Florida authorities said a car that belongs to Creekside Middle School teacher Robert Heikka, who disappeared in October 2020, and a body were found in a canal along in Volusia County
Authorities in Florida say a car owned by a middle school teacher who vanished in 2020 has been found in a local canal with a body inside.
Robert Heikka’s car was discovered in the water along Pioneer Trail in Volusia County, between State Roads 44 and 415, according to a statement from the Volusia Sheriff’s Office (VSO).
Water levels in the canal had “recently dropped significantly,” revealing the car’s location, the VSO said Saturday.
Police have been in contact with the missing teacher’s family, according to the Port Orange Police Department (POPD). However, the body found inside the car has not been officially identified.
The Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Heikka was last seen at his home in Port Orange on Oct. 25, 2020, according to Port Orange police. He was 70 years old at the time of his disappearance.
The Florida man was reported missing after he was absent from his job at Creekside Middle School on Oct. 26, 2020, a POPD spokesperson said in Dec. 2020, per the Orlando Sentinel.
The Sunshine State Sonar Search Team and Recon Dive Recovery helped locate the missing vehicle, according to the VSO and POPD.
Mike Sullivan, who works with Sunshine State Sonar, said he and others were walking near the canal when he spotted “what looked like the roof of the vehicle sticking from the water,” according to NBC affiliate WESH.
Police previously identified the teacher’s vehicle as a white 2012 Chevrolet Impala.
Photos from the scene in New Smyrna Beach, shared by the VSO, appear to show the submerged Impala and a portion of a license plate that matches the tag number previously provided by the department.
“We thank all involved for bringing some much needed closure to Mr. Heikka’s family,” the POPD said on Saturday. “Our prayers and thoughts are with his family.”
Heikka began working for the Volusia County School District in 1989, according to the Sentinel and CBS affiliate WKMG-TV. He had been teaching at Creekside Middle School in Port Orange since 2002.
The canal where Heikka’s car was found is just a few miles away from where the late teacher once lived, according to WESH.
“It just feels so good to give these families answers,” Sullivan told the outlet. “I would never say it’s closure, because there is never closure for a family losing someone like this. It’s answers to what happened to their loved one.”