Austin, Texas – Freshman Haruka Weiser’s body was found on Tuesday near a creek in the University of Texas’ campus. A large crowd gathered in a vigil in the campus this Thursday, as this was the first incident of this kind in the school, after a mass shooting that occurred almost 50 years ago. Fellow students then proceeded to read speeches and hold minutes of silence in honor of their murdered friend and classmate.

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The victim of a suspected homicide found in a creek on the main campus of the University of Texas was identified on Thursday by university officials as Haruka Weiser, a first-year theater and dance student from Oregon. Credit: AOL

18-year old Weiser was a theater and dance student and was last seen at 9:30pm on Sunday. Weiser was leaving the University’s drama building and it is known that she texted one of her friends shortly thereafter. Her roommates were dumbfounded that she wasn’t in the dormitory by the following day so they reported the incident. Her body was found around 10:30am on Waller Creek, near the school’s Alumni Center.

There has not been any sighting of a murder weapon in the scene as officials refused to grant any more details on the matter

There is surveillance footage of a 6-foot-tall black man riding a bicycle near the campus’ stadium at 11pm on the day that Weiser was missing, but authorities imply that there is no clear link between the man and Weiser’s murder. An autopsy is under the procedure and it revealed that Haruka Weiser was assaulted at some point, but there has not been any sighting of a murder weapon in the scene as officials refused to grant any more details on the matter.

Haruka Weiser was regarded as a “passionate and dedicated dancer and student” by her family; she was loved and cherished by her classmates as she “treated them like family” as stated by University of Texas student Jaelynn Blount. She had been recruited in Oregon by the school’s dance class as she performed in the National High School Dance Festival.

The alumni were shocked by the events. University authorities chose to take action by implementing programs where 20 policemen from the Texas Department of Public Safety are to be on constant alert throughout the campus in order to assure the safety of the students. Announcements have been made in order for students to stay alert, walk in groups and avoid leaving their dormitories at night.

Law enforcement officials have stated that there is a $15,000 reward for any information that leads to the capture of the culprit behind Weiser’s slaying.

Source: NBC News