Remains identified as elderly man; daughter charged with concealing his death
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COVINGTON, Ga. (Rockdale Citizen) — The human remains found at Bert Adams Boy Scout Camp in August have been identified as those of an elderly Covington man, and the man’s daughter has been charged in connection with the case.
According to the Covington Police Department, the deceased has been identified as Perry Davis, 72. His daughter, Tamela Renee Carter, 48, has been charged with one count of concealing a death and four counts of third degree forgery for allegedly hiding his body and cashing her deceased father’s Social Security checks. She also faces one count of obstruction. Carter and her father lived together at a Kirk Street residence where she was also his caregiver.
CPD Capt. Ken Malcom said there was no evidence of foul play in the death.
Authorities were able to identify Davis after the Covington Police Department made a connection between the unidentified remains found Aug. 13 and a request that the CPD received on Aug. 26 from family members in Ohio who asked that the CPD conduct a welfare check on him due to inconsistent information they had allegedly been given about his condition by Carter. In addition, Carter was reportedly involved in a lengthy dispute with Ohio family members over finances and the care of Davis.
According to the CPD’s investigation, at one point in April Carter told her Ohio relatives that Davis had died of natural causes and had been cremated.
“The Davis family stated that Ms. Carter was due to bring the remains to Ohio for a family memorial but failed to show up,” according to a CPD release. “According to the family, Carter later told family members that Davis was ‘OK’ and led them to believe he was living in a care facility.“
Officers executed a search warrant at Carter’s residence on Aug. 26 but found no evidence indicating Davis’s whereabouts. Carter reportedly led detectives to believe he was in a care facility but would not say where.
“Carter stated that she would not tell detectives of her father’s location because she did not want other family members in Ohio to know this information,” according to the CPD.
The CPD and the Newton County Sheriff’s Office then launched a joint investigation, along with Coroner Tommy Davis, to determine if the remains found Aug. 13 were those of Davis.
“At the same time, we began reaching out to various state agencies to determine if Mr. Davis was in a nursing home or some other type of care facility,” said Capt. Malcom. “Unfortunately, there was no record of Mr. Davis being a patient anywhere in the state of Georgia.”
On Sept. 14, during a second interview with Carter, she admitted to CPD detectives that her father died in his bed at their home in mid-April. She reportedly told officers that she had driven her father to a wooded area off Boy Scout Road and left his body there. According to the CPD, she led officers to the location where the remains had been found.
“There is no evidence to suggest that this is a homicide,” said Malcom. “We have been in constant contact with Mr. Davis’s family in Ohio and have given them this and other detailed information about this case. We hope that this can offer the Davis family some closure.”
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