Following his guilty plea, a man from Tennessee who had been responsible for the murder of a college student by shooting him in the chest as he was robbing him was informed of his destiny.
In a post on Facebook, the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office made the announcement that Rainess Holmes III, age 39, had entered a guilty plea to the charges of second-degree murder and additional offences related to the robbery and shooting death of Andrew Rainer, age 22. During the robbery that took place at the household where Rainer was staying as a guest, Holmes was one of the four men who broke into the house and robbed it at gunpoint. According to the district attorney, Holmes was not the person who executed the deadly shot.
Over the course of the early morning hours of October 3, 2021, Rainer was one of five individuals who were there at the residence, as stated in an affidavit that was obtained by the local Fox affiliate WHBQ. It was reported by the police that at approximately 5:40 in the morning, a group of males entered the residence while wearing hoodies and covering their faces. They then requested that everyone keep their heads down so that they would not look at them. According to the District Attorney, the men requested “electronics and other valuables.”
One of the men attempted to coerce Rainer into opening his iPad by using his passcode, but Rainer refused to comply with the request. Rainer was then struck in the chest by the gunshot. Almost immediately after the shot that would ultimately result in his death, Rainer made an attempt to engage in combat with the assailant, who then fired another shot, which struck Rainer’s girlfriend where she was holding her hand.
When all was said and done, the men were successful in escaping with a number of stuff, including iPhones, game consoles, and other electrical devices in addition to the iPad. The dead body of Rainer was discovered at the bottom of a couple of flights of stairs. At the scene, he was cited as having passed away.
In the aftermath of the heist, one of the victims who managed to escape was able to trace the stolen iPad to a hotel, where Holmes was discovered along with additional items that had been stolen.
According to the initial accusations that were brought against Holmes upon his arrest, he was initially charged with first-degree murder. According to the district attorney, he entered a guilty plea to three different counts of aggravated burglary in addition to the allegation of murder in the second degree. It was decided by a judge that he would serve twenty years in prison without the possibility of parole. In addition, he was given a sentence of three years each for the burglary offences, two of which were to be served simultaneously.
According to the District Attorney, Rainer’s family was in accord with the terms of the plea agreement.
