Man found dead in truck submerged in pond at Sheffield farm

After tire tracks were found leading into a pond on a Sheffield farm Monday, a man’s body was recovered from a submerged truck, according to Massachusetts State Police.

A dive team, a K-9 unit, the State Police Air Wing, and other troopers searched a farm located at 1474 Hewins St. in Sheffield Monday morning for the man. Police said he was a 21-year-old Mexican national, but did not release his name.

They did say in a statement that the man worked at the farm as a harvester, and was seen sitting in the cab of a pickup truck Sunday night. He also lived at the farm.

Tire tracks were found beginning from where the pickup truck was last seen and leading into a nearby pond, police said. The pond is about 14 feet deep. 

The man’s body was found just before noon in the truck, which was submerged in approximately eight feet of water in a retention pond.

“The submerged truck was observed in the pond by a State Police Air Wing helicopter crew earlier in the morning. Divers contended with near-zero visibility in the retention pond to make the recovery,” state police said in a statement.

Police did not find any immediate signs indicating his death was suspicious.

Pine Island Farm is located at the address released by police. It is a family-owned dairy farm that was named Massachusetts Dairy Farm of the Year in 2017, according to the nonprofit New England Dairy. 

Pine Island is the largest dairy farm in the state, The Berkshire Eagle reported in 2017. It made headlines for converting cow manure into electricity.