Deanna Shirey
Courtesy of WCTV:
By: WCTV Eyewitness News
July 6, 2018
THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WCTV) — Thomasville Police have identified a “person of interest” in the disappearance of 70-year-old Deanna Shirey.
Police say they are looking for 47-year-old Robert Carter in connection to a separate incident, but add that they “strongly believe” he is connected to Shirey’s case. Police say there are several warrants out for his arrest.
Police shared a photo of Carter from a previous arrest, but emphasized that he remains at large.
Police are currently on the scene at Carter’s residence at 428 Colton Avenue, less than three miles from Shirey’s home in Thomasville. Crime scene tape has been put up in the area.
Thomasville Police say they are attempting to locate Carter and believe he may be driving a stolen 2007 white Toyota Tacoma with Georgia tag “AJN1924”. Police say Carter is accused in an aggravated assault in Thomasville on Thursday night and was last seen driving the stolen vehicle around 5 a.m. Friday.
We’ve also learned that Carter is a registered sex offender, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He was convicted of aggravated child molestation back in 2001.
Anyone with information on Carter’s whereabouts is asked to call police immediately.
By: WCTV Eyewitness News
July 6, 2018
THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WCTV) — The Thomasville Police Department says a large search party of law enforcement officers is assembling to continue the search on Friday for missing local woman, 70-year-old Deanna Shirey.
The group is set to canvas a larger area around Shirey’s home on Glenwood Drive in Thomasville this morning.
Family members have not heard from Shirey since Sunday. Shirey’s car was then found abandoned in Tallahassee on Tuesday.
Shirey is 5’05” tall, and has brown hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information on Shirey’s whereabouts is asked to call Thomasville Police at (229) 226-2101, or the Tallahassee Police Department at (850) 891-4200.
By: WCTV Eyewitness News
July 5, 2018
THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WCTV) — The family of missing Thomasville woman Deanna Shirey has released a statement regarding her disappearance.
The family’s full statement can be seen below.
“First we would like to thank the Thomasville Police Department Georgia Bureau of investigation and Tallahassee Police Department for the tireless work and helping to find our mom. Second we would like to thank the friends and business people who have stepped up to help her family in this time of need. It is no wonder why mom loves living here in Thomasville!We ask that everyone please take a look at the photo of mom, pass it on, show your friends and neighbors. A lot of you know her from Publix where she worked. Someone out there knows something. We have not heard from Deanna since Sunday night and no one has seen her here in town since Sunday.If you have any information on her or if you have seen her in the last three days we beg you to contact the Thomasville police department. Mom is in need of her heart medication, which she has not had since Sunday. Our family is in need of our mother. We know that she would never leave like this and not tell us where she was going. There has never been any sign of Alzheimer’s or mental illness to indicate this type of behavior. Our mom is a gentle loving person who would help someone in a heartbeat she loves her family friends doing puzzles and horseback riding.
Please help us bring Deanna Shirey home safe.
Deanna’s children:
Nick and Paula Abiusi, Rick and Mandy Ramos, Michele Gooch.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the Tallahassee Police Department at (850) 891-4200.
By: Aubrey Brown | WCTV Eyewitness News
Updated – July 5, 2018
THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WCTV) — Authorities in North Florida and South Georgia continue to search for a missing Thomasville woman, but officials say there are no new leads.
Thursday, Thomasville police were back at the home of 70-year-old Deanna Shirey, this time with a team of canines and plans to search a wider area around the house.
Shirey was reported missing Tuesday after officers with the Thomasville Police Department were called to her home for a welfare check.
Officers say no one answered the door at Shirey’s home on Glenwood Drive Monday, but her car was in the driveway. When officers returned Tuesday morning, her vehicle was gone.
The car was found Tuesday in Tallahassee’s Frenchtown neighborhood. Her personal belongings were still inside.
The Tallahassee Police Department roped off a section of Georgia Street near Carter Howell Strong Park for nearly three hours as they collected evidence. Several K-9 teams also searched the area.
Officials say Shirey has no known relatives in the Tallahassee area.
Shirey is 5’05” tall, and has brown hair and brown eyes. Family members say they last heard from her on Sunday.
She is retired but has a part-time position at the Thomasville Publix. She was scheduled to be at work Wednesday.
A Publix spokesman says the company is just hopeful that she’ll be found unharmed.
Law enforcement continues to process evidence in Thomasville and Tallahassee.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Tallahassee Police Department at (850) 891-4200.
By: Aubrey Brown | WCTV Eyewitness News
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) — Authorities in North Florida and South Georgia are continuing to search for a missing Thomasville woman, but officials say there are no leads.
70-year-old Deanna Shirey was reported missing Tuesday after officers with the Thomasville Police Department were called to her home for a welfare check Monday evening.
TPD says no one answered the door at Shirey’s home on Glenwood Drive, but her car was in the driveway. When officers returned Tuesday morning, her vehicle was gone. Shirey reportedly lives alone.
Thomasville Police say Shirey’s car was found Tuesday morning in Tallahassee’s Frenchtown neighborhood. Her personal belongings were still inside the vehicle.
The Tallahassee Police Department roped off a section of Georgia Street near Carter Howell Strong Park for nearly three hours as they collected evidence. Several K-9 teams also searched the area.
Officials say Shirey has no known relatives in the Tallahassee area.
Law enforcement is continuing to process evidence in Thomasville and Tallahassee.
TPD says if no leads are developed Wednesday, the police department will make plans Thursday on how to move forward with the investigation. Police say the next step could include returning to Shirey’s home to canvas a wider area, as they have only checked the house and the immediate area around it.
Shirey is 5’05” tall, and has brown hair and brown eyes. Family members say they last heard from her on Sunday.
Shirey is retired but has a part-time position at a grocery store. She was scheduled to be at work Wednesday.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Tallahassee Police Department at (850) 891-4200.
By: Alex Crescenti | WCTV Eyewitness News
July 3, 2018
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) — Authorities in Thomasville and Tallahassee are at a standstill and have no idea where 70-year-old Deanna Shirey could be at this time.
“A lot of police came over there, they had the whole area roped off,” said Leroy Johnson, describing the scene by Carter Howell Strong Park Tuesday morning.
When he woke up, police asked him if he knew how long Deanna Shirey’s red Honda CRV had been outside the house.
“From 10 to 11 that’s when we woke up and that’s when we seen all the officers and police and stuff,” said Johnson.
Other neighbors don’t recall seeing the vehicle the night before.
“We told the police we go to bed about 10 so we don’t know,” said Flora Johnson.
In Thomasville, detectives continued their search for the missing woman at the home where police were called for a welfare check days before, but there were still no answers.
“You have an individual whose car is located at a different place so there’s something there that we need answers to and until we investigate it we won’t have it,” said Capt. Maurice Holmes of the Thomasville Police Department.
Some say Shirey’s disappearance is a reminder you have to keep your eyes open at all times.
“You can’t let nothing pass you by without saying, ‘well what’s going on’ or something,” said Rosetta Mckinnon.
For Leroy, he says this type of story is disheartening and he hopes she is found safe.
“It makes you feel sad when someone, a family member’s missing, and you hope for the best. Hope everything is alright with them,” said Johnson.
Tallahassee and Thomasville Police are urging anyone with any information regarding Shirey’s whereabouts to give them a call.
By: Lanetra Bennett I WCTV Eyewitness News
July 3, 2018
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) — Authorities in Thomasville and Tallahassee are searching for a missing woman, 70-year-old Deanna Shirey.
Shirey lives in Thomasville.
Police say her car was found abandoned in Tallahassee. The dark red Honda SUV was parked along Georgia Street near Carter-Howell-Strong Park.
People who live in the area say all of a sudden they saw a lot of police officers. They soon realized the investigators’ focus was on the small SUV.
Investigators with the Tallahassee Police Department were on the scene for several hours Tuesday. A police dog was also on scene searching the SUV, some yards and the area around park’s pond.
The detectives went through the SUV. They placed items from the vehicle into brown evidence bags.
Leroy Johnson lives nearby. He says he and his wife first noticed the SUV around 11:00 Tuesday morning.
“That’s when we seen all the officers and police and everybody was out there where the car was. You hope for the best. You hope everything is alright,” he said.
Johnson says he and his wife went to bed around 9:30 p.m. last night. They don’t recall seeing the SUV outside then. He says they didn’t see anyone driving the SUV or anything fishy about it.
After authorities processed the scene, a tow truck hauled the SUV off around 2:15 p.m. Tuesday afternoon and the scene was cleared.
Shirey is 5’05” tall, and has brown hair and brown eyes. Family members say they last heard from her on Sunday.
By: WCTV Eyewitness News
July 3, 2018
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) — Authorities in Thomasville and Tallahassee are searching for a missing woman, 70-year-old Deanna Shirey.
Shirey is 5’05” tall, and has brown hair and brown eyes. Family members say they last heard from her on Sunday.
The Thomasville Police Department says Shirey’s car was found Tuesday morning in Tallahassee’s Frenchtown neighborhood. Her personal belongings were still inside.
Tallahassee Police roped off a section of Georgia Street near Carter Howell Strong Park for nearly three hours as they collected evidence and took photographs of the burgundy-colored Honda. It had a Georgia tag on the back and a custom tag on the front that said “Ms. D” with red roses.
Several K-9 teams also scoured the area. One K-9 team searched the yard of what appears to be an abandoned house across the street and another K-9 team circled the holding pond nearby.
Shirey resides in Thomasville and officials say she has no known relatives in the Tallahassee area.
Thomasville Police say officers stopped by Shirey’s Glenwood Drive residence on Monday evening for a welfare check and no one answered the door, but her car was in the driveway. Then, when they returned Tuesday morning, her vehicle was gone, but the home’s windows and doors were locked and secured.
Crime scene tape has been put up around the home and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation has responded to the scene.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Tallahassee Police Department at (850) 891-4200.
(WCTV)
