40 people have gone missing in Northeast Texas since 2000
• Editor’s Note: Between the years of 2000 and 2020, 40 individuals vanished without a trace in Northeast Texas, never to be heard from again. During the month of December, the News-Telegram will highlight the circumstances of their disappearances in the hope that one of our readers may be able to help police or family find answers.
Childress, Antoinette Renee- Childress was last seen October 13, 2015, and went missing from her trailer home in Henderson, Rusk County, Texas.
About a month before Childress went missing, her sister, Patricia Nichols, began receiving strange Facebook messages from her, according to police reports. The first message said there was an emergency and Childress needed her phone number. Three weeks later Nichols got another message that just said, "Sister where are I, what's going on."
On Oct. 6, Nichols got a voice message from Childress's Facebook account, according to police reports. The message said something about guardian angels, but the voice wasn't Childress's. Nichols left home after that and didn't return until Nov. 6, by which time Childress was missing.
Two women allegedly contacted Nichols after Childress's disappearance and said they knew what had happened to her, according to reports. The women stated Childress had been involved in using and selling drugs, bad people were angry, and was tortured and killed as a result. This information has not been verified by police, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons Database (NAMUS).
Childress was seeing a man named Felipe Villanueva at the time of his disappearance, according to law enforcement. He is considered a person of interest in her case and has multiple warrants for his arrest on drug-related charges and driving without a license, according to NAMUS. His current whereabouts are unknown and it's unclear whether he's still in the area.
A few days after Childress was reported missing, police found her car being driven by a man in Henderson, reports noted. He was arrested on an unrelated charge, and stated Childress had sold him the vehicle, something her family finds difficult to believe, NAMUS stated.
Childress has a warrant out for her arrest, but she's considered a missing person rather than a fugitive. Childress had just gotten off probation at the time and was trying to clean up her life, her family told the Tyler Morning Telegraph.
“It's just hard to watch,” her brother in-law Craig Childress told the Morning Telegraph. “She tried to correct her life; help change it; get her in a better direction. . . If it ends in violence like these stories portray. . . It's just finally time to lay her to rest."
Her case remains unsolved and foul play is suspected. She was 40 when she disappeared and would be 46 now. She is 5'5” tall, 140 to 158 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes. She goes by her middle name, Renee, or her nickname, Toni. Anyone with information should call the Rusk County Sheriff 's Office at 903-657-3581.
Combs, Donnie “Bon Jovi” and Cynthia Arnold (went missing together)- The pair was last seen September 26, 2018 in Linden, near Atlanta, Cass County, Texas. Combs called Arnold and asked her to come pick him up in Cass County and she left home to do so.
A little while later Arnold contacted her mother and said Combs hadn't arrived and she was still waiting at the meeting spot. Neither of them has ever been heard from again. A few days after they were last seen, Arnold's truck was found abandoned and burned in Marion County, Texas.
In Oct. 2020, Kevin Dewayne Shepard Jr. and his uncle, Gary Edward Shepard were charged in with capital murder of the pair. Gary Shephard was already in Cass County Jail on other charges and Kevin Shephard was apprehended at the Cass/ Arkansas County line, according to a release from the Cass County Sheriff.
Investigators told the news media they believe Gary Shepard and Kevin Shepard targeted Donnie Combs because they believed he was going to be a witness against Gary Shepard in an ongoing felony theft case.
The pair face the death penalty if convicted at their trial later in 2021, according to the indictment. Bond for each is set at $1.5 million.
The bodies of Donnie and Cynthia have never been found. “For two years our family has had our hearts torn to shreds,” said Donnie’s family member Kara Combs on social media. “With finding out the outcome… we are having to live this horrible experience all over again. We still need to find them and bring them home.”
Anyone with information should contact the Cass County Sheriff 's Office 903-756-7511.
Culberson, Larry Joles- Larry was last seen September 4, 2013 from his home on County Road 4320 in Emory, Rains County, Texas. Larry had been having some medical issues shortly before his disappearance, specifically swelling in his leg, which causes him to limp.
Larry was last known to be wearing camouflage-style gray pants, a white T-shirt and he might be wearing high-top tennis shoes.
The next day, his vehicle was found in a wooded area near his home. An extensive search was conducted in the area without any result. Authorities believe he may have been taken against his will.
Few details are available about Larry’s case. Larry was last known to be wearing camouflage-style gray pants, a white T-shirt and he might be wearing high-top tennis shoes.
He is 6’4” and 195 pounds, with gray hair and blue eyes. He was 58 at the time of his disappearance and would be 65 now. Anyone with information should contact the Rains County Sheriff 's Department at 903-473-3181.
Dunn, Hartford Hunter- Hartford was last seen August 5, 2004 leaving his daughter and son-in-law’s home in the 200 block of Private Road 4002, near Sue Belle Lake Road, in Marshall, Harrison County, Texas.
Dunn’s daughter said she woke up at 7:30 a.m. and found the door open and her father gone. She therefore believes he disappeared sometime between midnight and 7:30 a.m., she told authorities.
At 76 years old, Dunn was in the beginning years of dementia. Dunn had been living with his daughter and son-in-law for about three years prior to his disappearance, according to NAMUS. He has a brother living on Karnack Highway in Marshall and may have tried to visit him, according to authorities, but if so he never arrived there. He has not been seen since.
Dunn is an African-American male with gray-black hair and brown eyes. He wore a long, gray beard at the time of his disappearance. He is a cigar smoker and his nickname is Sweet Papa. He is 5'7”, 189 pounds and would be 93 years old today. Anyone with information should contact the Harrison County Sheriff 's Office 903-923-4020
All data gathered from the National Missing and Unidentified Persons Database, Charley Project, local news media, Texas Equusearch, The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Texas Department of Public Safety, CrimeStoppers, Missing East Texas Eight Facebook Page, Texas Department of Corrections and original research.