Body found in South Carolina ID’d as missing fitness trainer who told friend she was 'scared for her life'

The body discovered earlier this week in Lexington County, South Carolina, has been positively identified as missing fitness trainer Elena Katherine Moore, authorities announced Friday.

The Lexington County Coroner's Office said the body of a white female found near Old Cherokee Road and Northlake Drive on June 17 was identified as Moore, 39, who disappeared after leaving a Planet Fitness gym in Lexington on June 11.

Notably, the autopsy will not be conducted by the Lexington County Coroner's Office. Instead, Moore's body is being transported to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, where a forensic autopsy is scheduled for Saturday.

Additional information regarding Moore's cause and manner of death is expected to be released Monday, June 22, according to the coroner's office.

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Officials cautioned that determining a final cause and manner of death is a thorough process that could take several days or weeks to complete. Until then, authorities said no further information regarding the investigation will be released.

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The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is leading the investigation, and all inquiries regarding the case have been directed to the agency.

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The identification comes two days after authorities discovered a body in a wooded area near Old Cherokee Road and Northlake Drive following a tip that led investigators to a new search location.

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At the time, Lexington Police Chief Terrence Green said the body matched the clothing description of Moore, who was last seen after leaving a Planet Fitness on Whiteford Way on the evening of June 11.

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"The body found was wearing a similar green outfit" to the clothing Moore was seen wearing in surveillance footage before her disappearance, Green said.

Moore's disappearance drew widespread attention after friends described her behavior in the weeks leading up to her disappearance as unusual.

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In an interview with Fox News Digital, close friend Sondra Campbell said Moore told her she was "scared for her life" during their last in-person meeting on May 31.

"She was scared for her life. She actually said those words to me," Campbell told Fox News Digital.

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Campbell said Moore indicated she wanted to discuss the matter privately but never had the chance.

Moore was last seen walking through the Publix parking lot at 100 Old Cherokee Road after leaving Planet Fitness. Friends also said she had been unusually inactive on social media for about a month before she vanished.

The Lexington County Coroner's Office extended condolences to Moore's family and encouraged anyone with information relevant to the investigation to contact SLED directly.

Fox News Digital's Adam Sabes and Bonny Chu contributed to this report.