FORT LAUDERDALE, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — Fort Lauderdale police say the disappearance of Trukita Scott, who was reported missing from Fort Lauderdale in June 2014, has been solved after investigators found her remains on a residential property in Miami.
The Fort Lauderdale Police Department announced the update in a May 19, 2026, news release, saying detectives located Scott’s remains on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in the 7500 block of Northeast 1st Court in Miami. The department said the discovery came after new details were recently revealed about her disappearance.
Scott had been missing for nearly 12 years.
According to FLPD, Scott was originally last seen on June 26, 2014. Police said at the time that her parents became concerned when she did not return home or pick up her children from daycare. Investigators canvassed the area but were unable to locate her.
Police initially described Scott as a 24-year-old woman who was known to drive a champagne-colored 2007 Nissan Altima with Florida tag BCVX16. On July 1, 2014, the City of Miami Police Department located that vehicle in the area of Northwest 40th Street and Northwest 10th Avenue in Liberty City, according to the release. FLPD said at the time that the vehicle was taken into its custody and that detectives were not releasing details about its condition or contents.
The case was later classified as a missing endangered person investigation because of the length of time Scott had been missing, police said.
FLPD said detectives continued working the case for years, including former FLPD Homicide Sergeant Steve Novak, who continued the investigation after retiring from Fort Lauderdale police and later joining the Broward Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit as a detective.
According to the department, Novak enlisted Dr. Heather Walsh-Haney and the Forensic Anthropology Team at Florida Gulf Coast University to help recover Scott’s remains. FLPD said that team will also assist the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office as it attempts to determine a cause of death.
The exact circumstances surrounding Scott’s death remain under investigation.
FLPD said it is continuing to work with the Florida Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution regarding potential criminal charges. The May 19 update did not announce an arrest or formal charges in the case.
The release also notes that in July 2014, Fort Lauderdale detectives were contacted by the U.S. Marshals Service after Scott’s ex-boyfriend, Carl Monty Watts, turned himself in for outstanding federal arrest warrants. At the time, detectives said they were making arrangements to speak with Watts in reference to Scott’s disappearance. The May 19 update did not identify any person as charged in connection with Scott’s death.
FLPD credited several agencies and teams with assisting the investigation, including the Broward Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit and Crime Scene Unit, the City of Miami Police Department Homicide Unit, the Pembroke Pines Police Department Crime Scene Unit, the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Unit, the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office, Florida Gulf Coast University’s forensic anthropology team, and the Florida Attorney General’s Office.
The department said it recognizes the impact the case has had on Scott’s family and loved ones over the past 12 years and will continue to support them as the investigation continues.
This story is part of our ongoing Fort Lauderdale News reporting.
