Investigators must wait 2-3 months to find out why a young Kennewick waitress died

Investigators aren’t likely to know what killed a 25-year-old waitress for another two to three months.

An autopsy by the Benton County Coroner’s Office found the Tessa West wasn’t wounded before she died in her a room she rented on the 2600 block of West Sixth Avenue in Kennewick.

Now they must wait for the Washington State Patrol Crime Lab to test her blood before they can determine how she died, Coroner Bill Leach said. The lab has been returning results within eight to 12 weeks.

Investigators are still trying to figure out if a medical condition could have caused her death, Leach said.

Police suspected she was dead for several days before a housemate discovered her body on Saturday, Jan. 18.

Investigators have said there are some suspicious circumstances but they have given no details. Her 2005 Jeep Liberty was initially missing but was found a few blocks away on Fourth Avenue.

Several people shared memories of West on her Facebook page, saying she cheered them up during shifts at various restaurants where she worked. They called her death a terrible loss for her friends and family.

Anyone who saw her last week is asked to contact detectives through the non-emergency dispatch line at 509-628-0333.