Judson Keith Hoover, 50, pleaded guilty to the murder of his 38-year-old wife, Rebecca Ruth Hoover, hours after he was charged with the crime. Rebecca had last been seen on August 2nd and Judson filed for divorce a day later. The incident came to light after the couple’s eight-year-old son told a school counselor that he had witnessed his father kill his mother. Judson entered a guilty plea to prevent the boy from testifying in court.

The case began when Rebecca’s mother reported her missing on August 4. When officers found no sign of Rebecca, they took action and a forensic interview was conducted. Rebecca’s body was recovered and Judson was taken into custody on suspicion of murder. Charges were formally filed and Judson pleaded guilty on the same day.

Survey footage showed Judson moving what appeared to be a body on August 4, and he was caught on footage on August 28 returning to the storage unit. He admitted to transferring the container holding his wife’s body to another storage unit on Strawberry Lane in Louisville.

On August 27, detectives spoke to Judson when he went to pick the kids from school, and he granted authorities consent to search the family’s home and vehicles. Investigators and crime scene technicians discovered blood spatter at the bottom of the basement stairs. Judson claimed he strangled Rebecca to death and initially left her in the basement.