FALLBROOK (CNS) - Investigators searching for a missing 22-year-old North County military wife feared slain since last week found a body Tuesday in Riverside County, several hours after a woman was arrested on suspicion of murder in the case.
The discovery of the remains off Warren Road, near Lake Skinner, was made about 2:30 p.m., San Diego County Sheriff's Department Capt. Duncan Fraser said. It was not immediately clear if the body was that of Brittany Killgore of Fallbrook, whose whereabouts have been unknown for four days.
Killgore, whose husband is deployed overseas, disappeared Friday evening, allegedly after meeting up with a 45-year-old Louis Ray Perez, a Camp Pendleton-based Marine who subsequently was jailed on an unrelated weapon charge.
Homicide detectives were investigating Killgore's disappearance and believed there was "a strong likelihood" she was a "victim of foul play," sheriff's Lt. Larry Nesbit said earlier.
The second arrest in the investigation occurred late Tuesday morning, according to Fraser. Jessica Lynn Lopez, 27, was taken into custody at a motel on Rosecrans Street in San Diego and was expected to be booked on suspicion of murder.
The captain declined to discuss Lopez's alleged connection to the case. He told news crews the suspect had been admitted to UCSD Medical Center under guard and was expected to be booked on a murder charge upon her release from the Hillcrest hospital. Fraser also would not say why Lopez had required medical care.
On Sunday, a Camp Pendleton Marine was arrested. Investigators said they believe Louis Ray Perez, 45, was with Killgore just before she went missing. Perez was booked on an unrelated weapon charge, though he "is being actively investigated for this disappearance," Fraser told reporters.
After being questioned about Killgore, Perez was arrested on suspicion of possessing a stolen AR-15 military assault rifle. He was being held at San Diego Central Jail on $500,000 bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
Investigators went to the area where the corpse was found "based on leads stemming from the arrest of Lopez," Fraser said during a late-afternoon briefing. The captain told reporters he could release very limited information about the case before heading north to the spot where the dead woman turned up.
"I can't comment on the condition of the body that was found," he said. "We have not confirmed that the body ... is that of Brittany Killgore. ... The medical examiner will make that confirmation."
On Monday, search-and-rescue personnel combed open areas in the De Luz area, north of Fallbrook, in hopes of determining what had become of Killgore. It was unclear what led them to that spot.
Nesbit said Perez had been "uncooperative and not completely forthcoming about his knowledge." The lieutenant would not comment on the nature of the missing woman's relationship with the serviceman.
Among the suspicious circumstances in the case was the fact that Killgore's cell phone was found by trolley security guards in the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego, even though investigators do not believe she had gone there herself on the night she vanished, Nesbit said.
The woman filed for divorce last week, according to court records. Her Camp Pendleton-stationed husband, Cory, reportedly has been serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan but is in the process of being sent home due to his wife's disappearance.
This is a breaking news alert. Additional information is below.
FALLBROOK (CNS) - Authorities Tuesday called off their search for a missing 22-year-old North County woman who disappeared last week under suspicious circumstances, allegedly after meeting up with a serviceman who subsequently was arrested on an unrelated weapon charge.
Officials with the San Diego County Sheriff's Department decided Tuesday morning to suspend their active efforts to find Brittany Killgore of Fallbrook, who was last seen in that rural community about 5 p.m. Friday, according to Jan Caldwell, a spokeswoman for the agency.
"Rather, we are concentrating our efforts on leads that have been developed," Caldwell said. She declined to elaborate.
Investigators believe that Killgore, whose estranged husband is deployed on combat duty overseas, was with 45-year-old Louis Ray Perez, a Marine based at Camp Pendleton, just before she went missing, homicide Lt. Larry Nesbit said.
"Based on our investigation to this point, we believe there is a strong likelihood Brittany is the victim of foul play," Nesbit said on Monday, as sheriff's personnel combed undeveloped open areas north of Fallbrook in search of Killgore.
The search-and-rescue operation was centered on the area of De Luz Canyon, near the Riverside County line, the lieutenant told reporters. He would not reveal the reason for that geographical focus.
Detectives questioned Perez about Killgore's disappearance before arresting him Sunday on suspicion of possessing a stolen AR-15 military assault rifle. He was being held at San Diego Central Jail on $500,000 bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.
Nesbit said Perez had been "uncooperative and not completely forthcoming about his knowledge." The lieutenant would not comment on the nature of the missing woman's relationship with the serviceman.
Among the suspicious circumstances in the case was the fact that Killgore's cell phone was found by trolley security guards in the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego, even though investigators do not believe she had gone there herself on the night she vanished, Nesbit told news crews.
The woman filed for divorce last week, according to court records. Her Camp Pendleton-stationed husband, Cory, reportedly is serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Killgore, a 5-foot-7-inch, roughly 130-pound brunette with brown eyes, was wearing a dark-purple evening gown with shiny floral patterns on it at the time of her disappearance.
THIS IS A STORY UPDATE. For an earlier story, read below.
SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - Sheriff's deputies are continuing their search for the wife of a deployed Marine, who disappeared under suspicious circumstances.
Authorities believe 22-year-old Brittany Killgore, may have been with a 45-year-old Camp Pendleton Marine before her disappearance. He is currently in custody on an unrelated weapons charge.
Killgore was last seen Friday in Fallbrook. Her cell phone was found Saturday in the Gaslamp.
Court records show she filed for divorce from her husband, Cory, on April 10th.
One neighbor says he told Cory, she may have been unfaithful.
"I told him, when I went to go see him, that there was noises upstairs that my wife was hearing at night and she thought he was still there, and then we found out that he was actually deployed," neighbor Simeon Pagdilao said.
Anyone with information on Killgore's whereabouts should call Crimestoppers.
THIS IS AN UPDATE TO THE PREVIOUS STORY BELOW.
FALLBROOK (CNS) - A search intensified Monday for a 22-year-old North County woman who disappeared last week under suspicious circumstances after getting together with an active-duty serviceman, who was later jailed on an apparently unrelated weapon charge.
The last known sighting of Brittany Killgore of Fallbrook was about 5 p.m. Friday, according to sheriff's officials.
Investigators believe that Killgore, whose estranged husband is deployed on combat duty overseas, was with 45-year-old Louis Ray Perez, a Marine based at Camp Pendleton, just before she went missing, Lt. Larry Nesbit said.
"Based on our investigation to this point, we believe there is a strong likelihood Brittany is the victim of foul play," Nesbit said. "Today we are deploying sheriff's search-and-rescue units to assist in locating Brittany."
The effort was centered on the area of De Luz Canyon, north of Fallbrook, the lieutenant told reporters.
On Sunday, detectives arrested Perez on suspicion of possessing a stolen AR-15 military assault rifle.
Nesbit described the serviceman, who was being held at San Diego Central Jail on $500,000 bail, as "uncooperative and not completely forthcoming about his knowledge, we believe."
The lieutenant would not comment on the nature of the missing woman's relationship with Perez.
Killgore, a 5-foot-7-inch, roughly 130-pound brunette with brown eyes, was wearing a dark-purple evening gown with shiny floral patterns on it at the time of her disappearance.
Among the suspicious circumstances in the case was the fact that her cell phone was found by trolley security guards in the Gaslamp District of downtown San Diego, even though investigators do not believe she had gone there herself on the night she vanished, Nesbit told news crews.
Killgore filed for divorce last week, according to court records. Her Camp Pendleton-stationed husband, Cory, reportedly is serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan.