MISSING GRANDMOTHER LORRETTA MOODY FOUND DEAD INSIDE SUITCASE AT KANSAS FIRE STATION — $5,000 REWARD OFFERED AS HOMICIDE PROBE CONTINUES

A 67-year-old Kansas grandmother who had been reported missing was found dead inside a suitcase after two people brought the luggage to a Wichita fire station and told firefighters that a body was inside.

Now, authorities are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that could lead to an arrest in the case, as detectives continue trying to determine what happened to Lorretta Moody and how her body ended up at the fire station.

BODY FOUND AT FIRE STATION

The investigation began on the evening of September 16, 2026, when two people arrived at Wichita Fire Station 22 in south Wichita carrying a suitcase.

According to the Wichita Police Department, the individuals told fire personnel that the suitcase contained a body. Firefighters requested an urgent police response at around 6:25 p.m.

Officers arrived and opened the suitcase, discovering the remains of a woman inside. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The woman was later identified as Lorretta M. Moody, 67, who had previously been reported missing to police. Her body was taken to the Sedgwick County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Police classified the death as a homicide.

TWO PEOPLE QUESTIONED BY POLICE

The two individuals who brought the suitcase to the fire station were questioned by detectives.

Authorities have not publicly identified them as suspects, and investigators have not disclosed whether they had any prior relationship with Moody.

Detectives are continuing to establish a timeline, review evidence, interview witnesses and determine how Moody died and how her remains came to be transported to the fire station.

No arrests had been announced as of September 24.

Police have also said there is currently no information indicating an ongoing threat to the wider public.

FAMILY WANTS LORRETTA REMEMBERED FOR HER LIFE

For Moody’s family, the circumstances surrounding her death have been especially painful.

Her granddaughter Alexis Trotter said the family does not want Moody remembered simply as the woman whose body was discovered inside a suitcase.

“She wouldn’t want to be known as the person who showed up in a suitcase at a fire station,” Trotter said. She described Moody as a loving grandmother and great-grandmother who was full of life and deeply devoted to her family.

Another granddaughter, Lexi Shafer, emphasized the same point while speaking to local media.

“That was our family, she wasn’t just a woman in a suitcase,” Shafer said.

The family has also established a fundraiser to help cover funeral and memorial expenses.

STRANGE MESSAGES ADDED TO THE FAMILY’S QUESTIONS

According to Shafer, the family received unusual communications around the time Moody’s body was discovered.

She said she received a call from a man who was using Moody’s boyfriend’s phone. Later, before Moody had officially been identified, Shafer’s fiancé reportedly received messages telling him to call the sender urgently and later saying that his grandmother had been found.

The family has shared these details with investigators, while police continue working to establish the full sequence of events.

$5,000 REWARD OFFERED

The investigation received a new development on September 24, when Crime Stoppers of Wichita and Sedgwick County announced a cash reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to an arrest.

Authorities are asking anyone who may have information about Moody’s death, the suitcase or the events surrounding September 16 to come forward.

Tips can be submitted anonymously through Crime Stoppers. Police continue to describe the investigation as active.

For Moody’s family, the central question remains unanswered: What happened to Lorretta, and who was responsible for her death?

As detectives continue following leads, her relatives are asking the public to remember her not for the disturbing circumstances in which she was found, but for the woman they knew — a grandmother, great-grandmother and family member whose life meant far more than the suitcase in which she was discovered.