Woman Found Dead In Car Stuck In Yellowstone Snowbank, Driver Arrested On Drug Charges

Yellowstone National Park rangers arrested a man Saturday evening for drug and traffic violations after they found his vehicle lodged in a snowbank and his female passenger dead in the car. The woman's death is under investigation. 

CM
Clair McFarland

May 15, 20232 min read

Yellowstone National Park rangers are investigating a woman found dead in a car stuck in a snowbank in the park Saturday.
Yellowstone National Park rangers are investigating a woman found dead in a car stuck in a snowbank in the park Saturday. (Cowboy State Daily Illustration)

Yellowstone National Park rangers arrested a man for drug and traffic infractions Saturday after they found a dead woman in his car, Yellowstone officials announced on Monday morning.

Authorities are now investigating the woman’s death.  

Rangers responded Saturday evening to Craig Pass, which is about 3 miles south of Old Faithful, to “an incident,” officials said.  

They found a car that had been driven into a snowbank and a man standing outside it. Then they found a woman inside the car, dead.  

The rangers arrested the man on suspicion of drug possession and traffic-related charges.  

“Investigators are determining what led to the female’s death and attempting to complete next-of-kin notifications,” officials said.

Investigators closed the road from Old Faithful to West Thumb for about a day while processing the scene. The road reopened Sunday evening.  

Hold On 

Teton County Coroner Brent Blue, who is investigating the death, told Cowboy State Daily he has not yet completed the woman’s next-of-kin notification and cannot give her name, age or any other information about her death until that task is done.  

The Yellowstone public affairs office also declined to give additional information, including identification of the male driver, where they were from or their ages. 

“Additional information will be provided as the investigation proceeds,” says the statement, adding that the National Park Service (Investigative Services Branch and Yellowstone Law Enforcement Division) is investigating the incident with support from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Attorney’s Office, and Teton County Coroner’s Office.  

The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a voicemail request for comment.  

Clair McFarland can be reached at: Clair@CowboyStateDaily.com

Authors

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Clair McFarland

Crime and Courts Reporter