Ciaya Jordan Whetstone.Photo: ciayajordan/Instagram
With so many questions left unanswered surrounding New Orleans studentCiaya Jordan Whetstone’s death, her family is praying for answers.
Whetstone, 21, was dropped off at a hospital via “private conveyance” just before 7 a.m. on Saturday, the New Orleans Police Department said in a statement according to NBC affiliateWYFF. Emergency medical personnel declared her “deceased” soon afterwards.
The student’s “unclassified death” is now the subject of an ongoing police investigation.
“Ciaya had been at a Mardi Gras parade, and there’s just a big time gap until when [the driver] dropped her off,” her cousin Grace Sutton previously told ABC stationWCIV.
“So we don’t really know. I just pray she didn’t suffer and I just hope we get the justice she deserves,” Sutton added."
Sutton’s sister Mari told the outlet that more than anything, “we just want answers and wanna know what happened.”
The student was brought to New Orleans East Hospital around 6:40 a.m., reported ABC affiliatesWGNOandWCIV, citing the NOPD.
Police said in the report that they were told the driver who dropped her off was driving a 2019 Toyota Camry and stated “he was an Uber driver,” reported WGNO. When they visited the man’s last known address he was reportedly not home.
Ciaya Jordan Whetstone.ciayajordan/Instagram
A co-worker of Whetstone’s said in aFacebookpost that her friend got into an Uber around 1 a.m. on Saturday.
Another friend, Juliett Orr, told theNew Orleans Advocatethat Whetstone called for an Uber after going out for Mardi Gras the previous night. Orr said that at one point in the evening, Whetstone decided to get an Uber to check on her dog.
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Uber has launched an investigation and deactivated the account of the driver who picked her up.
“Our thoughts are with Ciaya Whetstone’s family as they grieve the loss of their daughter,” a spokesperson for the company tells PEOPLE in a statement. “We stand ready to assist law enforcement with their investigation.”
“As a University, few things are more challenging than dealing with the sadness of the death of a student,” the statement read. “Our thoughts are with Ciaya’s family and friends.”
source: people.com
