Authorities and volunteers are searching for a missing Louisiana State University student whose car was found abandoned on a Mississippi River bridge in Baton Rouge earlier this week.
Kori Gauthier, an 18-year-old first-year student at LSU, was last seen Tuesday, her family said.
Officers found her car after midnight Thursday on the east side of the Horace Wilkinson Bridge on Interstate 10 after someone got stuck in it, police said. Her car was left unoccupied on the bridge, which is about 3 km from the university campus, at least an hour before the accident, reports WBRZ, a subsidiary of Baton Rouge ABC.
“At present, based on evidence gathered so far during the investigation, law enforcement officials suspect that no criminal activity or foul play has taken place,” LSU said in a statement on Saturday night.
Her father, Levar Gauthier, said they only found out Kori was missing when she did not show up for an orthodontic appointment or dance class on Wednesday. Her daughter’s former roommate used a tracking app on her phone to detect Kori’s car sitting on a towpath. He said police did not contact them before or after she towed her car away, although the driver was nowhere to be found after the accident.
Her keys, phone and wallet were found in the car, according to her parents.
” A fool would have contacted someone for additional help to see a situation like this, ” her father told ABC News about his daughter’s car being found empty after the accident. “I mean it’s now that I can no longer be nice. My daughter is still there somewhere and I tried to have respect before, but I’m getting very angry now.”
Search efforts have been underway since her car was found, including local authorities, the United Cajun Navy and volunteers. A Baton Rouge police diving team searched the Mississippi River, WBRZ reported.
“I’m angry, I’m in pain, but I appreciate everything people do,” Levar Gauthier said.
On Saturday night, LSU said search efforts were continuing along the Mississippi River and “warned a cadaver dog twice in the same area on the river,” but the depth of the water – about 85 to 90 feet – and the conditions led to further search efforts. made. in the area impossible.
The search is expected to resume Sunday in the area with sonar equipment.
According to the United Cajun Navy, which used volunteers on foot, horseback riding, off-road vehicles, drones, boats and helicopters, more than 300 people were involved in the search on Friday.
The search resumed early Saturday morning as the community prayed that Kori Gauthier should be found safe.
Her father said he did not believe his daughter had died by suicide, saying that she loved university very much, that she was moving into a new apartment and was very close to her family.
“It’s very far-fetched for me to think that for some reason my daughter just hit her brake, got out of her car and got off the side of a bridge. No, did not believe it, he told ABC News.
Those who knew Kori spoke of the joy she brought to her family and friends.
“She’s a loving girl. She likes being a college student,” Levar Gauthier told WBRZ. “I hope and pray that she is just injured somewhere, and it only takes a while to get to her, so that she can live out her dream and study at the LSU and become a teacher and open her own dance studio. .
“If you find her, just bring her home so we can make it happen,” he added.
The LSU Police Department is investigating Kori Gauthier’s disappearance.
“We want to assure the LSU community that the search for missing LSU student Kori Gauthier continues in collaboration with law enforcement officers and volunteers across the region,” the university said. tweeted on Saturday. “The LSU police station is in contact with Kori’s parents and keeps them informed and up to date throughout, including information that is not shared with the general public out of respect for the family’s privacy and to protect the integrity of the investigation will not be. “
Adania Daughtry, who was in Kori’s roommate in the fall and helped search for her car, was among the many who searched there on Saturday.
“Kori was an angel. She kept me balanced. I was blessed to meet her because she would be my roommate,” she told ABC News. “We did not know each other before the fall, but she was an amazing person.”
Spencer Gauthier offers a $ 10,000 reward to “someone who runs her house.”
Kori Gauthier is 5 feet-5, weighs between 115 and 120 pounds and has dark brown hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information is asked to contact the LSU Police at 225-578-3231.
ABC News, Elwyn Lopez, Nick Cirone, Nam Cho and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.