Man Pulled from Lake Nokomis has Died

MINNEAPOLIS - 19-year-old Pedro Ajete, of Monticello, was pulled from Lake Nokomis Monday night by a fisherman. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner says he died two days later.

Police say just after 3:00 p.m., Monday, July 26th, Ajete was with three friends near the docks on the southeast corner of Lake Nokomis.  Ajete reportedly wanted to cool off and jumped off a dock into the water.  When he didn't come to the surface, friends called police.

At the same time, a student from Denver was fishing nearby.  Brett Wilday is also a lifeguard and jumped into the water.  He told FOX 9 News that five minutes later he located Ajete at the bottom of the lake.

Wilday and another man pulled Ajete to the dock, where CPR was performed.  Ajete was taken to HCMC, and the sheriff's department reported him to be in critical condition.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's office released its findings on Saturday.  The M.E. pronounced Pedro Ajete dead on Wednesday, July 28th, and concluded that he died of a fresh water drowning, but said that "the manner of death" is still under investigation.