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Athens Professor No Show At Airport

George Zinkhan Had May 2 Ticket To Amsterdam

POSTED: 8:14 am EDT May 1, 2009
UPDATED: 11:11 am EDT May 3, 2009

The missing former University of Georgia professor suspected of killing his wife and two others did not show up at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport for a flight to Amsterdam.

Authorities monitored the airport Saturday for George Zinkhan.

The FBI revealed that Zinkhan had a Delta Air Lines flight Saturday to Amsterdam. He also has a home in the Netherlands.

The Vrije Universiteit (Free University) confirmed Zinkhan has taught part-time since April 2007, visiting for about six weeks each year.

Zinkhan's vehicle was found early Friday morning.

Authorities said the red Jeep Liberty was found on Cleveland Road near Fowler Mill Road in Bogart, an Athens suburb in northwestern Clarke County, after police received a tip at about 11 p.m. Thursday.

Zinkhan was not with the vehicle.


LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
  • George Zinkhan's car found in Bogart
  • Zinkhan was not with car, police said
  • Zinkhan’s wife was seeking divorce
  • Memorial for Ben Teague to be held at UGA chapel

Police will only say they got a tip about the car’s location, but not where it came from and say they have no way to tell when the car was abandoned there.

“We're just really not sure. It could have been there since day one, it could have been there since yesterday,” said Athens-Clarke County Police Capt. Clarence Holeman.

Police told CBS Atlanta's Lesley Tanner that the Jeep appeared "wrecked," but there was no sign of blood or any sign of a person being in the Jeep when it crashed into the woods.

Investigators also said it appears the Jeep had been on top of a hill and was pushed. They don't know how long the vehicle had been in the woods.

"This does give us something to start with. We didn't have anything before. So, this does give us something to work with," said Athens-Clarke police Capt. Clarence Holeman.

A cell phone was also found in the vehicle. Police didn't say whether the phone was Zinkhan's.

“Hoping they will hurry up and catch him,” said Charlotte Payne.

Payne awoke to officers at her front door.

“Asked me have I been disturbed by anyone or anything. And I told them no,” said Payne.

More than 100 officers have been combing the woods near Payne’s Bogart home since 10 p.m. Thursday night.

Residents like Payne say even those efforts can't get rid of the feeling of fear that will remain until Zinkhan is caught.

“I was scared. I'll have to admit that,” said Payne.

A nearby school, Cleveland Road Elementary, was placed on lockdown as a precaution after the discovery, officials said.

Gunfire erupted Apr. 25 at a gathering of a local theater group at the Athens Community Theater. Killed were Zinkhan's wife, Marie Bruce, 47, an attorney, and two members of her theater group, Ben Teague, 63, and Tom Tanner, 40. Zinkhan, 57, disappeared after the shootings in a red Jeep Liberty.

Zinkhan was a marketing professor at the University of Georgia.

CBS Atlanta learned that Bruce was seeking a divorce from Zinkhan.

Classes resumed Monday, two days after the shootings, but security was very tight, with police carrying rifles around campus. University Police Chief Jimmy Williamson said there was little reason to believe Zinkhan was still in Athens.

Meanwhile, a memorial service for Ben Teague, 63, is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday in the chapel on North Campus at the University of Georgia, followed by a public reception on Herty Field.

Despite the intense search efforts, so far there is still no sign of Zinkhan. Police said residents should still consider him dangerous.



CBS Atlanta Sky Eye
The Jeep Liberty was found in a wooded area off Cleveland Road in Bogart.


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