SOUTHAVEN, Miss — Memphis Police say they believe a woman who was found dead just one day after she went missing may have taken her own life.
Southaven Police posted an update to its Facebook page Tuesday, Oct. 3, saying the body of Bonita Adams was found Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, by Memphis Police, but she was not positively identified until Oct. 2.
According to the Memphis Police report, officers were called about 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 14, about a pedestrian struck on the train tracks at Castalia and East Person, not far from the Young Dolph mural in Castalia Heights. They found Adams on the tracks dead. According to the report, MPD officers spoke with the train's conductor, who said a woman was standing in the middle of the tracks "with her arm open, looking up at the sky" when she was struck.
MPD said preliminary information indicates she died by suicide, but the report said they don't have information on why.
Southaven Police said the 36-year-old was last seen Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 at the Raceway gas station at 580 Stateline Road in Southaven when she called her mother. Her mother said she called later that day leaving a voicemail.
"She said she was leaving Baptist Desoto and that was at 6:03 p.m.," Sheila Adams said. "I [went] by Baptist myself that third Sunday after I didn't hear anything from her, to see, you know, if she was admitted or anything. They told me they didn't have Bonita Adams admitted. But I got a letter from Baptist Hospital where she had went to the emergency room."
Adams told ABC24 at the time that she was focused on getting the word out and getting any answers.
“It’s upsetting," Adams' mother said. "It’s scary and you know, you just feel lost, you don’t have any control — you don’t know."
Southaven police said they didn't receive any calls about Bonita Adams' disappearance until Tuesday, Sept. 26.