MEMPHIS, Tenn. — After the discovery of a female body on the Arkansas side of the Mississippi River this weekend, the woman was identified as Tamia Taylor.
More than two weeks since the disappearance of Tamia Taylor, who boarded a Memphis riverboat for her 21st birthday, a body was found in the Mississippi River.
Both Memphis Police and the Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office were called to the area next to the Consolidated Grain and Barge Corporation after the body turned up near there.
“Until identification is done, we can’t be sure of anything,” said Jasmine Ellis, CEO of the Dock Ellis Foundation, a non-profit who helps the families of missing minority women.
The non-profit said Taylor’s mother first found out about the body recovery from a Facebook post.
The body was found just a couple miles downstream from Memphis Riverboats docks, causing people to speculate it was the missing 21-year-old.
However, Memphis Riverboats said they had no reason to believe Taylor went overboard, saying she was last seen as the boat pulled into the harbor.
Unfortunately, three days after the body was found, the Crittenden County coroner confirmed the body to be Tamia Taylor. They also confirmed her cause of death was drowning. The Dock Ellis Foundation made the following statement:
"We are truly heartbroken by the identification of Tamia Taylor. Debra Taylor and her family are truly grateful for your thoughts and prayers. Dock Ellis Foundation is asking everyone to please allow the family time to heal. We will all carry Tamia Taylor in our hearts."