A 44-year-old woman whose body was discovered outside an empty Kansas City car wash was reported missing by the city in February, according to an online database of missing persons cases maintained by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
Leigh Dalton, of Kansas City, was found dead late Monday morning in the 8300 block of Hickman Mills Road. Kansas City police officers discovered his body after being sent to the area on a medical call of an unknown nature, a department spokesman said Tuesday.
Responding officers discovered an unresponsive adult woman near the empty car wash. She was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency medical personnel.
Crime scene personnel searched the area for evidence on Monday as detectives searched for potential witnesses. On Tuesday, the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Dalton’s death a homicide, said Officer Donna Drake, a spokeswoman for the department.
A missing persons flyer posted on the Highway Patrol website lists a woman with the same name, age, and date of birth as missing from Kansas City, whose last known contact at the time of the report was on February 4. agency for the case of missing persons.
It was unclear when KCPD opened its missing persons case. The department did not immediately respond to questions from The Star late Wednesday afternoon about the missing persons case or further details related to the homicide investigation.
Dalton’s murder marks the 21st investigated by Kansas City police so far this year, according to data maintained by The Star. In 2022, the city has seen 171 homicides.
The Kansas City Police are asking anyone with information relevant to the homicide investigation to call homicide detectives at 816-234-5043 or anonymously contact the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.
