Paola Miranda-Rosa missing Orlando Florida woman last seen wading in alligator infested river in Wekiwa Springs State Park. History of mental illness.
Florida authorities have released video showing a woman swimming in an alligator-infested river near Orlando on the day of her disappearance three weeks ago.
Paola Marie Miranda-Rosa, 31, who has a history of mental health issues, was last seen by her family on December 17 at her apartment on Semoran Boulevard in Orlando.
Miranda-Rosa’s black 2011 Chevrolet HHR was found abandoned at Wekiwa Springs State Park on December 22, but there was no sign of the woman.
Osceola County Sheriff’s Office released the video recording (see below) and two images taken by hikers, showing Miranda-Rosa wading in the Wekiva River on December 18.
Wekiva River is known to have alligators, although attacks on humans are rare. In 2015, a 37-year-old woman swimming in the river lost a part of her arm when a reptile attacked her.
Where is she?
Investigators noted that Miranda-Rosa’s family have positively identified her as being the person seen in the video.
The sheriff’s office obtained the video back on December 20 but withheld it from the public until this week out of respect for Miranda-Rosa’s family.
Sheriff Marcos Lopez said he decided to release the recording in hopes that someone else who may have seen the missing woman comes forward with additional information.
‘Maybe someone else in the park saw her in a different area of the water and they can say “Hey, we’ve got some video of her too here,” and maybe it will lead us in a different direction,’ Lopez told ClickOrlando. ‘That was the last known video of her alive in that water, that doesn’t go to say that she couldn’t have come out, walked somewhere else.’
On Thursday, members of the sheriff’s office according to a Facebook release, searched about 4-and-a-half miles up and down the river with a high-intensity camera system, which has the capability to peer into hard-to-reach areas that cannot be explored by SCUBA divers.
The sheriff emerged from the park late Thursday afternoon and announced that his marine deputies had not found anything in the river. They will not be returning to the state park unless a new lead comes in.
‘We did walk off a little into the woods, and canvassed both sides, and used a drone, we just didn’t see any signs of anything, and we’re really comfortable to say that she’s not in that waterway,’ Lopez told Spectrum News 13.
Previously threatened to harm herself
Since Miranda-Rosa’s disappearance, deputies have scoured the state park using planes, drones, boats, bloodhounds and volunteers on horseback, but with no results.
Authorities previously said that Miranda-Rosa suffers from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and had made threats to harm herself in the past, but not around the time of her disappearance.
Investigators said they do not suspect foul play in the woman’s disappearance, but her family said it was unlike her to stop answering their calls, especially before the holidays, or leave her pets unattended.
Orlando Sentinel reported that on December 17, Miranda-Rosa had lunch with her mother, grandmother and uncle at home, and headed to Wekiva Springs State Park the next day.
‘After that Paola has just vanished,’ her sister Andrea Miranda told the newspaper. ‘The park has been completely searched. She’s not there. At this point, we’re searching everywhere for her.’
Miranda-Rosa’s family, who have been conducting their own searches and hanging up flyers to find her , have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help them hire a private investigator. As of Friday, the fundraiser has drawn more than $15,723 in donation, surpassing its initial goal.
‘We haven’t given up’
‘We’re not giving up hope we’ll see her again,’ Paola’s father Gustavo Miranda told Telemundo 31. ‘We’re a family of faith and pray for her safe return.’
Adding, ‘We love you, we love you, we are waiting for you, everyone. Family, your friends, and people you don’t even know.’
‘We haven’t given up,’ Miranda said last month. ‘I don’t want to give up on anyone. I want you to know that Paola was very loved. She loved us.’
Miranda-Rosa is described as a Hispanic woman, 4-foot-10 and 145lbs, with red hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing blue jean shorts and a green or white shirt. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is being asked to call the sheriff’s office at 407-348-2222.
