20-Year-Old Colorado Woman Kaylee Russell Found Dead Days After Her Disappearance — What We Know

The 20-year-old Colorado native set off after fixing a flat near a highway, then vanished. Days later, a discovery in a canal left her family shattered.

After fixing a flat tire while out for a short drive near Loveland, Kaylee Russell disappeared into the cold Colorado night — her phone silent, her car gone, and no trace of her to be found.

What followed was a days-long search across Northern Colorado, led by her family, volunteers, and multiple law enforcement agencies. The end was not what they hoped for.

Last Call, Then Silence

Kaylee's last known contact was with her father, Richard Russell, around 6:10 p.m. on Sunday, November 30, 2025. He had just helped her change a flat tire at the Loveland/Johnstown Park-and-Ride, near Highway 402 and I-25. He called again shortly after to check if her headlights were working.

She reportedly planned to visit a friend in Pierce, then head to La Salle to see her cousins. By 9 p.m., calls from her mother, Rebecca Russell, were going straight to voicemail.

When Rebecca contacted the friend in Pierce, they said Kaylee never arrived. No one had heard from her daughter. Her phone was off, and there hadn't been any activity on her debit card. She said:

"We just have no idea. It's like she disappeared. We haven't found her car. We haven't found her phone. We haven't found her. We haven't found her, so we're just asking for help."

As the cold and snow got worse, Rebecca said it became even more heartbreaking. Every tip they received led nowhere, and none of them were about Kaylee. She feared someone might have taken her. But if that were true, she couldn't understand where the car had gone.

A Glimpse Into Her Final Days

Just weeks before she went missing, Kaylee shared a Facebook post celebrating her younger brother's birthday. Posted on October 24, it included a lighthearted caption, a video, and several photos — one of which appeared to show her driving.

In the post, she expressed affection for her brother and joked about posting the message late. It showed a moment of warmth and closeness with her family in the days leading up to her disappearance.

Community Search Efforts Intensify

Rebecca traveled from Kansas to help coordinate the search. The family retraced possible routes, including Weld County Road 13 — one Richard had suggested — and combed through parking lots at local hotels, hospitals, and shopping centers in Loveland.

While helping coordinate search efforts, Rebecca said she felt "numb" and frightened. She struggled to understand why no one had come forward with any information, despite the public alerts and wide coverage of her daughter's disappearance.

Meanwhile, Kaylee's father paced as search teams fanned out. "I just don't know," Richard stated. "I have no idea."

On Wednesday, December 3, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) issued an Endangered Missing Alert. Kaylee was described as 5 feet 6 inches tall, 125 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.

She was last seen wearing a black hoodie, tan pants, and brown slippers. She was driving a black 2016 Volkswagen Tiguan with a temporary Colorado license plate 7880903 and a sticker that reads "greeleynissan.com" on the rear windshield.

A Mother's Final Search for Her Missing Girl

By the morning of Thursday, December 4, Rebecca was still holding onto hope. With no word from her daughter and no sign of her car, she turned to Facebook, doing everything she could to organize help and keep the public informed.

She invited the public to join a search party at 11:00 a.m. Mountain Time, asking volunteers to meet at the Loveland Park-and-Ride, near I-25 and County Road 18 — the last place Kaylee had been seen.

People were asked to walk, drive, bring dogs, or fly drones to search nearby areas. She said her family would arrive at the site as soon as possible and thanked everyone for supporting the search.

Later that morning, she posted again, asking people to comment with locations they had already searched. Many had messaged her privately, but it had become difficult to keep track of who had been where.

Rebecca was trying to put together a list or map of all areas already covered, to avoid overlapping efforts. Her call for help helped guide volunteers.

Vehicle Located in Canal Near Timnath

That afternoon, the search ended in tragedy. Kaylee's black Volkswagen Tiguan was found overturned and partially submerged in the Larimer and Weld Canal, near County Road 44 in Timnath. Divers recovered a body from the vehicle.

The Colorado State Patrol (CPS) confirmed the SUV belonged to Kaylee. Although officials have not publicly identified the body found inside at the time, a family friend, Josh Schweitzer, who was at the scene, said her loved ones believe it was her. Her family later confirmed her death, calling the news "devastating."

The crash is now under investigation by the CPS's Vehicular Crimes Unit. Officers from the CBI, Evans Police, and the Larimer County Sheriff's Office also responded.

Authorities have not said how the vehicle ended up in the water, and no further information has been released.

Kaylee's case follows a similar incident in Northern California, where a mother and her infant daughter were found inside a vehicle submerged in a canal.

As previously reported, Whisper Owens, 28, and her 8-month-old daughter, Sandra McCarthy, were found dead over the weekend after being missing for more than a month.

On Sunday, August 17, search teams located Whisper and her daughter inside their 2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer, which was found submerged in a canal beneath a bridge at Highway 120 and Victory Avenue near Oakdale, in Northern California. Sonar equipment was used to detect the vehicle.

The search team reported that both Whisper and Sandra were found inside the vehicle, noting that Whisper appeared to have tried to save her daughter during the ordeal.

Whisper and her daughter had been unaccounted for since July 15, the day she traveled to Fresno for a medical appointment and to see family. She began the trip back to Sacramento later that evening but never made it home.

According to the Owens family, police traced Whisper's phone to a location near the canal, which led searchers to the spot where her vehicle was later found lodged beneath a bridge. Inside, both she and her daughter were discovered.

A chilling image from the scene showed law enforcement officers and emergency crews looking on as the Trailblazer got pulled from the water with cables and towing equipment.

The discovery marked a heartbreaking conclusion to the weeks-long search that had left loved ones anxiously waiting for answers. Authorities did not explain how the SUV became submerged in the canal, and the case remained under investigation.

Whisper's brother, Richard Owens, spoke about the family's deep sense of loss, noting how central she was to their lives and expressing the difficulty of imagining how the family would move forward without her and her daughter.

He reflected on the heartbreak of losing a child before she had a chance to grow and the lasting impact the tragedy would have on the family.

Richard further expressed his grief over the loss, noting the pain of knowing that his niece's siblings would never have the chance to watch her grow or discover her personality.

Still, he found some comfort in the fact that the family no longer had to spend years wondering what happened. He also expressed his gratitude toward the search teams and community members who went beyond expectations to help bring his family answers. He also posted a personal tribute online and shared a separate message dedicated to his niece.