Body May Be Missing Woman’s

The car belonging to a missing Realtor from El Segundo was discovered in downtown San Diego on Thursday with an unidentified body in the trunk.

San Diego police said that about noon, a parking enforcement officer found Julia Buchanan Keller’s Mercedes-Benz at an expired meter with multiple parking tickets on the windshield.

The body, which was covered by a blanket, has not been identified, and San Diego police would not specify whether it was female. The county coroner’s office will conduct an autopsy and release the identity.

But friends and co-workers at the Manhattan Beach office of Shorewood Realtors, where Keller has worked for more than 13 years, were devastated.

“Whoever would take her away from her children and the granddaughter that she loved so much is the worst person on Earth,” said Linda Dondero, a co-worker for more than 10 years.

Keller has not been seen since a date dropped her off at home at 11:30 p.m. July 8, El Segundo Police Det. Ken Mulroney said. Her son called police Sunday night after she had missed several business and social appointments.

Her car was missing, but her purse was in the house, the television was on and her four dogs had not been fed. There was no sign of forced entry, police said.

“If it had been someone the dogs didn’t know, the whole neighborhood would have heard about it,” said Candice Carpenter, Keller’s friend and a fellow Realtor.

Police have questioned Keller’s date and her ex-husband, who had flown to visit relatives in Bolivia on Sunday. Neither man is a suspect in the case.

Chris Plank, Keller’s manager, said the company has offered a reward of more than $50,000 for information leading to her whereabouts. Residents of El Segundo held a candlelight vigil in Library Park on Wednesday night to pray for her return.

Dondero said Keller, whose nickname is Deede, is known in the community as a dog enthusiast. She owns three big dogs -- Annie, Rusty and Mickey -- and a little one, Rosie, that she got from shelters or rescued off the street. Dondero said Keller is a spiritual person and it shows in her kindness to animals -- all of hers were rescued -- and people.

“Everybody felt like they were her best friend,” Dondero said.

Said Carpenter: “This is just unbelievable that something like this would happen to such a wonderful woman.”