DECATUR, Ala. - Authorities say they've arrested a man and charged him with murder after finding the body of his wife, who has been missing since 2011.
Madison County sheriff's Sgt. Brian Chaffin said officers found the remains of Mary Carrithers last Thursday, while searching a wooded area in the Lacey's Spring area.
They say 40-year-old Charles Carrithers was then arrested on a murder charge. He was being held in the Madison County Jail. It wasn't known Wednesday whether he has an attorney.
Chaffin said the search of the woods came about due to a tip investigators received last week.
Chaffin said there was no documented history of violence between the couple, but relatives told investigators that Mary Carrithers sometimes left home for several days at a time because of domestic violence.