The identity of a woman who was found wrapped in a trash bag off Florida’s Gulf Coast has been confirmed.
Heather Rose Strickland, 34, was the woman found dead and floating in the trash bag on Saturday (10 December).
Her body was discovered off Egmont Key at the mouth of Tampa Bay by fishermen working in the area, the FBI’s Tampa Field Office has confirmed.
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While spearfishing, witnesses said they went for a dive, and as they moved to the next spot 13 miles off the coast they discovered the trash bag. When they tried to pick up the bag, they realised it was not filled with trash.
The witnesses then cut the plastic and the canvas bag inside which is when they saw skin and what was believed to be a bra strap or bikini top. They made a distress call not long after their horrific discovery.
The United States Coast Guard received a call shortly before noon the same day alerting them to the discovery.
The body was found ‘wrapped in bedding in a plastic trash bag,’ the FBI confirmed.
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Strickland was last seen on 5 December 2022 leaving the HCA Florida Largo Hospital in Largo Florida, the bureau confirmed.
She was originally from the North Florida region however she had spent the last five years in the Clearwater-St.Petersburg area.
Investigators are now calling Strickland’s death ‘suspicious’.
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“Heather Rose Strickland was last seen on December 5, 2022, leaving HCA Florida Largo Hospital at 201 14th Street Southwest in Largo, Florida,” the FBI said.
“Originally from the North Florida region, Strickland spent the last five years in the Clearwater-St. Petersburg area.
“The FBI is asking the public to assist with any information that helps law enforcement piece together the events that led to Strickland’s death.”
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Strickland is around 5 feet 5 inches with ‘a tattoo on the right side of her neck of ‘B’ and ‘E’ written in Old English Script and a Rose tattoo on the outside of her right thigh.”
The FBI is asking the public to assist with any information that helps law enforcement piece together the events that led to Strickland’s death.
You can send an anonymous tip online here. Alternately, you can contact the FBI's Tampa Field Office at (813) 253-1000. You may also contact your local FBI office, the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.
Gregory Robinson