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By Gerrard Kaonga
US News Reporter
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The New York State Police announced on Thursday it had arrested Edward V. Holley in connection with a 2003 homicide cold case.
Police have charged 42-year-old Holley with second-degree murder over the death of 20-year-old Megan McDonald, according to a statement.
McDonald was discovered deceased in the town of Wallkill, Orange County, on March 15, 2003, from blunt force trauma.
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Major Paul Dequarto of New York State Police gave further details about the arrest, saying: "This has been a tremendous team effort from the day Megan's body was discovered and through the years we have aggressively worked this case and have never given up.
"Yesterday the New York State Police obtained an arrest warrant for Edward V. Holley, 42 years old from the town of Wawayanda, New York, charging him with murder in the second degree.
"Today we executed that warrant at the Orange County jail, where he is currently in custody for unrelated charges."
Dequarto also discussed Holley's relationship to McDonald and said he was a former boyfriend of the victim. He added that he had a "strong motive" to commit this crime.
During the press briefing, New York State Police BCI Commander Joe Kolek explained how the authorities were able to gather evidence to make an arrest.
He said: "This was a very complex investigation for us and throughout the years as we put the pieces together we developed a clear picture of what occurred on the night of March 13, 2003, into the early morning hours the following day.
"Although we've arrested Edward Holley for the murder of Megan McDonald this is still an active investigation we will continue to run down leads."
Answering questions from the press, he continued: "It wasn't one specific piece of evidence or information that brought us to this day it was the culmination, was all the pieces over the course of the last 20 years.
"Megan and Ed Holly had previously dated and they had broken up a few days prior to the homicide.
"We believe this crime was intimate partner violence, additionally Ed Holley owed Megan a substantial sum of money."
Four Interviews
He also noted that over the course of the investigation, Holley had been interviewed by the police on four occasions.
He added that Holley had never been ruled out completely as a suspect and the investigation has determined that Holley was the individual who committed this crime.
Kolek also praised the investigation team for their evidence collection over the last 20 years, which included physical evidence, DNA and new technology that came out following 2003 that they have been able to utilize.
He added that Holley's DNA was linked to a crime scene but didn't go into further details as the investigation is still ongoing.
The director of public information for New York State Police, Beau Duffy, spoke to Newsweek about the arrest, telling Newsweek: Holley was arrested yesterday morning, processed and remanded to the Orange County Jail.
"As far as the charge, I can only say that this investigation remains ongoing."
Update 04/24/23 at 4:10 a.m. ET; This article was updated to add a comment from the director of public information for New York State Police.
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