The body of a 68-year-old Kansas woman who depended on oxygen was found inside a suitcase outside a Wichita fire station, just hours after her family reported her missing.
Lorretta M. Moody was pronounced dead shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday at Wichita Fire Station 22. Police are investigating the death as a homicide, according to The Wichita Eagle.
Authorities said two people brought Moody’s body to the station, but have not identified them or explained how they came to have the body or why it had been placed in a suitcase, records obtained by the outlet show.
In a Facebook post, Moody’s family said she had significant difficulty walking and was expected to use supplemental oxygen around the clock.
Family members reported Moody missing to the Wichita Police Department shortly after 1:30 a.m., spokesperson Andrew Ford told the outlet.
At the time she disappeared, relatives said Moody was not using her walker, receiving supplemental oxygen or taking her daily medication.
Police received the missing-person report that morning, following standard procedures for people who are not typically reported missing, including elderly individuals, autistic people and children.
Moody was described as petite, standing 4 feet 11 inches tall—or “a little shorter”—and weighing “maybe 70 pounds or less.”
The body of Lorretta M. Moody, 68, of Kansas, was found inside a suitcase outside a fire station hours after she was reported missing
Moody was pronounced dead shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday at Wichita Fire Station 22, where police are investigating her death as a homicide
Two people brought Moody’s body to the fire station, but authorities have not said who they are, how they obtained the body or why it was placed in a suitcase
Moody’s family said in a Facebook post that she had difficulty walking and was supposed to use oxygen around the clock
Later that night, two unidentified people brought the suitcase containing Moody’s body to the fire station, where it was discovered.
The station is south of Pawnee on Hydraulic.
When asked whether the pair could be connected to Moody’s death, spokesperson Andrew Ford said they were only “people we are talking to.”
“We’re not calling them persons of interest; they’re not suspects,” Ford told the Wichita Eagle. “They’re just people we’re talking to.”
Video from the scene showed police lights flashing around the fire station as investigators worked to determine what happened.
“Investigators are continuing to interview individuals, review evidence, and work to establish a complete timeline of events,” the police department said, according to the Fresno Bee.
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According to a missing-person report obtained by The Wichita Times, Moody was last seen in the 2400 block of South Mosley.
The location was just blocks from 2135 S Mosley, the home Moody reportedly owned with a man named Robert Henderson.
Moody’s granddaughter, Angelyna Moody-Fletcher (pictured), said: ‘Trying to make sense of the senseless. I’ll miss our conversations every single day’
Asked whether the two people had anything to do with Moody’s death, spokesperson Andrew Ford said they were simply ‘people we are talking to,’ according to The Wichita Eagle
When she vanished, family members said she was reportedly not using her walker, receiving supplemental oxygen or taking her daily medications
Family members have since taken to Facebook to mourn Moody’s sudden and disturbing death, including her sister (both pictured)
It is unclear where Moody had been living during the time
Police said there was no apparent threat to the public
But the property was sold to Rental Sales Remodeling LLC at a tax sale last year, according to an eviction petition filed against Moody and Henderson in March by the property’s owners.
Documents filed with the Kansas Secretary of State’s office list Victor and Bounleng Kammavongsa and Phoukhong Phetkhamchanh as the owners of Rental Sales Remodeling.
It is unclear where Moody had been living since the eviction proceedings began.
Police said there was no apparent threat to the public.
Family members have since taken to Facebook to mourn Moody’s sudden and disturbing death, including her sister.
‘Can’t put into words how much I miss my sister over a very cruel death. My heart is broken. Rest high, my beautiful angel. We will get justice for you,’ she wrote in an emotional tribute.
Moody’s granddaughter, Angelyna Moody-Fletcher, wrote: ‘Trying to make sense of the senseless. I’ll miss our conversations every single day. I’ll miss how you’d call me at random times and we’d talk on the phone for hours.’
‘I only hope you truly know how cherished and loved you were by us all Nama. I will never stop talking about you. I will never stop fighting for you. I don’t care what it takes,’ she added.
The investigation remains ongoing.