News 9-morning anchor Neena Pacholke was discovered dead in her Wisconsin home nearly a week ago. The cause of death for News 9 anchor Neena Pacholke has been ascertained. According to a statement given to E! News by the Wausau Police Department in Wisconsin, the 27-year-old died by suicide on August 27.
Authorities said in a press release that Pacholke had made “suicidal declarations” before being found dead by officers who were going to perform a welfare check at the domicile and did not receive an answer at the door.
“In light of this tragedy and Suicide Prevention Awareness Month,” the statement said, “we’d like to take this opportunity to remind the community that help is available 24/7 for anyone who may be going to struggle or in crisis.” “The Wausau Police Department and the Marathon County Medical Examiner’s Office express their condolences to the victim’s family, friends, and colleagues.”
Pacholke was a University of South Florida student basketball player before becoming a local news anchor. She decided to join News 9 as a reporter after college graduation in 2017 and “soon went into the main anchor role. The entire team here at News 9 is shocked by the loss, as we know so many others are, ” the outlet said in an Aug. Neena was a kind person with a big heart and a devilish smile who loved this society and the people who lived here, and we will miss her greatly.”
Her colleagues have shared heartfelt tributes to her in the aftermath of her death. On air on Aug. 30, News 9 chief meteorologist Justin Leow system helps Pacholke from her early days at the station, noting how quickly she had become a member of the community.
I know why I’m especially sad about Neena’s death, and I know why you, the viewers, are as well,” Leow explained, “because she came here and she preferred to remain here. And it is something really special for anyone to come here from the outside and think, ‘Central Wisconsin is so nice, I’m going to stay here and work here,'” he added.
In the meantime, Pacholke’s co-anchor Brendan Mackey described her on Facebook as an “incredible friend. You played Batman, and I played Robin. When I first joined WAOW, you made it clear that we would work hard and compete with the best “He wrote something.