COCOA, Fla. – Marlene Lopez, a 52-year-old woman from Cocoa, Florida, has been rescued after being trapped in a shipping container for an undisclosed period of time. The Cocoa Police Department reported that Lopez was last seen on Monday and was officially reported missing on Wednesday before being discovered in the container on Thursday. Police have stated that she was found next to a business located at 2005 N. Cocoa Blvd.
Fortunately, Lopez did not sustain any injuries and was taken to a local hospital for a medical evaluation and possible dehydration. The circumstances surrounding how she ended up in the shipping container are currently under investigation. The shipping container’s owner, Tyler Sonnenberg, claims he had locked the container on Tuesday afternoon and didn’t hear any noise the following day. He is considering pressing charges against Lopez.
Detectives were able to locate Lopez after a concerned coworker called and expressed worry when Lopez failed to pick up her son. The police department reached out to Lopez’s family, checked various locations, and issued a missing persons bulletin. Ultimately, it was the sound of Lopez banging on the door of the container that led to her discovery.
Yvonne Martinez, a public information officer for the Cocoa Police Department, stated that Lopez was “not in a good state of mind” when found and was unable to provide substantial information. According to Martinez, the owners of the shipping container were unaware that Lopez was inside and locked it up for the night. Martinez emphasized that it seems to be a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.