Engaged couple found dead two weeks after emergency call

The bodies of an engaged couple have been found inside a crashed car partially submerged in a swamp more than two weeks after a witness reported the crash to emergency services.

Paige Escalera, 25, and Stephanie Mayorga, 27, were found inside the wrecked 2013 Dodge Dart on May 4, despite a witness reporting the serious crash the night it happened on April 15, NBC News reported.

Emergency crews attended the scene in Wilmington, North Carolina, but left in less than 10 minutes because they were unable to find the vehicle or the victims.

The couple’s roommate reported the pair missing on April 19, but it wasn’t until police later investigated the initial call to the emergency line that the wreckage site was revisited and their bodies were found.

Police revealed in a video conference the vehicle was travelling up to 165km/h before it hit a kerb and flew over an embankment before landing six metres below – just 11 kilometres from their home.

There were several open, empty beer bottles inside the car, police said, and investigations revealed they purchased a 12-pack of beer just an hour before the incident.

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One of the women was captured on security cameras holding a beer when they left their apartment that evening, but it was unclear if the driver, Ms Mayorga, was intoxicated before the crash.

Police said due to how badly the bodies were decomposed, it was unlikely a toxicology report would conclude if she had alcohol in her system.

Both women were ruled to have died from traumatic head and chest injuries.

Family members have since hit out at authorities over how long it took them to locate the crash site and why a more thorough search was not conducted on the night of the incident, NBC reported.

Police argued that due to the vehicle being submerged, and largely hidden behind dense shrubbery, officers could not find any evidence of the crash.

They said the car’s battery was destroyed in the crash meaning head and tail lights were not operational at the time, and there were insufficient markings on the road to suggest an accident.

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