GILMER, Texas — **EDITOR'S NOTE: The video above is from a 2018 CBS19 report about Kelly Wilson's case.
It's been 31 years — 31 years of questions, 31 years of rumors and 31 years of pain for one East Texas town.
On Jan. 5, 1992, around 8:30 p.m., Kelly Dae Wilson, then-17, walked out of her place of work, Northeast Texas Video, with her manager Joe Henry. She then got into her car to go to a nearby bank to drop off the nightly deposit. She was never seen or heard from again.
The next day, Henry figured something was wrong when he got a call from Wilson's mother.
"I didn’t hear anything further about that until in the morning around 6 a.m., she had asked if she had said anything about going somewhere the night before, she was supposed to go to a friend's house but I don’t know anything about that," Henry said in a 2018 interview with CBS19.
Wilson's vehicle was found, still at her workplace, but with a flat tire. Her belongings were inside the car, but her keys were missing. Wilson was last seen wearing cut-off blue jeans, a purple rugby shirt with red, gold, and white insignia, and brown loafers. She was wearing a gold dome ring, gold emerald ring, gold diamond inset Mexican eagle coin ring, gold pinky ring, gold chain bracelet, gold watch, and triangle earrings. Wilson's hair was blonde and she had a retainer on her lower teeth.
Grainy surveillance video from the bank shows someone did make the video store's deposit that night, but it's unclear whether or not it was Wilson.
After realizing Wilson had seemingly vanished, the hunt was on to find her.
The investigation was led by Sgt. James Brown with the Gilmer Police Department. However, in a strange turn of events two years later, Sgt. Brown and seven others were indicted on charges connected to Wilson's disappearance and presumed murder, according to The Charley Project. It was alleged the crime was part of a satanic ritual by cult members who performed violent acts.
"Many of the defendants charged with Kelly's murder were also charged with sexually abusing children," The Charley Project said.
.However, all the charges eventually led nowhere.
"The murder charges against everyone were later dropped, two months after the initial allegations had been made," The Charley Project said. "One suspect, a teenager named Michael Biby, was convicted of a misdemeanor for slashing Kelly's car tire."
While Biby admitted to slashing the tire, he claimed to know nothing about WIlson's disappearance.
Another potential suspect turned out to be Wilson's then-boyfriend, Chris Denton. Denton was never charged and died of cancer in 2004, according to The Charley Project. He always maintained his innocence.
"The town was divided between people who thought Sgt. Brown was as guilty as Charles Manson and those who thought he was as innocent as Snow White,” said journalist Phillip Williams.
The case brought unwanted, national to the East Texas town — attention geared more toward controversy, cults, and cops being convicted and further away from Wilson.
The case is still open and active. If you have any information on Wilson's disappearance, please contact the Gilmer Police Department at (903) 843-5545 or the Texas Department of Public Safety Missing Persons Clearinghouse at (512) 424-50755.