Global Courant 2023-04-17 06:44:53
Cold case detectives believe they are closing in on the 1988 murder of retired US Army officer Robert Hecht, who was found dead in his home the morning after hanging out at a local bar in Punta Gorda, Florida.
Hecht, who was 58 years old when he was killed, was last seen in the bar on the night of November 26, 1998, with a man named Ray speaking with a southern accent.
The next day, Hecht’s sister called the police after her brother failed to answer the phone for their weekly call. Officers found him dead in his home later that day. Authorities have not released his cause of death to preserve the integrity of the investigation, but Hecht was the “clear victim of murder”.
Detectives from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office reviewed Hecht’s 2009 murder and were able to identify Ray last year as Kenneth “Ray” Miller, who died in 2007. He was born in Kentucky but lived in Kingsport, Tennessee.
Files show that two days after Hecht’s murder, his brand new 1989 Lincoln Town Car was parked outside a grocery store in Lenoir, North Carolina, about 700 miles north of Punta Gorda. Ray was observed in the vehicle along with a “white woman with long blond hair”. The car was found abandoned on Main St. in Lenoir for a few days.
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A local Punta Gorda resident was identified as a suspect three decades ago during the initial investigation, but authorities believe that person should be able to clear his name in light of new information the cold case team has uncovered.
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Detectives now turn their attention to the unknown woman with blonde hair, who they believe holds the key to solving the case.
“Cold Case Detectives are actively seeking to determine why the victim’s car drove onto Main St. in Lenoir, NC and was left there,” the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office said. “Detectives are confident that this woman can assist in this murder investigation and they have no reason to believe that this woman is involved in the murder.”
Paul Best is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Story tips and ideas can be sent to Paul.Best@fox.com and on Twitter: @KincaidBest.
