A New Jersey elementary school teacher who vanished in June shortly after a restraining order against her husband was lifted has been found dead in Roxbury.
Lara Emanuele, 46, was last seen June 7, and her vehicle was located the following day in the parking lot of a Roxbury Holiday Inn Express, about five miles from where she lived, as CrimeOnline reported. The vehicle appeared to have been abandoned.
Although Emanuele had secured a restraining order against her husband, which was lifted not long before her disappearance, authorities said they do not consider the matter suspicious. Her home had also been for sale since Memorial Day.
Police previously said they found a note in the third-grade teacher’s car saying she didn’t want to be found, News 12 New Jersey reported. They also said surveillance footage showed her shopping alone at Walmart before she disappeared, and other footage showed her getting out of her vehicle at the Holiday Inn Express parking lot and walking away of her own free will.
Emanuele’s body was found Sunday in a wooded area along Route 80 in Roxbury, according to police, who said there was no sign of foul play. The medical examiner has not determined a cause of death.
“I realize her disappearance has also generated rumors on social media that foul play was involved,” Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll said. “While a thorough investigation continues into her death, at this time, evidence points to Emanuele having taken her own life. This was a determination that could not have been made prior to the recovery of her body.”
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[Featured image: Lara Emanuele/handout]
