Man Charged With Killing Missing Wife After Police Allegedly Find Bloody Wrench
While investigating Julie Hall's February disappearance, police say that they found evidence linking her husband Travis Hall to the crime.
A Texas man has been charged with murdering his missing wife after police allegedly found a bloodstained wrench in his truck.
Julie Hall, 47, was last seen on Feb. 19, 2021, according to the Austin American-Statesman. She was reported missing on Feb. 22 when she didn't show up for work; she serves as a special education teacher's aid in the Hutto School District.
Travis Hall, 48, has since a suspect in his wife’s disappearance when police found bloodstains in the married couple’s shared bedroom last February. Police also discovered a bloodstained wrench in Travis’s truck, according to the arrest affidavit obtained by the Austin newspaper.
Travis allegedly told police that Julie cut her hand while helping him change a drill.
Authorities allege that Travis “deliberately used cleaning agents in an attempt to clean the master bedroom, bathroom, and closet of the apartment where the crime scene was committed in an attempt to conceal the crime,” according to the affidavit.
Police also discovered two hand-written letters penned by Travis in their search of the couple's Georgetown apartment, in which police allege he confessed to killing Julie. Travis addressed the letters to his and Julie’s adult children, according to the Austin American-Statesman.
Travis was previously charged in March with two counts of evidence tampering, according to court records.
Travis initially told police that he hadn't been home between the day Julie was last seen because he'd been away working on a plumbing job, according to an affidavit cited by KXAN News. He later changed his story and claimed to be in Houston over the weekend, where he was allegedly having an affair with another woman, the affidavit said.
Last Thursday, Travis was indicted by a grand jury and charged with felony murder, according to KXAN News.
Julie’s body has not been found.
Julie was last seen by her son on Feb. 19, around 10 a.m., when she left her apartment on Wolf Ranch Parkway. According to police, Travis Hall and their son said that Julie was on her way to meet her sister in New Braunfels. However, Julie never arrived. The sister said that she and Julie had no plans, according to Austin's Fox 7 News.
Travis Hall is at the Williamson County Jail, where he's been in custody since last February. There is no current information about bail related to the recent murder charge.