<p>BRAZIL, Ind. &mdash; A western Indiana woman who vanished after shopping last month has been found dead inside her crashed SUV, which investigators discovered in a deep ravine along a state highway.</p>
<p>Vigo County Sheriff John Plasse said Monday that Jessica Nascimbene’s body was found in her Nissan Pathfinder after crews pulled it from a ravine along Indiana 59 in Clay County. </p>
<p>The 36-year-old Terre Haute woman’s vehicle was found submerged in several feet of water on May 7 after police returned to an area where a hit-and-run had been reported on April 30. That incident was reported the day after Nascimbene was last seen leaving a Walmart in Terre Haute.</p>
<p>During the hit-and-run investigation, police initially believed a motorist had run over the sign for the Indiana Sheriff’s Youth Ranch, then returned to the highway and continued without reporting the incident.</p>
<p>Police returned to that location a few miles south of Brazil on May 7 after cell phone records showed that the last known location of Nascimbene’s cellphone was in that general area.</p>
<p>Detectives confirmed that she had succumbed to the injuries she sustained in the apparent crash along Indiana 59. An autopsy was conducted Saturday, but results have not yet been released.</p>
<p>Plasse said it’s unclear why Nascimbene left the roadway and the investigation is ongoing.</p>