Police are one step closer to finding out what happened to an innocent teenage boy, who vanished after his homecoming dance and was later found lifeless in a Georgia creek.
For nearly 15 years, Blake Chappell’s family and loved ones have desperately waited for justice following his disappearance.
Now, a man named Scotty Elliot Smith “confessed” and was arrested in connection with Blake’s tragic passing.
Highlights
- A man has been arrested in connection with the disappearance of Blake Chappell, aged 17, who tragically lost his life in 2011.
- After their school's homecoming dance, Blake dropped his girlfriend off at home and was on his way to another friend’s house when he vanished without a trace.
- The Newnan Police Department said they made an arrest last week after Scotty Elliot Smith “confessed” to the homicide.
Police are one step closer to finding out what happened to Blake Chappell before he disappeared
Image credits: Uncovered/Season of Justice
After their school’s homecoming dance on October 16, 2011, 17-year-old Blake had dropped his girlfriend off at her house and was on his way to another friend, Austin’s home, when he vanished without a trace.
He sent his last text to his girlfriend around 5:30 a.m., cribbing about the cold weather.
Image credits: Uncovered/Season of Justice
Detectives are still investigating what happened to Blake while he was on the three-mile walk from his girlfriend’s house and Austin’s.
Blake's mother, Melissa Becker, recalled her phone call with her son after the homecoming dance.
After the homecoming dance, Blake dropped his girlfriend off at home and was on his way to another friend’s house when he vanished
Image credits: Uncovered/Season of Justice
“He called and he said, ‘Mom, I had so much fun, it was the best day of my life, I got to hang out with my friends and dance,’” the mother told 11Alive in 2021.
Years later, she still doesn’t know exactly what happened to Blake after her last phone call with him.
Image credits: WLTX
The morning after the dance, Austin phoned Melissa and informed her that Blake had never made it back to the house after dropping his girlfriend off at home.
“Around 11 a.m., the friend that he stayed the night with calls me and says Blake's missing, and I couldn't understand,” Melissa told the outlet at the time. “I'm like, ‘What do you mean Blake's missing? He stayed the night at your house.’ Well, he went to his girlfriend's and he never came back.”
The teenager’s body was found face down in his underwear in a creek two months later
Image credits: Uncovered/Season of Justice
Investigators initially treated his disappearance as a runaway missing persons case, but his body was found two months later, on December 19.
Blake had been struck by a bullet before his lifeless body was located face down in the creek, wearing only his underwear.
Image credits: City of Newnan, GA
Back in 2023, police said they had received an anonymous letter about the case and asked the writer to come forward.
It is unclear whether the tips from the anonymous letter led investigators to suspect Scotty and his alleged connection with Blake’s disappearance.
Image credits: 11Alive
Scotty, aged 38, was arrested last week and confessed to ending Blake’s life.
He was placed in custody and is facing charges of “felony m****r, aggravated as***lt, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, concealing the d**th of another, and tampering with evidence.”
Scotty Elliot Smith was arrested and is facing charges in connection with the teen’s homicide
Image credits: 11Alive/Coweta County Sheriff's Office
Police said they were not previously investigating Scotty for possible links to Blake’s homicide, but a “new lead” tied him to the case.
“During the investigation into this new lead, the NPD detectives corroborated facts of the case, as related to Smith,” the police said. “In his multiple interviews with detectives, Scotty Smith confessed to the m****r of Blake Tyler Chappell.”
Officials did not reveal further details linking Scotty to Blake’s homicide.
Image credits: 11Alive
“While an arrest has occurred, this is still an ongoing investigation,” Newnan Police Chief Brent Blankenship announced last week.
The Newnan Police Department said in a statement that Scotty’s arrest came after “countless hours of dedication” from the officials working on the case.
Scotty confessed to ending Blake's life in cold blood, the police department said
Image credits: WLTX
“This arrest is the result of countless hours of dedication by the Newnan Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division, as well as the direct, professional assistance of the Coweta County DA’s Investigators,” the Newnan Police Department said in a statement.
“We thank the community for the continued support and cooperation throughout this lengthy process,” they added “The commitment of our partners and the community’s trust has been vital in the pursuit of justice.”
Image credits: WLTX
Despite the years that have passed, Blake’s mother, Melissa, never lost hope of finding out what happened to her son.
“He had his whole life ahead of him,” she previously told 11Alive.
“He was just an innocent child. He did nothing wrong,” bereaved mother Melissa Becker said
Image credits: 11Alive
She said she could forgive an “imaginary person” but would still be haunted by questions about what happened to her slain son.
“I just want to know why. Just allow us to have some peace. He was just an innocent child. He did nothing wrong,” she told the outlet.
Image credits: 11Alive
Netizens expressed grief and said, “R.I.P. May you never be forgotten.”
“I went to school with him! He was the funny kid! I can’t believe it,” read one comment.
Another wrote, “Keep your kids close, you never know who’s plotting, waiting, watching, or wrong place at the wrong time. Listing someone as a runaway because they’re a teen shouldn’t automatically happen. Their family knows if they’ve run away or not. Listen to them! So glad an arrest was made.”
“Oh, I am so sad for his family,” one wrote online, “I can't imagine the loss his parents are going through”
