In the late spring of 2017, a quiet evening in East Knox County, Tennessee, was shattered by an act of violence that claimed the life of 57-year-old Jack McFall. On May 30th, McFall was discovered in the parking lot of the Red Roof Inn & Suites located near Strawberry Plains Pike, having been shot multiple times while inside his blue Chrysler minivan.
The subsequent investigation into his death would uncover a story of a fatal meeting that ended in robbery and murder.
Investigators quickly focused on a suspect, Alonzo Hoskins, a 31-year-old man from Michigan. Security camera footage from the hotel played a crucial role in the case, capturing the moments leading up to the tragedy. The video showed Hoskins getting into the passenger side of McFall's van. A short time later, he was recorded exiting the vehicle and then firing a gun into it before fleeing the scene. Adding to the evidence, Hoskins's fingerprints were discovered inside McFall's van. The keys to the victim's vehicle were also missing, pointing to a robbery motive.
Following his arrest, Alonzo Hoskins was charged with the murder of Jack McFall. In June 2019, a Knox County jury found him guilty of felony first-degree murder and especially aggravated robbery. For his crimes, Hoskins was sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 20 years, with no possibility of parole. The conviction brought a measure of justice to the family and friends of Jack McFall, who remembered him as a kind and friendly man.
