Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills says he's turned the home of Russell and Shirley Dermond back to their family.
That means the home of the murdered couple is no longer an active crime scene.
Sills told 13WMAZ's Anita Oh that he turned the home over to the couple's three children Wednesday night. He said he'd meet with them Friday to return some belongings.
He also said the Dermonds' bodies have been released from the GBI crime lab, clearing the way for burial. Their family has said the funerals will be private.
Russell Dermond's decapitated body was found in the couple's lakefront home on May 6. Shirley Dermond's body was found in Lake Oconee, several miles from the home, on May 16.
Sills discussed the case in detail with Anita Oh, saying:
- --Finding Shirley Dermond's body in the lake has convinced him that the couple's killers arrived at their home over the water: "Somebody came by boat for a fact."
- And while Sills' investigators have scoured the Great Waters neighborhood for security cameras pointed toward the lake, they haven't found an image of the killers or anything else unusual.
--He also believes more than one person took part in the killings. "Could 1 person do it? Sure, but the circumstances and evidences lead me to believe it was a minimum of 2 people."
--There is "definitely no doubt about it" that Russell Dermond's head was cut off and Shirley's body dumped was to "conceal evidence, buy time and obstruct roadblocks in our investigation. Does it show depravity? Yes, but it was for self-preservation of whoever done it.."
--But despite the unusual angle of one victim being beheaded, he said, "This does not mean it's organized crime. There's no evidence of that. No Mafia or cartel..."
--His take on what kind of person killed the Dermonds: "A brutal evil savage of some sort."
--Sills says agents interviewed 215 people last weekend using a 29-question sheet with questions like "Were you home that weekend?" (May 2-4) and "Did you know the Dermonds?" He says they're continuing to interview people today.
Sills says DNR and sheriff's deputies will be on the water this holiday weekend, but not actively searching.
Having a large number of people out on the lake, and near the dam where Shirley Dermond was found could help authorities find more evidence on this busy boating weekend.
"Not to be graphic, but we are still looking for the head," he said.
Sills says he and many of his deputies have been working long hours for the past three weeks, but says, "I'm built for this."
He also said the Sheriff's Office and the FBI are discussing another reward. Previously, the FBI announced a $20,000 reward for any information leading to Shirley Dermond.
"I don't like to give rewards. People who are citizens of the state of Georgia and the United States of America ought to give information. They have a civic duty. They shouldn't have to be paid to do it. But I'm certainly not opposed to utilizing a reward if that's what it takes to solve this case," Sills said.
