Mackenzie Lueck Took A Lyft To Meet Someone In A Park At 3 A.M. — Then Disappeared

The driver has reportedly been cleared; the 23-year-old University of Utah sorority sister has not been seen since June 17.

June 25, 2019

Photo by: Mackenzie Lueck [Salt Lake City Police Department]

Mackenzie Lueck [Salt Lake City Police Department]

By: Mike McPadden

SALT LAKE CITY, UT — Authorities say they are actively looking for a 23-year-old University of Utah student who was last seen on June 17 exiting a Lyft vehicle to meet someone in a park at 3 A.M.

According to police, Mackenzie Lueck had traveled to Los Angeles to attend a funeral and then flew back to Salt Lake City. She reportedly texted her parents at 1:15 to let them know she had arrived safely at the airport.

Then, police say, Lueck took a Lyft to Hatch Park in North Salt Lake where she reportedly met up with another person in a car. Allegedly, no one has seen or heard from Lueck since then, and authorities say her phone has been turned off.

Lueck’s parents are on record as having reported her missing on Thursday, June 20.

At a press conference on Monday, Salt Lake City Police Assistant Chief Tim Doubt said the Lyft driver has been cleared of suspicion and that both he and the company had actively assisted in the investigation. Lyft reportedly shared a record of the driver’s route that night and said it contained no irregularities.

Assistant Chief Doubt went on to tell reporters that the driver said Lueck did not appear to be in any distress when he dropped her off at around 3 A.M. The driver also reportedly witnessed Lueck meet up with another individual and get inside that person’s car with her luggage.

Doubt said that, since she vanished, Lueck has missed a midterm exam and a flight back to L.A. for a wedding. He also added, “We don’t have any evidence that foul play has occurred, but the circumstances of her going off the grid and not showing up for appointments and flights is concerning to us.”

Addressing Lueck directly, Doubt said, “Occasionally the police work a missing-person case where the person does not want to have contact with family or friends. If that is the case, Mackenzie, we are asking you to please reach out to either the Salt Lake City Police Department or a law-enforcement agency where you are at. We just want to make sure you are safe and we will respect your wishes.”

Ashley Fine, who is reportedly an Alpha Omega Chi sorority sister of Lueck’s at the University of Utah, reportedly told KSL-TV that she and her classmates have been calling Mackenzie’s phone repeatedly, to no avail. Fine said, “We're Millennials. [Not answering the phone] is very, very unusual. Even if you're missing, or you want to disappear, you have to turn your phone on to GPS.”

Family and friends have also reportedly actively been searching for Lueck both online and near the site where she was last seen.

In an email to USA Today, a Lyft spokesman reportedly wrote, “We recognize how scary this must be for those who know and love Ms. Lueck. The safety of our community is fundamental to Lyft and we are actively assisting law enforcement with their investigation.”