911 call leads to sexual battery, kidnapping arrest
A Gulf County man was arrested after evidence of sexual battery and kidnapping was discovered when Gulf County Sheriff’s Office investigators responded to a 911 call on Thursday, May 5.
Deondray Fisher (44) of Wewahitchka was arrested by GCSO investigators and charged with sexual battery, false imprisonment and tampering with a victim.
The investigation began after the Bay County Sheriff’s Office contacted the GCSO regarding a possible kidnapping that occurred within their jurisdiction. Based on their investigation, the victim in the case was in the Wewahitchka area and with Fisher.
The GCSO was actively canvassing an area in Wewahitchka when a 911 call was received at approximately 2 a.m..
A male was heard screaming in the background of the call, and the 911 operator was able to determine that the call was in the 400 block of Williamsburg Road.
When the deputy arrived, the victim and Fisher were located.
Through an investigation it was determined that Fisher originally contacted the victim in Bay County and ultimately drove her to a location in Wewahitchka, where he forced the victim to have sex.
Interviews conducted with the victim and Fisher led
investigators to secure a search warrant to search the property where the offense occurred.
Investigators collected several pieces of physical evidence that substantiated the victim’s statement.
Fisher remains incarcerated at the Gulf County Detention Facility.
Meet the Editor
Wendy Weitzel, The Star’s digital editor, joined the news outlet in August 2021, as a reporter covering primarily Gulf County.
Prior to then, she interned for Oklahoma-based news wire service Gaylord News and for Oklahoma City-based online newspaper NonDoc.com during her four years at the University of Oklahoma, from which she graduated in May with degrees in online journalism and political science.
While at OU, Weitzel was selected as Carnegie-Knight News21 Investigative Fellow among 30 top journalism students from around the country. She also was senior editor managing a 12-person newsroom in coordination with Oklahoma Watch, a non-profit news organization in eastern Oklahoma.