A personal trainer from South Carolina vanished after leaving a gym, last spotted on security footage heading towards a wooded area.
Elena Katherine Moore, 39, was seen leaving Planet Fitness in Lexington, situated about 24 miles from Columbia, at 9:17 p.m. on Thursday. She was observed walking into a forested zone behind a Lowe’s. This information was shared by the Lexington Police Department.
On the surveillance video from around 6:40 p.m., Moore checked into the gym wearing the same outfit—a green zip-up hoodie and black athletic pants—as when she left.
Her husband, Brannon Slice, reported her missing the following day.
Authorities confirmed that Moore was a familiar face at that Planet Fitness and described her disappearance as “very out of character.”
Police utilized a drone for initial searches on Friday, but found no signs of her.
On Monday, a comprehensive search involving various local and state agencies occurred in the same wooded area, yet still uncovered no trace of Moore.
Law enforcement clarified that this search was not about recovery, but rather aimed at ruling out that location.
On Tuesday, authorities released a new photo of Moore to encourage anyone with insights or anyone who might remember recent interactions with her to come forward. They even mentioned images captured on her doorbell camera about a week prior to her disappearance.
Officials noted that Moore once owned a cell phone, though it remains unclear whether she still does.
“We’re trying to track it down, but responses from cell phone providers to search warrants can be slow,” a Lexington Police Department representative stated.
Moore works as a personal trainer at Wolf’s Fitness Center and also as a pharmacy technician at CVS. She is described as 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 120 pounds, with brown hair and eyes.
A friend, Lauren Beasley, shared that her last conversation with Moore occurred about a month ago, and that Moore seemed her usual self then.
“She never mentioned anything personal during our chat. She got married last year, but never discussed her feelings about that or anything else significant,” Beasley reflected.
However, Beasley pointed out that Moore had stopped her frequent social media postings around the same time, describing this silence as unusual.
Moore’s last Instagram and Facebook posts were made on April 23rd and April 15th, respectively. According to a now-deleted Facebook comment from her husband, she had been “not feeling well.”
As of Monday, police do not suspect any foul play in Moore’s disappearance, indicating that they don’t believe she’s in immediate danger.
Authorities are urging anyone with information about Moore’s whereabouts to reach out to detectives at 803-358-7271 or contact Midlands Crimestoppers.
