Haywood County Sheriff's search for man suspected in ex-wife's disappearance
Haywood County Sheriff Billy Garrett Jr. stood at a press conference on Jan. 17 in front of the Richmond Creek and Hatchie River cross-section in Whiteville, Tennessee, where officers behind him scoured the river for clues detailing a missing woman and her ex-husband, who is considered to be a suspect in her disappearance.
Garrett named Haywood County resident Kevin Watson as a suspect in the presumed death of his ex-wife, Britney Watson, adding that authorities suspect he died by suicide in the Hatchie River.
In addition to Watson’s abandonment of his truck and cell phone adjacent to the river embankment, he left a note inside explaining, “I’m going to make it easy for you guys.” According to Garrett, Watson had confided in his best friend shortly before disappearing, which is how sheriff's deputies were led to the location.
An ongoing search for Kevin Watson
“With the sonar, if he’s trapped under there, the sonar will be able to locate his body, and they have ways to get the body back up out of the water, so that’s what we’re attempting to do now,” Garrett said. “Kevin Watson is who we are looking for right here.”
Garrett added that through assistance of the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department, sonar equipment is being used to comb through the river for evidence. Garrett explained that he is seeking to send helicopters over the river as well, provided that “the weather cooperates.”
“We’ve used sonar; we’ve used tracking dogs. We’ve used cadaver dogs. We’ve used TWRA [Tenneesee Wildlife Resources Agency], deputies to check-in areas, we’ve used four-wheelers, and side by sides,” Garrett said. “We’ve been pretty thorough.”
In addition to being a diesel-engine mechanic, Garrett confirmed that Watson was a “smart and talented man” and practiced taxidermy in his spare time.
Steps moving forward
He added that the department “fully expects to find something here today,” but in the event that the deputies are unsuccessful in locating a body, Garrett explained that the sheriff's office will issue a warrant for Watson’s arrest for first-degree murder.
Despite Garrett’s almost-certainty of Watson’s proximity to the area and his presumed drowning, the warrant serves as a “just in case," allowing the departments to cover all of their bases, Garrett said. According to Garrett, an active arrest warrant, as recommended by the Attorney General, allows the invitation of state and federal agencies to aid in the search for Watson.
According to Garrett, Watson and his ex-wife were together for nine years before divorcing 13 years ago. Yet the last four years have acted as a reconciliation period time for them to “get their marriage back together.”
“Apparently, they ran into a lot of domestic problems and obviously it led to this,” Garrett said.
“We feel certain she’s deceased, and so we’ve searched quite a bit there used cadaver dogs and search dogs and plan on going back after this weather clears,” Garrett added.
According to Garrett, this certainty stems from the information obtained from Watson’s best friend “that he confided in and said he did it.”
Garrett concluded that though the search may slow down, the investigation is ongoing and that cell phones and computer systems in the cars to track recent locations are currently underway.
This article originally appeared on Jackson Sun: Haywood sheriff looks for man believed involved in missing ex-wife
