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DELAND -- The body of a woman found inside a car just Wednesday afternoon south of DeLand is likely that of a Port Orange woman reported missing two days earlier when she drove off from her home in her mother's car, local authorities said.
The discovery of an adult woman with trauma to her body was made at 3:50 p.m., in a wooded area off of Darchelle Court and Cherry Street. The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office’s Major Case Unit was at the scene and has labeled it a homicide, Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said. The victim’s identification won’t be released until it’s confirmed through an autopsy today by the Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office, he added.
"Volusia County Sheriff’s investigators working in conjunction with Port Orange Police have confirmed that the vehicle with the body inside it is the same vehicle that officials have been looking for in conjunction with an adult woman reported missing to Port Orange Police on Monday," Davidson said. "Port Orange detectives working the missing persons case had developed information regarding the location of the car, which led to its discovery Wednesday afternoon by Sheriff’s investigators."
Port Orange police reported they had been looking for for 34-year-old Danielle Santangelo, who was last seen 12:30 p.m. Monday, leaving her Bent Oak Drive home in her mother's red 4-door 2007 Chrysler Sebring, equipped with a sunroof and tinted windows.