Tyler Mook is in Florida state prison, where he is serving a 12-year sentence for attempted second-degree murder after trying to drown his girlfriend during a 2014 boating trip. He was sentenced in 2016 with credit for roughly two years already served, which puts his projected release somewhere between 2026 and 2028. He also remains the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s sole person of interest in the 2011 disappearance of his ex-wife, Shelley Mook, though he has never been charged in that case.1YourErie. Person of Interest in Edinboro Native’s Disappearance Sentenced in Florida
Current Incarceration Status
Mook was sentenced on March 24, 2016, after a Florida jury found him guilty of attempted second-degree murder, a lesser included offense of the attempted first-degree murder charge he faced.2TCPalm. Palm City Man Convicted of Attempted Murder in Attack on Girlfriend The 12-year term included credit for approximately two years he had already spent in custody since his December 2014 arrest.1YourErie. Person of Interest in Edinboro Native’s Disappearance Sentenced in Florida
He challenged the sentence. In 2017, Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed his conviction but reversed a lower court order that had required him to pay the cost of transporting Tennessee witnesses to testify at sentencing. A later motion for postconviction relief under Florida Rule 3.850 was addressed by the same court in 2020, which left the 12-year sentence in place.3FindLaw. Mook v. State, No. 4D19-1422
No reporting in the available record has confirmed his release or any change in his incarceration status since.
What He Was Convicted Of
On October 4, 2014, Mook was boating near Sandsprit Park in Palm City, Florida, with his girlfriend Robin Doneth, his brother Andrew Mook, and Andrew’s girlfriend. According to the probable-cause affidavit, an argument began after Robin asked Tyler to slow the boat down. He threw her off the front of the boat into the Indian River Lagoon and held her head underwater. When she broke free, he grabbed her and forced her under a second time.4Palm Beach Post. Man Linked to 2011 Slaying
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder called the incident “clearly an attempt to kill her.” The affidavit quoted Mook as saying, “No one disrespects me in front of my family. I will kill her.”4Palm Beach Post. Man Linked to 2011 Slaying Andrew Mook jumped in and pulled his brother off Robin. Robin later told police she was “adamant” that Tyler would have drowned her if Andrew had not intervened.5CBS News. Missing Woman’s Ex Charged With Trying to Kill Girlfriend
Mook was initially booked on misdemeanor battery. After Andrew gave investigators a fuller account, prosecutors upgraded the charge to attempted murder. Mook was arrested on a warrant on December 13, 2014, and held on $100,000 bond.4Palm Beach Post. Man Linked to 2011 Slaying The jury returned its verdict about 15 months later.2TCPalm. Palm City Man Convicted of Attempted Murder in Attack on Girlfriend
His Connection To Shelley Mook’s Disappearance
Shelley Mook, a 24-year-old middle school teacher, married Tyler Mook in 2004 after they graduated from high school in Shelbyville, Tennessee. They divorced in 2009 and shared custody of their daughter, Lilliana.6WKRN. Murfreesboro Teacher Shelley Mook Still Missing 10 Years Later
On February 28, 2011, Shelley picked up Lilliana from school and drove to Tyler’s home in Shelbyville to drop her off. Lilliana, who was six at the time, told investigators her mother went inside the house and never came back out. Tyler told police Shelley left to run errands. Her phone last pinged a tower in Beech Grove, Tennessee, around 7:30 p.m. that night. Just after midnight, firefighters found her Pontiac Grand Prix burning in an empty Rutherford County farm field, doused with gasoline. No body, keys, or personal items were inside.7CBS News. Shelley Mook Cold Case: 48 Hours Probes 2011 Disappearance of Tennessee Mom
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation named Tyler Mook its primary person of interest. He was the last known person to see Shelley, his account conflicted with Lilliana’s, and he refused to cooperate with the search. During a later custody deposition, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination more than 140 times when asked about the day Shelley vanished.7CBS News. Shelley Mook Cold Case: 48 Hours Probes 2011 Disappearance of Tennessee Mom
A Bedford County court later declared Tyler “unfit to parent” based on evidence of domestic violence, drug activity, and association with dangerous individuals, and granted primary custody of Lilliana to Shelley’s mother, Debbie Sikora. The Tennessee Court of Appeals affirmed that ruling in November 2012.8Tennessee Courts. Mook v. Sikora, Custody Opinion After losing custody, he moved to Florida, where the 2014 drowning attempt occurred.
Where The Shelley Mook Case Stands
Shelley Mook’s case remains an open cold missing-persons investigation. No body has been recovered, and no one has been charged with her disappearance or death. Her family, with help from private investigator Kevin Keele, has continued to press for answers in the years since.9CBS News. Shelley Mook, Missing Since 2011 The TBI asks anyone with information to call 1-800-TBI-FIND.6WKRN. Murfreesboro Teacher Shelley Mook Still Missing 10 Years Later