SOUTH HAVEN TOWNSHIP, Mich. — South Haven Police conducted a first-light search Saturday morning for a woman who supposedly had fallen into the Black River in South Haven Township.
The location is east of I-196, near the 700 block of 73rd Street.
South Haven Police Department Sergeant Zach Hathaway tells FOX 17 a man had given police a “convoluted story” about seeing a woman in the river overnight. A dive team launched a search for the woman after dawn, and the Van Buren County undersheriff found her – not in the water, but allegedly hiding in the woods.
“She didn’t want to be found,” says Hathaway. “At least, not by the man who reported it. His story was so far-fetched and weird, he barely could string together a coherent sentence. But we had to follow up and exhaust all resources to find her.”
Sergeant Hathaway says it appeared to be a domestic situation between the man and woman, both of whom had outstanding warrants from out of town. Police say the man had warrants outstanding from three counties. They didn’t elaborate on what those warrants were for.
“Both appeared to be in their mid-20s and camping out in the woods” near the Kal-Haven Trail, according to Hathaway. Their names haven’t been released, pending arraignment on unspecified charges. The woman is from South Haven and the man is from the east side of the state, per police.
They’re being held in the Van Buren County Jail in Paw Paw.
