Hokie Shepherd's murder is now solved

Summary

On Tuesday, January 8, 1985, 62-year-old Hokie Shepherd, a retired school teacher who lived alone at 1100 E. Caswell St. in Kinston, North Carolina, was found murdered in her home by a friend. Kinston police responded to the scene and determined Shepherd had died from an apparent gunshot wound and assault. Her burgundy 1983 Cadillac was also stolen, which was eventually found at a local elementary school. Despite hours of investigation, the person responsible for Hokie's brutal attack and murder has not been identified.

While forensic DNA testing was in its infancy at the time of Shepherd's murder, investigators successfully collected evidence that could be used for future testing. Over the years, the investigation has been revisited as advances have been made in forensic science. Finally, an STR profile was created from the evidence collected at the crime scene and entered into CODIS. The CODIS search produced no match, and Hokie's assault and murder remained unsolved for decades.

In 2023, Kinston police, in collaboration with the FBI and NCSBI, submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas, in hopes that advanced DNA testing could help identify the male suspect in the case. Othram scientists used Forensic Genome Sequencing® to create a comprehensive DNA profile of the unknown suspect. Upon successful completion of the process, the DNA profile was submitted to the FBI's forensic genetic genealogy team and the FBI team conducted the necessary work to generate new investigative leads in the case.

Using this new information, a follow-up investigation was conducted, leading investigators to potential relatives of the man. This investigation allowed investigators to narrow down the suspect, who was identified as Thomas Williams Wade Jr. Thomas was 28 years old at the time of the crime and was initially interviewed as a potential person of interest. Shortly after the crime, he moved from the Kinston area and lived the rest of his life in Granville County, where he died in 2007. If Thomas were alive today, he would have been charged with first-degree murder and theft of Shepherd's car.

The identification of Thomas Williams Wade Jr. represents the eleventh case in the state of North Carolina in which officials have publicly identified an individual using technology developed by Othram. Most recently, Jesse Eugene Settle, who died in a house fire, was identified in Reidsville, North Carolina in 2024.