Teen who went missing while doing school project at California rest stop is found dead
Officials say there is no indication of “foul play” in the death of Dante de la Torre, 16,
A teenager who went missing at a rest stop in California this week has been found dead, authorities say.
Dante de la Torre, 16, disappeared on Wednesday after going to work on a school project at the Gold Run rest stop off Interstate 80, about 60 miles northeast of Sacramento, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement shared on Facebook.
When he didn’t return or contact family, more than three dozen search and rescue officers with canine units were sent out to search for him on Thursday.
His body was found in a “remote wooded area” on Thursday afternoon, the sheriff’s office said.
Officials said there was “no indication Dante’s death was foul play” and he was taken to a Coroner’s Unit to undergo an examination.
In a statement to ABC 10, the Placer County School District said they were “heartbroken” by the death of the Colfax High School student.
“Such tragedies, especially when they involve young people, are very difficult to process,” the school district said. “Please join us in keeping Dante’s family, friends and the Colfax community in your thoughts during this difficult time.”
The school district was making additional counselling and chaplaincy services available, it said.