By ERICA ESTEP
6 News Reporter
SEVIERVILLE (WATE) - Detectives have a body, signs of a struggle, even suspects, yet more than two years after the crime, a Sevierville murder case is cold. Now police are asking for the public's help.
Carlos Reeves, 62, was found dead in his home in May 2010. Since then, police have exhausted all leads and tests to find his killer. "We are 100% that it was a homicide," said Sevierville Detective Kevin Bush.
Investigators pour over Reeves' case file often. "We have exhausted all our means at this time," Bush said. "We re-visit it once a week. I hate to use the term cold case, but that's where we're at right now."
The homicide was brutal, and police believe more than one person may have been involved. "This was a struggle and it probably took some time. It wasn't instantaneous. He was aware of what was going on," Bush added.
Reeves' body was found on May 17, 2010 in his home on Turtle Dove Trail in a quiet Sevierville subdivision. Police believe he'd been dead for at least five days. Signs of a struggle pointed to foul play. An autopsy confirmed it.
"We think we can basically place several people there the night that Mr. Reeves passed away. With the injuries, with the way, the condition that we found the residence, we think there was more than one person involved," Bush said.
But despite sending evidence to two crime labs and questioning at least three suspects, police don't know who killed Reeves or why and won't reveal his cause of death.
"That is for the integrity of the case. Only the detectives, the forensics, and God know how he died, and we need to keep it that way," Bush said.
Reeves was divorced, lived alone and had medical issues that kept him from working. He came to Sevier County to sell time shares years early. His family lives several hundred miles away.
6 News spoke with his sister, Sandy Miller, who lives in California by phone.
"I guess the detectives have the weapon, but they won't tell us what it is. I know that he bled out. He bled to death," she said. "We want to know who killed my brother, and why they did it."
Bush told 6 News he wants those same answers. "We considered robbery. We considered a maybe a romantic breakup or a relationship breakup, and there were valuable items left at the scene," he said. "There were narcotics (prescription pain pills) out and left at the scene of the crime."
"We want to know the details. We want closure, and we want peace," Miller said.
Bush said he understands the family's frustration. "We will never close it. We have not forgotten about it. But we have no new information at this time."
Sevier County and Knox County investigators have helped Sevierville on the case, but still no luck.
The Knox County Sheriff's office helped Sevierville secure grant money for cold cases to send evidence to the nation's most respected crime lab. Bush says all the DNA came back to the victim.
If you have any information about the death of Carlos Reeves, call Sevierville police at 865-453-5506.
Carlos Reeves (source: Sevierville Police Department)
