Survey targets slaying

Investigators will mail questionnaires seeking information in the 1998 death of Sam's Club manager David Holt

Web posted June 22, 2000

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By Mark Mathis
Staff Writer

After two years, countless hours and piles of evidence, closure in the David Holt homicide case could come via the U.S. mail.

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On Saturday, Augusta-area residents in five ZIP codes will receive questionnaires in the mail about the unsolved 1998 slaying of the Sam's Club manager.

The mass-mailing will reach 65,000 people in the ZIP codes of 30901, 30906, 30815, 30907 and some of 30909, said Sgt. Wayne Bunton, homicide investigator for the Richmond County Sheriff's Department.

``We wanted to concentrate on the area of Augusta closest to the crime scene, and we want to reach out into south Augusta because we feel there are some people there with some information,'' Sgt. Bunton said.

In the early morning hours of June 21, 1998, Mr. Holt's burned remains were discovered in the trunk of his Mazda Protege, parked off of Sand Pit Road in Aiken County, just across the river from downtown Augusta.

Investigators also discovered that the Sam's Club on Bobby Jones Expressway had been robbed. They say they believe someone forced Mr. Holt to unlock the store's door and the safe sometime after the store had closed for the night.

For the past year, investigators have said they have targeted a group of people but have yet to obtain enough evidence to ensure convictions, Sgt. Bunton said.

In a copy of the questionnaire obtained by The Augusta Chronicle, recipients are reminded of the facts of the case and urged to call the sheriff's department or FBI with any information they might have.

Readers are then asked to respond to the following four generic yes-or-no statements:

I know who killed David Holt.

I know someone who knows who killed David Holt.

I have heard who killed David Holt.

I would be willing to help solve this crime.

There is a space reserved for comments that allow respondents to explain their choices.

``We want it to be somewhat generic,'' Sgt. Bunton said. ``We don't want to offer too much information so that it is leading in some way.''

The envelopes can then be folded shut and mailed, with postage provided. Letters are sent to a local post office box specifically purchased for collecting the questionnaires, Sgt. Bunton said.

The mass mailing idea originated at a meeting of Sam's Club and Wal-Mart executives and investigators involved in the case, Sgt. Bunton said.

Investigators from the sheriff's departments in Richmond and Aiken counties, the FBI and the state Bureaus of Investigation in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina have all been involved in the case.

Sam's Club is paying for the creation and mailing of the questionnaires. Investigators with them on the format, questions to ask and areas to target, Sgt. Bunton said.

He added that he is unaware of any other case that has used such an approach to solve a crime. The anonymity and generic nature of the questionnaires could give investigators the extra information they need to solve the case, Sgt. Bunton said.

``What we're thinking is that people overhear things, people hear conversations,'' he said. ``What we're hoping is that if someone overhears a conversation, they will in their own mind think that this isn't right or fair. Yet, that one person may have a family obligation or whatever that prohibits them from making that phone call, but may not prohibit their moral obligation of right and wrong to write a couple of lines on that questionnaire and return it to us.''

In addition to the questionnaires, representatives from Sam's Club will hold a news conference today in front of the Richmond County Law Enforcement Center. The company offered a $200,000 reward last year for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Mr. Holt's killer.

Reach Mark Mathis at (706) 823-3227.