Arrest made after body of 79-year-old found buried near I-40 exit, NC police say
The search for a legally blind 79-year-old man came to a tragic end when deputies discovered his remains near the intersection of Interstate 40 and U.S. 321 in Catawba County, according to investigators in North Carolina.
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It is suspected Claude “Doc” Holsclaw was murdered months ago, then buried on 4th Street Place SW in Brookford. The rural road reaches a dead-end at the interstate’s fence.
Joshua Ray Begley, 34, lives on the property where the body was found, and he is accused of killing Holsclaw with a .22 long rifle, a warrant reports.
Details of a motive have not been released.
Brookford police reported Holsclaw missing on July 17, noting he was last scene about a month earlier. It was suspected he might be traveling in the mountains. However, family members disputed that idea.
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“This is my uncle. … This isn’t like him to just up and leave his house. Something’s happened,” James Holsclaw wrote in a Facebook post.
Investigators did not release details of how they came to suspect foul play, but Begley was identified as a suspect on July 25, and described as “armed and dangerous.”
He was arrested the next day, and has been charged with murder, concealment of a death, and possession of a firearm by a felon during the commission of a felony, officials said. An arrest warrant says the crime was committed on March 23.
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Brookford is about a 55-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte.
