LAKE STEVENS — Detectives are looking for anyone who might have seen Summer Smith in the days before the Snohomish County teen disappeared in November.
Her remains were discovered earlier this month near Lake Stevens.
Detectives believe her death was a homicide, but cause and manner of death are still pending from the Snohomish County Medical Examiner.
The Everett woman, 18, had no connections to the location where her remains were found at the 12000 block of Seventh Place SE. She used public transportation and was last seen in the Everett area in November, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Shari Ireton said Friday.
Anyone with information about Smith or who she might have associated with is asked to call the sheriff’s office anonymous tip line at 425-388-3845.
Smith’s skull and other bones were discovered Jan. 3. A man hired to clean up around the property discovered the skull near some heavy brambles.
Detectives later found two plastic trash bags discarded on some bushes nearby. The bags contained bloody bedding, a knife with a broken and bloody blade, screwdrivers, women’s clothing and paperwork for Smith. The contents were frozen together, indicating that they’d been in the cold for an extended amount of time, sheriff’s detective David Fontenot wrote in a search warrant.
The sheriff’s office suspended search operations earlier this week. Detectives and search and rescue volunteers scoured more than 30 acres with the assistance of hundreds of volunteers from Snohomish, King, Skagit, Kitsap, and Thurston counties.
Detectives spoke with Smith’s mother, who said she last heard from her daughter Nov. 19. She sent Smith a text message in early December, concerned that the two hadn’t communicated in a couple of weeks. She received replies but told detectives the tone and content seemed out of character for her daughter. One of the last messages Smith’s mother received demanded she stop sending texts.
She called Smith but was directly connected to voicemail until about Dec. 12 when the phone appears to have been shut off or taken out of service.
Detectives obtained a search warrant for Smith’s phone records saying they believe someone other than Smith sent the messages to her mother. Evidence suggests that Smith died before that exchange happened, according to the search warrant.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com
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