harsha_maddula

Harsha Maddula, the Northwestern University student who went missing last weekend, has been found dead, university officials said.

Multiple news outlets are reporting that a fisherman discovered Maddula’s body floating near some boats at a harbor in Wilmette, Ill., Thursday night.

His wallet, Northwestern ID card and his cellphone were found on the body, Northwestern University spokesman Alan Cubbage told reporters in a news conference on Thursday night.

"Wilmette Police investigators on the scene said there were no signs of foul play on the body," Cubbage said.

The cause of death is under investigation.

"On behalf of Northwestern University, I extend our deepest sympathies to Harsha's family and to his many friends at Northwestern," university President Morton Schapiro said in a statement. "Our hearts and thoughts are with them. The loss of one member of the Northwestern community deeply affects us all."

Maddula, 18, disappeared Saturday after he left a party near Northwestern's campus around 12:30 a.m., according to several news reports. His cellphone last pinged a cell tower near Wilmette Harbor around 1 a.m., school officials said.

While divers searched the Lake Michigan harbor for hours Wednesday, they had discovered no signs of a body present, according to a statement from the university early Thursday.

The family of the sophomore pre-med student flew from their home in Long Island, N.Y., to assist with the search, and put up a $25,000 reward for information on his whereabouts, ABC News reported. Maddula was described by his family to reporters as an avid student who did not have habits of partying.

"We really have no idea, no clue what could have happened to him," his cousin, Srinu Maddula, told ABC News early Thursday. "It's just out of his character. He's just a good kid, he just likes to study. He really enjoys school and education and work. He doesn't smoke, or drink, or do drugs because of his diabetic condition."

Srinu Maddula added that the family has little information about the party that his cousin was attending or what friends he was with on the night of his disappearance.