JONES COUNTY — Lewis “Guy” Thornton and his dog “Big Head” were walking when they disappeared from the Burnt Bridge community four years ago, and his family and investigators are still searching for answers.
Thornton was 59 years old when he vanished in August 2022. He is described as a white male with gray hair, blue eyes, standing 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighing between 160 and 180 pounds. He is believed to have tattoos on his left shoulder and right forearm.
One detail makes his disappearance especially unusual: Thornton was never without his dog.
Known as “Big Head,” the red pit bull mix accompanied Thornton everywhere. When Thornton disappeared, so did Big Head. Neither has been seen since.
Investigators say Thornton was last seen walking along Burnt Bridge Road in central Jones County on Aug. 19, 2022. He had reportedly been driving a vehicle that belonged to someone else, but that vehicle was found abandoned the following day on a dead-end road in the Burnt Bridge community.
His daughter reported him missing after not hearing from or seeing him for several days.
Since then, investigators with the Jones County Sheriff’s Department have conducted extensive searches in the area, including along Tallahoma Creek, where Thornton was reportedly last seen near a sandbar.
Investigator Thad Windham told reporters that authorities have followed numerous tips and rumors, including information suggesting Thornton may have been killed and his body placed in the creek. Despite searches involving cadaver dogs and painstaking efforts through thick vegetation, flood-prone terrain and even areas inhabited by alligators, no evidence has been found to confirm those reports.
“The rumor is pretty strong,” Windham told WDAM. “However, at this point, that’s just a rumor.”
Windham said investigators continue to believe someone knows what happened.
“It may be some information that I’ve already got,” he said. “It may be a tidbit that I don’t, and that’s what I need. But if you know something, contact me.”
Thornton’s disappearance remains an open investigation, and authorities consider him to be endangered.
Anyone with information about Lewis Thornton’s whereabouts is urged to contact Investigator Thad Windham with the Jones County Sheriff’s Department at 601-817-3606 or Jones County Crime Stoppers at 601-428-STOP (7867).
