Virginia authorities confirmed Tuesday that the human remains found last week belong to missing University of Virginia student Hannah Graham.
The remains were discovered Oct. 18 in a field located on Old Lynchburg Road about 10 miles from downtown Charlottesville, ABC News reported. The location is not far from where the 18-year-old sophomore vanished after a gathering with friends in the early morning hours of Sept. 13.
The victim's parents were notified about the confirmation, USA Today reported. John and Sue Graham released a statement Friday after visiting the abandoned farm where their daughter's remains were found.
"We are devastated by the loss of our beautiful daughter, Hannah...Put simply, Hannah lit up our lives, the lives of our family and the lives of her friends who knew her," the parents said according to ABC News.
"We would like to draw attention to the fact that, although the waiting has ended for us, there are other families both in Virginia and beyond who have not been as fortunate in that their loved ones are still missing. Please continue to hold these families in your thoughts and prayers."
The confirmation could possibly mean an amendment to the charges already brought against Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr., who was caught on a surveillance camera walking with Graham around a downtown mall in Charlottesville the night she vanished.
Matthew, 32, was arrested last month after fleeing to Texas. He was charged with abduction with intent to defile in connection to Graham's disappearance.
"The focus of the investigation now is to determine what charges will be brought and the appropriate time to make those charges," Prosecutor Denise Lunsford said, ABC News reported.
While investigating Matthew, authorities were able to forensically link the suspect to the 2009 disappearance and murder of a 20-year-old Virginia Tech student named Morgan Harrington, who was found dead months after she was reported missing in Charlottesville.
Police have also linked the same suspect to the sexual assault of a 26-year-old woman in Fairfax City in 2005. Matthew was indicted for that sexual assault last week, according to the station.
As of Friday Matthew has not entered a plea for the charges relating to Graham or the 2005 assault.
