TN - John Smith South Jr., 54, Mountain City, Tennessee, 12/18/1998

[spartanx]

John Smith South Jr.​

• 
• 
• 
• 

South, circa 1998

• Missing Since12/18/1998
• Missing FromMountain City, Tennessee
• ClassificationEndangered Missing
• SexMale
• RaceWhite
• Age54 years old
• Height and Weight6'0, 210 pounds
• Medical ConditionsSouth suffers from health problems due to exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam.
• Associated Vehicle(s)White 1985 or 1989 Subaru Justy hatchback with a cracked left taillight and the Tennessee license plate number 292-EJW
• Distinguishing CharacteristicsCaucasian male. Brown hair, brown/green eyes. South's nickname is Junior.

Details of Disappearance​

South was last seen in Mountain City, Tennessee on December 18, 1998. His daughters and granddaughter had plans to visit him that day and help him put up his Christmas tree, but when they arrived, South's car wasn't in the driveway and the house was deserted. The doors were unlocked, as they usually were, and the wood stove, the only source of heat in the house, was cold.

His daughters learned that South had gone to work that day, then gone home, where he left his tool belt. He drove his car, a white 1985 or 1989 Subaru Justy hatchback with a cracked left taillight and the Tennessee license plate number 292-EJW, to the bar and was seen by several friends there.

No one is sure when he left the bar and he apparently never arrived home. He has never been heard from again. His vehicle has never been recovered. He is missing under suspicious circumstances and foul play is suspected in his case.

South is a Vietnam War veteran. His case remains unsolved.

Investigating Agency​

• Johnson County Sheriff's Department 423-727-7761

Source Information​

• The Doe Network
• The Mountain City Tomahawk
• NamUs
• NBC News

 

[spartanx]

I have the impression that this man had depression... for many years... the war and post-traumatic stress in addition to exposure to Agent Orange... which affects at a congenital level and causes cancer... perhaps he had or had been diagnosed with cancer and did not want to tell anyone so as not to bother or worry... I think he is in some deep body of water never to be found again...
whatever the case
rest in peace