Key facts
- Name: Tiffany Michelle Whitton
- Born: January 30, 1987
- Age at disappearance: 26
- Last seen: September 13, 2013, ~2:00 a.m.
- Location: Walmart, US Route 41, Marietta, Georgia
- Height / build: 26-year-old woman; brown hair, hazel eyes; distinctive tattoos
- Status: Still missing — Marietta Police Department, open investigation
- Investigating agency: Marietta Police Department
She kicked off her flip-flops and ran
At about 2:00 on the morning of September 13, 2013, Tiffany Whitton was inside the Walmart on US Route 41 in Marietta, Georgia, with her boyfriend, Ashley “Red” Caudle. Store security confronted her over suspected shoplifting. An officer grabbed the strap of her handbag.
Tiffany let go of the bag. She kicked off her flip-flops. And she ran — out the exit, into the dark parking lot, barefoot.
Nobody chased her. Not the officer. Not the store staff. Not her boyfriend.
She was 26 years old. She was never seen again.
Who Tiffany was
Tiffany Michelle Whitton was born January 30, 1987. As a girl she wanted to be a veterinarian; she dropped out of high school in her sophomore year. By 2013 she was working as a waitress at an IHOP in Marietta — fired in August, a month before she vanished — and struggling with heroin and crystal meth addiction. She had a criminal record. She had two children: one she had relinquished, and a young daughter.
The last family member to see her was her grandmother, Anita Boyette, who visited Tiffany on September 8 to do laundry together. Five days later, Tiffany ran out of that Walmart. Her mother, Lisa Daniels, didn’t report her missing until January 2014 — four months later, a delay that speaks to the fractured, fragile edges of Tiffany’s life, where a disappearance could go unnoticed for a season.
Her half-brother Blake later claimed he received a phone call from Tiffany in January 2014. It was never verified.
The boyfriend who never called
Ashley “Red” Caudle is the person of interest who has never left the center of this case. He was there that night. He watched Tiffany run. He did not pursue her, did not call police, and did not report her missing. In the months that followed, he gave false statements to investigators.
Caudle is currently serving a lengthy prison sentence on drug and gun charges. He has always denied any involvement in Tiffany’s disappearance.
Detective Jonnie Moeller of the Marietta Police Department, who inherited the case, put it bluntly: it was “already a cold case when it came to us.” Moeller believes Tiffany is probably dead — and believes Caudle was involved. Belief, however, is not evidence, and Caudle has never been charged in connection with Tiffany’s disappearance. The presumption of innocence applies, and this article states the facts as the record holds them: he is a person of interest who gave false statements and never reported her missing. He denies involvement.
The Esquire exception
In 2016, writer Tom Junod profiled Tiffany’s case for Esquire in a piece that became one of the most discussed true-crime features of the decade. Junod’s argument was about who gets searched for: Tiffany Whitton — a 26-year-old addict with a record, a waitress fired from IHOP — was the exception that proved the rule of missing-white-woman syndrome. She was white, she was young, she vanished on camera from a Walmart at 2 a.m. — and still, the machinery of attention barely stirred. Her mother waited four months to file the report. The case was cold before it was warm.
Tiffany would be 39 years old today. Her daughter has grown up without her. The Marietta Police Department case remains open, and Detective Moeller has said he still wants what every detective in a case like this wants: someone who knows something to say it.
Theories: what might have happened
Foul play involving her boyfriend. The theory the lead detective holds: Caudle was the last person with her, gave false statements, never reported her missing, and is now imprisoned on unrelated charges. The circumstances — a woman fleeing barefoot at 2 a.m. from the one person she came with — are damning in outline. But no body, no forensic evidence, and no charges in thirteen years. Caudle denies involvement, and denial plus suspicion does not equal proof.
She fled and met harm from someone else. A barefoot woman running from a Walmart at 2 a.m. is profoundly vulnerable — to traffic, to the elements, to any predator in a dark parking lot. She may have gotten into a stranger’s car willingly or by force. No witness has ever come forward to say they saw her after the exit doors.
She is alive and chose to disappear. The half-brother’s claimed 2014 phone call is the only thread here, and it was never verified. Thirteen years of total silence — no contact with her mother, her grandmother, or her daughter — makes this the weakest theory in the file.
Have information?
Contact the Marietta Police Department at (770) 794-5300, or text “MARIETTAPD” to 847411 (tip411) to submit an anonymous tip. In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- January 30, 1987 — Tiffany Michelle Whitton is born.
- August 2013 — Tiffany is fired from her waitressing job at IHOP in Marietta.
- September 8, 2013 — Her grandmother Anita Boyette visits Tiffany; they do laundry together. Last family sighting.
- September 13, 2013, ~2:00 a.m. — Confronted over suspected shoplifting at the Walmart on US Route 41, Marietta, Tiffany drops her handbag, kicks off her flip-flops, and runs out barefoot. No one follows.
- January 2014 — Her mother Lisa Daniels reports her missing, four months later. Half-brother Blake claims a phone call from Tiffany (unverified).
- 2014–2015 — Ashley “Red” Caudle named person of interest; gives false statements; later imprisoned on drug and gun charges.
- 2016 — Tom Junod’s Esquire feature makes Tiffany’s case nationally known.
- Today — Still missing. Case open with Marietta Police Department.
FAQ
Is Tiffany Whitton still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026, Tiffany Whitton has been missing for 13 years. Her case remains open with the Marietta Police Department.
Was Tiffany Whitton ever found?
No. Tiffany has never been found, alive or deceased.
How old would Tiffany Whitton be today?
Tiffany was born January 30, 1987. She turned 39 in January 2026.
Who is Ashley “Red” Caudle?
Caudle was Tiffany’s boyfriend and was with her at the Walmart the night she vanished. He did not pursue her, never reported her missing, and gave false statements to investigators. He is a person of interest in her disappearance and is currently serving a lengthy sentence on unrelated drug and gun charges. He denies any involvement, and he has never been charged in her case.
Why did it take four months to report Tiffany missing?
Her mother, Lisa Daniels, filed the missing-person report in January 2014. Detective Jonnie Moeller later said the case was “already a cold case when it came to us” — a delay that cost investigators the critical early window.
How can I help?
Share this case file. If you have any information, contact the Marietta Police Department at (770) 794-5300 or text “MARIETTAPD” to 847411.
Sources
- Official / law enforcement: Marietta Police Department (770-794-5300; tip411 text “MARIETTAPD” to 847411).
- News: Atlanta Journal-Constitution coverage of the Whitton case; Marietta Daily Journal coverage.
- Reference: Wikipedia, “Disappearance of Tiffany Whitton”; The Charley Project; NamUs.
- Media: Tom Junod, Esquire, “The Falling Girl” (2016); True Crime Garage and other podcast coverage of Tiffany Whitton.
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 2026.