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Search continues for man in Cuyahoga River

Posted at 4:57 PM, Feb 22, 2016
and last updated 2016-02-23 12:36:22-05

Akron police are searching for a man who drove his car into a river on Sunday and has not been found.

Monday afternoon, the Akron Fire Department Water Rescue Team went back to 1237 Weathervane Ln. to search for a car that was driven into a river around 2:30 a.m. Sunday.

Searchers couldn't spot the car the day before, but saw the glimmer of a mirror Monday afternoon and used a crane to pull the vehicle out. 

Police said the man driving the car, 27-year-old La-Ron Harris, made a turn and the car went into the river.

Kaila Watkins, 25, was in the passenger seat and said Harris, who she knew from grade school, had offered her a ride home from the Lazy Gator bar.

But as soon as they left the parking lot, Watkins said she knew immediately that something was wrong.

"I asked, 'Where are you going? You're going the wrong way,'" she said. "He didn't say nothing, he just looked at me and kept driving."

Once the car plunged into the river, Watkins said it quickly started sinking.

She kept kicking the window until it cracked, then shattered and said both her and Harris escaped. She swam to shore herself and called police -- but never saw Harris get out of the water.

"I didn't see him go under, he was still swimming," Watkins said. "I don't know where he went."

Watch the video in the player above to watch the car being pulled out of the water.