20-year-old woman missing from Forest View, found dead in South Austin, being investigated as a homicide

CHICAGO - A young woman who was reported missing from Forest View last Sunday was found dead in the South Austin neighborhood on the city's west side, police said.

The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office has now determined that the woman was either strangled or smothered to death and authorities are investigating as a homicide.

Charisma Ehresman, 20, was last seen leaving her home on the 4600 block of S. Wisconsin in Forest View, Illinois around 10:15 p.m. on Sunday night, January 23. Ehresman missed work and school and, by Thursday, the Forest View Police Department and Illinois State Police had activated an Endangered Missing Person Advisory for Ehresman.

On Friday evening, around 5:30 p.m., Chicago Police discovered a young woman unresponsive in the backseat of a vehicle in the 5900 block of W. Iowa in the South Austin neighborhood on the city's west side.

Police confirmed the young woman was the missing girl from Forest View and the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office found that she was either strangled or smothered to death.

We've reached out to the Medical Examiner for further clarification but have yet to hear back.

Chicago Police did not indicate if they had any suspects but did confirm that Area Four detectives are conducting the investigation as a homicide.

A family member appeared to confirm the news in a GoFundMe originally intended to raise resources to search for Charisma, that will now go toward final expenses.

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