A 93-year-old man who allegedly confessed to shooting his 86-year-old wife dead in California says that the killing was “necessary” because of her health conditions.
Richard Hocking had been planning the shooting for “about a month” and rang police to turn himself in immediately after, according to court documents.
The nonagenarian was booked into custody for homicide with a gun-related enhancement, but his Wednesday arraignment was postponed by a judge earlier this week.
According to court documents obtained by ABC7, Hocking claimed his wife, Patty, had been “struggling with health issues and killing her was ‘necessary.’
“He had been planning this for about a month and left his residence with Victim knowing that he was going to kill her.”
The couple had been married for 60 years before the tragic incident.
Several neighbors told ABC7 that Hocking himself also has serious health concerns, including the lung condition COPD and that his wife had diabetes and other health issues.
"One year or plus, she was almost in chair. Not able to do chores or anything. He was taking care of her completely," a neighbor, who did not wish to be identified, told the outlet.
"It's very shocking. It's very heartbreaking," they added. "I don't believe it. It's very, very hard for me to believe."
Hocking is being held without bail and is scheduled to return to be arraigned on Tuesday.
Officers from the Fremont Police Department were dispatched to the scene at approximately 12:22 a.m. on January 3 following reports of a shooting.
When they arrived on the scene, they detained Hocking, who was found by his own car. Inside the car, the officers found the body of a woman, later identified as his wife.
The woman, identified as Hocking’s wife, was pronounced dead at the scene and a gun was recovered from inside the vehicle.
Hocking was placed into custody and transported back to the Fremont Police Department, where he provided a statement to the police detailing his motive for the crime, investigators say.
Further details of his motive have not been shared, and investigations into the incident remain ongoing, police said.
