Add The New York Post on Google A missing Ohio mother of two was found dead on top of a stopped train in Indiana — nearly 130 miles from where she vanished, according to authorities.
The body of Brittany Ritter, 37, of Holland, Ohio, was discovered by a Norfolk Southern Railway employee in an Elkhart, Indiana, train yard on Sept. 3, the Elkhart Police Department announced Thursday.
Ritter was last seen in the Holland area during the early morning hours of Sept. 2, the Lucas County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio said in a statement.
Cops said she may have been traveling by bicycle when she disappeared — and that her family was “concerned for her welfare” and unable to get in touch with her.
Ritter’s body was found the following morning on top of the train in Indiana, which had left from the east and traveled west.
A “proud mother of two sons” and a “beloved mother, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend,” who struggled with her mental health, according to a GoFundMe launched to pay for Ritter’s funeral costs.
“Although she struggled with mental health challenges, those who knew her recognized her strength, valued her life, and will remember her with dignity and compassion,” the fundraiser statement said.
The Elkhart County Homicide Unit said they were initially investigating the circumstances surrounding Ritter’s death, but have since turned the case over to the Lucas County Sheriff’s Office.
“Our thoughts are with Brittany’s family, friends, and all those who knew and cared about her. We recognize the tremendous grief that comes with news like this and extend our deepest sympathy to everyone affected by this heartbreaking loss,” the sheriff’s office wrote.
Ritter’s cause and manner of death have not yet been released, and the Elkhart medical examiner did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
Her aunt, Sherry Straub-Guess, thanked the search parties who tirelessly helped look for Ritter and asked everyone for support, in a Facebook post, while her family “continues seeking the truth of what really happened.”
“Brittany has been found. It is not the outcome we had hoped for but she is now forever home,” Straud-Guess wrote.
“Thank you for all the prayers and shares and comments that have been sent this past week. It takes a village and this past weekend we had that village of people looking for Britt!”
The sheriff’s office said they are still probing Ritter’s death and would not release additional details.
