During the ongoing search for Lia Smith, a missing student from Middlebury College, Vermont State Police discovered a body on Thursday, according to an official statement.

The Vermont State Police Search and Rescue Team found the body at approximately 1:30 p.m. in a field located west of the college campus, near The Knoll, the school’s organic farm.

Authorities have not yet confirmed if the body is that of Lia Smith.

The remains will be transported to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington, where an autopsy will be performed to establish the identity of the deceased and ascertain the cause and manner of death. The autopsy is scheduled for Friday.

Preliminary investigations suggest the death does not appear to be suspicious. A press conference that was set to update the public about the search on Thursday afternoon was canceled following the discovery.

The investigation is being supported by the Middlebury Police Department and the Vermont Attorney General’s Office. Additionally, the FBI and New York State Police, who joined the search efforts on Wednesday, have offered further assistance.

Smith, a 21-year-old Woodside, California native, was last seen at a building on the private liberal arts college’s campus last Friday around 9 p.m. She was reported missing on Sunday after her father was unable to contact her by phone and her friends told him they had not seen her all weekend.

The Vermont State Police Victim Services Unit stated it is working closely with Lia’s family,

Police said Smith is 5’11” and weighs 160 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.

According to The Middlebury Campus, she’s a double computer science and statistics major, a member of the chess and women in computer science clubs, and competed on the school’s swimming and diving team.

Originally Published: October 23, 2025 at 9:47 PM EDT