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The Murder of Isadora Wengel
● Charged
Body Never Recovered
Intimate Partner Homicide
Isadora Wengel | 2000 to 2025
| Full Name | Isadora Wengel |
| Age | 25 |
| Height / Weight | 5'3" / 175 lbs |
| Hair / Eyes | Blonde / Hazel |
| Location | West Fargo, North Dakota |
| Case Type | Intimate Partner Homicide |
The Victim
Isadora Wengel
Isadora Wengel was 25 years old and lived in West Fargo, North Dakota. She was a daughter, a sister, and a friend. Her father Brian Landsem and her sister Callista Wengel Jones have spoken publicly about her with deep love and have been vocal advocates throughout the investigation.
Isadora met Joshua Hite on Bumble in August 2025 and the two began dating. By late December 2025 she was spending time at his south Fargo apartment. She was last seen by her father near the 900 block of 3 1/2 Avenue East in West Fargo on December 31, 2025.
She was last seen wearing a white cardigan with pink hearts -- her Taylor Swift "Lover" cardigan -- blue jeans, and either white Air Force 1 sneakers or Ugg boots. She never came home.
01
Background
What We Know
Isadora Wengel was 25 years old and lived in West Fargo, North Dakota. She met Joshua Alexander Hite, 21, on Bumble in August 2025 and the two began dating. By late December 2025 she was spending time at his apartment at 4431 Calico Drive South in Fargo.
Isadora was last seen by her father near the 900 block of 3 1/2 Avenue East in West Fargo on December 31, 2025. Court documents show she spent New Year's Eve with Hite and remained at his Fargo apartment from January 1 through her disappearance. She was last seen on surveillance footage at a Fargo Walmart on January 3, 2026 at 5:05 p.m.
Her family reported her missing on January 7, 2026. That same day investigators interviewed Hite, who told police he had dropped Isadora off at her West Fargo residence at approximately 6:00 a.m. on January 5. Surveillance footage from a nearby Kwik Star gas station and traffic cameras showed no passenger in his vehicle at that time.
On January 8, 2026, investigators requested that a dumpster outside Hite's apartment be transported to the landfill in a clean garbage truck. Inside they found black garbage bags containing blood-soaked gauze, towels, plastic sheeting bound with black duct tape, a blue latex glove, and a metal saw blade. DNA analysis confirmed the biological material matched Isadora. The University of North Dakota Forensic Pathology Department later determined the debris on the saw blade was a fragmented array of human bone and skeletal muscle.
Case Timeline
How It Unfolded
August 2025
Isadora Meets Joshua Hite on Bumble
Isadora Wengel and Joshua Alexander Hite, 21, matched on the dating app Bumble and began a relationship. By late December 2025 she was regularly staying at his south Fargo apartment.
December 31, 2025
Last Seen by Father -- Spends New Year's Eve With Hite
Isadora was last seen by her father near the 900 block of 3 1/2 Avenue East in West Fargo. That evening she spent New Year's Eve with Hite at his Fargo apartment. She remained there from January 1 through her disappearance.
January 3, 2026 -- 5:05 p.m.
Last Known Surveillance Footage -- Fargo Walmart
Isadora was captured on surveillance footage at a Fargo Walmart at 5:05 p.m. This is the last confirmed sighting of her alive.
January 7, 2026
Reported Missing -- Hite Interviewed
Isadora's family reported her missing to West Fargo Police. That same day investigators interviewed Hite. He claimed he dropped her off at her West Fargo home at 6:00 a.m. on January 5. Traffic cameras contradicted his account -- no passenger was visible in his vehicle.
January 8 to 9, 2026
Dumpster Evidence Recovered -- Apartment Searched
A dumpster outside Hite's apartment was transported to the landfill where investigators found blood-soaked towels, plastic sheeting, a blue latex glove, and a Sawzall blade with human DNA matching Isadora. A search warrant was executed at his apartment on January 9 with Red River Valley SWAT assistance. Evidence found included plastic sheeting, latex gloves, black duct tape, and a 27-gallon black tote.
January to February 2026
Expanded Search -- Landfill -- Otter Tail County
Investigators conducted a 10-day landfill search with 12-hour shifts. The search expanded across the Fargo-Moorhead metro area and into Otter Tail County, Minnesota, based on vehicle movement patterns of a Subaru Impreza with North Dakota plates 592ETF. Multiple law enforcement agencies assisted including the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Cass County Sheriff's Office, and Moorhead Police Department.
February 10 to 11, 2026
Hite Arrested -- Police Confirm Murder
Joshua Hite was arrested outside his Fargo apartment on February 10 without incident. On February 11, Fargo Police Chief Dave Zibolski announced that investigators believe Isadora was heinously murdered, that dismemberment may be involved, and that her body has not been recovered. Hite was formally charged on February 12.
May 13, 2026
Trial Scheduled
Joshua Alexander Hite is scheduled to stand trial on May 13, 2026. Isadora's body has not been recovered. Police continue to ask the public to search for a black tote believed to be connected to the disposal of her remains.
02
Investigation
The Investigation
The investigation into Isadora's disappearance was one of the most extensive in recent North Dakota history. From the initial missing persons report on January 7, 2026, through the arrest of Joshua Hite on February 10, investigators worked what Chief Zibolski described as herculean efforts across multiple counties and states.
Seven search warrants were issued between January 12 and January 28 targeting accounts across six companies including Bumble, Snapchat, Yahoo, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, and Wells Fargo Bank. A warrant was also served to a Minnesota-based therapy provider Isadora had been seeing since 2022. One of the early red flags in the case was that Isadora missed a scheduled virtual therapy appointment on January 15, 2026.
The dumpster evidence was pivotal. A Sawzall blade recovered from garbage bags outside Hite's apartment matched Isadora's DNA. The University of North Dakota Forensic Pathology Department confirmed the debris on the blade was a fragmented array of human bone and skeletal muscle. Evidence found during the apartment search included plastic sheeting, disposable latex gloves, black duct tape, and a 27-gallon black tote.
Investigators also established that Hite's phone sat unused at the hospital where he worked for approximately 17 hours from December 29 through noon on December 30 -- a pattern that raised significant concern. His vehicle was tracked in connection with movements into Otter Tail County, Minnesota in the early morning hours of January 7, 2026. Authorities allege Hite dismembered Wengel and disposed of her remains in unknown locations. Her body has not been recovered.
Vehicle of Interest
Subaru Impreza -- North Dakota Plates 592ETF -- Vehicle of Interest
03
Arrest & Charges
The Accused
Joshua Alexander Hite
Joshua Alexander Hite
Age 21 -- Boyfriend
Charges: Murder, Tampering With Physical Evidence, Providing False Statements to Law Enforcement
Arrested: February 10, 2026 -- Outside His Fargo Apartment
Formally Charged: February 12, 2026
Status: In Custody -- Awaiting Trial
Trial Date: May 13, 2026
In Memoriam
She Is Not Forgotten
Isadora Wengel was 25 years old. She was wearing her Taylor Swift cardigan. She went to spend New Year's Eve with someone she trusted. She never came home.
Her father Brian searched for her. Her sister Callista spoke publicly, over and over again, asking for her to be found, asking for justice, asking for Isadora to be brought home so she could be laid to rest properly. The community rallied. Nearly 100 volunteers gathered at Dike East Park to help search. People who never met her went out in the North Dakota winter to look for her.
Isadora has not been found. Her family is still waiting to bring her home. We will not stop saying her name until she is found and until full justice is served.
"Even with the news that she passed, we still want to find her so we can bring her home and give her a proper burial, and lay her to rest in peace the way that she deserves."
Callista Wengel Jones -- Isadora's Sister
Sources
Fargo Police Department · West Fargo Police Department · North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation · Cass County Sheriff's Office · Moorhead Police Department · Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office · University of North Dakota Forensic Pathology Department · Dateline NBC Missing In America · Valley News Live · InForum · Local and national investigative reporting
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