Canton drowning victim identified
Canton police Thursday identified a teenager who drowned while swimming with a friend Wednesday afternoon as Jon Thomas Bettis, 17, of Canton.
Officers were dispatched to Hickory Log Creek Reservoir after the friend called to report a swimmer struggling in the water around 1:45 p.m. The friend reportedly tried to assist before swimming to the shore to call for help, police said.
The teen’s body was found around 5 p.m. by Cherokee County divers, police said.
Canton Marine Patrol and the Cherokee County Fire Department were involved in the search, and DNR was contacted.
The teens’s body was taken to the GBI Medical Examiner’s office for an autopsy.
The drowning was the first at the 411-acre reservoir, which opened to the public last month.
About the Author
Angel K. Brooks is a senior manager for the programming team, focusing on quality control. She has been with the AJC since 2007 and started as a sports copy editor. She is a graduate of Florida A&M University.
