Body identified as Illinois college student

A man whose frozen body was found last week near Essex has been identified.

Alexander Rettinger, 18, of Lake Forest, Ill., died of asphyxiation last September, according to Sgt. Jim Browder, coroner for the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.

Rettinger’s body, found wedged between two trees near the Izaak Walton Inn, was hidden by snow for months until it was discovered March 4, according to Flathead County Undersheriff Pete Wingert.

Authorities found remnants of a bag over Rettinger’s head and a helium canister nearby. While Browder was hesitant to rule the cause of death as suicide, he did say, “There was nothing to indicate any signs of foul play.”

Rettinger, a student at Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Ill., told his roommate around Sept. 25, 2009, that he was going to a family reunion in Ohio. When Rettinger hadn’t returned by Sept. 28, he was reported missing.

Instead of heading to Ohio, Rettinger purchased a one-way Amtrak ticket to Seattle that weekend. Authorities found the ticket in a backpack near his body and speculate he left the train in Essex.

According to statements from Rettinger’s parents and roommate, he was a good student but a loner. However, he hadn’t made any statements about wanting to hurt himself.

Due to animal activity around the body, dental records had to be used to identify Rettinger.