Timeline | Multiple rounds of strong to severe storms possible, Woman convicted in husband's murder after stabbing him with butcher knife, Douglas County prosecutors say, Douglas County jury convicts woman in husband's stabbing death, Forecast | Shower and storms increase to finish the week. There was no evidence of a struggle or forced entry and the couples home left little clues as to what happened. First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Before joining Sills staff in 2012, he helped train police investigators in Iraq. He could have been shot, beaten or suffered some as-yet-unknown end. Sills said he didnt know if he would describe the conversation as promising, but anything is a step forward at this point.. Cloudy. A native Atlantan, Boone joined the AJC staff in 2007. His killer remains in prison, and people on the slayings periphery -- relatives, friends and others -- appear to have played no role in his parents deaths. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. OConnell told the judge hed be willing to put up his home to cover Hauflers bond. WebIn 2014, a successful, retired couple living on a beautiful lake in Georgia hadnt been heard from for multiple days in a row. The couple were married for 68 years and had four children and nine grandchildren. Sills said he believes he knows the answer. After several years in the fast food industry, in which Russell owned several Hardees restaurants in Atlanta, he retired in 1994. WebThe murders of Russell and Shirley Dermond are believed to have occurred four days before authorities ever knew that the unthinkable had happened. Support by joining KMH+ and by checking out our merch shop! The neighbors had hosted a Kentucky Derby party the previous Saturday, May 3. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. For every theory about the shooting death of an Ohio man by his friend inside the exclusive Reynolds Lake Oconee community, significant holes remain. The Together, they had three sons and a daughterand eventually, they would dote on nine grandchildren too. By boat, the spot lies some five miles from her home, in a wide bend above the Wallace Dam. Russell and Shirley Dermond were supposed to attend a Kentucky Derby Party on May 3, 2014, at a neighbors home. Russell and Shirley Dermond were last seen alive on May 1, 2014, while running errands. Forensic investigators said they found evidence as gunshot residue on his collar leading them to believe the head was taken to conceal ballistic evidence. They have led investigators to other parts of Georgia and out of state. In the years since, the Putnam County Sheriffs Office would re-interview several times hoping something new would emerge. 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. "What we need more than anything is for someone to call us and tell us who is responsible for this savagery," he said Friday. It weighs heavy on me, Sills said. Police discovered Russells headless body in the garage in between the couples two cars. Follow her on Twitter @JNJournalist and like her on Facebook to keep up with her latest work. That data was downloaded into a program the FBI has and they are assisting us in analyzing the data now. In May 2014, Shirley and Russell Dermond were killed. Submitted photo In 2014, Russell and Shirley Dermond were the victims of a brutal Lake Oconee murder that shocked the country. He said, Russell comes to him in his dreams, offering him clues about his death. But upon checking the house again days later, neighbors found one of them brutally slain in the garage, and the Perhaps, Sills says, but the usual things a burglar might steal -- televisions, jewelry, electronics -- were apparently not taken. Her husband was impressed with the handmade knife Dimos had given him while visiting in June. I try to keep the blinders off, because I dont want to get tunnel vision on any one person or any one theory. PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. - New evidence might reinvigorate the investigation into a chilling murder mystery that still haunts a Lake Oconee community eight years later. But four years after their brutal murders, Russell and Shirley Dermond's son believes its time to talk and hopefully break someone elses silence, uncovering a clue into who killed his parents in rural Putnam County, Ga. READ MORE: Putnam County murder mystery: Why the sheriff won't ask the GBI for help. So, if somebody does know something they have the responsibility of coming forward, even if its just a shred of information. 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. Federal Bureau of Investigation agents are assisting by analyzing the new evidence, the sheriff said. There have been 11 violent homicides in Macon this year, including five in February, Heres how to qualify for medical marijuana in Georgia, Pregnant woman shot in the head, Georgia cops say. His body was discovered by neighbors in the garage of the couples home. The Dermonds were expected to attend a party for the 2014 Kentucky Derby the following weekend with their neighbors, who grew concerned when the couple did not show up. It is not certain how Russ Dermond was killed, just that whatever caused his death was a traumatic head injury. [1], Russell Joseph Dermond, a native of Hackensack, New Jersey, served in the United States Navy during World War II. By using this website, you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices. The veteran sheriff said some of the evidence, including two towels found around the corpse of Russell Dermond, had been of value to them. They never showed up. Their murders would be Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sill's only cold case in his 48-year law enforcement career. He has passed up vacations, worked weekends and spent countless hours late at night trying to unearth a thread that leads to a suspect. Oh, my god.. Especially when someone was decapitated, the whereabouts of his head unknown. He told Wilfon that even eight years later, the family remains optimistic the case will get solved. WebPUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. There is new evidence in the murder of a Putnam County couple in their 80s. After working in the fast food industry, including owning several Hardee's locations in Atlanta, Russell retired in 1994. Im the sheriff of Putnam County, Georgia., Yeah, the woman said, youre the one with that case.. "I don't want to create the impression that I have acquired some silver bullet, but this is yet another tool we are using to find out who perpetrated these heinous crimes.". For seven years, the killings of Russell and Shirley Dermond at Lake Oconee have gone unsolved, the motive unknown and the culprit or culprits uncaught in a bizarre double slaying that has remained as baffling as it was heinous. The victims younger brother, Jeff Dimos, watched the proceedings Tuesday in silence, declining an interview request but offering a brief statement to the media mourning the passing of the father of six. As a Pulliam Fellowship recipient in 1991, Joe worked for the Indianapolis News. The new details came as the alleged killer, Chad Haufler was denied bond in Greene County, where hes been incarcerated since last Tuesday. WebBy Joe Kovac Jr. Not long ago, Sills was at a restaurant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, when a woman walked up and asked, Are you a police officer?, Yes, maam, he replied before emphasizing where. Joe is a Warner Robins native and graduate of Warner Robins High. This all came to a sudden end in May 2014 when a neighbor discovered Russell dead and Shirley missing. That said, it points out a daunting truth. Their front door was unlocked. Friends of the couple grew concerned. WebCheck out this great listen on Audible.com. There were no intruders, and after initially telling investigators he didnt know Dimos, Haufler eventually came clean. Looking at all the couples, they would have been the last you would have picked out, Key said. It would appear that there was a struggle and dad was trying to be protective of mom, Brad surmised. On Dec. 15, 1950, Shirley and Russell, a Navy veteran, tied the knot. Sills said they re-examined aspects of the case, as well as timelines to see whether some of the technology in place today might help going forward with the investigation. They know what theyre doing. Weighed down by a pair of 30-pound concrete blocks, her corpse bloated and surfaced facedown in 46 feet of water. Jessica Noll is a multimedia journalist, who focuses on in-depth, investigative crime/justice reports for 11Alive's digital platforms. Each of the Dermonds surviving children were interviewed by deputies about the case. (FOX 5). And, hes left at a loss all over againperplexed, because his parents, he said, had no dark side or secrets that would have resulted in their murders. [2] He married Shirley Wilcox on December 15, 1950. Mrs. (Jessica Noll / WXIA), Brad Dermond cherishes photos, like above, with his mom, Shirley Dermond. There's no way one person did this," he said. The sheriff has previously called Russell's beheading the most frustrating homicide in his career, and nearly a decade later, he has not given up on the murder investigation that has shaken the neighborhood that surrounds Lake Oconee. Arora suggested the two men tussled before the violence escalated. Nor any suspects. The body of Shirley Dermond was found weighed down in Lake Oconee on May 16, 2014. His stories have appeared in the Washington Post, the Seattle Times and Atlanta Magazine. Howard Sills, Putnams homegrown, two-decade sheriff, knows the area as well as anyone. The two were both New Jersey natives, who relocated to Georgia in the 1980s so that Russell could manage a chain of Hardee restaurants in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Though Sills declined to elaborate, he mentioned the sighting of a potential suspect outside the Dermond house at 147 Carolyn Drive. "That person with that little sliver of knowledge would come forward at this point lives -- (that would be) very much appreciated with our family," their son said. Seconds later, at his wifes side, she asked, Did you find both of them?. The Dermonds were living an idyllic life in retirement. They were just really down-to-earth.. This story was originally published May 5, 2021, 5:00 AM. New Details On The Unsolved Murder Of The Georgia Couple, Somebody knows. Russell's decapitated body was found on the floor of his two-car garage, lying in a small pool of blood. At this point, maybes are about all the sheriff and his investigators have when it comes to potential culprits. If theres somebody whos going to get this thing solved, its going to be him.. The elderly couple, who lived in the affluent gated community of Great Waters at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Putnam County, was brutally slain sometime over the weekend of the Kentucky Derby in May 2014. Its very hard to catch somebody when you dont even know their motive. Ten days later, Shirley Dermonds body surfaced near where two men were fishing in a boat on the lake, just inside Greene County. 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