BURKE COUNTY, N.C. — After a Hollywood murder mystery sat unsolved for 34 years, a man was arrested Thursday and spoke to a reporter, WSOC reports.
Barry Crane was a well-known television director and producer in his time, working on acclaimed productions such as “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “Mission: Impossible” and “Wonder Woman.”
Then, in July of 1985, investigators found his body, naked, wrapped in sheets in his garage. He had been beaten and choked to death.
The only things taken? His wallet and a Cadillac, WSOC reports.
Now, 34 years later and after finally hitting a match on the fourth run of the prints off the car, the new evidence drew investigators to a repair shop in Burke County.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation waited, collecting DNA samples from cigarette butts and thrown away cups, until the FBI and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation arrested Ed Hiatt.
As police brought him to jail, WSOC reporter Dave Faherty caught a few words with the suspect who said he was taken by surprise when investigators showed up.
Hiatt said he doesn’t remember the alleged killing — he would have been 18 at the time — but he also didn’t rule out the possibility that he was responsible.
“Could you have done this murder in 1985?” Faherty asked.
“Anything is possible back then, because I was big into drugs,” Hiatt said.
The motive remains a mystery.