Author note: This post was written Heather Elvis initially vanished, and prior to the arrests of Tammy and Sidney Moorer. The following is the original post after my discussion with Mrs. Moorer, who is currently accused of the kidnaping of Heather Elvis, who has never been found.
While the search for Heather Elvis continues, there are tons of rumors and speculation being exchanged not only in Myrtle Beach, but across the nation. In particular, the "FindHeatherElvis" Facebook page seems to be the source of much conversation, where many of these rumors form or end up being passed along. With over 40,000 people on the page seeking answers in Heather's disappearance, that's only to be expected. Tonight (January 21, 2014) I had the opportunity to speak on the phone with someone involved in the case who's been the focus of heavy scrutiny, whose husband is mentioned in the official police report associated with Heather's disappearance.
Her name is Tammy Caison Moorer, and she's the wife of Sidney Moorer -- the "older man" that was reportedly involved with Heather before she vanished. She talked to me in hopes of addressing some of the rumors and discussion involving her family, and in hopes of clearing her and her hubby's names -- as she insists that neither one of them had anything to do with Heather's disappearance. I did not record the telephone conversation because much of it was "off the record." However, the quotes can be directly attributed to Tammy, put into the context of our discussion.
For starters, Tammy insists that she had no idea who Heather was until very recently -- and she did not beat her up or have anything to do with her being attacked physically before disappearing like many are claiming. She told me over the phone that she was in California two weeks before Heather disappeared (the general time that she supposedly assaulted the woman). She says they had only just returned when her car was found. Other rumors that insinuate that she may have known her earlier are also false, the woman explained to me. Any rumors claiming that she was assaulted or confronted two months ago are false, she said, because she didn't even know who Heather was.
Tammy Caison Moorer insists that the only thing she and her husband are guilty of is "loving Disney" -- which they certainly do, having taken frequent trips to Disneyland. But going to Disneyland and appreciating the many beloved characters have absolutely nothing to do with the disappearance of Heather Elvis -- and Tammy wants to point out that the supposed "love triangle" between the three of them also has nothing to do with the case. In fact, she insists that there was never a supposed "love triangle" at all, and that her husband's extramarital fling lasted but only a small handful of times -- after what she believes was Heather Elvis openly plotting to seduce Sidney Moorer for several months. Tammy Caison Moorer told me that neither she or Sidney were aware that Heather was using her public Twitter account to comment frequently -- even as far back as early summer of 2013 -- about wanting to have sex with the man now being accused by members of the public of being involved with her disappearance. Tammy was adamant in insisting that Sydney only had sex with Heather Elvis in her car a total of three times, after which he broke it off with her.
"He ended it when he realized something wasn't right about her," Tammy said on the phone.
That was before she knew of the Twitter account containing comments that archived several months of Heather's interest in Sidney along with various comments about "being a homewrecker" in a way that indicated she was proud of the affair she was pursuing. This behavior disturbs Tammy and her husband, I was told on the phone. She expressed the sentiment that she believes Heather was stalking her husband, and now she believes that Heather's obsession with Sidney may have carried over to her disappearance -- meaning that people are unfairly focusing on her family because of a situation that isn't at all what's being rumored by people on the FindHeatherElvis page. Tammy agreed that Heather seemed troubled, and shared one detail with me that I don't think others know. She says that Heather lied to Sidney about her age, claiming to be 23 when she initiated a sexual relationship with him.
As for Sidney being the last to talk to Heather? Tammy says that Heather called him the last night she was seen, but that's it. She called from a blocked number and Sidney answered to tell her to leave him alone. Prior to that, their last communication -- according to Tammy -- was when Heather texted Sidney nothing more than a single period (.) from her phone back on November 5th.
So what does Tammy Caison Moorer think happened to Heather Elvis?
"We think she ran away. She's run away before (According to what some of her friends have said on social media)."
The idea of Heather running away before was news to me, and I can't find anything that confirms or eliminates this as fact or fiction. However, I will say that her Twitter account indicates a desire to flee Myrtle Beach in more than a couple places. In fact, she even expresses at one point that a one way ticket to Thailand was only a certain price. Is it possible that Heather is somewhere on her own, voluntarily, maybe overseas?
What's it been like for the Moorer family since Heather Elvis disappeared?
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In a word: Hell.
And Terry Elvis mentioning a "bounty" publicly on the FindHeatherElvis Facebook page does not help matters. Tammy Caison Moorer told me that Terry Elvis and people associated with him and his family have threatened her, have vandalized her property and made her feel alienated in her own community. She even told me that there has been some kind of discussion by rabid supporters of the Elvis family making internet comments about kidnapping her own children in order to make her and her husband Sidney "talk" and "tell what happened to Heather." Yet, she still insists that neither one of them know a thing about the Myrtle Beach woman's disappearance.
She alleges that Terry and his associates have looked through her mailbox, driven by her home on multiple occasions and have pretty much created an environment that has her worried that her family is in danger. She says that her and her husband have been 100% cooperative over the course of this case, and they have allowed the detectives to search their home and all of their property. Yet she is still being targeted with threats, harassment and even vandalism.
"I'm pissed," she stated in an exhausted voice.
Tammy Caison Moorer also filled me in on her side of what took place with volunteer searchers on Sunday.
This All Voices article shares the searchers' claims that Tammy and her father may have "verbally assaulted" them. However, according to Tammy, the searchers were trespassing. She says that one searcher had come into the yard toward a bag of leaves and even allegedly looked in or around the windows of a vehicle on the lot. To Moorer's defense, if this is true, the searchers had no right to cross into private property. Tammy says that there are police reports and video to prove what happened as well.
Sidney and Tammy Moorer
Photo provided by Moorer family
As for the talk about the Moorer's marriage: It's irrelevant. Tammy Caison Moorer explained on the phone that she and her husband didn't have the traditional marriage that many people are used to -- especially people in the dominantly traditional-Christian community that surrounds her. Her once open marriage with Sidney is none of anybody's business, nor is it anyone's business that she and him are working on building a stronger marriage for the strength and quality of a loving family. Who has a perfect marriage? Nobody.
Do you believe Tammy's claims that her and her husband are absolutely not involved with Heather's disappearance? Or do you think she is doing what she can to convince us of otherwise? This is indeed a case full of twists and turns, and no matter what the outward appearance of things, we don't all know the facts. It's probably not the best idea to assume that any one or two people are "definite" culprits in this case if Heather was kidnapped or murdered. In cases like these where nobody knows for certain what happened, a lot of harm can be done by singling out people to the point that they become vulnerable to being harmed.
