‘One Man Left’: Detective Says DNA Solved Murder of UCF Student in 2001

ORLANDO, Florida. — A cold case detective tasked with investigating the murder of a UCF student in 2001 has turned to new DNA technology and genealogical research to identify the suspected killer, a seasoned homicide investigator said in court Friday.

Benjamin Holmes stood trial for the murder of Christine Franke in her Orlando apartment almost two decades ago.

Although investigators found no evidence that Franke was sexually assaulted, prosecutors told jurors that the perpetrator left semen stains on the victim’s body.

For nearly two decades, detectives from the Orlando Police Department have compared this DNA to those of Franke’s friends, colleagues, neighbors, and other potential people, but have been unable to find a match.

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“We’re out of leads,” said Det. Michael Fields told jurors. Fields was assigned to a cold case in 2013.

During the conference, Fields said he learned about a DNA analysis company called Parabon Nanolabs.

Fields said he allowed the company to upload crime scene DNA information to GEDmatch, a genealogical database commonly used to help people find relatives or research their ancestors.

Later, genealogists found people living in Georgia whose DNA was similar to the DNA found on Franke’s body, Fields said.

After building a family tree, Fields said he traveled to Georgia in 2018 to take DNA samples from family members, including Holmes’ mother.

Prosecutors said investigators concluded that one of her two sons was the killer.

Detectives have taken a DNA sample from Holmes’ brother, but they say he has been removed from the list of suspects.

“[There was] there was one person left. Benjamin Holmes, Fields told the jury.

Investigators secretly seized a cigar that Holmes had been smoking at a friend’s house, prosecutors said.

After the DNA found on the tip of the cigar matched that on Franke’s body, Fields obtained a search warrant from a judge to take a DNA smear directly from Holmes’s mouth.

This DNA sample directly linked Holmes to the murder, prosecutors say.

Holmes’ lawyer did not dispute that his client’s DNA was found at the crime scene.

During opening statements, the defense stated that someone else “planted” Holmes’ DNA on Franke’s body in order to protect the “real killer”. Neither Holmes nor his lawyer has yet explained how this could happen.

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