San Jose

Family Ends Search for Missing CEO After a Body Is Found

The family of a missing Utah tech executive has called off a search for her after police reported that a body was found inside a parked car in San Jose.

Erin Valenti's family and friends were in the Bay Area trying to unravel the mystery after she was last seen in Palo Alto. They believed, based on her phone activity, that Valenti may have been driving in San Jose.

On Saturday night, her family said in a written statement that they appreciate the effort and support they have been provided, and they will release more information when they can. 

In a Facebook post on the Help Find Erin Valenti page, a page admin wrote: "Many of you have seen that the search for Erin has been called off. While we were praying for a different outcome, we are so appreciative for the help and support you have given. Please remember Erin as the beautiful, smart, funny woman that she was. I don't have any details that have not been in the media. I'm sure that Harrison will thank you himself when he is able, but please be patient."

Valenti heads Tinker Ventures, an app development company based in Salt Lake City. Her family grew worried after she missed her flight home on Monday following a business trip.

Her parents told the San Jose Mercury News they feared she may have suffered a manic episode.

"We talked to her for hours on and off" on Monday night, her mother Whitey Valenti told the newspaper. "Her thoughts were disconnected. She talked a mile a minute. She’d say I’m coming home for Thanksgiving, then in the next she was saying she’s in the Matrix," a reference to the science fiction movie.

However, Erin Valenti’s husband said she had no history of mental illness.

"There’s never any history of anything like this, no mental health diagnosis, no hospitalization, no substance use, no arrests — as clear of a record as you can get. This is incredibly unlike her," Harrison Weinstein said during the search. "She is an extremely high achievement, successful person."

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