Misrach Ewunetie’s family criticised police for putting them in the ‘dark’ after it was discovered that her cause of death could take weeks to determine.
Ewunetie, 20, of Euclid, Ohio, near Cleveland, was discovered dead on the Ivy League campus on October 14, six days after she went missing.
Her family reported her missing after being unable to contact the sociology student, and they said police kept them in the dark throughout the hunt.
Universe said CNN, ‘There is no constant updating or interaction with us.’ ‘We’re completely in the dark.’
The probe will take time, according to police officials.
Her body was discovered near the tennis courts on Thursday. There were no traces of trauma on the body, according to sources, and the Mercer County Prosecutors Office stated, ‘Her death does not appear suspicious or criminal in character.’
An autopsy was performed on Friday, but the medical examiner’s office is still awaiting toxicology and other test results, according to Casey DeBlasio, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson.
Ewunetie was last seen about 3 a.m. on October 14 near Princeton University’s Scully Hall, where she lived.
On October 13, Misrach volunteered at Princeton’s Terrace Club, one of the school’s 11 elite eating clubs, according to Universe.
Terrace Club is one of Princeton’s non-private clubs; members must only sign up for membership and are not affiliated with the institution. The clubs are for the school’s upperclassmen to have lunch and participate in various activities.
Other clubs ask potential members to fill out an application.
She was a member on’duty,’ conducting housekeeping jobs at the club during a live music performance.
According to the club’s Instagram feed, Raavi was there that night with Jackie Marchal.
Misrach and the other members on duty left for the night once the club closed and all obligations were completed.
‘She went back to her dorm around 3 a.m.,’ her brother claimed after the event. ‘ Her housemates claimed to have seen her at 3 a.m. Then another of her roommates stated she hadn’t seen her since 4 a.m., and no one has seen her since.
‘Her housemates did not search for her because they assumed she had gone home.’
Ewunetie’s abduction spurred a multi-day search for her whereabouts, resulting in the deployment of drones, helicopters, and amphibious vehicles across the Ivy League university.
Campus police had visited Ewunetie’s housing complex three times and searched with dogs, but due to a lack of search warrants, they were unable to enter any properties.
Her cellphone was last pinged early Sunday morning from a place seven miles from school, according to previous information.
The ping came from a housing subdivision in New Jersey near Penns Neck.
Since the discovery of Ewunetie’s body, no further information about that ping has been released.
W. Rochelle Calhoun, Princeton’s Vice President for Campus Life, described Ewunetie’s death as a “unthinkable tragedy.”
In a statement, she said, ‘Our hearts go out to her family, friends, and the many others who knew and loved her.’
‘We’re arranging a way for students to get together and honor Misrach.’ When more details are available, information regarding the gathering will be given individually.’
‘We have no additional information to provide at this time,’ said a school representative.
Universe also stated that education was ‘tough for her and a lot of people’ owing to the lack of in-person instruction due to the pandemic.
‘With the pandemic, they weren’t on campus the first year, so it was terrible for her and a lot of people,’ Universe explained. In 2008, the family moved to the United States from Ethiopia.
‘However, this year she’s been attempting to get into this Terrace Club as a way of establishing friends.’
Ewunetie graduated from the Minds Matter Cleveland program in 2020, which assists high-achieving low-income students. The nonprofit’s executive director, Sara Elagad, told CNN that her former student’s disappearance was out of character.
‘It is not in character for her to go off the radar or lose connection with family,’ Elagad said. ‘We are assisting her family in assisting law enforcement attempts to locate her safely.’
The organization also shared a video on Twitter, claiming that Ewunetie had worked with them for “three years” to get into the “college of her dreams.”
The organization assists low-income, high-achieving students in completing their academic schooling.
Elagad remarked in the video, ‘She [was] an outstanding student.’
‘She was overjoyed when she got into Princeton,’ said Charles Slife in the video.
They later declared that they were ‘devastated’ by the student’s death.
According to Planet Princeton, Ewunetie was the valedictorian of her high school and was studying sociology with a minor in computer technology at Princeton.
Her family members, who have lived in Ohio since 2008 but are originally from Ethiopia, say her absence is especially troubling because she skipped a meeting about a citizenship application the next day.
‘She is the crown jewel of the family, [my parents’] only daughter and the youngest,’ Universe explained. ‘She is well-liked.’