Miami:
The founder of a popular Argentine restaurant in Miami and New York City was found dead in a river in India after he jumped in to help a man struggling in the current, according to a statement released Saturday by his restaurant group.
Hector Rolotti and five other people jumped into the murky waters of the Ganga last Monday to help the man and Rolotti was the only one who did not make it back to shore, according to the Novecento Group.
Search teams looked for him for days. His body was found on Saturday by a group of locals who alerted authorities and a search team.
Rolotti and his wife were visiting India on a spiritual meditation retreat. They were standing at the banks of Ganga with a group of more than 30 people when they heard one of the members calling for help after getting pulled in by the current, the Novecento Group statement said.
Rolotti opened Novecento restaurants in Cordoba and Buenos Aires in Argentina and Miami and New York.
"He was a tireless entrepreneur and family man, always concerned about his children, wife and parents," the restaurant group said. "Hector's great achievement with Novecento was much more than a restaurant chain. It is a meeting point for friends and communities."
Rolotti's remains were expected to be cremated in India and then brought to Miami and Argentina.