A woman who was found dead inside baggage conveyor belt machinery at O'Hare International Airport on Thursday (August 8) died of asphyxiation from being hanged. The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified the woman as 57-year-old Virginia Christine Vinton from North Carolina and ruled her death a suicide.
Authorities said that Vinton was seen on surveillance cameras entering a restricted area of the airport around 2:30 a.m. It is unclear how she managed to sneak into the area, which is filled with conveyor belts that move bags of luggage between the terminal and the airplanes.
"She was trying to gain access at multiple points," a person with knowledge of the investigation told the Chicago Sun-Times. "They are not sure what her motive was. She was trying to get to the secure side of the airport."
Her body was not discovered until five hours later. Officials have not said what the woman was doing during that time or when she is believed to have died.
Her death remains under investigation.