The body of missing college student Megan Trussell has been found in a precarious woodland, in a “hard-to-reach” spot, police in Colorado believe.
Trussell, 18, a freshman at the University of Colorado in Boulder, was last seen on the evening of February 9 on surveillance video close to her college dorms. Her mother, Vanessa Diaz, later said she’d been on her way to her sister’s apartment in the city but “didn’t go there [and] she never arrived.”
Police now believe they have located her body above Boulder Canyon Drive Saturday, in a rural patch off of Highway 119 – just a 20-minute drive from the college campus.
Boulder County Sheriff's Office authorities revealed that at 10:41 a.m. Saturday, they received a call from Boulder park rangers regarding the discovery of a deceased female.
When police arrived they confirmed the body matched Trussell’s description.
The girl’s body was said to have been recovered from a “hard-to-reach” spot that required “a technical evacuation including the need to rappel.”
Officials also shared that the search terrain had been challenging due to hazardous road conditions created by the weather.
Her identity, cause, and manner of death, are yet to be confirmed by the Boulder County Coroner’s Office.
A family friend of the Trussells, Judy Brocato, told Denver7 that earlier on Saturday, Megan’s phone had last pinged in the canyon twice, one at around 10:45 p.m., and another at 11:55 p.m. the day she vanished.
Investigators believe her phone remained there throughout the week.
On the night she went missing, the 18-year-old had been wearing “big white platform sneakers.”, shared Brocato.
"It is very perplexing how she just seems to have disappeared. It doesn’t make sense. So, we’re just trying to piece that together", she said.
Police decided to enforce a shutdown of the highway while a search was underway from around 11:30 a.m. Saturday, along with the 2.6-mile Boulder Canyon Trail – both reopened shortly after 4 p.m., according to the Boulder County Parks & Open Space Rangers.
Multiple law enforcement agencies including the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, the FBI, and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation were involved in the search effort.
A vigil for Trussell will be held a short distance from where the discovery was made will be held on Tuesday, her family has said.
“This will be a time for reflection, sharing memories, and honoring her legacy. We welcome anyone who wishes to pay their respects”, Diaz wrote.
A close family friend mourned the loss of Trussell, calling her by the nickname “Megan-cita” and describing how she’d watched the 18-year-old cradle her children when they were just infants and praised her guitar-playing skills and ability to speak Spanish.
“I can’t believe she’s gone. The tragedy of such a young woman with her life in front of her breaks my heart”, shared the friend.
The Independent contacted the coroner for an update.
