May 6, 2014. Putnam County, Georgia. After he is not heard from for over four days, the beheaded body of 88-year old Russell Dermond is discovered inside his garage and his 87-year old wife, Shirley Dermond, is missing. Ten days later, Shirley’s body is discovered five miles away in Lake Oconee after she was weighed down in the water with some cinder blocks. Her cause of death is determined to blunt force trauma, but Russell’s head is never recovered. Investigators are unable to uncover any strong suspects and there is nothing in the Dermonds’ background to indicate why they would be the victims of such a brutal crime. In recent years, traces of unidentified touch DNA has been found on Russell’s clothing, but the murders continue to remain unsolved. For our first episode of 2026, “The Trail Went Cold” explores the unsolved double homicide of an elderly couple, which is considered to be one of the most baffling cold cases of the modern era.
Additional Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killings_of_Russell_and_Shirley_Dermond
https://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article228972684.html
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/autopsy-elderly-georgia-man-dead-when-head-was-cut-off/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/police-have-person-of-interest-in-murder-of-georgia-elderly-couple/
https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/beheading-mystery-upscale-community-still-confounds-georgia-sheriff/FfLXS5am2RgITlUbahtphO/
https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/investigations/gone-cold-the-murders-at-lake-oconee-4-years-later-elderly-couples-son-opens-up/67-549362307
https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/5-years-later-murders-of-lake-oconee-couple-continue-to-confound/946649166/
https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/years-later-murders-lake-oconee-couple-continue-confound/TozzJXuLvXXbu8f7zbWcPL/
https://www.11alive.com/article/news/investigations/gone-cold/gone-cold-the-murders-at-lake-oconee-4-years-later-elderly-couples-son-opens-up/85-548449019
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/lake-oconee-beheading-mystery-russell-shirley-dermond-putnam-county
https://www.13wmaz.com/article/news/community/more-than-a-number/sheriff-private-lab-finds-dna-in-dermond-murders-9-year-old-cold-case-3/93-007e80f5-99d4-4e50-adb0-5fabeaa17380
https://www.11alive.com/article/news/crime/cold-cases/fbi-new-leads-cellphone-data-dna-evidence-brutal-killings-elderly-georgia-couple-lake-oconee/85-9de921b0-385c-4305-9ebe-615ab3031eb4
https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2025/03/01/georgia-sheriff-expecting-dna-results-2014-double-murder-atlvault/
“The Trail Went Cold” is on Patreon. Visit www.patreon.com/thetrailwentcold to become a patron and gain access to our exclusive bonus content.
The Trail Went Cold is produced and edited by Magill Foote.
All music is composed by Vince Nitro.
