Hunt for Jr. Kelly’s killer heats up as reward is raised to $5,000

By Carrie A. Mizell

Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office and Gilchrist County Crime Stoppers have raised a reward to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons involved in the murder of Bell farmer Junior Kelly.
According to Dennis Smith, a board member of Heart of Florida Crime Stoppers, the reward was raised from $2,500 to $5,000 because everyone involved wants to work aggressively to find the person or persons who killed Kelly. The 78-year-old was found dead at his home north of Bell on Nov. 19, 2008. Prior to his death, Kelly had been a victim of numerous home invasions and feared for his own safety.
In a foreboding letter written to the editor of the Gilchrist County Journal and published on July 24, 2008, Kelly stated, “Although the loss of money and stolen items is troubling, the real and most damaging loss is my peace of mind. At 78, I should not have to deal with waking up at night, lying in my bed, and listening for an intruder. I should not have to wonder each morning what has been stolen during the night … It is obvious that the criminals are far more persistent than the law enforcement officers in this county.”
As of Tuesday morning, Lt. David Aderholt, investigations commander at the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office, would only say that the homicide investigation is still ongoing.
According to Smith, board members of Heart of Florida Crime Stoppers, which oversees Gilchrist County Crime Stoppers and Alachua County Crime Stoppers, decided to wait several months to see how the investigation matured before deciding to raise the reward.
“The community has to get involved for this case to be solved,” Smith said.
Anyone with information on the murder of Junior Kelly is asked to call, (352) 463-STOP (7867). All callers will remain anonymous.