The Iowa college student who vanished more than a month ago has been found dead, according to a report. A woman’s body found Tuesday is believed to be Mollie Tibbetts, according to Greg Willey, vice president of Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa. The 20-year-old’s body was found in Iowa, two law enforcement sources and her father, Rob Tibbetts, told Fox News. No other details were immediately available. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation confirmed in a press release that a body had been found in Poweshiek County, which includes Tibbetts’ town of Brooklyn, Iowa, where she was last seen jogging on July 18. Investigators said they were working to confirm the identity of the body and would provide updates at a press conference at 4 p.m. local time. The remains were found near a rural farm property in Guernsey, about 10 miles from Brooklyn, according to local outlets. Trucks blocked 460th Ave. there Tuesday and a medical examiner were on the scene.
Tibbetts was reported missing July 19 when she didn’t show up for work at a nearby daycare centre. The University of Iowa student’s disappearance sparked a massive search by local law enforcement and the FBI, with authorities receiving more than 2,300 tips. Her father returned home to California over the weekend, saying authorities had urged him to take a break from the case for his well-being. Mollie was born in San Francisco but moved to Iowa with her mother and two brothers when she was 2 years old.
Both her father and mother, Laura Calderwood, suggested that Mollie had been abducted, likely by someone she knew and pleaded publicly for her safe return. The night she vanished, Tibbetts had been dogsitting at her boyfriend’s home alone while he and his brother were out of town.No one has been arrested in connection with her disappearance. Investigators questioned a pig farmer named Wayne Cheney and searched his property. They also looked at Tibbetts’ Snapchat and Fitbit data as part of the investigation. The nearly $400,000 reward for information leading to her discovery will now become a fund to help police search for the person or people responsible for her death.
Mollie was studying psychology, like her mother, and would have started her junior year in college this week. Her Facebook account was turned into a memorial page on Tuesday, with friends posting photos and tributes to her there.“I knew what I was going to say to her the first time I saw her again. I knew she’d hug me with one of her Mollie hugs that make you forget anything was ever wrong. Now all I know is I have to learn how to live in a world without my best friend,” wrote Kelsey Marie. “I promise I’ll do everything I can to keep your memory alive.”