Wednesday 1 June 2022 10:28 AM Merna Kasha alienated friends before she was found in Green Valley Creek trends now
Merna Kasha was struggling to put the pieces of her life back together after alienating her friends and family in the weeks leading to her death
Merna Kasha was struggling to cope with loneliness after alienating her friends and consumed by a new relationship in the weeks leading to her death.
One friend, who did not want to be named, said the 18-year-old 'felt like everyone was against her' as she faced drug and assault charges and was hit with two AVOs against a relative and a former friend.
Ms Kasha's body was recovered from Green Valley Creek in Canley Heights about 2pm on Saturday after a month-long search.
Police are still investigating, although early indications suggest her death is not suspicious.
The teenager started isolating herself from her closest friends earlier in the year and 'wasn't acting like herself' as she became consumed in a new relationship and fought with her family.
Ms Kasha was convinced 'she didn't have anyone to talk to about her problems' and began smoking marijuana to cope.
Friends say she became increasingly private about her relationship with both her boyfriend and her family.
'She really wanted to make things work. She never even told me his name,' one friend said of her boyfriend.
Ms Kasha would often smoke marijuana in the staircase of a public car parking lot in Fairfield as she 'waited on her boyfriend to call or message her'.
A body believed to be that of 18-year-old Merna Kasha was found about 2pm on Saturday afternoon in the Green Valley Creek in Canley Heights - a month after she mysteriously disappeared
But she had never mentioned going down to Greek Valley Creek and friends say they can't imagine why she'd ever head there alone.
By the time Ms Kasha disappeared on April 28, she'd either blocked or deleted most of her old friends. Her Instagram account was made private and she'd stopped replying to messages from people trying to check in on her.
I have no idea why she would have been at the creek
Merna Kasha's friend
She was simultaneously dealing with several matters before the courts - including drug possession charges.
'She was a really sweet hearted girl,' the friend said. 'My heart is just broken.'
Police appealed for information into her mystery disappearance as recently as last Wednesday, which suggests new evidence came to light which prompted their discovery.
The creek where Ms Kasha's decomposed body was found is just seven minutes from her family home.
About 8pm on April 28 - the day of her disappearance - the teenager was dropped on a street just eight minutes from the creek.
While she was never seen again, detectives believe she was in touch with family several times in the days after she vanished before contact stopped entirely.
Merna Kasha, 18, disappeared on April 28 but police believe she communicated with family for several days after she was last seen
It's understood she was distressed about her mounting legal woes.
Ms Kasha had been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm, destroying property, stalking and breaching an AVO and fronted court over the matters just two days before she went missing.
The 18-year-old had no criminal history until March 2022, but in the six weeks prior to her disappearance she fronted up to court on seven occasions as her life spiralled out of
