Body of missing pregnant Parkland woman found; ex-boyfriend arrested

The body of Kassandra Cantrell, a pregnant Parkland woman who has been missing since last month, was found Tuesday over a cliff in University Place, deputies said.

Cantrell, 33, was reported missing Aug. 25. She was last seen leaving her Parkland home on a neighbor’s Ring video.

The day before, she was to meet her best friend for her first ultrasound to determine if she was expecting twins as her mother had with her and her brother.

Her mother told KIRO 7 that simply vanishing is not something her daughter would do.

“What I hope is, worst-case scenario is that maybe she was carjacked and she’s just hurt somewhere,” said Marie Smith.

There were no clues for deputies until her vehicle was found overnight in a place her mother says she would never go. Her car was found on East 25th Street near the Tacoma Dome.

Earlier this month, FBI agents stepped in to help investigators as they combed through a south Tacoma house for hours looking for evidence in Cantrell’s disappearance.

The home belonged to Cantrell’s ex-boyfriend, but no arrests were made at that time.

Investigators said they took the ex-boyfriend’s truck.

According to deputies, investigators used GPS data from the truck.

On Tuesday morning, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said detectives conducted a detailed ground search near Chambers Creek Road West in University Place.

At about 2 p.m., detectives found human remains wrapped and disposed of over a steep hillside along Chambers Creek.

The recovered remains are believed to be Cantrell, pending official confirmation from the Medical Examiner’s Office.

After the discovery, a SWAT team arrested Cantrell’s 37-year-old ex-boyfriend at his Tacoma home. He will be booked into the Pierce County Jail on murder charges.

Cox Media Group