Man arrested in Georgia for 1998 murder case
3 october 2026 в 11:02
After 28 years of unsuccessful searches, authorities have arrested a man in connection with the murder of a 20-year-old woman whose body was found near a car along a highway in Georgia. On September 14, 1998, Kristi Dawn Myers left her home in Coffee County, where she lived with her husband and young daughter, to visit a local store. According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, several witnesses claimed to have interacted with Myers at the store. After she left, her body was discovered shortly after midnight on September 15, 1998.
Myers' body was found outside her vehicle on the shoulder of the Broxton-Fitzgerald Highway in Coffee County, and she had been stabbed multiple times. The case remained unsolved for nearly three decades until forensic evidence analysis identified a suspect, James Lawrence III from Irwin County. Lawrence, 47, was arrested on October 1 on charges of first-degree murder, malice murder, and aggravated assault in connection with Myers' death.
The Bureau of Investigation did not specify a possible motive for the murder or whether Myers knew Lawrence. In a statement, the agency said: «For 28 years, the GBI Douglas Regional Investigative Office and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office have remained committed to finding answers in the Kristi Myers case. This arrest represents the culmination of those ongoing efforts».
At a press conference held by the GBI, Myers' daughter, Chelsea Wolfe, noted that her mother is «not forgotten». She added, «While today brings us a small sense of relief, it is only the beginning of a new chapter, but a chapter we are ready for… This is a new day, a new dawn, and may justice prevail». Wolfe, who is now 29, shared how the unsolved murder of her mother has always weighed heavily on her.
Following the arrest, Lawrence was placed in the Coffee County Jail. After the criminal investigation is completed, the case will be forwarded to the Office of the District Attorney for the Waycross Judicial Circuit, which will lead the prosecution of Lawrence. The GBI is urging anyone with information about Myers' murder to contact the agency’s regional office in Douglas at 912−389−4103 or the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office at 912−384−4227.
Myers' body was found outside her vehicle on the shoulder of the Broxton-Fitzgerald Highway in Coffee County, and she had been stabbed multiple times. The case remained unsolved for nearly three decades until forensic evidence analysis identified a suspect, James Lawrence III from Irwin County. Lawrence, 47, was arrested on October 1 on charges of first-degree murder, malice murder, and aggravated assault in connection with Myers' death.
The Bureau of Investigation did not specify a possible motive for the murder or whether Myers knew Lawrence. In a statement, the agency said: «For 28 years, the GBI Douglas Regional Investigative Office and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office have remained committed to finding answers in the Kristi Myers case. This arrest represents the culmination of those ongoing efforts».
At a press conference held by the GBI, Myers' daughter, Chelsea Wolfe, noted that her mother is «not forgotten». She added, «While today brings us a small sense of relief, it is only the beginning of a new chapter, but a chapter we are ready for… This is a new day, a new dawn, and may justice prevail». Wolfe, who is now 29, shared how the unsolved murder of her mother has always weighed heavily on her.
Following the arrest, Lawrence was placed in the Coffee County Jail. After the criminal investigation is completed, the case will be forwarded to the Office of the District Attorney for the Waycross Judicial Circuit, which will lead the prosecution of Lawrence. The GBI is urging anyone with information about Myers' murder to contact the agency’s regional office in Douglas at 912−389−4103 or the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office at 912−384−4227.
© Smirnova Olga
