Dara Watson, 30, Missing: Cops Suspect Suicide In Fiance Shooting/South Carolina official identifies body as Dara Watson!

First Posted: 02/13/2012 9:30 pm Updated: 02/13/2012 9:53 pm
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South Carolina police are searching for the fiance of a Mount Pleasant man who they suspect committed suicide Friday inside the couple's home. The missing woman's burned-out SUV has been found, but there's no sign of her whereabouts.

Dara Lee Watson, 30, was reported missing by her boss at Verge Solutions on Friday morning. Watson works in the company's accounting department. When police contacted Watson's fiancee, David Hedrick, 34, he said he and Watson had gotten into an argument, authorities said. He said she left Tuesday and hadn't returned. Hedrick said it was not unusual for Watson to take off after an argument, but he was concerned, police said.

At about 12:30 p.m., friends of Hedrick called police and reported finding him dead inside the home he shared with Watson. A 9 mm semi-automatic handgun was found near Hedrick's body.

The Charleston County Coroner has confirmed Hedrick, owner of a bail bond business, died from a single gunshot to the head. An official cause of death has not been released, but according to Patch, police reports indicate his death was likely suicide.

Authorities discovered Watson's burned-out 2006 GMC Envoy SUV abandoned in the Francis Marion Forest on Wednesday, two days before she was reported missing.

Over the weekend, the Charleston County Sheriff's Office searched a five-mile radius from the SUV. Nothing of interest was found, a sheriff's spokesman said.

Watson has not used her cellphone since Wednesday evening, police said in a statement. Phone records indicate the phone was using a tower near Venning Road in Mount Pleasant. A message was sent to her boss that night "stating she was fine," police said.

Watson's mother told police she last saw her daughter on Feb. 6, when she stopped for a visit at the family's business in Boone, N.C.

Mount Pleasant police said they are treating Watson's case as a missing person investigation, but haven't ruled out foul play.

Watson is described as a white female, 5 feet, 4 inches tall and 127 pounds. She has brown hair and blue eyes. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Mount Pleasant police at 843-884-4176.

READ DARA WATSON'S MISSING PERSON REPORT:

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Please click above link to read Dara Watson's missing person's report. Also, video at above link.

Missing woman case gets murkier
Fiance found dead, her car found burned

BY DAVID QUICK , DAVID SLADE
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Sunday, February 12, 2012

By the time 30-year-old Dara Watson of Mount Pleasant was reported missing Friday, the situation had already gone bad.

Watson's whereabouts and her fate remain unknown, but her car was found dumped and burned, and her fiance has been found dead.

Not long after Watson's mother in North Carolina reported her missing, around noon Friday, Mount Pleasant police went to her home in the Rivertowne subdivision and found the body of her fiance, 34-year-old David Hedrick, the owner of a bail bond company.

Authorities aren't saying how he died.

By Friday evening, police realized there was a connection between the missing Watson and a burned-out SUV, found Wednesday by the Awendaw Fire Department and U.S. Forest Service personnel on a dirt road.

It was a vehicle Watson had been driving when she left Boone, N.C., on Monday after visiting her parents.

Authorities with four agencies spent Saturday searching the Francis Marion National Forest near Halfway Creek Road, where Watson's vehicle had been found smoldering on a service road, but came up empty.

"We've had dogs searching the area looking for bodies. We've been looking for evidence," Mount Pleasant Police Chief Harry Sewell late in the afternoon, after emerging from the woods.

"We don't really know what we're looking for," he said. "We've been searching all day long."

Sewell and other officials did not disclose that Watson's fiance had turned up dead the day before.

And even as that news leaked out, the coroner's office and police would not discuss the circumstances of Hedrick's death, such as when he is believed to have died, or the manner of his death.

"The only thing I can tell you right now is that we found him deceased in his home," said Deputy Coroner Scott Ramsey. "I think we got the call around 12:45 p.m." Friday.

Officers from the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office and Mount Pleasant Police Department and rangers from the S.C. Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service took part in the search for evidence in the Francis Marion National Forest Saturday.

Hedrick was owner and CEO of bail bond company Palmetto Surety, with offices on Daniel Island. He bought the $410,000 house on North Creek Drive where his body was found in 2010 and lived there with Watson, an accountant with Verge Solutions in Mount Pleasant.

Hedrick and Watson had been a couple since April 2009, when they met at the Heritage Golf Tournament in Hilton Head, according information she had posted on her Facebook page.

From police accounts, it's unclear that anyone has seen or spoken to Watson since Monday when she left Boone.

Mount Pleasant police said her cellphone was last used about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Venning Road area of the town, based on cell phone records, but it's not clear that she spoke to anyone.

Watson's boss received a text message that said she was fine, Mount Pleasant Capt. Stan Gragg said.

The Charleston County Sheriff's Office was leading the search effort Saturday, while Mount Pleasant police remained in charge of the investigation.

Maj. Jim Brady of the Sheriff's Office said it's not surprising that the burned-out SUV found Wednesday, which was towed to the sheriff department's impound lot, was not connected to Watson's disappearance until she was reported missing Friday.

"People steal cars regularly, take them places, and set them on fire," Brady said.

A large swath of woods was searched Saturday by Mount Pleasant police, deputies from the Charleston County Sheriff's Office and rangers from the S.C. Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service.

"We're going to resume again tomorrow, check some other areas, and go from there," Brady said.

Watson's Facebook page presents a woman who has been an adventurous world traveler, with photos showing her on trips to Mount Everest, the Galapagos Islands, Australia, Germany, Italy, Costa Rica and Peru.

The question is: Where is Dara Watson now?

Watson is 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighs 127 pounds and has brown hair and blue eyes. Anyone who has any information about her is asked to call the Mount Pleasant Police Department at 843-884-4176.

"We're still investigating this and running down other leads, " said Sewell. "Our whole goal here is to find this young lady. Nothing is more important than her life."

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Missing South Carolina woman's fiance seen leaving scene of her burned SUV, police say
Published February 14, 2012

Authorities confirmed Tuesday that the death of a missing South Carolina woman's fiance was a suicide, and they revealed that he had been seen leaving the area where Dara Watson's sport-utility vehicle was found burning, WCBD-TV in Charleston reported.

In a news conference held by Mount Pleasant police, officials said witnesses identified fiance David Hedrick as leaving the scene with a shovel, according to the station.

Hedrick, 34, was found dead Friday of a gunshot wound, and Charleston County Coroner Rae Wooten confirmed that the wound was self-inflicted.

Watson, 30, was last seen Feb. 6, when she left her parents' business in Boone, N.C., her mother told police. Authorities said in a press release that Watson's cellphone was last used around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Her boss also reported receiving a text message from Watson on Wednesday, "stating she was fine," according to police.

Her burned 2006 GMC Envoy was found abandoned in the Francis Marion Forest.

Her boss filed a missing person’s report on Friday after she failed to show up for work, according to local media reports, the same day Hedrick's body was found in Watson’s home.

Police are asking the public for further information on sightings of Watson's vehicle, as well as a white 2008 Mercedes.

Deputies on Monday received a tip about fresh digging about 10 miles from where the burned SUV was found. A forensics team sampling the dirt for any evidence, the station reported, though it doesn't appear to be connected to the disappearance.


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I was afraid that he had killed her and then killed himself...

Another one. When will it end. Not a question.

Missing South Carolina woman's fiance seen leaving scene of her burned SUV, police say

Published February 14, 2012

Authorities confirmed Tuesday that the death of a missing South Carolina woman's fiance was a suicide, and they revealed that he had been seen leaving the area where Dara Watson's sport-utility vehicle was found burning, WCBD-TV in Charleston reported.

In a news conference held by Mount Pleasant police, officials said witnesses identified fiance David Hedrick as leaving the scene with a shovel, according to the station.
Hedrick, 34, was found dead Friday of a gunshot wound, and Charleston County Coroner Rae Wooten confirmed that the wound was self-inflicted.

Watson, 30, was last seen Feb. 6, when she left her parents' business in Boone, N.C., her mother told police. Authorities said in a press release that Watson's cellphone was last used around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Her boss also reported receiving a text message from Watson on Wednesday, "stating she was fine," according to police.

Her burned 2006 GMC Envoy was found abandoned in the Francis Marion Forest.

Her boss filed a missing person’s report on Friday after she failed to show up for work, according to local media reports, the same day Hedrick's body was found in Watson’s home.

Police are asking the public for further information on sightings of Watson's vehicle, as well as a white 2008 Mercedes.

Deputies on Monday received a tip about fresh digging about 10 miles from where the burned SUV was found. A forensics team sampling the dirt for any evidence, the station reported, though it doesn't appear to be connected to the disappearance.

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Dara Lee Watson hasn't been seen since Feb. 6 and was reported missing last Friday. Her fiance was found dead in the couple's home last Friday. Below is a timeline of events in the case:

Monday Feb. 6: Dara Lee Watson last seen by Mother in Boone, NC around noon.

Monday Feb. 6: Watson and fiance get into argument Monday night, fiance David Hedrick tells police.

Tuesday Feb. 7: Watson leaves couple's house the morning after alleged fight, Hedrick tells police. Neighbors tell investigators they saw Watson's SUV leave the house.

Tuesday Feb. 7: Watson's burned SUV found off Halfway Creek Road in the Francis Marion National Forest that afternoon.

Wednesday Feb. 8: Text message sent from Watson's phone to sister at 1:30 p.m.

Wednesday Feb. 8: Watson's boss receives text message from Watson's phone stating she is fine. Watson wasn't heard from again.

Wednesday Feb. 8: Watson's cell phone last used at 7:30 p.m. about .6 miles northeast of Venning Road cell tower.

Friday Feb. 10: Watson's coworker files missing persons report with Mt. Pleasant Police at 10:30 a.m.

Friday Feb. 10: Police interview Watson's fiance about her disappearance.

Friday Feb. 10: Watson's fiance found dead from gunshot wound to the head by two friends in the couple's North Creek Drive home just after 12:30 p.m.

Friday Feb. 10: At 3:30 p.m., Mt. Pleasant police ask for public's help locating Watson.

Saturday Feb. 11: Multiple agencies search area off Halfway Creek Road, near where car was found.

Sunday Feb. 12: Search continues for Watson, but is called off mid-afternoon.

Monday Feb. 13: Police search couple's North Creek Drive home again.

Tuesday Feb. 14: Charleston County Sheriff's Office investigates area off Clayfield Road.

Tuesday Feb. 14: Search crews return to Halfway Creek road area for a third search of the area.

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Police: Missing S.C. woman Dara Watson's fiance involved in her disappearance

By Crimesider Staff Topics Daily Blotter

(CBS/WCSC/AP) MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. - Police said on Tuesday that the fiance of missing South Carolina woman Dara Watson, who hasn't been seen since last Monday, was involved in her disappearance.

Police say a witness saw Watson's fiance David Hedrick, found dead in his home last Friday, leaving the area where Watson's car was found with a shovel, reports CBS affiliate WCSC.

Police say the couple may have had an argument Monday night about their upcoming wedding.

Watson's burned out SUV was found on Wednesday and according to the Post and Courier newspaper, her cell phone was last used around 7:30 pm Wednesday, though it is unclear whether she spoke to anyone.

On Thursday, Dara Watson's mother reported her missing, saying she was last seen Monday, Feb. 6, when she left Boone, N.C. after visiting her parents.

About 75 people searched for Watson in the Francis Marion National Forest near where her car was found, reports the Post and Courier newspaper. Authorities called off a search for the 30-year-old Watson on Sunday.

Officers searching Watson's Mount Pleasant home on Friday found Hedrick, who police say died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to WCSC.

Authorities are reportedly looking for anyone who may have seen Hedrick's white 2008 Mercedes E-350 or Watson's silver 2006 GMC Envoy between Monday, Feb. 6 and Tuesday night, Feb. 7.

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Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012

Days before his fiancee was reported missing, David Hedrick was seen by a witness walking out of the Francis Marion National Forest carrying a shovel, authorities said Tuesday.
Dara Watson, 30, has not been seen since. Her silver 2006 GMC Envoy was found burning in the forest on the afternoon of Feb. 7.
Police were told that Hedrick hitched a ride that day to the couple's North Creek Drive home in Mount Pleasant after leaving the forest. The 34-year-old shot himself in his bedroom Friday after speaking to investigators about the missing person's case, officials said.
Charleston County Coroner Ray Wooten on Tuesday ruled the death a suicide.
Watson and Hedrick were last seen together Feb. 6, leaving Boone, N.C., where they had been visiting Watson's mother. Mount Pleasant Police Chief Harry Sewell said the couple had an argument in Boone about the upcoming wedding. One friend told The Post and Courier that Watson was backing out of the wedding.
Sewell said a witness positively identified Hedrick coming out of the woods with a shovel. He said investigators described Hedrick as being calm when he was asked about his fiancee's whereabouts.
Two friends were outside the couple's home Friday when they heard the shot that ended Hedrick's life. The friends wanted to speak to him about Watson's disappearance.
One friend, Patrick O'Neil, said "something was eating at" Hedrick in the days before he shot himself.
Friends and co-workers knew the situation was desperate when the couple didn't show up at their workplaces early last week. In telephone conversations with O'Neil, Hedrick refused to meet for dinner or discuss whatever was bothering him.
O'Neil, of Mount Pleasant, went to Hedrick's house in the RiverTowne subdivision Friday afternoon and knocked, but there was no answer.
He said he saw a car in the garage packed with clothes. O'Neil said he thought about breaking into the home, but hesitated to do so.
Then, a gunshot.
O'Neil and a friend smashed a back door's window and ran to the master bedroom. They found Hedrick lying on the bed. He had a bullet wound in his head.
Watson's sister and her boss at Verge Solutions said they received text messages early in the week from Watson's phone, but that the texts ceased later in the week. Investigators believe Hedrick sent the messages.
The couple had dated since April 2008 and became engaged last month, O'Neil said.
Both were dedicated workers for their employers.
Hedrick had been a bartender at the Carolina Yacht Club in 2005 when a company official from Palmetto Surety Corp. offered him a marketing job, according to several sources. By 2008, he had assumed the role as the Daniel Island company's president and CEO.
Frances Jenkins, a bail bondsman underwritten by Palmetto Surety, said she had trouble contacting Hedrick for a bond approval in the last few weeks.
Like many who knew the couple, Jenkins thought Watson and Hedrick were simply late getting back in town after Super Bowl weekend.
"When I heard he didn't show up at the office, it didn't seem like David," she said. "I was actually mad. ... It was an odd set of circumstances."
Jenkins held out hope Tuesday that Watson would be found safe as police called for residents to continue phoning in tips.
"It was a shock. David was a happy person," Jenkins said. "Now, I'm just really concerned about her."
O'Neil said that of his 20 closest friends, Watson and Hedrick were always the happiest.
They had lucrative jobs. They threw parties at their Mount Pleasant house. And they traveled. They recently returned from a vacation to Egypt, and they planned a wedding in Fiji.
When they started to argue, they would quickly replace their anger with laughter.
"They were such good people. They were successful," O'Neil said. "But he was just very distraught (last week). He said they got in a fight, and she didn't want to get married."


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Feb 15, 2012

Charles Gilbert is named in a Mount Pleasant police report as the man who found David Hedrick. He called police moments after he found Hedrick with a self inflicted gun shot wound to the head.

Gilbert found Hedrick on his bed with the gun still in his hand.

"Somebody has shot himself in the head and he's still breathing, so hurry up," Gilbert screamed on the 911 call.

Inside Hedrick's house on North Creek drive is where Gilbert found the Mount Pleasant man. It was moments after investigators say Hedrick shot himself.

"I heard a gun shot, and broke out the back window, and it was just too late," said Gilbert.

The call was made in the afternoon on Friday, February 10. It was the same day Dara Watson was officially reported missing.

Friends say the two were engaged. They made plans to take a honeymoon. The trip would've started after their November wedding.

"Wow, this is awful," Gilbert said. "He and his girlfriend broke up. They were just about to get married.

"His girlfriend is missing," he told the dispatcher. "I got a bad feeling. I want to search the house so bad I can't stand it dude, why else would he kill himself?"

Police say the couple recently had an argument over the wedding. This began the chain of events that led to several searches in the Francis Marion Forest, looking for any sign of Watson. Hedrick was seen near those woods by multiple witnesses. One of them gave him a ride back to his home just days before his death. He was seen carrying a shovel which is now being tested for DNA and fingerprints.


"Did someone shoot him or did he shoot himself," asked the dispatcher.

"He shot himself," said Gilbert. "He's by my side."

Initially, the caller said Hedrick was breathing but his vital signs quickly took a fatal turn.

"Does he still have a weapon," said the dispatcher. "Yeah, it's in his hand on his chest."
"Is he still breathing?"
"I don't think so man," said Gilbert.
"Can you take the gun out of his hand, do you have the gun now?"
"I have the gun," Gilbert said.
"Can you set it off to the side and secure it away from him?"
"Yes sir," he said.
Yet Another STUPID 911 Operator.
The Caller (Gilbert) says he doesn't think David is any longer breathing and the 911 Operator says take the gun away from him and put it out of his reach? First of all if he's dead he won't be using the gun again. Secondly the 911 Operator told Gilbert to tamper with the evidence by removing the gun from the position it was in. Now not only are Gilbert's fingerprints on the weapon there's gunshot residue on his hands. WTF???

The search for Watson continued Wednesday, partly in the Francis Marion Forest, while police also looked near the home where Hedrick and Watson lived in Mount Pleasant. Those efforts included bulldozers, search dogs and a helicopter.

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Feb 15, 2012



CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) -- A spokesman with the Charleston County Sheriff's Office has confirmed a shovel was recovered during search efforts for Dara Lee Watson over the weekend.

Major James Brady said the shovel was recovered near the Halfway Creek Road area where search efforts began on Saturday.

Brady said investigators are currently working to lift any prints or DNA evidence from the shovel.

"We'll test it for anything we can test it for," Maj. Brady said.

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2/14 Tuesday afternoon teams with search dogs search the area near where Watson's SUV was found.

Searchers have found a freshly dug area in the Francis Marion National Forest, and deputies spent the night there, planning to investigate further today. The Charleston Post & Courier said today that it was Monday that a search-and-rescue worker came across the spot near where Watson’s GMC was found. The paper said footprints were seen on top of the dirt, and quoted Sheriff's Maj. Jim Brady that it wasn't yet known whether the area was connected to the case. Investigators planned to examine it today. Meanwhile, a timeline developed yesterday in information being released by investigators in Mount Pleasant SC in the disappearance of Watauga Native Dara Lee Watson, a time frame that includes Police talking with her boyfriend Friday, hours before he was found shot to death. The Charleston Post & Courier today refined the timeline, that as Mount Pleasant Police searched yesterday around the home the couple shared. The search shifted to the grassy, marshy areas near the house, with search dogs sniffing the area yesterday. Police say they contacted David Hedrick Friday day about Watson being missing, and he is reported to have told police he had fight Watson Monday night of last week, and that she left Tuesday. It was not the first time. Police dispatched to the residence Hedrick shared with Dara Watson at about 1pm, lead to the discovery of Hedrick shot in the head and what the paper describes as a pool of blood ‘building’ around his head. A 9mm handgun was at a sink nearby, but no distance was specified. Police had been responding to a possible suicide when they found the man. If the timeline given by Hedrick is correct, the argument occurred just hours after Dara Lee Watson left her parent’s store—Watsonatta Western World— with Hedrick—in downtown Boone a week ago yesterday. The search for Dara did not get underway fully until Friday, as there was a text message to Watson’s boss in Mount Pleasant on Wednesday, saying she was OK. She had also exchanged text messages with her sister last Wednesday, message that the sister said “were normal and sounded like things she would text,” according to the paper. Watson’s boss at Verge Solutions finally called police Friday, concerned that he hadn’t heard back from Dara, initiating the investigation. By that time, her 2006 GMC SUV had already been found, burned, in the Francis Marion National Forest, but without a missing persons report, they were not connected until Friday. Dara’s family is in the Low Country area, awaiting any news on the case.

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Does he still have a weapon," said the dispatcher. "Yeah, it's in his hand on his chest."
"Is he still breathing?"
"I don't think so man," said Gilbert.
"Can you take the gun out of his hand, do you have the gun now?"
"I have the gun," Gilbert said.
"Can you set it off to the side and secure it away from him?"
"Yes sir," he said.

Uh-oh!! This Gilbert fellow better get a lawyer! They'll be charging him with murder!!

BY EDWARD FENNELL
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Thursday, February 16, 2012

A cell phone that belonged to the missing Dara Lee Watson was found Thursday by divers searching small ponds near where Watson and her former fiance once lived.

Authorities were searching in the area of North Creek Drive in Mount Pleasant's Rivertowne subdivision Thursday for clues in the disappearance of 30-year-old Dara Watson, who has been missing since Feb. 6.

Hedrick shot himself on Feb. 10 in the North Creek Drive home the couple had lived in. Watson, who reportedly did not want to proceed with the couple's planned wedding, was last seen Feb. 6. Her burning SUV was found in the Francis Marion National Forest on Feb. 7.

Mount Pleasant Police Capt. Stan Gragg said Thursday night the recovered phone is being processed by a police team. What evidence the phone might produce, Gragg said he can't speculate.

The search for Watson will continue Friday, Gragg said.

"We will continue to follow leads that come in and search areas where Dara might be located," he said.

Teams that included Mount Pleasant police and Charleston County Sheriff's Office deputies have searched almost daily in the forest without finding Watson. Police said information provided by witnesses tells them Hedrick was seen leaving the forest with a shovel and hitching a ride to the North Creek Drive home.

A shovel was found by search teams near where the SUV burned, police said.

Gragg said the search of the ponds was something that investigators had not earlier been able to do. He was not sure if there would be more diving in the RiverTowne subdivision Friday.

The sheriff's office Underwater Recovery Team found the phone while searching five small pounds. The team also looked at some marsh and creek banks.

In the ponds, five men in SCUBA gear walked shoulder-to-shoulder in water that came up as far as their chests. Other than the phone, the only significant finds apparently were an old bicycle and an alligator almost six-feet in length.

The gator was removed from a pond and taken away by state Department of Natural Resources officers, Gragg said.

At least one pond divers searched had a sign posted nearby warning that gators might be present.

Sheriff's Office Maj. Jim Brady said the search in the National Forest is expected to resume Friday, possibly in the Halfway Creek area.

Reporters and photographers watched while divers worked, and so did some neighborhood residents.

Ingrid Ray of North Creek Drive watched from her back yard and said she didn't know Watson or Hedrick, but had seen them riding the streets in their golf cart.

When she heard Watson was missing and Hedrick had shot himself, "It made everyone uneasy, because this is such a quiet street," she said.

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Dara Watson Updates: Missing Woman's Dead Fiance 'Was Involved' In Her Disappearance

The Huffington Post Steven Hoffer

A missing woman's fiance was responsible for her recent disappearance before he killed himself, according to police in South Carolina.

Witnesses have positively identified Dara Watson's husband-to-be, David Hedrick -- whose death a coroner recently ruled a suicide -- walking away from her burnt SUV with a shovel in his hand on the night that she was last seen, Mount Pleasant Police Public Information Officer Stan Gragg told The Huffington Post.

“It is believed at this time that between Monday evening [Feb. 6] and Tuesday morning [Feb. 7], Hedrick was involved in the circumstances surrounding her disappearance,” Mount Pleasant Police Chief Harry Sewellsaid yesterday during a press conference.

The 30-year-old Watson was last seen in Boone, N.C., by her mother on Monday, Feb. 6. Four days later, the woman's employer reported her missing.

"We're really trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Nothing is more important than this young lady's life," Chief Harry Sewell of the Mount Pleasant Police Department told KSDK.

Authorities discovered Hedrick's body in his home last Friday. He killed himself hours after police questioned him about Watson's disappearance, Patch reported

Anyone with information regarding Watson's disappearance is encouraged to call the Mount Pleasant Police Department at (843) 884-4176.

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Woman’s disappearance baffles neighbors

Posted: Feb 16, 2012 10:35 PM CST
Updated: Feb 16, 2012 11:24 PM CST

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCIV) -- As divers searched several ponds near the home that Dara Watson and David Hedrick shared, curious neighbors watched on. Investigators discovered Dara Watson's cell phone in a body of water near the couple's home on Thursday.

"We're certainly not used to this kind of hub bub so to speak," said Brian Hadley who's called the Rivertowne subdivision home for about five years. The recent focus placed on his neighborhood has definitely taken some getting used to.

"It's certainly uncharacteristic for our neighborhood. One of the reasons we like it here is because we're in a secluded, private spot," said Hadley. "It's disturbing. It's surprising. It makes you realize crazy things can happen everywhere."

Hadley lives four doors down from the couple's home.

"The thought was these were relatively nice, normal people," said Hadley.

According to Mount Pleasant Police, Dara was last seen on February 6th. Several days later her fiancé shot himself in the head. With Hedrick gone, investigators are tracing back his steps in hopes of finding out what happened to Dara.

"That first 24 hours is critical," said James Randolph, a private investigator who's been following the case. He helped locate the body of Kate Waring after she disappeared several years ago.

"When someone falls off the face of the earth-no credit card usage, no checkbook, no bank, no kept appointments, generally it's a pretty bad sign."

As investigators continue their search for clues into Dara's whereabouts--residents like Hadley says it's definitely shaken many in the neighborhood.

"Makes you surprised that those kinds of things can happen a couple of doors down."

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video at above link.

Posted: 02/17/2012 4:48 pm

A body was found Friday in South Carolina on Friday not far from where authorities had found the abandoned and burned car of Dara Lee Watson, a 30-year-old woman who went missing days before her fiance committed suicide, Mount Pleasant police announced.

A spokesperson for the Mount Pleasant Police Department said the body was discovered Friday morning in the Francis Marion National Forest. The location is near where Watson's burned-out 2006 GMC Envoy SUV was found last week.

Authorities will not comment on the gender of the victim or whether they have discovered any evidence of injury. Investigators have, however, officially suspended the search for Watson.

Dara Lee Watson, 30, was reported missing by her boss at Verge Solutions on Feb. 10. Watson works in the company's accounting department. When police contacted Watson's fiance, David Hedrick, 34, he said he and Watson had gotten into an argument, authorities reported. He said she left Tuesday and hadn't returned. Hedrick said it was not unusual for Watson to take off after an argument, but told authorities he was concerned, police said.

Dara Lee Watson (30) was last seen on Monday February 6th, 2012 in Boone, NC by her mother. Watson left the residence in Boone, North Carolina in a silver 2006 GMC Envoy with SC license tag GFW-393. Watson's cell phone was last used on February 8th, 2012 at 7:30pm. Watson is 5'4", 127 lbs and has brown eyes. She was last seen driving a silver GMC Envoy with SC license plate number GFW-393 (the vehicle pictured is similar not the actual vehicle). According to cell phone tower information, the last telephone call was made around the Venning Road area of Mount Pleasant, SC. Watson's boss received a text message on February 8th stating she was fine but she has not been heard from since. If anyone has had any contact with Dara Lee Watson or her vehicle, please contact the Mount Pleasant Police Department at (843) 884-4176.

At about 12:30 p.m. that day, Hedrick's friend Charles Gilbert called police and reported that he found his friend dead inside the home Hendrick shared with Watson. A 9-mm semi-automatic handgun was found in Hedrick's hand.

"Somebody has shot himself in the head and he's still breathing, so hurry up," Gilbert said in the 911 call.

"I heard a gunshot, and broke out the back window, and it was just too late," Gilbert explained. "Wow, this is awful. He and his girlfriend broke up... His girlfriend is missing. I got a bad feeling. I want to search the house so bad I can't stand it, dude. Why else would he kill himself?"

During the call, Hedrick stopped breathing and died.

The Charleston County Coroner confirmed Hedrick, owner of a bail bond business, died from a single gunshot wound to the head.

Watson's mother told police she last saw her daughter on Feb. 6 during a visit to the family's business in Boone, N.C.

On Thursday, divers found Watson's cell phone in a retention pond near her home.

The Charleston County Coroner will be conducting an autopsy on the remains found Friday, but officials have not yet said when they expect to have a positive identification.

A candlelight vigil is planned for Watson at the Mt. Pleasant Waterfront Memorial Park on Friday night at 7 p.m.

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South Carolina official identifies body as Dara Watson
Published February 17, 2012

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. – A South Carolina coroner has identified a body found in a national forest as that of a woman who went missing this month.

Authorities said the woman, 30-year-old Dara Lee Watson, was killed by her former fiance days before he committed suicide.

Charleston County Coroner Rae Wooten said Saturday that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head. The body was found Friday in the Frances Marion National Forest, not far from where police had discovered the woman's torched SUV.

Mount Pleasant Police Chief Harry Sewell says Watson was killed by David Hedrick on Feb. 6 or Feb. 7 and buried in a shallow grave. Hedrick fatally shot himself on Feb. 10.

After the search for Watson was called off, candlelight vigils were held Friday in Mount Pleasant and in Boone, North Carolina, where Watson, a North Carolina native, had family.

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Authorities said the woman, 30-year-old Dara Lee Watson, was killed by her former fiance days before he committed suicide.

Thus, the reason the "former fiance" did himself in. MOO.

Police say Watson was killed at SC home, dumped in forest

Diane Knich - [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

MOUNT PLEASANT --
Dara Watson spent the last moments of her life in the Mount Pleasant home she shared with her former fiance, David Hedrick. That's where on Feb. 6 or 7 Hedrick shot her once in the head, killing her, police said Saturday.
Hedrick then stuffed the lifeless body of the 30-year-old woman, who reportedly had called off their wedding, into her sport utility vehicle and drove to an isolated spot in the Francis Marion National Forest, said Mount Pleasant Police Chief Harry Sewell.

Hedrick then pulled out a shovel, dug a shallow grave about 60 yards away, dumped her body into it and buried her. Then he set the vehicle ablaze and walked out of the woods. Passers-by reported seeing him come out of the woods carrying a shovel.

STORY: Body found in woods identified as Dara Watson
Speculation about a body found near the burned vehicle Friday was put to rest when Sewell and Charleston County Coroner Rae Wooten confirmed the body was Watson's.
The identification followed a more than weeklong search for Watson, who was last seen leaving her mother's home in Boone, N.C., on Feb. 6.

The Watson case has not been straightforward. During the period when her whereabouts were unknown, since she left Boone, texts were made from her phone, her SUV was found burned and Hedrick was found dead in the couple's home.

Searchers found a body Friday, and Sewell said Saturday that dental records were used to identify it as Watson's. He said Hedrick shot her to death in a home the couple shared in Rivertowne, took her to the woods off Halfway Creek Road, buried her, then torched her vehicle.

Wooten said the cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head. There were no other signs of violence or trauma on her body. Her death has been ruled a homicide.

Sewell said the area where Watson's body was found previously had been searched. But heavy rain settled the ground and revealed new evidence. "We weren't giving up on that area," he said.

Watson was an accountant employed by Verge Solutions. Her Facebook page presented a woman who had been an adventurous world traveler, with photos showing her on trips to Mount Everest, the Galapagos Islands, Australia, Germany, Italy, Costa Rica and Peru.

Sewell and Wooten asked that Watson's family be given privacy as they grieve.

Hedrick, 34, fatally shot himself in the head Feb. 10 in the North Creek Drive home the couple shared after being questioned by police about Watson's disappearance.
Sewell said there was evidence Hedrick was planning to leave town after having shot Watson. A resignation letter was found on his computer, for example.

Hedrick had been employed at Palmetto Surety Corp. since 2005, when he worked in sales and marketing. He was named the Daniel Island company's president and CEO in 2008.

Hedrick continued a ruse of Watson being alive in the days after he killed her by sending text messages from her cellphone, Sewell said. Her cellphone was found by divers Thursday in a pond near the couple's home.

The pistol Hedrick used in his suicide is being analyzed for a ballistic comparison to Watson's fatal injury, Sewell said.
Sewell thanked all the law enforcement officers who worked on the case. "They did not stop. They did remarkable work day and night," he said. The team worked "like looking for family members."

The next step in the investigation is forensic analysis of the evidence, he said, "tying all the strings so we can answer all the questions."

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