Police are on the hunt for the killer of a senior life insurance executive who was stabbed to death near a jogging trail close to home.
Fifty-four-year-old Melissa Millan, a senior vice president with MassMutual Financial Group since 2001, was jogging along a path beginning in Westfield, Conn. and heading south. She was found by a motorist, who first believed Millan was the victim of a hit and run accident, at about 8 p.m. Thursday near Simsbury, Conn. She was transported to a local hospital where she died.
The medical examiner said Millan had been stabbed in the chest.
“Regardless of her formidable responsibilities at home and at work, she made every effort to mentor ‘newbie’ triathletes and provide moral and other support to her team members year in and year out, without fail,” said Team Training New England, a group of triathletes that arranged the private vigil.
MassMutual company spokesman Jim Lacey noted Millan’s business strengths and personal warmth in a statement released over the weekend.
“MassMutual is deeply saddened by the passing of our friend and colleague, Melissa Millan, a senior vice president in our organization. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family during this extremely difficult time,” said Lacey. “Melissa’s tremendous leadership qualities, business acumen and deeply caring nature will be missed by those who had the opportunity to work with her.”
A vigil for Millan - a mother of two - was held on Sunday.
The popular trail was considered safe, and the murder has sent shockwaves through the small community. Police are still unsure of what happened the night Millan was killed.
“We are trying to look at the possibilities,” Cpt. Nicholas Boutler of the Simsbury Police Department told FoxCT. “There was no bicycle, it still somehow could have been related to a motor vehicle accident or somehow be related to someone else.”
