Search and rescue personnel found the body of missing 22-year-old Brigham Young University junior, Tyler Mayle, at the bottom of a sheer, 60-foot cliff south of the popular Y Mountain near Eagle Pass, Wednesday evening.
"Unfortunately at 8:40 p.m. our crews found the body of a deceased person, we believe it to be him, right now our detectives are conducting a death investigation," said Lt. Matt Siufanua, Provo Police Department.
Police said that the body matched the description of Mayle and the signals from his cell phone were tracked to the area very close to where his body was found.
Mayle's body has been taken to the Utah State Medical Examiner's Office, to determine the official cause of death.
According to the police records, Mayle was missing since Saturday after he wen for hiking alone on Y Mountain for a day. His family started to worry when he stopped answering their calls. He was supposed to pick up his sister from the airport Tuesday morning.
His family made a 911 call, and the search and rescue personnel initiated a hunt on Tuesday. After a widespread search on the ground and by air, they finally located him in an area known as Eagle's Pass.
Searchers from Provo Police and Provo Fire, Utah County Sheriff's Office, Utah County Search and Rescue, Utah Highway Patrol, Utah County Mountain Posse, Rocky Mountain Search Dogs, Division of Wildlife Resources, a grotto team, Davis County Sheriff's office, horses and helicopters collaborated for the search.
Provo Police Lt. Mathew Siufanua said that the Eagle's Pass is known for its rough terrain and is considered off the trail to 'hike the Y.' The officers are called frequently to this area to help rescue hikers who have fallen.
Siufanua said that Mayle was far off the trail and it appeared that he had been trying to climb a steep cliff.
Mayle, an avid hiker, was studying communications and political science and was a member of BYU's marching band. His friends and peers remembered him as an energetic, fun-loving, and friendly individual.
"On behalf of the entire BYU community, we express our sincerest condolences and deepest sympathy to the family of student Tyler Mayle. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones at this time," BYU President Cecil O. Samuelson said.