On March 4, 2008, David White reported that his sister, Elizabeth Calvert, and her husband, John Calvert, had not been seen or heard from since the previous day, March 3, when, according to witnesses, they had planned to meet with their accountant, Dennis Gerwing, in Sea Pines Center, Hilton Head Island.
Investigators became suspicious that the Calverts may have met with foul play when it was discovered that the couple were to confront Gerwing about their suspicions that he had been embezzling money from the couple’s business accounts.
In the days following the Calvert’s disappearance, Gerwing was interviewed and confirmed that he had a meeting with the Calverts March 3 at approximately 5:30 pm. He further advised when the meeting was over the Calverts left his office to go to dinner. Gerwing reported no confrontation or hostility during the meeting.
A closer look at Gerwing’s story revealed inconsistencies and added to investigators’ suspicions that he was involved in the disappearance of the Calverts. A few hours before the March 3 meeting with John and Elizabeth Calvert, Gerwing purchased three heavyweight 9’x12’ drop cloths from a local hardware store. Associates of Gerwing reported that this was an odd purchase, as Gerwing was not engaged in any project that would require drop cloths.
In addition, and within hours after his meeting with the Calverts, Gerwing suffered a laceration to his right hand for which he bought bandages and latex gloves at CVS. The laceration had the suspicious appearance of “slide bite,” which is caused as the slide of an semi-automatic pistol travels back and forth during its discharge.
As Gerwing became the focus of the Calverts’ disappearance and pressure mounted, on March 11, he committed suicide. In a note Gerwing left behind, he admitted to embezzling money from the Calverts and others. There was nothing in the note confirming his involvement in their disappearance nor was there any denial that he was responsible.
John and Elizabeth Calvert remain missing.
