Yale employee who was missing since early February found dead on Long Island shore
The body of a Yale University employee, who was reported missing in early February, was found on a Long Island shoreline this past weekend, the university said.
Anton Sovetov, a 44-year-old graphic designer for the Yale Office of Public Affairs and Communications, was found on the shoreline on Saturday, Yale announced on Wednesday.
Authorities did not give the exact location of where Sovetov's body was found. The shoreline is over 100 miles long, but New Haven, Connecticut, where Yale is located, is along the Long Island Sound. The Suffolk County Medical Examiner’s Office is investigating the cause of Sovetov's death.
Sovetov was last seen by university colleagues on Feb. 4, Yale said. Security cameras spotted him walking towards his apartment the following evening, and police were notified he was missing on Feb. 9. On April 1, Yale announced they were offering a $10,000 reward for any information on Sovetov's whereabouts.
The Yale and New Haven police departments are assisting the Suffolk County Police Department in continuing to investigate Sovetov’s disappearance
"We will continue to do all we can in the face of this terrible tragedy," Yale police chief Ronnell Higgins said in a statement on Wednesday.
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In an obituary posted by Yale, the university said Sovetov was born and raised in Russia. He obtained his Master of Fine Arts from the Yale School of Art in 2016 and began working for university printer’s office as a Rollins Fellow a few months later. The university said he was close to his mother, who lived in St. Petersburg,and he was seeking a green card.
Yale said Sovetov was instrumental in the university's messaging around COVID-19. John Gambell, the university printer who hired and supervised Sovetov, said he was the "the heart of a shift in Yale’s graphic identity."
"He was one of the most talented designers I have worked with in my 40-year graphic design career, and an irreplaceable member of the university’s communications team," Gambell said. "I’m grateful to have been his colleague."
People who have any information on Sovetov's disappearance or his death are encouraged to contact Yale and New Haven Police, or send an anonymous text tip through the LiveSafe app.
Follow Jordan Mendoza on Twitter: @jordan_mendoza5.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Yale employee missing since February found dead on Long Island shore
