pleasant After Flooding

Sutton’s pickup was found in a flooded wash north of Lake Pleasant after he disappeared on November 1 while heading to work at Castle Hot Springs resort. The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said deputies then searched the wash toward the lake. Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office lake patrol teams found Sutton’s body on November 6, ending a multi-day search. His body was about four miles downstream from where the truck was located, the sheriff’s office said.

Searchers covered desert terrain around the resort, using ground teams, dogs and aircraft. Crews searched for 16 to 18 hours a day. At the height of the flooding, water in the wash was about 200 feet across and 6 to 8 feet deep, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said.

Sutton worked at Castle Hot Springs. Kevin Maguire, the resort’s managing director, said Sutton built features across the property and helped turn colleagues’ ideas into finished projects. Maguire described him as a friend who was eager to help others, and said the work he left behind would keep his memory present at the resort.

Maguire said he was grateful Sutton’s family had closure, despite the loss. The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office extended condolences to Sutton’s family, friends and coworkers.