Naman Shrestha
In December 2000, Michael “Mike” Williams went duck-hunting on Lake Seminole but never returned home to his wife, Denise Williams. Despite the investigators concluding that he was eaten alive by the alligators on the lake, his mother, Cheryl Williams, refused to believe so. She went on to conduct her own investigation and did everything she could to keep the hunt for justice alive. CBS’ ’48 Hours: Cold-Blooded Killer’ gives us a detailed account of the entire case of Mike’s disappearance and murder while also focusing on the efforts of his mother.
Cheryl Williams Almost Single-Handedly Kept the Investigation Alive
Cheryl Ann Williams entered motherhood after giving birth to two sons — Michael “Mike” Williams (born on October 16, 1969) and Nick Williams. She was a dedicated mother to Mike and Nick and raised both of them with immense love and support. On December 16, 2000, when her then-daughter-in-law, Denise, told Cheryl that Mike had not returned from his duck-hunting trip to the nearby Lake Seminole, she feared that her worst nightmares would turn into reality. When it was speculated that Mike had been seated by the alligators in the lake, Cheryl did not believe it to be true and was certain that something more sinister was at play.
However, her attempts to restart the investigation were not well-received. So, she put in efforts of her own to find her missing son by posting flyers, putting up signs, and running newspaper ads, asking for the public’s help in any way possible. During that time, Cheryl claimed that Denise told her that if she continued to investigate the case of Mike, she would risk losing her granddaughter and Mike’s only daughter, Anslee. In 2007, she told the Tallahassee Democrat, “I get criticized a lot for not admitting that Mike’s dead. All I know is I can’t stop looking for him until I find him.”
When her efforts to get the FDLE to re-investigate the case reportedly bore no fruit, she began writing a letter every day to Governor Rick Scott. In the letters, she would request him to assign another investigative agency or hire a special prosecutor for the case. She said she ended up writing thousands of letters without receiving a reply from the governor. But she was enraged when she found out that the governor’s office had passed her letters to the FDLE’s Headquarters, where they were seemingly kept in the case file.
Cheryl Resides with Nick and Continues to Keep Mike’s Memories Alive Today
When Denise Williams was finally found guilty of being involved in the 2000 murder of her former husband, Mike Williams, in December 2018, his mother, Cheryl Williams, addressed the court, “Fish and Game told me to my face, ‘Ms. Williams, I don’t like to tell a mother that her son got eaten by alligators.'” She said that when she visited the lake herself, “a voice comes in my head. Mike is not in Lake Seminole. He did not drown.” In the end, she stated, “It took 18 years, but the people got punished that killed him.” Before her former daughter-in-law’s sentencing, she said, “I am a fighter, not a victim. If I had not done what I did for 17 years, Mike’s disappearance never would have been solved. There is no manual to tell a mother what to do when her child goes missing. I just did what God put on my heart to do.”
She started getting emotional, but continued, “For the rest of my life, when I try to sleep at night, I will see my son clinging to a tree stump in Lake Seminole in the dark…knowing that his best friend is trying to kill him. I hear his voice screaming for help. I wasn’t there to help him. It will haunt me forever.” She ended by demanding the judge to lock Denise Williams up for the rest of her life. After she was sentenced to life in prison, Cheryl thought that justice had been served. In an unexpected turn of events, Denise’s appeal to have her convictions overturned was granted. This did not sit well with Cheryl Williams, and she expressed her opinion during the resentencing in September 2021.
She addressed the court with her son Nick Williams by her side: “Mike suffered horribly… Please don’t show her any mercy. She didn’t show my son any mercy. She took him away from his daughter, family, and friends.” When Denise received the maximum sentence of 30 years for conspiracy to murder Mike Williams, his mother felt relieved. “Michael has justice. I’ve been so afraid that she would get out… I believe he can rest in peace now.” From the looks of it, she seemingly lives with her son Nick, his wife, and their daughter while supported by her longtime friends and the powerful young women at her home daycare.
Read More: Beverly “Bev” Vance: Where is J.D. Vance’s Mother Now?
