'Initial Evidence' Indicates Body Found Is Missing Student
Anna Marie Smith was last seen nearly two weeks ago.
— -- Police in Boone, North Carolina, believe they have found the body of a missing Appalachian State University student who was last seen nearly two weeks ago.
A driver's license and university ID belonging to Anna Marie Smith were found near a body that was located in a wooded area near campus on Saturday, according to police.
Smith, a college freshman at Appalachian State University, was last seen on campus by her roommate on September 2, according to police.
The body was found after a tipster called police Friday and reported hearing screaming while jogging near the area a week ago, according to ABC News affiliate WSOC-TV in Charlotte, N.C.
A cause of death will be released upon completion of an autopsy.
Sheri Everts, the chancellor of the university, released a statement saying she was "deeply saddened" to share that the search for Smith "ended tragically.
"Having one of our own missing struck the Appalachian community very hard, and this very sad news is heartbreaking for us all," Everts wrote. "The loss of Anna will continue to weigh heavy on our hearts. I ask that we all join together to support and care for one another as we mourn."
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Smith's parents said their daughter's cell phone, laptop and money were left behind when she disappeared.
Smith last contacted her family on Labor Day, writing them a Facebook message that simply said, "I love you."
Her parents helped organize search parties to comb through the Appalachian Mountains surrounding the school. On a Facebook page for her daugther, Smith's mother, Laurie Smith, estimated her daughter could have traveled more than 80 miles on foot, 200 miles by boat or be anywhere in the country if she hitched a ride in a car.
