DELAWARE COUNTY, Okla. — A lead in a 25-year cold case ran dry this week in Delaware County.
Authorities in the Texas Rio Grande Valley confirm that James Lee Sweeten – who was married to Peggy Sweeten at the time of her disappearance – is believed to have taken his own life Thursday, days after what was thought to be a key discovery in the investigation.
Delaware County Sheriff James Beck told 2 News that James Sweeten – the man believed to be the last person to see his wife Peggy at home in Grove along Grand Lake in January 1998 - was recently renamed as a person of interest based on info his office’s cold case unit reviewed.
Sweeten had long refused to cooperate in the investigation into his wife’s disappearance.
Beck said on Thursday he was called by Weslaco Police Department and informed that Sweeten had told local authorities he was suicidal.
But by the time police could come to his location it was too late.
“Upon their arrival, they found Mr. Sweeten in a shed outside the residence," Sheriff Beck said. "And he appeared to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.”
Today at approximately 8:05am, the Weslaco Police Department received a call regarding a suicidal male at Southern Comfort RV Park located at 1501 South Airport Drive, lot 187, in Weslaco, Texas.
Upon arrival, Weslaco Police Officers discovered a deceased male at the residence. The deceased individual has been identified as 79-year-old James Lee Sweeten. The incident is currently under investigation by the Weslaco Police Criminal Investigations Division. An inquest was requested, and the manner of death will be determined by the Hidalgo County Coroner's office at a later time.
The Weslaco Police Department would like to assure the surrounding community that they are safe, and we are not looking for any outstanding individuals related to this incident.
We appreciate the cooperation and understanding of the media and the community as we continue our investigation. Updates will be provided as new information becomes available.
James Sweeten’s death comes just days after diving teams pulled out a metal 55-gallon barrel from the bottom of grand lake.
The barrel appeared to match the description of one that the couple’s son said had gone missing from their lake house when the 52-year old disappeared.
But the Sheriff said nothing immediately turned up.
"So then they widened their search and performed a secondary search in a wider area around, and they were unable to locate anything,” Beck said via a phone interview.
“The one thing that I didn’t understand was this was a metal barrel. It was upright in the water, but there was nothing inside the barrel that would’ve held it into place.”
Despite the death of the lone person of interest in this quarter-century search for the truth, Beck said there is still some evidence to look through, and that the public shouldn’t lose hope.
“We do have information that we’re trying to follow up with and see if we can possibly find some other areas and possibly find her remains,” he said.
Sheriff Beck said he couldn't go into further detail regarding possible leads.
Beck said that his investigators are working with Weslaco Police into whatever evidence they can find that might help in their search.
At this time it’s unclear if the 79-year old Sweeten could have left any notes connected to Peggy’s disappearance.
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