Body Found Saturday Confirmed As Missing Nursing Student Michelle Le

After nearly four months of searching, Hayward police have announced the human remains are those of missing nursing student and Mount Carmel High School graduate Michelle Le.

The Alameda County Coroner’s Office confirmed the identity late Monday night, almost 60 hours after a volunteer found the body in a wooded area just south of Pleasanton during a search organized by Le’s family.

The cause of death is still under investigation, Hayward police said.

Le’s family issued a press release shortly after the announcement asking for "privacy and respect during this difficult time."

Krystine Dinh, Le's cousin, said, "The family is grieving and preparing a memorial service for Le—a proper goodbye."

Since Le’s disappearance, her family has remained hopeful and has kept Le's story in the media spotlight, having , public events and search parties.

The story has made national headlines and compelled strangers to devote their time in efforts to locate Le.

"Thank you for your support and thoughts. Our family has greatly appreciated, and would be at a loss, without the help of so many people and volunteers," Dinh said Monday night.

Le, 26, a San Mateo resident, was last seen May 27 at Kaiser Hospital in Hayward. She was at the hospital taking a class as part of a nursing course she was enrolled in at Samuel Merritt University in Oakland.

She told classmates she was planning to drive to Reno after class. She left during a break and didn't return, according to police.

Police found her car parked a few blocks from the hospital the next day with blood stains that were later determined to be from Le.

Though Le’s body was not located at the time, Hayward police arrested and charged a Union City woman with Le’s murder.

Giselle Esteban, 27, who has been a person of interest since Le’s disappearance, was . After her arrest, police revealed that a pair of athletic shoes taken in a May 29 search of her apartment contained Le's DNA.

Police said footage from security cameras at the Kaiser Permanente parking structure showed that Esteban, who is now seven months pregnant, was there around the time of Le's disappearance.

Additionally, evidence found inside Le's car indicated that Esteban had been inside the vehicle, investigators said.

Police also said cell phone records from Le and Esteban show their phones traveled along the same path, leaving the area just after Le's disappearance.

Esteban was originally scheduled to enter a plea Monday morning but that was postponed because she has not yet finalized her legal representation.

Though no motive has been determined, Esteban told KGO-TV reporters shortly after Le went missing that she openly hates Le after the two had a falling out some years ago. She also accused Le of ruining her relationship with her child’s father. However, Esteban said she had nothing to do with Le's disappearance.

Esteban’s ex-boyfriend told Patch in a previous interview that he and Le have been close friends for nine years and that Esteban’s accusations are untrue.

The ex-boyfriend three days before Le went missing, citing increasingly bizarre behavior that included stalking him, threatening to shoot herself and entering his home uninvited.

Esteban is scheduled to appear in court at the Hayward Hall of Justice at 9 a.m. on Sept. 28.

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