Body Found At Belton Lake Is That Of Missing Soldier

BELL COUNTY, TEXAS — A body found Tuesday at an area lake is that of a Fort Hood soldier who has been missing since January, according to media reports.

Scott Weinhold went under water during a Jan 21 fishing outing with friends when their boat capsized at Belton Lake, officials previously confirmed. One of the men on the boat managed to swim to shore, but Fort Hood soldiers Scott Weinhold and Kelton Sphaler went missing, according to reports.

Spahler's body was recovered the next day. Law enforcement officials said the body found Tuesday is Weinhold, according to area media reports, including KXTW. Also reporting that the body is that of the missing soldier is KWKT.

In previous media interviews, Weinhold's mother said her 24-year-old son was married and had been assigned to Fort Hood since March 2018.

Sphaler, 25, of Cross City, FL, joined the U.S. Army in December 2013 and was assigned to Fort Hood’s 4th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, at the time of his death. He was He deployed to Bahrain from September 2015 to June 2016.

Belton Lake is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Leon River in the Brazos River basin, located miles northwest of Belton, Texas, and some 70 miles north of Austin. The lake has a maximum depth of 124 feet.

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