South Dakota
Friends reveal US mom of 2 may have died from ‘medical issue’ before being eaten by shark in Indonesia
The American tourist who was devoured by a shark in Indonesia is believed to have died from a “medical issue” while diving, her friends told The Post Monday — revealing that she was an experienced deep-sea diver who was “really enjoying life.”
Colleen Monfore, a retired mom of two from Holland, Michigan, was enjoying her dream vacation — a seven-week diving tour with her husband Mike — when tragedy struck on Sept. 26, family pal Rick Sass said.
Just a few days into the trip, Monfore, 68, disappeared during a group dive around Pulau Reong island, north of Timor-Leste and off the coast of the Southwest Maluku Regency. Two weeks later, fishermen in Timor-Leste caught the shark — and cut human remains out of its belly more than 70 miles from where she vanished.
Authorities were able to ID Monfore from the body’s fingerprints, according to Sass, a longtime friend who has been in close contact with the family throughout their harrowing ordeal.
“We do not believe this was a shark attack. Mike thinks she suffered some kind of medical issue in the water,” Sass told The Post.
Sass and his wife Kim – who ran a dive shop together for more than 40 years – examined photos from the dive, spoke with Mike at length about the incident and reviewed data from his dive computer.
The friends are adamant Monfore, who Rick Sass said seems to have been separated from the group when rough waters forced them to turn around, was not killed by a shark. She was around 24 feet down and probably had half a tank of air left, he said.
“There was a down current at the turnaround site, but it was manageable,” Kim Sass wrote in a Facebook post. “I’ve easily done 1000+ dive[s] with this gracious woman … I don’t believe it was the environment and certainly not a shark that ended her life.”
Rick Sass added: “They dove massive numbers of trips with us over 30 years. Bali, Philippines, Bikini Atoll, you name it.
“She knew what she was doing.”
Mike Monfore was already an avid diver when he met Colleen in high school in their native state of South Dakota, and she soon too fell in love with the ocean.
They had two kids and, eventually, four grandkids, but they never stopped traveling the world and exploring the seas together. “They were both retired and really enjoying life,” Rick Sass said.
“We used to call her ‘Saint Colleen.’ She was an amazing woman,” he added. “She loved nature and animals. I know she would have never wanted a shark to be blamed for this tragedy.”
He noted that shark attacks against divers are extremely rare.
“And sharks are not that way. We’ve dove with hammerheads, tiger sharks, bull sharks. You have to give them respect and be cautious, but they won’t just attack you.”
There were only 69 confirmed unprovoked shark bites worldwide last year, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, and 94% of those were on snorkelers, waders, and surfers. The remaining 6% are categorized as “other.”
It’s not yet clear how exactly Colleen Monfore died. Grisly photos from the scene show the shark in question cut open — with human remains in a black wetsuit nearby.
“The shark was caught but it was not in normal health. I thought it had swallowed plastic or a fishing net,” the fisherman said, according to Asia Pacific Press. “It was cut open to find the problem and inside there were the remains of a woman.”
Rick Sass said her husband has been struggling not only with her death but bringing his wife’s remains back home.
“He’s hardly been sleeping at all, partly because he’s up on the phone with Indonesia, which is a 12-hour time difference,” he said. “He’s answering phone calls in the middle of the night, and talking to us during the day, and not just not being able to sleep because of this horrible thing that happened.”
Indonesian authorities said an investigation is underway.
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 15, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 15 drawing
03-24-32-39-41, Lucky Ball: 18
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Rally against eminent domain for carbon pipelines held at Iowa Capitol
Iowa lawmakers and landowners spoke at a rally at the Iowa Capitol Rotunda against eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines.
PIERRE, S.D. — The South Dakota coalition that successfully pushed for a state ban on eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines last winter will propose broader limits on eminent domain and more protections for landowners this legislative session.
Sen. Mark Lapka, R-Leola, announced the efforts. One would send a proposed state constitutional amendment to voters in November that would further restrict eminent domain.
“Codified law is too easily amendable over time,” Lapka said. “It’s the constitutionally protected rights that hold firm forever.”
The amendment would “eliminate eminent domain for private gain,” Lapka said, while allowing for public works projects such as public highways, water lines and other infrastructure.
Eminent domain is a legal process for gaining access to privately owned land when a deal can’t be reached with landowners. It’s often used for public infrastructure projects. It became controversial in South Dakota when Iowa-based Summit Carbon Solutions attempted to use it for a five-state pipeline that would capture carbon dioxide from ethanol plants and transport it to an underground sequestration site in North Dakota. The project would benefit from federal tax credits incentivizing the prevention of heat-trapping emissions into the atmosphere.
Landowner opposition to the Summit project in South Dakota culminated in the Legislature’s passage of a law last year banning carbon pipelines from using eminent domain. Summit is still pursuing the project and has permits in other states, but has been denied permits twice by South Dakota’s Public Utilities Commission.
Lapka announced his new proposals at a property rights rally Monday in the state Capitol rotunda, attended by dozens of South Dakota farmers, ranchers and lawmakers.
SD bill named after Jared Bossly of Aberdeen
Along with the constitutional amendment, Lapka announced what he’s calling the “Bossly Bill,” named for Jared Bossly, of rural Aberdeen, who is suing Summit Carbon Solutions for allegedly trespassing on his land while it was asserting its right to use eminent domain.
Lapka said the bill will mirror language in a decision by the South Dakota Supreme Court in 2024. The decision said Summit had not proven it was a common carrier. That meant the company could not use eminent domain to access landowners’ property.
Lapka’s bill would “clean up” the language that exists in state law, he said, and protect against “invasive tactics.”
There was a bill introduced last legislative session that would have empowered citizens to sue for allegedly deceptive practices, fraud, harassment, intimidation or misrepresentation during the acquisition of land access agreements by carbon pipeline land agents. The bill narrowly failed in the Senate after passing the House.
The text of the bills announced by Lapka had not been released as of Monday afternoon. The 2026 session of the South Dakota Legislature begins Tuesday and continues through March.
South Dakota Searchlight is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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