GBI: Man arrested in murder of couple killed 39 years ago inside Camden County church

CAMDEN COUNTY, Ga. — The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said it has made an arrest in the case of a couple killed inside a Camden County church 39 years ago.

Deacon Harold Swain and his wife, Thelma, were shot and killed in 1985 inside the Rising Daughter Baptist Church in Camden County.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Erik Sparre, 61, of Waynesville, Georgia has been charged with two counts of murder and two counts of aggravated assault in the deaths of the couple, the GBI announced Monday.

Sparre was arrested in Waynesville without incident and booked into the Camden County Jail, a GBI news release states.

RELATED: Family upset as GBI exhumes body of Georgia deacon murdered at church in 1985

The GBI searched Sparre’s home in August 2020.

“The search was conducted as part of the ongoing investigation,” a GBI news release said at that time. “Agents continue to work to determine what involvement Erik Sparre had in the Swain’s deaths.”

Another man, Dennis Perry, was arrested and convicted in the couple’s murder in 2003. He was released from prison 20 years later and exonerated when new DNA evidence was linked to Sparre, who was previously named a suspect before Perry’s arrest.

RELATED: Dennis Perry exonerated of all charges after spending 20 years in prison for Georgia double murder

0 of 5

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.