Two people in Virginia have been arrested after a missing woman’s body was found.
The Danville Police Department said that officials had been actively investigating the disappearance of 60-year-old Debbie Ann Marrero after she was reported missing on November 20, 2025, according to WDBJ 7.
Deborah Lynn Hurd and David Thomas Gunnell were arrested and charged with murder in connection to Marrero’s death on Tuesday, March 10. Both Hurd, 63, and Gunnell, 61, are being held without bond as they await their first court appearance.
It is not currently clear if either Hurd or Gunnell have entered a plea or retained legal representation following their arrests. The Danville Police Department did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding the case.
It is not currently clear why Hurd or Gunnell were arrested in connection to the crime or if they had any sort of connection to Marrero prior to her death.
The arrests were made after investigators said that the police department received information from the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office on Monday, March 9, that they believed could present a possible lead in the case.
Danville Police Department investigators and the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office then worked together to conduct a search of a suspected location that Marrero’s body was potentially at in the southeastern section of Pittsylvania County.
Deputies said that officers eventually found Marrero’s body on the 1600 block of Mountain Hill Road. After the body was recovered, Marrero’s remains were transported to the Virginia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke. Officials said that an autopsy will be conducted in order to determine the cause and manner of death.
“Although it was unfortunate news to deliver to the family, it’s fortunate her remains were found; they can put some closure to this,” Pittsylvania County Sheriff Mike Taylor said in a statement about the discovery, per ABC 13 News.
Police are asking that anyone with information regarding Marrero’s death contact the Danville Police Department Investigations Division or the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office. The investigation into the case remains ongoing.
On February 3, Danville police website issued a statement about a handful of missing people in the area on Missing Persons Awareness Day.
“Debbie Ann Marrero, 60, was reported missing by family in November 2025 after last being seen in August the same year,” the statement read at the time. “Marrero was known to stay with family members in the area of Selma Avenue, but she was unreachable by phone. She may still be in the area at an unknown location.”
In addition to sharing other missing persons cases, the department insisted that they have “conducted an extensive investigation into their known associations, personal history, and circumstances, utilizing all resources available to us.”
“No missing person case is ever closed and even after we’ve exhausted all known leads, the DPD reviews each case on a monthly basis for any new information that may lead to their location and we keep in communication with the reporting party,” the statement continued. “We ask the community to please contact us should they have any information about any of these individuals.”
