An upstate New York woman was found dead Tuesday morning, days after she went missing in freezing temperatures.
Leah Bellitto, 29, walked out of her home in Amherst — about 10 miles from downtown Buffalo — around 9 p.m. Saturday wearing a black, long-sleeve shirt, black pajama pants and a blue flower-pattern backpack, according to WKBW.
She was reportedly last seen walking into the snow-covered woods behind her home, where temperatures reached as low as 25 degrees and snow covered the ground.
Leah Bellitto was last seen leaving her home on Saturday, Feb 8. Amherst Police DepartmentBellitto’s family reported her missing on Monday, igniting a search throughout the area.
During the search, barefoot prints and handprints were found near a creek and pond where she was believed to be heading.
A civilian volunteer found the 29-year-old’s body in a body of water in East Amherst at 9:55 a.m. Tuesday, three days after she vanished.
The Amherst Police Department is investigating Bellitto’s death.
Law enforcement doesn’t suspect foul play was involved and shared that there doesn’t appear to be any “danger to the public.”
A neighbor who lives near where Bellitto’s body was found called the discovery “devastating.”
The 29-year-old’s body was found in a body of water in East Amherst at 9:55 a.m. Tuesday, three days after she vanished. WGRZ“It’s been so cold and however it happened, maybe going for a walk and just getting disoriented and just been freezing out here and it’s just incredibly sad,” Trisha Tower told WKBW.
A volunteer who helped search for Bellitto, Alesha Conte, said “it hits home” when someone in the community goes missing.
“Me and my husband and our kids … we live in Amherst and you know, it hits you and it hits home when you see this happening in your community,” Conte shared.
“And everybody needs help, there can’t be enough help … with something like this.”
Nearby resident Tom Chiaramonte said he and his son joined the search for the missing 29-year-old after hearing about the disappearance during Sunday’s Super Bowl.
After learning about Bellitto’s death, Chiaramonte couldn’t believe her body was found so close to his home.
A neighbor who lives near where Bellitto’s body was found called the discovery “devastating.” Facebook“They found her at the creek right up here on Dodge Road…,” he said. “Unfortunate for the family. Very, very sad for the family.”
Nardin Academy, the private Catholic girls’ school Bellitto attended for high school and from which she graduated in 2015, posted on Facebook saying it was “saddened” to hear of her death.
“The entire Nardin community prays for and offers its heartfelt condolences to the Bellitto Family, Leah’s friends, and her loved ones. Our thoughts are with them all,” school officials wrote.
