The views and opinions expressed in Cold and Missing are exclusively those of the hosts. All parties mentioned are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Cold and Missing also contains adult themes and languages. Listener discretion is advised. I'm your host, Ali McLaughlin-Sulkowski. And I'm your co-host, Eli Sulkowski. And this is Cold and Missing, where we cover cold cases and missing person cases. Hello and welcome back to Cold and Missing. I'm Ali. And I'm Eli.
Welcome back, everyone. As always, a quick shout out at the top. Again, we've had lots of very kind reviews coming in this week. It feels like every time I go to the Apple podcast page, we have another new review, which is awesome. Thank you so much for doing that. And we appreciate it so much. Well, we are on episode 101 this week. So do you want to just get to it? Yeah, let's go ahead and get into it. And just as a quick content warning at the top, there is a brief mention of death by suicide.
Today, we're going to be talking about the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders. And this takes place May 16, 2003, in Greer, South Carolina. But first, a little bit about the victims. Sylvia Holtzclaw. Sylvia is 56 years old in 2003. Sylvia was a staple of the Greer community. Those that loved her and knew her said she could talk to anyone for at least 30 minutes. She had been a single mother and had two adult sons.
She was a fixture of her church and young folks in the youth group seemed to flock to her. She was always working in the background, making sure things got done, cooking for potlucks and fundraisers or showing up with a surprise meal. She was also trustworthy. All of these characteristics combined made her a perfect bank teller. In fact, she was the lead bank teller. She was able to talk to anyone and had the knowhow to handle delicate situations.
Dr. James Eb Barnes. Dr. Barnes went by his nickname, Eb, E-B. He was 60 years old in 2003 and was a physics professor at the University of South Carolina Upstate. Not only was he a professor, but he was also the director of programs on campus, so he was well known by both staff and students. They described him as an amazing teacher and a fair administrator. During the winter graduation, he was known to wear a Santa Claus hat with his robes. She had quite the collection of Santa Claus hats.
He had been married to his wife, Maggie Barnes, for 38 years. Maggie Barnes was 58 years old in 2003. With Eb, the two of them had raised three children who were all adults. Maggie was an artist. She got into weaving and making tapestries when she found a flax spinning wheel in the attic of her great-grandparents' farmhouse in Alabama. Her and Eb would also host talks on historical clothing and weaving techniques. Many of the tapestries she wove hung in buildings around campus.
She worked for the National Beta Club and loved working with high schoolers and volunteering her time at church. All in all, these three were amazing people. Now before we get into the timeline, I just want to give a quick rundown of the Blue Ridge Savings Bank. This was a new bank in the area. It had only opened in the last 18 months. It was right off of Interstate 85 at the end of a dead-end road, East Frontage Road. The road actually ended at the bank at that time.
The bank was also not a typical brick and mortar building. It was a double-wide trailer that had been turned into a bank. This bank was also not a place where you would do your day-to-day banking. It was more of a bank where you would go for loans or mortgages or to open a CD account. And now, a timeline of events. On Friday, May 16, 2003, Sylvia was only scheduled to work a half-day that Friday.
One of her sons was visiting from out of town and she and both of her sons planned to spend the weekend together. They were celebrating a belated Mother's Day since her son had to work the previous weekend. Sylvia went about her morning. She had to call upper management about the front door being broken. Normally, they would have to buzz people into the bank, but the buzzer had been broken and anyone could just open the door.
As the time ticked closer to Sylvia getting off work, the person who was scheduled to come in and relieve her called in sick. Sylvia had to stay at work. She was the only person working that afternoon. At around 12.50 p.m., Sylvia's son arrived at the bank to bring her lunch since she anticipated getting off and didn't bring one to work. Sylvia's son believes that he was at the bank for around 10 minutes. Him and his mother chatted.
She walked him to the door and then she said, I'll see you after work. Sylvia was alone when he got there and she was alone when he left. After her son left, a regular customer came to the bank to do a wire transfer. He stayed for about 10 minutes and left after the wire transfer was complete. Sometime between 1.28 and 1.36 p.m., a bill trap alarm is triggered at the bank. Initially, newspapers reported that the time of the alarm was 1.36.
However, over the years, that time has been pushed back to around 1.30 and even a few reports of 1.28 more recently. But sometime in those eight minutes, the bill trap alarm was triggered. A bill trap alarm, if you are not aware of what one is, because I really wasn't, is a silent alarm that when money is removed from it, it will trigger. Now police are unsure or haven't said when exactly the Barnes entered the bank. They needed to go to the bank that afternoon to transfer money to their IRA.
Police are unsure if they entered the bank right before the robbery took place or if they walked in while the robbery was happening. After the bill trap alarm is set off, the security company calls the bank. They say that the phone was answered but immediately disconnected again. Several more attempts were made to call the bank, but when those go unanswered, the police are dispatched to the bank. Sylvia, Eb, and Maggie are led down a hallway to a break room.
In the hallway leading to the back room was a device that would have been flashing bill trap, bill trap, bill trap. When police arrived 10 minutes after the alarm is tripped, they believe they are walking into a bank robbery. But there are only two cars in the parking lot, Sylvia's and the Barnes's car. And police say they did not pass any cars going to the bank since it sits on a dead end road. The car would have had to come the way the police were coming in.
When police walk into the bank, they instead find a triple homicide. In the back break room were the bodies of Sylvia, Eb, and Maggie. All three had been shot with a.40 caliber Glock. Police have never confirmed, but a source told a local paper that Sylvia and Maggie were each shot in the head and Eb was shot in the chest. Police begin to secure the crime scene and the FBI are on their way since a big robbery is a federal crime. Cash is missing from the drawer.
Police never confirm exactly how much was taken, but again that source told the local paper that only $2,000 to $3,000 was stolen from the bank. Also missing was the bank security tape. The security camera would have caught the suspect or suspects at some point after they entered the bank. With the missing tape, police are unsure if the robbers stole that before leaving or if Sylvia had forgotten to load the tape that morning. I want to mention here that Sylvia was very, very security cautious.
She didn't like working at the bank alone and she even kept a notebook in her pocket of all the security procedures. In my opinion, it seems very unlikely that Sylvia would have forgotten this step in the morning. Looking at the scene, police and the FBI are baffled as to why this turned into a homicide. Typically bank robberies do not end with murder. Robbers are looking to get the money and get out. They're not there to kill.
According to special agent Carol Allison, quote, we can tell from the crime scene that the people inside were compliant and the murders were not necessary, end quote. Police begin to fan out from the bank to look at other businesses in the area that might have a security camera. And they're in luck. A gas station had a camera pointed toward the road that led to the bank.
During the time frame of the crime, there is a red car that can be seen driving towards the bank and then driving back towards the highway a few minutes later. Due to the angle and camera quality, police are unable to pull a license plate, but they believe it's either an Oldsmobile Alero or a Chevy Impala. A later 90 to early 2000s model also caught on camera is the Barnes's car driving right behind the red car towards the bank.
There was also construction going on in the area and construction workers are questioned by police. They say they also saw a red car leaving the bank just a few minutes before the police show up. They believe there were at least two people in the car. The community is shocked by the triple homicide. Things like this just didn't happen in their town. The bank where the murders took place offers a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest.
Even America's most wanted fly out that same weekend to shoot a segment to air the following week. Over the weekend, the FBI are confident that the case will be solved soon. Tips are pouring in from the public and the FBI is sure they'll be able to pinpoint the suspect. Quote, there are things unique to the crime scene that only the persons in there who committed the crime know. End quote. On Monday, May 19th, just three days after the murder, Sylvia is laid to rest.
Over 900 people come out to pay their respects. A friend speaking at the funeral said, quote, she was Greer. Sylvia was Greer, South Carolina. End quote. The next day, police search the roadside leading up to the bank. When media asks what they're looking for, FBI Special Agent Allison says, quote, anything, any evidence of value that may have been tossed out of the vehicle. End quote. Police are sure they're closing in. Quote, we'd like to give you what it is. We're much closer than farther.
End quote. On Wednesday, May 21st, five days after the murder, Eb and Maggie Barnes are laid to rest. Over 400 people come out to pay their respects. Maggie's brother says, quote, I'm sure their last thoughts were of each other. End quote. On Sunday, May 25th, so it's been nine days since the murder, police are asking for two truck drivers to come forward.
These two trucks were getting off of the interstate at the same time as the red car, one just in front of the car and the other truck pulls up behind the red car. Police never confirm if they're able to find the drivers and question them, but they got a lot of tips on who these truck drivers could be. So they're hoping the truck drivers might have noticed something about the passengers inside.
Police acknowledge that most bank robberies are solved in a few days, but they don't have any witnesses to the actual bank robbery with Sylvia, Eb and Maggie dead. They keep running into dead ends with lead after lead. On June 12th, 2003, so it's approaching one month since the murders, the FBI released a profile to the public. They say the culprit likely took work off unexpectedly around the time of the murders.
Police say to watch for nervous behavior, changes in drinking or smoking, possibly doing more or stopping those things altogether. Police also say that there could be cuts and scrapes to the face and arms that are unexplained. Police say that the suspect could be trying to grow a beard or maybe have gotten a new haircut after the murders. Perhaps their faith has changed, either starting to go to church or stopping.
Maybe they stopped driving their car and have gotten access to a new one recently. However, after this, there are few updates from the police. The murders stay in the news with the community holding vigils and prayer services, but no new information is released. In April of 2004, just a month before the one-year anniversary, the Blue Ridge Savings Bank is robbed again. Well, attempted robbery at least.
The bank employee was walking into the bank when a man pulled up in a green Chevrolet, pointed a gun and ordered the man stop at the front door. The employee ran for it and the would-be robber drove off. I wasn't able to find an update on if this particular robbery was solved or attempted robbery.
Now, from this point forward, basically at the one-year mark, there are small pieces of information that come out through the media over the years, but most of those details I've already mentioned in the timeline. So I thought I would just take a few minutes here to talk about suspects that have emerged in the case. The first two strong suspects in the case were arrested just days after the murders. However, police ultimately let them go. They're never even named publicly.
Another suspect was brought in for questioning after he was caught robbing another bank. He confesses to robbing banks for over six years. His particular MO was to strike on Friday afternoon, the same time the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders happened. However, he has a rock-solid alibi and he is also eliminated. Another suspect is Todd Kohlhepp. He is a convicted serial killer and he's tied to this case because he shot four people dead inside of a shop called Superbike Motorsports.
Kohlhepp has denied being involved in the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders and police have never been able to tie him to Greer during May of 2003. So that brings me to the final two suspects. One is a man named Emerson Wright. He had stolen a red Oldsmobile Alero from an airport rental car agency at the beginning of May 2003, just weeks before the murder. After the murder, when he is driving the stolen car, he gets pulled over, but he runs from the cops on foot and escapes in a wooded area.
About a year and a half later, he'll get pulled over by police again. This time, he'll step out of the car and take his own life with a.40 caliber gun, the same type of weapon used in the murders. Police have eliminated his gun as being the murder weapon. But because he died, police have never been able to question him fully about the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders. And the final suspect or person of interest came to our attention in May of 2013, 10 years after the murder.
The FBI announced that they're trying to track down a man that was seen at the bank just prior to the robbery. He would have been 50 to 53 years of age in 2003, between 5'6 and 5'8 and around 230 pounds. He's white with blonde hair and touches of gray. Police say he was a very clean cut. This suspect that the FBI are looking for is who they have on their poster for this case. So this is still somebody that they appear to be actively looking for.
But that is really all we know about the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders. So if you know anything about the murder of Sylvia Haltzclaw, Ed Barnes, and Maggie Barnes in May of 2003, please call the FBI office in Greenville at 803-551-4200 or the Greer Police Department at 864-848-2151. So that is the case of the Blue Ridge Savings Bank murders. I think with cold cases like these, it's very easy to lump three people together.
At least to me, it seems like the story can be less personal in that way. And I really appreciate how personal you make it. It was delightful to learn about who each of these people were, Sylvia, Ed, and Maggie, equally as heartbreaking because they are no longer with us. And in this case, it felt very important to highlight the lives that they lived before they were taken. Thank you. That's something I'm very conscious of.
And when we first started the podcast, we wanted it to be very centered on the victims in these crimes or the person missing. So it's always very intentional, all those details I give about the person and the life they lived. Yeah. And with that, I really just wanted to say that I love the name, Eb. In my mind, when you said it, I immediately countered with Eb and Flo. And that's just kind of how I saw him.
And when you described him, he seemed like that kind of guy that just had a good time in life and enjoyed himself, enjoyed his marriage and his kids. And I don't know, again, he was delightful to learn about. Eb and Maggie really led a very enriching and beautiful life together. Had been married for so long and had raised three children together. And then they did this historical clothing thing together. The pictures of them are so sweet.
And I can just imagine what their lecture was like on historical clothing or the talk they gave. I'd love to listen to that or see that. I know I haven't seen any pictures of Maggie's art, but she just sounded awesome, like a creative artistic spirit that I really enjoyed hearing about. Weaving Tapestry seems like a very difficult artistic adventure. So it's so impressive to me. And Sylvia, of course, was the greer community, as her friend said during her funeral.
She really was a figure around town and knew everybody. Everybody knew her. Everybody loved her. Like she was, it felt like the matriarch of Greer. She was everybody's mom. And you hit the nail on the head, matriarch of the community. I love that she was well known and well respected. Absolutely. And she was in this leadership position at the bank. I think it's incredible. I think she was incredible.
With that being said, though, and focusing more on what happened during the robbery, it still baffles my mind that people are allowed to close any establishment, any store, restaurant, bank, what have you, alone. I know I said closing, but I just mean as far as operations go, at least for me, there should always be two people there in a business establishment. I wholeheartedly agree with that.
And it's something that I talk about a lot, actually, with people whenever I see that they're working alone. I never think anyone should be working alone, not only for safety reasons, but also what if somebody trips and hits their head or chokes on something? It's just safety. And it's just like, you should always have two people working in your establishment. Exactly. I couldn't agree more. This is more just a comment. I think it's wild that the crime happening and the cops showing up.
It's such a small amount of time. The police response time was 10 minutes from the time the alarm was triggered to when they roll up to the bank. The robbers got in, got out within 10 minutes, essentially, or just a little under since the cops didn't run into them coming up that road.
A question that I did write down, and I know that it's one that really no one can answer at this time, but my question is, is it possible that the person came and left on foot and the search for the car is maybe obsolete? That is something that I have also considered. Did the person maybe approach on foot and leave on foot? The bank, as I mentioned, it does sit right on an interstate. You can see it from the interstate.
There is like open land around it, but I don't think that it's impossible that someone came on foot and got away on foot. Something that I wrote down about Sylvia was that Sylvia didn't forget the step. A step like that is automatic in opening duties or when you're running the shift. I wholeheartedly believe that she remembered to put that tape in and it was taken by the person who ended her life. I think that suggests something in and of itself as a clue. I can talk myself in circles on it.
On the one hand, it seems like you would have to kind of have knowledge of where the tape is kept in order to get it as quickly as the robbers did getting in and getting out. But then on the other hand, the bank was just a double wide trailer. There's really not that many places to go and you could search the place pretty quickly.
I go back and forward on if it was taken because they knew and it was planned or if it was just spur of the moment, they weren't expecting to do a murder and now they have to take this tape. The small amount, not that $2,000 to $3,000 is a small amount of money, but I think for a robbery, it's not much. I guess for me, in my mind, I think if someone is committing a robbery at a bank, you're trying to take upwards of $10,000.
I agree with you that for a bank robbery, $2,000 to $3,000 seems very minimal and it's not that you can ever put a price on a human life, but it's like you're doing all of this for $2,000 to $3,000. Come on. People often when they are making large mistakes in their life, you will find that that mistake is tied to money. People will make the most stupid and most vicious decisions surrounding money.
Moving forward for this case, I really hope that there's more evidence that the police and FBI have, whether that be DNA, whether that be other security footage that they're just not releasing to the public. I hope that this case gets solved because it's solvable. It's all right there in those 10 minutes, essentially. All the answers are right there and it's so frustrating that they're just out of reach for so many people, so many families affected by this, two major families.
But then you think about all of the cousins, the uncles, the aunts, the friends, the families, community devastated by this senseless act. So I really hope that the families get the answers they're looking for, they get justice, and the community gets justice. They get to know that this person is no longer walking around with them.
Yeah. You know, from the sounds of that community, as much sadness and sorrow and unfairness that they have experienced, because the community is so big and beautiful and connected, the healing can be there as well, and they deserve it. The loved ones, the friends, the family, the community. Absolutely. And again, if you know anything about the Blue Ridge Saving Bank murders, please call the FBI office in Greenville at 803-551-4200 or the Greer Police Department at 864-848-2151.
And of course, we will have pictures of Sylvia, Eb, and Maggie up on our Instagram, as well as pictures from the surveillance footage of that red car and the suspect sketch, the most recent one from 2013 that the FBI are actively seeking. This is the man that was seen right before the robberies took place at the bank. If you're not following us on Instagram where we're posting those pictures, you can find us at Cold and Missing. We'll pop right up.
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So you're doing the work too, just by supporting the pod. So thank you so much if you do it today or if you've already done it. And you can also review us on our website, www.coldandmissing.com, where we also have transcripts of all of our episodes. So if you or someone you love is hard of hearing, you can follow along there. That is all I have for this week, though. Thank you so much for listening to Cold and Missing. I'm your host, Allie. And I'm your co-host, Eli.
Have a good week and stay safe, y'all. Stay safe, y'all.