A graduate student in Wisconsin who went missing after leaving a bar was found dead three days later, and authorities are trying to piece together what happened to her.
Authorities had been searching for Eliotte Heinz, a 22-year-old Viterbo University student, since July 20. Her remains were found the morning of July 23 in the Mississippi River, according to the La Crosse Police Department.
La Crosse Police Chief Shawn Kudron said in a press release that the department feels for Heinz’s family and friends.
“This was not the outcome we had hoped for throughout this search,” Kudron said.
La Crosse police said the investigation is ongoing and they are waiting for autopsy results.
On July 24, the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner’s Office referred USA TODAY to the La Crosse County Medical Examiner, who said that due to the pending investigation, the office could not release any information.
La Crosse police did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s requests for comment on July 24.
Here’s what authorities have said so far about her case.
More news: Grad student, 22, disappears after leaving Wisconsin bar
Heinz last seen walking after leaving bar
Heinz was last seen walking in downtown La Crosse around 3:22 a.m. on July 20, about 71 miles east of Rochester, Minnesota, La Crosse police said. She had just left Bronco’s Bar, according to Viterbo University, where she attended graduate school.
Her mother, Amber Heinz, told Fox News her daughter was trying to go home after leaving the bar. She’d spoken to her daughter that week and they talk often, she said.
“Sunday morning when we couldn’t get ahold of her, we knew that something was going on,” her mother told the outlet.
No one had been able to reach her since then, and police launched an investigation into her disappearance.
During their search, police asked downtown businesses and residents to check their properties and cameras. Authorities were hoping to review footage captured between 2 a.m. and 9 a.m. on July 20, the day Heinz was last seen.
On July 23, three days after she was last seen, someone contacted the La Crosse Police Department and said they’d found a body in the Mississippi River near Brownsville, Minnesota, about 13 miles south of where she was last seen.
The body was eventually identified as that of the missing woman.
Remembering Eliotte Heinz
Her mother, Amber, told Fox News that she was part of the university’s graduate mental health counseling program.
Viterbo University issued a statement and said administrators are “heartbroken by this loss.”
“We are especially grateful to the La Crosse Police Department for their tireless efforts and to the many community members who showed up with compassion by searching, sharing information, offering prayers, and providing food, water, and comfort during the most difficult of days,” the university said.
This fall, the university will hold a memorial service for Heinz.
Viterbo University President Dr. Rick Trietley said in the university’s statement that his heart goes out to her family.
“There are no words that can ease the pain of losing someone so young, with so much life ahead of her,” he said. “Our hearts go out to Eliotte’s family. We hold them in our prayers and stand with them in their grief.”
USA TODAY has reached out to the university to find out more about Heinz’s involvement on campus.
‘Biggest heart and unending kindness’
Heinz’ family released a statement via the university’s Facebook page on July 22, thanking community members for their support. The family stressed that reviewing security footage from the early morning hours of July 20 could help.
Her mother said she was kind, special, and had “big blue eyes.”
She has a brother and sister, and she’s her parents’ oldest child, she also told the outlet.
“She has got the biggest heart and unending kindness for everyone,” her mother told Fox News. “I think that is noted by how many people have showed up for her.”
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Eliotte Heinz: What to know about missing grad student found dead
The post A missing grad student is found dead in a river. Here’s what we know. appeared first on USA TODAY.
