PUTNAM COUNTY, Ga. — It's an unsolved double homicide like no other in middle Georgia.
Russell Dermond, 88, and his wife Shirley, 87, were married 68 years when the couple's lives were abruptly and brutally ended on May 3, 2014.
The couple was living out their golden years in a beautiful gated lakefront property on Lake Oconee in Putnam County.
However, something very sinister happened inside their Carolyn Drive home.
"We're not ready to put all the details about what happened that night," FBI Special Agent Andy Smith explained.
Smith has been an agent for 22 years, and he has been working on this case for nine of those years.
"I’ve never seen a case like this in my time as an FBI agent," he said.
It's a case with many unanswered questions that only the team investigating the double homicide and whoever killed Russell and Shirley can answer.
"I do believe it was more than one person involved," Smith acknowledged.
It was a Thursday afternoon, May 1, 2014, that Russell was captured on surveillance video inside a local Publix. It's the last known sighting of him alive.
That Thursday is also the last day the Dermonds were ever heard from again.
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The couple was expected to watch the 140th running of the Kentucky Derby on that following Saturday, May 3, 2014, at a neighbor's house -- but they never showed up.
As their phones went unanswered, neighbors grew concerned. On Tuesday May 6, 2014, a neighbor went to check on the Dermonds.
Their door was unlocked. After searching the home, the neighbor found Russell's headless body on the ground in the couple's garage.
It was a 911 call not typically placed in Putnam County.
"A crime like this, we don’t see a lot of in middle Georgia, especially in Putnam County and Lake Oconee area, we just don’t, it just doesn’t happen," Smith explained.
Little did investigators know just how much more sinister things were about to get.
After searching the home, police couldn't find Shirley. Not only was she missing, but so was Russell's head.
"This is incredibly unusual," Smith said.
It wouldn't be until 10 days later, on May 16, fishermen made a gruesome discovery about five miles away from the couple's home in Lake Oconee.
It was Shirley. Her body was tied to cinder blocks.
"She was placed in the lake, so there was obviously an intent for her to not be found," Smith said.
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It was a mistake by the couple's killer. But it didn't help investigators in their search for finding who carried out this heinous crime. Due to Shirley's body being in the water, there wasn't a lot of evidence. However, it was later determined she was likely beaten to death.
"It was incredibly brutal," Smith explained.
Despite the brutality of the crime, he pointed out the lack of evidence they found at the crime scene. But, Smith said from the very beginning, all signs pointed to this not being a random crime.
"The lack of evidence of a theft makes it seem more of a personal crime," he explained.
Smith said nothing from the home was missing besides Russell's head.
"There was possibly evidence there that could identify someone as the reason that the head was taken," he explained.
While evidence was collected, and a team of investigators worked the case, eventually, it went cold, but they never stopped working on it.
"We have never stopped trying to find who committed this murder," Smith said.
It would be on the eve of the 10-year anniversary on Sunday that Smith would confirm they have new leads in the case connected to DNA evidence and cellphone technology.
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Last week, one of the most promising leads was made public by Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills. He confirmed DNA found on Russell's shirt does not belong to him or Shirley.
"It's probably going to be whoever carried out these murders or at least someone who was a party to the crime," Sills explained.
He pointed out that even though they ruled out the Dermonds, they still have more testing to do to find out whose DNA was found on his shirt.
Smith said it's not just DNA evidence that has created new leads in this decade-old mystery.
He said they're also evaluating cellular data -- making it clear they've done a very good job at holding their cards close to their chest.
"There are several things that we have that we’re evaluating that no one knows," he explained.
As far as developing suspects, he said they're on the right path and hoping these new leads will lead them to the Dermond's killer or killers.
"We do have leads, we are looking for you, and we're not going to stop until we get you," Smith said.
He said with advances in technology and the new leads they've developed, he is confident the team will soon be able to bring justice to the family.
A $25,000 reward is being offered for anyone who has information on who killed the Dermonds or may have been involved. Investigators don't believe one person carried out this evil act.
You can call the FBI's Atlanta Field Office at (770) 216-3000 or the Putman County Sheriff's Office at (706) 485-8557.