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Python hunters find missing Marion County woman, 75, in South Florida

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — Two days after a Marion County woman left her home in Umatilla headed for Ocala, deputies said python hunters found her safe in South Florida.

Marion County deputies said Darlene Peck, 75, left her home on Tuesday around 1 p.m. and around midnight her husband realized she’d never returned. Deputies said Peck has dementia and her family was concerned for her safety.

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Around 7 a.m. Wednesday, deputies said her car was spotted in Coral Gables near Miami.

Deputies said around 11 p.m. on Thursday that python hunters in South Florida found Peck “in good health” and that she’d been reunited with her family.

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Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com

Sarah Wilson joined WFTV Channel 9 in 2018 as a digital producer after working as an award-winning newspaper reporter for nearly a decade in various communities across Central Florida.