Terrilynn Monette's Car Found; Police Hope to ID Body (VIDEO)
Terrilynn Monette's car was found this weekend in the Bayou St. John, dashing the hope that she would be found alive. A body matching Monette's description was found inside, and authorities are hoping to make a positive identification this afternoon.
Monette went missing on March 2, the same day she was nominated for "Teacher of the Year" in her district. She had been an elementary school teacher in New Orleans and moved to the city as part of a teaching program.
"It's a really sad moment," State Rep. Austin Badon told NOLA.com. "There's some sense of closure, and I'm glad, though it wasn't the outcome I had hoped for."
Police continually searched for the missing teacher and her vehicle. The leader of the Slidell Police Department's dive team spent time on the Bayou this weekend, during his free time, with sonar equipment. Mark Michaud used the equipment to locate the submerged vehicle; he dove into the water and read the license plate, which matched Monette's plate.
"I have a unique skill I've gotten good at," Michaud said. "I didn't want the Monette family to do without it for no reason."
"Now that Ms. Monette's car has been found, we begin the second phase of this investigation," New Orleans Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas said in an official statement. "Both homicide detectives and our fatality unit were on the scene today so that they can pick up where (other) officers have left off and start finding out exactly how and why the car ended up where it did."
The family was notified and watched as the car was removed from the water.
"I'm never going to see my baby again," Toni Enclade, Monette's mother, said. "I had so much hope she was going to be found alive. So many people thought she would be found alive. So many of us had faith. I just kept hoping."
"We're very upset right now," her father, Terry, told the Times-Picayune.
Watch the car being removed from the Bayou HERE:
