GA GA - Gerald "Scott" Weathers, 62, missing from near his home, Augusta, 27 Feb 2024

[Rush4087]

I am a social worker by profession with about 25 years experience working mainly with adults with serious mental illness and substance abuse issues. I haven't seen or heard it all yet but I might be close. I'm officially retired but this situation needs rectifying if that's possible. You might have the questions that need asking or the ones that I didn't think of.

Part 1

Did Scott have any ex’s?
Did he have any children?

You said Scott was living with his SO (significant other) and then later referred to her as his wife. Were they in fact legally married?

In what way (generally speaking) was Scott’s wife disabled? (as it might pertain to Scott’s disappearance)
How long had they been married?
Was she disabled when they got married?
How would you characterize their relationship?
Do you know if she been diagnosed as being bipolar, or having schizophrenia or any personality disorder that might have put Scott or anybody close to her in any physical danger?

You said his niece was living with Scott and his wife (at 2151) at the time.
Was she one of Scott’s sibling’s children or one of his wife’s sibling’s children?
Was Scott’s niece a stable person? Did she have a job or source of income? In your opinion did she have any mental health issues, addiction issues, conflicts with Scott or others?

Did either Scott or his wife or his niece own a gun?
Did Scott’s wife or niece have any history of being abusive or violent towards Scott? Towards others?

Did Scott get along with his brothers?
How many brothers did he have (I think I read the names of 3 from his sister’s obit in ‘07, and I know you mentioned a Jeff)?

Was Scott in any relationships outside his marriage?

You mentioned that you and one of his brothers had wondered if maybe Scott had gotten into crack. Where did this suspicion come from?
Did Scott have addiction problems other than alcohol?
Did he ever use prostitutes?
Did Scott have a significant criminal history / record other than the multiple DUI’s back several years ago? (How many years ago?)
Were there any accidents involved in any of his DUI’s? (and if so, was anybody hurt or killed?)

Did Scott have any convictions for buying or selling drugs?
Any violent offenses?
Had he spent any significant amount of time in jail for anything other than the DUI’s?

What was Scott doing at 2159 on the 27th (besides drinking a 40 oz beer)? Couldn’t have been watching TV w/no cable..
Did the house have wifi?
If the house had wifi, did LE look to see if any other device had been using the network in the hours just before and just after the 1:00am text?

Was Scott there to repair something or work on a project for you? If so, was it typical for him to be “working” that late at night?
Was part of his caretaker job for you also “house sitting”?
How often did he usually go by the house?
Who, besides you and Scott, had keys to the house?
Did Scott have pusessuin of the keys, or were the keys kept in some hiding spot outside the house?
If kept in a hiding spot, who might’ve known the location of the hiding spot?
Did Scott ever have people over to the house (2159)? Any parties?

Did anybody actually see Scott at 2159 on the 27th (or early am 28th I suppose)?

Did he tell you he was going to be there on the 27th? If so, from what time to what time? (ie, were you surprised to learn that he had been there - and been there as late as 1:00am on the 28th)?

Did he tell anybody else he was going to be there? His wife? His niece? A brother? A nephew? A friend? Anybody?

What time did he first arrive at the house on the 27th?
Is there a chance he had been spending a lot of time at the house on a daily basis? Was he living there (while his wife and niece lived at 2151)?
Had anybody been at the house with him that night - or had he been in the house alone possibly working
If he was not working on something or some project for you, what else could he have been doing besides drinking that beer and smoking a cigarette or two (there was no TV right, you said you hadn't paid cable bill)?

I assume Scott had a phone.
I assume the phone is missing (you mentioned he did not typically or use or activate location / find-my features)
I assume he used the phone to send the text at 1:00am on the 28th?
Who did he send the text to (wife? niece? other?)
Was there a land line at the house?
Did LE determine if the Scott’s phone was ever used for any calls or messaging after the 1:00am text?
What did the text say (specifically)?
Was there any response to the text?
Was the text received / read by the intended recipient that night (early am), or not until the next morning?

Was LE able to determine a location (or tower) at which the phone last pinged? Or went dead? If so, was it somewhere other than the tower that would correspond to 2159?

If the text occurred at 1:00 on the 28th, why is it reported in media that Scott went missing on the 27th?
Who actually saw Scott last?

Had Scott been in communication (using his phone) with anybody else in the preceding, say, 8 hours? (preceding the 1:00 am text)
Did LE look into those communications and interview those involved?
If Scott did communicated with others in that approx 8 hour period, do you (or did LE) think any person he communicated with might’ve had anything to do with his disappearance?

(To be continued)

All jmo, questions, speculation

 

[Rush4087]

Part 2

The fact that there was a nearly full 40 oz can of beer and cigarettes left at the house is certainly unusual. Were the beer and the cigarettes left near the back of the house, in the middle? the front?

The just opened beer would seem to indicate that Scott was interrupted by something.

Since the back sliding door was open, maybe something distracted him or somebody “came around” the back?
Was it okay for Scott to smoke inside the house, or would he have had to go outside (out back) to smoke a cig?
Did Scott typically use the back door as his entry / exit to the house (accessing from from Welsh Lane side, at least as often as from Ellis)?
Do you think Scott ever utilized the back entry of the house to avoid being seen entering the house by his wife or others / neighbors?

Were any “visitors” known to prefer using the back door?

It appears that the house is surrounded by a black chain link fence. Is that new, or was it like that when Scott disappeared?
On the Ellis side, there is a double wide fence gate, but there does not appear to be room for a car to drive or park alongside the house.dud the gate simply stay locked, or did Scott use this gate to access the property?
I know that Scott did not have a vehicle and would typically just walk from 2151, but was there ever a vehicle of any kind parked behind 2159?
Is that (the back dirt drive) the way somebody with a vehicle would typically drive up to, and park at 2159 (from Welsh Lane rather than parking along the street on Ellis)?

Based on where the beer and cigarettes were located, would Scott have been able to see if a car’s headlights pulled up out back (from Welsh)?

Did Scott get along with all of his neighbors? Any conflicts near either house?

Were there any signs of a struggle inside the house or out back?

There appears to be a gable roof area in the back left of the house, and then either a deck or a slab on the back right. I assume, given the time of year, Scott would’ve been drinking his beer inside the house - vs out on that back deck/patio..

I’ve read that the cctv at 2159 was down due to to cable bill not being current, but did LE check neighbors houses on both Ellis and Welsh to see if there were any comings and goings recorded on cctv from roughly 8 hours before 1:00am on the the 28th until a few hours after?

You mentioned you thought Scott may have disappeared (somebody might’ve picked him up) from “out front” on Ellis. Why not from the back, on Welsh?

Had the house been broken into before? Were break-ins common given the nearby homeless and “open drug market” areas - as well as Olmstead Homes?
Were there any valuables in the house that anybody might’ve known about? Any weapons?
Did Scott know or was he known to associate with any of the homeless in the many small church and homeless assistance areas on Broad (areas like Heart for Homeless)?
Were there any security cameras at any of those locations? If so, did LE review those?

I have a hard time believing that Scott willingly got into a vehicle either in front or behind the house. As a former drinker and smoker, if I were going somewhere for more than 5 minutes I would’ve brought both my beer and my cigs with me. You mentioned crack (or crack house?)? I especially think he would not head to such a place without bringing the beer he was working on and his cigarettes. I don’t think Scott left willingly if it was for more than a minute or two

Where did Scott get the beer? Would there have typically been beer in the house?
Had he consumed other beers before starting the 40 oz (were there empties in the trash can)? Was there any evidence that anybody had been there drinking beer with Scott?

If Scott had been at the house and left to go get a beer (or if he had purchased the beer on his way over, whenever that might have been), where would he have typically gone to buy a 40 oz beer? Kings? Mom & Pops?
Did LE check surveillance cameras at those two locations for the evening of the 27th?

Do you know if Scott had any significant (more than $10) cash on him?
Could somebody have seen him with cash at one of those two locations, and seeing that he was alone and on foot, followed him back to 2159?

One of the missing person articles mentioned that he sometimes frequented the 2000 block of Broad and the Rack & Grill on Riverwatch Pkwy. What establishment was of interest to him in the 2000 block of Broad? Would he just “hang out” at an empty lot at that location, or did Scott know somebody there (it certainly is w/in walking distance to the houses on Ellis)? Had anybody at 2000 Broad seen Scott the night of the 27th? Did LE interview anybody at 2000 Broad about Scott’s disappearance?

How often was Scott at the Rack and Grill? It is located four and a half miles from the houses on in Ellis. When he would go Rack & Grill, would he just walk? There and back?
Take a bus? Did Scott use bus transportation often? Uber? Did LE check to see if he had used Uber that night (I guess that could be determined by looking at credit card records)
Who would Scott typically go to Rack & Grill with? Or would he just go to hang out? Did Scott have a “best friend”?
Did LE interview staff, or any group he would typically hang with at Rack & Grill?

If Scott owed 7k on credit cards, were any of his cards still usable? If his cc’s were no longer authorized, it was cash or nothing..

If Scott’s mother had just passed in December, would he have already (by late Feb) received his 2.5k from the estate?

Did Scott have any children?

Who knew (or maybe thought) that Scott had received this inheritance? Certainly his siblings would have known (also if it had disbursed yet). Others? (Again, any children?). Would his wife have known? Would his niece have known? Would his “best friend” have known?

Did Scott’s wife have any history of DV?

Was Scott’s niece (the one who was living with Scott and his wife) one of Scott’s sibling’s daughters, or one of his wife’s sibling’s daughters? Was she close to Scott’s wife? Was the niece really living there, or was she mostly homeless? Was she an addict? Did she have any history of DV?

What source of income, other than his wife’s disability, did Scott and his wife have? Was his wife of sound enough mind to manage her financial affairs?

Since you said Scott had not had a full time job for over 40 years, was he eligible to receive any social security? Was he receiving any social security?

If (IF) Scott had been “managing” the family finances (sounds like basically this would have been just his wife’s disability income), who would have be “managing” this income / finances for his wife in the future if something happened to Scott?

(To be con’t)

All jmo, speculation, questions

 

[Rush4087]

I’ve gotten the impression that both you and LE think that Scott went missing from 2159. Why is it not suspected that he went missing from 2151? Was his wife and / or niece up until well after the 1:00am text? What time did they report going to bed?

Did anybody own a vehicle (or have one parked) at 2151? The niece? A relative?

I assume you were renting 2151 to Scott and his wife. Were they current on their rent?
Again, other than his wife’s disability income, where was Scott getting his income? He obviously had very little money, but the credit cards were likely de-activated only in the last year or so, not 20 years ago. At one point in time Scott had been making cc payments. Do you think it’s possible that Scott’s source of income was from selling drugs?

How often were you in communication with Scott? Same question re: his siblings (if you know the answer)? What do you think Scott’s siblings think happened to him?

Since you were surprised by the condition of 2151 (when LE searched it when looking for Scott on 2/28) as Scott’s landlord, when was the last time you had been inside of the house? How long had Scott and his wife been living at the property?

I presume you and/or your family
were renting other houses on Ellis (2159). How long had 2159 been vacant before Scott’s disappearance? Did you have any difficulties with that tenant before they moved out? Was that tenant involved in any criminal activity? Could somebody have gone to 2159 looking for (perhaps seeking to harm) the previous tenant - not knowing that that tenant had already left?

It sounds like LE was at the 2159 house at 8:14 am on the 28th, just 7 hours after the text. Who reported Scott missing?
Why did they report him missing so soon? Did his wife become concerned that he had not yet returned home - and called Scott’s brother (just a guess)? If that’s not what happened, when did Scott’s brother (Jeff?) become aware that Scott was missing?

If it was Scott’s wife (or niece?) who first became concerned that Scott wasn’t home, would that have been typical (for them to be so alarmed, so soon) ? After all, Scott could have just fallen asleep in the sofa. I’m actually a little surprised that LE was willing to respond to the scene and take a missing person report for somebody who only had not returned home by 6:30 or 7:00 am after sending a text at 1:00am. Why was everybody so alarmed? What convinced LE that they should record a missing persons report so soon (an unfinished beer and an open back door hardly seems sufficient to cause such alarm)

Was the brother who was on scene at 2159 (Jeff?) the sibling who was closest to Scott? Did Scott get along with all of his siblings? When was the last time one of his siblings had been inside 2151? Would they not have been alarmed by the condition of the home’s interior? It sounds to me like Scott was not very much in the orbit of his other family members. Jmo

And, just an observation, not intended to offend, but in one of your posts you stated that Scott “treated our property with great respect”. yet this seems in contradiction with the condition of the house Scott and wife were renting from you when LE entered on 2/28.

Also, you posted that Scott was “very responsible when it came to his wife”. This too seems to be in contradiction to Scott’s own actions: the condition of the 2151 house (Scott was “unwilling or unable to clean the house”) - as well as the fact that he “hasn’t held a full time job for over twenty years”. I’m just trying to understand things better.

That’s all of the notes I had scribbled down the other night. Sorry if any questions might have already been answered or if some sent the brightest, or if some offend. Just trying to help find Scott.

I have a couple of theories re: what might be behind Scott’s disappearance. Both are related to money. I think there is a slim possibility that it was family related (so, who would benefit financially from Scott’s disappearance).

I think it is perhaps more likely that Scott’s disappearance was related to how he was earning money, so, in essence, a robbery-murder. I think it’s possible he may have briefly gotten into a car that had pulled up behind the 2159 house (from the Welsh side) thinking he would only be in the vehicle for a few minutes, and was then attacked once inside the car.

If I’m right, the only way we may ever know what happened to Scott is if somebody confesses to the crime, or somebody who knows what happened turns somebody else in.

All jmo, speculation, questions

 

[Caring1]

Maybe a long shot but a body has been found buried in a shallow grave under the 15th street bridge which appears to be only about 4 minutes from the Ellis St. address where Mr. Weathers was last seen.

May 21, 2025

The Richmond County Sheriff's Office is investigating following the discovery of a body on Tuesday buried in a shallow grave beneath the 15th Street Bridge at Riverwatch Parkway.

Authorities said they learned about the body at about 5 p.m. from a tip given to the sheriff's Homeless Operations Team.

Richmond County Sheriff's Office investigating body found buried beneath 15th Street Bridge

The body was discovered after a tip was given to the sheriff's Homeless Operations Team.

www.augustachronicle.com

 

[billscogg]

Maybe a long shot but a body has been found buried in a shallow grave under the 15th street bridge which appears to be only about 4 minutes from the Ellis St. address where Mr. Weathers was last seen.

View attachment 587637

May 21, 2025

The Richmond County Sheriff's Office is investigating following the discovery of a body on Tuesday buried in a shallow grave beneath the 15th Street Bridge at Riverwatch Parkway.

Authorities said they learned about the body at about 5 p.m. from a tip given to the sheriff's Homeless Operations Team.

Richmond County Sheriff's Office investigating body found buried beneath 15th Street Bridge

The body was discovered after a tip was given to the sheriff's Homeless Operations Team.

www.augustachronicle.com

Thanks for your reply.
I am somewhat optimistic about this development. The rumor mill says the body is male and has been there awhile. None of this is official yet and we won't know definitely until the autopsy is done. I'm waiting on pins and needles for confirmation.

 

[Caring1]

New article states that the body found underneath the bridge in a shallow grave was a woman, Cindy Reese.

June 12, 2025

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – An arrest has been made in connection to a body that was found on a shallow grave on Riverwatch Parkway.

58-year-old Mitchell Perry Pelham was arrested Wednesday, June 11th, on a charge of Concealing Death in connection to the discovery of the body of 59-year-old Cindy Reese.

https://www.wjbf.com/csra-news/arrest-made-in-connection-to-body-found-in-shallow-grave-on-riverwatch-pkwy/