Alabama mother and son charged with murder in 2022 disappearance of Deangelo ‘Dee’ Allen in Anniston
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Two people have been charged with murder in the death of a 31-year-old east Alabama man missing for eight months.
Anniston police on Friday night announced the arrests of Gavin Snider, 25, and Keither Snider, 50, in connection with the disappearance and death of Deangelo “Dee” Allen.
Allen was last seen Sept. 21, 2022, in the area of Old Coldwater Road in Anniston. Family members told authorities it’s unlike Allen, a father, to disappear and not contact them.
His remains have not yet been found.
Police released no details about what they believe happened to Allen or what led to the charges against the suspects. A press release issued by Sgt. Jason Hawkins said only that the murder charges were made “through continued efforts of Anniston Police investigators, the 7th Judicial Major Crimes Unit, and the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Ford.”
Friends and family have been out physically searching for Allen since his disappearance and started a Facebook page which has more than 5,000 members dedicated to Allen’s disappearance.
Members of the group have previously made multiple posts about Gavin Snider as a potential suspect.
Police Chief Nick Bowles said in January that Allen’s “disappearance was involuntary, and we believe multiple people are involved.”
Gavin Snider was already in the Calhoun County Jail on unrelated charges. Keither Snider was taken into custody on Friday.
Earlier Friday, before the arrests were publicly announced, Allen’s mother, Adisa Pruitt, changed the name of the Facebook group from Searching 4 Dee Allen to DeAngelo’s Hope.
“We will never stop looking for and fighting for Dee, but our hope is that another family doesn’t have to go through what we went through and if they do then they will have us to stand up and advocate on their behalf,’’ Pruitt wrote. “We have faced many challenges in the past eight months. Dealing with the police was extremely difficult for us.”
“We are grateful to everyone on social media for spreading awareness of Dee’s story and the mistreatment we faced from the police department,’’ she wrote. “Let’s continue to not only search four Dee but for justice for all those missing, murdered, and mistreated.”
Police said the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Anniston Police Department at 256-240-4000 or 911.
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