Kelli Bordeaux, Nicholas Holbert: CBS ’48 Hours’ Goes Behind Killing Of Army Soldier Whose Body Was Found Buried In Shallow Grave


Kelli Bordeaux, the U.S. Army Fort Bragg soldier who went missing but was later found dead and buried in a shallow grave, is the focus of a 48 Hours episode on CBS entitled, The Hunter: Searching For Kelli. CBS’ 48 Hours will interview friends and family members of Kelli Bordeaux, law enforcement officials, and former bounty hunter, David Marshburn, who was hailed as the person who helped find the dead girl’s remains in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Nicholas Holbert, 28, was charged and convicted of her killing. Police say Holbert was a new friend in Kelli’s life, according to the Daily Mail.

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Kelli Bordeaux’s last photo uploaded to her social media page before she vanished. [Image via ’48 Hours’/Facebook]
The case of missing soldier Kelli Bordeaux hit news stands in April 2012, after she vanished after a night out with Nicholas Holbert. There were also about eight other people in the group that night with them at the karaoke bar. One friend in particular, who was never questioned by police, stated that she and others could feel something wicked in the air, as if an evil haze hovered over the Froggy Bottoms bar that night. Kelli seemed to be having a good time with her new friend, but shortly after 1 a.m., Kelli Bordeaux disappeared.

Her case went national as her desperate sister, brother, and mother cried and pleaded with the public to help them find Kelli. By all accounts, Kelli was a beautiful and successful young soldier who went after what she wanted in life. Never giving up, she handled arduous tasks with ease. She had real star quality and was always determined to achieve. Kelli was a tough but decent girl who didn’t like to judge anyone, until she had a reason. Police say she had several reasons to pre-judge Nicholas Holbert, a scrubby guy who was convicted of sexually molesting a child in 2003 and in 2008. At the time that Kelli Bordeaux met Nicholas, he was working part time at the bar and lived outside in a tent.

In the weeks and months that followed Kelli Bordeaux’s disappearance, no one had any idea where she could have been. Several searches were conducted, and information about the disappearance was heavily shared on social media. The police had three suspects: Nicholas Holbert, the last man to see her that night; Mike Bordeaux, her legal husband from whom she was estranged; and Justin Thompson, her new boyfriend. Justin was eventually ruled out, and Mike came public with his story and accused Nicholas Holbert of being the man who had harmed Kelli. It turned out, he was right.

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David Marshburn is the former bounty hunter, turned private detective, who befriended Nicholas. [Image via ’48 Hours’/Facebook.]
Law enforcement officials got a huge break after a bounty hunter and private investigator named David Marshburn found her body buried in a shallow grave under a tent where Nicholas Holbert was living. Marshburn had befriended Holbert for the sole purpose of finding out more information about the case. In a bizarre twist, Holbert led him directly to where the body was buried.

It was then that her family would learn the grizzly details of Kelli Bordeaux’s murder. According to a confession made by Nicholas Holbert, after the abduction, Kelli Bordeaux woke up screaming in the woods, so he beat her over the head with his fists and rocks, until she was dead. Then he buried her, keeping her body hidden for two years. According to the Fay Observer, Holbert tried to apologize to Kelli Bordeaux’s mother, Johnna Henson, but she didn’t want to hear any of it, calling him a ‘demon’ that she wished had never met her daughter. She also told him to go to hell.

“She was a determined, beautiful, young lady who had everything going for her in her life.() You took my baby girl for nothing and you want to say sorry?() Twenty-five months went by to say sorry.I don’t have anything else to say except you can go to hell.”

To get deep inside the case, be sure to tune in tonight to watch CBS’s coverage on 48 Hours at 10/9 central. Before the show, view the video below of killer Nicholas Holbert in court. You can also check out Inquisitr‘s other 48 Hours stories: Hannah Graham and Caryn Kelley.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKlEvQ-v6ZA

[Image via 48 Hours/Facebook]

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