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ELLENWOOD, GA—Members of the DeKalb County community have joined the DeKalb County Police Department (DKPD) in the search for an elderly woman who has been missing since Sunday, Jan. 4.
Ernestine “Erni” Merrit, 79, was last seen around 4:30 a.m. leaving her home, which is located on Yolanda Trail in Ellenwood, GA. Ring camera footage at Merrit’s home show that she was wearing a black mink coat, red skirt and black shoes, police stated in a social media post. She reportedly did not have her medications for dementia with her. Those meds were found at her home, said Faye Coffield, a community activist and fellow churchmember who knows Merrit.
Family members reported Merrit missing immediately after they did not find her home on Sunday morning after arriving to pick her up and take her to Green Forest Community Baptist Church. Coffield said Merrit has served as an usher at the church for decades.
Meanwhile, embers of the community are now conducting daily foot searches in nearby woods, 24-hour places such as Waffle House, and other areas near the DeKalb-Clayton County line.
DeKalb County police have issued a Mattie’s Call and are searching by foot, drones, K-9, horses and helicopter.
Merrit is 4’11, 120 pounds and has short gray hair. Anyone who sees her is asked to call 911, DKPD stated.
Anyone who sees her is urged to call 911,
