MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — After nearly three months since her disappearance, the search is over. Police say the body that was pulled from the Mississippi River on Wednesday has been identified as Kira Trevino, the woman who has been missing since Feb. 21.
Authorities were able to identify the body on Thursday, after initially saying it wasn’t clear if the body was that of a woman or a man.
According to the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, a person who worked near Sheppard Road and Roberts Street called police around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday about a body in the river. The body was spotted just south of Robert Street Bridge, according to Randy Gustafson, of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office.
(credit: CBS)
The Ramsey County Water Patrol, St. Paul Police and St. Paul fire departments responded and a body was pulled from the river and taken to the medical examiner.
For two months, the search for 30-year-old Kira Trevino focused on Keller Lake in Maplewood but little was found.
An amended complaint was filed shortly after her disappearance, showing that witnesses told police they saw two men on Feb. 22 struggling to carry something onto the lake which appeared to be the size of a person. The lake, it should be noted, is less than two miles from the Trevino home in St. Paul.
Trevino family and friends searched the lake after hearing this information. Their search produced a bag containing a bloody pillow and pillowcase, a bra, shirt and a sponge. The DNA on those items matched that of Kira Trevino.
Trevino went missing Feb. 21 after leaving her job at the Mall of America. Her husband, Jeffery Trevino, 39, remains locked in a jail cell charged with two counts of second-degree murder after large amounts of his wife’s blood were found at the couple’s home. The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office said now that the body has been found, it will help their case against Jeffery Trevino.
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Jeffery Trevino first reported his wife missing to St. Paul Police, saying that she was suffering “a midlife crisis.” He said she’d disappear for days at a time. Later that day, Kira Trevino’s mother also called police, concerned that Jeffery may have hurt her daughter.
When her car was discovered in a parking ramp Friday morning with her not around, St. Paul Police say they saw evidence of blood along the rim of the trunk, and also found a trunk liner nearby that had blood on it. Her cell phone and purse were found inside.
Police went to Jeffery Trevino’s house to execute a search warrant. The criminal complaint says they saw a number of freshly washed towels and clothes there, with bleach bottles and a mop and bucket, as well as carpet cleaner.
Investigators said there were blood spatters found in the master bedroom, in the living room, the bathroom, the hall, and also in the basement. Investigators say blood was found on the bedroom carpet, in the shape of a human head and torso.
Prosecutors say Jeffery Trevino washed his clothing and used bleach to clean up blood evidence at his home.
Jeffrey Trevino told police that he and Kira had a date night Thursday, and that she left home Friday morning to go tanning and to work out.
According to court papers, she never did either that day.
Kira Trevino’s mother, Marcie Steger, said she felt angry, betrayed, upset and confused after hearing of Jeffery Trevino’s arrest. The criminal complaint said that Kira Trevino told family members she had been having marital problems and was considering leaving her husband.
The two had been together for eight years and married for at least three, but a family member said they never really got to know him well.
Jeffery Trevino’s bail has been set at $1 million.
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