Body Found in Rochester Pond Suspected to be Missing Rochester Woman

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Rochester Police suspect the body found in a retention pond Wednesday afternoon to be a Rochester woman who has been missing since November 2021. 

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Officers responded to the report of a submerged vehicle in a retention pond near the Rochester Ready-Mix Concrete Plant in the 4000 block of 19th St. Northwest shortly before 2 p.m. Police Captain Casey Moilanen said the caller reported seeing a bumper floating in the water then spotted a submerged vehicle. 

The Rochester Police Department’s Dive Team responded and the vehicle, described as a Pontiac Grand Am, was towed out of the pond. Moilanen said officers found the woman’s body in the passenger area of the vehicle. 

Investigators also found a wallet with an ID belonging to 64-year-old Jodi Boeckermann. Moilanen says investigators have been in contact with her son, but said the police department will not officially identify the body as Boeckermann until the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner's Office makes an official identification. The autopsy will also seek to determine an official cause and manner of death. 

A statewide missing person alert issued by the Minnesota BCA in November 2021 said Boeckermann was last seen alone at her Rochester home on October 15, 2021. The vehicle listed in the alert matches the vehicle pulled from the pond. 

A police spokesperson said Wednesday the vehicle was made visible by low water levels in the pond prompted by dry conditions. Moilanen said foul play is not suspected at this point of the investigation, however investigators are still working to determine how the vehicle ended up in the retention pond. 

Moilanen also said Boekermann was prescribed medication and was at risk of becoming disoriented if she stopped taking it. He said it appeared the vehicle had been in the pond for a lengthy period of time.