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The development in the George Contos murder case, a man who went missing under suspicious circumstances in May 2015, has led to two suspects being recommended for charges of first-degree murder. 

Donald Corcoran and his stepson Andrew Nemec, both of Palm Coast, have been implicated in the disappearance of Contos through new DNA evidence, cell phone records, and a spending spree that investigators believe may have been funded by the $25,000 in cash that they stole from Contos’ home.

The case was re-examined on the true crime TV show, “Cold Justice,” which aired an episode focused on the mystery surrounding Contos’ disappearance. 

What happened with George Contos?

Family members reported Contos missing on May 17, and sheriff’s deputies found his 1997 Lincoln Town Car abandoned near an ACE Hardware store in the parking lot of St. Joe Plaza along Palm Coast Parkway three days later. 

Some clothes and his passport were found in the trunk. Store surveillance shows Corcoran purchased in the hardware store the same day Contos was last seen.

The investigation began three years ago, and detectives had gathered the bulk of the evidence before the “Cold Justice” TV crew came to town. 

DNA evidence, however, put the investigation over the top. 

The “Cold Justice” team paid to send DNA swabs to a lab for testing, which resulted in a critical discovery of Nemec’s DNA on a driver’s side seat lever inside Contos’ abandoned car and on money bands detectives found discarded inside Contos’ home in the 5800 block of Apricot Avenue.

The investigation revealed that Contos’ lump sum of cash apparently came from selling a property he owned weeks before his disappearance. He sought to buy a 2013 Dodge Dually truck for $15,000 the day he vanished. 

The report suggests that Corcoran, a handyman who often did yard work for him, convinced Contos he had brokered a deal for him to buy the truck. 

But investigators believe that was a ploy to lure Contos to Corcoran’s home along Fariston Lane in Palm Coast, where he was last seen alive on May 9, 2015.

The investigation of George Contos murder

Investigators did not reveal any physical evidence linking either of the suspects to Contos’ alleged murder, and his body has not been discovered. 

Detectives said cell phone records indicate Contos’ phone remained in the area of Corcoran’s home for more than three hours. 

Perhaps the tensest moments in the TV show came as detectives questioned Corcoran and Nemec separately after gathering evidence that appeared to implicate both men. 

Corcoran and Nemec told detectives on the show that Contos had come to Corcoran’s home that afternoon. However, Nemec told investigators Contos visited for about 15 minutes while Corcoran said he was there an hour at maximum. 

When asked about his cash purchases weeks after Contos vanished, Corcoran ended the interview and asked for a lawyer.

Officials from the State Attorney’s Office did not return calls seeking comment. Still, Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly confirmed the suspects’ names and added that his agency submitted the case for review at least a month ago. 

While investigators did not reveal any physical evidence linking either of the suspects to Contos’ alleged murder, evidence points to the reality that Contos is dead.

Staly hopes someone who watched Saturday night’s TV show will come forward with information about where to find his remains.

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