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The 2012 disappearance of the U.S. Army combat medic, Kelli Bordeaux, resulted in a twisted investigation, which led to the conviction of Nicholas Holbert. Bordeaux, stationed a Fort Bragg, had been out for a drink with the bartender when she met her fate on April 14, 2012.
Beaten to death, Kelli's remains were found two years later with the exhaustive efforts of the private investigator David Marshburn. The Dateline NBC episode titled Deep in the Woods showcases the chilling details of Kelli Bordeaux's murder as it re-airs on Sunday, May 19, 2024, at 10 pm EST. The official synopsis reads:
"When a young Army medic based at Ft. Bragg, N.C., goes missing, police can't solve the case despite having a suspect until an unorthodox private investigator steps in to help."
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Five details about Kelli Bordeaux's murder explored
1) Kelli Bordeaux went missing on April 14, 2012, after a night out
Kelli Bordeaux, the combat medic with the 261st Multifunction Medical Battalion, was reported missing on April 16, 2012, as per WRAL. Bordeaux had been stationed at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville in November 2011.
She was last seen with the 25-year-old bartender Nicholas Holbert from Froggy Bottoms Bar in north Fayetteville's Ramsey Street around 1:20 am local time, as per ABC News. According to Justin Thompson's statement, Kelli and Justin had been to the same bar a week earlier where Kelli was approached by Nicholas.
According to the US Sun, Nicholas Holbert gave her his phone number and befriended her.
2) Kelli's secret boyfriend, Justin Thompson, had received suspicious texts from her the night she disappeared
Kelli Bordeaux was married to Mike Bordeaux but the couple had been going through a rough patch in their marriage. While the two were allegedly on a break, she was secretly involved with one of her friends from her hometown of St. Cloud, Justin Thompson.
The night Kelli was at the Froggy Bottoms Bar with Nicholas, Justin was at a concert in Florida. He mentioned having received two texts of conflicting nature from her the same night. One of the messages read:
"Hey, call me. Call me. Call me."
The following text message read:
"Got home safe I'm going to bed I'm tired and drunk call me tomorrow."
Kelli Bordeaux remained unresponsive on calls and texts over the weekend. She failed to show up for work on April 15, 2012.
3) The investigation turned cold for two years with no leads
Kelli was reported missing by her family and Fort Bragg officials on April 16, 2014. Consequently, an extensive manhunt was launched where over 500 people joined to comb the woods around Ramsey Street, according to the Fayetteville Observer.
As Kelli's husband, Mike Bordeaux, and her boyfriend, Justin Thompson, were cleared with their alibis checking out, Nicholas became a person of interest. He cooperated with the interrogations without legal counsel and even gave the detectives a sample of his DNA, according to CBS News.
The forensic tests on Holbert's car and campsite revealed no leads and the Army's Criminal Investigation Command announced a reward of $25,000 for information on the case.
4) Nicholas Holbert led David Marshburn to Kelli Bordeaux's remains in May 2014
The North Carolina-based bounty hunter and a private investigator, David Marshburn from Marshburn Investigation Agency was heavily intrigued by the disappearance and started putting his efforts and money into the investigation. Aided by his search dog Kaz, and his assistant, Marsha Ward, Marshburn nurtured a relationship with Nicholas and paid his way out of probation.
As per WFTV, Nicholas had been arrested for failing to register as a sex offender and was released in May 2013. In due course, Marshburn drafted a fake plea bargain and lured him into a confession, as per CBS News.
Nicholas Holbert led David Marshburn to a wooded area behind his campsite where he had buried Kelli Bordeaux's remains in a shallow grave.
5) Nicholas Holbert was sentenced to life in prison
The remains found one mile north of Interstate 295 on River Road were positively identified as Kelli Bordeaux's, as per WTVD. Moreover, the autopsy report suggested the cause of her death to be blunt force trauma to her head — a detail which checked out with Holbert's confession of hitting Bordeaux in the head repeatedly till she was dead.
Kelli had confronted Nicholas after learning about his criminal past when she was struck in the head in the parking lot of Froggy Bottoms. Holbert then carried her in his car to his trailer where he hit her repeatedly to allegedly make her stop screaming, as per CBS News.
Nicholas Holbert pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole on August 7, 2015.
Catch all the details of the U.S. Army official's murder on the Dateline NBC episode airing Sunday.
