New DNA Evidence Leads to Arrest in 1985 Georgia Church Murders

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has charged Erik Sparre with the 1985 murders of Harold and Thelma Swain at a church in South Georgia, after Dennis Perry, the original suspect, was exonerated in 2021. Perry's conviction was overturned following an investigation that revealed withheld evidence and a false alibi for Sparre, who is now linked to the crime scene through DNA evidence. The case, which had remained unresolved for decades, was revisited due to efforts by the Georgia Innocence Project and investigative journalism.