THOMPSON, Ohio — A woman is still missing from her property in Thompson, after her belongings were found there without her, according to the Geauga County Sheriff.
According to Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand, 76-year-old Susan Taylor, originally from Mentor, bought the 23-acre property in Thompson in 2021 with the intention of building a house on it. On Friday morning, the sheriff said Taylor was at the property, and had texted her son to let him know she would be leaving soon.
“He typically goes out there on the weekends, so when he got there, she wasn’t there, and he didn’t expect her to be there. But her car was there, her cell phone was there, and her purse was there, and he couldn’t find her anywhere,” Sheriff Hildenbrand said.
From there, the Geauga County Sheriff’s Office, Thompson Police and Fire Departments, BCI’s Crime Scene Unit, Ohio State Highway Patrol, and other departments began searching through the night.
“The county’s drone was out twice, state patrol’s airplane came over and flew over, and the dive team was out there to search the lake,” said Sheriff Hildenbrand. The search was also conducted on foot and using dogs. The aforementioned lake is on Taylor’s property, according to the sheriff.
The sheriff said there were no signs that anyone had slipped or fallen into the lake, adding that they are “checking everything” and “not ruling anything out.”
According to the sheriff and a neighbor, Taylor seemed alert and they do not believe her health was a factor in her disappearance.
“Everybody that we’ve talked to said she was very sharp,” the sheriff said. “She was a nurse and had no physical limitations.”
“She seemed fine, alert, full of energy,” said neighbor John Heston.
Heston said he would wave to Taylor when he was out mowing his lawn, and said she told him she was happy to move out to the area and be on her property.
“They seemed to be good neighbors, I couldn’t say anything bad about them,” Heston said. “It was surprising when she disappeared like she did.”
3News asked the sheriff if any foul play is suspected, to which he replied, “not at this point.” 3News also asked the sheriff about the possibility of an animal attack. The sheriff said there is “no evidence that an animal attacked her,” but said they have not ruled anything out.
“We will continue to investigate it until we find out what happened there,” Hildenbrand said.
3News also spoke to Taylor’s son via phone Monday, and he shared that law enforcement has taken his truck.