Missing Bronx swimmer’s body found off Rockaways, authorities say

The body found in the waters off the Rockaways Wednesday night was identified as the Bronx swimmer whose disappearance set off a large search just before sunset, authorities said.

Keith Johnson, 19, of Marion Avenue, was taken to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway, Queens, where he was pronounced dead, the NYPD said Wednesday night.

The search for him began shortly after 6:30 p.m., when a 911 caller reported a swimmer in distress off Beach 17th Street and the boardwalk along the shores of Far Rockaway, police said.

For almost two hours, air and marine units from the NYPD and the FDNY searched the waters and were joined by fire departments from Long Beach, Inwood and Lawrence-Cedarhurst.