Name: Kelly Hanson Nash
Age: 25 years old
Last seen: January 5, 2015
Location: Buford, Georgia
Status: Found deceased in February 2015
Disappeared: Gone in Georgia: A Disappeared Special
Case Information
25-year-old Kelly Nash was last seen in Buford, Georgia on January 5, 2015.
He disappeared after walking out of his home on Jimmy Dodd Road, never to return.
Background
Kelly Nash was born on September 5, 1989 in Oneonta, Alabama to parents Alan and Beverly Nash.
He graduated from Lakeview Academy in 2008 and was attending Georgia Gwinnett College with a major in accounting.
Nash was employed by J. Alan Custom Homes, his father’s construction business, and had been working there for 14 months.
Before his disappearance he had been dating his girlfriend, Jessica Sexton, for three years, and the two had recently moved into a house together on Jimmy Dodd Road in the city of Buford, Georgia.
Disappearance
On the morning of January 5, 2015, Kelly Nash woke up coughing and sneezing around 3:30 am.
Nash was suffering from recurring sinus infections and had decided to sleep on the couch in the living room so that his girlfriend could get a good night’s sleep before going to work.
Nash’s girlfriend woke up and found him playing video games in the living room around 4 am. He told her he wasn’t feeling well and couldn’t sleep, so she went back to bed.
When she woke back up around 7:30 am to let out their dogs and go to work Nash was nowhere to be seen. The game he had been playing was left idle.
He left behind his cellphone, wallet and truck an the house, but his car keys and a 9 mm handgun with a single clip were missing.
His family told authorities that he isn’t the type to just disappear.
Investigators found surveillance video of Kelly at a gas station near his house at 9pm the night before he went missing, but nothing in the footage seemed out of the ordinary, and Nash returned home shortly after.
Helicopters and tracking dogs were used to search for Nash after he disappeared, but turned up no clues as to his whereabouts.
Investigation
On February 8, 2015, Kelly Nash’s body was found by a fisherman in Lake Lanier, near Shadburn Ferry Road.
The body was badly decomposed and was wearing the same pajama pants and dark shirt he had on in the hours before he went missing.
Authorities stated that Kelly Nash died from a gunshot wound and subsequently drowned. They do not believe that he died under suspicious circumstances
Aftermath
Kelly Nash’s funeral was held on February 15, 2015, and he was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Oneonta, Alabama.
No evidence of foul play in Kelly Nash’s death was found, though the circumstances leading to his death remain unclear.
Appearance
Caucasian white male with brown short hair and blue eyes. He is 6’2” tall and weighs 230 pounds.
Nash was last seen wearing blue plaid pajama pants, dark t-shirt, and tan Sperry shoes.
Investigating Agency
If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Kelly Nash please contact the Gwinnett County police (770) 513-5300 or call the family tip line at (404) 433-6323.
Resources & Further Information
Kelly Nash Missing – Facebook
News & Media Links
Missing Person Alert: Police Looking for Buford Man, 25 – Patch 01/15
Search intensifies for missing Lakeview Academy grad – Access WDUN 01/15
Massive search underway in Georgia for missing man with Alabama ties – AL 01/15
MISSING IN AMERICA: Kelly Nash – NBC News 02/15
Kelly Nash who disappeared found dead in Lake Lanier with gunshot wound – Daily Mail 04/15
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