Media mogul Tyler Perry has joined the mission to find two missing Florida men who both disappeared under similar circumstances in Florida. On Monday, Perry visited Politics Nation with Al Sharpton on MSNBC to discuss the cases of Terrance Deon Williams and Felipe Santos, who both disappeared nearly eight years ago after encountering a Collier County police officer, Cpl. Steven Calkins.
“There are a lot of conflicting stories and I’m just trying to help this mother find some justice,” said Perry.
WATCH PERRY AND SHARPTON DISCUSS THE CASE OF TWO MISSING MEN BELOW:
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The mother of one of the missing men, Marcia Williams, wore a large pin on her left shoulder displaying the face of her son, Terrance. She said she knew something was wrong immediately when her son’s roommate couldn’t find him. After contacting the police, fearing that he had been arrested, she was put in touch with Cpl. Calkins. The deputy said he came across Terrance while he was having car trouble. The stop was never called in.
The same officer was involved in the disappearance of Felipe Santos just three months before. He was the last person to see both men, saying that he dropped each man off at convenience stores within four miles of each other.
“We all should be outraged,” said Perry, “This is the kind of stuff that would happen in the 60’s and earlier where black people would disappear and just be disregarded and never heard from again. And somebody that knows something about it.” Perry said that he’s spoken to other mainstream media outlets about the case in an effort to help and was told that Terrance Williams isn’t sympathetic enough for coverage.
“I looked at it and accepted it as an angel that God has sent my way and I cannot thank him enough,” said Marcia Williams.
Sharpton said that he plans to join Perry and Williams for a march in Naples, Florida to rally for their cause and put a spotlight on the Williams and Santos cases.
Follow Donovan X. Ramsey on Twitter at @idxr
