Online coverage

Follow all the coverage — including articles, documents related to the case, breaking web updates, videos and photos — online here.

Day 1: Couple reported missing                                   3/6/08

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 A prominent Hilton Head Island couple was reported missing, baffling friends, family members and coworkers. Their boat was empty, their car was nowhere to be found and their cell phones had been turned off.

What seemed like an odd disappearance this first day would only get stranger as the story developed.

To read the online version, click here. 

Day 2: Friends play the Waiting Game           3/7/08

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'Person of interest' commits Suicide             3/12/08

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     The story rapidly evolved from a missing persons case to something far more gruesome and mystifying over the course of a day. Police named a person of interest in the disappearance, but within hours we had reports of a body being pulled out of a rental villa. 

To read the online version, click here.

Suicide ripples through community               3/13/08

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As the suicide quickly turned the case into a national media feeding frenzy, we weighed in with local knowledge to provide more clarity to the events. This story goes into the background of Dennis Gerwing's business associations. We also did some truth squading on rampant rumors that were spreading wildly across the island.

Read the online version here.

Contents of Suicide notes revealed           3/14/2008

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Working with our sister paper The State in Columbia, we were able to learn the contents of the notes and more details about the bizarre suicide. 

Our main competitor's lead headline this same morning was "Suicide notes' contents yet to be revealed." 

Read the online version here.

Search moves to Landfill                                  3/18/08

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    Even without the Sheriff's Office providing regular updates, we were able to stay on top of their investigation. We tracked the search to this landfill, which became a sign that the hunt for clues had expanded far beyond the island

Read the online version here.

Suicide claim raises eyebrows                          3/19/08

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Friends and colleagues of Dennis Gerwing had a hard time believing the mild-mannered wine connoisseur they knew was capable of turning a knife on himself. Even some independent forensic experts say the circumstances were fishy. 

Read the online version of the story here.

Business goes on at tourist landmark             3/23/08

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  So what happens at one of the island's main tourism destinations when its owner and his wife disappear? In addition to the initial rush to find out information about the investigation, it was also crucial to find out how the marina would still operate, especially since the island was about ti head into the first flush of tourism season.

Read the online version of the story here.