Linda Brown: Missing Chicago teacher has been found dead, family confirms

Linda Brown: Missing Chicago teacher has been found dead, family confirms

After more than a week of uncertainty and mounting fear, a missing Chicago teacher has been found dead, according to her family.

CHICAGO - After more than a week of uncertainty and mounting fear, a missing Chicago teacher has been found dead, according to her family.

Chicago police confirmed 53-year-old Linda Brown had been found Monday afternoon, but couldn't confirm if she was alive or deceased. Her family later told FOX Chicago her body was recovered from Lake Michigan.

Further details on where or when she was found haven't been released. 

This is a breaking news update and we'll bring more information as it becomes available. 

The backstory:

Brown was reported missing Saturday, Jan. 3, after she was last seen in the 4500 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in the Bronzeville neighborhood.

She is a Chicago Public Schools special education teacher. Her husband, Antwon Brown, said she had an acupuncture appointment scheduled for Saturday morning that she never attended.

He said the night before her disappearance, the couple watched a movie before Brown went to bed. When he woke up the next morning, she was gone, he said.

Family members tried contacting Brown through phone calls and text messages, but after receiving no response, she was reported missing.

Relatives said Brown has a history of mental illness but had never gone missing before.

On Thursday, the family released new details in their search. They said Brown’s blue Honda Civic was found near 35th Street and Lake Park Avenue.

Surveillance video showed Brown parking her car, getting out and walking toward a pedestrian bridge leading to the lakefront, family members said. She appeared to be alone in the footage, recorded about 3 a.m. Jan. 3, the day she was reported missing. She was last seen walking across the bridge.

A search party began looking for Brown along the lakefront Friday morning and has been ongoing since. 

What's next:

This is a developing story. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available.