Found Safe KY - Michelle Marie Newton, 3, Louisville, 2 Apr 1983 *found safe 2025* *mother charged for kidnapping*

[Mysteries1974]

Wow, in this December 13 article,
"At some point, Debra Newton took on a new identity and became Sharon Nealy.
At the time of her arrest, she identified her spouse as Reggie Nealy and provided law enforcement with his cell phone number. She listed him as her “next of kin.” Reggie and Sharon Nealy purchased their home in The Villages in 2013."
Debra/Sharon's spouse is a decorated USMC veteran with a career in law enforcement, and Debra/Sharon use the email address mrscrimefighter@msn.com

Mother in missing daughter case found new life with revered Villager - Villages-News.com

The above article also links to this 2018 profile on her husband, which provides some useful background information on her. She and he lived in / near Philadelphia, where she was working at Wells Fargo. They relocated to Charlotte, NC for her job with Wells Fargo, bought a second home in The Villages in 2013 and then eventually relocated.
Villager known for work with Marine Corps League enjoyed long career in law enforcement work - Villages-News.com

That part blows my mind because banks require extensive background checks, including fingerprinting, for their employees, and most do periodic refreshes of those background checks, too. This wasn't some lady who vanished with her daughter after a divorce and stayed off the grid for years!

So if Debra disappeared with the help of some rogue church group led by Michael D. Hartmann, I wonder if she defected from this cult at some point after kidnapping Michelle and met her husband after all of it? I wonder if her husband knew of her past or that she was a wanted fugitive?

 

[lisette]

So if Debra disappeared with the help of some rogue church group led by Michael D. Hartmann, I wonder if she defected from this cult at some point after kidnapping Michelle and met her husband after all of it? I wonder if her husband knew of her past or that she was a wanted fugitive?

Where can I find this information on this Michael D Hartmann helping her?

 

[Mysteries1974]

A Timeline of the Michelle Newton Case:

October 5, 1979 - Michelle Marie Newton is born to Joseph “Joe” Newton and Debra Leigh Curry Newton.

April 2, 1983 - Debra takes three year old Michelle after telling Joe that she got a new job offer in Georgia and was moving there. He planned to meet them there but when he arrived, he couldn’t find his wife or daughter. They disappeared without a trace. The disappearance was allegedly orchestrated by a rogue church group led by a Mr. Michael Hartmann.

1983-1985 - Debra calls Joe for a final time at some point between 1984 and 1985. After they vanished, Debra attempted to file for divorce from Joe on grounds of desertion. She told her attorney that she and Michelle were abandoned by him at a Holiday Inn. He dropped the case once he found out that Michelle was considered missing and Debra was wanted on custodial interference charges. Joe is given full custody of Michelle in 1985.

May 3, 1985 - A felony warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was issued against Debra by the FBI

2000 - The case against Debra was dismissed and the search is discontinued when Joseph Newton could not be located.

2005 - A bogus call is made to NCMEC from a person identifying themselves as a detective from the Louisville PD claiming that Michelle had been located safe. This resulted in Michelle being removed from all missing persons databases.

2015 - Family members request that the Louisville PD reexamine Michelle’s case since she had not truly been located.

2016 - Michelle's kidnapping case is reopened and Debra is re-indicted for custodial interference in connection with her daughter’s abduction.

2021 - Michelle's case is added back to all missing persons databases and NCMEC creates a new age progression to show how she might look at age 42.

2025 - Crime stoppers receive a tip that Debra is living in Marion County, Florida under the name “Sharon.” She took on a new identity, remarried, started a new life, and retired to The Villages in Piedmont with her husband. A DNA test showed the woman is a 99% match to Debra’s sister, proving she is in fact Debra.

November 24, 2025 - Debra is arrested by Marion County authorities while she is walking her dog in her neighborhood. The entire time, she acts confused and says she doesn’t understand why she’s being taken into custody.

Nov-Dec 2025 - Michelle is located safely living under a different name. She was completely unaware of the fact she was considered a missing child and had no idea she had family searching for her. She was flown to Kentucky to reunite with her father and other relatives.

December 6, 2025 - Debra chooses night to fight extradition and voluntarily waives extradition back to the state of Kentucky. She appeared in court afterward, both Michelle and Joe were present

 

[Mysteries1974]

Where can I find this information on this Michael D Hartmann helping her?

I was told this by the original detective who started reexamining her case in 2015

 

[lisette]

It’s hard for me to believe that someone recognized her, simply from old pictures… she looks so different now. It must have been somebody who knew who she really was, and decided to turn her in.jmo

 

[Mysteries1974]

Where can I find this information on this Michael D Hartmann helping her?

I was told this by the original detective who started reexamining her case in 2015. I

A Timeline of the Michelle Newton Case:

October 5, 1979 - Michelle Marie Newton is born to Joseph “Joe” Newton and Debra Leigh Curry Newton.

April 2, 1983 - Debra takes three year old Michelle after telling Joe that she got a new job offer in Georgia and was moving there. He planned to meet them there but when he arrived, he couldn’t find his wife or daughter. They disappeared without a trace. The disappearance was allegedly orchestrated by a rogue church group led by a Mr. Michael Hartmann.

1983-1985 - Debra calls Joe for a final time at some point between 1984 and 1985. After they vanished, Debra attempted to file for divorce from Joe on grounds of desertion. She told her attorney that she and Michelle were abandoned by him at a Holiday Inn. He dropped the case once he found out that Michelle was considered missing and Debra was wanted on custodial interference charges. Joe is given full custody of Michelle in 1985.

May 3, 1985 - A felony warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was issued against Debra by the FBI

2000 - The case against Debra was dismissed and the search is discontinued when Joseph Newton could not be located.

2005 - A bogus call is made to NCMEC from a person identifying themselves as a detective from the Louisville PD claiming that Michelle had been located safe. This resulted in Michelle being removed from all missing persons databases.

2015 - Family members request that the Louisville PD reexamine Michelle’s case since she had not truly been located.

2016 - Michelle's kidnapping case is reopened and Debra is re-indicted for custodial interference in connection with her daughter’s abduction.

2021 - Michelle's case is added back to all missing persons databases and NCMEC creates a new age progression to show how she might look at age 42.

2025 - Crime stoppers receive a tip that Debra is living in Marion County, Florida under the name “Sharon.” She took on a new identity, remarried, started a new life, and retired to The Villages in Piedmont with her husband. A DNA test showed the woman is a 99% match to Debra’s sister, proving she is in fact Debra.

November 24, 2025 - Debra is arrested by Marion County authorities while she is walking her dog in her neighborhood. The entire time, she acts confused and says she doesn’t understand why she’s being taken into custody.

Nov-Dec 2025 - Michelle is located safely living under a different name. She was completely unaware of the fact she was considered a missing child and had no idea she had family searching for her. She was flown to Kentucky to reunite with her father and other relatives.

December 6, 2025 - Debra chooses night to fight extradition and voluntarily waives extradition back to the state of Kentucky. She appeared in court afterward, both Michelle and Joe were present

*not instead of night, typos

 

[JaxFlaGal]

A Timeline of the Michelle Newton Case:

October 5, 1979 - Michelle Marie Newton is born to Joseph “Joe” Newton and Debra Leigh Curry Newton.

April 2, 1983 - Debra takes three year old Michelle after telling Joe that she got a new job offer in Georgia and was moving there. He planned to meet them there but when he arrived, he couldn’t find his wife or daughter. They disappeared without a trace. The disappearance was allegedly orchestrated by a rogue church group led by a Mr. Michael Hartmann.

1983-1985 - Debra calls Joe for a final time at some point between 1984 and 1985. After they vanished, Debra attempted to file for divorce from Joe on grounds of desertion. She told her attorney that she and Michelle were abandoned by him at a Holiday Inn. He dropped the case once he found out that Michelle was considered missing and Debra was wanted on custodial interference charges. Joe is given full custody of Michelle in 1985.

May 3, 1985 - A felony warrant for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution was issued against Debra by the FBI

2000 - The case against Debra was dismissed and the search is discontinued when Joseph Newton could not be located.

2005 - A bogus call is made to NCMEC from a person identifying themselves as a detective from the Louisville PD claiming that Michelle had been located safe. This resulted in Michelle being removed from all missing persons databases.

2015 - Family members request that the Louisville PD reexamine Michelle’s case since she had not truly been located.

2016 - Michelle's kidnapping case is reopened and Debra is re-indicted for custodial interference in connection with her daughter’s abduction.

2021 - Michelle's case is added back to all missing persons databases and NCMEC creates a new age progression to show how she might look at age 42.

2025 - Crime stoppers receive a tip that Debra is living in Marion County, Florida under the name “Sharon.” She took on a new identity, remarried, started a new life, and retired to The Villages in Piedmont with her husband. A DNA test showed the woman is a 99% match to Debra’s sister, proving she is in fact Debra.

November 24, 2025 - Debra is arrested by Marion County authorities while she is walking her dog in her neighborhood. The entire time, she acts confused and says she doesn’t understand why she’s being taken into custody.

Nov-Dec 2025 - Michelle is located safely living under a different name. She was completely unaware of the fact she was considered a missing child and had no idea she had family searching for her. She was flown to Kentucky to reunite with her father and other relatives.

December 6, 2025 - Debra chooses night to fight extradition and voluntarily waives extradition back to the state of Kentucky. She appeared in court afterward, both Michelle and Joe were present

Some other general timeframes I've collected:
August 1998 - Debra/Sharon LinkedIn bio's timeline begins, shows her working as an adjunct at Reading Area Community College in PA until Aug 2005.
March 15 2002 Sharon M Nealy and her husband buy a home and obtain mortgage on a single family residence in Berks County, PA. (https://countyfusion4.govos.com/countyweb/main.jsp?countyname=Berks Instrument #2002020608). The mortgage carries a VA rider, so they used the husband's VA benefit to buy the primary residence. Refinanced in 2003, sold in 2004.

February / March 2004 - Nealy and her husband sell that home and buy another in Berks County PA. 2127 Queens Ct City of Reading, PA. (refinanced in 2006).

August 2005 - Debra/Sharon LinkedIn bio states she started with Wachovia/Wells Fargo. Location not specified. This article indicates she was working with Wachovia/Wells in PA and then she and her husband moved to Charlotte and then retired to The Villages. Villager known for work with Marine Corps League enjoyed long career in law enforcement work - Villages-News.com

Sept 2007 (date of deed) / Feb 2008 (date of deed recording) Nealy and her husband sell the property at 2127 Queens Ct City of Reading, PA.

2013 - "Sharon" and her husband bought a 2nd home in The Villages (per The Villages articles. His FB page also notes they moved to the Villages in 2013).

I didn't have a chance to dig further into the PA records. I was hoping her marriage license info in the same county and the same public record location as the deeds, but that doesn't appear to be how PA's records are set up. I also didn't see any "one and the same name" affidavits that are sometimes filed when buying property if someone has had a recent name change. I'm very curious about the names she went by from her disappearance to 2002, in what locations, when she married her current husband, and when she moved to PA. At a glance, it appears that her current husband was a longtime resident of the same area in PA, so I am *hypothesizing* they met there.

 

[JaxFlaGal]

I can also add to the timeline:
October 2007 - Sharon M Nealy and her husband buy a home and obtain mortgage on a single family residence in Charlotte / Mecklenberg County. They sell it in November 2013. The address they use at time of sale is in The Villages, FL. Marion County Florida official records indicate they bought the house in The Villages in November 2013.

 

[Aurora90]

Maybe I missed it. How did they get dna from “Sharon” to compare with Debra’s sister and confirm her identity.

Also very curious to see if there will be an investigation into that bogus phone call in 2005. Impersonating an officer isn’t usually taken lightly.

Also, just shocked at how easy it was to close her file without getting any sort of confirmation. That’s wild.

 

[Aurora90]

Woman Abducted at Age 3 in 1983 Found Alive After 40 Years — and Her Mother Is Now Charged

Now 46, Michelle Newton was shocked to learn that her family had been looking for her for decades.

people.com

It would be interesting to find out exactly how she obtained a new identity.

Very interesting watch. Timestamps and interesting info below.

12:44 — Debra tells detectives that the gentleman in Atlanta helped her get the false identity.

13:20 — She suspects that her family had their suspicions because of her inability to get a driver’s license (I imagine Michelle’s issues with a birth certificate didn’t help either)

16:12 — Debra says that she did have identification and a drivers license using her false identity in Florida (I’m confused)

16:31 — At some point she got a job at a daycare and the rules surrounding social security numbers changed. It wasn’t initially given to you at birth (now it did?)She went to SS Administration and obtained a new SS for herself and also got one for Michelle too under “Amanda”.

24:17 — When asked if she had ever looked herself up online, she said no. At one point she wanted to look up if her parents were still alive but she was too afraid. She felt there might’ve been “traps” out there.

25:30 — Michelle would occasionally ask about her father and Debra would tell her that she “needed to stop asking because it could get her (Debra) killed.” Michelle eventually did stop asking after that.

25:49 — Every time Michelle would ask for her birth certificate Deborah would lie. Police ask if Michelle drives (and if so how?). Debra suspects that Michelle managed to obtain a license by obtaining Amanda’s birth certificate. “A true real birth certificate of the person who has that true name”

27:14 — Debra believes that her daughter always suspected something because she used to always say “Mom, I love you. Even if you killed somebody. I will always love you.”

29:05 — Her husband appeared to be frustrated because she would always drive(in PA?) but when they got to Florida her license expired and she couldn’t get it renewed. She believes her husband thought she had a state ID. When it came time to renewal her license she told him she was scared and no longer wanted to drive.

 

[Aurora90]

Timestamps Continued:

30:15 — Debra is asked if anyone ever came looking for her to which she replies no. Investigators inform her that Michelle’s father came looking for her in Georgia after the divorce filing and knocked on the door of the address listed on the paperwork. No one answered. She does not remember that.

33:47 — Debra is allowed to have a phone call with her daughter before her extradition back to Kentucky. Call is emotional. They both state over and over how much they love each other and her daughter is reassuring her that things will be okay

 

[Aurora90]

He said that “someone” who identified themselves as a detective from the Louisville PD called NCMEC and said Michelle had been located. The name given by the detective was found to be false, there was no detective with the Louisville PD by that name at the time.

The detective said the abduction was facilitated by a rogue church group led by a man identified as Michael Hartmann, the same guy whose name Debra used when selling the family car in Georgia.

Hartmann died in 2005, the same year that Debra’s warrant was tossed out and Michelle’s NCMEC listing being removed. The bogus call about Michelle being found was made at the time of his funeral, most likely to ensure no police would surveil the funeral.

Michael Haartman’s obituary:

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/tampabaytimes/name/michael-hartmann-obituary?id=39357703

Seems like he was a NY native, had a trucking business in Atlanta, and also resided in both Dade County and Paso County Florida.

In an interesting case of coincidence, Michael died on Christmas Day in 2005. Now 20 years later, almost to the day, Debra and Michelle are found and identified. It’s almost like it’s a Christmas miracle.

Also did I understand that interrogation interview correctly? Was there another boyfriend/husband she was wirh at one point?

There was a comment Debra made during her phone call with her daughter that caught my attention. She said something along the lines of “your husband’s definitely not going to like me now”. Her daughter replied with “that’s not my concern what he thinks. It’s not his life. It’s not his relationship. It has nothing to do with him”

Does this mean they have had a rocky relationship? I wonder if it was him or his side of the family that called Crimestoppers in Nov of 2025.

The phone call was also illuminating in that it showed the dynamic between the two of them. There is a complete role reversal in play. Debra is acting like the daughter and Michelle was acting more like a mother.

I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Michelle has always been more of the adult between the two of them IMHO. And I could see how that could cause tension with Michelle’s husband. All speculation of course.

 

[lisette]

Michael Haartman’s obituary:

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/tampabaytimes/name/michael-hartmann-obituary?id=39357703

Seems like he was a NY native, had a trucking business in Atlanta, and also resided in both Dade County and Paso County Florida.

In an interesting case of coincidence, Michael died on Christmas Day in 2005. Now 20 years later, almost to the day, Debra and Michelle are found and identified. It’s almost like it’s a Christmas miracle.

Also did I understand that interrogation interview correctly? Was there another boyfriend/husband she was wirh at one point?

There was a comment Debra made during her phone call with her daughter that caught my attention. She said something along the lines of “your husband’s definitely not going to like me now”. Her daughter replied with “that’s not my concern what he thinks. It’s not his life. It’s not his relationship. It has nothing to do with him”

Does this mean they have had a rocky relationship? I wonder if it was him or his side of the family that called Crimestoppers in Nov of 2025.

The phone call was also illuminating in that it showed the dynamic between the two of them. There is a complete role reversal in play. Debra is acting like the daughter and Michelle was acting more like a mother.

I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Michelle has always been more of the adult between the two of them IMHO. And I could see how that could cause tension with Michelle’s husband. All speculation of course.

I would not be surprised if the daughter’s husband or his family contacted crimestoppers… I just don’t see how anybody could randomly recognize her after all these years… It was somebody that knew she was not who she said she was.

 

[huntingtruth]

I would not be surprised if the daughter’s husband or his family contacted crimestoppers… I just don’t see how anybody could randomly recognize her after all these years… It was somebody that knew she was not who

I would not be surprised if the daughter’s husband or his family contacted crimestoppers… I just don’t see how anybody could randomly recognize her after all these years… It was somebody that knew she was not who she said she was.

Please avoid putting assumptions like this out. They are harmful to the family and unwarranted. Facts are, the call came out of Marion County where Sharon/Debbie was living. The daughter and family lives many states away and had no idea.

 

[lisette]

Please avoid putting assumptions like this out. They are harmful to the family and unwarranted. Facts are, the call came out of Marion County where Sharon/Debbie was living. The daughter and family lives many states away and had no idea.

I certainly did not mean to insinuate anything harmful toward the daughter or her family with my speculation. It was based on Debra/Sharon's statement that Michele's husband really wouldn't like her now. Do we know where the call came from? Anyway, I just meant that it is hard to believe that someone recognized her from a picture from many years ago, and that perhaps it was someone who already had suspicions that she was not "on the up and up." But please forgive me if I offended you with my "assumption."

 

[huntingtruth]

I certainly did not mean to insinuate anything harmful toward the daughter or her family with my speculation. It was based on Debra/Sharon's statement that Michele's husband really wouldn't like her now. Do we know where the call came from? Anyway, I just meant that it is hard to believe that someone recognized her from a picture from many years ago, and that perhaps it was someone who already had suspicions that she was not "on the up and up." But please forgive me if I offended you with my "assumption."

I completely understand where you are coming from on the recognition part. I didn't mean to sound sharp there, there's just so much being thrown out there and I'm seeing the damage first hand. Truly grateful for people on this thread, like yourself, who are digging and asking questions. The family has asked to meet the anonymous tipster and has not had any success yet. Hartmann is at the center of all of this and the truth will come out when it's time, one way or another.

 

[Aurora90]

Please avoid putting assumptions like this out. They are harmful to the family and unwarranted. Facts are, the call came out of Marion County where Sharon/Debbie was living. The daughter and family lives many states away and had no idea.

My apologies. I did not mean for there to be backlash or harm to the families involved. I didn’t mean to spread false information. It was a question that I was posing. But I did not mean to insult/discredit the information.

It was a speculation but I didn’t catch that the tip came from Marion County.

I wonder where the tip came from. Clearly somebody suspected something.

Do we know where the call came from?

The phone call I was referring to is in the video I posted earlier in this thread from the interrogation video from Law and Crime.

 

[Aurora90]

Hartmann is at the center of all of this and the truth will come out when it's time, one way or another.

You’re right. Who knows how many other people he may have concealed and provided new identities for?

I wonder if an investigation into Hartman and the possibility of this “rogue church cult” even though he is deceased.