Dateline: Secrets Uncovered will explore the terrifying murder at a Torrance KFC location on Wednesday. On October 30, 1984, the killer stabbed Robin Hoynes to death before slitting her throat. Because the murderer, William Charles Marshall, was able to escape justice through deception and a false alibi, her case remained unresolved for more than 20 years.
The Night Before Halloween, the upcoming episode, will show on Wednesday, August 3. It will take a journalistic deep dive into the case to provide a blend of the facts and the tragic events that followed the murder.
Dateline: Secrets Uncovered’s Wednesday night episode’s official synopsis is as follows:
“It takes a unique eye to see the object that’s out of place at a crime scene; in this case, that thing looks so insignificant, no one even knows what it is or what it signifies; it takes a team of determined investigators almost two decades to find out,” the book’s subtitle reads.
Dateline: What happened to Robin Hoynes? – Secrets Uncovered
On the night before Halloween in 1984, Whittier resident Robin Hoynes, then age 21, was brutally murdered. She was employed with Kentucky Fried Chicken in Torrance as an assistant manager at the time of her passing.
Before the murderer slashed her neck, she received two stab wounds to the back. Authorities claim that Hoynes was the target of an attempted robbery while working on paperwork after work. The circumstances surrounding her death will be further examined in the upcoming episode of Dateline: Secrets Uncovered.
The following morning, her coworker Cheryl Muller found her deceased and found the scene in disarray. She stated that she and Hoynes had switched off duties that evening, and the following morning she awoke to find her car still parked outside. Near her body, there was additional rubbish and paperwork lying around.
Dateline: Who killed Robin Hoynes? Secrets Uncovered
Before he was fired just days before the murder, William Charles Marshall, another coworker who had been working with Hoynes, was still employed. He has a long history of being suspected of embezzling cash from the office.
Police detained Marshall in connection with the murder 12 days after the incident. Prosecutors at the time did not bring any charges, thus he was freed. He was hosted at home by his ex-girlfriend, and they had dinner together the night of the murder.
Until 2005, when the Torrance Police Department started giving several cold cases a second look, the case remained unresolved. An unimportant piece of foam that was discovered at the crime site in 1984 unexpectedly turned out to be the most important piece of evidence when it was related to Marshall’s boots.
Learn more about the foam connection by watching Dateline: Secrets Uncovered’s episode titled “The Night Before Halloween.”
In addition, Marshall’s ex-girlfriend Yvonne Williams gave evidence against him and described the crime in detail after hearing him confess to it to her. Further evidence produced at trial revealed that Hoynes permitted Marshall entry that evening on the pretense that he was picking up his briefcase and removing his uniform after being fired.
Marshall had also known the safe’s combination as a former assistant manager, although he was unaware that it had been altered after he was let go. He killed Hoynes in a surprise attack when he entered the building that night to commit a robbery, but he was unable to steal any money since he did not know the new combination.
Secrets Uncovered – Where is William Marshall at this time?
Marshall was detained once more in 2006 at his fire station. He was a captain with the State Department of Forestry and Fire Protection in Thousand Palms, a town in the Coachella Valley, at the age of 46.
Nearly 23 years after the death of Robin Hoynes, a jury convicted Marshall responsible in 2007 after four weeks of testimony. He watched the proceedings and the emotional testimony from Hoynes’ family from a seat in the courtroom that was expressionless and unmoved.
Judge Mark S. Arnold of the Los Angeles County Superior Court gave him a life sentence without the possibility of release. He is still incarcerated and completing his term as of right now.