The Mysterious Disappearance of Tara Grinstead
Suspicious Minds
But that didn't stop the suspicion.
Almost as soon as the investigation began, so did the steady drumbeat of rumor and innuendo. It is ironic perhaps that the same familiarity that makes small towns like Ocilla and Hawkinsville so warm and inviting, can, in the face of doubt, turn so dark and fearful.
That is apparently what happened in Ocilla.
It started on day one of the investigation. According to several sources, it began when Harper first showed up at police headquarters to talk with investigators. Anita Gattis met him outside and in front of other police officers, in what Harper took to be a direct accusation, she reportedly said, "what did you do to my sister?"
Realizing that Gattis and others viewed him as a suspect, even though authorities had not identified him as such, Harper then retained an attorney, Thomas Pajadas, a local lawyer for whom Harper's father works as a paralegal.
Gattis was not the only one who suspected Harper. A website, established to aid in the search, offered a forum and soonto the consternation of its originators it filled up all kinds of speculation about what had happened to Tara. Much of the discussion focused on Harper, though authorities had never publicly named him.