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Police Comb Water In Search Of Missing West Chester University Student

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- An FBI task force is now joining Philadelphia Police in the search for the West Chester student who went missing during a night out in Manayunk Thanksgiving Eve.

The Philadelphia Police Marine Unit slowly combed the water of the Manayunk Canal Sunday, looking for 21-year-old Shane Montgomery, who went to Kildaire's Irish Pub on Wednesday night with a cousin and some friends, but never returned home.

Authorities said he was escorted out of the bar by a bouncer shortly before closing time after stumbling on a bar stool, and he hasn't been seen since.

A seven member crew stretched out the entire width of the canal, poking and prodding every inch, all while Shane's mother stood by and watched with as much optimism as she could muster.

"It's upsetting to know that this is what they have to do," she said. "But it's also, I can't express my gratitude to the police department and anybody that's helped head this search."

Crews were forced to stop every few minutes because they could not see the bottom. The search of the water was expected to take several hours, officials said.

"I'm not giving up any kind of hope. "I'm going to find Shane today," said Shane's uncle and Godfather. ""No one disappears like this. "We're going to find him today."

A day earlier, around 500 volunteers were going door to door, handing out and hanging up flyers. More than a hundred people attended a candlelight vigil Saturday night at Canal View Park on Main Street, across the from the pub where Shane was last seen.

The family is now offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to Shane. He is described as a 5'11 white male, weighing around 135 pounds with a Celtic cross tattooed on his back. He was last seen wearing a grey shirt.

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 215-686-3353.

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