NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — For years, the city of Franklin has been working to find answers on their singular unsolved murder.
The Franklin Police Department said they are nowhere closer to answers with respect to the death of Peggy Cox as of Tuesday.
On Feb. 1, 1991, Peggy Cox spent her 49th birthday working alongside her son at a Franklin Hardee’s. After someone ordered food, they drove up to the window and shot Cox before driving away. She was found fatally shot on the floor by a coworker — her then-20-year-old son.
“My brother [was] traumatized from being there, so that’s hard to get past,” Peggy Cox’s daughter, Desiree Cox, said. “…She was pretty nice,” Desiree saud. “Very quiet. Wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
Franklin police held a press conference and explained that, as of publication, there is still no known motive or persons of interest. The last update from the precinct was in 2016.
Over the years, the case has been passed from detective to detective. The main lead in the case has been a light-colored Nissan Sentra, possibly a late-’80s model, with a personalized license plate of ‘Liz’ or ‘Lisa.’ However, authorities have not been able to locate the vehicle.
“Half the crime scene drove away,” detective on the Cox case, Matt Thompson, explained. “There were no shell casings recovered; if the gun created a shell casing in the act of firing, it likely would’ve went inside the vehicle.”
Franklin police added time is running out.
“So much time has passed that witnesses, evidence — all those things are degrading,” Thompson said. “Every day that passes, we lose the ability to solve this case.”
“A lot of the people that were witnesses that day have either passed away or moved far away, and we are losing the people that were there that night,” Thompson explained.
With Peggy’s family in the audience, Desiree told News 2 her family wants answers.
“What really happened that day? What went on?” Desiree said. “Why — you did this to my mother. She had no enemies.”
“We’re still affected by this” Desiree added. “We would like a little closure with it — to be able to put this to rest and go on and not have to keep reminding everybody that it’s not been solved yet.”
If you have any information, you can call the Franklin Police Department at 615-974-2513 or Williamson County CrimeStoppers at 615-794-4000. A reward for information is currently set at $26,000.
