A Vicksburg man accused of murdering his wife in 2018 has pleaded guilty in Circuit Court to first-degree murder.

Ninth Circuit District Attorney Ricky Smith said Paul Allen Steward, 52, pleaded guilty before Circuit Judge M. James Chaney Friday morning. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Steward was charged in the Dec. 24, 2018 death of his wife, Kacey Latasha Miles. The couple had been married for about four years. He was arrested Dec. 28 by Vicksburg police and was indicted on a charge of murder.

Kacey Steward had been reported missing Dec. 25. Her body was found by police Dec. 27 in a wooded area in Warren County.

According to reports from the Vicksburg Police Department, investigators had been questioning Steward and others in the case since his wife’s disappearance, but Steward was the only one held by police.

According to police, family and friends said the couple had been having marital issues and Steward confessed to investigators, leading them to where her body was located on property Steward’s family owns.

Warren County Deputy Coroner Kelda Bailess declared her dead at the scene.