LAKE CITY, Fla. — Interstate 10 is a monotonous drive.
A steady rhythm of tree-lined interstate, following the gray and white pavement for miles, but on the evening of Nov. 2, 1988 around 9 p.m., the Columbia County Sheriff's Office got a call from a truck driver who had spotted something in the road.
A toddler was found dead on I-10 westbound near mile marker 303, just north of Lake City. Blood-stained pavement and the toddler's injuries indicated she was likely thrown from a moving car.
"At the time, the sheriff's office did not know who the baby was, the name of the child or who to contact. So, the child was listed as Jane Doe," Sergeant Joshua Green with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office told First Coast News.
The next day, the sheriff's office got another call. This time, it was a report that two people were missing: a mother, Detra McGuire, and her daughter, Roshanda.
"The sheriff's office took pictures of the child found on I-10 to the family of the missing person's report and they were able to identify the child found on I-10 as Roshanda McGuire," Green said.
He said reports from 1988 indicate Detra McGuire and her daughter were last seen on Nov. 2 around 7 p.m., leaving their Gatorwood Apartments home in Lake City. A search ensued to find Detra, as cadaver dogs searched the woods of I-10 near where Roshanda was found, but turned up nothing.
Then came a break, Detra's car was found at the L & G truck stop in Ellisville, a small town between Lake City and Gainesville. Locked up, parked and Green said there were no signs of a struggle. Detra's purse was still inside, but she had seemingly vanished.
"Even though her body has never been found, you do believe this was a homicide?" asked First Coast News' Katie Jeffries. "She was killed?"
"After looking at all the reports and reading the information in the binders, I do believe it was a homicide," Green said.
Green explained that it took him about six months to go through the binders of information in this case and investigators deeply analyzed the events of Nov. 2, 1988.
The report that Detra and Roshanda had left for the store came from Detra's live-in boyfriend at the time.
"He was the last person to see Detra and Roshanda alive," said Green.
Green said reports indicate he told investigators he had stayed home and went to sleep.
"He took a polygraph correct?" Jeffries asked.
"Yes," said Green.
"And he failed?"
"Yes," Green said.
Detra did have an older child around seven years old at the time. She had gone with a family member that night to a local fair.
"When she came home, she said she went to the apartment to get some clothing, she knocked on the door and a neighbor came outside and said 'Nobody is home, they all left,'" said Green.
Detectives also investigated a man that was possibly Roshanda's father, though that has never been confirmed. However, reports indicate he was in the military at the time of the murder and believed to be overseas.
"I don't have a specific suspect, but I can say we have not been able to rule out anybody," Green said.
Now, the sergeant is looking toward technology to reveal new leads.
"There are items that are being retested right now that I sent to the FDLE [Florida Department of Law Enforcement] crime lab and I am waiting to hear back right now," Green said.
Though his hope still lies with the community and that those with information in this crime will come forward.
"Maybe one of the neighbors that lived near Roshanda and Detra, maybe they remember something that wasn't told to the investigators in 1988," Green said. "Maybe they can come forward and talk to us about it. Someone maybe heard something from a person that was odd and they make a connection from hearing this to what somebody has told them in the past."
Something that could unlock the mystery to where Detra McGuire is and finally bring justice for a mother and her little girl.
If you know anything about the disappearance of Detra McGuire and/or the murder of Roshanda McGuire, contact the Columbia County Sheriff's Office at (386) 752-9212 or call Columbia CrimeStoppers at (386) 754-7099.