Orlando police have named the ex-fiancé of missing mom Michelle Parker the prime suspect in her disappearance.
Prior to Monday afternoon, Dale Smith was not considered a suspect.
“We had to look at every aspect in the case before we could come out publicily and state Mr. Smith is our primary focus,” police chief Paul Rooney said.
A $50,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of a missing Orlando mother expired Sunday night.
It’s been 11 days since Michelle Parker was last seen. Parker went missing Nov. 17 after she appeared on a taped episode of "The People's Court" with her ex-fiance, Dale Smith. A few hours later, Parker dropped off her twins at Smith's condo.
Parker’s mother announced Friday the reward was from a private donor, but said it would expire Sunday night. It was to motivate anyone who knew anything to come forward as soon as possible.
"I do real good during the day time and then at the nighttime I lose it," said Parker’s mother, Yvonne Stewart. "That is when it gets quiet and I look at all her beautiful pictures and I just go, ‘You know, I have had 33 years with you and I hope I have 33 more.'"
Parker's SUV was found the day after she went missing. Her family believes the 33-year-old mother of three was carjacked shortly after her appearance on the show.
Over the weekend, SWAT teams raided the home of Smith’s father. The home is just two miles from the search command center on Oak Ridge Road, where Parker's cell phone stopped transmitting.
Parker's brother told WFTV Channel 9 Eyewitness News that detectives did not find what they were looking for during the raid.
“When I found out that it was a family member of the ex-fiance, I was absolutely, my heart just pounded out of my chest,” said Stewart.
Investigators said they had a search warrant, but they would not say why they obtained one.
WFTV tried to talk to the man believed to be Smith's father, but he refused to talk.
However, Smith’s friend did answer a few questions.
“Did Dale Smith have anything to do with Michelle Parker's disappearance?" WFTV asked.
“Negative, no, not one bit,” Smith’s friend said.
Since Parker vanished, her parents have been spending everyday looking for her.
During that time they had been saying that Smith was not looking because he was taking care of the twins, but now they say they are starting to believe he couldbe responsible.
"It is possible that he is, there are other leads too,” said Stewart.
“To this day, they haven't called me once to say Yvonne we're so sorry for your loss, we wish we could help," said Stewart. "Not one phone call from that family, which tells me a lot about their character.”
Police urge anyone with information about Parker's whereabouts to call 1-800-423-8477.
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