The search for Sheryl Ann Siddall, the 57-year-old grandmother reported missing last September, comes to a poignant resolution as the Liberty County Sheriff's Office confirms the identity of remains found in March. DNA testing has established that the body recovered in a ditch in the Rye community, approximately six miles from Siddall's home, is indeed hers, bringing a degree of closure to a case that has vexed authorities for months.
A Click2Houston report detailed that Siddall was reported missing after family members grew concerned about her week-long silence. Deputies who conducted a welfare check at her residence on Horseshoe Lake discovered signs of foul play, with what appeared to be blood stains on kitchen surfaces. At the scene, Donald Lee Hassler, 52, posited that Siddall had traveled to Oklahoma, a claim contradicted by the discovery of personal items including her car and purse, left behind at the property.
Hassler, who claimed to be buying Siddall's home, became a suspect, especially after deputies uncovered a slew of guns in a trailer at the home, leading to his arrest due to a parole violation as a convicted felon in possession of the firearms. Donald Lee Hassler was at the home and he told investigators that Siddall was in Oklahoma visiting her sister, according to a KHOU report. However, Siddall does not have a sister living in Oklahoma, while her daughter indeed does reside there.
Efforts to locate Siddall since her disappearance included extensive searches of Horseshoe Lake and surrounding areas, utilizing cadaver dogs and sonar equipment, but no significant evidence was initially uncovered. Hassler, charged with murder on October 13 and remaining jailed, has refused to cooperate with inquiries regarding Siddall's whereabouts.
