Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
University Of Utah Student Vanishes After Returning Home From Grandma's Funeral
In the week since Mackenzie Lueck disappeared after taking a Lyft from the airport, she's missed her college mid-terms, a wedding and failed to feed her cat, concerned friends say.
Family and friends of a University of Utah student who vanished shortly after returning from attending her grandmother’s funeral are pleading for answers about the college student’s current whereabouts.
Mackenzie Lueck, 23, flew from her grandmother’s funeral in California back to Utah, arriving at the Salt Lake City International Airport in the early morning hours of June 17. Lueck texted her family around 1 a.m. to say that she had landed safely and then got a ride from the airport.
Salt Lake City Police say Lueck took a Lyft to an undisclosed address in North Salt Lake, nearly 20 minutes from her home, according to a statement.
It’s the last time the college student was seen alive and her phone has been turned off since she went missing, The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
In the week that the 23-year-old has been gone, she missed her college midterms, hasn’t returned to feed her cat and missed a flight back to California for a wedding.
Salt Lake Police said they have not “discovered any information that would lead us to believe that Mackenzie has been harmed or is in danger at this time,” however the college student’s friends and family are increasingly concerned.
“For her to not reach out to me is very unlike her. She is usually in touch with me every day,” her sorority sister Kennedy Stoner said in a Sunday press conference, according to the paper. “We don’t believe she would miss a midterm because she was stressed. I am positive something is wrong.”
Investigators have spoken with Lyft and the Lyft driver and said both are cooperating with authorities.
In a statement to local station KSTU, Lyft said the driver’s route “contained no irregularities and ended at the destination entered by the driver.” The company went on to say that the driver continued to give rides immediately after Lueck’s ride was complete.
“We recognize how scary this must be for those who know and love Ms. Lueck. The safety of our community is fundamental to Lyft and we are actively assisting law enforcement with their investigation,” the statement said.
Lueck’s friends are now questioning why Lueck would have requested to go to an address 20 minutes from her home.
“She might have been meeting someone there. I just don’t see any other reason as to why she would be there at that time,” her friend Ashley Fine said, according to KSTU.
Investigators have said they are concerned for her safety and are continuing to investigate any leads in the case, but have not launched a formal search party.
“We don’t have anyone searching any particular area right now,” Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Brandon Shearer told the local paper Saturday.
Shearer went on to say that no formal search had been launched because police did not “have any credible evidence of where she might be.”
Concerned friends have been passing out flyers and asking anyone with information to come forward.
“Kenzie, if you can hear this, we are all worried and looking out for you 24/7, we are not able to sleep,” Stoner said.
Anyone with information about the missing 23-year-old is urged to contact police. Lueck is described as being 5’6” tall and 120 pounds with medium length blonde hair and brown eyes.
