On September 17, 2023, the quiet life of 84-year-old William Eakin, a White male, came to a tragic end in his Jerome, Idaho home. Concern grew when a friend, unable to contact him, noticed his red Toyota Rav4 was missing and requested a welfare check. Responding deputies from the Jerome County Sheriff's Office gained entry to his residence at 91 Bob Barton Road and made a grim discovery. Eakin was found deceased in his bed, the victim of a single gunshot wound behind his right ear.
He was still wearing his CPAP machine, which records indicated had last been used in the early morning hours of September 16.
The investigation quickly turned into a homicide case as details emerged. A neighbor reported a strange encounter, having seen a man and a woman behind Eakin's house. When confronted, the woman claimed to be Eakin's granddaughter, falsely stating that he was in a care facility in Twin Falls. The strangeness escalated when, around 4 p.m. on the day his body was discovered, someone called the police claiming to be William Eakin. The caller questioned why officers were at his home and stated he was with his granddaughter in Twin Falls, a claim authorities already knew to be impossible. Later that evening, Eakin's missing Toyota was found abandoned on the side of a road in Jerome County after a woman requested a tow for the vehicle.
The investigation led to the identification and arrest of two suspects: Kevin N. Kuinzle and Erika N. Brock. Evidence connected them to the scene, including Brock being identified by a witness on the victim's property. After being contacted by police, Brock provided information about the murder. She stated that Kuinzle had picked her up in Eakin's stolen car and driven to the home. According to Brock, Kuinzle told her the elderly man had committed suicide and instructed her to pretend to be Eakin's granddaughter if they encountered anyone. She also revealed a chilling phone call from Kuinzle the day before the murder, in which he allegedly said that if everything went right, they would be "set for life."
Kevin N. Kuinzle was apprehended after a police chase. At the time of his arrest, authorities found Eakin's checkbook and a fuel card in his possession. Kuinzle was subsequently charged with a litany of serious crimes, including first-degree murder, robbery, kidnapping, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Erika N. Brock faced charges of accessory to murder and grand theft for her involvement. The case took another turn when Kuinzle, while awaiting trial, escaped from a minimum-security work camp but was later recaptured by law enforcement.
