<b><i>This is the fourth in a series of stories about four cold case murders under investigation by the Hall County Sheriff's Office.</b></i><br />
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OAKWOOD - It has been just over a year since the body of Holly Fox Strickland was discovered along a tree line on a road that ran just behind the Rain Tree Trace home where she lived with her two children and the paternal grandparents of her daughter. <br />
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Strickland had been missing for almost a week when a family member found Strickland, fully clothed, in an area where the young mother would often go to have private phone conversations. The 32-year-old had been shot to death, a piece of the investigation that had not been revealed until Monday, when Hall County Sheriff's Office investigators decided to release the information.<br />
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HCSO Sgt. Dan Franklin recounted the case of Strickland at a Monday press conference where authorities reviewed four cold case murders for members of the media.<br />
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Franklin said the night Strickland was last seen (February 3, 2014) was a "normal" night for the victim and her family.<br />
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"There was nothing unusual that we were told happened," said Franklin. "She put her daughter to bed around 9 p.m. The grandparents went to bed shortly after that. Holly was last seen in her bed by her daughter - texting - between 9:30 and 10 p.m."<br />
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Franklin said when the family awoke the next morning, Strickland was gone, but they assumed she had simply left early for work at the Kroger store in Suwanee. Once they realized Strickland's car was in the driveway and her purse was in the house, they guessed she might have gone somewhere with a man she met on the dating website PlentyofFish.com. <br />
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"They did not report her missing, initially. They reported her missing on Wednesday, February 5," said Franklin.<br />
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When they did report her missing, the family traveled to the Law Enforcement Center (LEC) in Gainesville and did not request an officer come to the house in Oakwood. An investigator first went to the home on February 6, according to Franklin.<br />
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By Saturday, February 8, family members decided to conduct their own search, and that's when Strickland's body was discovered.<br />
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Franklin said investigators processed the scene for evidence and sent the victim's body to the State Crime Lab for autopsy, deciding until this week to not reveal the means of Strickland's death.<br />
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"Obviously we did interviews with family, several persons of interest, accepted alibis from the ones that had them and didn't come up with any clear, glaring suspects in this case," said Franklin.<br />
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Franklin said one item that remains missing is Strickland's cell phone. While they do have the phone records, having the physical piece of equipment might provide more clues, he said.<br />
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Even though the Strickland case - and the three other cold case murders - remain unsolved, Franklin said the Sheriff's Office wants the public to know, they aren't giving up on finding the killers.<br />
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"We care about them [the victims], they're important to us and it's important that we see these cases through - no matter how long it takes."<br />
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Anyone who has information on the Strickland case - or any of the other three cold cases under investigation by Hall County - is encouraged to call Sgt. Dan Franklin or Hall County's anonymous tip line at (770)503-3232.<br />
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AccessNorthGa.com profiled three other Hall County cold case murders this week.<br />
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Tuesday, February 10: David Sanchez<br />
Wednesday, February 11: Hannah Truelove<br />
Thursday, February 12: Rashaun Miguel Taylor
