East Boston

Body found under bridge is that of missing East Boston woman, DA confirms

Her family told Telemundo they would be sending Elba Portillo's body to El Salvador

File photo of a Boston Police Department boat in Boston Harbor
Christopher Evans/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images

The person found dead in the water under a bridge in a river feeding Boston Harbor Saturday morning has been positively identified as a missing woman from East Boston, prosecutors said Sunday.

Elba Portillo had been missing for weeks, and her family had asked for help finding the 61-year-old.

There was no apparent indication of foul play in Portillo's death, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office told NBC10 Boston and Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra. There wasn't more information immediately available.

Her family told Telemundo they would be sending Portillo's body to El Salvador. They previously said she suffered from insomnia and was potentially in the early stages of dementia.

The family of Elba Portillo, a 61-year-old mother from East Boston, is desperate for her to be found.

The body was in the water under the McArdle Bridge, which connects East Boston and Chelsea, Boston police said Saturday.

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