Joshua Hitchcock, left, Jacob Hitchcock, center, and Britney Hitchcock, right, were charged with the murder of Bill Hitchcock, inset, in May 2023. (Carter County Sheriff’s Office; Tennessee Bureau of Investigation)
William “Bill” Hitchcock, Jr., 63, was found dead – shot – near the Watauga River on a Saturday morning in early April in Tennessee. Now the man’s sons and daughter-in-law have been arrested in connection with his untimely death.
Jacob Alexander Hitchcock, 31, and Joshua Elliott Hitchcock, 25, are charged with first-degree murder for the alleged parricide, according to the Carter County Sheriff’s Office in Tennessee. They were arrested after receiving their indictments on Monday.
Britney Diane Hitchcock, 35, wife of Jacob Hitchcock, has also been charged with one count of filing a false report in the investigation into her stepfather’s death, the sheriff’s office said.
“During the investigation, Bill Hitchcock’s sons, Jacob Hitchcock and Joshua Hitchcock, have been named as suspects,” Carter County Sheriff Mike Fraley said in a news release. “On Monday morning, investigators presented their findings to the Carter County Grand Jury, which returned indictments charging the brothers with first-degree murder and an indictment charging Jacob’s wife, Britney Hitchcock, with ‘filing a false report.’
On April 1, Bill Hitchcock’s body was found by a group of fishermen in the driveway of his home on Old Stoney Creek Road in Elizabethton – a small town about 15 minutes east of Johnson City, Tennessee.
According to law enforcement, the fishermen – who were working on the Watauga River at the time – called and asked if anyone needed help, but heard nothing back, so they called the 911.
The gunshot was apparent when officers arrived, the CCSO said. And an autopsy was then performed by staff at the William L. Jenkins Forensic Center at East Tennessee State University.
The investigation is still ongoing.
The victim is remembered as one of those rare landlords loved by the people from whom he collected his rent.
“I didn’t know anyone would have anything against Bill or anything like that,” tenant Hubert Buchanan told Johnson City-based CBS/ABC affiliate WJHL. “He comes here about once a month to collect the rent, and we’ve always gotten along great.”
Buchanan, who owns a car dealership operated on Hitchcock land, was reportedly about to take a motorcycle trip with the dead man when he was shot earlier this year.
“Honestly, it was a bit terrifying because it always seemed like such a safe and quiet little spot,” fellow tenant Whitney Fields told the TV station, saying her children often played by the side of the pool. the river near where the body was discovered. “No one ever comes here and thinks something like this happened 40 feet from my house.”
The murder weapon had not been found by early April, the WJHL reported, citing Sheriff Fraley.
“Our investigators are looking at several potential leads, and we ask anyone who has had contact with Mr. Hitchcock in the past few days to please contact us,” the sheriff said at the time.
In late April, law enforcement was still trying to gather information about the murder – and offered a $1,500 reward for details of the homicide. It is not known if this offer has paid dividends.
THE Tennessee Bureau of Investigation also polled the public for help with the case.
Each defendant had been released on bail on Tuesday.
A lawyer for one of the Hitchcock sons spoke to the WJHL on Monday afternoon.
“He maintains his innocence in this matter, and we look forward to the full facts being revealed and a trial taking place,” Gene Scott, who represents Jacob Hitchcock, told the TV station.
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