Episode 1 Russell and Shirley Dermond

In the premiere episode of Citizen Detective, hosts Mike Morford, Naama Kates, and Dr. Lee Mellor explore the truly bizarre double murder of Russell and Shirley Dermond.

In May of 2014, 88 year old Russell Dermond, and his 87 year old wife Shirley Dermond, were enjoying retirement in their gated waterfront home in Great Waters Reynolds at Lake Oconee in Putnam County, Georgia. When they failed to arrive at a neighbor's Kentucky Derby party, the neighbor tried to get ahold of the Dermonds, but was unable to do so. Worried, the neighbor went over to the Dermond home on May 6, and after finding the Dermond home unlocked, they made their way inside. What they found shocked and horrified them. Inside the garage lay the decapitated body of Russell Dermond. His his head was missing, and so was Shirley. The news shocked local residents and the community at large, and police scrambled to figure out who had murdered Russell, and where was his wife Shirley. Over a week later, Shirley's body was found floating in Lake Oconee. The killer, or killers, had tried to weigh her body down in the lake with concrete blocks. Police were stumped as to a motive for the double murder. Was it a robbery gone wrong? Was it a hit? Was it personal? The answers have eluded investigators for almost a decade.

The Dermond case is a favorite for amateur sleuths. In this episode, the team explores the clues and details of the case. We are joined by retired homicide Detective, Cloyd Steiger, and GBI death investigator, and host of the podcast Autopsy, Landen Wilson. And of course, we have the Citizen Detectives at our side.

This episode sponsored in part by Magic Mind, the world's first productivity shot. To save 40% off your first subscription or 20% off your first one-time first purchase, visit Magicmind.co/detective and use promo code Detective20 at checkout

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Continue the conversation about this case with fellow Citizen Detectives over at Websleuths:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/forums/citizen-detective-true-crime-podcast.719/

The Citizen Detective team includes:
Co-Hosts- Mike Morford, Naama Kates, and Dr. Lee Mellor
Writing and Research- Alex Ralph
Technical Producer- Andrew Gray
Production Assistant- Ashley Monroe