Nine months pregnant, she went for a drive to talk about their relationship. A police stop that night is the last confirmed sighting anyone has of her.
Shelia Diane Hughes, 29, disappeared from Aliceville, Alabama, on the night of September 1, 2000, while nine months pregnant. More than two decades later, she has never been found.
A Difficult Relationship, A New Chapter
Shelia had been in an on-and-off relationship with Renard Simmons for five years and was staying with her older sister, Debra, in Aliceville while she prepared for the birth of her first child, a son she planned to name after Simmons. According to Debra, Simmons had wanted Shelia to terminate the pregnancy and was unhappy when she decided to continue it, though Shelia told her family she was looking forward to this new chapter of her life.
The Last Confirmed Sighting
On the night of September 1, 2000, Simmons picked Shelia up from Debra's home to go for a drive and talk about their relationship. She left wearing house slippers and maternity clothes, carrying only her purse. Around 1 a.m., police stopped Simmons's car at a roadblock in nearby Pickensville, roughly ten miles from Aliceville, and noted a Black woman believed to be Shelia in the passenger seat — the last independently confirmed sighting of her.
Conflicting Accounts
Simmons told investigators he drove back to Debra's home and dropped Shelia off around 3 a.m. Debra disputed this, saying Friday night was the last time Shelia was ever in the house, and noting the home's door alarm, which would have sounded if the front door opened, showed no indication of activity that weekend. When Shelia's due date passed without any word, her family filed a missing person report.
Belongings Found
About a month later, detectives recovered Shelia's purse and house slippers in a remote cotton field in Noxubee County, Mississippi, roughly 20 miles from where she was last seen. A ground search of the area found no further trace of her.
A Declaration, Years Later
In February 2008, more than seven years after her disappearance, Shelia's family successfully petitioned to have her legally declared dead and held a memorial service at New Canaan Baptist Church in Aliceville.
A Named Person of Interest, Never Charged
Renard Simmons was the last person confirmed to have seen Shelia alive and was long considered the primary person of interest in her disappearance, according to her family, who described him as visibly unhappy about the pregnancy and uncertain whether he'd remain involved in raising the child. Despite this, investigators never developed enough evidence to arrest him or formally name him a suspect. Simmons died on November 5, 2013, without the case ever being resolved.
Unproven Theories
Investigators also examined unconfirmed reports that Shelia had left voluntarily for Texas or elsewhere, including a claimed letter to an acquaintance and alleged sightings in other parts of the country. None of these leads were ever substantiated, and her family has maintained she would never have left without her belongings or without telling them goodbye, given how eagerly she had been preparing for her son's arrival.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has Shelia Diane Hughes ever been found?
No. Despite an investigation and search efforts, she has never been located, and she was legally declared dead in 2008.
Was Renard Simmons ever charged in her disappearance?
No. He was considered the primary person of interest but was never arrested or formally named a suspect. He died in 2013 without the case being resolved.
Was there any evidence Shelia left voluntarily?
No confirmed evidence supports this. Reports of her leaving for Texas or being seen elsewhere were never substantiated, and her family maintains she wouldn't have left her belongings behind.