LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — A college sophomore who was reported missing last week in central Arkansas was found dead in a pond south of Little Rock, police said Monday.
Authorities ruled the death of 20-year-old Patricia Guardado a homicide after her body was discovered Sunday afternoon in a few feet of water south of Sweet Home, Ark. A cause of death was not immediately released.
No suspects have been named. Police wouldn't comment Monday about whether Guardado had been assaulted, whether she might have known her assailant or how long she had been in the pond.
The scant information released by authorities Monday shocked Guardado's uncle, Gerardo Garcia Ramirez.
"It's incredible that there isn't a single clue or suspect," he said in Spanish.
So, while authorities offer rewards for information that leads to an arrest, he asked people – especially in the Hispanic communities of central Arkansas – to come forward with any details about what happened to his niece.
He said Guardado's family still can't believe that they have to bury such a wonderful young woman.
"She was always working and studying," he said. "She was a good daughter, a good sister, a good niece."
A dive team on Monday searched the waters where her Guardado's body was found near a cemetery less than 10 miles south of Little Rock. Lt. Carl Minden, a spokesman for the Pulaski County sheriff's office, declined to comment on what evidence, if any, had been recovered.
