Case Details
- Photo URLs:
-
- Missing Since:
- Missing Since 05/11/2004
- Missing From:
- Missing From Sanford, North Carolina
- Classification:
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Gender:
- Female
- Race:
- Race White
- Date of Birth:
- Date of Birth 03/10/1961 (63)
- Age:
- Age 43 years old
- Height and Weight:
- Height and Weight 5’5, 160 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description:
- Clothing/Jewelry Description A short-sleeved blouse, blue jogging pants and white children’s sneakers.
- Distinguishing Characteristics:
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Red hair, brown eyes. Watts wears prescription eyeglasses with very thick lenses.
- Details of Disappearance:
- On May 11, 2004, a woman named Watts disappeared in Sanford, North Carolina. She was last seen at her job at the Sanford Herald around midnight. She left work and never made it home.
Police found some of her things – clothes, food, and a newspaper – near McIver and Jenkins Streets, along with a pool of her blood. A witness saw two men forcing someone into a car, but couldn’t say if it was Watts.
Four men were arrested in 2006 and charged in connection with her disappearance. Two were accused of kidnapping, rape, and murder; the other two of helping them. However, the charges were dropped against all four men. There wasn’t enough evidence to convict anyone. One man’s charges were dismissed because of a lack of evidence and a missing witness. The judge thought Watts was murdered, but the police couldn’t prove who did it. Because of laws preventing a second trial for the same crime (double jeopardy), one of the men can’t be tried again. But the other three could be if new evidence is found.
Watts left behind her husband and two young children. Her case remains a mystery, and police believe she was a victim of foul play.
- Agency:
- Sanford Police Department 919-775-8268
- Source Links:
This person was missing Missing Since 05/11/2004