close
close

The woman found dead at Chicago O’Hare Airport was a missionary


The woman found dead at Chicago O’Hare Airport was a missionary

A police report has shed light on the death of a missionary whose body was found on the baggage carousel at Chicago O’Hare International Airport last week.

Authorities determined that Virginia Vinton, 57, committed suicide in the airport. She was found with an electrical cord wrapped around her neck, the Daily Mailwhich received an incident report. A stark contrast to initial reports that said the woman died because she became “caught” in one of the facility’s baggage conveyors.

Although Vinton’s cause of death has been confirmed by authorities, questions remain about the circumstances of her death. It’s still unclear why the North Carolina native was in the Windy City or why she allegedly took her own life in a busy airport to which she apparently had no connection.

People use an escalator at Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

Chicago O’Hare International Airport is the fifth busiest in the country.

Reuters

Vinton’s body was found on August 8 by a porter as he was beginning his shift. Email This worker told police he started the carousel as usual when he spotted Vinton, who he initially thought was just watching him work. When she didn’t look away, he reportedly got an “eerie feeling” and realized she was dead.

According to police, Vinton was caught on airport security cameras leaving her seat and entering a restricted area at 2:27 a.m. Thursday. She was found by the employee about five hours later.

The Email reported that Vinton worked for Wycliffe Ministries in North Carolina. She had a husband who was reportedly two years older than her and two daughters in their early 20s. The family reportedly lived in Africa for 12 years, translating Bibles into local languages.

The newspaper reported that Wycliffe’s website said the family enjoyed visiting friends in the Midwest during the summer, which was a possible reason why she was in Chicago in August.

Vinton’s family has not spoken publicly about her death.

Chicago

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *