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The body discovered inside a submerged car that was pulled from a Florida canal on Saturday has been positively identified as a missing teacher who disappeared in 2020, authorities said Tuesday.
Robert Heikka, who was 70 years old when he vanished in Port Orange, was confirmed to be found inside his white 2012 Chevrolet Impala that was recovered from a canal along Pioneer Trail near New Smyrna Beach, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said, citing the medical examiner.
No cause of death was immediately released.
Heikka’s body was discovered when members of the nonprofit Sunshine State Sonar Search Team and Recon Dive Recovery spotted the car after a recent and significant drop in the canal’s water level.
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Volunteer teams located the partially submerged vehicle in a canal along Pioneer Trail near New Smyrna Beach after the water level dropped significantly, officials said. (Volusia County Sheriff's Office)
"Tragically, Robert lost control of his vehicle on a sharp corner that fateful night," the sonar search team said. "The vehicle went crashing through 75 feet of trees and brush before ending up submerged in this small canal."
Robert Heikka, then 70, never showed up to work on Oct. 26, 2020, and was reported missing. (Port Orange Police Department)
During the nearly three years Heikka was missing, teams conducted a 30-mile ground search and used sonar over 70 bodies of water between Orlando and the teacher's home in Port Orange, the nonprofit said.
The searches were all unsuccessful, and in November the teams decided to return to the site of Heikka’s last cellphone ping. Searchers came upon a small canal that was set at least 75 feet back from the road, behind thick trees and brush, but did not have the proper equipment to conduct a thorough search.
Divers returned to the site where Heikka's cellphone last pinged and searched a nearby canal with sonar equipment. (Volusia County Sheriff's Office)
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The group said that teams returned to the site five months later with "a special piece of sonar equipment" for another look and discovered the submerged car.
While officials could not immediately identify the remains found inside, the dive teams were able to confirm from the car’s tags that the vehicle belonged to Heikka.
The license plate tag of a vehicle found partially submerged in a canal is seen. The tag was confirmed to belong to the car of missing teacher Robert Heikka, officials said. (Volusia County Sheriff's Office)
On Oct. 26, 2020, Heikka never showed up for work at Creekside Middle School in Port Orange, where he had taught digital information technology since 2002. He was due to retire a few months after his disappearance.
Creekside Middle School Principal John Cash told FOX35 Orlando during an interview in November 2020 that Heikka was a "kind soul."
"We know that he lived alone, so we weren’t sure what happened," Cash said. "It was unusual for him not to come to work, so of course, your mind goes to the worst case."
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