Missing Mo. Woman Believed to Be Found Dead in Woods

Police in Missouri believe they may have found the body of a 44-year-old woman who went missing in September.

The Independence Police Department said in a statement on social media on Tuesday that while following leads in the disappearance of Ebony Duncan in the area of 83rd and Hillcrest Road in Kansas City, Mo., one of their K-9 dogs “located” a dead body in the woods nearby.

Police noted that the body they found had “identifiers” that were “consistent” with those of Duncan and that police believe that the deceased person they found is her, according to the post. However, they are still waiting for a positive identification of the body from the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Office.

“We’re looking at things like height, weight, eye color, hair color, scars, marks, and tattoos,” Independence Police Department PIO Officer Jack Taylor told Fox 4 News Kansas City.

According to court documents obtained by PEOPLE, a missing person’s case was opened on Sept. 7 after Duncan's family and friends were unable to contact her and she did not show up to work that morning. Duncan was last seen the day before at about 5:30 p.m. while she was “preparing to leave for work," the documents state.  

The court documents allege that Duncan “confided in a co-worker” that a former boyfriend — later identified by her daughter as Charles Smith-Howell — was “threatening to kill her.”

Taylor told Fox 4 News that Smith-Howell is "still one of our suspects for sure."

Smith-Howell is currently in federal custody on charges of illegally possessing ammunition, according to the outlet, and he is set to remain in custody until his trial date on Jan. 8. It's not clear if he has entered a plea or retained an attorney in connection with those charges.

He has a lengthy criminal history with convictions for trafficking drugs and possessing controlled substances, robbery and firearms related charges, per the court documents.

Investigators are currently looking into Duncans’s last known whereabouts. Surveillance video as well as bystanders saw Duncan leave in a silver, four-door Sedan, which pulled up behind her after she finished work at approximately 6:11 p.m. on Sept. 6, according to the court documents.

Authorities said, per the documents, that they believed the car was owned by Smith-Howell’s current girlfriend, whose initials are K.R.

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The Independence Police Department said it is also asking for the public’s help in locating a person of interest in the case that goes by the name of Keaira Ransberg (Jenkins), 42. However, it is not clear if she is the person referenced in the court documents. Police said she is wanted for questioning in Duncan’s disappearance and described her as being 5 feet tall, 150 lbs. with brown eyes.

Those with information on her whereabouts can contact Independence Police at the Crimestoppers TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS or on their website https://www.kccrimestoppers.com.

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