PORTLAND, Ore. — A body found dead inside a car in Skamania County is confirmed to be a Portland woman who was missing for more than a week, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said Wednesday. The woman's fiancé was arrested Monday and faces charges of murder and abuse of a corpse.
Family members of the woman, 47-year-old Jeannie Enyeart, told KGW on Monday that Enyeart had been found dead in the trunk of her car.
Enyeart was last seen by neighbors on Saturday, Jan. 27, near her home on Northeast Holladay Street and 93rd Avenue in Portland. Two days later, her car was found stuck in a snow berm in Skamania County in Washington state, more than an hour away. The vehicle was wrecked and abandoned, according to Portland police.
It's unclear if police were aware she was in the trunk when her car was first discovered. In Tuesday morning's news release, PPB said the woman was found inside the car on Thursday, Feb. 1, three days after the car was found.
PPB said the medical examiner determined Enyeart died of homicidal violence.
Enyeart’s fiancé, Jon French, 33, of Portland, was arrested on Monday, Feb. 5, and booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center. PPB said he faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree abuse of a corpse.
Early Monday, before learning of Enyeart's death, her siblings and other family members searched warehouses and abandoned homes in North Portland after receiving a tip she might be in that area. They canvassed an area around North Portland with a flyer of her photo in hopes someone could have recognized her.
“It's not fair," said Mariah Eskelson, Enyeart’s stepsister.
"She has a beautiful soul," said her sister, Kristin Enyeart. "She's always been the one to keep our family together, and always try to keep our family together."
Jeannie Enyeart's brother, Mychal, told KGW on Monday that the family believed her fiancé may have played a role in her disappearance.
"We have heard from neighbors of physically seeing Jeannie getting hit," Mychal Enyeart had said.
At French's arraignment Tuesday, family members confronted French for the first time since his arrest.
“May God have mercy on your pathetic soul,” Helen Eskelson, Enyeart's mother told French.
Anyone with information about this case should contact PPB Detective Brent Christensen at brent.christensen@police.portlandoregon.gov or 503-823-2087 and reference case number 24-22701.
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