Lake Mead is the largest man-made reservoir in the USA. It is connected to the Colorado River and supplies water to more than 20 million people in Nevada, California, Arizona and parts of Mexico. Like many other bodies of water around the world, Lake Mead is shrinking.

Extreme temperatures are causing the water to evaporate, people are drawing too much water from it, and there is less snow in winter to replenish its reserves.

However, Lake Mead is also interesting because it is located near Las Vegas. Less than 50 km away from the city of lights and money lies a dark abyss. Wherever organised crime is active, all loose ends tend to end up in the water. (...)

As the water level in the lake drops, all sorts of things submerged in the water are starting to be revealed. “The lake has been a dumping ground for a long time,” says local diver Bill Bradley. Since May 2022, at least three sets of human remains have been found on the recently dried-up shores of Lake Mead. Although some believe that two are people who drowned accidentally, there is no denying that the third met a very different end, specifically, they were found in a barrel submerged in the lake. (...)