A young woman who disappeared in an Illinois forest preserve was found dead, and authorities say she had been raped, beaten, strangled and set on fire, according to reports.
Vanessa Ceja-Ramirez, 22, was reported missing Monday after going for walk with her mother and a friend in the Midlothian Meadows Forest Preserve, Fox 32 Chicago reported.
Her body was found Wednesday and the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the death a homicide saying the cause was "asphyxia due to ligature strangulation."
Vanessa Ceja-Ramirez, 22, was reported missing Monday after visiting an Illinois forest preserve. Her body was found two days later.
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Volunteers joined the search for Ceja-Ramirez.
"She was beaten, partially burned and someone intercepted her, and possibly pulled her into a wooded area and basically tortured her," community activist Andrew Holmes told the station.
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He distributed flyers announcing a $2,000 reward for tips leading to an arrest.
Authorities said Ceja-Ramirez told her mother and the friend that she was tired and would meet them back at the car.
They called police after finding some of her clothes but not her, the station reported.
After the disappearance, Ceja-Ramirez's phone pinged at a apartment complex in Oak Forest, an address 3 miles from the preserve, according to the station.
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The homicide had been assigned to the Cook County Sheriff's Office.
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