A mother’s body was found shortly after she left a disturbing message for her family. Deborah Collier, of Athens, Georgia, was found in a small ravine just a day after leaving a chilling message to her daughter. On Sept. 10, Collier, 59, sent her daughter Amanda Bearden an unprompted Venmo payment of $2,385 along with, “They’re not going to let me go love you, there’s a house key in the blue pot next to door”. The payment and message appear to have been sent from the account of her husband, Steve Collier, according to Bearden’s Venmo account she released. The Habersham County Sheriff’s Office is searching the woods near where Collier’s car was found (Image: Joy Purcell/NowHabersham.com) Bearden, 36, tried to call her mother after receiving the payment, but she didn’t pick up. She reported her mother missing that night. Authorities were able to locate Collier’s body on Sept. 11 after her rental car’s Sirius XM security system alerted them to its location. Collier was driving a rental SUV because her own car was in the shop. After Collier was reported missing, her car’s satellite radio alerted investigators with the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office of his location. They found her car on US Route 441 – about 60 miles north of her home in Athens. Collier’s car was parked on the side of the highway near an old logging road. It was unlocked and comfortable. Debbie Collier lived in Athens, Georgia and worked for Carriage House Realty (Image: Facebook) Sheriff’s deputies arrived on scene in Tallulah Falls and began searching the woods on the highway. They deployed a K-9 search and rescue unit, which found a small bag, a “partially burned” tarp and what appeared to be fire debris. Collier’s body was found in a ravine near the tarp, according to an incident report released to Metro.co.uk. An investigator “observed a naked woman lying on her back, grasping a small tree with her right hand,” the report says. A sergeant with the Sheriff’s Office reported that Collier’s body appeared to have been burned, with “chars on her abdomen.” Authorities are investigating the case as a homicide and not a suicide. Collier’s death has left her family shocked and searching for answers. Investigators found Collier’s car on the side of the highway near Tallulah Falls (Image: Joy Purcell/NowHabersham.com) Bearden told investigators at the scene that her mother had no history of mental health issues, according to the incident report. Burden also told investigators that her mother had a bad back and couldn’t walk that far in the woods. Collier’s husband, Steve, told investigators he last saw his wife around 9 p.m. on September 9, NowHabersham reported. When she woke up and went to work on the morning of September 10, her car was still in the driveway Collier married Steve in 2013, 11 Alive reported. She worked as a front office manager at Carriage House Realty in Athens. Contact our news team by emailing us at [email protected] For more stories like this, check out our news page.
