75-year-old woman found dead in car trunk identified in Federal Way

A 75-year-old woman who was found dead inside the trunk of her car Wednesday may have been inside the vehicle for almost a day, according to a manager at a Federal Way assisted-living center, where the car was found.

Federal Way police said that Jane Britt died of homicidal violence. The King County Medical Examiner's Office performed an autopsy today and said that her cause of death is pending additional investigation.

Todd Fletcher, regional vice president for Life Care Centers of America, said that Britt left the Garden Terrace Alzheimer's Center of Excellence, at 491 S. 338th St., around 7 p.m. Tuesday and the staff and Britt's family found her vehicle in the lot at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Fletcher was uncertain if the vehicle had been moved since Tuesday. Britt's family contacted police Tuesday night to report her missing.

Fletcher said that on Tuesday, the woman visited her husband alone and left the building by herself. He said that staff members didn't see anything out of the ordinary Tuesday night.

Building surveillance video will not be of help because the camera was not directed on Britt's vehicle, Fletcher said.

Fletcher said the woman was "a devoted wife" who often visited her husband since he moved to the facility nearly two years ago.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com