PRINCETON, N.J. — Misrach Ewunetie, a Princeton University student from Ohio who had been missing for nearly a week, was found dead Thursday afternoon, authorities said. She was 20.
According to a joint news release from Mercer County prosecutor Angelo Onofri and Kenneth Strother Jr., the school’s assistant vice president for public safety, authorities found Ewunetie’s body at about 1 p.m. EDT on the facilities grounds behind tennis courts.
Ewunetie, a junior at the Ivy League school, was last seen at about 3 a.m. EDT on Friday near Scully Hall on the school’s campus, WPVI-TV reported. One of her suitemates saw her at the time, but when her direct roommate arrived 90 minutes later Ewunetie wasn’t there, her brother, Universe Ewunetie, told ABC News.
An autopsy to determine Ewunetie’s cause and manner of death will be performed by the Middlesex County Medical Examiner’s Office, according to CBS News. In the joint news release, officials said there were “no obvious signs of injury and her death does not appear suspicious or criminal in nature.”
According to The Daily Princetonian, the university’s daily newspaper, Ewunetie was volunteering at one of the school’s 11 eating clubs on Thursday night. Terrace Club officials told the newspaper that Ewunetie was doing housekeeping work during a live music performance at the club.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Ewunetie was pursuing a sociology degree with a computer applications certificate, WNBC-TV reported. She had internships with McKinsey & Company and Bank of America and attended high school at Villa Angela-St. Joseph in Cleveland.
Ewunetie was also a 2021 LEDA Career Fellow and spent years volunteering at the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, according to her profile.
In a statement, Princeton University called Ewunetie’s death an “unthinkable tragedy.”
“Our hearts go out to her family, her friends and the many others who knew and loved her,” the university said. “We are planning an opportunity for students to join together and remember Misrach.
“Princeton is a close-knit community, and we mourn Misrach together.”