The body of Iva “Mitzi” Berninger, who had been missing since Dec. 11, was found near a trail by two people riding ATVs on Friday.
The two adults called 911 after finding the body just before 2 p.m., according to a Kenai Police Department release.
The trail they found Berninger’s body near “is an extension off the east end of Redoubt Ave. traveling toward the Airport,” officers wrote in the release.
Kenai Police responded to the area on Friday and preliminarily identified the body as Berninger’s, and her family has been notified, according to the release.
Officers did not see any “obvious injuries or trauma” at the scene, according to the report.
The body will be sent to the State Medical Examiner’s office.
The investigation is still open until an autopsy can be performed and Berninger’s identity can be confirmed, officers wrote.
Kenai Police had searched the trail where the body was found the week of Dec. 17 “when snow cover in that area was significantly higher,” officers wrote in the release.
Berninger was last seen on Dec. 11 at her Gill Street apartment in Kenai and was reported missing by a neighbor on Dec. 15.
The Kenai Police Department will not comment further on the case at this time, said Sgt. Scott McBride.
Reach Megan Pacer at megan.pacer@peninsulaclarion.com.
