Tina Walkingstick Frizsell, 42, of Mountain City, Georgia, was reported missing by family in May 2022. Her remains were later identified through DNA during a homicide investigation after remains were found in an encampment off Mulberry Road in Macon County, North Carolina.

The Macon County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Frizsell had been shot and killed elsewhere in the county — investigators say the shooting occurred in a shed on South Tryphosa Road near the Rabun County line — and her body was then moved to the encampment and desecrated in a burn pit. Family members provided DNA samples that led to identification; recovering the remains was described as a very difficult, tedious scene that required overnight work.

Christopher Shields, 44, of Otto, North Carolina, has been identified as the prime suspect and faces charges that include first-degree murder, destroying human remains, conspiracy to commit murder, concealing a death, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; the district attorney announced an intention to seek the death penalty. Three others — Derek McCrackin, Jessica Smith, and Lenoka Wilson — were arrested on charges related to desecration of a corpse and conspiracy to commit murder. The case remains under prosecution.

Did anyone in the area know Tina or have information about her movements before she disappeared?