UPDATE: Police Now Calling Le Case a Homicide

UPDATE, 10:40 p.m.: The search for  Michelle Le has now turned into a homicide investigation.

Police said compelling evidence recovered during the investigation "points conclusively to homicide," and the search has officially become "an effort of recovery." 

"We realize this is the worst possible news for Michelle's family and friends, and for everyone involved in looking for her," police said in a statement Monday night.

Factors that led to this classification, police said, include forensic evidence collected from Le's car and the area of the parking structure where it was located, information collected during interviews, examination of evidence gathered during service of search warrants, review of video footage from the garage and other locations, and examination of Le's cellphone records.

As of today, more than 25 people have been questioned regarding the case, police said. No one has been charged with Le's murder. The Alameda County District Attorney's Office is also evaluating the case, and police said that there would be no reduction in investigative staff working the case.

Earlier today it was announced that the reward for information leading to Le's whereabouts increased with pledges from the university where she was enrolled in a nursing program and her workplace, a university spokeswoman said.

Samuel Merritt University and Turner Construction Company pledged a combined $45,000 reward, totaling $65,000 when combined with family contributions and donations for information leading to the 26-year-old's safe return.

Le has worked with Turner Construction Company part-time as an accounting clerk for five years, Samuel Merritt University spokeswoman Elizabeth Valente said.

In January, Le enrolled at Samuel Merritt's Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program and is a graduate of San Francisco State University, she said.

"Our family members are incredibly thankful for this donation and appreciative of Samuel Merritt University and Turner Construction," Le's brother Michael Le said. "One hundred percent of the funds will be used towards finding Michelle and keeping the spirit of her search alive."

FBI spokeswoman Julianne Sohn said the FBI have been in close contact with the Hayward police and "have made every appropriate resource available to them."

Le's family created a website, michellelemissing.com, which includes a family phone number, (510) 303-3013, for people to call to share any information about Le, along with contact numbers for Hayward police. The family also created a Facebook page titled "Help Find Michelle Hoang Thi Le - Missing from San Mateo, California."

Hayward police spokesman Lt. Roger Keener said police are continuing to investigate leads and have identified several persons of interest.

Le is 5 feet 6 inches tall with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information about Le's whereabouts is urged to call Hayward police at 510-293-7000.

Bay City News contributed to this report.

UPDATE, 7 p.m.:  At 7 p.m. Monday, Hayward police were at the Union City apartment of a woman who was previously questioned as a "person of interest" in the Michelle Le case.

The person of interest, who lives in the Monte Vista apartments off Alvarado Niles Road, is a former friend of Le who had been quoted as saying she "hated" Le. Previous reports had identified her as Giselle Esteban, although police are not confirming her identity at this time. The woman was not arrested after being questioned last week.

Le, a San Mateo resident, was last seen on May 27 at 7 p.m. at Kaiser Permanente Hayward Medical Center's facility in Hayward at 27303 Sleepy Hollow Ave. Le told classmates she was planning to drive to Reno after finishing her rotation at the Kaiser Hospital in Hayward. She left during a break and did not return, according to Hayward police.

According to several news reports, police believe Le was killed in the hospital parking garage by someone who is "not a stranger."

Residents at the Monte Vista apartments said they have not seen the person of interest since Monday, when she knocked on doors, apologizing for the police presence the previous weekend. Police initially detained the woman for questioning on May 30, according to witnesses.

A neighbor, who wished to remain anonymous, said that she was upset because she was being targeted by media. She told the neighbor then that she would be relocating. Neighbors said she had only been living there for about two months and didn't see her often.

The news of the case being a homicide, which is quickly being circulated via Twitter, came just hours after the reward for information about Le was upped to $65,000, thanks to  pledges from the university where she was enrolled in  a nursing program and her workplace, a university spokeswoman said.

Also in the news today was the discovery of a woman's body inside a plastic bag in a Sunnyvale neighborhood.

Hayward police spoke with Sunnyvale officials to see if the body had been identified as an Asian female, but it's believed to be that of a Hispanic adult female, so it's not believed to be connected to the Le case.

On Friday night, at least 200 friends, family members and other supporters , in the neighborhood where her car was found, to hold a rally in the search for her.

Union City Patch is at the scene and will update the story as more information becomes available.

Bay City News contributed to this report.