Misrach Ewunetie: Princeton University student's death sparks fear in college goers as other student gets eerie note

Students at Princeton university fear for their safety after death and eerie note (image via Wikimedia Commons)
Students at Princeton university fear for their safety after a mysterious death followed by an eerie note (image via Wikimedia Commons)

Princeton University students are living in fear after the death of Ethiopian student, Misrach Ewunetie, especially as very few details about the investigation are released by the police.

Adding to this dread is an incident that involved another student who had her door removed from its hinges by an unidentified man, who left a note that said, "Be Nicer." The note was delivered to Mikayla Merin, a sophomore at Princeton, who was incredibly scared and skipped college for a month after she got it.

Merin received the note on the same day that Ewunetie was reported missing. Ewunetie was reported missing on October 14, 2022, and six days later, her body was found near the college tennis courts. However, owing to the pandemic backlog, her autopsy is yet to be released and it is reported that her toxicology reports will not be available until February 2023.

Although campus authorities have deemed the university to be safe, parents and students are on high alert, with many worried about their safety. They have taken to social media to speak about their concerns.

To add to all the fear behind Ewunetie's death, students received news of Mikayla and the eerie note that was left on her unhinged door. A man wearing a neon yellow shirt and blue jeans was allegedly responsible for unhinging the door and putting the note there.

Needless to say, Mikayla was scared and skipped school for a month, and upon her return, she installed her own security cameras.


Ethiopian and Eritrean Student Association speaks out against the Princeton's "inappropriate assertion" about safety

Ewunetie's disappearance and subsequent discovery of her body in a secluded location on October 20, 2022, left people with questions about the mysterious circumstances. Her family criticized the police for keeping them in the dark.

In the wake of the outcry around the university, they said that there were no obvious signs of injury to the student's body and that her death didn't appear suspicious or criminal in nature. Princeton University also said that there was no proof of the student's death being a homicide.

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Faeven Mussie, a spokesperson from the Ethiopian and Eritrean Student Association at Princeton University, spoke to the New York Times. She said that it was inappropriate for the university to assert that the campus was safe, especially since very little information about Misrach Ewunetie's death was made public.

She added that they don't know what to think or believe as they don't even know if they are safe on campus. Mussie explained that it was far better for the university to state that they do not have all the answers as to what happened and that it would take time.

Another student, Isadora Knutsen, stated to the New York Times,

"There’s no reason for anyone to believe it wasn’t suspicious."

What did Princeton University say after Misrach Ewunetie's death?

After news of Ethiopian student Misrach Ewunetie's death, Pricetion University's Department of Public Safety stated that it, "does not believe there is any related threat to the campus or the surrounding area."

They restricted access to the campus and tightened security protocols on November 1, 2022, after security concerns were raised. However, the protocols were called out by studends and parents alike on social media.

The school administrators wrote to the students, explaining that owing to the ongoing investigation, they were bound by protocol to limit communication. They said that it was so that the public wasn't misled and so the evidence gathering was protected.

However, as mentioned earlier, the autopsy results haven't been made public yet and the toxicology will take place in February 2023. Additionally, a lot of information about the case hasn't been made public as of writing this article, which only adds to the fear among the Princeton community.

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