Missing Oil Exec's Body Found in River

(AP)  A body pulled from the Mississippi River near the French Quarter on Tuesday was that of a missing Texas oil company executive, police said.

Police believe Douglas Schantz, 54, president of Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, drowned accidentally, said Bob Young of the New Orleans police department.

"He had all his credit cards, his jewelry was on him," Young said. "At this time we feel it was accidental."

Tim Miller, president and founder of search and recovery company Texas Equusearch, said the body was found shortly after noon Tuesday in the river "very, very near" the spot where Schantz was last seen on a security video Friday morning.

"We went out and got a clear picture of it right away," Miller said. "So then we just brought it up."

Police began focusing on the river after tracing Schantz's route there from a Bourbon Street bar. Police searched videos from businesses in the French Quarter were able to place Schantz at the dock for the Riverboat Natchez at about 2:40 a.m. on Friday.

Police Superintendent Warren Riley said Tuesday that Schantz, who left the Razzoo Bar and Patio about 2 a.m. Friday, was seen walking on a 2-foot-wide walkway by the river.

Riley said Schantz, who had been drinking, seemed disoriented on the videos. He is seen going into a restricted area and is not seen again on the video, despite a review of the following four hours of tape, Riley said.

It does not seem that Schantz was the victim of foul play, which had earlier been suspected, Riley said.

"At no point in that 36 minutes was he ever approached or accompanied by any individual," Riley said.

Schantz was in New Orleans to give Tulane University a $25,000 gift during a reception Thursday. After the dinner, he and colleagues went to Bourbon Street around midnight, said Mark Homestead, a senior vice president who was with Schantz.

Police mounted a massive effort to find Schantz, with 30 detectives scouring the French Quarter for videos showing his path after leaving his co-workers. The FBI, U.S. Marshal Service and Customs were also involved in the search.

On Monday a Coast Guard helicopter searched for 20 miles down-river but found no sign of Schantz.

[sherrytc05]

If you ask me, the bigger issue is why did this grown man get so drunk that he fell into the river and drowned. I feel really bad for his family. What a senseless way to die.

I hope his family comes forward to shed some light on this situation like he had a drinking problem or he was depressed, because I am having a hard time believing that someone of his caliber died like this. Sad.

[retiredgustav]

My sympathy to the family for their loss!

[brianbwb2011]

My congratulations for their gain. The insurance should be fun for them, and like most of their kind, they probably are waiting to hear the reading of the will.

[hateisafourletterword]

brian - "their kind"

Do you mean "executive"? Do you mean "white"? Do you mean "wealthy"?

Other than leaving a classless comment, what exactly did you mean by "their kind". If you were my child you would have difficult time sitting at the dinner table for a few days.

[rockcutr]

Oil executives make good gator bait. Not an ounce of sympathy. More relief in that there is one less of these cockroaches. Stomp with boot and a half turn to assure total squish. There shall be an oil slick. This cleans up with "Goof Off". Appropriate. Accident, ok, go with dat.

[katygirl1987]

You should be really embarassed to look like such an a$$hole on the world wide web. Heaven forbid anyone should run a successful company. You're going to hell for this one, I'm affraid. That is if you haven't already been there for a few years.

[brianbwb2011]

katygirl1987

Depends on what they're successful at, sweetie.

The cocaine Mafia is a successful company, so by your logic, that's fine.

[RoboBlogger]

All that money couldn't even afford to pay to learn how to swim.

[dnamj]

probably tried to **** in the river. many accidental drownings are **** related.

[askagain]

dwilson59 - What is your problem? Douglas Schantz was an oil company executive who donated $25,000 to a college. Would you rather have Comcast take sixty billion dollars of cable subscriber money to buy NBC to improve their profits. Now that is something to complain about.

[brianbwb2011]

Son, I have donated far more than that to colleges, and even started schools myself, and I am by no means making the kind of money this dead drunk was making.

What Comcast does with money you voluntarily give them is Comcast's business, you don't have to have cable. Or NBC for that matter.

But try living without oil.

[curse914]

"He had all his credit cards, his jewelry was on him," Young said. "At this time we feel it was accidental."

It could be that his body, heavy laden with jewelry, made it impossible for him to swim to safety.

[brianbwb2011]

or someone even richer than him did him in.

[dwilson59]

Schantz was in New Orleans to give Tulane University a $25,000 gift during a reception

Big Oil must be stoped

[stychokiller]

@libbcbs: You sir/madam, need to look up the definition of Sarcasm ;)