Crime & Safety

Eden Prairie Mayor: 'We're All Deeply Saddened' By Mandy Matula's Disappearance

A Facebook page dedicated to "Finding Mandy Matula" has become a tool to organize searches and bring Mandy home.

With 7,487 members by Wednesday afternoon, a Facebook page dedicated to "Finding Mandy Matula" has become a tool to organize searches for Matula and send messages to her family.

Mandy's brother, Steven, has posted answers to questions on the page regarding the disappearance of Mandy and ex-boyfriend David Roe, who is now deceased. Eden Prairie Police and the city of Eden Prairie have commended Steven on his help with the investigation and leading the community to find his sister.

"I will not be out searching till Saturday," Steven wrote Wednesday afternoon. "I am planning a HUGE search on Saturday. And I will keep you posted on further updates."

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The community is rallying behind the Matula family to bring Mandy home.

Before begining Tuesday's Eden Prairie City Council meeting, Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens addressed the council and crowd about Mandy Matula.

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"We're all deeply saddened by these events and our heart goes out to the Matula family and the entire community," she said.

The recent events hit close to home for the city of Eden Prairie: Matula has been a season park maintainence employee with the city since 2007, Roe worked at the Eden Prairie Liquor and Steven Matula is a mechanic in the fleet division.

Tyra-Lukens said she has been deeply moved by the outpouring of support for the Matula family. She encouraged all who want to get involved in the search for Mandy Matula to become a member of the group on Facebook.

The Eden Prairie Police Department released test results on Tuesday afternoon related to 24-year-old Matula’s disappearance.

Ballistics testing has confirmed that markings on the unfired bullet discovered May 4 indicate it was at some point in the chamber of the handgun Roe used on himself.

DNA analysis has revealed the presence of Matula’s DNA in a blood sample from a jacket found in Roe’s vehicle.

Matula was known to be with Roe before her disappearance, and was reported as missing to police by her family at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 2.

Based on information from Matula’s family, police identified Roe as a "person of interest" and contacted him by phone. Roe agreed to meet with an investigator for questioning, but upon arrival at the Eden Prairie City Center parking lot, he shot himself in the head.

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Friends have started a fund for the Matula family to continue the search for missing Eden Prairie woman.

Donations can be made online or by going to Wells Fargo directly and writing a check out to "Mandy Matula Fund." Friends have ordered bracelets in support of Mandy, which will be for sale soon.

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See also: 

  • Man Shoots Himself Prior To Questioning About Missing Woman
  • Paper Left Behind After Man Shot Himself May Contain Clues to Woman's Disappearance
  • Ex-Boyfriend of Missing Woman Dies After Shooting Himself
  • Search Continues For Missing Eden Prairie Woman Mandy Matula
  • Mandy Matula’s Blood Found on Jacket in David Roe’s Vehicle

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