The body of a missing College of Charleston student has been recovered, and authorities have ruled his death a suicide. Owen Kinney, a 19-year-old from New Jersey, was found in the water near Patriots Point at approximately 8:45 a.m. on Saturday, according to the Charleston Police Department.

Kinney was last seen by friends around 2 a.m. on October 31. Police reported that he walked alone onto the Ravenel Bridge pedestrian walkway shortly after 3 a.m. His phone's last recorded location was also on the bridge around that time. Investigators concluded that he died by suicide after being on the walkway at 3:49 a.m.

Charleston Police Chief Chito Walker expressed gratitude to those involved in the search for Kinney. "I would like to thank everyone who took part in the effort to get Owen back to his family. We hope this recovery brings some measure of closure to a family experiencing unimaginable loss," Walker stated.

Earlier in the week, police indicated that the case had shifted from a missing persons investigation to a recovery effort after determining the cause of death. College of Charleston President Andrew T. Hsu also released a statement, saying, "There are no words that can ease the pain of losing someone so young and so full of promise. Now is the time to surround his family with love, to support the friends and classmates who are grieving and to remind each other that no one in our campus family carries this weight alone."

Hsu encouraged students affected by the tragedy to seek support through the Counseling Center, while faculty and staff can contact AllOne Health for assistance. These resources are available free of charge and are confidential for all College of Charleston affiliates.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, free and confidential help is available 24/7. You can call or text the national lifeline at 988.