Family confirms remains of missing couple found in pond after decades-long cold case

SCARSDALE, New York -- The household of a Westchester County mates missing for much than 40 years confirmed that the remains recovered astatine the bottommost of a pond successful Georgia are Charles and Catherine Romer.

The Romer household released a connection saying:

"We are profoundly saddened and arsenic relieved that our grandparents Charles and Catherine Romer's 44-year enigma disappearance has been solved. While this find brings closure, it inactive has been precise emotional. Sadly, Charles Romer Jr, Jim Romer and Frank Heller are not with america to stock this momentous crook of events and to cognize their parents volition yet beryllium laid to remainder successful peace. We privation to explicit our gratitude to Glynn County Police, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Sunshine State Sonar for their clip dedication and expertise. A peculiar appreciation and acknowledgment goes retired to Jason Souhrada Myrtle Beach, SC. Jason pinpointed the nonstop determination of the conveyance and shared his findings with each the agencies involved."

The missing persons enigma of Charles and Catherine Romer of Scarsdale, New York, has perplexed investigators for 44 years, since they disappeared successful April 1980. It had haunted their families ever since.

"All the investigations and psychics and everything, the police, they worked truthful hard, and Blackwater divers person been searching for years. And they thought it was foul play," said Christine Seaman Heller, granddaughter of the missing woman.

But connected Monday, Seaman Heller learned that the clues to lick the enigma were astatine the bottommost of a retention pond disconnected I-95 successful southbound Georgia.

Last Friday, a squad of divers recovered the rusting, deteriorating remains of a 1979 Lincoln Continental, the conveyance Seaman Heller's grandma Catherine and her hubby Charles, an lipid institution executive, were successful erstwhile they vanished.

Investigators recovered a quality bony wrong the vehicle. Detectives with the Glynn County Police Department worked with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to drain the pond successful a hunt for much remains.

"The rust, corrosion, each kinds of bacteria is gonna make connected that car. And successful trying to cleanable that worldly to spot if you tin find something...it's going to beryllium difficult," Ken Jefferson, a transgression and information expert, said.

But what had been incredibly hard for Catherine Romer's 9 grandchildren, each sisters, was reasoning each these years that their beloved grandma and her hubby had been victims of a unspeakable transgression and had suffered.

Catherine and Charles Romer were friends, some widowed, who joined a fewer years earlier.

Their disappearance had Catherine Romer's son, Seaman's precocious father, traveling to Georgia for years searching for answers.

"That was each we were consumed astir until, you know, today," Seaman Heller said. "I was talking astir it yesterday with a person of excavation due to the fact that it's ever been specified a mystery. So, it would beryllium truthful fantastic to find out, conscionable person immoderate peace. You cognize possibly it wasn't a horrible ending, possibly it was conscionable an accident."

Investigators pieced unneurotic these facts:

The Romers were connected their mode backmost to New York pursuing a abrogation successful Miami.

They checked into the Brunswick Holiday Inn, which is present called the Royal Inn.

The retention pond is close adjacent wherever the Romers were staying. It was practically close nether the noses of investigators, who conducted 1 of the astir extended searches successful authorities past to find the couple, who were successful their 70s erstwhile they disappeared.

The pursuing day, housekeepers recovered bags and idiosyncratic items successful their motel room.

One of the divers told a section newsman successful Georgia that possibly the mates accidentally enactment the car successful reverse and drove into the pond, adding the signs close present bespeak a tragic accident.

"I conscionable anticipation it's gonna bring immoderate happens, nevertheless it plays out, it brings closure for the family," Andy Mavermat, erstwhile Holiday Inn manager, said.