Published: December 10, 2008 09:02 am      

HCSD looking into tip in death of HCC player

The case in the shooting death of Holmes Community College football player is still open and the Holmes County Sheriff’s Department is currently checking into a Holmes County Crimestoppers tip, Sheriff Willie March said Monday.

Cortez L. Bowie, 20, of Kosciusko, died of a single gunshot wound on Interstate 55 near Durant Saturday, May 10. A white Ford Explorer pulled up to Bowie’s Mercury Sedan and several gunshots were fired but Bowie was shot only once through the shoulder.

March said he is hopeful that the tip leads his department to an arrest. So far all other leads have run cold.

Evidence has been returned from the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation but has not helped in closing the case, March added.

Bowie, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound running back on the HCC football roster, was the team's second-leading rusher with 235 yards on 71 carries during the 2007 season.

Anyone with information about Bowie's death is asked to call HC CrimeStoppers at (662) 834-0099. A $1,000 award is available to anyone who provides a tip that leads to an arrest.