Authorities have confirmed the death of 38-year-old Joyce Gomez, who was reported missing on Friday, April 25, 2025. Her body was found on Sunday, April 27, near W Wittman Road by the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office.
The discovery followed an urgent search led by the Pass Christian Police Department, which began investigating after Gomez failed to return home.
Gomez was last seen late Friday night around 10:52 p.m. in the 100 block of Main Street in downtown Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
Hours earlier, she had been working at The Whiskey Bar in downtown Pass Christian. According to her coworker Chris Langer, she finished her shift and was seen getting into a truck with a man later identified as her ex-boyfriend, Brett Huntley Keel.
“I worked with Joyce Friday night at The Whiskey Bar in the Pass. She clocked out and then shortly thereafter left the bar with a patron we know,” Langer wrote in a Facebook post dated April 27.
“It seems they went to the Bay afterwards, but she did not return home. If you saw her after 10:52 pm please let the police know. She has two little kids that are missing their mom and have no idea what is going on,” he concluded.
Police confirmed that Keel and Gomez had previously been in a relationship. After she failed to come home to her two children and elderly father, friends and coworkers grew concerned.
During a video interview with WLOX News, Langer stated, “I kind of had a feeling that she was gone. Typically, a mother of two doesn’t just up and disappear — doesn’t decide to leave on their own volition. Yes, it does happen occasionally, but usually something else has happened. If she didn’t go home with her dad there and her two kids, then it was not her choice.”
Joyce Gomez’s co-worker, Chris Langer, is seen sharing his thoughts in a video interview, dated April 29, 2025 | Source: YouTube/wloxnewsnow
The Pass Christian Police Department formally announced Gomez’s disappearance on Saturday, April 26, and began coordinating efforts with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department.
That same day, two photos of Gomez were shared with the public. In one image, she was smiling with her long, dark hair tied in a high ponytail. In the second, she was seen wearing a white top, her hair loose, with a lighthearted star filter across her face.
