PORTLAND (WGME) -- A murder victim's family is searching for answers.
Portland police say 29-year-old Margarita Fisenko Scott was found dead in a car outside the Motel 6 on Riverside St. last week, but aren't saying much else about the city's first murder of 2013.
Known as "Rita" to her family, Scott's cousin tells News 13 that no one had heard from or seen Scott sincer early November when she decided to leave her husband. Her cousins say Scott's parents filed a missing persons report a few weeks ago.
"This past Tuesday was my grandmother's 85th birthday so it was a big deal," said Alla Sherstyukov, Scott's cousin. "We asked her, 'Baba, did you hear from Rita?' And she said, 'No.' And she started crying.
According to Sherstyukov, Scott's husband got a call on Thursday saying his car was here in the parking lot of Motel 6. She says he came by and started brushing off the snow on his car. That's when he discovered his wife slumped over in the back seat.
"It's scary to imagine even what happened," said Denis Stikin, another one of Scott's cousins. "I tried to think about what she went through, what happened with her...it makes me sick to my stomach to even think about what happened."
Police haven't said whether they have any suspects. Calls to investigators Monday were not returned.
Sherstyukov says police are planning to meet with the family on Tuesday. They're hoping investigators can tell them more about how Scott ended up in that car on Thursday.
"She's naive. She's trusting. She trusts people. She always has," said Sherstyukov. "We don't know, if she trusted the wrong people."
Scott's family is planning a memorial service for her on Friday at 5 p.m. The service will take place at the First Russian Baptist Church on Route 237 in Gorham.
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