15 blunders that helped investigators put criminals behind bars

7 months ago

How criminal blunders led investigators to drawback these killers

How criminal blunders led investigators to drawback these killers 03:26

As we observe our 35th day season, nan unit astatine "48 Hours" has had nan chance to bespeak connected nan staggering number of cases we've featured successful our clip covering nan criminal justness system.

We've seen nan lengths immoderate killers person gone to successful bid to evade justice: clone identities, burner phones, hired hitmen. They've bleached crime scenes and destroyed evidence. Bodies were buried and burned and near astatine sea. A cook cooked his victim. Some person travel up pinch ingenious ways to termination — poisoning pinch nicotine aliases eye drops. We've seen crime scenes that befuddled humor spatter experts and injuries that near aesculapian examiners unsure really nan victims died.

But immoderate mightiness opportunity that conscionable arsenic absorbing are those who made specified evident mistakes that they guidelines successful a class of their own: examples of really not to get distant pinch murder.

Here are 15 standouts.

Thomas Murray | "A Mind for Murder"

After his ex-wife Carmin was recovered beaten and stabbed successful her home, grounds showed that Thomas Murray had been researching online really to prosecute an assassin and "how to execution personification and not get caught." (Aired: March 29, 2008)

Tracey Frame | "Secrets and Lies connected Grapevine Lake"

Investigators recovered video footage astatine nan Tom Thumb supermarket of a female who looked for illustration Tracey Frame buying muriatic acid, a chemic utilized for cleaning. They believed she planned to usage it to cleanable humor stains aft she'd killed her live-in boyfriend, David Nixon. Police were capable to corroborate it was her because she utilized her customer loyalty paper erstwhile she paid, redeeming 19 cents. (Aired: May 26, 2007)

Jimmy Ray Rodgers and Curtis Wayne Wright | "The Plot to Kill Dr. Sievers"

Rodgers and Wright Walmart surveillance video

Jimmy Ray Rodgers and Curtis Wayne Wright used a GPS connected their rental car to get directions to nan location wherever they killed Teresa Sievers, nan woman of Wright's champion friend Mark Sievers. One of nan different GPS points was nan section Walmart, wherever they were captured connected information cameras buying cleaning products. (Aired: Aug. 22, 2020)

Chandler Halderson | "The Snapchat Clue"

Chandler Halderson had agreed to fto his woman show his whereabouts to beryllium he wasn't cheating - but erstwhile he dumped his mother's body, he forgot to move disconnected nan location search connected Snapchat. (Aired: Nov. 5, 2022)

Dr. Pamela Buchbinder | "The Psychiatrist and nan Selfie"

Dr. Pamela Buchbinder and her relative Jacob Nolan were caught connected information footage astatine Home Depot buying a sledgehammer, which Nolan utilized to onslaught Buchbinder's ex-boyfriend, Michael Weiss. (Aired: Nov. 5, 2022)

Piper Rountree | "Two Wigs, a Gun and a Murder"

Fred Jablin was murdered successful beforehand of his Virginia location successful 2004. His ex-wife Piper Rountree, a erstwhile prosecutor, told constabulary she was astatine location successful Texas each weekend. But they learned she'd utilized a cellphone, for illustration nan 1 pictured, successful Virginia, including having a pizza delivered to her hotel. At nan time, "burner" phones were wide utilized by criminals — thing that she should person been alert of from her clip arsenic a prosecutor. (Aired: Aug. 5, 2006)

Charles Bryant | "The Murder of Jackie Vandagriff"

Police recovered a receipt successful Charles Bryant's flat showing he'd gone connected an early greeting shopping travel to Walmart astatine 4:43 a.m. Surveillance video showed that he'd purchased a shovel. Police judge he utilized it to effort to hide nan assemblage of Jackie Vandagriff — who he'd killed earlier that evening aft gathering her astatine a bar. (Aired: Aug. 14, 2021)

Justin Barber | "Secrets successful nan Sand"

Justin Barber said his woman April was killed during a late-night robbery, wherever he was besides shot. Investigators discovered he'd Googled hunt position "medical, trauma, gunshot, chest" six months earlier, and judge he turned nan weapon connected himself arsenic good arsenic April. The time of nan execution he besides downloaded nan Guns 'n Roses opus "Used to Love Her" (But I Had to Kill Her). (Aired: June 23, 2007)

Dinh Bowman | "A Student of Murder"

For years, nan tech-savvy brilliant had been downloading books, articles and videos connected nan taxable of decease and execution and trying to get distant pinch it. It was among nan grounds utilized to convict Dinh Bowman for nan random thrill termination execution of Yancy Noll. (Aired Sept. 10, 2016)

Jennifer Faith | "The Plot to Kill Jamie Faith"

After her hubby Jamie's murder, Jennifer Faith went connected TV and said nan man who changeable him drove a achromatic pickup motortruck pinch a large T connected nan backmost window. That tip, arsenic good arsenic surveillance video from nan scene, led authorities to her boyfriend, who she conspired pinch to termination her husband. (Aired: April 9, 2022)

Danielle "Dani" Green | "The Killing of Cowboy Ray Green"

Dani Green told authorities investigating nan decease of her ex-husband Ray they could look anyplace connected her ample spot isolated from "that box." That container — being a ample metal toolbox, sitting respective yards distant from nan entranceway to their trailer. Investigators sewage a search warrant for nan box, and that's wherever they recovered Ray's body. (Aired: June 11, 2022)

Christopher Coleman | "The Writing connected nan Wall"

Chris Coleman claimed personification was making threats to him and his family. His woman and 2 sons were recovered murdered wrong successful their house, pinch agleam reddish spray overgarment each complete nan walls. Investigators traced nan anonymous email threats he had been receiving backmost to his ain laptop, past recovered a receipt signed by Coleman purchasing "candy pome red" spray overgarment astatine a section hardware shop earlier nan murders. (Aired: July 19, 2014)

Darren Mack | "Caught successful nan Crossfire"

After nan decease of his ex-wife Charla, a hunt of Darren Mack's condo turned up a to-do database referring to "end[ing] nan problem" and definite weapons that he would request to fulfill those plans. (Aired: Aug. 8, 2009)

Kris Zocco | "The Disappearance of Kelly Dwyer"

Kelly Dwyer and Kris Zocco information camera

Kris Zocco was seen connected surveillance video entering his flat building pinch Kelly Dwyer. It's nan past clip she is ever seen alive. There were 28 surveillance cameras successful nan building and according to nan police, nary of them seizure Kelly Dwyer exiting nan building. (Aired: May 16, 2020)

Michael Handley | "The Kidnapping of Schanda Handley"

Michael Handley's estranged woman Schanda was kidnapped astatine gunpoint by 2 individuals he hired. Investigators later recovered surveillance video of him purchasing nan handcuffs utilized connected her, a receipt showing that he paid pinch a in installments paper to rent nan van nan kidnappers drove and video from his information camera showing him saying he wanted her dead. (Aired: Oct. 22, 2022)