Eliotte Heinz missing, Wisconsin, graduate student at Viterbo University in La Crosse found dead 3 days after leaving bar to walk home only to fall in Mississippi River. Cause of death pending autopsy.
A Wisconsin graduate student who went missing over the weekend as she walked home during early morning hours after leaving a bar has been found dead.
Eliotte Heinz, 22, a student at Viterbo University vanished in the early hours of Sunday after leaving a bar in La Crosse, while walking along the Mississippi River.
The missing woman’s body was found Wednesday morning in the Mississippi River near Brownsville, Minnesota, WBAY reported.
How did La Crosse student end up in Mississippi River?
The cause of death remains unclear pending an autopsy, according to officials.
‘This was not the outcome we had hoped for throughout this search. Our thoughts are with Eliotte’s family, friends and all those who knew Eliotte.
‘We are grateful for the outpouring of support from so many within the La Crosse community, the State of Wisconsin and nationally to locate Eliotte,’ La Crosse Police Chief Shawn Kudron said.
La Crosse police said they are now looking into the circumstances of her death.
Heinz was a graduate student at Viterbo College, where she was enrolled in the school’s mental health counseling program.
A photo from the surveillance footage shared by local police showed Heinz – dressed in a white t-shirt, cut-off denim shorts, and white sneakers – walking along the waterfront in the 500 block of Front Street South at 3:22am Sunday.
In the image, Heinz appeared to be alone and held something in her hand, possibly a cellphone. The footage was captured by a camera outside the Courtyard Marriott Hotel.
Heinz’s cellphone was later recovered by her friends close to the hotel.
News of Heinz’s demise comes after loved ones made several unsuccessful attempts to reach and locate her, including posting pictures of the missing woman along the waterfront in the hope someone may have information as to her whereabouts.
Prior to setting out home, Heinz had been enjoying an evening out with friends at Bronco’s Bar in the city’s downtown area, with the student leaving around 2.30am when the bar closed.
Where she spent the 50 minutes between leaving the bar and being captured on the hotel’s security feed is not clear. The bar and the hotel are just 0.4 miles apart.
Not immediately clear is when the 22 year old set out that evening to go drinking and whether she had made her way home drunk.
STILL MISSING: 22‑year‑old grad student Eliotte Heinz — last seen Sunday. Info? Go to https://t.co/hXLDbaLsX5 pic.twitter.com/HzHR6Th09f
— FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) July 23, 2025
La Crosse grad student’s family plead for her safe return
Heinz’s mother, Amber Heinz, said her daughter was on her way to her apartment when she disappeared.
The journey should’ve taken Heinz around 30 minutes, but she never made it to the apartment. What had happened remained a mystery.
Heinz’s family realized something was wrong when they couldn’t reach her by phone later Sunday morning.
Local law enforcement had been searching near the Mississippi River, using drones and dive units to scour along shorelines close to where the last-known image of Heinz was captured.
Heinz’s family described her as ‘responsible, kind, and deeply loved’.
‘Her sudden disappearance is completely out of character,’ the family shared. ‘We just want Eliotte home. This nightmare has shaken us to the core.’
During a press conference on Monday, Heinz’s brother, Brett Heinz, said her disappearance is, ‘tearing our family apart’.
‘Everyone is just really messed up right now,’ the sibling said. ‘We don’t know where Eliotte is. We need to find her.’
Police said they are continuing to investigate and ‘will await the results of an autopsy for an official cause of death.’
