Carolyn Pope, who disappeared on October 11, was found dead on Wednesday night in a wooded area of Wrigley near power lines, the Hickman County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. The 30-year-old's body was wrapped in a blanket under a plastic sheet, authorities said.
On Thursday, police announced two men will be charged with abuse of a corpse and other offenses. Warrants were issued for Mitchell Hinderliter and Christopher Hall in connection with Pope's death, the sheriff's office said in the release. Both men are already in jail on unrelated charges, the sheriff's office added.
Pope, who lived in Fairview with her 5-year-old daughter and grandmother, was last seen on October 12 at a home on Tidwell Lane, local station WKRN reported. Her family got worried about her wellbeing after her car was found abandoned on October 13 on blocks with the tires and radio missing and the dashboard "chopped up."
"It's been horrible not knowing, every day wondering if she is out there," Pope's sister-in-law Mary Gonzalez told local media. "Does she need us to come help her? Where is she? It's just been so, so horrible."
As the investigation continues into her death, Pope's family is concerned about her young daughter.
"Her 5-year-old is going to take it really hard," Gonzalez told WKRN. "Her mom was her superhero, she was her Super Woman. She would do anything for her.
"She's been wondering where she is at, will she ever come home, when she's going to see her or talk to her and it's heartbreaking that she has to go through this. It's heartbreaking that she's going to grow up not knowing her, you know only having the memories.
"We were all praying for a miracle, that she was going to come home," said Gonzelez. "It's just heartbreaking. She was a good person. It's a tragedy what happened."
Pope's cause of death is yet to be determined as authorities are awaiting autopsy results. Police also urged the public to come forward with any information regarding the case.
A GoFundMe has been set up to pay for Pope's funeral arrangements.
