Who were Russell and Shirley Dermond? New DNA evidence may solve cold case of Georgia couple found dead almost a decade ago
PUTNAM COUNTY, GEORGIA: The mystery related to the cold case murder of a couple who were found with one decapitated and the other dumped in a lake could be a step closer to being solved after almost close to a decade.
In early May 2014, Russell and Shirley Dermond were murdered in Great Waters Reynolds at Lake Oconee, a gated community in Putnam County, Georgia.
Russell, 88, was last seen alive on May 1, 2014, out running errands in nearby Eatonton. He and Shirley, 87, spoke to their son Brad on the phone later that day and they were looking forward to attending a party the following weekend for the 2014 Kentucky Derby with their neighbors. However, concerns grew after the old couple failed to turn up for the event.
When was the gruesome crime discovered?
A neighbor went over to their house to check on them on May 6 where they found the door unlocked and discovered the horrifying crime scene.
Russell was found beheaded, lying in a small pool of blood on the floor of the garage with his head nowhere to be found, The Mirror reports.
Police arrived at the scene and weren't able to find Shirley inside the house, initially believing she had been kidnapped. But, tragically, her body was found by fishermen in Lake Oconee.
It seemed as if someone had tried to weigh her body down to avoid her being discovered. An autopsy found she had died from two or three deep wounds to the head from a blunt object.
Why was Russell Dermond beheaded?
As gunshot residue was found on Russell's collar, Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills said that he thinks the loving husband, who married Shirley in 1950, had been decapitated after being shot in the head in an attempt to stop police from finding the bullet.
The sheriff also initially believed multiple people were involved in the brutal murders.
New DNA evidence discovered
In May 2023, new DNA evidence was discovered which could lead police to the killer. Sheriff Sill told WSB-TV he had submitted evidence to a DNA lab operation called Othram which discovered new DNA.
"We continue to try new things. We had something. Whether that's going to evolve into something else, I don't know," said Sheriff Sills, adding "At this point in time, there has to be some more analysis done."
The sheriff also explained, "There has to be an additional test done to what's been developed so far and whether or not that is potentially enough to run it through CODIS."
It is unclear if the DNA could be linked to a killer
Despite the new DNA being discovered, it's unclear whether it could even belong to the killer. "We have some potential DNA that may or may not be identifiable. And it could still be the Dermonds", Sheriff Sills said.