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February 17, 2007

Missing women cause concerns

• Editor’s Note: This article may contain a word which some find offensive. If so, the Jacksonville Daily Progress apologizes for the statement containing the expletive.



By April Barbe

news@jacksonvilleprogress.com

Two young women with connections to former Jacksonville police officer Larry Pugh, who was recently indicted for deprivation of rights under the color of law (having sexual relations while he was on duty), have been missing since mid-2006 — and their families want answers.

Where are Terri Renee Troublefield Reyes and Shunte Coleman?

Are they dead or alive? Why haven’t they been seen since May 21, 2006 (Terri) and July 2, 2006 (Shunte).

Terri’s three children, ages 11, 15 and 19, want to know what happen to their mother.

Brenda Graham, Terri’s mother, recently visited the Jacksonville Daily Progress office in search of help.

“I hope someone will help us,” Graham said.

With Terri’s two youngest children in tow, Graham said she has a dim feeling about Terri’s fate.

Is she dead? This question is a difficult one for her family to ask, but it is one they need an answer too. If so, they need to know what happened to her — If not, where is she?

According to Graham, Terri (who was a witness in the Pugh case) told her she had went to Pugh’s house before.

“I told her she better shut up about it, but she said she wasn’t worried. She trusted everybody,” Graham said.

Jacksonville Chief of Police Reece Daniel said, although the Jacksonville Police Department is only investigating Shunte’s case (Terri is listed as a missing person with the Athens Police Department), neither womans’ disappearance has been connected to Pugh.

“I know there is intense speculation about their whereabouts due to their affiliation with Larry Pugh, but we have absolutely nothing at this time to indicate he had anything to do with their disappearance,” Daniel said. “However, that connection certainly adds a note of urgency to the need for us locate both women.”

Shunte’s grandmother, Margaret Anderson, told the Jacksonville Daily Progress in previous interviews she believes her granddaughter is deceased.

Anderson reported her granddaughter as missing Aug. 7, 2006, however the last time Anderson spoke to her was July 2.

“Her mother died May 20th, and her mother’s birthday was July 3rd. She called me during the week and wanted to go put flowers on her mother’s grave ... that was the last time I heard her voice on July 2nd,” Anderson said.

Terri reportedly went missing before Shunte, according to Graham. Scheduled to attend her son’s high school graduation in Athens May 26, 2006, Terri was last seen May 21.

Graham admitted her daughter had drug problems, and she may not have been living a virtuous life. However, she does not believe this should play a role in actively investigating her disappearance — especially since she has three children.

“The police just tell me ‘Well, considering her lifestyle ...,’ but I don’t give a damn about that,” Graham said. “You can ask anybody in Athens, she was always a good mother.”

Graham said Terri always kept in touch with her and the children, and had only recently relapsed into a life of drugs.

Shunte also led a questionable lifestyle, with drug usage in her history, according to Anderson. However, neither of the women’s backgrounds changes the fact — they have family members who care about them. Shunte also has two young children.

Both women disappeared while Pugh was out on bond from federal court and before his arrest in August for attempting to wrap a belt around the neck of another female witness in his case. Pugh reportedly attempted to drag the woman to his van, but the belt broke and the woman was able to flee.

“I would ask that people not speculate and circulate rumors about the missing women. That sort of thing might make people hesitant to come forward with information we can use,” Daniel said.

Shunte is 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs approximately 140 pounds and is missing her two front teeth. She has a scar on her right arm.

Terri is 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 130 to 135 pounds and has brown hair and eyes. She has a scar on her right leg and a birthmark on her stomach.

Anyone with possible information about Terri’s whereabouts is urged to call Charles Gurley at the Athens Police Department at 903-675-5454. Anyone with information about Shunte’s whereabouts is urged to call the Jacksonville Police Department at 903-586-2546.

“We are active in tracing leads we receive from any source and check the missing person’s/found bodies database entries regularly. I would hope that anyone having information about either woman’s location would contact us or Crime Stoppers,” Daniel said.

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