Georgia · Hancock County · Missing & Alert

Stephen Russell Ellis Wanted in Sparta, GA: GBI Says the 62-Year-Old Was Last Seen Near Island Creek Church Road in Hancock County

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is asking for help finding Stephen Russell Ellis, 62, of Sparta, who the agency says is wanted on two warrants and was last seen in the area of Island Creek Church Road. The GBI says it considers Ellis armed and dangerous, and it has not said what the warrants are for. The number it gave for information is (478) 445-4173.

By Kate Thompson Published Aug. 18, 2026, 9:34 p.m. ET 3 min read Alert posted Tuesday night, Aug. 18 · wanted on warrants, not convicted

What has the GBI said about Stephen Russell Ellis?

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation wants the public’s help locating a Sparta man whom it describes as armed and dangerous, 41NBC reported Tuesday night. The agency named him as Stephen Russell Ellis, 62.

According to a Facebook post the agency published Tuesday night, Ellis is wanted on two warrants. That is the whole of what has been said about his legal status. Ellis is wanted on warrants and nothing more than that has been alleged in public: he has not been described as convicted of anything, and the agency has not tied him to any specific offense. This page will not go further than the GBI has.

Where does the GBI say Ellis was last seen?

The GBI placed his last known sighting in the area of Island Creek Church Road in Sparta, the seat of Hancock County in central Georgia.

The agency did not attach an address, a cross street, a landmark or a time of day to that sighting, and it did not say how much ground the phrase covers. It also did not say whether Ellis is believed to still be in the area.

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What are the two warrants for?

Unknown, and that is the agency’s decision. 41NBC reported that the GBI withheld both the nature of the warrants and any further detail about the case. Anyone telling you what they are for is going beyond what the GBI has released.

What does the GBI say people should do if they see him?

The GBI’s instruction is short: do not approach Ellis, and call 911 instead. That wording is the agency’s own, reproduced here as given. It attached no conditions and no other guidance.

Who is taking information, and can a tip stay anonymous?

One agency is named on this alert: the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Anyone with information about where Ellis is has been asked to contact the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Milledgeville at (478) 445-4173.

The agency also lists three anonymous routes: calling (800) 597-8477, using the GBI’s online tip form, or downloading the See Something, Send Something mobile app. No local sheriff’s office or police department has been named as taking calls on this case, and no reward has been mentioned.

How many newsrooms have reported this?

One that we could read. Everything above comes from 41NBC/WMGT, the Morris Multimedia station in Macon, under the byline of Tucker Sargent, timestamped 9:13 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2026, relaying the GBI’s own Facebook post.

Editor’s note on corroboration: 13WMAZ, the Tegna station serving this part of central Georgia, carried the same alert — but that page returns an HTTP 403 to us and its body could not be read. A headline is not corroboration and is not counted here as a second source. So this is a single readable newsroom relaying an official GBI alert, not two independent newsrooms confirming each other. The originating source of record is the GBI, and every statement on this page is attributed to the GBI.

This report is part of The Local Alert’s ongoing Hancock County, GA coverage. For a comparable Georgia public-alert story, see the Jones County appeal for Carl Caruthers, 61, last seen in the Fox Road area.

What is still unknown about this alert?

Frequently asked questions

Who is Stephen Russell Ellis, and why is the GBI looking for him?
Stephen Russell Ellis is a 62-year-old Sparta man. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation says he is wanted on two warrants and that it considers him armed and dangerous. The agency has not said what the two warrants are for, and it has not described Ellis as convicted of anything.

Where was Stephen Russell Ellis last seen?
The GBI put his last known location in the area of Island Creek Church Road in Sparta, which is the county seat of Hancock County, Georgia. No address, no cross street and no time of day was released.

What are the two warrants for?
The GBI has not disclosed that. The agency said only that Ellis is wanted on two warrants, and it did not provide additional information about the case.

What does the GBI say people should do if they see Stephen Russell Ellis?
The agency's instruction is not to approach Ellis, and to call 911 instead.

How do you contact the GBI with information about Stephen Russell Ellis?
Anyone who knows where Ellis is has been asked to call the GBI's Milledgeville Regional Investigative Office at (478) 445-4173. Three anonymous routes are open: the tip line at (800) 597-8477, the GBI online tip form, and the See Something, Send Something app.