death of vanessa pham ruled a homicide

Some disturbing news out of the D.C. area... Police have ruled the death of 19-year-old Vanessa Pham, who was found after her car plummeted into a ditch, a homicide: Vanessa Pham, Teen Found Dead in Car Crash, Was Stabbed to Death First, Say Police.

Pham's body was found Sunday afternoon in a two-door Toyota in a ditch in Fairfax County, Virginia, but her injuries were not consistent with the car crash. She had been stabbed multiple times:

Pham's body was found in her 2008 Toyota shortly after 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, reports the Washington Post.

Apparently, the car was going the wrong way on a one-way service road, hopped a curb and landed in a shallow ravine, reports The Washington Post.

Upon further investigation, police realized Pham - who had just finished her freshman year at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia - had been stabbed multiple times and was dead prior to the crash.

Police spokesman Bud Walker described Pham's cause of death as "trauma to the upper body" that was not consistent with the impact of the crash.

More here: Body found in ditch identified; N.Va. woman had been stabbed. Police are asking for the public's help in this case: Fairfax police seek help in Pham case. Anyone who spotted Pham's 2008 Scion on Sunday is asked to call Detective Robert Bond, the lead homicide detective on the case, at 703-246-4057.

Friends of Vanessa Pham have established a fund to help her family pay for a funeral service: Vanessa Pham fund, vigil set. Contributions may be sent to:

Navy Federal Credit Union
Vanessa Pham Memorial Fund
P.O. Box 3100
Merrifield, VA 22119-3100