SOUTHFIELD, MICHIGAN: Around 4:30 am on June 3, Tennessee State University senior Mia Kanu, 23, was found dead on Providence Drive in Southfield, about 15 miles northwest of Detroit, Michigan. The vet student reportedly came home for her summer vacation in May and attended a house party with friends before her mysterious death. Surveillance footage later showed Kanu either being pushed out or falling from a vehicle onto Providence Drive near Coach Apartments in her final moments, as per Fox 2 Detroit.
While police said they did not know how the student ended up on the road, her death was being investigated as homicide. Officials also mentioned that Kanu was in the car with two people, including the driver and another passenger who were cooperating with the investigation. Meanwhile, Kanu’s mother, Bianca Vanmeter, took to Facebook to share the last glimpse of her daughter in a video that showed her being rolled down a hall to have her organs donated at the hospital.
‘There were no deformities’
The surveillance video which showed Kanu being ejected from a vehicle has not been released to the public. However, it was revealed Kanu was found by a passerby hours after lying on the road, who called 911 and informed authorities about a body being spotted on the roadway in front of an apartment complex. Reports suggest that police are unsure if the 23-year-old fell from the car or were pushed out of the vehicle. However, the case is being treated as a homicide.
“Anytime that there is an unnatural death, and especially concerning a young person, it is looked at as a homicide,” Southfield police spokesman Sgt Jared Womble told Fox 2 Detroit. “There were no deformities. No disfigurement. Nothing of that magnitude that at that point and time would imply any type of assault. As of now, we don’t have any evidence that would suggest another vehicle struck her,” Womble added while speaking to CBS News Detroit at the time.
“It's our understanding that there was an argument between the driver and another individual in the parking lot of the apartment complex that they had left,” Southfield Deputy Police Chief Jeff Jagielski told Fox 2 Detroit. He also mentioned that Kanu allegedly suffered “significant head trauma,” as per WXYZ.
Mia Kanu was placed on life support
After being found on the road, Kanu was taken to the Ascension Providence Hospital in Southfield, Michigan. She was pronounced dead on June 5 but placed back on life support for three more days until June 8 as she was an organ donor. “There was no brain activity. Her liver went to a baby, her kidneys went to a recipient and her tissues and muscles were donated to the Gift of Life... She just looked like a beautiful angel laying in bed,” Kanu’s mother said, as per USA Today.
Vanmeter also said that she last saw her daughter alive was on the morning of June 2 before going to work. Before hanging out at the house party, Kanu was reportedly picked up from work at the Green Lantern in Berkley by a female friend. Vanmeter said the friend was staying at her house with her and her daughter. She also mentioned that the vehicle that picked up Kanu from work was the same one involved in the incident.
What is known about Mia Kanu?
Kanu was a 23-year-old senior student from Tennessee State University who was studying to become a veterinarian. Her mother told the Detroit Free Press that Kanu loved animals and even adopted a cat named Tails at school. “I remember telling her when she got home from school, ‘Girl, this cat is raunchy,’” Vanmeter recalled. She also said that Kanu loved children, singing, dancing, doing her hair and enjoyed reading books and the smell of pages.
During college breaks, she spent time working as a camp counselor in Southfield. She was part of the TSU Agriculture Department and spent time working on a farm caring for animals. Before arriving home for summer, Kanu served as a veterinarian tech at Richland Animal Clinic in Tennessee. A spokesperson for the clinic said Kanu was a great person, teammate and very passionate about her work.
“She knew all the names and personalities of all the pet boarders that would board regularly with us, and she had big goals and dreams of having her own business and being a veterinarian,” Dawn Elza, manager of Richland Animal Clinic, told the Detroit Free Press. Vanmeter also said that Kanu did not initially plan on coming home for summer as she was sad to leave her job at Richland. Even after placing a two-week notice, Kanu reportedly slept in her car for the last two days of work and to complete her duties towards the animals.
“She loved it there (at TSU). She was already counting the days for when she could go back to school,” Vanmeter shared. In addition to her mother, Kanu is survived by her father, stepmother, four sisters, a brother and many friends and other relatives. A GoFundMe launched to support Kanu’s family has raised over $37,000 as of Saturday, June 24, evening.
