‘I Couldn’t Believe It’: Father Learns of His Son’s Gruesome Murder Through Viral Photo on Facebook

A Michigan father says he learned about his son's murder after seeing a viral photo on Facebook showing the victim's arm hanging out of the trunk of a car.

"I couldn't believe it was him, I couldn't believe it," Jeff Davis told WJBK-TV. "That's how I found out, through Facebook."

Davis' son, 39-year-old Jeff Hagler, was found in the trunk of a white Buick Century car parked in a back alley Monday, just hours after Hagler had gone to see his dad for Father's Day. Police say Hagler was beaten, shot three times and left for dead, his arm hanging out of the trunk.

Image source: WJBK-TV

A pedestrian passing by the alleyway noticed the gruesome scene. A photo of the Hagler's arm was shared thousands of times on Facebook before Davis saw it, and recognized the car.

"It’s sad to find out your son you've just seen — and the next thing you know he is in the back of a car," Davis told WJBK-TV.

Davis said his son didn't normally visit that area, but he heard his son got a call from a girl after leaving his father's house around 1:30 a.m. on Monday. Hagler served time for drug crimes when he was in his 20s, but hadn't been in trouble with the law since.

Hagler's family said they believe the murder was random and that the motive was robbery. Police are calling the death a homicide and are still actively investigating. No arrests have been made.

Hagler was a father of three children, the youngest of whom is only a few months old.

(H/T: WJBK-TV)

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