Body has been identified

Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller confirmed at a press conference Wednesday morning that the body found in a northern Indiana lake last weekend is Teleka Patrick, the Kalamazoo doctor who had been missing since December. An autopsy, conducted Tuesday, positively identified the body as Patrick through fingerprints and dental records. The body was discovered Sunday by a fisherman in Lake Charles in Porter, Indiana not far from where the 30-year old Patrick’s car was found with a blown tire on I-94 December 5, the night of her disappearance. Police used sonar to search the lake on January 23, but found no evidence or clues in the search for the missing doctor. Investigators were planning to send a dive team to the lake after the ice melted. According to Fuller, Patrick was driving to St. Louis to meet an old friend the night of her disappearance disputing earlier reports that she was driving to Chicago. A private investigator hired by her family has said she was afraid someone was after her around the time of her disappearance. Authorities say the cause of Patrick’s death appears to be drowning, but they are still awaiting toxicology results.  (MRN)