PALM COAST, Fla. – The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office announced the recovery of human remains and vehicle evidence believed to belong to Mary Lou Combs, a Palm Coast woman who disappeared more than two decades ago.
Investigators, assisted by Recon Dive Recovery, Helo & Sub, the FBI Underwater Search and Evidence Response Team in Miami, and the FBI Jacksonville Evidence Response Team, located parts of a submerged vehicle, clothing, children’s toys, and human remains during a multiagency recovery operation in the Intracoastal Waterway.
Combs was reported missing Oct. 9, 2003, after family members became concerned when she failed to attend her daughter’s birthday party days earlier. She was last seen Aug. 19, 2003, leaving a residence she shared periodically with her mother and three children. Family members later contacted authorities after learning she never collected a paycheck from her employer at a Food Lion in Flagler Beach. Combs was 41 years old at the time.
Over the years, detectives pursued numerous tips and conducted aerial and water searches, but none led to confirmed evidence. In 2020, Sheriff Rick Staly established the agency’s Cold Case Unit to reexamine unsolved cases, including Combs’ disappearance.
In February 2024, a volunteer dive team partnered with the Cold Case Unit to search for Combs’ vehicle, a red 1996 Plymouth Neon coupe. In October 2025, divers located a bumper underwater near 18th Road in Palm Coast consistent with the missing vehicle.
A three-day recovery operation began Feb. 3, during which FBI divers entered the submerged vehicle through a broken driver-side window. The vehicle was found upside down in 14 to 17 feet of water and partially buried in sediment. Using dredging equipment, investigators recovered multiple vehicle components, including red plastic fragments, a manual window crank, a floor mat, and a steering wheel marked “Neon.”
Divers also recovered a size 7 shoe consistent with Combs’ shoe size, her Florida driver’s license, personal belongings, children’s toys, and a child seat. Human remains were located and examined onsite by an FBI forensic anthropologist. Investigators noted one recovered bone contained a metal plate consistent with a prior ankle reconstruction surgery known to have been performed on Combs. Detectives are awaiting confirmation related to the medical device’s serial numbers.
The remains have been transferred to the medical examiner’s office, where investigators are working to determine the cause of death. DNA testing will be conducted to confirm identification.
Sheriff Rick Staly said the evidence recovered strongly suggests the remains belong to Combs. Authorities stated that unverified rumors surrounding her disappearance have not been substantiated, and current evidence indicates the possibility that Combs accidentally drove into the Intracoastal Waterway and drowned.
The investigation remains active as officials await final identification and cause-of-death findings. Anyone with information related to this case or other Flagler County cold cases is asked to contact the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office at 386-313-4911, email tips@flaglersheriff.com, or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-888-277-TIPS.
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