There were weevils and caterpillars and webworms. Bruce, Carl said, had been talking constantly about getting rid of Bonnie. She never responded. According to Bruce, Bonnie issued an ultimatum shortly thereafter. IE 11 is not supported. The matriarch of the family, Bonnie Harkey aka The Pecan Queen, was murdered. Whether the causewas resentment or desperation, Bruces life began to unspool soon afterward. At the trial, held in Burnet, Bonnies relatives and a handful of San Sabans watched as Bruce sat coolly through the proceedings, convinced there was nothing hed be found guilty of. Her closed casket sat in the sanctuary alongside photos of her with Riley and Miss Kitty. Though the civil side of Bonnies estate was still being hammered out, Carls legal wife, Melissa Pafford, and their two children were set to move into the Harkey house, and it appeared that the orchards would be divided among them and Johns heirs. Bonnie doted on the strawberry-blond little boy, proudly displaying his photos on her mantel. . During the interrogation, Price asked Carl a question. I do not take any medicine that would cause unsafe driving. They ate out all the time, they got into online gaming, explained Wilkerson, who obtained Bruces bank records during his investigation. EDHEC Alumni | LinkedIn They still handpicked all their pecans way up into the eighties and nineties. How many years does it take for a pecan tree to produce pecans? He would say stuff like, Well, they just need to die so that I can have the farm, recalled Kami. Rencontre avec Vincent Huguet (EDHEC Master 1998) co-fondateur et co-CEO de Malt. It also uncovered a dark tale of family, greed, and hate. Investigators focus on one of Bonnies stepsons, Bruce Harkey, as the mastermind behind the plot to kill Bonnie Harkey. But as an ensuing investigation would soon reveal, her death represented the final, sordid unraveling of one of the oldest lineages in Central Texasthe story of a family tree rotted through by the destructive forces of obsession, greed, and hate. Since pecans are pollinated only by the wind, excessive rainfall during spring bloom prevents pollination, as noted above, and poorly pollinated flowers produce small nuts that later abort. She had been hit in the head and then drowned, said McAfee. But when one of the owners couldnt get the blessing of his stepmothers guardian to sell it, authorities said, he decided to kill for it. The he denies any wrongdoing comes as no surprise to investigators. Back in San Saba, meanwhile, Bonnie and Riley had become grandparents again. When I reached out to Bruce for his side of things, he sent me a letter. There arent any Harkeys left.. Dog the Bounty Hunter's Daughter Suffers Devastating Loss Dont tell anybody I had anything to do with it. Bruce gave him $100, with the promise of depositing $350 more in his bank account on Monday, once the deed was done. He stayed for about two hours and cried, recalled Shawn Oliver, Clydenes son. An English cabinetmaker who was captivated by the wrinkly nuts, Risien offered a $5 prize to whoever brought him the finest specimens. How is it, if Im the mastermind, that I established an alibi before I planned the crime? said Bruce. Harkey was arrested and charged with solicitation of murder.. There was drought and sudden freeze and poor soil drainage. Bonnie Harkey owned the walnut farm and had given 94 acres of it to a grandson, Carl Wade Pressley. House District: 103 Senate District: 42 County District: Board Of Commissioners District 5 School Board District: School Board Dist 5. The home that sits amidst a 300-acre pecan farm, alongside actor Tommy Lee Jones' colossal cattle ranch property. Bruce was infuriated. A search team, which included volunteers on ATVs, local firefighters, sheriffs deputies, and a bloodhound named J.J. from the nearby state prison, soon fanned out across the property. The two needed to get back immediately, the sheriff told him: Karen was dead and Bonnie was missing. Theres an epic tale of greed and betrayal in the heart of Texas. But his narcissism did little to endear him to the residents of San Saba. When the caretaker came to the door, Pressley sneaked up behind her, killed her and then kidnapped his grandmother. Pressley was in police custody hours later, confessing to the crimes., He did say he was sorry repeatedly, said Sgt. Who is the biggest pecan producer in the world? Both testified at Bruce Harkeys trial about the murder-for-hire arrangement. Just before daybreak, Carl and Lillian arrived at the San Saba County jail, a compact limestone building that is the oldest continuously operating jail in the U.S. By the time they arrived, it was evening, and Carl told Bonnie that he wanted to show her a real nice fishing hole.. He is the living epitome of evil.. San Saba County As a kid whogrew up playing in the Harkey orchards and often walked the rows with his grandfather O.B., Bruce was familiar with the dangers that could threaten a prized pecan tree. The co-worker and Bruces boss became so alarmed that they alerted the authorities, and a Texas Ranger and an ATF special agent began to record Bruces conversations. The matriarch of the family, Bonnie Harkey aka The Pecan Queen, was murdered. Trending on Oxygen. Search Begins for Missing Bonnie Harkey - Oxygen Official Site San Saba, Texas known to many as the Pecan Capital of the World snuggles up to the banks of the San Saba River. Whether Bonnie was the instigator or not, it is true that those years were unstable for Bruce. But to Bruces dismay, Bonnie effortlessly took on the role of family matriarch. How much money can you make off a pecan tree? She was very good to everybody she knew too good to these people who took advantage of her, said Donna Bush., According to police, one Sunday back in the early spring while Bonnie was at church, her adopted grandson, Carl Pressley, sneaked into her home. He needed an address to satisfy probation requirements, so he sent letter after letter to Bonnie, begging her to let him live on the Harkey farm. An agent for Hollywood movie star Tommy Lee Jones made a tentative unsigned offer of $574,000 for the family-owned orchard back in May 2011, Burnet County District Attorney Sonny McAfee said. But the guardian for Bonnie Harkey, who was still living on the land, turned down the offer, saying Mrs. Harkey had a right to receive interest from the sale of the land, McAfee said. Copyright 2023 The Washington Times, LLC. It was Riley, a man with a long, bushy goatee and square head, who purchased the initial 113.9-acre tract for a farm in Harkeyville in 1885, and it was on this farm that his grandson and eventual heir, Olga Bryan Harkey, was born, in 1898. According to local news station KXAN, One Sunday, while Bonnie was at church, her grandson Carl Pressley broke into her home and waited for his grandmother to return. Carl also had a temper, one so volatile that First Baptist Church barred him from the premises after he showed up at Bible study one Wednesday to demand money from Bonnie. Join Facebook to connect with Bonnie Heakins Harkey and others you may know. Karens eleven-year-old son, who had found her and called 911, stood on the front porch clutching a cordless phone. Stepson Guilty in Texas Pecan Farm Killings | newswest9.com It also uncovered a dark tale of family, greed, and hate. The three got into Carls carhe insisted that Lillian drive because his license had been revokedand headed to the campground in Normangee, where a friend from his motorcycle club had loaned him an RV. She is a white female registered to vote in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. Autopsy reports indicate Bonnie Harkey may have been buried alive. Are candied pecans the same as praline pecans? Queen of the County, Part 4 - NBC News They were blowing through that money. With about $20,000 left, and almost no other income to speak of, Bruce had grown nervous. could tell that Brucewhose given name was Bruce Wayne, after the superherohad the keenest interest in farming. Those close to Bonnie say she was afraid of Bruce and other family members. Investigators focus on one of Bonnie's stepsons, Bruce Harkey, as the mastermind behind the plot to kill Bonnie Harkey. During a good year, the Harkey Pecan Farm outside San Saba, the self-proclaimed Pecan Capital of the World, can produce about $100,000 worth of pecans. With the deal falling apart, authorities said, Bruce Harkey made Pressley an offer: He would pay Pressley and his girlfriend, Lillian King, $500 to make her gone this weekend, with a follow-up payment of $55,000 after Bonnie Harkeys death, one affidavit said. One afternoon, he showed up at Oliver Pecan Company an hour before closing time to ask for a job. Bruce Harkey was convicted Tuesday of capital murder for a 2012 scheme to kill his 85-year-old stepmother, Bonnie Harkey, and her housekeeper, Karen Johnson. Bruce Harkey convicted in murder-for-hire plot over family pecan farm A Tree Is Known By Its Fruit - Texas Monthly Who else is involved in this?, Carl paused for a moment and looked down. Her body was eventually discovered 200 miles east, in a rural area in Leon County. A change of venue brought the high-profile trial to Burnet County. View 11 photos $963,709 3767 sqft. Hed planned to smother Bonnie with a pillow at naptime and then sneak out, but when Karen spotted him as she answered the door, he panicked, tackling her in a bear hug and throwing her to the floor, where he suffocated her beneath his body weight. The animals died from smoke inhalation. He was always saying, Bonnie killed my son, she needs to suffer the way my son did, he told me. Bonnie, with her hazel eyes and red-tinted hair,as well as her knowledge of motherhood, was instantly attractive to Riley. He scowled as the judge read his sentence: life without parole. To comfort her, the sheriff handed her a cup of water, and her lawyer whispered, You are making out better than anyone else in this, by far. She received 45 years. And I wont do that. Karens son retreated to a spare bedroom to play, and Bonnie settled into her maroon recliner in front of the television with her beloved cat, Miss Kitty. The sentencing hearings for Carl and Lillian took place a couple of weeks later at the San Saba County courthouse. She was 85. Prosecutors accused him of engineering the plot after Bonnie Harkeys guardian refused to go along with his plans to sell the Harkey Pecan Farm for $574,000, allegedly to an agent for actor Tommy Lee Jones, who was born in San Saba, about 100 miles northwest of Austin. A DPS helicopter dispatched from Waco made slow circles overhead, scanning the ground with heat-imaging cameras. Because of that, Bonnie did pretty much everything she could to alienate me. He was convinced she had caused Erics death. Proper noun a rione in Rome, Italy, named after the local basilica. Though he appeared physically diminished since his sentencing, his self-regard was intact. Carl started crying at this point, Lillian later recalled. The investigation into the murder of Bonnie Harkey and her caretaker broadens as lawmen look for a motive in the family's history. Betty Ann had provided a long pink dress for Bonnie to be buried in. But those who knew Bonnie best say members of her family just couldnt wait for her to die. Top: The foyer where Karen Johnson was found dead. Bonnie Harkey - Address & Phone Number | Whitepages A devout reader ofBetter Homes and Gardensshe stored all her back issues neatly in the laundry roomBonnie also put her stamp on the house, turning a closet into a bathroom, adding on an extra bedroom, and building a sunporch that could comfortably seat up to 27 people. Top: The door to the Harkey familys historic house. Afterward, they returned home, where Bonnie changed out of her Sunday best and into a teal tracksuit. Information from: Austin American-Statesman, https://www.statesman.com. Bonnie H Harkey from Charlotte, North Carolina | VoterRecords.com For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. He explained their animosity. Bonnie Sharkey - Phone, Address, Public Records | PeopleFinders The grisly crime shocked the rural community of Harkeyville named for the pecan-farming family in San Saba County, about 100 miles northwest of Austin. Bruce and I just kind of confined ourselves upstairs and made it into a little apartment, recalled Jennifer. Though pecan trees can grow with little to no help, they are famously temperamental when it comes to producing high-quality nuts, and Riley made himself an expertlearning how to graft buds onto a seedling, trim back branches, and fertilize with zinc. We support the Constitution, Smaller Govt, and Individual Liberty. Bruce claimed hed been framed in the federal case, but many around town distrusted him, suspecting something was amiss in the Harkey family. If there was a club in town, she belonged to it, said Betty Ann Johnson, a San Saba resident and Bonnies friend of forty years. Who owns the Harkey pecan Farm? - Rattleinnaustin.com McAfee said he thought jurors were swayed by testimony from several witnesses who said Bruce Harkey had told them that he would be out of town one weekend. Some possessions were salvaged . Bonnie Harkey owned the pecan farm and had willed 94 acres of it to a grandson, Carl Wade Pressley. The marker stood in front of a metal storage building and across the way, a donkey grazed in front of a newly built house. Search Begins for Missing Bonnie Harkey. When Bonnie and Karen got home, he texted Lillian, who was to come back and ring the doorbell, serving as a distraction while he tiptoed into Bonnies bedroom. Pressley, 29, has confessed to capital murder and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The Harkeys had long been one of San Sabas most prominent families, and their property sat next door to a stretch of pastureland owned by another notable native son, the actor Tommy Lee Jones. San Saba County

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