A Stokes County, NC man has been charged with the murder of a Patrick County woman that was reported missing in 2018. On Wednesday the Stokes County Sheriff’s Office reported that 61-year-old Leroy Allen Hoover was charged with the murder of Sarah Hill.
Hill was reported missing in August of 2018. The investigation led detectives to Surry County, where the Surry County Sheriff’s Office checked several locations in hopes of locating Hill. Some of the information received indicated that Hill had been, at some point, at the home of Hoover on Asbury Rd in the Westfield community of Stokes County.
On Oct. 17, 2022, detectives with the Surry County Sheriff’s Office and the NC SBI reached out to the Stokes County Sheriff’s Office for assistance. Investigators obtained a search warrant for the property on Asbury Rd in Stokes County, specifically to search for any information on the whereabouts of Hill that may be located on the property.
During the search of the property, investigators excavated a particular area, where human remains were found and collected for the medical examiner to process. An autopsy was ordered and completed, and the remains were identified as Sarah Hill. On Oct. 4, 2023 the Stokes County Sheriff’s Office received the official medical report from the autopsy ruling the death of Hill as a homicide.
Once the medical report was received, Stokes County Sheriff’s Office Detective C. Smith and agents with the NC SBI met with the district attorney to present the case for review. After reviewing the evidence, Hoover was charged with the murder of Sarah Hill. Hoover is currently in the Stokes County Jail with no bond, awaiting trial. Hoover has other cases also pending in Stokes County.
“We can only imagine how hard this has been for the family of Ms. Hill. Investigators from the Patrick County Sheriff’s Office (VA), Surry County Sheriff’s Office, Stokes County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the NC SBI agents that worked on this case have done a tremendous job, and they never gave up. Although nothing will bring a loved one back, we can only hope this helps provide some closure to Ms. Hill’s family.” Sheriff Joey Lemons
Hoover has been charged with one count of murder and one count of concealment of death.