Saturday marks the tenth anniversary of Bedford man Danny Ferguson's unsolved murder.
The 32-year-old was shot and stabbed at his bedsit in Shakespeare Road by a killer or killers who have never faced a court for the crime.
And after a decade of frustration for friends, family and police, the savage slaying still casts a shadow over the town.
Borough councillor Randolph Charles, who has criticised the police for their handling of the case, said he hoped they could still crack it with the help of scientific breakthroughs.
Coun Charles said: "I accept the police have done as much as they can in the circumstances and as much as they can for now. But there are people out there in the community who don't share that feeling and believe the police should be able to do more.
"I hope that advances in forensic science will allow the case to be resolved. The police are now solving crimes which are nine or ten years old, and so there is still that possibility provided the case is kept open and alive."
Mr Ferguson, a driver and doorman, was found dead in his bedsit on February 21, 1994.
He had been shot through the forehead with a .22 calibre weapon and struck two heavy blows to the head with a blade.
Detectives soon established the murder followed a row in his building 24 hours earlier which left an Asian man needing ten stitches to a cut on his head.
Although no-one has ever faced a jury charged with murder, six men were prosecuted for violent disorder – and acquitted.
Claims Bedford detectives had done a sloppy job were not upheld two years ago when continuing disquiet over the case was followed by an external review.
Officers from the Northamptonshire force gave the investigation a clean bill of health and suggested ways of moving it forward.
Bedfordshire Police spokesman Des Lawless said the case remained open under Detective Superintendent Andrew Richer.
Forensic work was still going on to secure a conviction, he added, and officers were heeding the advice of the external review on other forensic techniques to be used.
Coun Charles said: "Danny's case is a complicated one because it is wrapped up with issues of community involvement and cohesion. We all have to live with each other harmoniously, but bubbling away there is still some resentment towards elements in the community and towards the police."