Crime & Safety
Novato Man ID'd in Apparent Monterey Drowning Death
Michael Taketa-Graham was 58. He died in apparent scuba diving accident.
The body of a man killed in an apparent diving accident off the Monterey Peninsula was identified as a 58-year-old Novato man, the Marin Independent Journal reports.
Michael Taketa-Graham's body was found floating off a pier near Cannery Row, the IJ reports. The Monterey Herald identifies the location his body was discovered asBreakwater Cove .
Taketa-Graham's body was found on Friday, five days after he'd been reported missing by his wife on June 16. He was described by a friend interviewed by the IJ as an avid diver.
Authorities have not determined the cause of Taketa-Graham's death but acknowledged the likelihood that he drowned.
Find out what's happening in Novatowith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“It certainly has all the looks of a drowning,” Detective Diana Schumacher of the Monterey County Coroner's Office told the IJ.
Taketa-Graham's body was discovered in a kelp bed, the IJ reports. He was wearing a wetsuit and goggles. His air tanks sank to the bay floor.
Find out what's happening in Novatowith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Taketa-Graham was a published microbiologist and businessman, according to the IJ. He owned T-G Properties, a Novato real estate firm.