The corpse of Jamie Foster is found hidden under a blanket. But when Lt. Joe Kenda digs deeper, he discovers that Foster’s business put him in close quarters with a host of unsavory characters. -Poker Face, Homicide Hunter (S4,E5)
Military retiree Jamie Foster, 68, was found fatally shot in his Colorado Springs home in 1988. He was shot twice, once in the head, and investigators discovered his safe was missing from the home. Friends shared Jamie was dating a young woman named Leone “Oni” Jones who also happened to be addicted to drugs, crack specifically. Kenda couldn’t find Oni but he started canvassing pawn shops and learned Michael Parsons suddenly had cash he usually didn’t have. When Kenda interviewed Parsons, he learned Parsons helped Leone remove a safe from Jamie’s house. They opened the safe and found $900; Leone gave Parson’s $300. The safe was still at Parson’s home.
Parson’s was arrested and charged with accessory to first degree murder and third degree burglary. They put out a warrant for Leone Jones. A couple days later, she called the police department and surrendered. After the murder, she fled to Kansas, claiming she was fearful the men who killed Jamie would kill her too. Kenda didn’t believe her. He suspected she wanted money for drugs, went to Jamie’s home for cash, killed Jamie and took his safe. Although Leone refused to confess to the crime during the interrogations, she finally offered up the confession Kenda wanted during her trial. She pleaded guilty to second degree murder and was sentenced to 24 years in prison.
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
Navy veteran, Patrick Fleming was found brutally stabbed to death in a Seattle elderly home. Detectives are lead to a con-artists named Monica, but DNA from the scene belongs to a man. Soon a call from the lab helps solve this bizarre whodunnit. -Misfortune Teller, Dead of Night (S2,E8)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
A seemingly perfect young couple is concealing a sinful life of crime and sexual depravity. Then later, a threesome of lovers ends in a bizarre homicide and cover-up. -Killers on the Run, Deadly Sins (S3,E9)
In 2002, Erika and BJ Sifrit’s vacation in Ocean City, MD ended with them in the back of a squad car arrested for armed robbery. When two dismembered bodies were later unearthed, the connection between the two crimes would reveal a grisly murder. -Ocean City, Sins and Secrets (S2,E8)
Forensic Files:
Full Episode: The couple spent Memorial Day weekend at the beach, and then they simply vanished. Their clothes and personal items were still in the rented condo, their car was parked outside, and there were no signs of forced entry or foul play. A week later, police would get an unexpected lead from a robbery in progress, and the evidence they found helped them to solve a crime of unparalleled violence and brutality. -Dirty Little Seacret, Forensic Files (S13, E46)
Oxygen:
A young woman’s scrapbook offers insight into a shocking crime. -Erika Sifrit, Snapped (S8,E11)
A vacationing couple’s disappearance exposes the horrific crimes of a murderous husband and wife. -Erika and BJ Sifrit, Killer Couples (S11,E2)
Podcast:
Once Upon A Crime – Episode 112: Listener Suggestions: Erika and Benjamin Sifrit – Killer Couple (December 22, 2018)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
Disabled Army veteran Richard Englander, 79, was attacked in his home by his live-in caregiver in Albany, New York on February 6, 2014. Englander served as a 1st Lieutenant with the 3rd Gun Battalion, 84th Artillery, US Army Europe and received many awards for outstanding service. As a result of his service during the war, Richard was exposed to plutonium in Germany and it left him disabled with Multiple Sclerosis. He was 100% dependent and in need of a live in caregiver. Richard placed an ad in the paper. And Sara Moore saw this job helping an elderly infirm as an opportunity because she needed a place to live. Sara Moore had never been a caregiver and Richard’s daughter was concerned and voiced those concerns but Richard decided to give her a chance.
Sara Moore moved in on February 1, 2014. It immediately became apparent to Richard that Sara was more interested in his finances then she was his welfare. Sara asked Richard if she could borrow some money on the second day of employment. Englander didn’t have any cash in the house so he gave her his credit card and she disappeared. On the third day of employment she left him alone for hours. And on the fourth day, she slept all day. As Richard was laying helpless in his bed, he realized she has got to go. On the fifth day of employment, Sara Moore stole one of Richard Englander’s checks and left the house to cash the check she wrote to herself. Sara had a secret that she didn’t share with her employer; she was addicted to crack cocaine.
Richard realized that Sara stole a check so he called the bank to initiate a stop payment and then called the police. Police report that Richard was coherent and cognizant at the time of the report. After Sara realized that the bank would not authorize her to cash Richard’s check, she became angry and went back to Englander’s home. Richard confronted Sara about the check. Sara went into Richard’s garage, grabbed a tire iron, and began viciously bashing Richard about the head while he was on the phone with the bank. The bank heard the beginning of Richard’s murder. Richard lost consciousness after the second blow. Sara hit Richard so many times that the medical examiner couldn’t determine how many times. After she got done hitting him with the tire iron, Sara used a knife and cut his esophagus.
Sara Moore then took another check and his credit cards and went back to the bank. The bank would not cash the check for Sara and called the police. First responders found Richard near death and he was transported to the hospital where he later died of the injuries. Meanwhile, Sara is using Richard’s credit cards which were on a watch list. As a result, police were able to track Sara down and arrest her. Sara was charged with second degree murder. She eventually plead guilty and was sentenced to twenty five years to life in prison. Richard was known for helping people and honorably serving his country. Sara was so desperate to get money that she preyed on a completely defenseless disabled elderly veteran.
(Deadly Women on Investigation Discovery states that 79-year-old Richard Englander served in the Army during World War II which effectively ended in 1945. According to reports, Englander died in 2014 at the age of 79. If the age is correct, he would have been 10 years old in 1945 (2014-79) when the war ended.)
A secret addiction drives a young woman to sacrifice her wheelchair bound employer; a scheming caregiver betrays the man who trusts her; and a single mother’s desire for a better life leads to a brutal dismemberment. -The Vulnerable, Deadly Women (S9, E13)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
The elderly owners of a beloved local grocery are brutally attacked and left for dead. Working with little beyond a vague witness description, Lt. Joe Kenda leads a state-wide manhunt to catch a pair of cold-blooded killers before they disappear for good. -Blood Red Highway, Homicide Hunter (S3,E8)
“When people become desperate, it’s very easy to do desperate things.” -Lt. Joe Kenda
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
29-year-old Chris Devoy is shot in cold blood outside a neighborhood bar. Faced with a trio of suspects, Kenda trusts his gut and makes a controversial decision. The case hits a dead end, but Kenda gets an unexpected tip that proves his instincts right. -Mr. Violence, Homicide Hunter (S2,E10)
In a random act of violence, ex-Marine James Shackelford decided to steal a Mitsubishi Eclipse outside a bar and ended up fatally shooting the driver of the car Christopher Devoy on May 31, 1996 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. James Shackelford was kicked out of the Marine Corps for punching a sergeant in the mouth. He turned to a life of crime robbing banks, stealing cars, and then eventually murder in the course of a robbery. Ultimately three individuals were held responsible for the murder of Christopher Devoy. James Shackelford was arrested for first degree murder. Jeffrey K. and Jeremy Kirby were convicted of murder and their combined sentences totaled more than fifty years behind bars. The ring leader of the murder got off with the lightest sentence. James Shackelford got sixteen years in prison. Shackelford never even got convicted of murder.
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
The homicides of father and son Duane and Albert Correll in Beaufort, North Carolina were featured on Investigation Discovery. Duane and Albert were both shot on June 2, 2012 in the course of a robbery. Duane was born in Michigan and his love for fishing brought him to North Carolina; shortly after arriving, he met his wife. They had Albert a couple years later and he joined Duane’s wife’s daughter Andrea. Eventually, the couple split and Andrea lived with her mom and Albert lived with his father. Duane hurt his back and was disabled so he had a hard time working. Albert got a job and went to work so his father wouldn’t have too. They were close and bonded over their love for fishing. It was especially tragic that the pair would be discovered together with gunshots. Albert wasn’t breathing and Duane was dying, yet more concerned about the health of his son.
Albert and Duane were rushed to the hospital; Albert was pronounced dead at the scene. They had both been shot in the chest. The police began their investigation and learned that they had just returned from Wal-Mart. Investigators wondered if they got in an altercation and were followed home. They didn’t find any weapons at the scene. They started interviewing the 911 callers but nobody actually saw what went down. One witness said he saw a gray vehicle and two individuals, one was confronting Albert. The confrontation lead to gunshots and the witness ran into their home to call the police. It was too dark to get a good look at the suspects before they took off. Then another witness came forward and said they were dead because of her. A woman claimed that her ex was jealous of Albert and said he was going to kill him. The police wanted to speak to him.
The day before, Kevin Connor sent Albert some threatening texts. It read “you won’t live to see the sunrise” so the police set out to find him. Albert’s girlfriend told police where he lived; he was roommates with Joseph Pirrotta. When police arrived at their home, they located three individuals inside. They cleared the apartment and Kevin wasn’t there. Joseph was home with a couple of his friends. He recently had been in the Navy and was stationed at Camp Lejeune but had been dishonorably discharged due to drug use two weeks prior. Joseph informed the police that Kevin no longer lived at the residence but he had his phone number. He was asked to call him, he answered and informed Joseph where he was at. The police immediately went to apprehend him. Kevin said he didn’t do anything but was willing to cooperate with the police.
Kevin told them he heard that Albert was shot; he used his girlfriend and other friends as his alibi for the day. He acknowledged he had problems with Albert and admitted to sending him a threatening text but denied killing him. Kevin had an airtight alibi and was absolutely cleared. Surveillance video footage at Wal-Mart did not indicate any suspicious activity and like Kevin was another dead end. That same night, Duane Correll didn’t make it and died. The police visited with Albert’s mother the next day and she had just recently learned that Albert and Duane had died; she was not doing well and in complete disbelief. The family couldn’t think of anyone who held a grudge against them and would want to murder them. The police went back to Albert’s girlfriend and learned that she had a brief fling with Jhaden Davis and he may have something to do with it.
Nicki told detectives things didn’t end well with Jhaden because he accused her of taking $300 from his bedroom and for some reason he decided to go after Albert thinking he could get the money out of him. A couple weeks before the homicides, Jhaden called Albert demanding his money. He told him to pay up or it wasn’t going to be pretty. Investigators learned Jhaden lived in the same apartment as Joseph Pirrotta and another guy named Brandon Smallwood. They were all in the Navy and stationed at Camp Lejeune together. Police went back to the residence to speak with Jhaden and learned he was on base. The roommate shared that Brandon and Jhaden stopped by over the weekend to pay rent; he also said no one had any weapons. They reached out to NCIS because they didn’t have jurisdiction on base and needed NCIS agents to assist them.
Local police interviewed Jhaden first and he claimed he was on base all weekend but there was no way to prove or disprove this but Jhaden was off-duty on the night of the murders. Brandon admitted that they did leave base for little while and went into town. Jhaden and Brandon were told not to leave the base. Police subpoenaed the phone records of Pirrotta, Davis and Smallwood. They also reinterviewed the friends hanging out at their apartment that night. During the interview, they suspected one of them was hiding something. They showed her pictures of the victims and were able to push her to the point that she decided to tell them everything. She told them Jhaden used her car prior to the murders. Jhaden left the apartment with Joseph Pirrotta. Jhaden returned a little after 10 p.m., a few minutes after the 911 calls. Jhaden & Pirrotta left the apartment and went back to Camp Lejeune. The next morning Jhaden came back and confessed.
Jhaden Davis told Victoria that he shot both Albert and Duane. It appeared that he was bragging and he implied to her that she better keep it quiet because now she knows what he was capable of. When confronted, Davis wouldn’t budge and said he was on base the whole time. Brandon said Davis and Pirrotta asked him if he wanted to go with them. Pirrotta was confronted and he spilled the beans on everything. He admitted that Davis wanted his $300 and revenge. They surprised Albert and Duane and then ambushed them; the Correll’s had no idea who was behind them. Davis first hit Albert with the butt of the gun, then shot Duane who was trying to protect Albert. Afterward, Davis shot Albert in the chest two times because Albert was the main target. Pirrotta said he thought they were going to rob them, not murder them. Davis took the money out of Albert’s wallet and Pirrotta told them where it was located.
Prosecutors moved forward with cases against Jhaden Davis, Joseph Pirrotta, and Brandon Smallwood. In July 2017, Jhaden Davis was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to two life sentences without the possibility of parole. In December 2017, Joseph Pirrotta pleaded guilty to robbery and accessory after the fact to murder and was sentenced to ten years in prison. In March 2018, Brandon Smallwood pleaded guilty to felony obstruction of justice and was sentenced to five to fifteen months, with credit for time served. Albert and Duane’s family feel like the whole thing was so senseless, all over a girl and $300. Albert and Duane Correll will not be forgotten. The family left behind loves and misses them and still waits for their calls.
Jhaden Davis, Joseph Pirrotta, Brandon Smallwood
Offenders: Jhaden Davis, 21, US Navy, Camp Lejeune, NC (GUILTY, Sentenced to LWOP) Joseph Pirrotta, 24, Navy Veteran, Beaufort, NC (GUILTY, Accessory to Murder) Brandon Smallwood, 23, US Navy, Camp Lejeune, NC (GUILTY, Accessory After the Fact)
ID Go: A dying man calls 911 saying he’s been shot in the heart, and his son has also been shot dead. The shooter escapes into the darkness, and as detectives investigate, they navigate a complex group of suspects to uncover a tangled web of rage and revenge. -Hearts of Darkness, Murder Calls (S3,E5)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch all of the Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. Download the ID Go app and binge away. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $2.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict.
In 2002, Erika and BJ Sifrit’s vacation in Ocean City, MD ended with them in the back of a squad car arrested for armed robbery. When two dismembered bodies were later unearthed, the connection between the two crimes would reveal a grisly murder. -Ocean City, Sins and Secrets (S2,E8)
A seemingly perfect young couple is concealing a sinful life of crime and sexual depravity. Then later, a threesome of lovers ends in a bizarre homicide and cover-up. -Killers on the Run, Deadly Sins (S3,E9)
Forensic Files:
Full Episode: The couple spent Memorial Day weekend at the beach, and then they simply vanished. Their clothes and personal items were still in the rented condo, their car was parked outside, and there were no signs of forced entry or foul play. A week later, police would get an unexpected lead from a robbery in progress, and the evidence they found helped them to solve a crime of unparalleled violence and brutality. -Dirty Little Seacret, Forensic Files (S13, E46)
Oxygen:
A young woman’s scrapbook offers insight into a shocking crime. -Erika Sifrit, Snapped (S8,E11)
A vacationing couple’s disappearance exposes the horrific crimes of a murderous husband and wife. -Erika and BJ Sifrit, Killer Couples (S11,E2)
Podcast:
Once Upon A Crime – Episode 112: Listener Suggestions: Erika and Benjamin Sifrit – Killer Couple (December 22, 2018)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
Navy veteran Francis Patrick Fleming, 70, was found stabbed to death in his elderly apartment complex at the Four Freedoms in Seattle, Washington on December 8, 2011. Patrick’s girlfriend Rosemary Garnett found him after she was not able to reach him by phone. Patrick had been stabbed and his throat was cut in what looked like a struggle for his life. Patrick’s apartment had been ransacked and his valuable coin collection was gone. A witness saw three women much too young to live at the complex in the building that night but did not know who they were. They appeared to be in costume and were wearing wigs. Rosemary told detectives that she planned to marry Patrick and the only other person close to him was another resident by the name of Sylvia Sutton who had moved out of the apartment complex in a hurry a few months earlier. Rosemary shared that she became uneasy when she observed that Patrick was showing off both his war medals (including two Purple Hearts) and his coin collection valued at $60,000 in this part of town. Rosemary was suspicious of Sylvia because of how much time they spent together and some of the people Sylvia introduced him to.
When detectives caught up with Sylvia Sutton, they learned she was a victim of crime too. She had been swindled of her million dollar life savings by a woman named Monica Marks but the name was an alias for Brenda Nicholas. Sylvia positively identified her. Brenda had a prior conviction for drugging an elderly male. She would offer to take him out for a milkshake, put drugs in his milkshake, and then go to the ATM machine. Brenda was also connected to a robbery case, had an extensive criminal record, and a connection to a Gypsy crime ring that started with sweetheart scams and escalated to murder and violence. After Brenda Nicholas’ home was searched, police discovered a brief case with a piece of paper bearing Patrick Fleming’s name. A second blood sample belonging to an unknown male was found at the scene of the crime so police needed to connect this sample to people who associated with Brenda. Archie Marks was identified as a person of interest because of his relationship with Brenda Nicholas but he was not a match. Sylvia’s driver, Charles Jungbluth, was also interviewed and tested despite having no criminal history. Jungbluth gave detectives nothing to work with in the interview but his DNA was compared to DNA found at the crime scene and it was a match.
Jungbluth admitted that he targeted Patrick Fleming with Brenda Nicholas and Gilda Ramirez. He shared that they dressed in disguises and used a ruse to enter the apartment. When Patrick didn’t fall for it, Brenda pushed them all in the door. They immediately started stabbing Patrick. In the course of the murder, Brenda stabbed Charles because he wasn’t stabbing Patrick hard enough. As a result, Charles left behind blood that sealed their fate. Detectives suspect that they most likely killed Patrick to eliminate a living witness. On July 2, 2012, Brenda Nicholas was arrested and charged with over 50 crimes in relation to Sylvia Sutton. After Jungbluth’s confession, Nicholas was charged with murder too. On November 8, 2012, Brenda Nicholas’ murder trial began. Brenda tried to blame her upbringing in the gypsy community for her wicked ways but the jury wasn’t buying it. Brenda Nicholas was found guilty and sentenced to 34 years in prison for murder. Charles Jungbluth was found guilty and sentenced to 22 years in prison. And Gilda Ramirez got six years in prison because she did not stab Patrick. Francis Patrick Fleming rests with full honors at the Tahoma National Cemetery in Washington. Rosemary shared that Patrick made her feel complete.
Navy veteran, Patrick Fleming was found brutally stabbed to death in a Seattle elderly home. Detectives are lead to a con-artists named Monica, but DNA from the scene belongs to a man. Soon a call from the lab helps solve this bizarre whodunnit. -Misfortune Teller, Dead of Night (S2,E8)
When an elderly Vietnam vet is stabbed to death, Seattle detectives expose a crime ring led by a Gypsy con woman and killer. Finally she’s exposed for defrauding millions from her victims and murdering those who’ve stood in her way. -Senseless in Seattle, Killer Instinct with Chris Hansen (S1,E5)
Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.
Susana De Jesus and Nicholas Michael Jean, US Army Veteran
The murder of Tina Davila was the start of a scourge of violence in Houston, Texas. On April 16, 2008, Tina Davila, a mother to five children. was out running errands with her four month old daughter. She made a quick stop at the cellphone store. After exiting her vehicle, two guys pulled up beside her and one of them jumped out and ran up behind her. A struggle ensued for Tina’s car keys because Tina immediately went into mother mode and began worrying about her baby she left in the car. The assailant was able to take the keys away from her so Tina ran after him in an attempt to get her keys back. It was at this time she was stabbed and the assailant changed plans and took off in the car he came in.
Tina stumbled to the front desk of the cellphone store and asked the employees to get her baby from the car. The employees got her baby for her and laid the baby next to her mother on the floor. The cellphone store employees called 911 and Tina was rushed to the hospital. The family was notified and arrived at the hospital only to learn that Tina had died; they also learned from media reports that she was stabbed during an attempted carjacking. Tina’s family was devastated. Fortunately, there was an eye witness who was able to provide a good description of the attacker and driver of the car. They were both described as Hispanic males and a composite sketch was created. A $10,000 reward was offered for any information leading to an arrest.
Meanwhile, the Houston police learn that there was a robbery at a beer store four hours before Tina was stabbed. Both the store and the parking lot had surveillance cameras and a witness identified two Hispanic males in the aggravated robbery. The witness also provided a license plate number and police learned the car was registered to Stacy Bailey. She reported her car stolen the day before the robbery of the store and the stabbing of Tina Davila. Stacy also described the two assailants as Hispanic males. Police were able to determine that this was the same car used in the aggravated robbery and homicide. The police fed leads to the media in an attempt to get more tips but they got no new information and the cases went unsolved.
Ten months later on February 2, 2009, as Susana De Jesus was leaving her place of employment with a co-worker, she was accosted by a masked gunman parked. He demanded that she get in her car and drive; Susana’s co-worker Karen Davis retreated in her own car where she remained until she felt safe. Karen called the police but could only provide a vague description of Susana’s car. While Susana was driving, the assailant demanded she go to a bank and was worried about her On-Star tracking system. Susana didn’t know if it was working and said she needed to call her boyfriend. He knew something was wrong because of her impersonal phone call.
Susana’s boyfriend called On-Star to find out whether or not they were able to track her but they couldn’t give out any information unless there was a missing person’s report. Susana’s boyfriend then went to her apartment and her car was not there. He was very worried now and went to the police station to file a missing person’s report. The car was tracked down in a parking lot but Susana and her abductor were gone. Police were concerned the assailant would cross state lines so the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was contacted to assist because they have more resources. These attacks were random and it illicited fear in the community.
The FBI learned that Susana’s debit card was used to purchase fuel and the gun left in Susana’s car was stolen the same day Susana was abducted. The woman who reported the gun stolen also reported the assailant tied her up, gagged her, and shoved her in a closet. She managed to get herself untied and escaped while the assailant was robbing her home. She ran to a neighbor’s home then called the police. The assailant was gone by the time the police arrived and only managed to steal the gun. These two crimes were now connected. The police wondered if Tina’s case was connected too. After three days, there was still no sign of Susana. Texas Equusearch was called in to help them find Susana. The search lasted for three weeks but came up empty.
Sabrina Piña was the third person accosted in a parking lot in the course of a couple years in Houston. In this case, she was taken but her car was left behind and there were no witnesses. Texas Equusearch was called again, this time to look for Sabrina. And then a $30,000 reward was offered for the resolution of Susana De Jesus and Sabrina Piña’s disappearances. Then two days after Sabrina’s abduction, someone found an unidentified woman’s body laying in a ditch. On February 2, 2009, Sabrina Piña was found with duct tape wrapped around her eyes and wrists, and she had been shot in the back of the head. Forensic scientists were able to extract a finger print from the duct tape that matched Theodore Schmidt. He was arrested. Police learned Schmidt knew Sabrina from college and had an unhealthy obsession with her. When she didn’t appear to recognize him in the parking lot, he got angry and kidnapped her. Schmidt was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole.
A month after Sabrina Piña was found, another man contacted police to report an attempted abduction and murder. This assailant forced him into the trunk of his own car but when the gunman has trouble starting the car, the victim was able to escape. When the assailant realized he escaped, he began chasing him down and shooting at him but he made it to safety. The police responded and an intensified attempt to find this dangerous assailant was initiated. Police asked people in the surrounding area to stay in their homes and report any suspicious activity. Ten hours later, a woman called to report a person wearing a mask in a carport. The Police responded, apprehended the suspect, and learned it was Nicholas Michael Jean.
Jean’s behavioral problems in the U.S. Army also are likely to surface during the trial. He served at Fort Sill, Okla., for three months before being discharged two weeks prior to De Jesus’ murder because his supervisors found him “unfit for military service,” according to a military separation letter. Army records show Jean was accused of fighting with and threatening other soldiers in his platoon, trying to choke another serviceman, hitting another private in the face and abusing sick leave time. He had also been discharged from the U.S. Navy in 2006 for a serious offense of misconduct, court files show. –Houston Chronicle
Nicholas Jean was an Army veteran who was recently discharged for being unfit for military duty after only three months of service. According to the Army, he did not respect authority and punched an officer. Investigators questioned Nicholas who tried to stick with the story that he was only a driver for the gang. After a few hours, Detectives began to lose their patience and demanded that Jean tell them what happened because they knew he had information. At this point, they had tons of evidence and knew all these crimes were connected. In this case, two crimes remained unsolved: one was dead; one was missing. and perpetrators were still on the loose. They needed Jean to give up the names of those who were involved. Jean eventually told the detectives that ‘the group’ took Susana in a semi trailer and killed her. Jean led the police to Susana De Jesus’ body.
On March 10, 2009, police found the badly decomposed remains of Susana De Jesus in an abandoned semi trailer. Nicholas Jean admitted to murdering Susana within two hours of her abduction. Jean also admitted to killing Susana so he could give her vehicle to the girl he wanted to marry as a wedding present; she turned him down. Jean was charged with capital murder and was facing the death penalty. But the jury spared his life and he was instead sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Wallace Ledet drove Jean to the abduction so he was apprehended too and charged with manslaughter. Ledet pleaded guilty and was sentenced to thirteen years in prison. Neither Ledet or Jean could be tied to Tina Davila’s murder.
Then one day a high school principal called the Houston police to report a student thought her boyfriend may have been involved in Tina Davila’s murder. She named seventeen year old Kennedy Escoto. As a result, Escoto was arrested and admitted to his involvement but tried to pin everything on his passenger Timoteo Rios. Escoto also admitted they stole some beer in the morning and because they were getting low on gas, they needed another car; Tina was a victim of opportunity. Kennedy Escoto was convicted of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and sentenced to forty years. Timoteo Rios was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
In April 2008, 39-year-old Houston native and mother of five, Tina Davila, runs errands with her 4 month old infant when she’s attacked in a parking lot. In the next year, a rash of similar crimes breaks out across the city. Are they related? -Investigation Discovery
MILITARY JUSTICE FOR ALL 