Georgia DNR finds missing Upstate man’s body near Lake Lanier

GREENVILLE, SC (FOX Carolina)- The Georgia Department of Natural Resources confirmed they recovered the body of Dorian Pinson, a Greenville man who had been missing out of Lake Lanier since April.

The department said that Pinson died in a boating accident on Lake Lanier, but his body wasn’t recovered until Wednesday.

According to DNR, game wardens were able to find Pinson’s body with a sector scan sonar in 117 feet of water around 11:20 a.m. The department said that Pinson’s body was removed with a remote-operated vehicle around 12:40 p.m. Wednesday.

DNR also confirmed that the Hall County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and a non-profit that specializes in locating and recovering drowning victims called Bruce’s Legacy also helped in the recovery efforts.

According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, 24-year-old Dorian Pinson went swimming with a group of friends on Lake Lanier on Sunday. Due to high winds, their boat drifted away. Two swimmers were rescued, but Dorian never resurfaced. We later learned that Pinson was a former standout basketball star from the Upstate.

We talked exclusively with Pinson’s trainer, who tells us he just worked out with him in Greenville the Friday before he disappeared.

“Our last workout was Friday at 3pm. We had a workout before he left to go to Georgia,” Ron White said.

Ron White said he never thought it would be the last time he saw Dorian Pinson.

“We just did what we always do, have fun, talk, train, grind. It was just a normal day,” White said.

White said Pinson is a former high school basketball star who graduated from Legacy Charter High School in Greenville. We’ve also confirmed he played for Lincoln Memorial University and two seasons abroad with Niagra River Lions in Canada and White Wings Professional Basketball Club in Germany.

“He could play all positions. He could shoot, rebound, you could put him on the floor,” White said, “Pretty much anything you wanted him to do, he could do.”

White said Pinson had gone to Georgia to visit his family over the weekend.

According to Georgia DNR, Pinson and a group of friends rented a pontoon boat to spend the day on Lake Lanier.

Rescue crews said three of them decided to go for a quick swim around 6:00 on Sunday night. According to DNR, the boat drifted away, and three swimmers, including Dorian, could not get back to the pontoon.

“I got a message from one of my cousins, and she just asked if it was true, but I didn’t know what she was talking about,” White said, “Then she sent me something that said he had an accident on the water.”

DNR said Pinson’s body was sent to a Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab.

The investigation is ongoing, DNR confirmed.

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