Latest / Murder Files Unsealed / Kentucky Child Helped Solve Chilling Triple Murder in Family-Owned Pawn Shop

Transcript

Kentucky Child Helped Solve Chilling Triple Murder in Family-Owned Pawn Shop · Murder Files Unsealed

• 0:00
  The Hockinsmith family, consisting of parents Michael and Angela Angie Hockinsmith, operated the
• 0:06
  ABC Gold, Games and More pawn shop in Danville, Kentucky. They homeschooled
• 0:12
  their nine year old son Andrew, and cared for their infant daughter, Naomi,
• 0:17
  who often accompanied them to the shop. Michael, a former youth pastor,
• 0:22
  and Angie, an active member of the singing ministry, had moved to
• 0:26
  Danville in twenty thirteen after getting married nearly a decade earlier. Michael's mother,
• 0:33
  Barbara Hockinsmith, mentioned that he dedicated himself wholeheartedly to his family, church and
• 0:40
  work. Despite his part time role at the church, Michael became a partner
• 0:45
  at the pawn shop owned by Steve Divine. However, tragedy struck on September
• 0:51
  twenty, twenty thirteen, when a man entered the shop and committed a chilling
• 0:56
  triple homicide as witnessed by young Andrew Andrew Hockinsmith witnesses a triple murder. Andrew
• 1:03
  was terrified as he recounted the tragic events to final moments. He and his
• 1:08
  mother sought refuge in a corner with baby Naomi listening to the piercing sounds of
• 1:15
  the unknown assailant's weapon. The assailant fatally shot Michael Hockinsmith and Dan Smith.
• 1:22
  Andie then directed Andrew to take his sister to safety at the back of the
• 1:25
  store, just before she was also killed. Andrew later found his parents lying
• 1:30
  in a pool of blood. He promptly dialed nine one one, As captured
• 1:34
  on audio tape and shared by final moments, the young boy informed the dispatches
• 1:42
  about the robbery and the fatal shooting of his parents, urging them to come
• 1:46
  quickly as he feared for his safety. In the background, baby Naomi's innocent
• 1:52
  coups could be heard. The Danville Police Department, with detectives A. J.
• 1:57
  Mullins, Lisa Dollins and Robert Vladd, worked tirelessly to solve the case.
• 2:02
  They came very quickly, and I had walked to the door with phone
• 2:06
  in hand and sister in the other, said Andrew, and walking by these
• 2:10
  dead bodies of people that I loved. Detective Mullins transported the children to the
• 2:15
  police station and informed Michael's mother. Meanwhile, the detectives began processing the crime
• 2:22
  scene, where they discovered all three adults had been shot to death. Drag
• 2:28
  marks indicated that Dan Smith had been moved from one location to another. According
• 2:35
  to Detective Lad, the perpetrator used a point two two caliber gun to shoot
• 2:39
  Michael eight times in the legs, chest, and head, Angie Hockinsmith three
• 2:45
  times in the head, and Dan Smith five times in the head. Fortunately,
• 2:51
  Andrew provided a detailed description of the suspect, describing him as a heavy
• 2:55
  set man wearing sunglasses and a cap with a fake beard. He also mentioned
• 3:00
  that the suspect wore black latex gloves and camouflaged apparel. Andrew also provided a
• 3:07
  clear description of the weapon, helping detectives deduce that the assailant used a gun
• 3:13
  silencer. Investigators examined possible motives. Investigators initially suspected a deadly robbery, but
• 3:21
  upon discovering no money missing from the register, they shifted their focus. The
• 3:25
  presence of a silencer raised the question of a professional hit man being responsible.
• 3:32
  Authorities reached out to family members, including Dan Smith's daughters, Crystal Keeps and
• 3:38
  Stephanie Smith, who spoke highly of their father as a kind hearted individual who
• 3:44
  enjoyed helping others. Relatives expressed confusion over who could have targeted the victims,
• 3:51
  emphasizing the devastating loss of a child. A witness reported seeing a man leaving
• 3:57
  ABC Gold Games, and more shortly after the incident, fleeing to an alleyway,
• 4:02
  where he entered a silver mini van and drove away. Despite the lack
• 4:06
  of security, cameras at the pawn shop, footage from neighboring businesses aided in
• 4:12
  tracking the suspect's vehicle. Detectives analyzing surveillance footage speculated that the perpetrator had surveiled
• 4:19
  the pawn shop and its occupants before carrying out the attack. A phone call
• 4:26
  from Michigan shifts the investigation. Four days later, a Michigan pastor contacted Kentucky
• 4:31
  authorities alleging that a pastor from Danville had made suspicious comments about Michael and Angie
• 4:39
  Hockinsmith. The Michigan pastor claimed that Kenneth Allan Keith had a sudden change in
• 4:45
  behavior, becoming angry due to being owed a significant amount of money. Keith,
• 4:50
  another owner of a pawn shop located in Pulaski County near Boyle County's Danville,
• 4:56
  was also a pastor at a church in Somerset. Nearly fifty miles south
• 5:00
  of Danville. Detective Dollins mentioned that preaching and pawnshops appeared to be a common
• 5:06
  factor among those involved in the case. However, it was soon discovered that
• 5:12
  Keith had a different preaching style compared to the Hockinsmiths. Further investigation into Keith
• 5:18
  revealed a sermon on YouTube where he was seen on the pulpit with a rifle
• 5:24
  discussing his past actions. This discovery led detectives to consider Keith as a promising
• 5:30
  lead in the case. Financial records showed that Keith and Steve Divine, the
• 5:35
  owner of ABC Gold Games and More, had a previous business partnership that ended
• 5:42
  with Keith owing money to Divine, who subsequently filed a lawsuit. Police