Terrance Williams and Felipe Santos went missing in 2004 and 2003, respectively, under similar circumstances in Naples, Florida, U.S. Both men were last seen being arrested by Steve Calkins, then a deputy in the Collier County Sheriff’s Department, for driving without a license. Calkins claims that he changed his mind about both arrests, and last saw the men after he dropped them at Circle K convenience stores.
On September 4, 2018, actor, director, and producer Tyler Perry offered a $200,000 reward for any information leading to the location of the men or an arrest in the case. Al Sharpton of the National Action Network and Ben Jealous of the NAACP also joined Perry in raising awareness of the case.[1] The disappearances were covered by multiple television shows, such as the Investigation Discovery series Disappeared[2] and Never Seen Again.[3]
Disappearance of Terrance Williams
On January 12, 2004, 27-year-old Terrance Williams went missing in Naples, Florida. Williams, a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee and father of four children, had recently moved to Florida to be near his mother, Marcia.[4] Williams’s roommate, Jason Gonzalez, says he spoke to Terrance on the phone on the evening of Sunday, January 11, before heading to bed. Williams, who had attended a party that evening at a co-worker’s house, did not then have a valid driver’s license after being cited for driving under the influence, and the registration on his car had expired. He decided to drive to the party illegally after being unable to find another ride. Gonzalez became concerned when Williams did not return home and emailed Marcia on January 13 about his concerns.[2]
Initial investigation
The Williams family called police and filed a missing persons report. Shortly afterward, Williams’s aunt was able to track down his Cadillac, which had been towed from Naples Memorial Cemetery after obstructing traffic. The tow report was signed by Deputy Steve Calkins of the Collier County Sheriff’s Department. The family contacted the sheriff’s department, and discovered that Calkins had not filed an incident report, nor had he made an arrest.[2]
Marcia contacted workers at the cemetery, who told her that they witnessed Calkins pull Williams over and ask him for identification, which he did not have. Employees stated that Calkins patted Williams down and put him in the back of his patrol car. Before driving off with Williams, Calkins then asked the cemetery employees if he could leave the Cadillac in the lot. Calkins was witnessed returning to the cemetery between fifteen minutes and an hour later, and moving the Cadillac from a parking spot to the side of the road. The car keys were found on the ground beside the car.[2] Following this witness statement, the Williams family repeatedly called the sheriff’s department asking to speak to Calkins. Upon being contacted by dispatch, Calkins claimed to have no memory of making any arrests or having any cars towed on the day of Williams’s disappearance. He was contacted later, and claimed to have a somewhat better recollection of his contact with Williams.[2]
A few days later, Calkins’s supervisors asked him to submit an incident report. Calkins’s report states that he first came in contact with Williams at 12:15 pm, after noticing that his car was driving “in distress”.[5] The cemetery employees recalled the stop happening at 9 or 10 am, a claim which is seemingly supported by the fact that Williams’ shift that day was scheduled to begin at 10 am.[6] Calkins claimed he followed Williams to the cemetery parking lot, and that he had asked for a ride to a nearby Circle K convenience store because he was late for work (Williams did not work at the Circle K). According to Calkins, after dropping him off at the Circle K, Williams told him the paperwork for the car was in the vehicle’s glove compartment. Calkins claimed that he returned to the Cadillac, and discovered that the proper registration was not in the car, and that he felt deceived, so he called Circle K from his work-issued cell phone and asked to speak to Williams. The clerk allegedly told him over the phone that Williams did not work there. According to the report, Calkins then called in the license plate number, and found that the plates were expired. However, further investigation revealed that phone and surveillance records did not back up Calkins’s story: there was no sign of Williams or Calkins on surveillance footage from the Circle K, and the phone records from Calkins’s cell phone showed no call to the Circle K.[6][7] Circle K employees were interviewed, and no witnesses could be found to place Calkins or Williams there. At this point, Marcia filed a complaint against Calkins.[2]
A new lead in the case surfaced when the Mexican Consulate in Miami contacted Marcia to tell her about another man who had vanished in a similar fashion. Mexican immigrant Felipe Santos had gone missing three months prior, after Calkins claimed he dropped him off at another Circle K, approximately four miles from the location where he claimed he dropped off Williams.[8]
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