A Kansas woman who depended on supplemental oxygen was found dead inside a suitcase outside a Wichita fire station, only hours after her family reported her missing.
Lorretta M. Moody, 68, was pronounced dead shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday at Wichita Fire Station 22. Police are investigating the case 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 into possession of her remains. Investigators also have not said why the body was placed inside a suitcase, according to records obtained by the outlet.
Moody’s family said in a Facebook post that she had severe mobility problems and was expected to use oxygen continuously.
Relatives contacted the Wichita Police Department to report her missing shortly after 1:30 a.m., just hours before her body was discovered, police spokesperson Andrew Ford told the outlet.
Family members said Moody had reportedly left without her walker, supplemental oxygen or daily medication.
The missing-person report was forwarded to police that morning, following standard procedures for people who are not typically reported missing, including elderly adults, children and autistic individuals.
Moody was described as petite, standing about 4 feet 11 inches tall—or “a little shorter”—and weighing “maybe 70 pounds or less.”
The body of Lorretta M. Moody, 68, was discovered inside a suitcase outside a Kansas 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 the death as a homicide
Two people brought Moody’s body to the fire station, but authorities have not identified them or explained how they obtained the suitcase
Moody’s family said she had difficulty walking and was supposed to remain on oxygen around the clock
Later that night, two unidentified individuals arrived at the fire station with a suitcase containing Moody’s body, leading to the grim discovery.
Wichita Fire Station 22 is located south of Pawnee on Hydraulic.
When asked whether the pair might have been involved in Moody’s death, Ford said they were only individuals investigators were interviewing.
“We’re not calling them persons of interest; they’re not suspects,” he told The Wichita Eagle. “They’re just people we’re talking to.”
Video from the scene showed police lights flashing across the fire station as officers worked to investigate the disturbing discovery.
“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.
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.
