By Shavonne Potts and Elizabeth Cook
Salisbury Potts
After making a public appeal to help find their missing daughter, the family of 48-year-old George Anna Chambers Setzer now grieves in private over her death.
Authorities found the Statesville woman’s body Wednesday in her car, which had been parked at Piedmont Triad Airport in Greensboro since Sunday.
Media reports quote a Statesville Police lieutenant saying a drug overdose is the suspected cause of death, and that Setzer had a history of depression.
Her mother, Barbara Chambers of Salisbury, said George Anna’s cause of death should be treated as a private matter and left for the family to deal with.
George Anna, she said, was an upbeat person who was about to embark on a wonderful new phase of her life with a new friend and a new job.
“We just thought everything was going so well,” her mother said. “This was a total shock. Nobody has ever seen this side of her.”
Greensboro Airport Police found Setzer’s 2005 Ford Escape in a long-term parking lot. She is believed to have died there on Sunday.
Setzer was first reported missing Sunday night after she did not show up at 7 p.m. to pick up her 12-year-old daughter, Anna Edward Setzer, who was with family friends attending a horse show in Blowing Rock.
Barbara Chambers cited concerns over Anna Edward when asking for privacy as the family grieves.
The Post does not report suicides, and authorities have not called Setzer’s death a suicide in press releases. The newspaper’s policy is to report on possible suicides when a great deal of public attention and/or public resources have been focused on the person in question.
Statesville Police and the State Bureau of Investigation were involved in the search for George Anna Chambers Setzer over four days. Family and friends distributed flyers, talked to reporters and created a Web site, www.findgeorgeanna.com. Her boyfriend, Rob Collier, and the Statesville police chief spoke with Fox TV network personality Greta Van Susteren on her show, “On the Record.”
Setzer was last seen in Statesville Sunday afternoon. She had recently moved into an apartment and sold her house. She went to the house that afternoon around 4 p.m., reportedly to make sure the trash container was rolled to the street.
She left her pocketbook and other personal belongings at her apartment at 214 N. Mulberry St. and drove to the Greensboro airport more than 60 miles away. She arrived there between 5:30 and 6 p.m.
She also called her daughter and left a cryptic voice message, according to Chris Collier, the brother of Setzer’s boyfriend, Rob. In it, she told her daughter she loved her and would always love her, said Chris Collier, who is a Superior Court judge in Iredell County.
“And then she left,” he said, referring to her death. Her car was locked, windows rolled up, keys inside.
Investigators from the Statesville Police Department and a Crime Scene Unit from the SBI went to the airport Wednesday night after being alerted by airport police.They processed the vehicle’s contents and the surrounding area, finding no indications of criminal conduct or trauma. The body was sent to the Medical Examiner’s office in Chapel Hill, where an autopsy found “no abnormal findings” on the body, a police department statement said.
“We don’t think anybody did anything to her,” Police Chief Stephen Hampton said when a Post reporter asked about the possibility of suicide.
Chris Collier said the death was the result of an overdose that appeared to be intentional. He said Setzer had been prescribed antidepressants and that there was no indication she ever abused drugs.
A memorial service is set at 10 a.m. Saturday at Broad Street United Methodist Church in Statesville. A graveside service will follow at 5 p.m. at Rowan Memorial Park. (Details are on Page 2C.)
Dorothy Setzer, George Anna’s former mother-in-law, said George Anna will be missed.
“We do thank the communities of Salisbury/Rowan and Statesville/Iredell for their love and support,” she said.
The site, www.findgeorgeanna.com, bore a simple message Thursday beside a portrait of George Anna:
With deep sadness, we have to inform you that George Anna Chambers Setzer was located Wednesday night in her vehicle at the Greensboro Airport. Initial findings do not indicate foul play. However, an autopsy is pending.
George Anna’s family would like to express to you their sincerest gratitude for all the wonderful things that every one has done during these horrible, trying last few days. The love and support has been overwhelming to every one that has been involved.
Please continue to keep Anne Edward, George, Barbara, Robb, Glenn and the rest of George Anna’s family and friends in your prayers.