CHICAGO, Illinois – The cause of death has been confirmed for the 57-year-old woman whose body was discovered in a baggage handling area at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport last week. Virginia Christine Vinton, from Waxhaw, North Carolina, died by suicide on Thursday, August 8, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The manner of death was listed as hanging and asphyxiation, according to reports from the Associated Press and local television outlets WFLD and WLS. Vinton’s body was discovered entangled in a conveyor belt system within the baggage area, police previously confirmed.
Vinton had reportedly entered an unoccupied restricted area at approximately 2:27 a.m. local time, according to surveillance footage reviewed by authorities. The Chicago Fire Department responded to the scene hours later after receiving a call about an unresponsive woman. Vinton was pronounced dead at 7:30 a.m. on August 8.
The tragic incident has sparked questions surrounding security protocols at O’Hare, but officials clarified that Vinton was not an airport employee. The U.S. Department of Labor also confirmed that Vinton had no professional connection to the airport.
Vinton’s identity was officially confirmed by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office on Friday, August 9, following an autopsy.
Representatives from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office and the Chicago Police Department have not provided further details regarding the circumstances of her death.
