"What we need more than anything is for someone to call us and tell us who is responsible for this savagery.". Search continues for person who decapitated elderly man at Lake Oconee home Richard Elliot reports. Dimos also confided in his new friend about his poor health. Russell, 88, was found decapitated inside of his garage on May 6, 2014. It was 10 days before her fate was known. Please rate, subscribe, and share if you enjoy our work. But after some neighbors went over to their home searching for them, they were nowhere to be found. We used some of the most advanced underwater electronic equipment that the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division has in an attempt to find Shirley Dermonds body, as well as the head of her husband, Sills said. Their murders would be Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sill's only cold case in his 48-year law enforcement career. They have the responsibility of coming forward., We may not like how long it takes, but it will be solved, Brad said with optimism. According to store and bank surveillance videos, obtained only by 11Alive, Russell transferred money from the drive-thru lane at the Lake Oconee branch of the Peoples Bank at 2:15 p.m. Before that, he spent most of his working years as an executive for a New York-area clock company. WebCome Wednesday, a year will have passed since that emergency call, since the frantic womans husband found the decapitated body of their 88-year-old friend, Russell J. Might the slayings be the work of burglars the Dermonds walked in on? WebLake Oconee double murder probe turns to NY for clues; Person of interest identified in murder, beheading of elderly couple; Mystery man emerges in year-old Ga. beheading From the street or the water, even in early spring, seeing anything distressing happening inside would have been all but impossible. There was no evidence of a struggle or forced entry and the couples home left little clues as to what happened. Deputies followed hundreds of leads and possible motives, but they didnt lead anywhere conclusive. Earlier this summer, Haufler invited Dimos to his home in Ocala, Florida. Weighed down by a pair of 30-pound concrete blocks, her corpse bloated and surfaced facedown in 46 feet of water. When Russells body was found in the couples garage, his finger had a severe wound, Sills said. Sills said he didnt know if he would describe the conversation as promising, but anything is a step forward at this point.. Investigators believe they were searching for multiple suspects and the motive was robbery, but nothing appears to have been taken. Sills, who has helped solve dozens of murder cases during his career, said he believes it was the intent of the killers that the body of 87-year-old Shirley Dermond would never resurface. Channel 2 investigative And theres more than one person involved in this, Lake Oconee double murder probe turns to NY for clues, Person of interest identified in murder, beheading of elderly couple, Mystery man emerges in year-old Ga. beheading case, 5 years later, sheriff still agonizes over brutal cold case murders, Timeline of 2 Murders: How the Killings of Russell and Shirley Dermond Unfolded, The Murders of Elderly Georgia Couple Russell and Shirley Dermond: A Beheading and No Leads. That said, it points out a daunting truth. There was terror in her voice the morning the murder mystery came to light. Sills said he could not elaborate on what was discussed with FBI agents from the Macon field office, however. He suggests inebriation mightve played a role, noting the two men had purchased $130 worth of adult beverages the day before Haufler called 911, 30 minutes before sunrise on August 28. But he was also realistic. The notion of such an atrocity in an exclusive, golf course-ringed neighborhood struck at peoples deepest fears: If it happened there, is anywhere safe? Somebodys out there and theyre living in Hell. The city had a record-high 70 homicides in 2022. By boat, the spot lies some five miles from her home, in a wide bend above the Wallace Dam. Theyll say, They never came up with nothing on that murder, did they? Ill say, Well, youre looking at they. Police: UGA football staffer drunk, racing at 104 mph before fatal crash, Police: Stetson Bennett hid behind brick wall prior to arrest, UGA star Jalen Carter present at scene of fatal crash, Long before season, Georgia Tech president found football performance worrisome, Kemp, Rivian double down on $5B Georgia factory despite challenges, Georgia Power customers bills could jump again soon. The neighbors had hosted a Kentucky Derby party the previous Saturday, May 3. For a decade and a half, from about the turn of the century on, the Dermonds had called Lake Oconee home. Each of the Dermonds surviving children were interviewed by deputies about the case. She has been bludgeoned to death and her body had been Like most days, he said, they just chatted about how their day went with each other. You have no clue as to what youre looking for. The 88-year-old Russell Dermond, a World War II veteran, is believed to have been shot in the head and was beheaded afterward. His head was never found. The Dermonds would move to the Great Waters Reynolds subdivision, a gated community located about twelve miles northeast of Eatonton and some 70 miles southwest of Atlanta. Manslaughter shouldve been the highest charge they came up with.. Its very hard to catch somebody when you dont even know their motive. He was the lead investigator in the 1999 shooting deaths of a woman and her 2-year-old daughter whose bodies were found in the trunk of a burned-out car. They have merited days, weeks of inquiry. Meanwhile, his 87-year-old wife, Shirley Dermond, was nowhere to be found. Find ratings and reviews for the newest movie and TV shows. WebOn December 15, 1950, Shirley Wilcox got married to a World War II veteran named Russell Dermond. Oh, my God. Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills said its a case he still thinks about every day, now eight years later. I try to keep the blinders off, because I dont want to get tunnel vision on any one person or any one theory. Brad Dermond, center, with his parents at his wedding. Investigators said an elderly man was found beheaded in his home. Nothing was out of placejewelry and medications were seemingly as the Dermonds had left them. By using this website, you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices. Later that evening, before dinner, Brad spoke to his parents on the phone. According to their obituaries, Russell loved golf, reading, walking, and enjoyed spending time with his family and friends while Shirley loved crossword puzzles, gardening and playing bridge. Henry spent most of his years as a homicide detective at agencies in Gwinnett County. I think I have somebody dead. As a Pulliam Fellowship recipient in 1991, Joe worked for the Indianapolis News. WebOn May 16, two fishermen on Lake Oconee found her body near a dam, nearly five miles away from the house. When you can get it, TikToker slathers parents kitchen in peanut butter months after doing the bathroom, Macon man enters plea in fatal shooting that happened during domestic dispute in 2020, Young man killed in shooting last week faced murder charges in 2020 slaying of Macon teen, Macon man, 20, found fatally wounded Saturday evening by Bibb County deputies, Two charged with aggravated assault after shooting that fatally wounded Macon teen, A 14-year-old Macon boy is among 8 people indicted on murder charges in fatal Bibb shootings, Georgia man in bank lobby blasts explicit music from phone and shouts I am God. He told Wilfon that even eight years later, the family remains optimistic the case will get solved. He became the face of an unsolved crime that fascinated viewers and newspaper readers across the region. Web703K views, 717 likes, 10 loves, 118 comments, 309 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from HLN: Whoever killed Russell & Shirley Dermond is still out there. Heres a look at new, renovated stores and restaurants, Burger King brings back fan-favorite sandwich but not for long. WebIn 2014, a successful, retired couple living on a beautiful lake in Georgia hadnt been heard from for multiple days in a row. A look at the Dermond's home on Lake Oconee in May 2014. It had been weighed down with concrete blocks but surfaced in about 90 feet of water, tangled in treetops just below the surface. The decapitated body of Russell Dermond (age 88) was found on May 6, 2014, in the garage of the house he owned on Lake Oconee. The decapitated body of Russell Dermond (age [4] Although the perpetrator(s) and motive remain unknown, Putnam County sheriff Howard Sills has said he is convinced that multiple people were involved. Youngest son Blake is set to follow in his dads footsteps as a firefighter in Marion County. Follow us on -Instagram @kmh.podcastTwitter @kmhpodcastFacebook click hereTikTok @kmhpodcastThank you for listening! She was on the phone, gasping, breathless in the 11 seconds it took someone to answer and say, Putnam County 911., Yes, uh, I have an emergency, the woman, 68, said. His wife was found days later in a nearby lake having been weighed down. Investigators have since scoured the couples financial and other records for clues to anything that might put them on the killers trail, but so far nothing has helped. He said, 'Grandpa had been murdered; grandma was missing.'. The body of Shirley Dermond was found weighed down in Lake Oconee on May 16, 2014. made a gruesome discovery inside the garage, Kemp questions letting Buckhead leave Atlanta as vote looms, Alex Murdaugh killed wife, son to buy time, prosecutor says, Tiffany Foster disappearance: Newnan mother missing for 2 years, Family remembers Clark Atlanta student killed in Catholic center parking lot, Fulton teacher accused of filming student using the bathroom, Cheerleader competes alone at state champs after squad quits: It felt amazing, Georgia elementary school principal charged with child cruelty, false imprisonment, Clayton County twin sisters make history rising the ranks in Georgia UPS facility, CAU sophomore killed in shooting near AUC Catholic Student Center, I didnt realize: Woman mistakenly eats heart-shaped chip that could have won her 100K. In May, 2014 an elderly couple, Russell and Shirley Dermond, were murdered at their home in a gated community on Lake Oconee in central Georgia. 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