AP

Brown University student Sunil Tripathi.

A missing Brown University student wrongly rumored to be involved in the Boston Marathon bombings was confirmed dead Thursday, after his body was pulled from the Providence River earlier this week.

Officials confirmed through dental records that it was 22-year-old Sunil Tripathi, who was last seen on March 16.

"We have confirmed the identity of the young man found in the water off India Point in Providence," said Dara Chadwick, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Health. Tripathi's body was pulled from the river on Tuesday, she said.

No foul play is suspected in his death, the Rhode Island medical examiner said. The cause of death has not yet been determined, but police said on Tuesday when his body was found that it had been in the water for a long time. 

Tripathi's name had been tossed around in social media circles during last week marathon bombings as false speculation grew online that he was tied to the attacks, adding to his family's anguish over his disappearance.

"Our voices got drowned out and hysteria took over," Tripathi's brother, Ravi, told NBC affiliate WJAR in Providence.

The bombing suspects have since been identified as Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Tripathi is from Radnor, Pa., and had been studying philosophy at Brown. He was on leave this semester, and his family has said he was battling depression. He was last spotted alive on surveillance video, walking near his apartment by the Ivy League campus.

Courtesy of the Tripathi family

Sunil Tripathi and his mother, Judy Tripathi.

After his death was confirmed Wednesday morning, Tripathi's family thanked supporters on a Facebook page devoted to the search effort to finding him. 

"As we carry indescribable grief, we also feel incredible gratitude. To each one of you – from our hometown to many distant lands – we extend our thanks for the words of encouragement, for your thoughts, for your hands, for your prayers, and for the love you have so generously shared," a message signed "The Tripathi Family" said. "Your compassionate spirit is felt by Sunil and by all of us."

This story was originally published on Thu Apr 25, 2013 10:37 AM EDT

Ian Burnet, 22, left his Richmond, Va. residence on Dec. 26, 2011 to travel to New York City to stay with friends.

An engineering student who came to New York City to celebrate the New Year holiday with friends has not been heard from since Dec. 30, and sources say the 22-year-old has a history of suicide attempts, according to NBC New York.

Ian Burnet, who studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, left his Richmond, Va., home the day after Christmas and took a bus to New York, where he planned to rent an apartment for a week with friends, authorities said.

Burnet's last known contact was a text with a friend on Dec. 30. He was seen that afternoon at the apartment where he had been staying on 139th St. and Riverside Drive, but he left without his cell phone, according to The New York Daily News. He reportedly didn't say where he was going.

“It’s completely out of character. We have no reason to think that he would do something like this,” Nancy Burnet said, reported The Daily News. The last time she heard from her son was via text on Dec. 27, after he visited Central Park, she said.

Concerned family and friends took to Facebook and the online community Reddit to spread the word about Burnet's disappearance. Burnet's older brother Jamie, a Reddit user, responded to one user who asked, "Have you ever thought he DOESN'T want to be found?" and said, "Yes. There's a very real possibility that he took his own life, and I'm trying not to think about it. He has a history of depression, and there have been scares before. But he didnt leave any last messages behind, which would be extremely uncharacteristic ... I'm hoping that's not the case."

According to NBC New York, investigators learned that Ian Burnet has attempted suicide at least three times in the past, at least once by combining alcohol and taking prescription pills. His family has said he doesn't have a history of drug abuse or alcoholism.

Read the full story on NBCNewYork.com

Burnet is thought to have brought his driver's license and credit cards with him, but the charge cards haven't been used since he vanished, his family said, reported The Daily News.

Investigators tracked his MetroCard to the 145th Street station on the northbound 1 line, close to the West Harlem apartment where he was staying on the day he disappeared, law enforcement sources told NBC New York. They're reviewing video footage from cameras at the station in search of clues.

On Wednesday, police officers searched the boiler room, three empty apartments, and an elevator shaft in the building where Burnet was staying, reported NBC New York, a routine search in a missing person case.

Burnet's father and brother traveled to New York to post flyers and join the search for him, which is being conducted jointly by police in New York and Virginia, reported The Daily News.

On his Reddit Page, Jamie Burnet wrote of his brother, "We've put up fliers and we've talked to the shelters and the cops but I don't know what else to do. He has a history of depression and he was in a strange place. He was an engineer, a redditor, and the most important person in my life. I need your help. I realize that this subreddit has only the minutest fraction of the population of New York City subscribed, and even all of reddit combined, all of the INTERNET put together, would not represent a hopeful percentage, but I don't know what to do."

The Facebook page dedicated to finding Ian had more than 2,200 members as of Thursday morning. Another site, FindIanBurnett.com, was also set up to spread the word about his disappearance.

Ian Burnet is described as 5'8'', 131 pounds, with dark green eyes and curly brown hair. Anyone with information is asked to call the New York Police Department at (212) 690-8811.

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