DUNCAN – When OU student Alan Joseph Hruby, 19, entered a Stephens County courtroom wearing an orange jumpsuit and shackles, he glanced to see who was in the courtroom — but only once.
Before the judge entered the chambers, Alan Hruby sat with his back to the media and others attending the arraignment. He was tapping his right foot the entire time.
“The defendant is going to be treated as any other defendant,” Judge Jerry W. Herberger said to the media before reminding them to turn off their electronic devices.
After spending the weekend in Dallas for OU-TX, Alan Hruby spent over a day in custody on unrelated charges following his parents’ and sister’s death. On Wednesday, Alan Hruby was charged with three counts of first-degree murder for their slayings, as well as two counts of knowingly concealing stolen property during his arraignment hearing at 2 p.m. in Judge Jerry W. Herberger’s courtroom.
Alan Hruby was charged for the shooting death of parents John Hruby, 50, Joy “Tinker” Hruby, 48, and sister Katherine Hruby, 17.
The family’s housekeeper found the bodies and called police around 8:51 a.m. Monday.
Alan Hruby shot his mother in the kitchen of their Duncan home. She fell to the floor, and he shot her a second time. Hruby then shot his sister once. One hour later, when his father entered the kitchen, he fired again, leaving his father to fall to the ground with one word — “ouch,” according to the probable cause affidavit.
The 9mm pistol and recordings from video surveillance of the house were dumped in a local lake, District Attorney Jason Hicks said.
The pistol and recordings have not been recovered from the lake, Hicks said.
Neighbors did not report hearing gunshots, Hicks said. The Daily asked three of the Hrubys’ neighbors if they heard anything, but all three neighbors said they didn’t.
Duncan police believe Alan Hruby committed the crime alone.
Hicks said Alan Hruby said he shot his family so he could be the sole heir to their money. Alan Hruby owed approximately $3,000 to a loan company, and his parents were going to cut Alan Hruby off financially, Hicks said.
Read>> A look at Alan Hruby's expenses via his Instagram account
“I think the only remorse we’ve seen out of him is that he’s been caught,” Hicks said.
Alan Hruby has been held in the Stephens County jail since he arrived at the crime scene Monday.
Ford said Alan Hruby was “crying and wailing” at the scene.
Alan Hruby was held at the Stephens County jail on stolen check charges and probation violations, which stemmed from an August 2013 felony charge for credit card fraud.
According to the 2013 affidavit, Alan Hruby applied for a credit card under grandmother Janis Hruby’s name. He used the Dillards American Express card throughout Europe — specifically in Paris — for a total of $4,891.18.
The Daily contacted Janis Hruby, but a family sponsor declined to comment on her behalf at this time.
Alan Hruby violated probation for the credit card charge over the weekend when he traveled to Dallas and stayed at the Ritz-Carlton hotel.
A photo posted to his Instagram on Sunday show a man and a woman reclining on what appears to be a bed. The caption reads: “College wouldn’t be half as great with out these two peaches. #bestfriends #roomies #college #outx #ou #universityofoklahoma."
Photo gallery: Who is Alan Hruby?
John Higgins, University College freshman, lives on the same floor as Alan Hruby in Headington Hall. Higgins said he’d heard rumors about the case.
“I didn’t think he could do something like that,” Higgins said.
Grayson Richey, supply chain management freshman, also lived on Alan Hruby’s floor in Headington Hall.
“I’ve seen him around. To me, he was always quiet. He’s never said anything to me,” Richey said.
Bryan Hinnen, director of operations for Headington Hall, forwarded all questions to OU’s Public Affairs office.
University spokesman Corbin Wallace said he could not comment on the situation because it is an ongoing investigation. Although Wallace issued a statement Tuesday saying the university was monitoring the situation to ensure campus safety, he would not comment Wednesday to clarify how the university was ensuring campus safety because “doing so would hamper those efforts.”
Alan Hruby's next hearing is scheduled for Dec. 17. He does not currently have an attorney for this case.
At Wednesday’s press conference, when asked if the state would seek the death penalty, Hicks said he couldn’t answer at the time because he needed to talk to the family first, but he tends to be “very aggressive” in his prosecutions.
“I think this is a very, very heinous and atrocious crime. I think this shows the fact that there was no remorse,” Hicks said. “I think it shows that this kid is an evil person and, quite frankly, I think [the death penalty] is something that’s going to have to be seriously considered.”
Dana Branham and Justine Alexander contributed to this report.
