An elderly Texas couple who disappeared on their way home from spending Thanksgiving with relatives have been found dead in New Mexico.
Gary Lightfoot, 82, and Linda Lightfoot, were found Tuesday, still in their car in a pasture near Tucumcari, KVII reported. Law enforcement believe they died from hypothermia.
The Lightfoots left their relatives’ home in Panhandle, Texas, on Thursday at about 3 p.m., headed for their own home in Lubbuck, about 150 miles away, but never made it there, as CrimeOnline reported. Family reported them missing on Friday, and the Texas Department of Public Safety issued a Silver Alert on Sunday.
License plate readers spotted the couple’s car in Groom, Texas, and San Jon, New Mexico, while the car pinged a cell tower in Tucumcari, about 140 miles from Panhandle and 180 miles from the Lightfoots’ destination in Lubb0ck. The sightings apparently indicated the couple took Interstate 40 when they reached Amarillo and headed west instead of taking Interstate 27 south to Lubbock.
New Mexico State Police told KVII they used a helicopter to search for the couple, while the Quay County Sheriff’s Office had drones in the air and car patrols on the search.
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[Featured image: Gary and Linda Lightfoot/Texas Department of Public Safety]
