Body Recovered From Pond Matches Brissa Romero's Description: Police

LAKE AND KANE COUNTIES, IL — Authorities believe they have found the body of a 17-year-old Chicago-area girl who went missing last week while on her way to a holiday party in Vernon Hills.

Following a week-long search for Brissa Romero, a body was recovered early Tuesday afternoon from a retention pond in the area of Executive Way and Lakeview Parkway in Vernon Hills, police said. The discovery came a day after Romero's sport utility vehicle was found in the same pond.

Authorities believe Romero drove the SUV through the T-intersection on the evening of Dec. 4, down an embankment and about 60 feet into the pond, police said.

No foul play is suspected, and although formal identification of the body has not yet been made, police will not be pursuing any more leads into Romero's disappearance at this time, officials said Tuesday afternoon.

When authorities found Romero's SUV on Monday, the back hatch was open. Prior to searching the pond, authorities found a backpack along the shore that contained Romero's identifying information and other items that belonged to her. They also determined, after analyzing cell phone data, that the retention pond was the last known location for Brissa's phone.

The search efforts were in "recovery operation" after Brissa's SUV was pulled from the pond Monday evening, and authorities continued the search for Romero into Monday night before resuming their efforts Tuesday morning. On Tuesday, sonar boats were used to scan the water.

Formal identification by the Lake County Coroner's Office is pending but authorities said the "deceased female recovered from the pond matches Brissa's description."

On Monday, Brissa's family was holding out hope for the teen’s safe return, Dulce Romero, Brissa's sister, told ABC 7 on Monday

"The vehicle has no body inside. They will be searching the pond and to see if Brissa's body is in there. Until now, in my heart, I still believe she's out there," Dulce said Monday.

Romero was last seen on Dec. 4 when she went to visit her cousin in Des Plaines, according to media reports.

She left her cousin's house in Des Plaines around 6:30 p.m. and headed for Vernon Hills, where she was supposed to attend a company party at Bowlero with coworkers from Raising Cane's restaurant in Crystal Lake, according to the Daily Herald.

But she never made it to the party, even though her cell phone last pinged to the area of the bowling alley around 7:40 p.m., according to the article.

The pond where crews searched and were working to pull the vehicle from Monday is about a mile and a half southeast of the bowling alley, according to Fox 32 Chicago. Dulce Romero said Brissa had been in touch with friends shortly before she went missing.

"She was in the area, but never was able to get into the party, nor to this parking lot. But, she was in the area, and we're trying to figure out, how do we lose a car just out of nowhere?" said Dulce Romero told ABC 7 Chicago.

Romero graduated from Barrington High School in 2023, a year early, and is attending Harper College, where she was studying to become an ultrasound technician, according to Fox 32 Chicago.

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