Body Found in Nevada Desert Confirmed as Missing 17-Year-Old, Coroner Says
Jennaleah “Jenna” Hin was reported missing on Dec. 30 and found dead nearly a week later, authorities said
Jennaleah “Jenna” Hin was reported missing on Dec. 30 and found dead nearly a week later, authorities said Facebook Jenneleah Hin:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/Jennaleah-Hin-010625-TOUT-cb0183305ee240619dafa202829d464c.jpg "Jenneleah Hin, 17, went missing after leaving her home in the suburbs of Las Vegas on December 30, and police discovered her body on Sunday.")
A body that was found in a Nevada desert area last week has been confirmed as a missing 17-year-old girl, authorities said.
The Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner said on Monday, Jan. 6, that the victim's body is of Jennaleah “Jenna” Hin, of Henderson, Nevada, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Fox affiliate KVVU and NBC affiliate KSNV.
The coroner’s office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on Tuesday, Jan. 7.
Hin, a senior at Foothill High School, was reported missing on Dec. 30, according to a Sunday, Jan. 5, news release from the City of Henderson.
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According to authorities, police responded on Jan. 5 to a call that a dead body has been found in the desert area east of Desert Sunflower Circle and Spanish Needle Street around 10:42 a.m. local time. When they arrived, they discovered a "deceased female."
At the time, authorities said that the female matched the description of Hin.
“Henderson Detectives responded to the scene and based on preliminary investigations, there does not appear to be signs of foul play,” the city’s news release continued.
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Hin left her home in Henderson in the early evening hours of Dec. 30 following a family dispute, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal and KSNV.
“You don’t have to worry about me anymore,” Hin said something along those lines at the time she departed home, according to Mark Speer of the nonprofit search group Red Rock Search and Rescue, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
Family members said Hin did not have a phone or money on her when she left, CBS affiliate KLAS reported.
At a press conference held on Friday, Jan. 3, by Hin’s parents, Red Rock Search and Rescue and police pleaded for the public’s help.
“Jenna, wherever you are or whoever you’re with, I just want you to come home,” said Hin’s mother, Jennifer Swanson, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. “I want you safe. We love you so much — please come home.”
“I just want to say, ‘I love you, and we just want you back,’ ” added Hin’s stepfather, Corey Swanson. “Our home is broken without you.”
Helicopters, drones, K-9s, horses, and volunteers from the community and Foothill High School students were involved in the search for the teen, according to KSNV.
A GoFundMe has been established to pay for Hin's funeral expenses.
"Jenna was a beautiful 17-year-old girl with a bright future ahead of her," the organizer wrote. "Although she may not have always felt it, she was deeply loved by her Hin family and those around her."
