Elena Moore Cause of Death: Personal Trainer Found Dead in Woods After Mysteriously Vanishing Suffered from Several Health Issues

A South Carolina personal trainer who vanished after leaving her gym died from an underlying heart condition, officials confirmed. Elena Moore, 39, was last seen at a Planet Fitness in Lexington in June. Her body was found in a wooded area a week after she went missing.

Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher announced at a press conference Friday that Moore died from complications related to cardiac dysrhythmias. Fisher said Moore’s death was also linked to premature ventricular contractions. She added that Moore had a history of cardiac and mental health issues. Moore was involuntarily admitted to a facility on June 5 while experiencing a mental health crisis, the coroner said.

Health Was Always an Issue

Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said the facility where Moore was held before her death failed to provide her with her usual heart medication. Fisher declined to identify the facility.

Moore was discharged on June 11, and officials contacted her husband, Brannon Slice, to inform him of her release. Slice offered to collect her, but health officials instead arranged a taxi, telling him she would be taken to her home address.

However, the driver took Moore to a CVS Pharmacy instead. According to Fisher, Moore entered the store and told an employee that the taxi driver had been stalking her. The store manager subsequently called 911.

Fisher said Moore later left the pharmacy on foot carrying four bottles of wine. She subsequently entered a Planet Fitness gym before being seen walking into a nearby wooded area. Her body was discovered approximately a week after she disappeared.

A toxicology examination detected no substances other than alcohol in Moore’s system. Investigators also found no evidence of physical trauma, Fisher said.

“Her cause of death is listed as complications of dysrhythmias with premature ventricular contractions,” the coroner said.

According to the findings, Moore had a medical history that included shortness of breath during physical exertion, heart palpitations, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), excessive alcohol consumption and fatty liver disease.

Mental Crisis Before Death

Fisher also questioned why Moore’s case attracted widespread public attention while other people experiencing similar struggles often received little notice. “This case wouldn’t have got the attention that it got had Elena not been this beautiful, body builder who just happened to be married to an ex-con,” she said.

“We deal with cases such as Elena‘s on a regular basis and nobody puts it all over Facebook. Nobody is interested, there are cases of mental illness that we’re dealing with right now and nobody cares.”

The coroner said Moore had been experiencing a severe mental health crisis before her death and expressed concern that several opportunities to help her had been missed.

“She was in a full mental health crisis – so many people missed it. The only person who really tried to help this girl is her husband. That’s it,” Fisher said.

Moore’s death has raised questions about the circumstances surrounding her discharge, the reported interruption of her heart medication and the support available to people experiencing mental health emergencies.