FL FL- Robert Hecht, 58, retd. Army officer, last seen @ bar w. "Ray", his new '89 Lincoln Town car found in NC, body @ home,26 Nov. '88 *NEW INITIATIVE*

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April 11 2023 rbbm.

Florida detectives visit Kingsport for 1988 cold case

KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) – Investigators are revisiting a 34-year-old murder case with ties to the Tri-Cities this week and are asking for the public’s help. According to a press release…

www.wjhl.com

''According to a press release from the Charlotte County, Florida Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), cold case detectives are in Kingsport Tuesday and hoping to speak with individuals connected to the 1988 murder of retired U.S. Army officer Robert Hecht.''

November 26, 1988​

Robert Hecht (Photo/CCSO)

''On a Saturday night in Punta Gorda, Florida, 58-year-old Robert Hecht was seen speaking with a man who called himself “Ray” in a local bar. That sighting was the last time the retired Army officer was seen alive, and investigators have attempted to piece together the night’s events for decades.

The next morning, Hecht didn’t pick up when his sister called him for their weekly chat. After a report to local authorities, Hecht’s body was found inside his home. Investigators say he was “the obvious victim of murder.”

"In order to answer long-standing questions about Hecht’s death, detectives with CCSO scheduled a Tuesday visit in Kingsport to search for the woman seen riding alongside Miller just days after the murder.

“We like to what we call ‘stir the pot’ and see if there’s anything that might come to the surface in regards to the investigation,” Vogel said. “Just by bringing it up to the general public, people who have been here for a number of years.”

While the visit is a long shot, investigators believe there is more to reveal surrounding Hecht’s case.''

''Anyone with information connected to Miller or the blonde-haired woman allegedly seen with him is encouraged to call CCSO detectives Kurt Mehl at 941-763-0582 or Mike Vogel at 94-763-9394.

“We have we have been in contact and are working closely with members of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Lenoir, North Carolina Police Department,” Mehl said. “Along with the Kingsport P.D. who is aware of the situation and and I guess the two county sheriff’s offices, one in North Carolina and one here in Tennessee.”

Florida cold case detectives in Kingsport investigating ties to 1988 murder

A pair of Florida cold case detectives are currently in Kingsport, looking to find connections to a 1988 Punta Gorda, Florida murder.In November 1988, Robert He

wcyb.com

''In 2022, detectives officially determined the identity of Miller who is now dead, and learned he has ties to Kingsport. (Photo: Charlotte County Sheriff's Office)''

Florida cold case detectives in Kingsport investigating ties to 1988 murder (Photo: Charlotte County Sheriff's Office)

 

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rbbm

A mysterious blonde in a Lincoln Town Car could have answers in cold case murder

Witnesses remember seeing the car and suspected killer at a grocery store in North Carolina — 700 miles away from where a Florida man had been murdered.

ca.sports.yahoo.com

''A woman with long, blonde hair sat shotgun in a brand new Lincoln Town Car, waiting for its driver to come out of a Lenoir supermarket.

It was 1988. Now, Florida police are looking for the woman once seen in the small North Carolina town with a suspected killer. Authorities think she has information that could help solve a cold case murder.

Witnesses say they saw the woman with Kenneth “Ray” Miller at Lowell’s Food Market on East Harper Avenue, according to a news release from police in Lenoir and Charlotte County, Florida.

Three days later, North Carolina police found the car parked along Lenior’s Main Street. It looked like it had been there for days, police say.

But the car wasn’t Miller’s, police say.
Its owner had been murdered in southwest Florida — 700 miles away — days before.''
Detectives don’t believe the woman was involved in the murder, but they do think she has information that could help with the cold case investigation, according to the news release.

Police are also looking for information on Miller and the woman’s connection to Lenoir and Kingsport, Tenn.

Police ask anyone with information on the woman to call Charlotte’s Cold Case Homicide Unit Detective Kurt Mehl at (941) 763-0582 or Detective Mike Vogel at (941) 763-9394. The public can also call the Lenoir, NC Police Department at (828) 757-2100.''

 

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Mysterious woman ‘with long blonde hair’ wanted for questioning in Florida cold case

Cold case detectives are looking for a woman with ‘long blonde hair’ who could help them solve a three-decades old murder investigation.

lawandcrime.com

''Robert Hecht’s car was found outside of a grocery store in Lenoir, North Carolina (Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office).
Monday morning, between 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., Hecht’s brand new 1989 Lincoln town car was spotted hundreds of miles away in Lenoir, North Carolina, near a local grocery store called Lowell’s Food Market. Witnesses said the driver exiting the car and entering the store looked just like Ray. A woman with long blonde hair was in the passenger seat.''

'Investigators hope they’ll be able to question the woman with the long blonde hair so they can determine why Hecht’s car was driven and ditched in North Carolina — and why the retired army officer was killed.'
rbbm

 

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April 23 2024

New DNA results help close 36-year-old murder cold case

Thanks to technology, a family has found some sense of closure on a 36-year-old murder cold case that dates back from November of 1988.

winknews.com

''Crime scene detectives were able to identify the murderer with new DNA results from evidence collected.
They said Kenneth Ray Miller killed Hecht. Miller, however, died in 2007 at the age of 55 due to natural causes.''

''Investigators say Miller had an extensive history of violent crime, including aggravated battery, burglary, arson and other crimes.''
Kenneth Ray Miller Alabama photo. Credit: The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office

 

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After 35 years, Robert Hecht's Killer has been Identified

Charlotte County Sheriff's Office & FBI Leverage Othram’s Forensic Sequencing Platform to Identify a 1988 Murder Suspect

dnasolves.com

rbbm
''In November 1988, detectives found 58-year-old Robert Hecht murdered in his home on Rio Togas Road in Charlotte County, Florida. Hecht had been hit in the head several times with a glass ashtray by an unknown individual. In the course of the investigation, detectives learned that Hecht had been last seen with a man named Ray. Detectives also learned that Hecht’s recently purchased Lincoln was missing from his garage. It was later found abandoned in North Carolina. Despite the efforts of investigators, the person responsible for Hecht’s murder could not be identified.

Although forensic DNA technology was in its infancy at the time of Hecht's murder, DNA evidence was collected at the scene of the crime and preserved for future testing. Years later, DNA from the crime scene was finally analyzed and an STR profile was developed and entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). Unfortunately, there was no match found in the CODIS search to a known identity. With all leads exhausted, and without a suspect identified, the case eventually went cold.''

''Using these new leads, law enforcement investigators met with possible relatives of the unidentified suspect. As a result of their investigation, Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office was able to identify the suspect as Kenneth Ray Miller. Miller died in 2007 of natural causes. Investigators learned that Miller had a long criminal history, and with Miller’s identification, the investigation into Robert Hecht’s murder is officially closed.

This case represents the 22nd case in the State of Florida where officials have publicly identified an individual using Othram technology.''

 

[PayrollNerd]

April 23 2024

New DNA results help close 36-year-old murder cold case

Thanks to technology, a family has found some sense of closure on a 36-year-old murder cold case that dates back from November of 1988.

winknews.com

''Crime scene detectives were able to identify the murderer with new DNA results from evidence collected.
They said Kenneth Ray Miller killed Hecht. Miller, however, died in 2007 at the age of 55 due to natural causes.''

''Investigators say Miller had an extensive history of violent crime, including aggravated battery, burglary, arson and other crimes.''
Kenneth Ray Miller Alabama photo. Credit: The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office
View attachment 499134

Sounds like his lifestyle caught up with him. Dead at 55 of natural causes, thankfully.

 

[PayrollNerd]

I wonder if they ever found the long blonde haired lady. Hopefully, this creep didn’t hurt her too.