SAU, Malvern High football player identified as missing man on Lake Catherine

MALVERN, AR - The man who disappeared Monday night while swimming in Lake Catherine has been identified as James King, 19, of Malvern, according to the Garland County Sheriff’s Office.

King was a football player at Malvern High School and played for SAU during his freshman year. A makeshift memorial of flowers and candles is set up at the gate to the Malvern football field. Monday night, about 75 gathered there to remember their friend.

John Fogleman, the Malvern’s football coach, said King was an “outstanding person and a standout athlete.”

The search for King began at 6pm Monday night. According to witnesses, King and his friends were attempting to swim from one area of the lake to another. King started having problems staying afloat and went under.

Search crews with the sheriff’s office, the Lake Hamilton Fire Department, and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission spent three hours Monday night and another six and a half hours on Tuesday searching for King, without success. The search operation was suspended at 2pm.