Boston Herald

February 14, 2004

Page: 17

Relatives searching for college student missing after crash

By Eric Convey

Relatives of a missing Hanson college student are descending on the area around Swift Water Village, N.H., to help find the one-time star athlete who disappeared after crashing her new car into a snowbank Monday.

"This is very unusual," said Fred Murray, father of Maura Murray, 21. "It's not like her to just take off."

Meanwhile, Haverhill, N.H., police said they have ended the search of the area where Murray crashed the car but continue to investigate her disappearance. A witness said she emerged from her car uninjured and disappeared when the witness left to call police.

"We are concerned for her personal welfare. There is no evidence of foul play," police Chief Jeff Williams said yesterday.

"Our concern is that she's upset or suicidal, something the family was concerned about," Williams said.

Murray's family and her Army lieutenant boyfriend have been passing out fliers with information about her in New Hampshire and in Vermont.

The area is one she knows well, having vacationed there many years with her parents.

A standout athlete in high school, Murray studied at West Point before leaving the military academy and pursuing nursing studies at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.