Death ruled as accidental drowning

Accidental drowning has been ruled as the cause of death for a delivery driver whose Jeep left the roadway and went into a retention pond behind a west-side shopping center last month.

Bartholomew County Coroner Clayton Nolting said an autopsy and toxicology results for Thomas Kedrowitz, 37, of Columbus, showed no indication of a seizure disorder that could have led to the accident.

The toxicology report did show an indication that Kedrowitz had used marijuana, Nolting said.

Kedrowitz’ body was recovered inside his black Jeep Liberty when it was pulled out a retention pond by a wrecker on Sept. 24. A female witness had called 911 at about noon that day saying she saw the Jeep, traveling toward Jonathan Moore Pike on Carr Hill Road, leave the roadway several hundred yards from the pond, travel through a farm field and over a curb and embankment before entering the water, police said.

Kedrowitz, who was a delivery driver for Jimmy Johns, was out making deliveries when the accident happened, investigators said.

Columbus firefighters and divers from the Bartholomew County Water Rescue Team and the Indiana State Police located the vehicle with a drag line hooked to a pole, firefighters at the scene said. A tow truck with a winch was used to pull the Jeep out of the water, which was estimated to be 15- to 16-feet deep.

A GoFundMe campaign to help Kedrowitz’s daughter Keylee Williams, 19, pay for his funeral, has raised $3,040 out of a $5,000 goal. Jimmy John’s was a recent contributor, giving $500 to help Williams.

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Donations to help defray funeral expenses for Thomas Lee Kedrowitz Jr. are being accepted. Additional money raised will help with college costs for his daughter, a Bargersville resident.

Online: gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=category&term=thomas%20kedrowitz

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