Heather Elvis, born June 30, 1993, lived in Carolina Forest, South Carolina, and worked as a restaurant hostess in Myrtle Beach while studying cosmetology. In the months before she disappeared, Elvis had an affair with Sidney Moorer, a married repairman she met through her restaurant job; the relationship ended about two months before her disappearance, and Moorer's wife, Tammy Moorer, learned of the affair and sent Elvis a series of confrontational messages.
On the night of December 17, 2013, Elvis went on a first date, driving around the area to see Christmas lights before being dropped off at her Carolina Forest apartment at about 1:15 a.m. on December 18 — the last confirmed sighting of her. About 30 minutes later she called her roommate, who was out of town, and said Sidney Moorer had called and asked to meet her; the roommate urged her not to go. Cell phone records show a series of calls between Elvis' phone and the Moorers' phones over the following two hours, and the phone's last detected activity that morning placed it in the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge area. Elvis has not been seen or heard from since.
On December 19, Elvis' locked, empty car was found parked at the Peachtree Landing boat launch on the Waccamaw River in Socastee, about eight miles from her apartment; her phone, keys, and purse were not inside. Searches of the surrounding riverbed by police and a university dive team did not locate her. Surveillance video reviewed by investigators showed Sidney Moorer buying a pregnancy test at a Myrtle Beach store shortly after 1 a.m. and placing a call to Elvis' phone from a payphone across the street; footage from private cameras along the road between the Moorers' home and Peachtree Landing showed a truck matching Sidney Moorer's driving toward the landing and back in the pre-dawn hours. Sidney Moorer initially denied making the payphone call, then acknowledged it after being shown the video.
In February 2014, Sidney and Tammy Moorer were arrested and charged with murder, kidnapping, obstruction of justice, and indecent exposure; they were separately charged with Medicaid fraud. Prosecutors dropped the murder and indecent-exposure charges in March 2016, along with an obstruction charge against Tammy Moorer. A June 2016 jury deadlocked on whether Sidney Moorer had kidnapped Elvis, and the judge declared a mistrial. Sidney Moorer was convicted of obstruction of justice in 2017 and sentenced to ten years. In October 2018, Tammy Moorer was convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap and sentenced to 30 years on each count; Sidney Moorer was convicted of kidnapping on retrial in September 2019 and also sentenced to 30 years.
The South Carolina Court of Appeals upheld both convictions in June 2023, and the South Carolina Supreme Court declined further review. Many of the case's central facts remain disputed: the Moorers have maintained their innocence, while Elvis' family and friends have said Sidney Moorer indicated he intended to leave his marriage for Elvis. In 2025, Sidney Moorer, representing himself, filed a motion for a new trial, alleging jury intimidation, perjured testimony, and withheld DNA evidence pointing to a different suspect. Elvis' body has never been found, and the murder charges were never refiled.
Heather Elvis went on a first date, driving around Carolina Forest, South Carolina to view Christmas lights and later practicing driving a manual-transmission car in a shopping mall parking lot.
2013-12-18
Elvis was dropped off at her Carolina Forest apartment at about 1:15 a.m., the last confirmed sighting of her; roughly 30 minutes later she called her roommate to say Sidney Moorer wanted to meet her, and her phone's last detected activity that morning placed it in the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge area. She has not been seen or heard from since.
2013-12-19
Elvis' locked, empty car was found parked at the Peachtree Landing boat launch on the Waccamaw River in Socastee, about eight miles from her apartment; her phone, keys, and purse were not inside.
2014-02-21
Sidney and Tammy Moorer were arrested at their home and charged with murder, kidnapping, obstruction of justice, and indecent exposure.
2014-06
The Moorers were formally charged with Medicaid fraud over a 2007 benefits application.
2015
The Moorers were released after 11 months in custody when a judge accepted collateral for a $100,000 bond on the murder charges, and were placed under GPS monitoring.
2016-03
Prosecutors dropped the murder charges against both Moorers without prejudice, along with the indecent-exposure charges and an obstruction charge against Tammy Moorer; the Medicaid fraud charges remained pending.
2016-06
A jury deadlocked 10-2 in favor of conviction after seven hours of deliberation on whether Sidney Moorer had kidnapped Elvis, and the judge declared a mistrial.
2017
Sidney Moorer was convicted of obstruction of justice for initially denying he had called Elvis from a payphone, and was sentenced to ten years, the maximum for the offense.
2018-04
A grand jury indicted Sidney and Tammy Moorer on a single count of conspiracy to kidnap.
2018-10
Tammy Moorer was convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap and sentenced to 30 years on each count, to run concurrently.
2019-09
On retrial, Sidney Moorer was convicted of kidnapping Elvis and sentenced to 30 years.
2021-03
In a Dateline episode, prosecutors said a cousin of Tammy Moorer's had seen a photo on Sidney Moorer's phone appearing to show Elvis deceased, with blood on her shirt and scratches on her face.
2023-06
The South Carolina Court of Appeals denied both Moorers' appeals of their convictions, and the South Carolina Supreme Court subsequently declined further review.
2025
Sidney Moorer, representing himself, filed a motion for a new trial, alleging jury intimidation, perjured testimony, and withheld DNA evidence pointing to a different suspect.
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Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Stephanie Harlowe / 50 min
MISSING: Where Is Heather Elvis?
People
Sidney Moorer
CONVICTED
Convicted of obstruction of justice in 2017 (ten-year sentence) and of kidnapping Heather Elvis on retrial in September 2019 (30-year sentence); murder and indecent-exposure charges against him were dropped in 2016 and never refiled. In 2025 he filed a pro se motion for a new trial.
Heather Elvis
VICTIM
Went missing from Carolina Forest, South Carolina in the early hours of December 18, 2013, after her last confirmed sighting; her body has never been found.
Tammy Moorer
CONVICTED
Convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap Heather Elvis in October 2018 and sentenced to 30 years on each count; murder and indecent-exposure charges against her, and a separate obstruction charge, were dropped in 2016 and never refiled.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Heather Elvis, 20, disappeared from Carolina Forest, South Carolina in the early hours of December 18, 2013, after a first date; her car was found abandoned at a nearby boat landing the next day. Sidney and Tammy Moorer, with whom Elvis had had an affair that had recently ended, were later convicted of kidnapping her, though the murder charges against them were dropped and Elvis has never been found.
Where did the disappearance happen?
Carolina Forest, South Carolina.
Who was convicted?
Sidney Moorer (Convicted of obstruction of justice in 2017 (ten-year sentence) and of kidnapping Heather Elvis on retrial in September 2019 (30-year sentence); murder and indecent-exposure charges against him were dropped in 2016 and never refiled. In 2025 he filed a pro se motion for a new trial.) and Tammy Moorer (Convicted of kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap Heather Elvis in October 2018 and sentenced to 30 years on each count; murder and indecent-exposure charges against her, and a separate obstruction charge, were dropped in 2016 and never refiled.).
