Decomposing Body Found in Wooded Area Believed to Be a Missing 38-Year-Old NC Mother

Last Friday, was the day when a North Carolina mother was last seen by her husband. She was reported missing on the following day.

Now the police have found a decomposing body found in a wooded area near a North Carolina highway.

The body is believed to be that of Diana Alejandra Keel, 38, who was last seen by her husband, Lynn Keel, last Friday. When Diana disappeared, her husband was considered a person of interest.

During a news conference on Wednesday night, Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone revealed that Lynn had been brought in for questioning. When the body was found her husband had to identify the remains.

A Department of Transportation worker discovered the woman's decomposing body in a wooded area about 30 miles away from where she disappeared found in Edgecombe County on Tuesday afternoon. Her car was found parked at her home in Nashville, about 50 miles east of Raleigh.

The missing woman’s employer told authorities that she hadn't reported for work for the last few days. During the press conference, Stone shared that the woman’s husband had "said that she leaves from time to time and will stay gone a couple of days."

That was his reason for not reporting her missing. Investigators revealed that they believed foul play was "definitely" involved in her death.

The emergency room nurse and mother of two was reported missing by her 18-year-old daughter last Saturday. The Sheriff added:

“I’ve heard nobody that knew her had anything negative to say about this woman. What a tragic event. The most difficult aspect of this case is a ten-year-old son and an eighteen-year-old daughter are without their mother.”

He also said:

"This is a homicide investigation at this time. I don't want to get into elaborating too much on the specifics of the case because we're doing investigations as of right now. ... The cause of death was the act of someone. There’s a killer on the loose."

Stone clarified that there were other "persons of interest" in the case. Lynn was released after questioning and has not been charged.

The police said the Keels had "difficulties" in their marriage. Their 10-year-old son had to stay with his grandmother when Lynn was taken in for questioning.

The sheriff said:

"It's very difficult, especially when I see life as it is and how fragile it is and now we have a kid without a mother. It's very difficult. We have a lot of unanswered questions. That's the reason we, as the Nash County Sheriff's office, operate with compassion, honor and diligence."

Diana’s best friend, Taryn Edwards, revealed that her husband was very controlling and wouldn’t let her be alone with anyone. Edwards explained:

"The verbal and emotional abuse was evident to me as a friend. The atmosphere of the house was always really tense. He hovered a lot, never allowed her to be alone with anybody for extended periods of time."

Edwards also shared that the mother of two was trying to leave her husband, but when he found out, he made them end their friendship. The friend recalled, "She hugged me. I was crying. She told me not to cry that everything was going to be OK. When she walked out the door, that's the last time I saw her."

The two met around 2009 when they were both attending Momeyer Baptist Church. Edwards described her as "such a sweet, sweet friend.”

Diana's cousin, Javier Guevara, said she’d come to North Carolina to live the American Dream but it ended up being a nightmare. He added, "I can't believe it. I can't believe it. It's very, very sad."

Pastor Daniel Parker, of Christian Fellowship Church, the church Diana used to attend said:

"It is hard. It is hard to have normalcy right now because someone you know is missing. Someone you know is under investigation. It's just a very concerning time. I'm praying for everybody involved."

In 2006, Lynn’s previous wife, Elizabeth Bess Edwards Keel, died at their home and it was ruled accidental.

In February the body of Tashaun Jackson, a missing Brevard County mother, was found in rural Osceola County. She was last seen a week before in Cocoa at a 7-Eleven on Dixon Boulevard.

The mother of four had walked to a local convenience store and didn't return home.