Community Corner
Body of Austin Bice Found, Just a Day After Candlelight Vigil at SDSU
Family, friends and fellow SDSU gathered Monday night to show support for Austin Bice, who had been missing since last week.
A body believed to be that of San Diego State University student Austin Bice was found Tuesday in a shallow river in western Madrid, not far from the nightclub where the 22-year-old was last seen on Feb. 25.
A Spanish police official said Bice was found in the Manzanares River and the cause of death is unknown. There were no signs of foul play, according to published reports.
This news comes just hours after more than 100 people gathered Monday night to show support for the Torrey Pines High School graduate.
Find out what's happening in La Jollawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Bice’s father was last reported to be in Madrid working with European authorities to find his son.
The San Diego community has responded by assisting the Bice family and offering support. Jayson Nicholson, a friend of Bice, helped to arrange the vigil. “We just want to come together as a community to show our support for Austin and his family and hope that he comes home safe,” he said at the vigil.
Find out what's happening in La Jollawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The crowd consisted of SDSU students, Carlsbad residents and friends of Bice. Three women attending the vigil wore jackets from Torrey Pines High School, where he played football. Others wore black and red ribbons with “Bice” spelled out on them.
Many people in attendance had known Bice much of their lives. Tyler Wilson knew him since elementary school. “He’s probably one of the nicest people in the world,” he said at the vigil. “If you know him, you’d want to support him.”
Heather Santone attended high school with Bice. “It’s so sad when someone in your neighborhood disappears,” she said. “This has mobilized everyone in our community.”
Santone passed out a donation box for The RSQ Foundation, which was using contributions in the effort to find Bice. More than $600 was raised at the event.
Not all who were present at the vigil knew Bice personally. After hearing about the situation, SDSU student Jeff Kaemmerling decided to attend the event to support his fellow classmate.
“If anything, I’m here to show kindred support and spirit,” Kaemmerling said. “Because if I was going through what their family is going through, I would want all the comfort in the world.”
City News Service contributed to this report.
