FBI offers $20K reward in decade-old Dermond murder mystery after new DNA evidence found
Russell and Shirley Dermond (Family photos)
PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. - The FBI is offering a $20,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the decade-old gruesome murder of Russell and Shirley Dermond.
This comes less than a week after Putnam County investigators announced they found new DNA evidence that may link them to the couple's killer or killers.
What happened to Russell and Shirley Dermond?
Back in May 2014, Russell Dermond was found dead in his carport at his home in the Greater Waters subdivision of Lake Oconee. His head was severed from his body.
His wife Shirley was located 10 days later. Someone tossed her body into the lake miles away. Concrete blocks weighed her down.
Russell, Shirley Dermond: New DNA evidence may lead to killer(s)
Last week, Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills sent clothing from the crime scenes to labs in Texas and Utah.
Those labs found DNA on the items that the sheriff said did not belong to the couple.
"Whoever did this committed two very brutal crimes," Sills said. "One was a certain element of depravity."
Sills told FOX 5 that investigators were still looking into whether the killer or killers left behind any evidence without knowing it. He said it's called "Touch DNA."
"That’s the DNA that you leave behind when you touch something," he explained.
If you have any information concerning the death of Russell Joseph Dermond and Shirley Wilcox Dermond, please contact the FBI's Atlanta Field Office at 770-216-3000, or the Putnam County Sheriff's Office at 706-485-8557. You can also contact the nearest American Embassy or Consulate, or submit a tip online.