OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (AP) - Eight years after someone fatally stabbed the billiards player known as “Biloxi Mike,” the coastal Mississippi man’s friends and family have new hope that authorities may solve the cold case.
Mike Surber, a nationally ranked one-pocket billiards player, was slain at his Ocean Springs home on Nov. 10, 2009. Investigators have long suspected a man who played pool with Surber earlier that day at a local bar and grill. But the suspect has never been found.
Now the FBI is taking a lead role in investigating Surber’s death, The Sun Herald reports . His brother, Steve Surber, is also offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
“The FBI’s renewed interest in this cold case has rekindled the hopes of many people in the Gulf Coast community as well as in his friends across the United States,” said Arthur Tripp, a friend of Surber’s.
On the day of the slaying, a surveillance camera at Skeeters Bar & Grill captured video of Surber playing pool with the man suspected of killing him. The man identified himself as Jericho Cooper, and authorities say Surber agreed to show him around after the man said he wanted to visit the casinos in the area.
Police have said Surber had another man with him when he later visited a Biloxi attorney’s office. Authorities believe he was killed shortly after arriving at his home. Friends later found Surber’s body near the front door.
“We couldn’t believe it at first because Mike was so cautious,” he said Monday. “Mike didn’t have a nasty bone in his body. He was just this world class billiards player. We were happy to have him around because he taught us a lot. We never got over it.”
An autopsy showed Surber was killed by stab wounds in his back.
Authorities say Surber was known to carry large amounts of cash. They suspect robbery was the motive for his slaying.
Tripp said he hopes the FBI’s efforts and the reward money turn up enough new information to lead to an arrest.
“It’s just a matter of finding somebody who is willing to talk,” he said.
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Information from: The Sun Herald, http://www.sunherald.com
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