EMPORIA, KANSAS: The discovery of the bodies of two missing Kansas women, 44-year-old Linda Estrada and 39-year-old Amy Ford on Wednesday, September 20, has left the Emporio community mourning.
According to the Emporio Police Department, the bodies were found in rural eastern Colorado after a 10-day-long investigation. On September 11, the two women were reported missing and police stated they were together in Colorado the previous weekend, reported ABC's KAKE.
Person of interest in custody in connection to Linda Estrada and Amy Ford's deaths
Along with security videos, cell phone technology was utilized by the EPD Investigations Divison to track both the victims' movements through Colorado, as per the department's statement.
Spending five days in the search, Colorado authorities tried finding the women using airplanes, drones, ground searches, and K9s before their bodies were discovered on Wednesday.
While the department has a person of interest in custody, the individual faces charges unrelated to the investigation into the missing of Estrada and Ford. However, the name of this individual has not been disclosed.
The investigation into the death of the missing victims have now transitioned to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and eastern Colorado Sheriff's Office.
"While Linda and Amy’s deaths are not the outcome we’d hoped for, the men and women of the Emporia Police Department offer our condolences to their families and want you to know how many people cared about finding them," stated the department.
An autopsy of the victims will determine the official cause and manner of their deaths.
GoFundMe set up to support victim's four children
As authorities investigate the death of the two women, separate fundraisers have been set up to support their families.
"Linda was a loving, single mother raising her four young children alone. This unexpected loss leaves irreparable grief and an uncertain future for her children," read the description on the GoFundMe page set up for Estrada.
"Linda's passing leaves behind the family she loved and worked so hard to support. She leaves behind eight children in total, including four minor children ages 15, 13, eight, and seven. Linda was their support. The family is now left in a terrible situation. She did not have life insurance," the statement explained.
Meanwhile, a description of the separate GoFundMe page set up for Ford by her co-worker Marlo Kearin read, "She was kind and caring and loved her children with all that she had. She deserves to be brought back home to where she was from and for her family to have closure. Her children deserve to have their mom at peace."
