December 23, 2022 | 6:30 am
Larry McBee, Jr. age 18, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of the 22-year-old Rural King Employee. McBee could face additional charges. The suspect was taken into custody at 3:38 am this morning at a residence on McDonald Road in Knoxville. McBee was transported to the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility.
“I’m thankful we have the suspect in custody. I want to thank the men and women of the Knox County Sheriff’s Office for their hard work thus far. It’s been a long day and night, and they didn’t stop. Additionally, I’m grateful to the other agencies who assisted us in capturing the suspect, including The Blount County Sheriff’s Office, The Grainger County Sheriff’s Office, The Knoxville Field Office of The FBI, and ATF. We received numerous tips from the public throughout the day/night and appreciated their willingness to get involved.
I’ve spoken to the victim’s Mother and ask you to keep her and their family, including the Rural King family, in your thoughts and prayers.
The investigation is ongoing; we will release the victim’s name later today.”
– Tom Spangler, Sheriff
On July 20, 1985 the burned body of Betty Joyce Brown,aka Simmons, was found in the woods at 3805 Maloney Road in South Knox County. The 29 year old Austin-East graduate had been stabbed before being burned. Ms. Brown was last seen on July 14, 1985 between midnight and 1:00am in front of the Bread Box at Magnolia Ave and Spruce Street. It is believed that Ms. Brown was offered and accepted a ride from an unknown subject. Ms. Brown’s last know address was 2737 Tarleton Ave. Initial investigation indicated that when Ms. Brown’s body was found, she had been dead approximately 1 week. Family members described Ms. Brown as being a “very sweet and loving mother.”
If you have any information please call the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit at (865)-215-3520/3590 or e-mail coldcase@knoxsheriff.org.
