By The Associated Press

STURGEON BAY, Wis. — A Michigan man has been charged with killing his wife more than four decades ago in Wisconsin, even though her body has never been found.

Carol Jean Pierce was last seen in 1975. Wisconsin Department of Justice

Law enforcement agents from Wisconsin and Michigan arrested Richard Gale Pierce, 82, Thursday in his hometown of Cheboygan, Michigan. A criminal complaint charges Pierce with killing Carol Jean Pierce, 35, in Sturgeon Bay in September 1975.

Pierce has claimed his wife left him. According to a criminal complaint , Pierce had the opportunity to kill his wife, and motives including monetary gain. The complaint outlines a likely abusive nine-year marriage.

Pierce is charged with first-degree murder and disinterment of the dead. He is being held at Cheboygan County Jail, pending his return to Wisconsin

It's unclear if Pierce has an attorney to speak on his behalf.