Investigators in Indian River County are hoping that a recent homicide arrest will lead to the clearing of several other cold cases.
The sheriff’s office said Wednesday that Eugene Bain, 65, has been charged with killing Dave Schultz, 72, an Army veteran.
Both men were homeless.
Investigators said Schultz had received permission from the Stone Brothers Funeral Home in Gifford to sleep under its awning.
It was there where detectives said Bain killed Schultz on Jan. 15 and then left the scene with his possessions, which was caught on surveillance video.
The sheriff’s office said Bain, who was born in Vero Beach, confessed to the killing on Tuesday.
“He said, ‘I snapped,'” Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers said. “But we know exactly what happened out there. This guy, he’s a killer. He’s been a killer his entire life. He’s done other murders.”
The sheriff said Schultz’s blood was found under Bain’s fingernails.
Bain has a lengthy criminal history with 13 stints in prison and has previously been convicted of 21 felonies. The sheriff said Bain had only been out of prison 33 days before the killing in January.
Detectives believe Bain could be connected to several unsolved crimes in the county. He is being held at the Indian River County jail without bond.