Two arrests have been made this month in connection with the 2007 disappearance of Gwinnett teen Justin Gaines — but one raises questions about the basis for the other, and the case remains as murky as ever.
On Sept. 2, Walton County authorities arrested 57-year-old Martin Leonard Wilkie and charged him with concealing the death of Gaines, who was last seen outside a Duluth nightclub early on the morning of Nov. 2, 2007. The warrant for Wilkie’s arrest alleges that he and another man, Dustin Dylan Glass, assaulted Gaines that morning in an encounter that “ultimately led to him being shot to death.”
Wilkie and a third man then disposed of Gaines’ body in a “black metal toolbox,” the warrant says.
According to the warrant, all of that information was provided by Glass, who has not been charged in the Gaines case but was called “one of the main persons of interest” by Walton County Sheriff Joe Chapman. It was also corroborated by a woman who claimed to be present during the assault.
Glass’ mother, Thelma Ballew, backed up his story as well — but then lied about knowing where Gaines’ body was, authorities said.
Ballew was arrested on burglary charges in Walton County on Aug. 28 and, three days later, told authorities she had helped Wilkie and another man dispose of Gaines' body in the High Shoals area near the Apalachee River. Walton and Gwinnett County sheriff's deputies then spent three days digging up old wells at the location, but came up empty-handed.
On Monday, Ballew was charged with making false statements. According to the warrant, she met with investigators on Sept. 14 and admitted to lying “in an attempt to get herself out of trouble.”
The investigation into Gaines’ disappearance has been spearheaded, at least publicly, by the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office. Messages left there Monday were not returned.
Messages left at the Walton County Sheriff's Office also were not returned Monday. Chapman said Saturday, however, that Ballew's misleading statements don't mean she doesn't have information about Gaines' disappearance.
“Even though she lied about that, she is cooperating somewhat in the case, and has given some information we believed to be reliable,” Chapman said.
Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter isn’t convinced.
He told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday that Gwinnett County Sheriff Butch Conway is pursuing leads that have “essentially been discredited.”
“What happens is that every time these people get arrested, they get sort of a new version,” Porter said. “Their version of the events, it just doesn’t, it doesn’t hold together. … I don’t think they’re pursuing a fruitful line of investigation.”
Wilkie was released on bond following his arrest. As of early Monday evening, Ballew remained in the Walton County jail.
Glass, 28, was at a federal prison in Jackson, where he was sent in April after a judge sentenced him to serve more than 14 years as a repeat drug offender. He also has been indicted in a separate Newton County case that includes charges of conspiracy to commit murder, racketeering, aggravated assault and participating in gang activity.
On the night he vanished, Gaines — an 18-year-old freshman at Gainesville State College — left his family’s Snellville home to meet up with friends at Wild Bill’s in Duluth. When he was ready to leave, he called several friends to ask for a ride, but no one could pick him up.
Surveillance footage shows him leaving the club about 1:30 a.m. with a cellphone to his ear, and he was spotted again about an hour later. He hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
Occassional tips and searches, like those earlier this month, have always left authorities frustrated.
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