Latest / NO FILTER / Lesbian love triangle ends with jealous murder of an ex-boyfriend(MP3_160K)
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: I'm Chris Hansen right now on Crime Watch Daily.
- 0:02Speaker 2: From here in New York City, two girls, a guy,
- 0:14Speaker 2: and a.
- 0:14Speaker 3: Murder and of us Blood Evergreen, a church.
- 0:17Speaker 1: Going urise winds up at the center of a toxic
- 0:19Speaker 1: love tribe.
- 0:20Speaker 4: Cody was jealous of their relationship.
- 0:23Speaker 1: A secret affair, of brutal crime, an intruder in a
- 0:29Speaker 1: black mask.
- 0:30Speaker 5: This murder was emotionally charged.
- 0:32Speaker 1: A Crime Watch Daily mystery with a merry go round
- 0:35Speaker 1: of suspects find there because that's a lot. Then a
- 0:40Speaker 1: chilling discovery in the mountains of Virginia, the body of
- 0:44Speaker 1: a woman outside her workplace, riddled with bullets.
- 0:47Speaker 6: She was surprised by her attacker who.
- 0:49Speaker 1: Would murder this hard working single mother of three.
- 0:53Speaker 7: Everything that she did was centered around those two of them.
- 0:56Speaker 1: The surveillance video captures a man on the rock, the
- 0:58Speaker 1: last man anyone and would suspect as an assess.
- 1:02Speaker 3: His mom is a pastor.
- 1:03Speaker 7: He was so caring toward her and so sweet.
- 1:06Speaker 8: Today, Missus Jones, I'm here about your son.
- 1:10Speaker 1: Eric Jones Crime Watch Daily joins the man hunt and
- 1:14Speaker 1: his mystery mote.
- 1:15Speaker 9: We're gonna find him and we're gonna bring.
- 1:17Speaker 10: Him a goodness right now, let's go Jason Matowa with
- 1:21Speaker 10: Prime Watch Daily.
- 1:22Speaker 3: I'm miss also going to from Crimewatch Day.
- 1:24Speaker 11: Yes, let's be smart from Crimewatch Daily. It's Anna Garcia
- 1:28Speaker 11: from crime Watch Daily.
- 1:29Speaker 3: You got anything to say?
- 1:30Speaker 1: He is crime Watch Daily.
- 1:32Speaker 7: What do you mean you don't know?
- 1:32Speaker 3: If she's thirteen?
- 1:33Speaker 1: You're running away now. So welcome to crime Watch Daily everyone,
- 1:39Speaker 1: I'm Chris Hansen. We start today with a story of
- 1:41Speaker 1: love and jealousy, two powerful emotions that can make you
- 1:45Speaker 1: do just about anything and in some cases even kill.
- 1:49Speaker 1: Anna Garcia has more on what happened in the basement.
- 1:53Speaker 11: Aaron loves her new girlfriend.
- 1:56Speaker 12: Tory was the lover of her life.
- 1:58Speaker 11: Aaron asked Toy to marry her, but Tory still loves
- 2:02Speaker 11: her ex boyfriend, now her secret lover. So Tory was
- 2:06Speaker 11: living a double ag and this hot wired love triangle
- 2:10Speaker 11: is about to short circuit and leave one of them dead.
- 2:15Speaker 3: When it was.
- 2:15Speaker 13: Blood everywhere and it was a shock, I mean, this
- 2:18Speaker 13: is shocking night.
- 2:21Speaker 11: Jerome, Pennsylvania, is an ultra conservative small town.
- 2:25Speaker 1: Go see that up here.
- 2:26Speaker 11: That much among the one thousand residents. Twenty five year
- 2:30Speaker 11: old Aaron Everett grew up.
- 2:32Speaker 5: In a very regimented, strictly staunchly religious family, much to.
- 2:37Speaker 11: The delight of her proud mother, Patricia.
- 2:40Speaker 12: She was brought up in church, went to church every Sunday,
- 2:43Speaker 12: Sunday morning, Sunday night.
- 2:44Speaker 11: Wednesday night, and when other girls her age were partying
- 2:48Speaker 11: their way through spring and summer breaks, Aaron was helping
- 2:52Speaker 11: teach Bible classes.
- 2:54Speaker 5: Her social activities were through the church. He was very
- 2:57Speaker 5: limited in what she did and what she allowed herself
- 3:01Speaker 5: to become engaged.
- 3:02Speaker 11: In, growing up to be a nurse caring for the
- 3:05Speaker 11: elderly at a local nursing home.
- 3:07Speaker 5: By all accounts, was just a nice girl who.
- 3:11Speaker 11: Was planning on getting married and having a family.
- 3:15Speaker 5: She didn't date a lot, but she had dated a
- 3:17Speaker 5: young man that she had met through the church, and
- 3:20Speaker 5: at one point they had become engaged.
- 3:22Speaker 11: But Aaron wouldn't make it to the alder.
- 3:26Speaker 5: Aaron determined that that wasn't what she was or who
- 3:30Speaker 5: she was and broke that engagement.
- 3:32Speaker 12: She broke the engagement off because she knew it wouldn't
- 3:34Speaker 12: work because she obviously didn't like boys.
- 3:39Speaker 11: Patricia was shocked.
- 3:40Speaker 12: And angry, and of course, as a Christian mother, I
- 3:44Speaker 12: exploded I'm like, what do you mean you like girls?
- 3:46Speaker 12: I was very upset and tried to tell her, you know,
- 3:49Speaker 12: you know that's not right.
- 3:51Speaker 11: Aaron pleaded with Patricia for understanding.
- 3:55Speaker 12: I can't really say I accepted it. I loved my
- 3:57Speaker 12: daughter and of course would always be there for her
- 4:00Speaker 12: no matter what.
- 4:01Speaker 11: Happened, and Patricia's tolerance would be put to the test
- 4:04Speaker 11: when Aaron met Tory Minnick, a fellow nurse who worked
- 4:08Speaker 11: the night shift with her.
- 4:10Speaker 5: Tory Minnick was quite the opposite of Aaron. Tory was
- 4:17Speaker 5: very outgoing, very popular, very self assured.
- 4:22Speaker 11: But Tory had a few things in common with Erin.
- 4:25Speaker 4: She liked the nursing field and it was a good
- 4:28Speaker 4: fiel for her to go into. She's well liked, well
- 4:32Speaker 4: thought of, had a good family life.
- 4:35Speaker 11: Like Aaron. Tory had just broken up with a boyfriend.
- 4:38Speaker 4: She was engaged to Mary and they started talking. They
- 4:42Speaker 4: started getting to know each other.
- 4:44Speaker 11: Aaron was fast falling in love with Tory.
- 4:47Speaker 4: She thought she was very pretty, very nice.
- 4:51Speaker 11: They got along really well at the beginning. They were happy.
- 4:55Speaker 4: They were laughed all the time, they joked all the time.
- 5:00Speaker 4: It was like Tory allowed her to be herself she
- 5:04Speaker 4: could be who she really was with.
- 5:06Speaker 11: Tory, and she wanted to spend the rest of her
- 5:09Speaker 11: life with her.
- 5:10Speaker 4: Aaron asked Toy to marry her, and Tory said yes,
- 5:14Speaker 4: so Aaron got her ring.
- 5:16Speaker 11: Then the two decided they wanted to live together, and
- 5:19Speaker 11: Aaron actually asked her mother if Tory could move in
- 5:22Speaker 11: with the family. First said no, but a horrified Patricia
- 5:27Speaker 11: eventually agreed after Aaron threatened to move out.
- 5:31Speaker 12: In order to keep her in my life and know
- 5:33Speaker 12: where she was, I left them stay there at the house.
- 5:37Speaker 12: They stayed in the basement. The only time they came
- 5:40Speaker 12: upstairs was to take a shower or get food.
- 5:44Speaker 11: Little did Patricia know her daughter and Tory were starting
- 5:48Speaker 11: to have problems.
- 5:49Speaker 4: There were arguments and fights over money in a relationship, and.
- 5:54Speaker 11: Aaron was about to make a heartbreaking discovery.
- 5:58Speaker 4: That the love of her life was being unfaithful to her.
- 6:04Speaker 11: Next remember Tory's ex boyfriend He's back, and the fiery
- 6:10Speaker 11: passions of a tangled love triangle boil over, leaving one
- 6:14Speaker 11: of the three star Cross lovers shot and beaten to
- 6:18Speaker 11: death with a clawhammer.
- 6:20Speaker 12: And I just started crying, and I thought I was
- 6:23Speaker 12: gonna through up I said, I'm going through up.
- 6:24Speaker 11: I'm going through up, and the surviving two are each
- 6:27Speaker 11: suspected of being the murderer.
- 6:30Speaker 12: I remember saying, there is no way. There is no way.
- 6:36Speaker 1: Fell back to our top story of the day. In
- 6:39Speaker 1: the basement, nurses Earon Everett and Tory Minnick weren't just coworkers.
- 6:43Speaker 1: They were also lovers, Anna gar she is back now
- 6:46Speaker 1: with more their.
- 6:47Speaker 3: Story, Chris.
- 6:48Speaker 11: As quickly as the two women fell in love, a
- 6:51Speaker 11: betrayal would turn their intense passion into immense anger, and
- 6:56Speaker 11: one of them would turn up debt. Honeymoon was over
- 7:01Speaker 11: before Aaron Everett and her living fiancee, Tory Minnick even
- 7:05Speaker 11: got married, and their nine month relationship had deteriorated so
- 7:10Speaker 11: badly that Aaron was reportedly showing signs of being physically
- 7:15Speaker 11: abused by Tory.
- 7:17Speaker 4: She had a black eye, bloody lip, one time, she
- 7:20Speaker 4: had the bruises on her back. She actually had to
- 7:22Speaker 4: go to the doctor for that.
- 7:24Speaker 11: Aaron's mother, Patricia, actually witnessed something alarming in the basement
- 7:29Speaker 11: room of her Jerome, Pennsylvania home where the two young
- 7:33Speaker 11: lovers lived.
- 7:34Speaker 12: Tory had aarin in a choke hold, but.
- 7:37Speaker 11: They told Patricia. They were just fooling around.
- 7:40Speaker 12: And I didn't think anything about it because Aaron had
- 7:43Speaker 12: never said anything to me about the abuse.
- 7:46Speaker 11: Tory had also been spending weekends away from Aaron, visiting
- 7:51Speaker 11: family and friends in her nearby hometown of Myersdale, Pennsylvania.
- 7:58Speaker 11: Among them twenty four year old Cody Donaldson, the fiancee
- 8:02Speaker 11: Tory had broken up with before meeting Aaron.
- 8:06Speaker 4: They knew each other since kindergarten.
- 8:08Speaker 11: Judy Ellish of the local newspaper, The Daily American says
- 8:12Speaker 11: they had an on again, off again romance that lasted
- 8:16Speaker 11: through high school and right up to the time of
- 8:18Speaker 11: their engagement.
- 8:20Speaker 4: And they would argue and they were both for bullheaded.
- 8:24Speaker 11: But now they were on again, with Cody reportedly wanting
- 8:28Speaker 11: Aaron out of the picture.
- 8:31Speaker 4: He didn't want them to be together, and he didn't
- 8:33Speaker 4: want Toy to be in a lesbian relationship. He wanted
- 8:36Speaker 4: her to be with him.
- 8:38Speaker 11: Aaron's mom says a furious Cody once even stormed into
- 8:42Speaker 11: the nursing home where the two nurses worked.
- 8:44Speaker 12: Cody showed up one night and threatened Aaron to stay
- 8:48Speaker 12: away from Tory.
- 8:50Speaker 11: But Tory is said to have wanted the best of
- 8:52Speaker 11: both worlds.
- 8:53Speaker 12: So Tory was living a double life. She was with
- 8:56Speaker 12: Aaron when she was in Jerome, and when she would
- 8:59Speaker 12: go home to myyer, she was with Cody.
- 9:01Speaker 5: Now her secret lover, and apparently kept it quiet from Erin.
- 9:09Speaker 11: And then it happened, a brutal attack, leaving Tory lying
- 9:16Speaker 11: dead in the basement room she shared with Aaron from
- 9:19Speaker 11: two gunshot wounds to her head. Her skull had also
- 9:24Speaker 11: been bashed in with a claw hammer.
- 9:27Speaker 4: The crime scene was very bloody and very violent.
- 9:29Speaker 12: She was totally naked. She had a sheeter blanket covering
- 9:33Speaker 12: the top of her head, blood all over the bed.
- 9:36Speaker 11: Erin's mother had gotten a frantic phone call from her
- 9:39Speaker 11: daughter and rushed home to find her sitting in bloodstained clothes,
- 9:44Speaker 11: hysterical beside her lover's body.
- 9:47Speaker 12: Aaron had blood all over her and they weren't sure
- 9:50Speaker 12: if it was her blood or whose blood it was.
- 9:52Speaker 12: Aarin was just crying and saying, why did they take
- 9:55Speaker 12: her from me? Why did they take her from me?
- 9:57Speaker 11: Aaron would tell her mother as well as least at
- 10:00Speaker 11: the crime scene, that an intruder had broken into the
- 10:04Speaker 11: house while she and Tory were both sleeping.
- 10:07Speaker 12: It was a male and he had a black mask
- 10:09Speaker 12: and he had a hammer, and he was saying to Tory,
- 10:15Speaker 12: you're coming with me, You're coming with me, and she
- 10:17Speaker 12: was saying no, no, no. And Aaron said that she
- 10:21Speaker 12: was trying to help, you know, to get this man
- 10:24Speaker 12: away from Toy. Aaron said that this man actually tried
- 10:28Speaker 12: to tie her feet and hands together to get her
- 10:31Speaker 12: away so that he could either hurt Toy or take
- 10:37Speaker 12: Toy with him.
- 10:38Speaker 4: She said, he said, I'll comfort Tory, not for you,
- 10:41Speaker 4: before shooting and beating Tory to death.
- 10:44Speaker 5: The nature of the murder, the gunshot, wounds of the head,
- 10:47Speaker 5: and then the bludgeoning with a hammer, it indicates to
- 10:52Speaker 5: at least me that this murder was emotionally charged.
- 10:57Speaker 11: Aaron said she couldn't recognize the killer's face, but had
- 11:00Speaker 11: an idea who it might be.
- 11:02Speaker 4: She described a man that has the same physical appearance
- 11:09Speaker 4: as Cody.
- 11:10Speaker 11: Saying he fled in a green truck just like Cody owned.
- 11:15Speaker 4: So it all sort of pointed to Cody, complete with motive.
- 11:20Speaker 4: Aaron indicated that Cody was jealous of their relationship.
- 11:26Speaker 5: Ultimately, that's what led to the investigator's penpointing mister Donaldson
- 11:31Speaker 5: as his suspect in this murder.
- 11:33Speaker 4: Cody was their prime suspect.
- 11:36Speaker 11: And police had located and questioned him within hours of
- 11:40Speaker 11: the murder.
- 11:40Speaker 4: They took him in for questioning and they were asking
- 11:44Speaker 4: him all kind of questions.
- 11:45Speaker 11: About where he was, you know, what he.
- 11:47Speaker 4: Was doing, his relationship with Aaron, his relationship with Tory.
- 11:53Speaker 11: But Cody vehemently denied killing Tory out of jealousy, telling
- 11:58Speaker 11: investigators didn't even know her relationship with Aaron was romantic.
- 12:04Speaker 5: Cody Donaldson was led to believe that Aaron Everett was
- 12:07Speaker 5: simply a roommate.
- 12:09Speaker 11: We reached out to Cody, but he declined to be interviewed.
- 12:14Speaker 11: Now detectives turn their attention to others who might have
- 12:17Speaker 11: had a motive to kill Tory.
- 12:19Speaker 14: You're a killer, they know, they feel bad.
- 12:24Speaker 11: Next, police uncover a suspected fourth player in this deadly
- 12:30Speaker 11: love triangle.
- 12:31Speaker 14: We investating his home side. All right, if you.
- 12:36Speaker 4: Have any knowledge of this, I need you to tell
- 12:39Speaker 4: you that.
- 12:39Speaker 1: Now, now to the conclusion of our story. In the basement,
- 12:45Speaker 1: here's Anagarcia.
- 12:48Speaker 11: Tory Minnick has been shot and beaten to death with
- 12:52Speaker 11: a clawhammer. Police originally suspected Tory's former fiance and now
- 12:58Speaker 11: secret lover, Cody Donaldson. But Cody had a rock solid alibi,
- 13:04Speaker 11: telling cops he was working at his job on a
- 13:06Speaker 11: loading dock at the time of Tory's murder.
- 13:09Speaker 5: The investigators were able to confirm that through his employer
- 13:13Speaker 5: as well as other employees.
- 13:15Speaker 11: And detectives were convinced Cody had nothing to do with
- 13:19Speaker 11: the crime.
- 13:20Speaker 5: He was pretty quickly ruled out as a suspect.
- 13:24Speaker 11: So now they take a closer look at Aaron Everett,
- 13:27Speaker 11: Tory's fiance, the third player in this love triangle and
- 13:31Speaker 11: the only one who was with her when she was murdered.
- 13:35Speaker 1: Hey Good.
- 13:38Speaker 11: This time, detectives had brought in Aaron to the station,
- 13:42Speaker 11: where she appears to be in shock, curled up under
- 13:45Speaker 11: a blanket, shivering as they question her about the story
- 13:49Speaker 11: she told them at the scene of the crime that
- 13:52Speaker 11: Tory had been murdered by a masked intruder while she
- 13:56Speaker 11: and Tory.
- 13:56Speaker 7: Were asleep, gunshot.
- 14:02Speaker 11: And unaware. Detectives have already ruled out Cody as a suspect.
- 14:07Speaker 11: Aaron trips herself up when she continues to point the
- 14:10Speaker 11: finger of blame at her love rival.
- 14:14Speaker 15: He felt he didn't like her being with me.
- 14:17Speaker 14: He knew that she was.
- 14:17Speaker 15: Gay, and he didn't like it, and he wanted her
- 14:19Speaker 15: to move back.
- 14:20Speaker 14: In with him.
- 14:21Speaker 11: Detectives suddenly flipped the switch on Aaron, turning up the heat.
- 14:25Speaker 11: They now suspect Aaron is trying to frame Cody for
- 14:29Speaker 11: a murder. She committed herself.
- 14:31Speaker 15: This person that you're saying came into the house and
- 14:35Speaker 15: clearly did not happen like that.
- 14:37Speaker 3: Okay.
- 14:38Speaker 15: Now, what we've established already is that you're not telling
- 14:42Speaker 15: us the truth.
- 14:44Speaker 11: Detectives move in for the kill, telling Aaron the crime
- 14:48Speaker 11: scene evidence tells a different story than the lie she's
- 14:51Speaker 11: telling them.
- 14:53Speaker 14: That did not happen.
- 14:54Speaker 4: Okay.
- 14:56Speaker 11: One of the biggest clues a shattered window, through which
- 14:59Speaker 11: Aaron says the intruder must have entered the house, but
- 15:03Speaker 11: detectives have found it had actually been broken from the inside,
- 15:08Speaker 11: not the outside.
- 15:09Speaker 14: Well, I don't think.
- 15:15Speaker 15: We're past that point now, Okay.
- 15:18Speaker 5: There's three people.
- 15:19Speaker 14: In his room, and all three of us know.
- 15:22Speaker 1: What happened to Toy.
- 15:23Speaker 5: Okay, we have all the pieces, we just can't put
- 15:26Speaker 5: the puzzle together.
- 15:30Speaker 11: Detectives urge Aaron to tell them the truth.
- 15:34Speaker 14: If you're involved in this. We need you to tell
- 15:37Speaker 14: us that right now. Okay, what is your involvement in this?
- 15:43Speaker 7: I think it's there.
- 15:49Speaker 11: But after being confronted with more incriminating evidence, Aaron finally cracks,
- 15:55Speaker 11: confessing that she broke the window herself as part of
- 15:58Speaker 11: her cover story for murder.
- 16:01Speaker 14: At what point did it get so bad that you had.
- 16:03Speaker 1: To shoot her?
- 16:04Speaker 11: Aaron tells detectives she was heartbroken and insanely jealous after
- 16:09Speaker 11: learning Tory was cheating on her with her ex Cody,
- 16:13Speaker 11: and how did.
- 16:13Speaker 15: You know that she was still asleep on with Cody?
- 16:18Speaker 11: But Aaron says the breaking point came when she found
- 16:21Speaker 11: text between Tory and Cody revealing that the woman she
- 16:25Speaker 11: loved was planning on leaving her to live with him.
- 16:29Speaker 14: What did you do? I was just sitting downstairs.
- 16:33Speaker 15: Thinking where are We're sitting on the bed, on the
- 16:36Speaker 15: bed beside her while she was sleeping.
- 16:38Speaker 14: Takes up the full times. What were you thinking about?
- 16:41Speaker 14: Thinking about how much I wanted to leave with.
- 16:43Speaker 11: Her and that if she couldn't have Tory, nobody would.
- 16:48Speaker 15: So then you you said that you went upstairs and
- 16:50Speaker 15: got the gun right A three.
- 16:53Speaker 11: Point fifty seven magnum from her father's gun collection, and.
- 16:58Speaker 14: I took it down and I saw her every one.
- 17:03Speaker 14: And where did you shoot her?
- 17:04Speaker 15: The first time?
- 17:05Speaker 11: From in the head, but Tory was still alive.
- 17:10Speaker 14: And then she was known, and then I saw her in.
- 17:15Speaker 11: And when she still didn't die, Aaron says, she picked
- 17:18Speaker 11: up a claw hammer lying nearby to finish her off.
- 17:22Speaker 15: How many times did you hit her with a hammer?
- 17:25Speaker 14: I think twice?
- 17:26Speaker 7: And where did you hit her at?
- 17:29Speaker 14: Like in the phase area?
- 17:34Speaker 15: Why did you hit her with the hammer? Because because
- 17:37Speaker 15: she was gurgling and honestly she was suffering.
- 17:41Speaker 11: But detectives still haven't heard the full story, and to
- 17:46Speaker 11: their own surprise, they'd learn there was a fourth player
- 17:50Speaker 11: in this tragic love triangle, bill Naire, who was engaged
- 17:56Speaker 11: to one of Aaron's cousins.
- 17:57Speaker 14: Can you tell me how to load the guns?
- 18:01Speaker 15: How to pull sugar?
- 18:03Speaker 11: Aaron tells detectives Nair had texted her shooting instructions fully
- 18:08Speaker 11: aware she had murder in mind?
- 18:10Speaker 14: Did you know that you were going to do it today?
- 18:12Speaker 7: Yeah?
- 18:14Speaker 14: And how did he know that?
- 18:15Speaker 4: So?
- 18:15Speaker 14: I told him yesterday that I was thinking.
- 18:19Speaker 11: About it, and Nair admits it when detectives bring him
- 18:24Speaker 11: to the station for a grilling.
- 18:26Speaker 14: So what you're telling me is you got numerous texts
- 18:28Speaker 14: from Aaron who says that you got.
- 18:33Speaker 6: To shoot toy, and you dismissed that answer.
- 18:37Speaker 13: Then you get more text asking how to love a guy? Answer,
- 18:43Speaker 13: and instead of dismissing.
- 18:45Speaker 14: That or telling her you know, maybe I'll think about it,
- 18:49Speaker 14: your question is, well, what kind of guy?
- 18:52Speaker 4: Is it?
- 18:52Speaker 1: Correct answer?
- 18:56Speaker 13: So then you ask her to send you a picture
- 18:58Speaker 13: of the guy.
- 19:01Speaker 11: But Nair claims he didn't believe Aaron was serious until
- 19:04Speaker 11: after she'd actually murdered Tory.
- 19:07Speaker 14: I swear to God right hand up.
- 19:10Speaker 15: I did not know she was really going to do
- 19:12Speaker 15: a dog nuts.
- 19:14Speaker 7: And that was it.
- 19:16Speaker 11: Detectives don't buy it, but give Nair a choice.
- 19:19Speaker 1: You can a good witness or you can be a
- 19:22Speaker 1: good suspect.
- 19:24Speaker 11: And when he agrees to testify against Aaron in return
- 19:28Speaker 11: for reduced charges, the prosecution believes it can prove Tory's
- 19:33Speaker 11: killing was premeditated and convict Aarin a first degree murder,
- 19:39Speaker 11: which carries the death penalty.
- 19:42Speaker 12: I remember saying there is no way, there is no way,
- 19:46Speaker 12: and I just, you know, started crying and I thought
- 19:50Speaker 12: I was gonna throw up.
- 19:52Speaker 11: Nobody is more shocked than Aaron's heartbroken mother, Patricia, who
- 19:56Speaker 11: says she could never have imagined her very religious committing
- 20:01Speaker 11: such a heinous crime.
- 20:03Speaker 12: Aeron is not capable of something like that.
- 20:06Speaker 3: She's not.
- 20:07Speaker 12: She is not that she's not an evil, mean person,
- 20:11Speaker 12: She's not.
- 20:12Speaker 11: In fact, Aaron's defense attorney Brent Peck would argue that
- 20:16Speaker 11: Tory's killing was an uncharacteristic crime of passion.
- 20:20Speaker 5: I believe that it was premeditated, but I believe that
- 20:23Speaker 5: that premeditation was a result of something outside of Aaron
- 20:27Speaker 5: Everett's control.
- 20:29Speaker 11: Peck would claim the savage murder was triggered by battered
- 20:33Speaker 11: women's syndrome, that Erin had simply snapped after being emotionally
- 20:38Speaker 11: and physically abused by Tory. But the judge rules there
- 20:42Speaker 11: is insufficient evidence of abuse to introduce at.
- 20:45Speaker 5: Her trial, so we weren't permitted to present that testimony
- 20:49Speaker 5: of the possibility that these syndromes did exist.
- 20:53Speaker 11: And Aaron Everett would be convicted of the first degree
- 20:57Speaker 11: murder of Tory Minnick and sentenced to life without parole.
- 21:02Speaker 5: It's unfortunate and it's sad for everybody that's involved. It's
- 21:07Speaker 5: said for both families have suffered a loss here.
- 21:10Speaker 11: In a tragedy that Aaron's mother says she will never
- 21:14Speaker 11: fully understand.
- 21:15Speaker 12: How could this have happened? What could have got her
- 21:19Speaker 12: to this point that she could have done something horrendous
- 21:22Speaker 12: like this.
- 21:23Speaker 1: Aaron Everett's attorneys have filed several appeals, but so far
- 21:27Speaker 1: all have been denied. As for Bill Nair, the guy
- 21:29Speaker 1: who gave Aaron instructions on how to use a gun
- 21:32Speaker 1: and turn prosecution witness, he was sentenced to time serve
- 21:35Speaker 1: some forty days in jail on conspiracy to commit homicide.
- 21:41Speaker 1: Coming up, a small town, single mother of three marries
- 21:45Speaker 1: the pastor's son.
- 21:46Speaker 7: He was so caring toward her and so sweet.
- 21:49Speaker 1: When she's found dead, some are wondering if he pulled
- 21:52Speaker 1: the trigger everyone the house fire. That may provide some answers.
- 21:57Speaker 13: Some things you just don't shake off.
- 22:00Speaker 3: Next.
- 22:03Speaker 1: Our next story today is in Virginia. That's where our
- 22:06Speaker 1: Michel Sagone has all new details on the hunt for
- 22:10Speaker 1: a murder suspect, Chris.
- 22:11Speaker 3: Today, we're teaming up at the Wise County Sheriff's Office
- 22:14Speaker 3: and the United States Marshall Service and hopes our viewers
- 22:18Speaker 3: at home can finally help them catch a dangerous fugitive
- 22:23Speaker 3: a vicious.
- 22:23Speaker 1: Murder in the mountains.
- 22:26Speaker 6: Sheeshaw multiple times.
- 22:28Speaker 1: Then the depraved assassin goes on the run.
- 22:31Speaker 13: He's a stonecoke killer who brutally.
- 22:34Speaker 1: Gunned down the unsuspecting victim. And why Thanksgiving weekend at
- 22:41Speaker 1: Chile's Sunday nine, at the water treatment plant in Appalachia, Virginia,
- 22:46Speaker 1: around two am, police are called to the plant to
- 22:49Speaker 1: do a welfare check on the overnight employee. When investigators arrive,
- 22:54Speaker 1: their headlights shine on a shocking scene. A woman is
- 22:58Speaker 1: found lying on the cold gravel driveway dead.
- 23:02Speaker 9: She was shot multiple times.
- 23:05Speaker 1: Detective Duene Phillips tells our Michelle Sagona the killer made
- 23:09Speaker 1: no attempt to hide the body.
- 23:12Speaker 3: The officer makes his drive up here, pulls up and
- 23:15Speaker 3: wears her body.
- 23:17Speaker 6: It's it's here in the Middleville and she.
- 23:19Speaker 3: Had been shot multiple times.
- 23:21Speaker 6: Indications that we have is she was shot at fairly
- 23:23Speaker 6: close ranks.
- 23:26Speaker 1: And investigators believe her killer was lying in wait.
- 23:30Speaker 3: Do you believe the killer was lurking somewhere around this.
- 23:34Speaker 6: Property based on the evidence that we've seen, she was
- 23:38Speaker 6: surprised by her attacker.
- 23:39Speaker 1: Their innocent victim. Single mother of three. Janina Jefferson a
- 23:44Speaker 1: larger than life personality from nearby Big Stone Gap.
- 23:48Speaker 7: She was always laughing. Her laugh was electrifying.
- 23:51Speaker 3: She was a loyal friend.
- 23:52Speaker 7: Oh gosh does the ana would tell you the truth
- 23:54Speaker 7: no matter what. If you didn't like it, well that's
- 23:57Speaker 7: just too bad. She's shot from the hips. She didn't
- 23:59Speaker 7: play game. Did she tell you she loved you at
- 24:01Speaker 7: the end of it?
- 24:02Speaker 1: Thirty eight year old Ganina was a jack of all trades.
- 24:06Speaker 1: She worked the evening shift at the Appalachian Water Treatment Plant.
- 24:09Speaker 7: She loved the water plant. She really did. This was
- 24:12Speaker 7: a job that she had wanted for.
- 24:14Speaker 1: For a long time, and she had a creative side.
- 24:18Speaker 3: I love art, I always have.
- 24:21Speaker 1: She painted store windows around town and had to design
- 24:24Speaker 1: your own glass business, all to provide a good life
- 24:28Speaker 1: for her two sons and daughter.
- 24:31Speaker 7: Janina was a hard worker and her priority was these kids.
- 24:35Speaker 7: So everything that she did was centered around those children.
- 24:39Speaker 1: Then Janita met a man.
- 24:42Speaker 7: I remember her being really excited and telling me that
- 24:46Speaker 7: she had something going on, and I bade her to
- 24:49Speaker 7: tell me what it was, and she said, now, I'll
- 24:50Speaker 7: tell you if it works out.
- 24:52Speaker 1: And workout it did his name, Eric Jones, and he
- 24:57Speaker 1: came from one of the towns well known and expected families.
- 25:01Speaker 3: Do you think his family was attractive to her? The
- 25:04Speaker 3: fact that his mom is a pastor and he seems
- 25:08Speaker 3: to come from a big support system.
- 25:10Speaker 7: Sure, his mom is a wonderful woman, very sincere, a
- 25:14Speaker 7: godly woman.
- 25:16Speaker 1: Before long, Janina and Eric were head over heels.
- 25:19Speaker 7: They were always laughing and cutting up, and the way
- 25:23Speaker 7: they looked at each other. Jana really loved him, and
- 25:25Speaker 7: I really feel like.
- 25:26Speaker 3: He loved her.
- 25:27Speaker 7: He was so carrying towards.
- 25:29Speaker 1: Her, and so sweet and sweet towards Janina's kids too.
- 25:33Speaker 1: For the couple, it was all good. Eric was going
- 25:37Speaker 1: to be the new man of the house. But first
- 25:40Speaker 1: their wedding.
- 25:41Speaker 3: Who was at the wedding?
- 25:43Speaker 7: Oh my gosh, it was pat who wasn't at the wedding.
- 25:47Speaker 7: It was absolutely beautiful.
- 25:49Speaker 3: It seemed like these were two people who were meant
- 25:51Speaker 3: to be together.
- 25:52Speaker 1: Absolutely Now tragically Janina was gone, and with no video
- 25:57Speaker 1: surveillance at the water treatment plant, cops start at square one.
- 26:02Speaker 1: They're interested in talking with everyone close to Janina.
- 26:06Speaker 6: Everyone's suspect coming up.
- 26:08Speaker 1: Janina's family is shot when cops drew in on their
- 26:11Speaker 1: prime suspect, her husband.
- 26:13Speaker 9: There is a video of him.
- 26:16Speaker 1: He's caught on camera, but now he's gone. Where is
- 26:20Speaker 1: Eric Jones and what does his secret pass reveal. We're
- 26:27Speaker 1: back now with more on the murder of a mother
- 26:29Speaker 1: of three in Virginia. Police would like to question her
- 26:32Speaker 1: ex husband to find out if he knows who may
- 26:35Speaker 1: have wanted her dead. But there's one very big problem
- 26:38Speaker 1: with that. Janina Jefferson is dead, shot multiple times outside
- 26:44Speaker 1: her job at the water treatment plant.
- 26:46Speaker 3: Could you find the gun?
- 26:47Speaker 9: Gun has not been located.
- 26:48Speaker 1: Cops tell our Michelle Sagona. They're looking at a number
- 26:51Speaker 1: of people, but one person tops their list.
- 26:54Speaker 6: Everyone's a suspect, But we went where the evidence led
- 26:57Speaker 6: us to, and they led us back to Eric.
- 27:00Speaker 1: Eric Jones, her husband. But could it be He was
- 27:04Speaker 1: the son of a pastor from a prominent family in town.
- 27:07Speaker 1: He tried to be a second father two or three kids,
- 27:11Speaker 1: but now he was wanted for questioning.
- 27:13Speaker 6: I can place him in the air prior to the
- 27:14Speaker 6: murder and also after the murder.
- 27:17Speaker 9: But how there is some video of him at a
- 27:20Speaker 9: local convenience store.
- 27:22Speaker 3: Investigators say right after the murder, they have Eric Jones
- 27:25Speaker 3: on surveillance walking into this convenience store. What does the
- 27:29Speaker 3: convenience store video show you?
- 27:32Speaker 9: Shows Eric Jones walk in, get a six pack of
- 27:37Speaker 9: beery out of cooler, another small item, and pay for
- 27:40Speaker 9: it and then late the store as if I'm gonna
- 27:44Speaker 9: go home watch the game or you know, watch TV.
- 27:47Speaker 9: Didn't seem like he was upset or you know, there
- 27:51Speaker 9: was no indicators that anything had just happened.
- 27:54Speaker 1: Turns out Eric Jones was a wolf in sheep's clothing.
- 27:59Speaker 1: He's got a wrap shet a mile long.
- 28:01Speaker 3: What did you think about her with a convicted felon?
- 28:04Speaker 7: She told me the story, but she also told me
- 28:07Speaker 7: things are different. Now, let's give him a chance. You
- 28:10Speaker 7: gotta give him a chance. And I thought, okay, if
- 28:12Speaker 7: you're going to so am I.
- 28:14Speaker 1: His history of crimes serious? Attempted murder for hire, that's right,
- 28:19Speaker 1: attempted murder for a hire.
- 28:21Speaker 3: Who was he trying to kill?
- 28:23Speaker 9: Who's trying to kill a mother and her two children?
- 28:26Speaker 3: Was he the one who was contracted to do the killing? Yes?
- 28:30Speaker 1: Intended target Karen Martin?
- 28:34Speaker 3: So you were a single mom?
- 28:35Speaker 1: Yes?
- 28:36Speaker 3: How old were your children?
- 28:37Speaker 7: They were.
- 28:40Speaker 3: Seven and eight?
- 28:41Speaker 1: And she knew her attempted assassin.
- 28:44Speaker 7: He was friends with my cousins, and you know I
- 28:47Speaker 7: hung around him.
- 28:49Speaker 1: Karen says she and her two kids went to sleep
- 28:51Speaker 1: one night and woke up to an inferno.
- 28:54Speaker 7: I called nine one one and told him, I said,
- 28:59Speaker 7: my house is on fire.
- 29:01Speaker 1: Wise County Sheriff's investigator Charles Curry was one of the
- 29:04Speaker 1: first on the scene.
- 29:06Speaker 3: So you pull up to a single family home, it's
- 29:08Speaker 3: on fire, it's englfed in flames, and you get reports
- 29:12Speaker 3: that there are people possibly trapped inside.
- 29:15Speaker 13: Yes, we made entry through the front door and we
- 29:20Speaker 13: could hear screams in the back. Myself and this other officer.
- 29:24Speaker 13: We made our way to the back bedroom and that's
- 29:26Speaker 13: where we found all three occupants.
- 29:28Speaker 3: You saved her and her children's life that night.
- 29:33Speaker 1: That was our job.
- 29:35Speaker 3: Is this really the first time you've recounted this in
- 29:38Speaker 3: a long time?
- 29:39Speaker 13: Oh yeah, definitely.
- 29:41Speaker 3: Why is this so emotional for you?
- 29:45Speaker 13: Well, just like anybody you have kids involved that you
- 29:50Speaker 13: have kids your own, you can relate some things you
- 29:54Speaker 13: just don't shake off.
- 29:56Speaker 1: Investigators in tennis go up when they smell gasoline inside
- 29:59Speaker 1: the home and final spent matches outside on Karen's car,
- 30:03Speaker 1: which had also been doused with the accelerant.
- 30:06Speaker 13: It led us to believe, Hey, we've got a problem here.
- 30:09Speaker 3: Did Karen have any known enemies?
- 30:11Speaker 13: It was determined that she did, and it came out
- 30:16Speaker 13: it was a murder for hire case. It was determined
- 30:20Speaker 13: that there was two individuals who were paid with crack
- 30:23Speaker 13: cocaine to burn that residence. With those three people went in.
- 30:28Speaker 13: Eric Jones was one of the suspects involved. Eric was
- 30:32Speaker 13: not arrested immediately because he went on the road.
- 30:35Speaker 1: Then two months later, Eric Jones' luck came to a
- 30:38Speaker 1: screeching halt when he was pulled over for a traffic
- 30:42Speaker 1: violation in Texas, some thirteen hundred miles away. Wise County
- 30:47Speaker 1: Assistant Sheriff Grant Kilgore spent four days in a car
- 30:50Speaker 1: with erk transformed him back to Virginia.
- 30:53Speaker 3: What did he say to you during that time?
- 30:55Speaker 9: He said very little. He slept most of the time.
- 30:58Speaker 9: He seemed very unconcerned about the charges he was facing.
- 31:01Speaker 3: Did he seem remorseful? Not at all.
- 31:05Speaker 1: Eric Jones was indicted on seven felony charges, including three
- 31:09Speaker 1: counts of attempted capital murder for hire. He eventually pleaded guilty,
- 31:14Speaker 1: did two felony charges, and was sentenced to twenty years
- 31:17Speaker 1: in prison. He served five.
- 31:20Speaker 3: Was there any point in all this where you forgave
- 31:22Speaker 3: him for what he did to you?
- 31:24Speaker 7: His mother had told me that he was sorry for
- 31:27Speaker 7: what he did, but he never personally told me.
- 31:31Speaker 3: I mean, you have to forgive. It's something that I
- 31:34Speaker 3: never forget.
- 31:35Speaker 1: So Ganina knew about arish brutal past, but was willing
- 31:39Speaker 1: to look the other way. She loved him, wanted to
- 31:42Speaker 1: be with him, and believed he had changed in the
- 31:45Speaker 1: fifteen years since he'd committed that awful crime.
- 31:48Speaker 3: It seems like she saw the good and everyone.
- 31:51Speaker 7: She did. And you know what, And when I met him,
- 31:54Speaker 7: he was the nicest guy ever, Like if you had
- 31:57Speaker 7: to write down things and check them all off about
- 32:02Speaker 7: somebody being reformed or whatever. He fits that. He did
- 32:05Speaker 7: a lot of things for the community, a lot of
- 32:08Speaker 7: things at church.
- 32:09Speaker 3: It seemed like he had turned a new lead. Yes,
- 32:12Speaker 3: I believe that, and she forgave him.
- 32:16Speaker 7: Yes.
- 32:17Speaker 1: But two years later the cracks in the foundation began
- 32:20Speaker 1: to show. April says the beginning of the end started
- 32:24Speaker 1: at a Fourth of July party.
- 32:26Speaker 7: She said that Eric had shot a gun off at
- 32:30Speaker 7: the block party, and you know he wasn't supposed to
- 32:33Speaker 7: have again, so she was really upset about it.
- 32:35Speaker 3: At what point do they separate?
- 32:38Speaker 7: I think she tried one more time after that with
- 32:40Speaker 7: some hesitation that they were going to stay together. And
- 32:44Speaker 7: then the next thing I knows, she's crying every day
- 32:47Speaker 7: and saying, all right, that's it. I can't I can't
- 32:50Speaker 7: do it anymore.
- 32:51Speaker 1: Janina filed for divorce and the day it was finalized.
- 32:56Speaker 3: There was an incident where he attempted to allegedly strangle her.
- 33:00Speaker 7: She told me that, and he came to the water
- 33:02Speaker 7: plant and she said things just got out of hand
- 33:05Speaker 7: and then she felt like she needed to get a
- 33:06Speaker 7: restrained order.
- 33:08Speaker 1: Eric Jones was arrested for strangulation and trespassing. A judge
- 33:12Speaker 1: let him out on bill.
- 33:14Speaker 3: Did she come to you and say I'm afraid for
- 33:16Speaker 3: my safety because he sat tell.
- 33:18Speaker 7: Me that one time? She said, I got again. She said,
- 33:20Speaker 7: I feel like I need that for my protection, and
- 33:22Speaker 7: she said, I'm really scared. I said to her, because
- 33:26Speaker 7: I had seen the good side of things, I said,
- 33:29Speaker 7: she ain'ta don't worry, it's going to be okay.
- 33:33Speaker 1: But tragically it wouldn't be okay. Janina is now dead
- 33:38Speaker 1: and Eric Jones is on the run again. Coming up,
- 33:43Speaker 1: we try to get.
- 33:44Speaker 8: Answers missus Jones, I'm here about your son, Eric Jones.
- 33:51Speaker 1: They say you can't help who you fall in love with,
- 33:54Speaker 1: and for one Virginia woman that certainly was the case.
- 33:57Speaker 1: Little did she know at the time she would be
- 33:59Speaker 1: walking down the aisle straight into the arms of a killer.
- 34:05Speaker 1: Eric Jones is on the run. He's a monster, hiding
- 34:09Speaker 1: out after allegedly gunning down his ex wife, Janina Jefferson
- 34:14Speaker 1: outside her job at the Appalachia Water Treatment Plant.
- 34:17Speaker 6: We have evidence we fill as overwhelming evidence against Eric.
- 34:22Speaker 1: The manhunt is on. Cops start searching in the secluded
- 34:26Speaker 1: areas surrounding the water plant.
- 34:28Speaker 9: We did ground searches, vehicle searches, then we actually brought
- 34:31Speaker 9: in choppers on three different occasions, and then a specially
- 34:34Speaker 9: equipped airplane that has some of the most sensitive photography
- 34:38Speaker 9: available flew all those areas that we possibly could with
- 34:41Speaker 9: that device. There was no indication that Eric was in
- 34:44Speaker 9: any of those areas, whether it was a body or
- 34:47Speaker 9: you know, they're hiding out in a cabin over.
- 34:49Speaker 1: Ten no sign of Eric Jones anywhere. But Jones has
- 34:54Speaker 1: had practice run it, He's done it before. Last time
- 34:58Speaker 1: he managed to elude capture for a couple of months.
- 35:00Speaker 3: He hasn't changed at all.
- 35:02Speaker 13: No, not a bit.
- 35:06Speaker 1: Jones may be enjoying his freedom right now, but comes
- 35:09Speaker 1: tell our Michelle Sagona, one of his buddies, Jacob Roland,
- 35:13Speaker 1: isn't as.
- 35:14Speaker 3: Lucky you've made want arrest so far. Yes, we have
- 35:18Speaker 3: an associate of Eric Jones's and this person may have
- 35:21Speaker 3: allegedly helped him prior to and after the incident. Is
- 35:25Speaker 3: that correct? Correct?
- 35:27Speaker 9: Part of his charge was the fact that he did
- 35:29Speaker 9: transport him to the scene origin and that was murdered.
- 35:32Speaker 3: Do you believe it's possible there could be other people
- 35:35Speaker 3: out there who may have assisted him.
- 35:37Speaker 6: I believe that there is. Yes.
- 35:39Speaker 3: Has his family been cooperative?
- 35:41Speaker 6: I've spoken to his mother, God very late. She has
- 35:44Speaker 6: been devastated by what has occurred, and I feel that
- 35:49Speaker 6: she's been cooperative with us as as much as she can.
- 35:52Speaker 1: We wanted to talk to Jones's mom, pastor Sandra Jones,
- 35:56Speaker 1: to see what she knows about her son's whereabouts.
- 36:00Speaker 3: This is the neighborhood where Eric Jones has the most contacts.
- 36:03Speaker 3: In fact, his own mother lives right here. This is
- 36:06Speaker 3: the truck he used to drive. We have no idea
- 36:09Speaker 3: if Eric Jones's mother or any of his family members
- 36:13Speaker 3: have been in contact with him, but we thought we
- 36:15Speaker 3: would knock on the door just to see if we
- 36:17Speaker 3: could find out.
- 36:21Speaker 8: Missus Jones. Michelle Sagona hear from Crime Watch Daily, I'm
- 36:27Speaker 8: here about your son, Eric Jones.
- 36:32Speaker 3: Doesn't appear anyone's home right now.
- 36:34Speaker 1: Now, as Jones is so far walking free, Janina's eldest son, Trey,
- 36:39Speaker 1: says he and his siblings are left to deal with
- 36:42Speaker 1: what comps believe Jones savagely took from that.
- 36:45Speaker 3: Are you angry?
- 36:47Speaker 15: I was for a long time.
- 36:48Speaker 1: Yeah.
- 36:49Speaker 3: What are you feeling right now?
- 36:54Speaker 15: I oh, no, h.
- 36:57Speaker 1: I do have closure.
- 36:58Speaker 14: I don't let it eat at me every day, just
- 37:00Speaker 14: because I know that she's in a better place.
- 37:04Speaker 1: I don't want to.
- 37:05Speaker 2: Say that I'm looking forward to be in there, but
- 37:09Speaker 2: I'm just knowing that my mom's watching me.
- 37:13Speaker 1: She need his friend. April Hall is still in shock
- 37:16Speaker 1: that her friend is gone.
- 37:18Speaker 7: Sometimes it's just hard to break break this really happened.
- 37:21Speaker 1: And she's haunted by the advice.
- 37:23Speaker 7: She gave her, telling her, Hey, don't worry, It's gonna
- 37:25Speaker 7: be okay. And gosh, that's the hardest thing for me
- 37:32Speaker 7: every day is I think, why did I say that?
- 37:35Speaker 7: Why did I say it was gonna be okay? Because
- 37:37Speaker 7: obviously it wasn't okay.
- 37:39Speaker 1: Even cops are deeply affected by this heinish crime.
- 37:43Speaker 3: It's been the hardest part for you about all this.
- 37:47Speaker 13: In the sense of the murder, is this family losing
- 37:51Speaker 13: a level? Then in the sense of him not in custody,
- 37:57Speaker 13: is he's out there walking free while this family suffer?
- 38:00Speaker 3: Smallfair? Give me me.
- 38:09Speaker 1: It's been almost a year since Eric Jones went on
- 38:12Speaker 1: the lamp, and the US Marshall Service has made this
- 38:15Speaker 1: case of priority in.
- 38:17Speaker 10: The rim of fugitive cases we work. This has been
- 38:21Speaker 10: moved up to a major case for the US Marshall Service,
- 38:24Speaker 10: which means extra resources, extra financial assistance, extra odds, extra investigators.
- 38:32Speaker 1: In crime watch deally, he has joined the hunt, helping
- 38:36Speaker 1: law enforcement get the word out to everyone watching.
- 38:39Speaker 9: Eric Jones is very charismatic and he can cross all
- 38:43Speaker 9: social boundaries from street level gang members to church members
- 38:48Speaker 9: to people who have status within their communities, and is
- 38:52Speaker 9: well locked by those people.
- 38:53Speaker 3: Do you think he could be dating multiple women?
- 38:56Speaker 9: He is very busy in that category. He likes women
- 39:00Speaker 9: when when, and multiple when somebody is dating him somewhere.
- 39:04Speaker 2: H m hm