COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A missing mother of two who mysteriously vanished near a popular hiking trail is now safe. In an exclusive interview with Channel 2 Action News, she is explaining why she disappeared.
Valerie Maynard asked to meet with Channel 2's Chris Jose, two weeks after she was reported missing.
“I was afraid. I was terrified. I’m still terrified,” said Maynard. “I took off running. I went to a gas station. I cried and I prayed. I walked to Marietta Square.”
Maynard told Jose she wanted to get away from a mentally abusive situation. The Smyrna woman said she parked her white Range Rover in the Pigeon Hill lot near Kennesaw Mountain in early September.
She left her wallet, keys and cell phone.
“I told nobody. I didn’t tell a single person because I didn’t want them to get hurt,” said Maynard.
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Two weeks ago, only Channel 2 Action News was there when park rangers, Cobb police and K-9 units searched Maynard's luxury SUV.
A park ranger on the scene told Jose that Maynard’s vehicle had been in the parking lot for a few days. A week later, Cobb police asked for the public’s help and called Maynard’s disappearance “odd.”
“I was thinking about surviving and keeping myself safe,” said Maynard.
Maynard told Jose a local church gave her access to a women’s shelter for safe refuge.
She said she had no idea police had been searching for her until the shelter director showed her Jose's original report that aired on Channel 2 Action News.
Cox Media Group
