The murderer or murderers of a Brookhaven convenience storeowner remain at large, but Lincoln County Sheriff’s Departmentofficials say they are closing in.

“We have had some postive developments in that case, but I’m notat liberty to say any more,” said Sheriff Wiley Calcote.

John Deere, 55, was murdered Jan. 16 between 4:30 and 4:45 a.m.shortly after he arrived a the Airport Pik & Pak conveniencestore he owned and operated with his wife, Shirley, on Old Highway51.

Deere’s body was found in the store parking lot after thesheriff’s department received a 911 call around 5 a.m. The storeowner had been shot three times.

The last piece of evidence released by the sheriff’s departmenttwo days after the murder was the recovery of a half-burned cashbox from the store.

The store’s cash box was recovered on Jan. 18 near the DixieSprings exit off Interstate 55 North. It had been burned and itappeared checks from the box had been used to start the fire.

The cash box had been sent to the crime lab for fingerprintingafter its recovery, but the sheriff’s department has declinedfurther comment on those results.

Anyone with information about the crime is urged to contactCrime Stoppers at 823-0150 or the sheriff’s department at833-5231.