Missing Florida teacher's car found submerged in canal with body inside
Divers discovered a body inside a vehicle submerged in water near Daytona Beach over the weekend, authorities said. The car belonged to Robert Heikka, a teacher from Port Orange, Florida, who went missing in 2020, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.
Volunteers from to local search and rescue crews spotted the vehicle in a canal along Pioneer Trail, about 10 miles south of Port Orange, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said in an announcement shared to Facebook on Saturday.
Their initial discovery came as water levels in the canal "recently dropped significantly," officials said. Volunteers who spotted the submerged vehicle also confirmed the registration tags, indicating it belonged to Heikka.
The Volusia County Sheriff's Office said in a subsequent update on Saturday that its dive team had successfully recovered the sunken vehicle from the canal near Pioneer Trail, with one deceased occupant found inside.
The car is in a canal along Pioneer Trail where the water level has recently dropped significantly. It hasn’t been determined if it’s occupied. Thanks to Sunshine State Sonar and Recon Dive Recovery for spotting the vehicle and confirming the tag pic.twitter.com/RlTSSp5SQM
— Volusia Sheriff (@VolusiaSheriff) April 8, 2023
At the time of the sheriff's most recent update just after 5:30 p.m. that afternoon, the body had not been positively identified. However, officials at the Port Orange Police Department were notified and contacted Heikka's family, according to the Volusia County Sheriff.
"Our thoughts go out to the Heikka family and friends this evening," the office wrote on Facebook.
The Port Orange Police Department echoed that sentiment in a statement shared to its own Facebook page the same day, acknowledging the discovery of Heikka's vehicle and deeming the missing person's case "solved."
"Thank you again. We appreciate all your efforts. Incredible work. Your professionalism, dedication and determination amazed us," the police department wrote in a post on Sunday. "Again, our thoughts and prayers are with the Heikka family."
Thank you again. We appreciate all your efforts. Incredible work. Your professionalism, dedication and determination...
Posted by Port Orange Police Department on Sunday, April 9, 2023
Heikka has been an employee of the Volusia County school system since 1989 and taught at Creekside Middle School in Port Orange since 2002, CBS affiliate WKMG-TV reported. He was last seen on surveillance footage at an ATM machine near Canaveral Shores in December 2020, according to the Port Orange Police Department.
In addition to Port Orange police, various law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Brevard and Volusia County sheriff's offices have been involved in the ongoing search for Heikka since his disappearance, WKMG-TV reported. They have searched simultaneously for Heikka's car, a 2012 white Chevy Impala, according to the news station.