A woman’s body was found floating in the Mississippi River near the Washington Avenue Bridge on Monday afternoon.
The woman, in her mid 20s to early 30s, has not been identified.
Sgt. Ken Schilling of the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Water Patrol Division said the body was discovered by someone who was walking across the bridge. The person anonymously called 911 and the Water Patrol responded.
With the help of members of the Minneapolis Fire Department, they retrieved the body.
The woman was 5-foot-8 and about 160 pounds. She had short, dark hair and was wearing black stretch pants, a black lace top and several pieces of jewelry. She was described as being of either African-American or Native American descent.
Investigators at the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy on the body early Tuesday. Mike Buralowski, an investigator for the office, said they couldn’t determine the cause of death. He said one reason for this is that the body had been in the water much longer than they had initially thought.
“It wouldn’t surprise me to find out that body had been in the river for close to three months,” Buralowski said, adding that this makes examining the body more difficult.
He also said the office is still working to find out what happened to the woman. “We are currently looking at several possible leads.”
University Police said there have not been any recent reports of missing students or faculty members.
The Medical Examiner, Water Patrol and Minneapolis Police are still investigating.
Anyone with information regarding the possible identification of the woman is asked to call the Medical Examiner at 347-2125.