Princeton Student's Death Ruled a Suicide

Misrach Ewunetie's body was found days after she was reported missing in October
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 29, 2022 7:54 AM CST
Princeton Student's Death Ruled a Suicide
Misrach Ewunetie.   (GoFundMe)

An autopsy has confirmed that foul play was not involved in the death of a Princeton University student who went missing in October. The body of 20-year-old Misrach Ewunetie was found near tennis courts on the outskirts of campus on Oct. 20, six days after she was last seen. In a brief statement issued Wednesday, the Mercer County prosecutor's office said the regional medical examiner's office had ruled the death a suicide, People reports. The statement said an autopsy had found Ewunetie's cause of death was "Bupropion, Escitalopram and Hydroxyzine toxicity." All three medications are used to treat depression or anxiety, reports the Daily Princetonian.

Ewunetie, a sociology major from Ohio, was at Princeton on a full scholarship and was the valedictorian of her high school class, NBC New York reports. She was last seen alive near her dorm building in the early hours of Oct. 14 after she had covered another student's volunteer shift for a campus organization. Her disappearance led to a massive police search. "Out of respect for Ms. Ewunetie’s family, and at their request, the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office will not be providing additional information," a spokesperson for the office said.

"The long wait for definitive news about what led to her death has been challenging for all of us, and especially for those close to Misrach," Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun said in a message to students Wednesday, per the Princetonian. She added that "at no point during this investigation did law enforcement authorities believe campus safety was compromised." Calhoun called the death an "unthinkable tragedy." "To lose her is just heartbreaking," said the organizer of a GoFundMe campaign for the family. "All who knew her can attest that Misrach was simply a spectacular person. She was always willing to help and went out of her way to lend a hand." (More Princeton stories.)

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