'The emotions all come back': Gabby Petito's dad shares Kiely Rodni's family's pain after recovery of body
TRUCKEE, CALIFORNIA: The search for the 16-year-old Kiely Rodni ended when a group of six divers claimed on the afternoon of August 21 that they have found a body in Prosser Lake and were sure that it belongs to the missing teen. Rodni went missing on August 6 around 12.30 am and was last seen driving away from a party at the Prosser Family Campground, Truckee, in her 2013 silver Honda CRV. As her search came to an end, emotional tributes started pouring in and one such tribute was from Gabby Petito's father Joe Petito.
Joe Petito, the father of Gabby Petito who disappeared during a cross-country trip with her fiance and found and was later found dead, paid a heartwrenching tribute to Rodni. He tweeted, "My condolences to #kielyrondi's family. May she rest in piece. The emotions all come back to the surface when you see things like this. #missingpersons #togetherwecan". Gabby was believed to be killed by her fiance Brian Laundrie but even he was found dead after a while. The FBI closed the case confirming Brian confessed to killing Gabby in his notebook in January 2022. Another shocking disappearance was of Rodni who was found dead inside an upside-down car under 14 feet of water. Rodni's family finally made a public statement as obtained by KCRA which reads, "We are eternally grateful for the love and support you have shown us in the last couple of weeks. We have weathered a storm of unfathomable force, and it is purely thanks to the army of warriors, matriarchs, healers, and helpers holding us up that we continue to stand today."
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The statement further read, "While we accept this sadness cast under death’s shadow, the rising sun shines light upon us, reminding us not to mourn our loss, but to celebrate Kiely’s spirit and the gift that we all received in knowing her." Rodni was found by Adventures With Purpose, an Oregon-based volunteer group that announced the news via a Facebook post claiming that they had found the missing teen. The post read, "WE JUST FOUND KIELY RODNI... ==== Car is upside down in only 14' of water. We have CONFIRMED Kiely is inside. Family Notified. Law Enforcement on their way." However, a spokesperson for the Placer County sheriff’s office did not confirm that the body found was Rodni.
My condolences to #kielyrondi's family. May she rest in piece. The emotions all come back to the surface when you see things like this. 💔 #missingpersons #togetherwecan pic.twitter.com/zOK0Nsx4Qx
— joseph petito (@josephpetito) August 22, 2022
The curious case of Kiely Rodni
The 16-year-old was found after two days of search as per KCRA. Team leader Doug Bishop explained that the team searched several ponds in the Cold Stream area and then spent several hours in Boca Reservoir, putting two boats in the water to assist them as per Fox 40. Nick Rinn, a certified diver, said: "We’re taking our resources and the intel that we’ve been provided and we’re trying to see different avenues." Placer County Sheriff's Office explained that they had not obtained clear identification of the body, but the vehicle that was found by the Adventures With Purpose rescue group indeed belonged to Rodni.
A spokesperson for Rodni's family told US Sun, "At this time, I have no word from Kiely’s family as to the validity of yesterday’s social media posts indicating that Kiely and her car have been found. This has not been confirmed to me by the family or by the Placer County Sheriff’s Office." Her mother, Lindsey Rodni-Nieman, told the publication, "There have been parties there every weekend for years, it feels like a safe spot, it’s a campground, paved roads, they can sleep overnight if they want to. This community feels very safe … this kind of thing does not happen here. It feels surreal," while talking about Rodni's change in the plan which was initially going to a car show and then to a party.