Volunteers gather in Battle Lake, MN to search for missing West Fargo Woman Isadora Wengel on Feb. 22, 2026.
BATTLE LAKE, Minn. (KFGO-KVRR) – Dozens of people gathered in Battle Lake, Minnesota Sunday to search for missing West Fargo woman Isadora Wengel.
Wengel was reported missing in early January. Police believe she was murdered by her boyfriend, 21-year-old Joshua Hite of Fargo between Jan. 3 and Jan. 6.
Isadora Wengel
It was the second weekend in a row that community members have come out to search for Wengel, or any evidence related to her disappearance.
“This shouldn’t be the highlight of the news about Battle Lake,” said Chrys Kirschbaum. “We’re so much better than that. But we are coming together, as a small community, out in the cold, and trying to bring her home,” she added.
Hite graduated from high school in Battle Lake in 2022. On Feb. 22, volunteer search teams were out canvassing as much of the area around Battle Lake as possible, looking for the remains of his former girlfriend.
Organizers say they are heartened by the turnout.
“I thought we’d get less numbers because of the cold, but I’m impressed,” said Kirschbaum. “There’s people from Staples, Hawley, Fargo, and of course our locals.”
People began showing up at Lion’s Park around noon, then set off, maps in hand, ready to look around the innumerable bodies of water in the area.
Showing, once again, that even as the criminal case against Hite proceeds without this evidence, people will not rest until Isadora’s family gets the answers they deserve.
“Such an awful thing to happen to a young lady with her life so much ahead of her. I’m looking as a mother, her family deserves closure,” Kirschbaum said.
The Fargo Police Department says they continue to devote significant resources to the search as well.
Joshua Hite (Cass Co. Jail)
Joshua Hite, 21, is charged with murder, tampering with physical evidence and giving false information to law enforcement. Police say they have received over 70 tips from the public since Hite was arrested.
Investigators in the disappearance of Isadora Wengel are asking the publics help, especially those in rural Otter Tail County, in finding a black tote with a red cover. Police say Joshua Hite had two totes delivered to his Fargo apartment and only of them has been recovered.
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