Maximilian Cardone

Maximilian "Max" Cardone was a 21 year old fourth year cybersecurity student at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Henrietta, New York. He was pursuing his degree through RIT's Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences and was, according to his family, someone who took great pride in being part of the RIT community, which he had chosen as his first and only college.

Cardone was originally from Albany, New York, and had been living in the Henrietta area while attending RIT. Friends and university officials described him as a dedicated student in the university's cybersecurity program, part of a department known for training students for careers protecting computer systems and networks.

Cardone was reported missing on October 22, 2026, after the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said he had last been in contact around 11 a.m. on October 21. He was believed at the time to be in the Niagara Falls area, roughly eighty miles from campus. Authorities released a description of him, including his clothing and the black backpack he was carrying, and asked the public for help locating him. No explanation for why he had traveled to the Niagara Falls region was made public during the search.

On October 30, 2026, RIT's Senior Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. Sandra Johnson, confirmed in a message to the university community that Cardone had died. The announcement ended an eight day search and investigation that had drawn concern across the campus. As of this writing, no cause of death has been made public, and the circumstances surrounding his disappearance and death remain under investigation.

The news of Cardone's death was met with an outpouring of grief from the RIT community. University officials extended condolences to his family, friends and classmates, and his family shared with the university that RIT had been his first and only choice for college and that he had been proud to be part of it. As is common after sudden student deaths, the campus community is expected to organize ways to grieve and remember him together, though specific memorial arrangements had not yet been announced.

Maximilian Cardone's death adds to a painful history of missing and deceased students connected to RIT and the Rochester area, which has prompted renewed attention in local coverage to student safety and support resources for a grieving campus.