Holly Ann Elkins, the Rowlett woman who helped her ex-fiancé kill his ex-girlfriend, has been found guilty by a jury and could face life in prison.
Elkins helped her then-fiancé, Andrew Charles Beard, shoot and kill her ex-girlfriend in 2020.
According to evidence presented at trial, Elkins helped plan the Oct. 2, 2020, murder of Beard’s ex-girlfriend, 24-year-old Alyssa Ann Burkett, with whom he had a young daughter.
On April 17, after a seven-day trial and an hour and a half of deliberations, the jury found charges of conspiracy to commit stalking in connection with a crime of violence, stalking with a dangerous weapon resulting in death, and brandishing a firearm. convicted her of the crime.
Beard was previously sentenced to 43 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to stalking with a dangerous weapon resulting in death and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
In a statement, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton called this a “heinous domestic violence incident.”
“Holly Elkins and Andrew Beard waged a campaign of terror targeting Alyssa Ann Burkett, the mother of Mr. Beard’s young daughter,” Simonton said, adding, “They followed months of harassment and stalking. After the act, this campaign ended with Alissa’s incredibly violent murder at the hospital.” With Mr. Beard’s cooperation, Ms. Elkins fully participated in and gained knowledge of the planning and subsequent cover-up. ”
“I pray that today’s sentence brings the victim’s family the peace they need to move forward. I hope that Alyssa’s family will never be allowed to forget how much their daughter was loved by her mother. “I know,” Simonton said.
The government alleged that Elkins questioned Burkett’s suitability as a parent, called Beard a “shithole,” “a motherfucker” and “a piece of trash,” and encouraged her to kill Burkett. .
Elkins and Beard began dating in April 2020. By May, the two had gone shopping for engagement rings, but Elkins was unhappy with Beard continuing to date Burkett and launched a campaign to harass Burkett in the summer of 2020, shortly after Elkins moved in with Beard. It started.
They included placing a GPS tracking device on Burkett’s car, making a false 911 call claiming that Burkett’s car was driving erratically on the interstate, and attempting to substantiate the lie. The charges included making a false report to police that her mother had assaulted her, giving her a wound to the chest. Elkins and Beard also hired a private investigator to dig up dirt on Burkett and her new boyfriend. Elkins helped Beard put drugs and guns in Burkett’s car and called police, claiming Burkett was selling drugs to black men from her car.
They bought black clothing, cosmetics, shotgun cartridges, and knives. A week before the murder, Elkins texted Beard, saying, “I hope you’ll deal with it.” She demanded a “ride or die” from him, and if he didn’t, she said, she didn’t know if they could continue the relationship. Shortly after this text exchange, Google records say Beard began searching for a way to remove gunpowder from his hands.
On October 2, 2020, Mr. Beard, wearing a black rain suit and disguised as a black man, shot Mr. Burkett in the head with a shotgun as he sat behind the wheel of his car in the parking lot of his workplace. As her girlfriend stumbled out of her car, the man grabbed her and stabbed and slashed her 44 times. Her co-workers found her gasping for breath on the doorstep of her office, covered in blood. She died as they tried to save her.
Burkett’s new boyfriend testified at trial that he believed Elkins was the “puppet master” behind the murders.
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Dallas Field Office, the Carrollton Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Dallas Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gary Tromblay, Rick Calvert, and Ryan Niedermare are prosecuting the case. U.S. District Judge Jane Boyle presided over the trial.
