Mountain town rocked after country singer's mom murdered in random home invasion
A sheriff in Virginia's historic Shenandoah Valley area said the fatal home invasion stabbing of a country music singer's mother is unlike "anything" he's ever seen.
Authorities said an intruder killed 62-year-old Holly Hatcher, a former teacher, around midnight on Aug. 3 at their home in Rockingham County. Michael Hatcher, 65, shot and killed the intruder, who was identified by officials as 41-year-old Kevin Moses Walker.
The couple's son, 31-year-old Spencer Hatcher, an up-and-coming country singer, announced he's canceling many of his upcoming shows after his mother was killed.
Walker has no known criminal history, officials added, noting he was involved in a car crash two days prior to the home invasion. Rockingham County Sheriff Bryan Hutcheson said in a video posted to Facebook that he's never seen anything like this.
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"Speaking personally, this is 31 years in law enforcement for me. I have never seen anything like this in my entire career, just the way the unusual, unique and just crazy situation that this turned out to be," Hutcheson said.
The sheriff said that the home invasion was random and "highly unusual," adding that Walker brought a "large knife" into the home.
According to investigators, Walker was renting a campsite at Endless Caverns two days prior to the attack and was seen on surveillance video at a local Walmart buying a knife and sleeping bag.
Hutcheson said Walker was killed in the driveway when Michael Hatcher grabbed a loaded pistol from his car and fired one shot.
In a video posted by the sheriff's office, Michael Hatcher thanked the community for supporting his family.
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"I've heard a lot of you say that there are no words to explain this, and there aren't — and there's going to be questions that will never be answered," Michael Hatcher said. "But all I can tell you is: We've cried. We've hurt. We've hugged. And we have found more love than we have ever known has existed between us and between you. Thank you."
The Rockingham County Public Schools, where Holly Hatcher taught, said in a statement that she worked there for 19 years and will be remembered as a "beloved" colleague.
Country music executive Benny Brown likened Spencer Hatcher to a "young George Strait."
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"Spencer and his brother Connor have already become like family to us, and we couldn’t be happier to officially welcome Spencer to Stone Country Records. When Spencer first came onto my radar, his style and sky-high potential reminded me of a young George Strait, so I knew we had to sign him. He feels like the right artist arriving at just the right time in country music," Brown said.
Spencer Hatcher said in an Instagram post that his planned performances at the VOA Country Music Fest in Ohio and the Rockingham County Fair in Harrisonburg, Virginia, are canceled.
"I hope to make these dates up to my fans in the future," Spencer Hatcher wrote. "I appreciated everyone that has lent their support to me and my loved ones."