Navy veteran with dementia found dead inside walk-in freezer at assisted living facility

One day, Kristen Spencer realized her 83-year-old father had vanished from his room at a Florida assisted living facility.

Hours later, he was found dead inside a walk-in freezer.

Now, the family is demanding answers.

When Kristen Spencer checked the Ring camera she’d installed in her 83-year-old father’s room at a Florida assisted living facility, she instantly knew something was wrong.

“The light was on, but my dad was not in his room,” she recalled.

That moment marked the beginning of every family’s worst nightmare — hours later, her father, William Eugene “Gene” Ray, was found dead inside a walk-in freezer at the very facility entrusted with his care.

A trusted home turns tragic

Gene Ray, a father of two and a retired U.S. Navy veteran, was living at The Waverly Assisted Living and Memory Care in Trinity, Florida.

After serving his country for 36 years, he’d begun showing signs of dementia and moved into the facility in May, hoping to receive professional support and safety.

“You put your loved one in there with trust,” Spencer told Fox 13.

But that trust was shattered on September 26, when Spencer noticed something strange while checking her father’s camera feed in the middle of the night. The footage showed him leaving his room around 12:30 a.m. and never returning.

“He’s in the freezer”

Panicked, Spencer called her mother, who immediately contacted the facility. Hours later, the phone rang again — this time, with news no daughter should ever hear.

“She [the staff member] said, ‘We found him,’” Spencer recalled. “But then the next words out of her mouth were, ‘He’s in the freezer.’ And I said, ‘What do you mean he’s in the freezer?’”

Authorities from the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office responded to the facility around 8 a.m. They found Ray unresponsive inside a walk-in freezer. He was transported for medical treatment but later pronounced dead.

”Pasco County Fire Rescue responded and transported the victim for medical treatment, where he was later pronounced deceased,” a police spokesperson told People, adding, ”Preliminary information suggests the incident was accidental and no foul play is suspected.”

How a dementia patient accessed a restricted freezer remains under investigation.

“When would they have found him?”

Spencer said there had been “no major issues” during her father’s stay at the facility, but small red flags had begun appearing in recent weeks.

“If we had not called the facility, when would they have found him?” she questioned. “When you have vulnerable people in a place, you have to secure these areas.”

In a statement to Fox 13, a spokesperson for The Waverly Assisted Living and Memory Care acknowledged the tragic situation, confirming the facility was “aware of a recent report regarding an incident at our community.”

They explained that, “Out of respect for privacy and in compliance with regulatory guidelines, we are unable to share specific details nor will comment on the cognitive levels of any individual resident.” The spokesperson also pushed back against online speculation, adding, “However, we cannot accept a false narrative being pressed upon our residents and their families. When unmoderated, anonymous, non-factual reviews go unchecked they become perception. That perception undermines how hard every member of The Waverly family works to provide quality of life, enjoyment, and a wonderful place to call home.”

“The safety, dignity, and well-being of our residents is — and always will be — our highest priority,” the facility emphasized. “We have never experienced an incident of this nature in the many years of operating in the Assisted Living space. Our community is deeply saddened by this heartbreaking loss. The grief felt by our entire staff is indescribable. We are truly proud of our staff’s profound and immediate response to the situation and grateful for their continued compassion, dedication and professionalism. We remain confident in the high level of service, comfort, and care we provide our residents as one of the premier assisted living and memory care communities in Florida.”

Spencer told Fox 13 that her father will always be remembered as a “funny,” “hardworking” man who “never raised his voice.”

This is, without question, a heartbreaking tragedy — one that no family should ever have to experience. We can only hope the investigation reveals what went wrong and whether this could have been prevented.

Rest in peace, “Gene,” and thank you for your lifetime of service and dedication.