Mike Williams , 31,Lake Seminole, Fl-12/16/2000

In tallahassee we have a mystery to solve for a mother whose now 37 year old son went missing on December 16, 2000.

A newspaper ADD(see excerpt below) by the mother best describes her situation and gained the attention of Jennifer Portman a reporter with the Tallahassee Democrat. Jennifer did a major story on Mike William's disappearance which was six years following his perceived death. Click here to read the story: http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs...WS01/102190004

In summary Mike was declared legally dead within only six months after he disappeared. His body was never found.

It took his mother three years to obtain a criminal investigation. When the investigation began she was no longer allowed to see or talk to her son's daughter, her only granddaughter/grandchild at the time, who was only 5 1/2 years old.

Excerpt of Mother's Plea article follows:

PLEASE HELP ME FIND MY SON
My name is Cheryl Ann Williams and I haven't seen my son, Mike, in over 5 years. Will you please take a moment to read this and help me find him?



On the morning of December 16, 2000, my son Jerry Michael (Mike) Williams, supposedly went duck hunting at Lake Seminole in Sneads, Florida. He never returned.



At the time of Mike's disappearance he was 31 years old. He had duck hunted at Lake Seminole for many years. When he did not return from hunting that day the authorities assumed he drowned and alligators ate his body. No criminal investigation was done at the time.



Eighty people have drowned in Lake Seminole since the late 1800's. Mike's body is the only one that has never been found. Reptile experts have told me that alligators don't hunt or eat in December because the water is too cold. I do not believe my son died in Lake Seminole.



Florida law requires a 5-year waiting period before declaring a missing person dead. My son, Mike, was declared dead only six months after he went missing. His body has never been found.



The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Jackson County Sheriff's Department and the Florida State Attorney's Office are actively conducting a cold case criminal investigation into Mike's disappearance.



Mike's daughter was only 18 months old when he disappeared. He loved and adored her and would never have left her on purpose. She is now 7 years old and deserves to know what happened to her father.



• Were you hunting at Lake Seminole on December 16, 2000?



• Did you see Mike or his vehicle at Lake Seminole? Mike was driving a 1994 Ford Bronco that was green and tan with a FL license plate number L03-32J.

• Did you see Mike with anyone? Was someone else driving his vehicle?

• Did you see anything unusual that morning?

• Do you know anything, no matter how small, that would help criminal investigators find out what happened to my son?



Please call:

Jimmy Anderson

State Attorney's Office 850-606-6000

Derrick Wester

Jackson County Sheriff's Office 85Q-482-9624

Donnie Branch

Florida Department of Law Enforcement 850-767-3490



My husband, Jerry J. Williams, Mike's Father, died on September 12, 1998. Mike disappeared on December 16, 2000. Please help us solve the mystery of. Mike's disappearance and bring closure to me and my family.



Thank you,

Cheryl Ann Williams (Michael’s Mother)

END OF EXCERPT

His widow is the one who should be investigated. Had him declared dead, collected life insurance, then married his best friend?

Grammybear,

I'm not Cheryl but I'll go ahead and tell you what I know about Mike being declared dead within 6 months. From what I see personal items were found within days of the judge requesting evidence of him having been in the lake. Because of this evidence the judge was able to declare him dead.

As to your downloading problem I haven't any clue what could be wrong but there is a website which has the base newspaper article in it. Maybe that will work for you. That website name is:

http://www.jerrymichaelwilliams.com/whats_new_1.html

I'm sure Cheryl would appreciate any advice you have toward helping to determine what became of her son. From what I can tell Cheryl(i.e. Ms Williams) has not yet joined the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper forum but it does appear a couple of the forum members are close friends with her. I'm sure they will inform her that you asked her a question.

Hi Grammybear. Thank you for your offer to help with this case. You can print a poster of Mike from the National Center for Missing Adults website. Go to http://www.theyaremissed.org/ncma/ga...p?A200705102S.

I agree with you as well, this case has been suspicious all the way down the line, and we won't give up until Mike is found. I will relay your message on to his mother, and thank you again.

Hi Lesley,

I think the most direct link to Mike's NCMA profile is much better to provide everyone for printing Mike's missing persons poster. There is a "print a poster" button on his profile... Click:

http://www.theyaremissed.org/ncma/ga...hp?A200705102S

Everyone read latest on the Tallahassee Democrat threads:

http://forum.tallahassee.com/viewtopic.php?t=18715

http://forum.tallahassee.com/viewtopic.php?t=19289

http://forum.tallahassee.com/viewtopic.php?t=18751

To Grammybear

Thank you for your message and kind words, I will be sure to let Mrs. Williams know. We are doing everything we can to find Mike and are very grateful for people like you out there. As mentioned by Tally4Tell there are other threads at the Tallahassee Democrat you can go to, where you can make a comment and read other comments as well. Thank you again and God bless.

To Tally4Tell

Thank you so much for providing all the links, so that people can get to the forums, and for the best way to print out a poster of Mike. This information is very useful and much appreciated.

Mrs Williams

I have read this story, and have located all the web sites. I will print out some posters on your behalf and put them up about town. Please let me know what else I can do for you.

I am praying for your son's safe return soon. I hope the Law Enforcement authorities will be able to solve this case and bring the guilty ones to trial. If people out there know something, they should come forward as soon as possible.

[awareness]

what a low blow to not allow Grandma to see her Grand-Daughter.

JMO/IMO

I agree with you "awareness". It is very heartbreaking to read that Mrs Williams is not allowed to see her granddaughter. What goes around, comes around, I do believe that. One day, Mrs Winchester is going to have a lot of time to think about all that she has done - when she is sitting alone in prison.

The "widow and best friend" have Mike Williams declared dead within six months, collect life insurance money and then get married. Then all contact with Mike Williams' mother stops! Did the Judge who had him declared dead, know about the insurance money, and if so why didn't he investigate further. That should have been a red flag, why didn't he see it.

What a sad story. The son disappears, the widow has him declared dead in record time - collects the insurance money, and now the mother of Mike Williams is not allowed any visitation with her granddaughter. What was the Judge thinking? It does make you wonder whether he knew the Winchesters. The whole thing doesn't add up.

Let's hope that law enforcement can solve this mystery - and soon.

Mrs Williams - let me know what we can do for you.

I think maybe Lucy is right, did the Judge know the Winchesters? Has anyone out there heard of someone being declared dead in only 6 months. Why didn't the Judge look into what was going to happen afterwards. Collecting so much money in life insurance is definitely a motive for murder.

I have been following this story for some time in the Democrat online, I think that Mr. Williams walked away from an impossible situation and after making a new start somewhere would have come back for his child.

How could he have known that a Judge would do what he did, and then not have a chance to make a new life with his child, because he was "dead". I think also that someone out there knows where he is. Let's hope they come forward soon.

to Vixen

If you are right about him walking off and then wanting to come back for his child, who's to say that he won't try to come back again. Maybe he is reading this.

If he is out there, someone is protecting him. I only hope, for the sake of his family that he will come home safe, and soon.

Your theories may be right, but I think he is dead and the Winchesters killed him, and buried him somewhere away where he may not be found like a swamp.

There is a Psychic who makes comments on the other forum, he or she knows what happened. Maybe that person is working with law enforcement.

JJ Jackson,

I remember that Mike went duck hunting to Stuttgart, AK during Thanksgiving of 2000 two weeks before he disappeared. Have you looked at the pictures of Mike? Is there any chance that you knew Mike or saw Mike at the time that he was out there? Have you seen him since?

What swamp do you think he was hidden in?

Milly

I have looked at the pictures of Mike and have asked around here. Don't know for sure, but will keep looking. The reason I said about the swamp is because if he had been in the lake or murdered, something would have been found there. This leads me to think he was put somewhere that nobody would think to look like a swampy area full of vegetation and where a body might not easily be found. I wonder, did the search for him cover these areas, and if not, don't you think it should have.

I ask myself why did the Judge on the case not think of this. He gave in to the widow far too easily by my reckoning.

I would just like to ask you to ask around town and see if anyone remembers Mike, or if by any chance he might still be alive that he might have come back out there at another time. There are some people that think he may have just walked off and they asked me to ask this of you. You can also print posters out from the forum. Anything that you do to help with this case will be much appreciated.

Yes, we do not understand why the Judge made such a hasty decision to declare Mike dead.

As for the searching of swampy areas at the time he went missing several people were adament that Mike was in the lake and pushed that the lake be searched and the grounds not be searched. His Mother had to beg for 3 years for a criminal investigation to be opened on his disappearence. Several of the people around her don't think he even made it to the lake that day.

Reading through the story and comments on here and the Tallahassee Democrat online, I cannot help but wonder what happened to that sleepy little town I lived in when I was at Florida State University. Nothing ever happened back then, like this.

I think that Mike Williams must be dead, and JJ Jackson could be right about him being put somewhere, where a body would not easily be found. As for the widow not wanting publicity, I would have thought she would have welcomed as much publicity as she could get. Why in the world did she take the granddaughter away from the grandmother just because the grandmother got a criminal investigation.

Johnny Blue,

If it had been my husband missing, I wouldn't stop searching until he was found. Seems to me, she couldn't wait to have him "dead" so she could marry Mr Winchester and live off the insurance money. One question keeps popping up, why did the insurance company pay out so quickly without any evidence that Mr Williams was dead. Did they go by what the Judge said and just paid out this large sum of money based on what was found, which it sounds like wasn't anything concrete. Why did "things" suddenly turn up after 6 months, it is very bizarre.

I don't know how many people are involved, but someone out there knows something, and they should tell law enforcement, so they can follow it up and bring the guilty to trial. There is no way that a man could have been eaten by an alligator, and leave no trace. I am very concerned about our legal system if someone disappears and they are declared dead so soon without waiting for the normal amount of time to pass.

Living with fraudulent money is one thing, living with guilt and sin is another.

Vixen

It's very odd that an insurance company should pay out so much money, so soon. Could it be that someone who is involved in the disappearance worked for or knew someone at the insurance company. The other thing you mentioned about things turning up at the scene 6 months later sounds like someone who was involved got scared and planted stuff to make sure people thought that Mike Williams had been in the lake and drowned.

It still doesn't explain the lack of a body, as we all know there would have been something. As for how many people are involved, after reading the article over again, I get the impression there has to be at least three or four people including the wife.

Johnny Blue,

I had thought about the insurance company and if someone had either been working there or knew someone who did. It was rushed through and the money paid out very quickly. Unusual don't you think.

Do I think three or four people are involved, not only that but more, and certainly the wife. Otherwise, why stop visitation with the grandmother if you have nothing to hide.

Johnny Blue,

Funny you should ask that, the main person of interest owned the main insurance company that paid out insurance to the widow. Of course since it looked like an accident she got double indemnity from Kansas City Life.

Milly

I just knew there had to be something like that, because how did all that insurance money get paid so quickly, to the widow who had Mike Williams declared dead so soon.

So the whole thing was made to look like an accident, so the widow could get double the amount! The Judge didn't see through this? Then the widow cuts all ties with her "dead" husband's family, because an investigation opens up. She obviously does have something to hide, otherwise she wouldn't have done that, she would have taken comfort in his family, all working together to find Mike Williams. Did she ever explain to anyone why she had him declared dead so soon, or did she just keep quiet and collect the money?

Johnny Blue,


Another funny question that you should ask about the widow. She kept quiet and collected the money, even though she had enough money in the bank to support her and the child for many years if she wanted to look for Mike, she was not destitute like she made out to the Judge and everyone else.

JJ Jackson,

Maybe you can check out some of those swamps over there in Stuttgart. Also it might be interesting for you to know that when Mike was out there hunting two weeks before he disappeared, the best friend who is now married to the widow was hunting along with him. They drove out there in the best friends car and the best friend participated in one of the trials out there that week.

Milly,

I will certainly look all around the swampy areas, will get some of my friends to help. I'll also look in other areas as well, woody areas and places that a body might remain hidden.

Thanks for the information, and glad to help.

JJ,

Thanks for all your help. I guess it is just a coincidence that someone from where Mike went hunting has spoke up on this bulletin board and the other coincidence is that everyone called Mike's Dad JJ.

Milly

It's always been a good name for me, my daddy and my granddaddy. Always glad to help out, if I see anything or find out something over here, I'll be letting you all know.

Milly

If the widow had enough money to live on without the insurance money, why did she rush to collect. This story has more to it. Was the widow or best friend involved in something criminal, and had to pay back "the money". Could Mike Williams have found something out, and they had to keep him quiet. He could have heard them talking, or followed them. What if he did walk off to protect himself with the intention of coming back for his child. Or did they just kill him and take his body away - where? If I had been a law enforcement officer on this case, I would have wanted to scrutinize all the vehicles, especially those belonging to the "persons of interest". If Mike Williams was taken away in one of the vehicles, there would have been some evidence, no matter how small.

I also went into the Missing Adults website that was on the Tallahassee Democrat forum, and have printed out some posters. Every little bit helps.

Johnny Blue,

You asked a lot of unanswered questions. Mike could have walked off but with the type of person that Mike was there are many of us that don't think Mike would have left his Mother and Daughter for this long, much less let his so called best friend raise his daughter. Law Enforcement didn't look at anything in a timely manner because at the time that Mike went missing they were convinced he was in the lake, now several years later since Mike's mother asked them to reopen the case they are starting to look at things.

Thank you for printing off the posters and putting them up, like you said every little bit does help.

Johnny Blue

I just wanted to say thank you on behalf of Mrs. Williams and all the friends and family that are looking for Mike. It is very comforting to know that there are people out there like you and all the others that have helped and commented on this forum. We are grateful that you are printing out posters and putting them up over there in Kansas.

We will continue to keep looking, and once again a big THANK YOU to all of you out there helping us.

Johnny Blue,

I too want to say thanks on behalf of all of us diligently trying to come up with possibilities or theories as to what happened to Mike Williams.

On December 15th, 2006 the Tallahassee Democrat Newspaper published a complete package of three articles, written by Jennifer Portman, as a follow-up to Mrs. Williams' ad paid out of Mrs. Williams own pocket. Please see under Special Reports: Cold Case: The Mike Williams Mystery on WWW.TDO.COM

The Democrat then placed those three newspaper articles, photos of the lake, etc. and a video on the front page of their website. They did all this as a public service in what they call crowd resourcing and timed publishing the articles to coincide with the 6th anniversary of Mike's disappearance.

Thankfully too the Democrat has allowed a link to stay on their home page which ties all the package together which in turn has allowed threads for folks to make comments. The Democrat has gone above and beyond in their generosity and they are a vital part in our collective effort to help find Mike Williams.

Any help you can give us Johnny Blue, or anyone else here on CourtTV, is greatly appreciated.

Milly

If Mike Williams went hunting in Arkansas, maybe someone over here might have met him and who knows, could help with this case. I could put some posters up at "hunting lodges" and high traffic areas such as a train station or the local police station. As Johnny Blue mentioned, I see posters can be downloaded from the center for missing adults website, a good idea.

I talked to a few of my hunting buddies and they are willing to do the same. We are all fathers ourselves, and can only imagine the pain the mother of Mr Williams is going through. Not only that, but to have her son's "widow" treat her so badly. As I said before, I've been looking around, and will help where I can.

JJ,

Mike was definitely in Stuttgart two weeks before he went missing here in Tallahassee. All of the places you mentioned that you can post the posters sound like really good places.

We really do appreciate everything that you are doing to help solve this case. Please tell all of your hunting buddies that help out that we also appreciate them. You guys be safe in your hunting and your travels, our prayers are with you.

Thank you.

Milly

Did one of the "persons of interest" take away the vehicle that Mike Williams was driving. If so, does anyone know where this vehicle is now. It sounds like nothing was investigated on the day of his disappearance except only around the lake. It is very suspicious that nothing else and nowhere else was looked into. Where was the widow when all this was going on? Was she looking with the others?

I still think the "persons of interest" may have been involved in something other than just collecting insurance money. If they did kill him, I am sure there were a few other people involved in disposing of the body. Was the widow ever questioned by law enforcement, did she readily agree to being questioned? I wonder, did the Judge involved in this case, have an insurance policy with the Insurance Company that paid out? Would he have declared one of his children "dead" in only 6 months, I think not. A lot of things don't add up at all.

Johnny Blue,

Yes one of the persons of interests was the one that drove Mike's car and boat away from the lake. The vehicle was driven to the person's of interest Fathers house. The vehicle and both of his boats were sold soon after Mike was declared dead. You are correct nothing else was investigated on the day that he was reported missing because several people kept insisting that he was in the lake. The widow never went to the location that Mike was said to have gone missing from. The widow was only questioned once at the time by law enforcement, not sure if she has been questioned recently. Not sure how willingly she went. The other person of interest was also only questioned once to my knowledge.

You are right two plus two doesn't equal four in this equation.

[Ella's Mom]

Hello All

Today is the first time I have heard about this case. I have read up as much as I can. I do have a few questions, and hope some can help to answer:

1 - Were there marital problems that anyone knew of? Was there talk of divorce. Was he planning on leaving his wife?

2 - Anyone know if there was speculation of an affair (on either part)? I understand that the wife married the best friend. If they were having an affair prior to, this is definitely suspect. BUT, it also could have been very innocent in the beginning. They could have leaned on eachother for comfort when they lost their loved one. That friendship may have later turned into a relationship.

3 - In the newspaper article it said that Mike told his mother he'd like $50,000 to take a year off. I am wondering if this meant he wanted to stop working for a year or get away from everyone for a year?

Any idea of why or how this was said? Was it just wishful talking like "gee, I'd like to win the lotto, so I don't have to work anymore." Or was there a reason for it? I know most won't be able to answer this, but the posters that know the mother may have a better idea.

4 - Have reasons been given to the grandmother as to why the mother won't let her see her grandchild? The article only states that she isn't allowed to see the child because she is still investigating the case. I am just wondering if there is more to it (i.e. has the grandmother accused the mother of murdering her son (with or without grandaughter being present), have things been said to the granddaughter that put the mother in a bad light, have threats been made to the mother, etc).

If those types of things were/are happening, I could see where there might be a concern. The article stated she was "crazy from grief." So what does crazy mean? Did she do things that made her seem crazy?


Please know that I am not trying to offend anyone by this post and my questions. I am just trying to get an understanding of this case. The article seems to be somewhat one-sided.

JMO

Ella's Mom

Thank you for your interest in this case. Mrs. Williams is not allowed to comment on this open forum because when this case comes to trial, she will be one of the main witnesses. She would like you to know that she never said or did anything to hurt her grandchild. She never said anything bad to the granddaughter about her mother. She never said anything bad to her granddaughter about her son's disappearance, except that he was in Heaven.

Mike's mother was kept in the dark about her son's marriage because her husband, Mike's father had died due to medical malpractice 18 months earlier. The only one threatened, has been Mrs. Cheryl Williams, Mike's mom.

By the way Ella's mom, grandmama Cheryl is writing a book about her son's disappearance, and it is dedicated to her granddaughter.

She was called crazy, because she would not believe that her son was in the lake, and was eaten by alligators in the winter time when alligators don't eat, and 80 people have drowned in that lake; Mike's body was the only one not found.

[Ella's Mom]

Lesley

Thank you for the response. I realize some of my questions may have seemed insensitive. It was not at all my intent.

I am happy to hear that Cheryl has continued to keep her grand-daughter's best interests in mind. My heart hurts that she cannot see her grand-daughter and everything else she has had to endure since her son's disappearence.

I also want you to know that even though I posed those questions, I do agree that the circumstances regarding this case are very suspect and I commend Cheryl for continuing to fight for justice for her son.

I will continue to follow this case and look forward to reading the book she is writing.

to Lesley

I too have been following this case now for some time, and I agree with you, Mrs Williams is not crazy, she is doing what any other mom would do, trying to find her missing son and finding out what happened.

Yes, if she would be a key witness to the case when it goes to trial, she cannot make comments. She is doing everything right and hopefully, with the help she is getting will find out what happened to her son, and what was going on with the widow and best friend.

I talked to a friend of mine who knows about the eating habits of various animals and reptiles, and he said alligators will not eat in cold weather, even if the bait was right in front of it. So Mrs Williams is absolutely right in pursuing this case, because the Judge and others were wrong.