Bone of Mom Who Vanished in 2002 With 2 Kids Found in Ohio River

Almost 20 years later, a family finally has some answers about what happened to their loved ones.

An SUV pulled from the Ohio River in October belonged to Stephanie Van Nguyen, who went missing in 2002, but authorities couldn’t say whether she or her two children were in the car when it went into the river at the time the vehicle was recovered. 

The Dearborn County Coroner in Indiana says testing on a fibula bone recovered from the vehicle confirmed it was from the 26-year-old mother’s body. 

Authorities say that when she went missing, Stephanie left behind a note saying she planned to drive her vehicle into the Ohio River with her two children, 4-year-old Kristina and 3-year-old John.

After finding the note, investigators searched the river but couldn’t find any evidence that she had gone through with her plan. 

Indiana State Police say sonar scan technology helped locate the 1997 Nissan Pathfinder in the river just last year. 

The coroner says no remains from the children were found in the search, and they will remain as active missing persons until remains are located or the family files to have them declared legally deceased. 

Authorities say they will conduct another river search once the weather improves. 

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