DAHLONEGA, Ga. — Herman Wilder, 56, was beaten with a wooden stake and killed outside his Dahlonega apartment on May 25, 2001.
But investigators have never been able to identify Wilder’s killer until now.
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Carroll Dean Burrell, who was 41 at the time of the attack, has been identified as Wilder’s killer through DNA evidence found on the murder weapon, the Lumpkin County Sheriff’s Office confirmed. Burrell, however, is already deceased.
Burrell had a history of mental health issues and “was known to have exhibited delusional and violent behavior.”
A suspect was identified shortly after the attack, but was later dismissed.
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Channel 2 Action News was in Dahlonega in May 2001, speaking with neighbors afraid for their safety with a “deranged killer” on the loose.
At the time, investigators said the suspect was shouting Bible verses as he beat Wilder.
In the days after the attack, rumors began swirling about satanic rituals, hit lists, more shootings and rapes.
“I’ve heard stories that he’s talked to different people and asked them if he’s the firstborn son of a firstborn son. I mean, the stories keep getting more elaborate,” neighbor Kim Bamonte said in 2001.
But the sheriff’s office told Channel 2 Action News then that none of those rumors were true.
“Everyone’s just scaring each other,” neighbor Tyler Walker said in 2001. “It’s a deranged individual that did something crazy and that’s all.”
Because Burrell is dead, the district attorney’s office has declared the case “exceptionally cleared.”
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