The heartbroken father of an American nurse murdered in Budapest is struggling to recover after the suspected killer he met in a nightclub confessed to the senseless crime.
Mackenzie “Kenzie” Michalski, 31, of Fredonia, New York, disappeared after leaving a popular club with an unknown man on Nov. 5, but a 37-year-old Irish man confessed to the murder. After interfering with the incident, the Hungarian police carried the body away. Authorities said Friday that an internet search had hinted at murder.
“Emotions are still running high,” her father, Bill Michalski, told The Associated Press at a candlelight vigil for his daughter on Saturday.
“There was no reason for this to happen,” he said. “I'm still trying to come to terms with what happened…I don't know if I ever will.”
When Kenzie Michalski did not return to her Airbnb, her panicked family began using Facebook and GoFundMe to search for the missing tourist.
“She is likely at risk,” organizers wrote on GoFundMe about the nurse who moved from the Empire State to Portland, Oregon, in 2021, according to local reports.
Hungarian police recovered Michalski's body and confirmed his death three days later after a fundraiser raised more than $30,000.
Police identified him only by his initials “LTM” and did not provide a motive or details of the killing.
However, LTM insisted to authorities that Michalski's death was an accident that occurred during an “intimate encounter.” Investigators said the unknown men were dancing at a club before returning to the man's rented apartment.
Officials say LTM's chilling internet searches include how to dispose of bodies, whether pigs really eat carcasses, whether there are wild boars near Lake Balaton, and police procedures in missing person cases. It is said that it was
The suspect allegedly tried to cover up the crime by ruthlessly hiding the nurse's body in a closet before stuffing her body into a suitcase.
Authorities said the murder suspect then drove 90 miles southwest in a rental car to Lake Balaton, where he abandoned Kenzie Michalski's body.
Kenzie Michalski was on a trip to Europe with her friend Gretchen Tower, but the two broke up when Tower went to Italy while the nurse was planning another night in Budapest. a grieving friend told WKBW.
Michalski is a neurosurgical nurse who previously worked at Buffalo General Medical Center. According to her Linkedin profile, she earned her nursing degree from Demon University in Amherst, New York.
Michalski's family and friends have taken to a Facebook group to mourn his heartbreaking death and ask for privacy.
“We are grateful that Kenzie's soul is now at rest. Her memory and legacy will remain in the hearts of everyone she touched,” her loved ones wrote in a group post. I wrote this.
“To understand Kenzie's spirit is to wholeheartedly embrace the vast joy and wonder of life. Her wish for the world is to fully embrace the present moment, to be who you are, and to embrace kindness. and always walk in the light.”
with post wire
