A WOMAN was found dead on a conveyor belt at a US airport by a horrified worker.
Virginia Vinton was seen entering a restricted zone for employees at 2.30am on August 8 at Chicago O'Hare airport - and was later found dead by a Delta Airlines baggage handler.
The mother-of-two was reported to have tragically become caught up in the machinery of Carousel 11.
Authorities in Cook County, Illinois have now ruled her death a suicide.
An incident report from the Chicago Police Department, obtained by the details the account given to cops by the baggage handler who found Virginia's body.
"He began starting up the conveyor belt by swiping his airport ID and using his fingerprint to begin operations," the report stated.
As the luggage belt started moving, the opening to the carousel chute opened up and the unnamed airport worker saw a woman at the entrance of the belt.
"He thought to himself, 'Why is there a lady in the chute looking at me, maybe observing me do my job," the report stated.
The worker asked Virginia if she wanted him to turn off the belt but as he continued loading bags onto the carousel, he told cops he got an "eerie feeling" and asked her if she was okay.
Only when he approached the 57-year-old did he notice that she was not breathing.
Most read in The US Sun
The Chicago Fire Department received reports of a woman "pinned in machinery" at the airport’s Terminal 5 baggage area.
Firefighters performed life-saving measures on Virginia but she was declared dead at 7.55am, the report stated.
Just before Virginia was seen entering the restricted zone in the early hours of the morning, security footage from the airport showed her sitting by Customs Door B in Terminal 5.
She then "left her seat and walked over to Carousel 11 and walked into the chute at 2.26 am," the Chicago Police Department revealed.
It noted that though it is a restricted zone, it is not a high-security area.
Five hours later, Virginia was found by the baggage handler.
The Cook County Medical Examiner ruled her death a suicide.
Virginia, from North Carolina, was a missionary at Wycliffe Ministries in Waxhaw with her husband James, 59, with whom she had two daughters Abby and Emily.
Their on the ministry's website features an image of the family all beaming into a camera.
It details how the pair had lived in Mozambique, East Africa, for over a decade translating bibles.
While it is not known what Vinton was doing in Chicago, the couple detailed on the website how they would take trips to the Midwest to visit friends in the summer.
James now "works remotely from North Carolina, traveling to other parts of the world," as the Seed Company's Director of Translation Consulting, the website states.
Wycliffe Ministries has released a statement following the news of Vinton's death.
"We are heartbroken by the tragic passing of Virginia," a spokesperson for the organization told .
"Our heartfelt condolences, thoughts, and prayers are with her family during this difficult time.
"We respectfully ask that the family's privacy be honored as they grieve."
READ MORE SUN STORIES
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, chat on , or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.