Portland Student at University of Texas-Austin Found Murdered

A woman from Portland has been murdered at the University of Texas-Austin where she was a freshman.

The announcement that Haruka Weiser had been killed was made Thursday morning.

Her body was discovered Tuesday in a creek off campus.

Police say they have what they believe is video of the suspect, who is an African-American male around 6-feet tall.

Weiser's parents released a statement thanking police, the university, and others for the support they have received these past few days.

"There are not words to describe the outpouring of love that we have received," they said in a statement.

Weiser was a freshman at the school studying dance.

She had attended the Arts and Communications Magnet Academy in Beaverton and had been a member of Dance West in Beaverton.

In Beaverton, school officials remembered Weiser.

Twenty-four hours ago, this was a school holding its breath," said Principal Michael Johnson.

"Today our exhale is filled with sadness and grief. Haruka was a very talented, high-spirited, lovely young woman and certainly was a treasured member of our school community."

The head of the dance department, Julane Stites, said there was something special about Weiser.

"It was evident from the start she was a dancer in her soul," she said.

"She adored ballet. She loved ballet but she was an amazing modern dancer. She could have gone any direction she wanted."

In November 2014, Weiser talked with The Portland Tribune about her love of - and frustration with - dance.

"Every time before a show, for me at least, it gets really rough. I’ll be like, ‘I want to quit. I never want to dance again.’ And as soon as the show happens, I’m back in it,” she said.

“It really is a rush. There really is nothing like it, and it is so short. To people who maybe are more logical than me, it’s not worth it. But somehow that cycle of it just keeps happening over and over again and keeps you going."

Weiser also performed with the Portland Ballet and, as member of Dance West, with the Oregon Symphony.

The confirmation of her murder came in an email from the President of the University of Texas-Austin, Gregory Fenves.

"Hauruka was a beloved member of our dance community, liked and admired by her classmates and respected by her professors for her intelligence and spirit" he wrote.

Fenves wrote that professors had seen her perform two years ago at the National High School Dance Festival and recruited her to attend US-Austin.

Weiser was a trained ballet dancer who also was actively involved in Dance Action, a student-run organization for dancers, Fenves said. She also performed in the fall Dance Action concert.

"Our community was made better by her decision to join" us, he wrote.

In their statement, Haruka's parents spoke of how dance was her first love but not only love.

"She was going to declare a second major in pre-med studies," they said. "She planned to explore the world of medicine this summer and travel to visit family in Japan."

Tony Cantu in Austin, Texas contributed to this report.