A body found buried in the backyard of a home in Fowler, IN, has been confirmed to be the remains of a 68-years-old Florida woman, who has been missing for weeks, according to local police.
The body was found buried in the backyard of her recently daughter's home in E. Fifth Street on Saturday.
The woman, Nena Metoyer, has been reported missing since Sep .24. Ms. Metoyer was reportedly visiting Fowler to care for her ailing 49-years-old daughter, Teresa Jarding, who lived there.
Reports indicate that the police visited Ms. Jarding's property following a call from her children who asked for assistance when they couldn't their mother and grandmother. They allegedly urged officials to check on the pair.
The cops say at the property they found Ms. Jarding locked inside the house and apparently in medical distress. Officers broke in and rushed her to a hospital in Lafayette. But she was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at hospital. Doctors believe she died of natural causes.
"There was a handgun laying beside her," Fowler Police Chief Dennis Rice told reporters. "We didn't know if it had anything to do with her condition when we found her or not. It turns out, the handgun has nothing to do with the condition or her medical issues, Rice said.
The Fowler Police Department and the Indiana State police have opened a criminal investigation into the deaths of the mother and daughter.
Reports indicate that the police are also linking this case with that of a missing 51-years-old man, whose severed remains were later found buried in a Chicago residence.
The body found buried in Chicago has since been identified as Milan Lekich, the husband of the late Teresa Jarding.
According to reports, Lekich and Teresa had been separated before he was reported missing in March 2014.
"We feel there is some kind of connection between Nena's disappearance and Milan's disappearance, but we just can't find the connection," Fowler Police Chief Rice said.
The body found buried has been the talk of the small town, which about 70 miles south of Gary. Residents have expressed their shock and told reporters of their willingness to assist in the police investigations.
