Her cell signal faded in and out.
Advertisement
Maze’s body was found in the trunk.
She reported being hit on the head at a small rest stop north of Helena. Her purse and keys were in the auto.
Law enforcement have yet to publicly comment on Rita Maze’s cause of death, but her family had previously mentioned that she always traveled with a firearm and said during her final phone call that she was terrified that her attacker would get his hands on her gun and possibly use it against her. “He kept her in the trunk for 12 hours”. Rita Maze was an aide, a crosswalk attendant and a cook at schools in Great Falls.
She was believed to have been taken to Washington state by the time she last made contact after 10 p.m. and was found in the trunk of her auto around 12:30 a.m. Wednesday near Spokane International Airport, Sheriff Leo Dutton told the Daily News. They are also unsure that there can ever be true justice in her case, because nothing can bring her back.
Authorities have not said how Maze was killed, although they are expected to release more information Thursday. But on Thursday, a law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said those reports were inaccurate.
No motive has been released in Maze’s abduction, which appears to be a random attack on a woman making a routine road trip, authorities said.
Rita Maze was supposed to return to Great Falls on Tuesday.
Wednesday morning, Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton said in a news conference that he believed there was a person of interest in the case spotted on surveillance video. Maze is in the vehicle, deceased. “That’s the last thing she heard”.
While Rita Maze was on the phone with her husband, Rochelle Maze reportedly called the police officer who had taken the missing person’s report.
The vigil will start at 8 p.m. and the family asks people to bring flowers, pictures, and any memories they have about Maze.
“And then the phone shut off”.
Rita Maze, 47, called her husband from the boot of her stolen auto after being abducted from a rest stop on a highway.
A GoFundMe account has been created by Shanley Day to help the Maze family.
Advertisement
Authorities were able to find her body by tracking her cellphone and were able to find the car’s license plate through a license plate reader near Post Falls, Idaho, The Tribune reported.
