Missing Teacher's Car Turns Up, With Body Inside

A body has been found in a submerged car belonging to a Florida middle school teacher who vanished two and a half years ago. Robert Heikka, then 70, was last seen at his home in Port Orange on Oct. 25, 2020, according to police. He failed to turn up at Creekside Middle School the following day, per People. On Saturday, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office announced the teacher's white 2012 Chevrolet Impala had been found in New Smyrna Beach "in a canal along Pioneer Trail where the water level has recently dropped significantly." The area is just six miles from Heikka's home, per Fox News.

Volunteer groups Sunshine State Sonar Search Team and Recon Dive Recovery have been working to find Heikka since last October, focusing on cellphone data. They searched more than 70 bodies of water between Port Orange and Orlando before returning to focus on the area of the small canal, where Heikka's phone had last pinged before becoming inactive, according to Sunshine State Sonar. The groups had discovered the canal in a heavily-wooded area 75 feet from a road during a ground search in November but considered it an unlikely place for Heikka or his car "considering the surroundings and size of it."

On the return visit, however, officials found the water level had dropped 50% to about four feet, revealing a portion of Heikka's car. Mike Sullivan, a member of the team, tells WESH he was walking near the canal when he saw "what looked like the roof of the vehicle sticking from the water." "I think we've got him," he shouted. "While positive ID has not officially been made, the Port Orange Police Department has been in contact with Mr. Heikka's family," the sheriff's office said, per the Orlando Sentinel. "Our thoughts go out to the Heikka family and friends." (More missing person stories.)