Background: A section of Merton Court in Alexandria, Virginia (Google Maps). Insets, from left to right: John Stremple and Joshua Cochran (Alexandria Police Department).
When Virginia police went to a man’s home to ask about a missing neighbor, authorities say he immediately confessed to killing him.
John Stremple III, 63, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 44-year-old Joshua Cochran, the Alexandria Police Department announced on Wednesday. Stremple was booked into the Alexandria Detention Center.
On Monday, Cochran’s family asked police to check on him after he was reported missing, Alexandria Police Chief Tarrick McGuire said at a news conference. Officers went to the 5700 block of Merton Court, located just south of Washington, D.C. After maintenance workers opened Cochran’s apartment, officers determined he was not inside.
The following day, family members contacted police again, saying Cochran had missed a scheduled phone call and that his vehicle remained outside the apartment. Investigators traced his recent movements and learned he had been at an Alexandria restaurant “having some drinks” with another person.
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Investigators believe that person was Stremple.
Detectives went to Stremple’s apartment in the same complex as Cochran’s, regional NBC affiliate WRC reported. When Stremple opened the door, police say he “gave an immediate confession.”
Police found Cochran inside a closet with “serious blunt force trauma to his head,” the chief said. McGuire said an “object” had been used in the attack but did not identify it.
According to police, the two men drank at a restaurant, “went to several other locations and purchased some alcohol” before returning to the apartment complex. McGuire did not say whether they were friends, but said they “knew each other or knew about each other.”
Stremple was arrested, and police said the investigation remains ongoing.
