GWINNETT COUNTY, GA — Authorities are still searching for Debbie Vernice Kkkyha, a 63-year-old Gwinnett County woman who disappeared after a trip into East Tennessee with her husband. Family members say they lost contact with the couple on Aug. 3, and Kkkyha remains listed as a missing person by the Gwinnett County Police Department.
Law enforcement says the couple later became involved in a multi-county police pursuit that ended in Union County around Aug. 26. After the stop, both were taken to Tennova North Knoxville Medical Center for treatment and psychiatric evaluations. Her husband was later released, booked on Union County charges and transferred to the Knox County Jail.
Kkkyha, however, stayed at the hospital for treatment of a fractured shoulder and additional evaluation. Investigators say it is not clear exactly when she was discharged or where she went afterward.
Family says contact was lost before the Tennessee pursuit ended
The missing-person case began with a sudden break in communication. Relatives in Georgia said they had not heard from Kkkyha or her husband after Aug. 3, well before the later police pursuit in Tennessee. Family members also told investigators that the husband appeared to be experiencing a severe mental breakdown in the weeks before the couple vanished.
That timeline has become important because it shows the disappearance did not begin at the hospital. Instead, the couple was already out of contact when law enforcement later encountered them in East Tennessee. Authorities have not publicly detailed the reasons for the couple’s travel or what happened in the days between the family’s last contact and the pursuit.
Kkkyha’s disappearance has left investigators trying to connect several separate events: the family’s missing-person report, the pursuit across county lines and the later hospital stay in Knoxville.
Multi-county pursuit ended with both spouses taken to Knoxville hospital
According to law enforcement, the couple was involved in a chase that crossed multiple counties in East Tennessee before ending in Union County around Aug. 26. The details of the pursuit itself have not been fully laid out publicly, but it was serious enough to lead to medical treatment and psychiatric evaluations for both people involved.
Once the pursuit ended, emergency responders brought the Kkkyhas to Tennova North Knoxville Medical Center. That hospital became the last confirmed place where Debbie Kkkyha was known to be under supervision. Her husband’s path after treatment is clearer: he was later processed on Union County charges and moved to the Knox County Jail.
For investigators, the hospital encounter is a critical marker because it is the last confirmed point in Kkkyha’s known whereabouts. What happened after that remains unanswered.
Kkkyha stayed under treatment for a fractured shoulder without a police hold
While her husband was released and taken into custody, Kkkyha remained admitted at the hospital for care tied to a fractured shoulder and further evaluation. Authorities say Union County officials did not file criminal charges against her, which meant she was not placed under a police hold or kept in custody at the facility.
That detail matters because it leaves open the question of when she left the hospital and under what circumstances. Investigators have not said whether she was discharged normally, picked up by someone, or left in some other way. They also have not identified where she may have gone after leaving medical care.
Police say the gap after her hospital stay is now one of the central unknowns in the case, and there is no public confirmation of her movements once she was no longer admitted.
Gwinnett County Police continue to list her as missing
Kkkyha remains officially listed as a missing person through the Gwinnett County Police Department. That designation means detectives are still treating her disappearance as an active case and are seeking any information that could establish her location.
The case also spans two states and multiple agencies, which can make the search more complicated. Georgia family members, Tennessee law enforcement and the hospitals involved all sit at different points in the timeline, but none have confirmed where Kkkyha is now. Her husband’s custody status has not resolved that question.
At this stage, investigators appear to have a confirmed last location, a hospital record and a later discharge gap, but no verified sighting after her time at Tennova North Knoxville Medical Center.
Investigators ask for tips on her whereabouts and any help after discharge
Authorities are urging anyone who knows where Debbie Vernice Kkkyha is, or who may have helped her after she left the hospital, to contact the Gwinnett County Police Department. That includes anyone who saw her after the Knoxville hospital stay or has information that could narrow down her route after discharge.
Because the couple’s movement crossed county lines and involved both medical and law-enforcement contact, even small details could help fill in the missing hours or days. Investigators have not released a public explanation for why the husband appeared to be in distress before the disappearance, beyond the family’s account.
The case now hinges on locating Kkkyha or learning what happened after her release from medical care. Until then, police say the search remains active.
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