Body found in Otter Creek believed to be Nicholas Garza '11
Jack Lysohir, Managing Editor
Issue date: 5/28/08 Section: News
The 16-week search for Middlebury College first-year student Nicholas Garza is over.
On Tuesday, May 27, Middlebury Police discovered a body in Otter Creek, which they have tentatively identified as Nicholas Garza.
At approximately 4:00 p.m., while checking water temperature in Middlebury's Otter Creek, Chief of Police Tom Hanley spotted a body stuck under debris in shallow water. State and local rescue teams dug through sunken timbers at the waterfall just off Main Street and were able to pull out the body.
The badly decomposed body had pants and a wallet; both were identified as Garza's.
Another thorough search of Otter Creek was scheduled for Friday, May 30, prompted by a lead discovered in April when a rescue group from Maine had taken high-quality aerial pictures of the Creek. On April 17, an "object of interest" was spotted in the pictures. The object was thought to be Garza's body, marked by the conspicuous blue color of his jeans. The object was spotted in the Creek behind Middlebury High School, near a small footbridge used by joggers. When the Middlebury Police Department got word of the lead that evening they searched until 2:40 a.m. but yielded no results, due to the object's movement in the current.
Although difficult to identify physically, Nicholas's mother Natalie Garza who was on-site told an AP reporter, "It was Nick." The body was taken by hearse to the Chief Medical Examiner's office in Burlington. An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday morning.
Nicholas Garza was last seen at 11 p.m. on the snowy night of Feb. 5. The Albuquerque, N.M. native lived in Allen Hall, a large first-year residence. Garza and his friends were socializing that evening in Stewart Hall over February Break - a one week break from classes in which there is little activity on campus - and when Nick was not found in his room the following day his friends contacted their Residential Advisor. After a thorough search, fears were mitigated as they learned Nick had been planning to visit a remote cabin with friends for a few days. Having received no word from Nick by Sunday, his mother contacted the Middlebury Public Safety Department. In addition, she filed a missing persons report with the Middlebury Police Department. The exhaustive search effort began the next day.
On Tuesday, May 27, Middlebury Police discovered a body in Otter Creek, which they have tentatively identified as Nicholas Garza.
At approximately 4:00 p.m., while checking water temperature in Middlebury's Otter Creek, Chief of Police Tom Hanley spotted a body stuck under debris in shallow water. State and local rescue teams dug through sunken timbers at the waterfall just off Main Street and were able to pull out the body.
The badly decomposed body had pants and a wallet; both were identified as Garza's.
Another thorough search of Otter Creek was scheduled for Friday, May 30, prompted by a lead discovered in April when a rescue group from Maine had taken high-quality aerial pictures of the Creek. On April 17, an "object of interest" was spotted in the pictures. The object was thought to be Garza's body, marked by the conspicuous blue color of his jeans. The object was spotted in the Creek behind Middlebury High School, near a small footbridge used by joggers. When the Middlebury Police Department got word of the lead that evening they searched until 2:40 a.m. but yielded no results, due to the object's movement in the current.
Although difficult to identify physically, Nicholas's mother Natalie Garza who was on-site told an AP reporter, "It was Nick." The body was taken by hearse to the Chief Medical Examiner's office in Burlington. An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday morning.
Nicholas Garza was last seen at 11 p.m. on the snowy night of Feb. 5. The Albuquerque, N.M. native lived in Allen Hall, a large first-year residence. Garza and his friends were socializing that evening in Stewart Hall over February Break - a one week break from classes in which there is little activity on campus - and when Nick was not found in his room the following day his friends contacted their Residential Advisor. After a thorough search, fears were mitigated as they learned Nick had been planning to visit a remote cabin with friends for a few days. Having received no word from Nick by Sunday, his mother contacted the Middlebury Public Safety Department. In addition, she filed a missing persons report with the Middlebury Police Department. The exhaustive search effort began the next day.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 4
Denise of Ga
posted 7/03/08 @ 2:08 AM EST
On finding Brooke Bennett's body
Well, what the hell can you expect from this ungodly state of socialists and secularists. Bill O'Reilly warned of sexual predators coming out of the walls due to the lenient laws of Vermont. (Continued…)
T
posted 7/30/08 @ 4:16 PM EST
Honestly, if the guys didn't check the temperature of the water, we would have never found Nick Garza, kind of crazy no?
Soraia bregre
posted 8/08/08 @ 7:10 PM EST
There is nothing worst than losing a child. I pray for the parents, and ask God to easy their pain. God bless Nicholas'f family, friends and the Middlebury community. (Continued…)
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