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In a recent verdict linked to the 2021 abduction and killing of 29-year-old Rachel Holeman, the last of three suspects was found guilty. Holeman’s body was discovered over a month post her reported missing when deputies stumbled upon it.
The investigation commenced with a missing person’s report taken by Fort Collins Police, indicating Holeman was likely in Colorado in the company of 41-year-old Casey Childers and Shantel Edlund, 23, presumably for drug-related activities. It was determined that Holeman was last spotted in Aurora, leading local police to take over the inquiry.
The investigation unearthed that Holeman was abducted on November 6, 2021, in Aurora near Colfax Avenue and Victor Street by Childers, Edlund, and another accomplice, Leo Van Buskirk, while driving a Chevrolet Malibu sedan. The following day, while attending to a burglary call nearby, Douglas County deputies happened to pass the Malibu and captured it on dashcam footage, which later became pivotal in tracking down the car linked to Holeman’s disappearance.
Over a month later, on December 29, Shantel Edlund’s registered Chevy was stopped by police in Sheridan, Wyoming, resulting in the trio’s arrest on unrelated drug charges. The arrests precipitated further investigation that included drone surveillance along South Parker Road where Holeman’s body was later discovered, disclosed thanks to statements from Edlund and the earlier dashcam footage.
The autopsy reported that Holeman succumbed to a gunshot wound to the head. Edlund has since confessed to conspiracy to commit second-degree murder, receiving an 18-year prison sentence.
Vanbuskirk also admitted to similar charges and awaits sentencing. Childers, identified as the shooter, has been convicted of first-degree murder, among other charges, and received a life sentence without parole.