Memorial For Kimball Post Office Bombing Unveiled
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A memorial will now mark one of Minnesota's most notorious unsolved crimes.
His family met at the site where a father and grandfather was taken away. Only this time, they came grateful for the acknowledgment of his sacrifice.
Ivend Holen, 60, went to work as assistant postmaster in Kimball in Stearns County on May 13, 1976. A bomb exploded as he sorted mail that morning. He died on his way to the hospital.
A Wisconsin author recently began researching that day, naming Duane Hart as the likely killer.
Hart, who was once a suspect in Jacob Wetterling's kidnapping, once threatened to blow up a deputy's home that lived along the route where the bomb was to be mailed.
Hart bragged about getting away with the bombing, and bomb-making materials were once removed from his home.
Through his work, Rob Ebben was surprised there was not a public memorial for Holen.
"A few newspaper articles into it and phone calls and some things got linked together," Ebben said.
He used the proceeds from his book to make the memorial possible.
"To have a plaque and a dedication means so much," said Jennifer Harriel, Holen's granddaughter.
Postal inspectors are still investigating the case. While they will not publicly name suspects, they did tell Holen's family for the first time that he was not the intended target.
"We're very hopeful that something will come of this," Harriel said.
There is hope that a new generation of the Holen family will eventually know who took Holen from them.
Hart is currently committed to Minnesota's sex offender program for molesting men and young boys. He has denied WCCO's repeated attempts to be interviewed.
A $100,000 reward remains in the Kimball case. The National Law Enforcement Communication Center can be contacted with information at 1-877-876-2455.
