Frederick Donald Hudler, 44, was shot to death on January 24, 2008, at his father Ronald Ron Hudler’s home in Grassy Creek, North Carolina, in what investigators later described as a robbery gone wrong. Frederick, his father Ron, and an employee, John Miller, were all found with fatal gunshot wounds to the head. The Hudler family safe was found open and about $10,000 was missing.

Frederick was a partner in the family’s Christmas tree farm, an avid outdoorsman and a youth sports coach for his sons. The investigation led to the arrest of a former Hudler employee, Frederick Phillip Hammer. Witnesses placed Hammer near the scene the morning of the murders, and stolen items plus the murder weapon were recovered; Hammer pleaded guilty, saying a planned burglary turned into murder. He was sentenced to life without parole. Further inquiry and confessions tied Hammer to additional killings, including that of his nephew.

Did anyone in the Grassy Creek area have contact with the Hudlers or Hammer around January 24, 2008?