Court document sheds light on investigation into Topeka Reser’s fatal shooting

TOPEKA (KSNT) – Newly released court documents provide new information about a shooting at Reser’s Fine Foods, Topeka’s third homicide of 2024.

Eddie Holmes, 65, of Topeka, was arrested for the April murder of Reginald Privette, 39, of Topeka. Holmes is awaiting trial on charges of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon by a felon.

According to court documents, on April 11, 2024, officers with the Topeka Police Department responded to Reser’s Fine Foods in East Topeka near I-70 at approximately 4:30 p.m. When they arrived, they found Privette dead on the property. He was shot multiple times. Clothing believed to belong to Holmes was found nearby.

During their investigation, Topeka police reported that no one witnessed the murder. According to the affidavit, officers interviewed people at the scene who reported that Privette and Holmes worked the same job on different shifts, with some hours overlapping. Colleagues told police that they had no knowledge of any specific threats or acts of violence from Holmes.

Police said surveillance video showed Privette working on the trash compactor before she collapsed out of view of the camera. According to the affidavit, within a minute of Privette collapsing, Holmes left the area, got into a vehicle and drove away.

Just before 6 p.m. that same day, a Topeka police officer spotted Holmes’ car in the 500 block of Southwest Buchanan Street. A few days later, on April 13, police arrested Holmes after an officer spotted him walking in southeast Topeka. Police searched Holmes and found a magazine containing ammunition that matched the ammunition found at the crime scene, according to court documents.

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