Missing Woman Found Dead in Arizona Desert After a Month of Searching
Amanda Nenigar, 27, went missing in February.
Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast / State of California Department of Justice
Arizona police discovered the body of a woman on Friday after she had been missing in the Arizona desert for more than a month.
The La Paz County Sheriff’s Office posted a statement on Facebook confirming the discovery of 27-year-old Amanda Nenigar on Saturday.
“Late Friday evening Amanda Nenigar was located deceased,” read the statement. “The family has been notified and issued a statement requesting privacy and thanked the public for their assistance in trying to locate Amanda. We ask that you please respect the family during this time and avoid spreading rumors and assumptions.”
Authorities said her body was discovered 1.5 miles away from where her car was abandoned on Feb. 28, AZ Family reports.
Before she was reported missing, Nenigar called 911 saying her car had gotten stuck in a ditch. She also gave the authorities her coordinates, and attempted to describe her surroundings. Her call was directed to California authorities, rather than Arizona ones, and being mistaken, the officer directed forces to look for Amanda nearly 30 to 40 miles away from where she’d been stuck.
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Nenigar was reported missing on Feb. 29.
Once Arizona authorities became involved, they were able to locate her car stuck on a boulder in the desert near Cibola, Arizona on March 7.
Her sister, Marissa Nenigar, expressed her frustration with the emergency services’ response to her sister’s call.
“She gave them her coordinates, California, and I don’t know why they didn’t transfer her to dispatch in Arizona,” she said. “She gave them her exact location and someone could have went and got her. They could have found her.”
In a statement, Nenigar’s family confirmed that her body had been discovered, and thanked those who had been involved in the search to find her. “Our hearts are broken and we will miss her dearly. Please grant our family privacy as we mourn the loss of Amanda and prepare for the days ahead of us.”
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