Life Vermont College Batem Smith has been confirmed dead, the medical examiner is ruling out his manner of death

You need to know

• A body found in Vermont on Oct. 23 has been officially identified as missing Middlebury College Student Lia Smith, 21

• Smith’s manner of death was released by the Office of the Local Medical Examiner

• Smith was reported missing on Sunday, Oct. 19, two days after he was last seen on the Middlebury Campus

Missing Middlebury College Student Lia Smith has been officially confirmed dead.

Smith, 21, was reported missing by his father on Sunday, Oct. 19, two days after he was last seen on campus. A body was found near the college by Vermont State Police on Thursday, Oct. 23, and an autopsy has now confirmed it to be Smith, according to a press release from the Vermont Police Department (VPD) shared on Friday, Oct. 24.

The Vermont Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled that Smith died by suicide, according to the release.

People reached both the VPD and the medical examiner’s office for comment on Saturday, Oct. 25, but they didn’t get an answer right away.

Middlebury College President Ian Bacom announced the news to the campus community in a statement on Facebook on Saturday, sharing what he had talked to the Smith Family and revealed “.

“As President, and more so as a fellow parent, I ask them. This is a great loss no one should have to endure,” he continued.

“As we mourn, I want to express my deepest appreciation for the efforts of our student teachers who have offered such compassionate support to Lia’s family, friends and students in our community,” Bacom said.

Noted Smith, who was from Forest, Calif., ‘He was a wonderful person.’

“He was the star of our swimming and diving teams, a member of our chess clubs and Japanese teams, and we are so grateful that he was – and always will be – our central family.

Members of the Vermont State Police Police and Rescue Team found Smith’s body in Cornwall, Vt.

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Middle schoolers and students joined administrators in the search for Smith, via Mynbc5.

“We are a very small community,” Fideli Lucy Schembre told local news during the search effort. “Even if you don’t know someone personally, you definitely know someone who does, and you definitely have seen them around. It’s great to be here, not to be here.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional stress, substance abuse problems, or just need to talk, call or chat 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.

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