FL FL - Derek Anthony Windler, 38, Homosassa, Vehicle Found Abandoned, 27 AUG 2023

[megs1477]

According to the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, Derek Anthony Windler was reported missing to CCSO on Aug. 29, 2023.

“Windler is a 38-year-old white male, 5 feet 4 inches tall, 120 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes. He last made contact with his family around 2 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 27,” the report says.

Windler has many tattoos, including angel wings on his upper back and “Dyana” tattooed on his neck.

He usually wears a hat backwards.

https://www.facebook.com/100064711267180/posts/700891138744589

On the morning of Thursday, Aug. 27, Derek Windler told his family he was going fishing in Ozello and possibly a few other places.

But no one has seen or heard from him since then, said longtime friend Jennifer Linaje.

“His truck was found off Homosassa Trail, but he wasn’t,” she said. “I know his heart; I know the relationship he had with his mom and sister – his sister is his life. He would never do this to them or his son.

Derek Windler: Man missing since Aug. 27

On the morning of Thursday, Aug. 27, Derek Windler told his family he was going fishing in Ozello and possibly a few other places.

www.chronicleonline.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Derek Windler: Man missing since Aug. 27
On the morning of Thursday, Aug. 27, Derek Windler told his family he was going fishing in Ozello and possibly a few other places

0917 Chronicle week in review: No to ALA membership, Halls River Road request, still no buyer for Betz farm and post-hurricane helpers

Some of the most popular stories of the week

www.chronicleonline.com

 

[tarabull]

...where is Derek???

 

[tarabull]

Derek Windler ‘missing man’ update

It’s been three months since anyone has heard from 38-year-old Derek Anthony Windler, and his family wants answers.

www.chronicleonline.com

 

[c@tw0man]

Crystal River man still missing three months later

Monday marked the third month in a missing Citrus County man’s disappearance.

www.wfla.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“You know he might have had some issues in the past,” Deb Evans said. “But he wouldn’t leave his son.”

Evans said she last spoke with her son on Aug. 26.

“10:30 at night and he was home and he was listening to music and he was fine,” she said.

The next morning, Evans said, his girlfriend who lived with him in Crystal River called to say they had broken up.

“She messaged me a few more times that day asking if I heard from him,” Evans recalled. “I said no.”

So far the only break in this missing person case is when deputies found Windler’s black GMC Sierra truck in Homosassa in early September.

“Do you worry something bad may have happened to him?” News Channel 8 asked Evans.

“I suspect foul play, of course,” she said.

‘He wouldn’t leave his son’: Missing Citrus County man’s mother desperate for answers 3 months after his disappearance

CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — The Citrus County Sheriff’s Office is trying to figure out what happened to a 38-year-old father who vanished three months ago. Derek Windler’s mom filed the miss…

www.wfla.com

 

[c@tw0man]

There is not enough information in these reports, what are they holding back? Where exactly was his truck located, had it been sitting for a while? What was found with his truck, were the keys or his phone in it, was his fishing equipment still there? Is his truck picked up on any video cams along the route, or had he been in a conflict with anyone recently? Did they impound the truck and check it for evidence? No stops for gas or snacks on the way?
I notice coverage is minimal, has his family been involved and talking to the media?
I read th info on the domestic violence site under his name, and realized it is all about other people, not Derek.
I feel it should be taken down, I did not discern that their comments are about Derek, at all.

 

[Wjay]

This is a case, Also from Citrus County Fl, which is similar, and about a year before.

Mother hoping for new clues in December 2022 disappearance of 34-year-old Timothy Braddy in Florida

Timothy was last seen on December 10 in Citrus County, Florida. Days later, his car was found abandoned in Hernando County, Florida.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

Was his last contact with his mother via a phone call or text? If text, perhaps, it was someone else texting on his phone, pretending to be him. I find it suspicious that his girlfriend says they broke up, and he then goes missing with is abandoned vehicle found. I strongly suspect foul play; however, that's my speculation.

JMO.

 

[c@tw0man]

https://www.facebook.com/100064711267180/photos/700891098744593

 

[mlhenn]

Derek Anthony Windler – The Charley Project

Last updated January 12, 2025; casefile added.

Details of Disappearance​

Windler was last seen in Crystal River, Florida on August 27, 2023. The previous evening, he had spoken to his mother on the phone; he was home and listening to music and seemed fine.

The next morning, Windler's live-in girlfriend called his mother to say that they had had a five-hour argument by text message and she did not know where he was. His last text to her was at 3:30 a.m. on August 27, and he sent a text to another person at around the same time. Windler's girlfriend repeatedly contacted his mother asking if she'd heard from him, but his mother hadn't. He has never been heard from again. His family reported him missing on August 29.

Winkler's black 2005 GMC Sierra pickup truck with the Florida license plate number PIEE54 was seen traveling south on U.S. 19 at 3:30 a.m. and 6:45 a.m.; it was photographed by license plate readers. At 3:30 a.m., the bed of the truck was empty, but by 6:45, the bed had several items on it, including Windler's dirt bike.

A week later, Windler's black 2005 GMC Sierra pickup truck with the Florida license plate number PIEE54 was found abandoned near a homeless camp off Homosassa Trail in Homosassa, Florida. Most of Windler's belongings were inside it, but the following items were missing: a dash camera, a laptop computer, a tent, a bluetooth speaker, a large white claw umbrella, his son's blue minibike, and other miscellaneous items.

Windler's family believes he may have started using methamphetamine prior to his disappearance and may have not been in his right mind as a result. His mother stated she did not believe he would have abandoned his son, and she thinks foul play was involved in his case. His disappearance remains unsolved.

 

[mlhenn]

• 
• 
• 
• 

Windler, circa 2023; Winkler's tattoos

Derek Anthony Windler – The Charley Project

 

[mlhenn]

Additional tattoos

• 
• 
• 
• 

Derek Anthony Windler – The Charley Project

 

[LongTimeChinaTime]

Hi guys just stopped by to post after reviewing this case.

I am a 40 year old man, close in age to Windler. I have a history of ADHD and meth abuse but haven’t touched it since 2020, and I receive psych care.

My main reason for posting is to share that, especially in more advanced stages of my years of use, meth would sometimes cause me to A: wander or travel aimlessly and/or B: inadvertently shed or abandon important personal belongings as I went. This was especially true if I was at loose ends.

When very high I would enter states of delirium even if not psychotic, and while each person varies in their behavior when on meth, I might wander looking for sex or more meth, and sometimes I would enter wooded areas or forests with no plan, even at night. I would get tangled and scraped up in bramble bushes in the night. Sometimes I would arrange internet hookups and then travel by car or public transport, but because of the meth I would get lost and travel aimlessly, usually by way of sleep deprivation. It wouldn’t be evident that it could cause me to become delirious in the first couple days of a run, that trait wouldn’t set in until 3+ days of sleep deprivation (unless it was a very high dose) usually.

In shedding belongings and wandering I would cut myself off from means to contact loved ones.

By reporting this I encourage his loved ones to expand search by way of NAMUS for example, to a very very wide radius, this guy could be ANYWHERE given the potential circumstances. The way the drugs affected me isn’t the same for everyone but it does show the stuff has the potential to cause a dementia-like delirium while intoxicated. Foul play is still a strong potential I agree, but I just thought it important to share my experience.

Lastly I will point out that as a recovering meth user, once I make it to 60-90 days clean, my odds of relapsing anytime soon go way down for a couple years but then around 2-3 years the odds of relapse start going back up again with time either because I get worn down from the grind, because of the low dopamine ADHD part, and because the memories of all the traumatic trouble begin to fade. Psych treatment makes life easier and more pleasant but doesn’t fully erase the pathology of meth use nor completely eliminate risk of occupational burnout.

God Bless
LongTimeChinaTime.

 

[Caring1]

Derek’s NamUs.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov