The Fayette Citizen-News Page
Wednesday, April 28, 1999
Surveyor who found Watson rewarded by WhiteWater CEO

By MONROE ROARK
Staff Writer

The man who discovered the remains of Beverley Watson was recognized for that deed in a ceremony last week at Watson's former place of employment.

Robert H. Brooks, president and CEO of WhiteWater Country Club, presented Robert Gould with a check for $5,000 in front of the WhiteWater clubhouse April 21. Gould, a surveyor, found Watson's bones last month in south Fulton County, nearly two years after her disappearance.

Calling Watson “an asset and valued employee at WhiteWater Country Club,” Brooks said that thanks in part to Gould's actions, “we are pleased the process of closure to the families, community and the children of Beverley Watson has begun.”

Upon receipt of the check, Gould made a brief public statement. “I wish I could have found her alive,” he said. “I'm sorry it [Watson's death] had to happen.”

Major Bruce Jordan, head of the Criminal Investigations Division of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department, also made a brief statement, thanking WhiteWater for its help in the search for Watson. Brooks in turn thanked Jordan and Sheriff Randall Johnson for their work on the Watson case.

The reward announcement was made soon after Watson's disappearance, and Brooks emphasized the importance of this presentation in motivating others to help the authorities close this case as well as others.

“This presentation of $5,000 to Robert Gould should show that rewards are paid, and if anybody has any information on not just the Watson case but any missing person, then they should come forth,” said Brooks.

In conclusion, Brooks thanked the community for its “support and vigilance through this trying period of time.”

“We are waiting now to see how everything develops,” he said. “May her family and all of her friends continue to pray and hope that an ending to this tragedy will be soon. Thank you for your support and never forgetting about Beverley Watson.”

Meanwhile, investigators in Fulton County are moving forward with their probe into Watson's death and could see some tangible results soon.

Interviews with more than 50 people connected with the case should be completed in about a week, according to Major Terry Mulkey of the Fulton County Police Department.

“The process has gone quite smoothly,” Mulkey said. “We're pleased with everyone's cooperation and the way everything has gone so far.”

The painstakingly slow process of forensic work, made more difficult by the fact that authorities have little more than bones to work with, also should be completed soon — “within two weeks maximum,” Mulkey estimated.

Watson's case is currently a missing person/remains found case, and police are awaiting evidence from the medical examiner's office that will tell them whether foul play is involved and if the case should be pursued as a homicide.

A contributing factor in the slow forensic process is the fact that the examiner's office recently moved from Grady Memorial Hospital to a new facility on Pryor Street in downtown Atlanta. That transition “just kind of strung it out a little bit,” said Mulkey.


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