Missing Auburndale woman’s boyfriend accused of accessing her financial accounts

Nancy Gay
·2 min read

AUBURNDALE, Fla. - The boyfriend of missing Auburndale woman, Tonya Whipp, has been arrested, but no charges have been filed directly relating to her disappearance.

According to the Auburndale Police Department, Russell Carroll unlawfully accessed Whipp’s financial accounts and redirected money to himself several times.

Police say Whipp, who was reported missing last June, had been living with Carroll and his brother at a home in the 1000 block of Caroline Avenue.

In early October, police executed a search warrant, taking cellphones and computers from the property, though no one has been arrested or charged.

<div>Pictured: Tonya Whipp. Courtesy: Auburndale Police Department.</div>
Pictured: Tonya Whipp. Courtesy: Auburndale Police Department.

Carroll told FOX 13 previously that he last saw Whipp before he went to work at the end of May, and when he came home, she was gone.

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"I don’t know why she’s doing this," Carroll said. "I don’t know where she went or where she’d go. It’s just out of character. Out of the blue for her. She’s done stuff like this in the past, but not for this long."

He said he and Whipp knew each other for years before they became an official couple after he got out of prison in January 2023. According to the Florida Department of Corrections, he served 20 years for attempted first-degree murder.

<div>Police say they have arrested Russell Carroll for accessing missing woman Tonya Whipp's financial accounts.</div>
Police say they have arrested Russell Carroll for accessing missing woman Tonya Whipp's financial accounts.

Auburndale police are still searching for Whipp. Though she was reported missing in June 2023, her family says they have not heard from her since May 2023.

RELATED: Tonya Whipp's family pleads for answers seven months after Polk County woman's disappearance

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact Detective Chris Wall at (863) 965-5555. Tipsters who want to remain anonymous and be eligible for a cash reward can contact Heartland Crime Stoppers at 1-888-400-8477 or online at www.P3tips.com.

Carroll has been charged with grand theft and unlawful use of personal identification information.

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