Body of missing Princeton University student found on campus, officials say

A Princeton University student who was reported missing over the weekend from the Ivy League school in New Jersey was found dead on campus Thursday, the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office said.

Misrach Ewunetie, 20, was found by an employee at about 1 p.m. behind tennis courts on campus, according to authorities. While there were “no obvious signs of injury” and her death did not “appear suspicious or criminal in nature,” an autopsy will be done to determine her cause of death, the prosecutor’s office said.

Ewunetie was reported missing on Sunday after she was last seen heading to her dorm room on campus at about 3 a.m. on Oct. 14 — the last day of classes before the campus’s one-week fall break, according to university officials. However, when her roommate returned to the dorm at about 4 a.m., Ewunetie was not there.

“Misrach’s death is an unthinkable tragedy. Our hearts go out to her family, her friends and the many others who knew and loved her, ” University Vice President W. Rochelle Calhoun said in a statement.

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A widespread search for Ewunetie began after she was reported missing with multiple agencies aiding in the search, including local police departments, state police and university police. Law enforcement remained on campus Thursday.

The Princeton University Department of Public Safety and Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office has led the investigation. On Monday, Calhoun said in a campus wide email that Ewunetie’s family had not heard from her in several days and requested that the Department of Public Safety conduct a well-being check.

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In the following days, students were informed of increased law enforcement presence on and around campus, including the use of a helicopter, drones and watercraft.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Ewunetie was a junior pursuing a sociology degree with a computer applications certificate. She was also valedictorian at Villa Angela-St. Joseph high school in Cleveland, Ohio, before accepting a full scholarship to Princeton.

Contributing: The Associated Press