In central Russia, the bodies of a young couple who vanished almost a decade ago have been discovered in the Volga River.

In December 2005, Ilya Zhirnov, 25, and his girlfriend Kira Cherkasova, 22, vanished from sight.

Their bones were discovered inside a car at the bottom of the Volga in the Chuvash Republic in central Russia, more than ten years after they were lost in the city of Cheboksary

Authorities were able to identify the couple because of car documentation that had survived more than ten years underwater.

When Mr. Zhirnov borrowed his father’s automobile to pick up Miss Cherkasova from work in December 2005, that was the last time they were spotted together.

The families have been kept in the dark about the whereabouts of the young lovers to this day. The police looked into the missing couple but were ultimately compelled to dismiss the case due to a lack of proof.

While investigating the waters close to a nearby beach, a local diving enthusiast—whose name has not been made public—found the couple’s automobile in the river.

The next day, after informing the police of his finding, they managed to hoist the car out of the river.

Authorities think the couple met their untimely end due to an accident involving icy roads near the river.

The results of the ongoing police inquiry will eventually be made public.