Brissa Romero: Chicago girl, 17, who went missing while on the way to holiday work party found dead

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Authorities have recovered a body in a pond while they were searching for the missing college teen Brissa Romero, 17, and although the police initially did not identify her body, her close ones were already preparing for the worst. 

“We just spoke to the priest and they were able to give us her blessing and was able to speak with us,” Brissa’s sister, Dulce Romero, told WFLD as the victim's family prayed at the Shrine of Our Lady Guadalupe in Des Plaines, Illinois, on Tuesday night, December 12.

“Just calm our nerves down a little bit more, and if that is Brissa, then she’s in good hands with our Virgin Mary,” Brissa's family said.

Was Brissa Romero murdered?

According to The Lake & McHenry County Scanner, the Lake County Coroner’s Office identified the remains as Romero on Tuesday evening after she was reported missing for eight days. A team of 14 sonar techs using three boats were searching the pond before the body was found. Law enforcement said on the same day that there were currently no signs of foul play. 

"The men and women of both the Carpentersville and Vernon Hills Police Departments worked diligently and with sincere hope for Brissa's safe return since she was reported missing. The Departments thank Brissa's family, friends, and members of the community who worked to bring awareness to Brissa's case and offer their deepest condolences to the Romero family," police said in a statement.

When was Brissa Romero reported missing?

It was previously reported that Brissa Romero disappeared on December 4 while on her way to a holiday work party at the Bowlero bowling alley in the Chicago-area city of Vernon Hills. Available surveillance footage tracked her final moments in areas like Des Plaines where police said she visited a family member. 

There’s also surveillance video from the village of Schaumburg where her family reportedly said she picked up an iPad. In a joint statement, the police departments for Vernon Hills and Romero’s village of Carpentersville said that Romero’s cellphone last pinged in the area of a retention pond near Lakeview Parkway and Executive Way in Vernon Hills.

“Preliminary investigation suggests the car was accidentally driven into the pond after the driver failed to navigate the T-intersection,” police said. Citing footage from a nearby fast food restaurant, authorities believe Romero was driving. “Several items belonging to Brissa, including a backpack containing identifying information, were then found along the pond’s shore,” authorities said.