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Family and friends of Christiana Duarte, a University of Arizona alum who had been missing since the Sunday shootings at an outdoor concert in Las Vegas,  learned Tuesday that she has died. 

UA President Robert C. Robbins, in a statement released Tuesday afternoon, called Duarte’s death a tragedy. 

“It is a shocking and horrific event for all of us,” Robbins said. “I know I speak for the UA community in expressing our deepest condolences to Christiana’s family and in asking for their privacy to be respected.”

Duarte, a recent UA graduate, was attending the Route 91 Harvest country music festival with her brother’s girlfriend Sunday when the gunman opened fire on concertgoers. 

The 22-year-old’s cellphone was found with her ID in it, but her family could not immediately locate her. 

Maddie Noble, a close friend, was one of several people who posted information about their missing friend on Facebook Monday. Photos they shared on social media show a smiling brunette in her early 20s with two prominent freckles on her cheek. She goes by “Chrissy” for short.

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Duarte’s parents and brother were in Las Vegas with her over the weekend, but didn’t attend the concert Sunday night, Noble said.

Noble said she texted her friend after she heard about the shooting around 10:30 p.m. to see if she was OK. She didn’t respond. By 11 p.m., word began circulating that no one had heard from her. 

Late Monday afternoon, there were conflicting reports among her friends about whether Duarte had been found in an area hospital. 

Her brother, Michael, declined comment on her whereabouts or condition. 

Earlier Monday, he confirmed through a Facebook message that his sister was missing, adding in a message, “My baby sister will come home!!! She’s my life. My best friend!”

At the UA, Duarte was active in the Sigma Kappa sorority. 

She moved back to her hometown of Torrance, California, after graduating from the UA with a business degree in May, and began working for the Los Angeles Kings. Her Linkedin profile said she is a fan-services associate for the team. 

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Noble’s voice broke during a telephone interview Monday as she talked about her friend. 

“I’ve known her my entire life. She was incredibly driven, passionate about everyone and everything.”

Noble said her friend is a big country-music fan, and for the past couple of years, the two have attended a huge country-music event, the Stagecoach Festival, in Southern California. 

She said Duarte invited her to go to Las Vegas for the three-day festival. Noble was unable to go because she was involved in a sorority recruitment at University of California-Los Angeles, where she is a student.

Otherwise, “I would have been with her,” she said. 

Reach the reporter at 602-444-8072 or [email protected].

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