Body of Misty Upham believed found in Washington state

[October 17, 2014] By Eric M. Johnson

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A body believed to be that of missing actress Misty Upham, who played a housekeeper in the movie adaption of "August: Osage County," has been found in the Seattle area, police said on Thursday.

The 32-year-old Native American actress was reported missing by her father on Oct. 6, after she was last seen walking by herself from an apartment the day before near Auburn, some 20 miles south of Seattle, Auburn Police Commander Steve Stocker said.

Auburn police were alerted that a body had been found in a wooded area at the bottom of a 150-foot (46-metre) embankment near the White River in Auburn, south of Seattle, Stocker said in a statement on Thursday.

A purse with Upham's identification was at the scene, but a medical examiner had not made a positive identification or a determination of cause of death, Stocker said.

A family member was in the area searching for her and discovered the body and called the police, Stocker said.

Police responded to numerous suicide calls in the past year at the same apartment, Stocker said, and Upham's parents told police their daughter was on medication for mental health issues.

Upham was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for her supporting role in the 2008 crime drama, "Frozen River."

(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson; Editing by Cynthia Johnston, Sandra Maler and Peter Cooney)

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