Ruben Paredes of Akron was reported missing just after midnight on Feb. 3. His wife said he was visiting friends in Warsaw when he disappeared. (Photo provided)

An Akron man reported missing by his wife on Feb. 1 was found dead in a ditch Monday night in rural Porter County.

Ruben Paredes, 32, disappeared on Feb. 1 while reportedly visiting friends in Warsaw. Amber Paredes contacted StaceyPageOnline.com after her husband disappeared saying a police report was filed with Akron Police in Fulton County, but she believed her husband went missing from the Warsaw area where the couple had recently moved from.

“On Friday night, Feb. 1, my husband went out to hang out with a friend and never came home,” Amber said. “He called me at 11:10 p.m. and said he would be home soon. I had a missed call on my cell phone at 12:06 a.m., but he would call the house phone so that seemed unusual to me.”

On Tuesday, Feb. 5, Akron Police Chief Tim Fleck said Paredes’ vehicle was found abandoned in Chicago. It was located on the south side of the city in a business district in front of a church and had reportedly been left a few days earlier. The vehicle was processed for information but failed to reveal any clues, said Fleck. (See related story)

Paredes’ body was found Monday night in a ditch in the area of CR 500 West and CR 1000 South in Porter County. A joint homicide investigation between Porter County Sheriff’s Department and the Akron Police Department is currently underway.

Authorities are not yet saying how long the body had been in the ditch but it was partially decomposed and Fleck told StaceyPageOnline.com it appears Paredes died of a gunshot wound.