An American nurse missing from Western New York has been found dead in Hungary, and a suspect has been arrested.
Mackenzie “Kenzie” Michalski, 31, was last seen on the night of Monday, Nov. 4 during a trip to Budapest, according to a GoFundMecampaign and a Facebook page dedicated to the search for the missing woman.
Authorities are now reporting that a woman — understood to be Michalski — disappeared from a local nightclub on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
On Friday, Nov. 8, the Budapest Police Headquarters said in a translated release that they had “caught sight of a man with whom the missing girl was seen in several nightclubs” amid their search, before identifying him as a 37-year-old Irish citizen.
Authorities later arrested the man in front of an apartment and interrogated him as a murder suspect, before he “showed” authorities “where he hid the woman’s body,” police said.
The name of the suspect has not yet been released. Police said they would share more details about the case on Nov. 9, per ABC News.
In another release, police said that the suspect took the victim to his apartment, where they got “intimate.” He then admitted to killing her and claiming it was an “accident,” per authorities.
The Associated Press, which also cited the police update, reported that the man then attempted to cover up the scene by cleaning his apartment and placing the woman’s body in a wardrobe cabinet while he bought a suitcase — which he later put her body inside.
The man then drove around 90 miles outside of Budapest to Lake Balaton with the suitcase in his trunk, before disposing of it in a wooded area outside of Szigliget, authorities said.
The Budapest Police Headquarters said that the suspect made various internet searches about how to dispose of dead bodies, if pigs eat dead bodies, the smell of decomposing corpses, the competence of Budapest police and missing-person case procedures.
The AP reported that Michalski’s parents are now in Budapest, citing police.
Mackenzie Michalski.
GoFundMe
According to the GoFundMe for Michalski, which has since surpassed an initial $35,000 goal, the nurse practitioner was last seen around 10 p.m. local time on Nov. 4 at Barack et Szilva Etterem in the Jewish Quarter of Budapest, before her friends obtained photos of her at the bar Szimpla Kert not long after.
Per multiple outlets, including NBC affiliates KGW and WGRZ, Michalski’s friends realized she disappeared after she didn’t board her departing flight and an Airbnb host contacted them to share that she left her belongings behind.
Michalski, a Fredonia native who worked as a nurse practitioner in Portland, was on vacation with a friend, who left Budapest for Italy on Nov. 4, per KGW.
After a multiple-days-long search, an admin on the Facebook page dedicated to the search confirmed the news of Michalski’s death. There, Mary Eustace expressed her “gratitude” for the “prompt attention, diligence, care, and consideration” of local authorities.
She also remembered Michalski as “a beautiful and compassionate young woman who dedicated herself to caring for others and making the world a better place.” The message was signed by her family and friends.
“As a nurse practitioner, Kenzie used her humor, positivity, and limitless empathy to help heal her patients and encourage family and friends alike,” Eustace wrote. “We are thankful that Kenzie’s soul is now at peace. Her memory and legacy will endure in the hearts of all whom she’s touched.”
“To understand Kenzie’s spirit is to wholeheartedly embrace the vast joy and wonder of life,” she added. “Her wish for the world: fully embrace the present moment, be your authentic self, practice kindness, and always walk in the light.”
Healthcare provider Providence in Oregon, which Michalski worked for, also shared a tribute to the late nurse, per WGRZ.
“Those who worked with her and knew her best say Kenzie was kind and loving – a great friend and a valued caregiver who lived out our Providence mission and values in her daily life,” the message read. “… We appreciate the support of our community and all those who are holding Kenzie’s loved ones and colleagues in their hearts and prayers.”
Childhood friend Crystal Suarenzo called Michalski a “very, very pure-hearted person” with “a real hunger for experience and life,” per KGW. She added that Michalski had been to Hungary before.
“I feel like we’re woven into the fabric who each other turned out to be and losing that is… I feel like we’re missing a whole section of the tapestry of myself without her,” Suarenzo said, describing her “very sunshiny” friend, per the outlet. “When she laughed, her whole body would laugh.”
According to WIVB, friends and family are encouraged to attend a candlelight vigil in honor of Michalski in Fredonia’s Barker Commons at 6 p.m. on Nov. 9.
