Mount Dora police have announced a stormwater pond in Deltona will be drained in connection with the ongoing search effort for Nicole Baldwin, a mother of three who was last seen on November 2, 2023.
Her daughter, Alisha Baldwin, said the night she went missing was just like any other. “When I last saw her she was in my brother’s room with my brother. It was kind of a normal night,” Alisha Baldwin said in 2023. “Hopefully the cops can come up with something, the investigators, that would be the most helpful thing right now as a family.”
Investigation Developments
Since then, developments in the case include the arrest of Nicole Baldwin’s husband later that year, accused of possession of obscene material, and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office’s announcement in April 2024 that Nicole Baldwin’s disappearance was being investigated as a homicide.
In a news release shared Tuesday, the Mount Dora Police Department said detectives had developed new leads with help from law-enforcement partners including the FBI, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the State Attorney’s Office, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Transportation.
“Throughout the investigation, detectives have examined multiple areas of interest where potential evidence was believed to exist; however, those searches did not yield results,” the release states. “Mount Dora Police Department investigators, in coordination with FDOT personnel, are currently draining and sifting a four-acre retention pond in Deltona, located on DeBary Avenue between Enterprise Road and North Road.”
Detectives will remain on site through Thursday, according to the release. “Should evidence be recovered during the search, the Mount Dora Police Department will provide additional information and announce a press conference as appropriate,” the release states. “This investigation remains active, and detectives are committed to pursuing every available lead and resource to locate Nicole Baldwin and provide answers to her family and the community.”
Anyone with information related to the case is urged to contact Mount Dora police at 352-735-7130, or to submit an anonymous tip through Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS (8477).
Original reporting: WESH Orlando — read the source article.
