Baxter: Bodies inside vehicle believed to be Robert, Mary Ross of Perinton

Two bodies have been found in the submerged SUV of a missing Perinton couple — a Kia Sorento that was lodged in the muck of the Genesee River and pulled to shore Thursday.

The bodies are believed to be Robert and Mary Ross, who have been missing since late January. However, Sheriff Todd Baxter said Thursday, the identities have yet to be confirmed.

"It appears to be Mr. and Mrs. Ross, but obviously we cannot confirm that until the medical examiner confirms that for us," Baxter said.

Members of the Monroe County Sheriff's Office scuba team located the vehicle Wednesday while searching the Genesee River near the Pelican's Nest restaurant in Charlotte.

The SUV was pulled from the river around noon Thursday. But the recovery of the sport utility vehicle and the bodies still leaves unresolved the mystery about the disappearance of the Rosses.

"We have many unanswered questions and leads that we're going to follow up," Chief Deputy Michael Fowler said at a news conference Thursday after the recovery of the vehicle.

Investigators suspect the SUV entered the river at a boat launch near the Pelican's Nest restaurant or instead at an area providing some access further south along the river. The SUV shows some signs of damage, but that could be expected given that it was submerged about 17 feet in the river and found upright in the Genesee's muddy bottom, Fowler said.

The Sorento will be towed to the county crime lab in hopes that an analysis of the vehicle can provide some clues about when and how it ended up in the Genesee River. Thus far, there have been no surveillance photos or videos found of the SUV going into the water.

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Just after Christmas, Robert Ross, 73, was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma, an inoperable brain tumor. He was told he had between six and 18 months to live, depending on what medical treatment he chose.

The couple had been making arrangements for treatments before they went missing.

Robert Ross was last seen at a medical appointment Jan. 30. A social worker at Strong Memorial Hospital notified authorities that Robert Ross had missed several appointments. Deputies conducted a welfare check at the home and found stacked up mail and newspapers at the otherwise undisturbed home.

The last known contact with Mary Ross, 72, was a Jan. 31 telephone call. Police were able to determine Mary Ross' cellphone was close to a tower near the Port of Rochester in Charlotte at that time.

On Sunday, deputies began probing parts of the Genesee River looking for clues in the couple's disappearance.

Fowler said deputies used side-scan sonar equipment to locate the vehicle. He said the image showed that the located vehicle has "measured and verified to be very similar to the vehicle we're looking for.

The warming spell allowed the use of the sonar. Had the weather stayed cold, there could have been a longer wait to use the equipment in the river, Fowler said.

Police have been in contact with Robert Ross' son Bobby Ross of Bridgewater, Massachusetts. He is aware of Thursday's discovery.

"We have told him to prepare for the worst," Fowler said Wednesday.

In recent days, Fowler said, they unsuccessfully tried to determine the couple's whereabouts through bank records, license plate reader information, Thruway data, and surveillance video footage. A handful of people reported seeing the SUV, and investigators are trying to determine the legitimacy of those sightings.

Authorities are reaching out to the public for any leads about where the couple may have been after Jan. 31.

Just before 10 a.m. on Thursday, divers from the sheriff's office confirmed that the sport utility vehicle found underwater was indeed the same 2017 Kia Sorento owned by the Rosses. The license plate on the vehicle matched that of the couple's missing SUV, said sheriff's spokeswoman Amy Young.

Deputies pulled the SUV from the water around noon.

Divers from the Rochester Police Department and the U.S. Customs Enforcement Marine Unit assisted at the scene.

GCRAIG@Gannett.com

VFREILE@Gannett.com

Includes reporting by staff writer Will Cleveland.