South Florida python hunters find missing 75-year-old woman

Darlene Marybell Peck, 75, was reported missing Wednesday after her husband returned to their Umatilla home on SE 249th Terrace and noticed she wasn’t there, deputies said. (Marion County Sheriff's Office)

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A group of South Florida python hunters located a missing 75-year-old central Florida woman in the Everglades, officials said Thursday.

Darlene Peck, of Umatilla in Marion County, suffers from dementia and her vehicle had last been seen in the Coral Gables area, according to the county’s sheriff’s office.

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Authorities issued a Silver Alert for Peck on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said the python hunters found Peck in Everglades National Park in far southwestern Miami-Dade County, west of Homestead.

“She is in good health and reunited with her family,” the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post.


About the Author

Chris Gothner joined the Local 10 News team in 2022 as a Digital Journalist.