Dive team says they found Kiely Rodni's car with body inside; authorities have yet to confirm identity

TRUCKEE -- A specialty dive team says they've found a body inside a sunken car belonging to a Truckee teenager who's been missing for more than two weeks. Meanwhile, authorities in the north Tahoe area say they are working to confirm the identity.

Adventures with Purpose, a YouTube-famous dive team, posted Sunday on Facebook saying that they found Kiely Rodni's Honda CRV in 14 feet of water in Prosser Lake, near where the 16-year-old girl was last seen. The remains inside the vehicle are believed to be Rodni, the group said, adding that her family and authorities were notified.

Officials from Placer and Nevada counties responded to the lake Sunday afternoon, and crews later pulled the vehicle from the water. On Sunday night, the Placer County Sheriff's Office said that the identity of the body inside the vehicle has yet to be confirmed. They said a news conference on the latest developments would be held Monday morning. 

Rodni, of Truckee, has been missing since the early morning hours of Aug. 6. She was last seen at a party with hundreds of other young people at the Prosser Family Campground, just north of Truckee. 

The teenager's disappearance prompted a massive search and rescue effort, involving several local, state and federal agencies. For the last two weeks, teams of searchers have spent nearly 20,000 manhours looking for Rodni. 

During this time, family members repeatedly requested that people share tips with law enforcement. Officials said they received more than 1,800 tips in the case, at times overwhelming investigators.

Authorities in nearby Placer County initially were investigating Rodni's disappearance as a possible abduction, as both her car and phone were also missing. However, there was never an Amber Alert issued in the case, as the California Highway Patrol said it didn't fit the criteria. 

Sami Smith, Rodni's friend, told CBS13 in the aftermath of her friend's disappearance that she was with Rodni at the party. Smith said that Rodni was planning to sleep at the campground.

"I know that she wasn't in the right mindset or state to drive," Smith said. "And if she were to have driven, she wouldn't have made it far." 

Adventures with Purpose, the dive team with more than 2 million YouTube subscribers, usually works to solve cold cases. But after many viewers reached out to the group about Rodni's case, they said that they wanted to help law enforcement as they specialize in underwater car searches, particularly in cold water.

Adventures with Purpose began searching for Rodni on Saturday. Their investigation is separate from the one conducted by law enforcement. 

Adventures with Purpose started posting to YouTube in 2018. The group makes videos centered around finding things underwater, from treasure to stolen cars. Their most popular videos involve missing persons cases. In the last two years, they've solved more than 20 cold cases. 

CBS13 Staff

The CBS13 Staff is a group of experienced journalists who bring you the content on CBSSacramento.com.