A White female named Nicole Lynn Hodges, aged 34, was tragically found deceased alongside another victim, 34-year-old Mason McClure, on the night of February 21, 2021. Authorities were called to a residence in the small community of Avilla, Missouri, where they discovered both individuals had suffered fatal injuries. Autopsies later confirmed that Hodges and McClure had died from multiple gunshot wounds.
The discovery initiated an immediate homicide investigation by the Jasper County Sheriff's Office to determine the timeline of events leading up to the double murder.
Detectives quickly zeroed in on a suspect, 26-year-old Kevin Clay Johnson of Reeds, Missouri. Investigation revealed that Johnson had been at the Avilla home days prior, allegedly leaving his girlfriend, Keegan Miles in the company of Hodges and McClure on the evening of February 19. According to court documents and Johnson’s eventual confession, he returned to the residence the following morning. He claimed that after a confrontation in which he believed the pair had harmed his girlfriend, he shot both victims.
The case was further complicated by the discovery of Johnson's girlfriend, whose body was found in a ditch in neighboring Newton County around the same time. Authorities connected the violent spree, indicating Johnson was responsible for the deaths of all three individuals. Following his arrest, Johnson was charged with the murders of Hodges and McClure. In legal proceedings that concluded in late 2022, he entered a guilty plea to two counts of second-degree murder, a deal that led to the dismissal of armed criminal action charges. He was subsequently sentenced to 28 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections, with a requirement to serve 85 percent of the term before being eligible for parole.
