Mother of woman found dead in Apopka says rehab center should have supervised her

Tiffany Tweedy, 35, found dead near SR 429 earlier this month

APOPKA, Fla. – A woman whose daughter was found dead on the side of an Orange County road said the rehabilitation center her daughter was in should have done a better job of protecting her.

Denise Payton's daughter, 35-year-old Tiffany Tweedy was found dead on Lust Road near State Road 429 earlier this month.  Payton described the last week-and-a-half as "a living nightmare."

"It's like being punched in the stomach, my chest was ... I couldn't breathe," Payton said.

Payton said her daughter was a heroin addict, and was ordered by the courts to receive treatment.
She chose STEPS Rehabilitation program, where she had been the last three months.

"I took my daughter there to save my daughter’s life, not for my daughter to end up on a dirt road for gator bait," she said.

Payton said her daughter was only allowed to leave the program with her or a family friend for court hearings. Detectives haven't said where Tiffany was before she was killed, but other women in the treatment facility told Payton a woman overdosed June 6 and a counselor and Tweedy took her to Florida Hospital in Apopka.

Peyton said the counselor returned to the facility and Tweedy stayed at the hospital.

"It's against protocol. A staff member should have accompanied that girl, not my daughter," she said.

Payton said Tweedy left the hospital at some point, but no one knows whom with. The next day her body was found on the side of the road.

"Someone should be accountable for the fact that she was dropped off unsupervised. She should have been supervised," Stephanie Smith, Peyton's sister, said.

News 6 went to STEPS Rehabilitation Center, spoke to someone in person and asked for an official comment but never heard back.

Payton said her daughter should never have been allowed to leave the facility.

"She was not supposed to leave the rehab, for no reason, shape or fashion. She would still be alive," she said.

The family started a GoFundMe page to help pay for funeral expenses.

Detectives with the Orange County Sheriff's Office said Tweedy's body had no trauma. They are still waiting to learn exactly how she died.

Anyone with information about her death is asked to call Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.


About the Author:

Emmy Award-winning reporter Louis Bolden joined the News 6 team in September of 2001 and hasn't gotten a moment's rest since. Louis has been a General Assignment Reporter for News 6 and Weekend Morning Anchor. He joined the Special Projects/Investigative Unit in 2014.

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