Lake Mead Remains: Las Vegas Man Missing Since 1998 Found Amid Drop in Water Levels

Another Lake Mead remains were identified. The three sets of skeletal remains discovered last summer in Lake Mead were found to have belonged to the same man from Las Vegas.

According to PEOPLE, it reportedly belonged to Claude Russell Pensinger, a Las Vegas man who has been missing since 1998.

The Clark County Coroner's Office said the skeletal remains of the then 52-year-old man were found in pieces on July 25, August 6, and August 16 near the shoreline of Boulder Beach in Lake Mead. However, the coroner could not determine the cause or manner of death.

The water level of Lake Mead has been decreasing due to drought, and since May 2022, human remains have been found on at least six occasions.

Aside from the skeletal remains unearthed at Lake Mead, a World War II-era boat was also spotted halfway out of the water last July.

Lake Mead Remains Identified as Missing Las Vegas Man

According to Las Vegas Review-Journal, Claude Russell Pensinger reportedly disappeared on July 14, 1998. A previous report from the media outlet noted that Pensinger vanished from his boat that was found running around Lake Mead.

The Las Vegas man was reportedly fishing then and was last seen off Boulder Beach. At the time of his disappearance, the water depth at the point the boat was found was 181 feet.

Las Vegas police Officer Robert Wicks said determining whether a missing person report was connected to Pensinger will take time. KCRA reported that a telephone call to possible family members was not returned.

Lake Mead Remains

Before Claude Russell Pensinger's remains were identified, investigators identified last month the remains found in October 2022 in the Callville Bay area.

The remains were identified as Donald Smith, 39, of North Las Vegas. Smith's death was ruled an accident after it was learned that he drowned in April 1974.

On May 7, 2022, the remains of 42-year-old Thomas Erndtn were discovered by two sisters. Erndt reportedly drowned in the lake on August 2, 2002, while he and his family were on a boating excursion.

Boaters in Lake Mead discovered the remains of a man stuffed into a barrel on May 1, 2022. The man's cause of death was a gunshot wound. Police believed it was connected to mob activity.

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Ray Spencer said the victim's shoes and clothes were sold at Kmart in the mid-to-late 1970s, 8 News Now reported. Authorities are still trying to identify the man.

Lake Mead, which is a reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, is the largest human-made reservoir in the U.S. when it is at full capacity. It supplies water to over 40 million people.

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Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Human Remains Found at Lake Mead Identified as Missing Las Vegas Man - From 8 News NOW Las Vegas