A Texas woman who helped her fiancé orchestrate the brutal murder of his ex-girlfriend was convicted at trial.
Holly Ann Elkins was indicted in June 2023.
On Wednesday, after seven days of trial and an hour and a half of deliberation, a jury convicted Elkins of conspiracy to stalk, stalking with a dangerous weapon resulting in death, and brandishing a firearm in relation to a violent crime.
Her former fiancé, Andrew Beard, previously pleaded guilty to stalking using a dangerous weapon, resulting in death and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and was sentenced to 43 years in federal prison.
Read: Alabama Man Gets Death After Kidnapping, Brutally Murdering 5-Year-Old Girl He Bought From Her Mom
“Holly Elkins and Andrew Beard constructed a campaign of terror aimed at Alyssa Ann Burkett, the mother of Mr. Beard’s young daughter. After months of harassment and stalking, this campaign ended in the incredibly violent murder of Alyssa at the hands of Mr. Beard with Ms. Elkins’s full participation and knowledge in the planning and ensuing attempted cover-up. This U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the Department of Justice as a whole, are committed to bringing those guilty of such heinous domestic violence to justice. I pray that today’s verdict brings the victim’s family the peace they need to move forward. I know they will never allow Alyssa’s daughter to forget just how much her mother loved her,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton.
According to evidence presented at trial, Elkins helped plot the Oct. 2, 2020, murder of 24-year-old Alyssa Ann Burkett, Beard’s ex-girlfriend, with whom he shared a young daughter.
The government argued that Elkins – who apparently dreamt of a life with Beard and a mother/ child relationship with his daughter – repeatedly attempted to call into question Burkett’s fitness as a parent.
When that failed, Elkins goaded Beard into taking Burkett’s life, labeling the victim a “c**t” and a “dumb b**ch” and a “garbage s**t mom.”
The perpetrators’ relationship began in early April 2020. Later that month, Ms. Elkins spent her first weekend with Beard and his daughter.
Read: Colorado Truck Driver Kills Woman Who Threw Rocks At His Truck While He Slept
By May, the couple were shopping for engagement rings. In June, however, Elkins grew frustrated at Beard’s continuing association with Burkett, writing, “your BM [baby mamma] owns you,” “you continue to put BM first,” “you choose to be idk for lack of a better term submissive to her,” and “I don’t have want or need any bullshit from anyone.”
Elkins began a campaign to harass Burkett in the summer of 2020, shortly after Elkins moved into Beard’s home.
In June, Elkins and Mr. Beard conspired to place a GPS tracker on Burkett’s vehicle. A month later, Elkins placed a call to 911 under the name fake “Amber,” falsely claiming that Burkett’s car was driving erratically on the interstate.
In August 2020, Elkins falsely reported to police that Burkett’s mother had attacked her, creating scratches on her own chest to support the lie. Five days later, Elkins and Beard paid a private investigator to dig up dirt on Burkett and her new boyfriend. (The investigator, who testified at trial, found nothing incriminating.)
In September, Elkins helped Beard plant drugs and a gun in Burkett’s vehicle; Beard then placed a call to police under a fake name, claiming Burkett was selling drugs to black men out of her car.
Then, on Sept. 10, just three weeks before the murder, Elkins accompanied Beard to a sporting goods store, where he purchased a black rain suit in cash. On Sept. 14, two and a half weeks before the murder, Elkins purchased dark makeup from a drugstore.
On Sept. 19, she accompanied Beard to a big box store, where they purchased .410 shotgun shells and a Camillus knife.
One week prior to the murder, Elkins texted Beard and said “I hope you handle it.”
She requested that he be “ride or die” for her and said if he was not, she is not sure the relationship can continue. Shortly after that text exchange, Google records reflect that Andrew Beard began conducting searches for how to remove gunpowder from his hands.
On Oct. 2, 2020, Beard, dressed in a black rain suit and disguised as a Black man, shot Burkett in the head with a shotgun while she sat behind the wheel of her car in her work parking lot. As she staggered out of the car, Beard grabbed her and stabbed and slashed her 44 times. Her coworkers testified at trial that they found Burkett covered in blood and gasping for air in front of her office front door.
She died as her coworkers tried to render aid to her.
During the murder, Elkins stayed at Beard’s home in Rockwall with Ms. Burkett’s daughter. In an attempt to create an alibi, she later claimed Mr. Beard had been home with her during the crime.
At the trial, Ms. Burkett’s new boyfriend testified that he believed Ms. Elkins was the “puppet master” behind the murder.
Elkins now faces up to life in federal prison.
Help support the Tampa Free Press by making any small donation by clicking here.
Android Users, Click To Download The Tampa Free Press App And Never Miss A Story. Follow Us On Facebook and Twitter. Sign up for our free newsletter.