Big Daddy Is Missing
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How did Gary Ferris go missing?
I got a feeling, and I really hope I'm wrong, but I just, I expect foul play out of this. Scott Ferris was worried. No one had seen his father, Gary, in two days. Have you noticed anything odd at the house? Anything unusual in the last two days? Anything strange? Any unusual visitors, activity? Nope. Everything that I found unusual was today. It was July 5th, 2018, a hot and humid Thursday in Cherokee County, Georgia, just outside Atlanta. Scott was talking to Detective Daniel Hayes on the Farris' beautifully manicured family farm. And where do you live at? I live here on the property. I live above the barn in an apartment. Scott was in his mid-30s, ex-military, and a big guy like his dad, six feet, six inches tall.
He managed the farm for his parents. On that Thursday, he was heading out to get a haircut when he saw his sister sitting on the front porch of the main house with his mother, Melody. And she was out there with my sister, and she's like, have you seen your father? Have you talked to him? I'm like, no. Apparently, no one in the family had. Were there any July 4th plans? They don't do, he doesn't, he doesn't have a very social life. Scott noticed that Gary's Mercedes was still parked at the farm. He then ticked through the other clues that might indicate Gary was somewhere on the property, beginning with his dad's wallet.
What clues were found on the Ferris property?
When Gary was home, he'd leave that on his dresser in the master bedroom. But it wasn't there. He thought about what else Gary would have taken if he left on a trip or was staying safely somewhere else. Gary used a CPAP machine every night for his sleep apnea. And Scott knew his father wouldn't spend the night anywhere without it. So the CPAP machine was there. Yes. Did y'all look for a cell phone or anything? Or does he carry that with him? Well, I started calling the cell phone, and my sister started calling the cell phone. It was going straight to voicemail. But with Gary's car and CPAP machine all on the property, he had to be nearby. At this point, Scott's brother Chris had joined the search. Scott wondered if his father had fallen somewhere.
I've always worried about him having a heart attack. I mean, just being somewhere on this property and him have a heart attack. They searched the more than 8,000 square foot main house, the barn, and surrounding woods. I was going to start walking down into the woods to see if, you know, he went off down in there. And then I saw my sister Amanda and my mother standing by the fire. The fire was a smoldering burn pile. It's where they burn yard waste. She goes, has a goat died or anything? Have you thrown a dead goat? Was there a dead animal in the pile? I'm like, no, I haven't done that. I said, well, we haven't had any goats to die. She's like, well, come over here and look at this. Scott moved down for a closer look.
I picked up one little piece. I turned it and realized it was a skull. I immediately just set it back down gently. I said, back up. I'm calling 911. Jerick, you can't even have one indication of the emergency. Blame. My father has come up missing, and we just searched the properties of a small farm, and I just found something there to find that doesn't. There was a huge burning brush, and now there's something to find that it could be him. I don't know. Scott was horrified and certain he had just picked up human remains, remains he believed could be his father. All right, sir, I've got him on the way out there for you. Sheriff's deputies and detectives quickly realized that what had happened that day at the Ferris family farm was no accident.
they learned that the Farrises were a dysfunctional family. Accusations went round and round like a sinister Ferris wheel. Investigators now had to figure out if any of those arguments pushed one of Gary's own kin to kill him. It has been called the Ferris wheel. And it was, but it was our Ferris wheel. This Ferris wheel was powered by distrust over finances, jealousy, and personal betrayal. It's a real-life soap opera. And now, a murder. This is a mother's worst nightmare.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
How did Gary Ferris go missing?
0:02–1:42
2
What clues were found on the Ferris property?
1:42–5:06
3
What did the family discover about Gary's last moments?
5:06–11:13
4
How did the investigation shift from an accident to a murder?
11:13–18:33
5
What role did family dynamics play in the investigation?
18:33–22:31
6
What evidence was found at the crime scene?
22:31–28:01