Burned Body Found In Storage Unit Believed To Be Missing Teacher Jeanine Cammarata

STATEN ISLAND, NY — Sources report that police believe a “charred and unidentifiable” body found in a Staten Island storage unit is that of Jeanine Cammarata, 37, who has been missing since March 30.

Michael Cammarata, 42, Jeanine’s estranged husband, has been in police custody since Tuesday. After reportedly admitting that he hit his wife in the past, Michael was arrested and charged with assault.

At a press conference on Thursday, NYPD Assistant Chief William Aubry said that evidence from the search for Jeanine led police to the Extra Space Storage facility and that an autopsy is being performed to positively identify the remains.

The New York Post reported that “law enforcement sources” believe the body is that of Jeanine, a public school teacher and mother of three.

In addition, WCBS-TV quotes unnamed sources claiming the NYPD has a video that allegedly shows Michael Cammarata and another person carrying something heavy in a large bag out of a building in Queens, as well as another video that allegedly depicts Michael with the same bag at the Extra Space Storage facility.

Assistant Chief Aubry named Michael Cammarata as “the primary suspect,” and added, "With the discovery of these human remains, the investigation has taken a turn into a murder investigation. So we are working with the Staten Island district attorney to establish probable cause and justification to charge him [Michael Cammarata] with murder."

Investigators are continuing to look for Jeanine's car, which is described as a 2007 white Chevrolet Cruze with the license plate number HSK 8417.

Jeanine Cammarata was a public school teacher who also worked part-time at a Dollar Tree store. She was last seen driving to pick up her three children from Michael’s home on Saturday night. She did not show up to either of her jobs on Monday.

Just a few days earlier, Jeanine had served her husband with divorce papers. The couple was reportedly in dispute over child-custody issues.

On Sunday, someone sent strange Facebook messages from Jeanine’s phone to a friend, one of which stated, “I need a break.” When the friend said she was going to call the cops, the next message read, “I don’t want that.”

NYPD investigators interviewed Michael Cammarata’s current girlfriend on Wednesday evening, and then searched the storage facility on Thursday morning. Officers also reportedly searched Michael’s apartment in the Rockaways.

Jeanine Cammarata has two children with Michael — a three-year-old son and a seven-year-old daughter — as well as an older boy from a previous relationship. She reportedly separated from Michael after he got romantically involved with the mother of one of the children she taught at school.

Read more: WCBS, New York Post, WABC, New York Daily News