Ferndale Man Killed Near Fort Campbell KY
(Compiled, Feb. 5, 2017)
Oak Grove, KY – According to ABC News, Ferndale native Christopher Ryan Hoch, 28, was killed along with Pricilla Ann East, 32, in a home in Oak Grove, Kentucky near Fort Campell on Thursday night. Both were soldiers at Fort Campbell. Police say Jeremy Demer, the woman’s estranged husband,35, of Clarksville, Tennessee forced his way into the home and fatally shot Hoch and East.
According to the report both East and Hoch were specialists and Hoch was promoted posthumously to the rank of sergeant. Hoch joined the Army in 2013 and arrived in Fort Campbell later that year. There was a history of threats to Demer by her husband. A teenage boy was injured in a scuffle with the shooter. Demer was taken into police custody.
UPDATE: Mark Hoch, the father of the Ferndale victim, shared more details. Though his account is second-hand and should not be taken as official, it does give some insight into the situation that led to his son’s death. “Chris and his brothers all grew up in Ferndale. The story that is being reported is extremely vague. In a nutshell, Spc East was separated from her husband. He had been stalking and threatening her for over a year. She had obtained a Personal Protection Order against him after he had choked her to unconsciousness and threatened to put a bullet in her head. When the order came up for renewal, the Judge inexplicably dismissed the case. He continued to stalk her and threaten her,” Mark Hoch said.
“On the night it happened, she was seeking shelter at her friend’s house, who was Chris’s fiancé. Chris had just returned from his second deployment to the Middle East and had just proposed to her the night before. When the suspect showed up, he fired shots through the front door to disable the lock and gain entry. Spc East ran to the back of the apartment and Chris confronted the suspect in an effort to protect her. They fought, and Chris was fatally shot.
“Chris’s fiancé attempted to stop him, but he threw her to the ground, breaking her collarbone. The suspect found Spc East, and fatally shot her. He then turned the gun on Chris’s fiancé, but her 16 year old brother who had been sleeping in a bedroom jumped on him. They fought, but he was ultimately pistol whipped in the face. The suspect then kidnapped the two year old boy whom he had fathered with Spc. East. Those are the complete facts that need to be shared. News agencies who report only items contained in the Police Report, without follow-up interviews, lead readers to read between the lines and jump to conclusions. Chris was my son. I will do everything in my power to ensure this gets reported accurately. Thank you for letting me clarify the facts about this case.”
Read more at http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/fort-campbell-soldiers-killed-suspect-custody-45245302.
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