Maze claimed that she had been abducted from a rest area between Helena and Great Falls at around 11 a.m. on Tuesday, and that the kidnapper put her in the trunk of her vehicle.
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The Spokane County medical examiner said she may have died shortly after making the phone calls.
Her body was found 523km away near Spokane airport on the Washington state border. She called her husband from inside the trunk but didn’t know her location. Maze was very family-oriented, and was close to her children and grandchildren.
Maze’s husband reported her missing.
Rita Maze, a Montana woman that was kidnapped Tuesday, September 6, called her husband from the trunk of her own auto where she was being held captive just hours before her body was found early the next morning.
In this July 28, 2016 photo provided by Lanni Klasner, Rita Maze, left, and her daughter, Rochelle Maze, pose for a photo in Great Falls, Mont.
But by the time they used cellphone tower information and Spokane County officers found her auto near Spokane International Airport early Wednesday, Maze was dead.
Authorities have not said how Maze was killed, although they are expected to release more information Thursday.
“Rochelle said her mother described the man as being large, of maybe African American or Native American descent, was about 6’5” tall and was wearing a black hoodie.
The newspaper reported that after about 10 minutes, during which the connection faded in and out, the phone went dead.
“I could really trust that she was really going to take care of kids and build that trust”, Salonen said. Maze’s husband also notified police after she failed to come home as expected, ABC Fox Montana said. Helena police put out a national alert in an attempt to find the auto, but they were too late. Bob Maze told the police that he had last spoken to his wife at around 11:30 that morning and hadn’t heard from her since.
An Idaho license plate reader notified authorities that the vehicle had crossed into the city of Post Falls, the affiliate reported.
Authorities believe she was driving back to Great Falls after visiting relatives in Helena.
Elsewhere, a GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money to support the Maze family.
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A motive or information on how the kidnapping occurred wasn’t immediately available, but police say they do have a person of interest. “Proceeds will go to helping to defray service expenses for this genuinely handsome soul”.
