CORNWALL, Vt. — A body was found in a New England town on Thursday afternoon during a search for a college student who was reported missing days earlier, authorities said.
During the search for Middlebury College student Lia Smith, members of the Vermont State Police Search and Rescue team located a body in a field in the town of Cornwall, Vermont, near The Knoll, the school’s organic farm, according to the Middlebury Police Department.
Police immediately secured the area, launched a death investigation, and brought the body to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Burlington.
Their identity was not released.
An autopsy scheduled for Friday will confirm the cause and manner of death.
“Initial investigation does not indicate that the death is suspicious,” the police department said in a news release.
The grim discovery comes after 21-year-old Lia Smith was reported missing on Sunday. Smith was last spotted on the Middlebury College campus on Friday around 9 p.m.
The Middlebury Campus newspaper described Smith as a double computer science and statistics major from California, who also competed on the college’s swimming and diving team.
“We will do everything we can to find Lia,” the college said in a statement. “She is a beloved member of our Middlebury family, and there is nothing more important than the health, safety, and well-being of our students and of our entire community.”
There were no additional details immediately available.
Anyone with information on the investigation is urged to contact Middlebury police at 802-388-3191.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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