Missing Since: 2005-10-21 Location: Freeport, Florida
McWaters’s family last saw her at a Super Bowl party in Freeport, Florida on October 21, 2005. She left for a party in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, promising her niece she would return to babysit her niece’s children, but she never came back. Her niece repeatedly tried to call her and no one answered. Someone, possibly McWaters, did leave a message on a relative’s answering machine saying her car had broken down and she couldn’t come back. This is the last time any of her relatives heard from her; her phone number was disconnected a year later. Law enforcement officers in Crestview, Florida reportedly made contact with McWaters sometime in July 2006. They saw her walking in the vicinity of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Booker Street, checked her identity and then let her go. This is the last sign of her; since her disappearance she hasn’t been arrested and hasn’t used her credit cards or Social Security number. McWaters became depressed after a divorce and the death of one of her sons, and got involved with alcohol and drugs. She was arrested multiple times in 2004 and 2005. While she was in jail she wrote many times to her family and friends, saying she felt neglected and abandoned. Her father initially thought she might be in jail and didn’t want the family to know. He didn’t report her missing until 2009. McWaters’s father is now deceased and her mother is in poor health. The circumstances of her disappearance are unclear, but her family still hopes she may be found. Investigating Agency Walton County Sheriff’s Office 850-892-8111 Source Information Florida Department of Law Enforcement The Northwest Florida Daily News Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers NamUs Florida Arrests Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated November 27, 2018; three pictures added.