George was last seen at approximately 6:00 p.m. on January 13, 2005 at his residence in the vicinity of the 5700 block of south Sea Otter Path in Homosassa, Florida. He has never been heard from again. His white four-door 1988 Lincoln sedan was located the following day at a Publix shopping center parking lot off of Highway 19 in Homosassa. His wallet was under the seat, emptied of everything but Zelaya's Social Security card and photos. His watch, keys and cellular phone were left behind at his house.

Shortly after George's disappearance was discovered, his brother, Joe Zelaya, received an envelope in the mail which contained George's driver's license, some checks and a bankcard. It was post-dated the day after George's disappearance. A note in the envelope asked Joe to desposit three of the checks in their shared bank account; the fourth check was to Joe and was for $2,000. The note was signed, "Sorry, Skip." Joe stated that the zip code was wrong and he was not sure George actually sent the envelope. George also apparently filled out a change of address card on January 14, the day after his disappearance, causing all his mail to be routed to Joe's home. Joe died in December 2006, nearly two years after George went missing.

A friend of George's ex-wife also got an envelope supposedly from George. It contained some tape recordings of conversations George's ex-wife had had with other people, about vacations she'd gone on and dates she'd had with other men.

George's family can think of no reason he would leave without saying where he was going. He had accumulated over $100,000 worth of debt prior to his disappearance, but he was in the process of paying it off and his loved ones don't believe the debt would have caused him to run. George left behind his money, clothing and tools. Authorities stated that there was no evidence of foul play in his disappearance; they believe he left of his own accord.

George was employed as an electrician/handyman at the time of his disappearance. He and his ex-wife were living together in 2005, trying to reconcile. They have five grown children who all live out of state, and George is described as a devoted father who would not voluntarily abandon his family. Some of his relatives believe he committed suicide and others think he met with foul play, but there is little evidence available to support any theory. George's case remains unsolved.