Cold case solved: Kingsport police determine West Virginia man found dead in Holston River in 2003

Kingsport police declared a 17-year-old cold case closed on Thursday as DNA samples and other clues helped bring closure to a West Virginia family.

Human remains were discovered in the Holston River near Riverfront Park in 2003 and leads turned cold in the years since. In June, an amateur missing person investigator gave information to Kingsport detectives about the case of Jerry D. Holbert of Charleston, West Virginia.

Holbert, who had dementia, went missing in 2003 after catching a bus to visit a family member in Ohio. Police believe he became disoriented because of his medical condition and wound up in Kingsport where his body was found a week later.

Police do not suspect foul play in Holbert’s death.

(ARTIST RENDERING: KPD TN)