Tyler Perry docuseries spotlights unsolved disappearance of Collier County man

A new project by Tyler Perry, the Paramount+ docuseries “Never Seen Again,” aims to shine a national spotlight on both the disappearance of 27-year-old Collier County man Terrance Williams in 2004 and the deputy at the center of the case.

In the series, one of Terrance Williams’ friends says Williams had one rule: If you don’t see him for a day or two, don’t worry, but if you don’t hear from him after three days, start looking for him. Thus, Williams’ mother and his friend started looking for him three days after he disappeared on Jan. 12, 2004. His mother says the Collier County Sheriff’s Office shrugged them off when they went in to report Williams missing.

When the family started calling towing companies, they found out Williams’ car was towed from Hodges Funeral Home at Naples Memorial Gardens the day he disappeared, and workers at the cemetery signed sworn affidavits saying they saw a Collier County Sheriff’s deputy put Williams in the back seat of a patrol car before driving away. They said that the deputy’s name tag read “Steven Calkins”

One thing Tyler Perry says stunned him is that Terrance Williams is one of two men who were reportedly last seen getting into a car with former deputy Calkins.

“The last thing he said to me was, ‘I’ll see you later, Mama,’ and I never saw him again,”  Williams’ mother said.

“You have a white deputy who put two people in his car—they disappear,” Perry said. “It’s heartbreaking as a Black man, it’s heartbreaking as a father.”

The docuseries also sheds light on the other man who was reportedly last seen getting into a vehicle with Calkins, 23-year-old Felipe Santos.

In an incident report Calkins read to internal affairs on Feb. 11, 2004, about the day of Williams’ disappearance, he said he saw a white Cadillac appearing to have some problems. He pulled over the driver, Williams, who told Calkins he was now late for work because the car he bought wasn’t working. Calkins said Williams then asked for a ride to the Circle K at Williams Pass Road, which Calkins provided.

One major question mentioned by Tyler Perry, Williams’ mother and investigators: Why would Calkins do all of this for someone who reportedly had no license or proper registration?

When asked by an attorney if he had gotten mad at Williams and harmed him or killed him, Calkins answered, “Of course not.”

“We need to get to the truth,” Perry said.

In a deposition, Calkins said he thought Williams was a nice guy. Williams’ mom says her son would never ask a random deputy for a ride.

Calkins has never been charged in relation to this case. WINK News has reached out to Calkins as well as CCSO for comment, and officials say detectives are still working tirelessly to locate Williams and Santos men. Anyone with any information is asked to contact CCSO at (239) 252-9300.