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Killer Relationship with Faith Jenkins
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FunTranscript
00:00Such a nice man, such a good person, good-hearted, never would hurt a soul.
00:06He wanted his own business, something to make money.
00:10Jerry was gay. He was always searching for love, and it just didn't happen.
00:16A vicious murder.
00:1832 times he was stabbed.
00:19This is personal, some sort of personal rage.
00:23Was it someone Jerry just met?
00:25He was on multiple dating apps.
00:27Jerry was looking for a new roommate. It could just be somebody he brought home.
00:31A prison pen pal.
00:33We have an inmate who has a criminal record that's been released.
00:36Did he come over to Jerry's house?
00:38Or perhaps an old friend.
00:40Wayne was a troubled fellow. He would spend a lot of nights on Jerry's couch.
00:45Jerry always said he felt sorry for him.
00:47What was it that led to a killer relationship?
00:51I was like, God, Jerry just signed his death warrant.
00:54He tried to fight for his life.
00:57Ask anyone who knows 46-year-old Jerry Moore, and they'll tell you this.
01:15He never met a stranger.
01:17Gregarious and kind, Jerry has a knack for putting people at ease.
01:21That's why it's so shocking when on a cold winter's night in January 2014,
01:27his life is cut short by a ruthless killer.
01:30The search for the culprit leads law enforcement down a path of unexpected twists and turns,
01:36where the truth is elusive and justice is not swift.
01:40We pull up to the house,
02:01and then I make contact with the initial responding officers.
02:06They said the neighbor across the street called and said that they found the door open,
02:10and the house looked like it was ransacked.
02:14I walk in the house.
02:16As soon as I walk into the living room, I see blood everywhere.
02:19As I step further and looked over the edge of the couch,
02:26that's when I observe the victim lying face down in a pool of blood.
02:32We go over to the body,
02:34and then once they'd start pulling his shirt up,
02:39it's when we start noticing the stab wounds.
02:42He not only had stab wounds on his back,
02:45but he had stab wounds on the front, defensive wounds.
02:48We learned the victim's name was Jerry Moore.
02:52He suffered.
02:53He definitely suffered.
02:55It was very apparent that he had been there for more than several hours.
03:00When you see injuries of this nature,
03:04my investigative mind immediately goes to,
03:06this is some sort of personal rage,
03:08something with a lot of emotion behind it.
03:11There was no forced entry at all into that house.
03:15So right away, it's telling me that
03:17whoever came into this house,
03:20Jerry had to have known who they were and let them in.
03:25You start thinking, okay,
03:27who did he have in this house?
03:30Jerry Moore is born on June 3rd, 1967,
03:40in Oroville, Ohio.
03:42Jerry was a real sweet boy as he grew up.
03:46He was outgoing and happy.
03:49If he just met you,
03:50he would do anything for you.
03:52If you needed a dollar,
03:54he would give you two dollars.
03:56By the time he's two years old,
03:58Jerry's parents split up.
04:00His mother has primary custody,
04:02but he spends weekends and holidays with his father and stepmother, Judy.
04:07Jerry called me mom.
04:08We just loved each other and became the best friends there ever was.
04:14He was real smart.
04:16He could figure out anything.
04:19Jerry tried to save every dime that he had.
04:21He wanted to start his own business.
04:25He wanted to start his own business.
04:26When he graduated from high school, he went into computers.
04:31As a teenager, Jerry has a knack for business.
04:36But he silently struggles to find his place socially.
04:40He shared that he was gay when he was in his 20s.
04:44And I told him, I love you.
04:45I don't care about him being gay.
04:48Despite the love and support from his family,
04:51Jerry finds life in Orville, Ohio, stifling.
04:55With a population of just under 9,000,
04:57the small town just isn't big enough for the life Jerry wants.
05:01So, at age 29, he moves to Atlanta, Georgia.
05:06The Atlanta area is kind of what we call the gay mecca of the East.
05:11He would go to the local bars trying to meet people.
05:16Our friendship started in 1996.
05:21I had gone out to a little local country and western bar.
05:25When I came off the dance floor,
05:29he came over there and grabbed my shoulder and spun me around.
05:32He goes, I want to see who is this queen in the red Wonder Woman boots.
05:37That started our friendship.
05:40Jerry and I, we were always platonic.
05:42We had fun.
05:44We're good friendship.
05:45But he always was wanting to settle down and have a partner.
05:52Jerry's love life is lacking,
05:53but his business acumen is not.
05:57In 1996, he leaves the tech world
06:00to try his hand in the real estate business.
06:03He told me that he just wanted something to make money.
06:07He bought several houses and he was trying to flip them.
06:11You know, he just wanted to reach a level to feel successful
06:16and his family be proud of him.
06:19Over a period of 10 years,
06:20Jerry successfully renovates and sells dozens of properties.
06:25And in 2006,
06:27he buys a place of his own in Marietta, Georgia,
06:3020 miles north of Atlanta.
06:32Jerry lived across the street.
06:34He worked from home.
06:36He was just always there and decorating his house
06:40and doing things.
06:41And he was like another brother to me.
06:43He liked the fact that house had split living quarters
06:47because in his mind,
06:49he always thought he would have a roommate.
06:52Since he was gay,
06:54he thought another gay person will get along great.
06:57Jerry posted ads and he had found someone to rent the room.
07:03His name is Ross.
07:05Ross and Jerry hit it off as roommates and as friends.
07:09A few months after moving in,
07:12they start talking business.
07:15The bakery that Ross worked at,
07:17the owner needed to sell it.
07:20So Ross approached Jerry and he said,
07:22you know, would you consider investing in a bakery?
07:25Jerry was open to it.
07:28Jerry handled the money side of everything.
07:31And Ross was the baker
07:33and kept the operations going throughout the week.
07:35It's an ideal situation.
07:39Jerry and Ross own it 50-50 and business booms.
07:43Three years after they joined forces,
07:45Jerry and Ross have enough money
07:47to expand and renovate the bakery.
07:49There was a whole new cake decorating room.
07:52Ross was excited to show it
07:53and they had a grand reopening.
07:57They had the highest revenues had ever made.
08:00Jerry was quite excited.
08:02The bakery continues to flourish,
08:04but on the home front,
08:06change is in the air.
08:08In 2013, after seven years as roommates,
08:11Ross decides he needs a place of his own.
08:14He moves into a townhouse closer to the bakery
08:16while Jerry looks for a new roommate.
08:19But instead of a fresh start,
08:21Jerry is met with an awful end.
08:23Found dead in his living room,
08:26violently stabbed to death.
08:29Here are the prints with a lot of traffic right here.
08:32This was my first case as a lead detective.
08:36I've assisted in homicides before,
08:38but this was my first time
08:40as being the actual lead detective.
08:43And it's a lot of pressure.
08:45The house was dusted for fingerprints.
08:49Jerry's cell phone was collected.
08:51That's an important piece of evidence.
08:53We made contact with several neighbors
08:55to ask them about mysterious vehicles
08:58or suspicious persons that they saw at the home.
09:01The neighbors, Pam and John Blair,
09:03made the 911 call.
09:04They were probably the closest with him.
09:06They knew about Jerry.
09:08They talked to Jerry all the time.
09:10They said Jerry was a partner in a bakery
09:13with a gentleman named Ross Byrne.
09:15They said Ross and Jerry lived together for seven years.
09:17Because he lived with the victim for so long,
09:20he would have the most information
09:22of who Jerry was friends with,
09:24who he had problems with.
09:26So we made contact with Ross.
09:28We told him that Jerry was killed.
09:31He was surprised.
09:32And I asked him if he would come in and talk to us.
09:34Ross agrees to come into our headquarters.
09:39He wasn't upset.
09:41And I'm thinking to myself right off the bat,
09:43that's kind of strange.
09:44What was your guys' relationship like?
09:47We used to do occasional dinners and talk business.
09:51Okay.
09:52Ross said they lived separate rooms in the house.
09:54Ross's room was to the back
09:56and Jerry's room was in the front.
09:57They barely had a friendship.
09:59The extent of their relationship
10:01was more just the business.
10:03When it comes to stabbings,
10:04I'll always look at somebody's hands
10:06and I'm looking to see if there's any kind of injuries
10:09to show there was any kind of fight or struggle.
10:12I looked at his hands
10:13and I didn't notice anything on his hands.
10:16Did he mention anything of, like,
10:18the name of anybody or anything
10:19when he mentioned about his prospects
10:21for a new roommate?
10:22No, no.
10:22No?
10:23Ross is like, yeah,
10:24he was looking for a new roommate
10:26and made mention that he possibly had a prospect
10:28for a new roommate but never had a name.
10:31Who's he close with?
10:33He has two friends, Randy and Wayne.
10:38It was, like, beginning of last summer
10:40that Wayne just showed up.
10:43I think his last name was New, N-E-W.
10:46Screwed up guy.
10:48They met in the bar.
10:50Jerry always said he felt sorry for him
10:52because he couldn't find a job.
10:54Ross told us that Wayne was a troubled fellow.
10:57He was broke.
10:58He was homeless.
10:59He would spend a lot of nights on Jerry's couch
11:01and, at times, he would borrow Jerry's car.
11:04That kind of raised suspicions about Wayne.
11:08Here's a guy that frequents Jerry's house,
11:12possibly knows Jerry's patterns.
11:15So this was pushing Wayne to the top of the list.
11:19We needed to find Wayne.
11:24Somebody really had some hatred
11:27and really wanted to make sure he was dead.
11:29The last young man he talked, he was in jail in Kentucky.
11:32I mean, Chris.
11:34If you had to guess where Wayne is right now,
11:36where do you think he is?
11:36I don't know.
11:38He's got a documented history of using a knife.
11:42He committed the murder.
11:43We just had to prove it.
11:52Hours into the murder investigation of Jerry Moore,
11:55his former roommate, Ross, tells Cobb County investigators
11:59that Jerry used to allow a drifter named Wayne
12:02to occasionally sleep on his couch.
12:05Luckily, investigators discover that Jerry's phone
12:08is not password protected
12:10and his call logs are readily available,
12:13making the search for Wayne that much easier.
12:16That night, we get Wayne's phone number
12:18out of Jerry's phone.
12:20We subpoenaed Wayne's phone.
12:22We get the records back from Verizon,
12:23but all we get is a name.
12:24We don't have an address associated with it.
12:28We noticed a number that this Wayne guy
12:30was constantly calling.
12:32There was a lot of calls made to a female
12:34by the name of Michelle Burnett.
12:36We were able to get an address for Michelle.
12:40Detective Stoddart and Sergeant Knobloch
12:42went out to speak to her.
12:43We met with Michelle.
12:47We explained to her we had information to believe
12:48that someone by the name of Wayne
12:50may have information to help us.
12:52She said she hadn't spoken to him
13:12in the last 24 to 48 hours,
13:14which was not normal.
13:16Last time you talked to him,
13:17what was going on with him?
13:19He's always stressed out.
13:20He can't handle stress very well.
13:22He's like a bad case.
13:24What do you mean by that?
13:26His family doesn't really help him.
13:29So he goes from friend to friend house.
13:32If you had to guess where Wayne is right now,
13:35where do you think he is?
13:35I don't know.
13:38Do you want me to try to call him?
13:40Yep.
13:40Michelle calls, but gets no answer.
13:44We need to talk to him,
13:46and she understood that completely.
13:47We were hoping that she would be able
13:50to make contact with Wayne at some point
13:52and see where he was at.
13:54Hoping Michelle connects with Wayne,
13:57the detectives now need to identify
13:59who Jerry Moore's next of kin is
14:01and inform them of his murder.
14:04Around sunrise the next morning,
14:06they began making the difficult calls.
14:08They called my husband, Jerry's father, Larry,
14:13and told him, and I just fell to pieces.
14:18It just tore me apart.
14:21It killed me.
14:24Jerry's mother reached out to me.
14:27She said the police called,
14:29and he had been murdered in a home invasion.
14:32How in the world could this even happen to him?
14:38In my mind, it starts, you know,
14:40playing out scenarios of how, when, and why.
14:44When Jerry said, well,
14:46I'm going to be placing ads for a roommate again,
14:49I really felt like it's possible
14:51that some random person without intentions
14:55of renting a place didn't like gay people
14:57and was going to answer the ad
14:59and do harm to them.
15:02So I phoned the Cobb County detectives.
15:05I get a phone call from Jerry's friend, Randy.
15:09Randy was very concerned that Jerry
15:12brought the wrong guy home.
15:13I remember Detective Stockinger asked me
15:16what I knew of Wayne.
15:19Randy mentioned that Jerry was trying
15:21to help Wayne find a job,
15:22so we know he's somebody close to Jerry.
15:25Knowing what I knew about Wayne
15:27and how much he adored Jerry as a friend,
15:31I just couldn't believe that.
15:32And I said, I don't think he's capable
15:34of anything like that.
15:3636 hours after Jerry Morris found dead,
15:39the autopsy report comes in.
15:41While no foreign DNA is discovered on the body,
15:45the savageness of the crime is clearly evident.
15:4932 times he was stabbed.
15:52That amount of stab wounds,
15:55you know, somebody really had some hatred for him
15:59and really wanted to make sure he was dead.
16:01At this point, the investigators consider Wayne
16:05their strongest suspect.
16:07He's finally located three days after the murder.
16:11Wayne's friend, Michelle,
16:13was able to get in contact with Wayne
16:15and told Wayne that the police were looking for him.
16:18So Wayne contacted us and agreed to meet with us.
16:22He said he was staying with a female friend.
16:25He was very fidgety, very nervous.
16:28Slow down.
16:30Because you're at high speed right now,
16:32and you're just, I don't know why you're nervous.
16:35I'm just, I don't know why I'm being questioned,
16:38number one.
16:40Jerry's dead.
16:41So that's why we're here.
16:43I understand that.
16:44I just can't get, and I'm nervous.
16:47We know Jerry's killed sometime Sunday,
16:50so we started asking him what his weekend looked like.
16:55Let's talk about Sunday.
16:57Thursday, a friend of mine came over to Kieber.
16:59We went out and got something to eat,
17:00and he brought me off around 1130-ish.
17:03What'd you say his name is?
17:04Kieber.
17:05K-I-B-U-R.
17:06He said they hung out at his apartment for the day
17:09and then went out to dinner,
17:11and he actually gave us his name and contact information.
17:15You know, obviously, I want to reach out to this friend now
17:17and confirm if this story's true.
17:20Then, Wayne says something that grabs the detective's attention.
17:25I do know that Jerry's the one who's people
17:28that I'll be concerned about,
17:29because the last young man he talked to was in jail in Kentucky.
17:33I mean, Chris.
17:33He said Jerry was pen pals and friends
17:36with an inmate in Kentucky with the first name Chris.
17:40Jerry found a lot of these inmates
17:42through different inmate websites.
17:45Wayne said this Chris guy
17:46was supposed to be getting out of prison
17:48in September of 2013,
17:50which was just three months before the murder.
17:54I guess apparently I had a separate past,
17:55and I'm not hyped on the sacred.
17:56I said, why do you talk to these type of people
17:58that could hurt you?
18:00And I said, why are you so concerned?
18:02And he said, because he talked about
18:04that when Chris was going to get out,
18:06Chris was supposed to come visit Jerry.
18:09You have a convicted felon,
18:11possibly for a violent crime,
18:13and now you're possibly opening up your home to them.
18:22Cobb County investigators are on the hunt
18:25for Jerry Moore's killer,
18:26and a statement from a drifter named Wayne
18:29has police concern.
18:31Wayne claims he spent the day with a friend named Tiber
18:34when Jerry was murdered,
18:36and he thought Jerry had plans to meet up
18:38with a recently released parolee named Chris.
18:42But is Wayne telling the truth,
18:44or is he trying to throw detectives off his track?
18:47After we got done interviewing Wayne,
18:52the first thing I did was reach out
18:53to this friend, Tibercio.
18:56Tibercio confirmed Wayne's story.
19:01Investigators are satisfied that Wayne is being truthful
19:03and cross him off the suspect list.
19:06Now they turn their attention to Chris,
19:09the parolee who was allegedly planning
19:12to move in with Jerry.
19:13We researched through the Kentucky prison system.
19:18We went online and started searching inmates.
19:22Eventually, I was able to identify a person
19:25by the name of Chris Steggs,
19:26who was released from prison in September of 2013,
19:31which was just three months before the murder.
19:34I reached out to the local sheriff's office.
19:37They were familiar with Chris,
19:38and they told us that he was living
19:40with his parents in Kentucky
19:41and that Chris also had a girlfriend.
19:45We learned that since he was released from prison,
19:48there was no communications at all
19:50between Jerry and Chris.
19:52We didn't completely eliminate him,
19:54but he wasn't my main focus anymore.
19:59It's a little frustrating
20:01because we had no direction to go in at that time.
20:04I want to prove to my supervisors
20:06that they made the right choice
20:08by making me the lead on it,
20:10and I keep hitting dead ends.
20:15Two weeks after his death,
20:17Jerry's loved ones meet to honor their friend.
20:21We decided to hold a local memorial in Marietta,
20:25and a lot of people turned out.
20:28There was an opportunity during that memorial
20:31for friends to deliver thoughts and memories of Jerry,
20:34and I do remember Wayne sharing,
20:37and I think that was healing for him,
20:39and I'm just thankful that he could be there
20:42and be a part of that.
20:44Both Randy and Pam brought it to my attention
20:47that Ross Byrne never showed up.
20:49Ross, his partner, ex-roommate,
20:53never showed up at the memorial.
20:55It was just odd.
20:57That started raising a little bit of suspicion,
20:59like, here's this guy that lived with him for seven years,
21:02owns a business with him,
21:05and yet he doesn't show up to his memorial service.
21:09Why?
21:12During my conversation with Jerry's mom,
21:14she said Jerry wasn't happy with the bakery business,
21:17and Jerry wanted out.
21:19That's kind of strange.
21:22When we talked to him,
21:23why didn't Ross mention that to us,
21:25that Jerry wanted out of the business?
21:27He was very money-oriented.
21:30That raised a lot of flags with us.
21:33After further interviews with friends and family,
21:35we started learning that Ross and Jerry's relationship
21:38wasn't great.
21:40There was some tension between both of them.
21:42Thinking about Jerry and Ross
21:48and the dysfunctional dynamic of their relationship,
21:52it was like an old married couple
21:53who stay together and just coexist,
21:57living in different parts of the house.
21:59They just really weren't gelling well together anymore.
22:03And so I conveyed that to Detective Stockinger.
22:08Randy said that Jerry was just tired of dealing with the business
22:12and he just wanted out.
22:14He wanted Ross to pay him $35,000 for his share of the business
22:19to buy him out,
22:20and Ross just kept refusing to buy him out of the business.
22:25And there's something else.
22:28Jerry had named his friend Randy Doolittle
22:30as executor of his estate.
22:33After the crime scene was cleared,
22:35Randy collected Jerry's will
22:37and a business agreement for the bakery.
22:40One of the provisions said if either party is deceased,
22:45that the surviving party will gain full
22:48and free control of the bakery.
22:51Randy came to us and Randy said,
22:54hey, I got copies of this business agreement.
22:58When you start looking at this case,
22:59who would benefit from Jerry getting murdered?
23:03Maybe Ross sees this as his way
23:06of getting Jerry out of the picture.
23:09If anything ever happened to Jerry,
23:12Ross would get the whole business for himself.
23:16This could have been the plan all along.
23:19When I read that, that was like a gut punch.
23:22I was like, God, Jerry just signed his death warrant
23:26back when he signed that document.
23:28Three weeks after Jerry Morris found staff to death
23:40at his home in Marietta, Georgia,
23:42investigators are wondering
23:44if a business deal gone wrong
23:46is motive for murder.
23:49Money, love, power, revenge.
23:52And almost every single homicide,
23:54you can toss one of those at it.
23:56So now we have money.
23:58We decide it's time to bring Ross back in
24:00for a second interview.
24:02So you knew a couple months ago,
24:04Jerry would want you to buy him out of the business.
24:08What was your thoughts?
24:11I guess so.
24:12I don't know.
24:13I'm not interested.
24:13You're just not getting it, man.
24:18Why?
24:19Because you're sitting here saying,
24:20I guess so.
24:21I thought, I'm not inside of your head.
24:23I can't figure out what you're thinking.
24:25He brought this proposition to me before.
24:27And I said, no.
24:29Why?
24:29Because I was happy with
24:31the comfort level of the business.
24:33He was holding back on us.
24:35I started not being as nice
24:37because I wanted answers.
24:40We're going to go back to the weekend
24:42of 25th, 26th.
24:44Do you do anything Saturday night?
24:46No, I don't.
24:47Cool.
24:47All right.
24:49Let's go to Sunday.
24:50What did you do on Sunday?
24:52That Saturday,
24:53he worked at the bakery all day.
24:55And then that Sunday,
24:57he said he had a housewarming party
24:58for his new townhome.
25:01What time did everybody wait?
25:03Six.
25:04What did you do that night?
25:06Nothing.
25:06We subpoenaed the phone records
25:08for Ross's phone.
25:10And we noticed that over the weekend,
25:11Ross calls this number over and over.
25:14We start asking him about
25:16that particular phone number.
25:18So you've talked an awful lot here.
25:20Now, this is the 25th.
25:21This is Saturday.
25:23All right.
25:23The phone calls start
25:24at 11.38 in the morning on Saturday.
25:28All the way up until
25:3011.30 p.m. on Saturday.
25:33And you had a conversation
25:35at 11.30 p.m.
25:36Okay.
25:36On Saturday night.
25:38So who did you talk to?
25:40I have no idea.
25:42You know, we kept stressing,
25:43you're calling this number
25:44over and over.
25:46You can't tell me
25:47you don't know
25:48who this number belongs to.
25:49So who did you talk to?
25:51It could have been a boyfriend.
25:55What is the name
25:56of the person you talked to?
25:57I don't care that it's a boyfriend.
26:00But you're sitting here laughing,
26:01you don't know.
26:02But it could have been
26:02somebody I had over.
26:03I'm asking you this for a reason.
26:05It could have been somebody
26:06I had over.
26:07So it's somebody you had over
26:08that would be calling you
26:09this much up until here
26:11and then the number just disappears.
26:13Maybe I had, yes.
26:14So who is it?
26:18It's John.
26:19I'm John who?
26:20Wheeler.
26:23Finally, he comes clean
26:24and he says that
26:25this is his friend
26:26Jonathan Wheeler.
26:28John is straight
26:30and he doesn't want people
26:30to think that John's gay.
26:33But he was pursuing John,
26:35hoping that he could develop
26:37a relationship with John.
26:38Why is he so protective
26:40over this person?
26:41There's more to
26:42not wanting people to think
26:43that John's gay, too.
26:45There's more to this.
26:46All right, let's go.
26:48Looking further
26:49into Jonathan and Ross,
26:51we learned that
26:52after Jerry was killed,
26:54John went with Ross
26:55to Key West.
26:56We were able to pull up
26:58a Facebook account
26:59of Jonathan's
27:00with him posting pictures,
27:01almost like they're down
27:03in Key West celebrating.
27:05We learned that Ross
27:06bought him the van
27:07for his construction business,
27:09would buy him tools
27:10and kind of help him out
27:12to get the business
27:13off the ground.
27:14So we're looking
27:15at the amount of time
27:16these two are spending together,
27:18the things Ross is doing
27:20for Jonathan.
27:21And we found out
27:23that Wheeler had done
27:24a 10-year prison term
27:25for an armed robbery
27:27of a Taco Bell.
27:28The weapon he used
27:30during that robbery
27:30was a knife,
27:32just like in Jerry's murder.
27:34Okay, well,
27:35we have a stabbing murder.
27:37Ross has been hiding this guy.
27:38This guy's done hard time.
27:40It's a violent background,
27:42and his weapon of choice
27:43is a knife.
27:45Looking into John Wheeler,
27:47we take that cell phone number
27:48that we kept questioning
27:50Ross about.
27:51We subpoenaed the phone company
27:52for copies of all
27:53the phone records.
27:55Cell phone records
27:56for that number
27:56that John was using
27:57showed him calling Jerry
27:59on Sunday the 26th,
28:01the day of the murder.
28:02Why was Jonathan's phone
28:04calling Jerry?
28:05This guy's starting
28:05to look better and better
28:06for the murder.
28:07So we were like,
28:09well, we need to talk
28:10to John Wheeler.
28:14I've never killed
28:15anybody in my life.
28:17Jonathan's an angry,
28:18violent person.
28:19Maybe he took all his anger
28:20out on Jerry that night.
28:22This is your business partner.
28:24Now, look at the damn picture.
28:26We wanted justice for Jerry.
28:28I was so frustrated.
28:29He's like,
28:30I don't even remember doing it,
28:31but I stabbed this guy.
28:37Cobb County investigators
28:43are zeroing in
28:44on Jerry's former business
28:45partner, Ross Byrne,
28:47and a man named John Wheeler.
28:49Not only did the two men
28:50communicate with each other
28:52over a dozen times
28:54on the day of the murder,
28:55but Wheeler has a violent past.
28:58His weapon of choice,
29:00a knife.
29:02We decide,
29:03let's bring Jonathan in
29:04for an interview.
29:05He told us a friend of his
29:22introduced him to Ross
29:23and Ross agreed to
29:25give him a job
29:26at the bakery.
29:31But later on,
29:33he started his own
29:34construction business.
29:35John told us
29:36that he looked at Ross
29:38as a mentor
29:38and someone he looked up to
29:40that would help him out.
29:41What about Jerry?
29:43When I first worked
29:44at the bakery,
29:46Jerry came on to me.
29:47Jerry, I'm not gay.
29:49Don't.
29:50Don't try that.
29:52Why does this guy
29:52keep talking to me?
29:54John didn't like Jerry
29:55for that reason.
29:57So now we're looking
29:58at a possible motive.
29:59Try to think about
30:01that weekend,
30:02that Saturday,
30:03the Sunday,
30:04and the Monday.
30:05I honestly don't remember.
30:07It's funny that people
30:08can pick and choose
30:09what they want to remember
30:10and what they don't want
30:10to remember.
30:11I really don't remember
30:12last week.
30:13I work.
30:14We all work.
30:15I also did,
30:16like you said,
30:1710 years,
30:17and you get locked
30:18in a slammer for 10 years
30:19and your mind is shocked.
30:22Looking at Jonathan's history,
30:24Jonathan's an angry,
30:25violent person.
30:27He had the anger
30:28already towards Jerry
30:29and maybe he took
30:32all his anger out
30:33on Jerry that night.
30:35Investigators believe
30:36John Wheeler
30:37may be hiding something,
30:39but the only thing
30:40they have against him
30:41are suspicious phone records,
30:43not enough for a charge.
30:45They have no choice
30:46but to let him go.
30:48Then detectives dig deeper
30:50into his alibi
30:51and notice an inconsistency.
30:54We learned that John
30:56was at Ross' housewarming party
30:58but when Ross was initially asked
31:00about who was at the party,
31:01he never mentions
31:02John being there.
31:04So we start taking
31:06the GPS locations
31:07for the calls
31:08and we're able to plot
31:10the cell towers
31:11that these calls
31:12are hitting off of.
31:14Cell phone records
31:15for that number
31:15that John was using
31:16showed him at the cookout
31:18around 5 o'clock or so
31:19on that Sunday.
31:21Then it showed the phone
31:22going all the way down
31:23to Jerry's house.
31:25Almost an hour later,
31:27it showed the phone
31:27going back up
31:28to Ross' house.
31:31So we decided
31:32to bring Jonathan Wheeler
31:34back in for a second interview
31:36to confront him
31:37on this cell phone location.
31:40Do you remember
31:42what time you left
31:42this party?
31:44Where did you go
31:45after the party?
31:46Do you remember?
31:47Home?
31:48I don't really remember.
31:50I really don't.
31:51About two and a half
31:52hours later,
31:53like 7.51 p.m.,
31:55you were up
31:56by Jerry's house.
31:58Do you remember that?
32:02There's no way I'm at...
32:04Man, this is...
32:05Dude, this is phone tower.
32:06This is cell phone records
32:07from the cell phone company.
32:08He's don't lie, man.
32:10When they hit you
32:11with a tower,
32:12that's where you are.
32:14There's no way
32:15I'm by his house.
32:16You could say no way,
32:17but, man,
32:18your cell phone
32:18puts you there.
32:19The reason I'm asking
32:20is why you're here,
32:21because Jerry's
32:22killed this night, man.
32:24That night?
32:25Mm-hmm.
32:25Yeah, there's no way.
32:27He started getting angry,
32:29so we started really
32:30pushing the buttons now.
32:31I'm asking you
32:32why we had Jerry's.
32:33I wasn't at Jerry's.
32:34He couldn't give
32:35a good explanation on it,
32:36and he became
32:37extremely agitated.
32:38So it started becoming
32:40more of an argument
32:41than an interview.
32:43I'm asking you
32:44why your phone
32:44is going to Jerry's house.
32:46This telephone
32:47doesn't lie, man.
32:49I kept hitting him
32:50with,
32:51tell us why you killed Jerry.
32:52If you want to imply
32:53that I killed this guy,
32:55give me an attorney.
32:56Am I?
32:57Okay.
32:57I have never killed
32:58anybody in my life.
33:00All right.
33:00He ended up jumping up
33:02and said that he was leaving.
33:03No.
33:04We had no legal right
33:05to hang on to him.
33:06If you really think
33:07I did it,
33:08I'm going to laugh
33:08in your face.
33:09I'm going to laugh
33:10in your face.
33:11He's gone.
33:12We're not getting
33:12a confession out of him,
33:14but we shifted
33:15our focus at that point.
33:17We said,
33:18let's bring Ross in
33:19for another interview,
33:20and let's see
33:21if we can break Ross down
33:22and have Ross give him up.
33:25I know this.
33:26You know more
33:27than you're telling us
33:28because you're protecting him.
33:29This is probably
33:30one of our last chances
33:31at Ross
33:32to try to get Ross
33:33to fold.
33:34The phone call
33:35is him at the house
33:37calling you,
33:38and just so happens
33:40that Jerry is found dead.
33:44What are the odds of that?
33:46I'm trying to see
33:47if I can break him down.
33:48This is your business partner.
33:50No, look at the damn picture.
33:52He was almost at a point
33:54where I thought
33:55he was going to break.
33:56Jerry is killed
33:57with a kitchen knife.
33:59Stabbed 32 times.
34:0332 f***ing times!
34:05That's your business partner
34:06right there.
34:07And I'm thinking,
34:08all right, we're there.
34:09We're almost over that hurdle,
34:11and we're going to get him
34:11to give him up.
34:12It's done.
34:13There's no turning
34:14the clock back anymore, okay?
34:16But now is your turn
34:18to say,
34:18f***, man.
34:19It's separation time.
34:21Who has a reason
34:22to stab a man 32 times?
34:24You do.
34:24You've gained
34:26from his death.
34:28Either you're part of it
34:29or you're not.
34:31He is one of us.
34:32And then he just stops.
34:34Jerry's dead,
34:35and Wheeler's there.
34:40Come to reality.
34:41And he just
34:42doesn't give us
34:43what we need.
34:45He knew the game,
34:46and he shut down.
34:47At this point,
34:50I'm frustrated.
34:52Hi.
34:53We know we're
34:54onto the right people,
34:56but I can't get
34:57that last piece
34:58I need.
34:59We had a
35:00circumstantial case,
35:02but it wasn't
35:03strong enough yet.
35:05So,
35:06you go back,
35:07and you start
35:07looking back over things.
35:09What did I miss?
35:10I felt that
35:12I was beaten,
35:13that I lost.
35:16With Ross and John
35:17refusing to talk,
35:19detectives
35:19are at a standstill.
35:22Months pass
35:22with no movement
35:23on the case,
35:24and Ross goes on
35:25with his business,
35:27seemingly enjoying
35:28his doubled income,
35:29even treating himself
35:30to a Cadillac
35:31Escalade.
35:32The detectives
35:35were on to something,
35:36but they were always
35:37commenting about
35:38how they just
35:38didn't have
35:39the hard evidence
35:40to get a warrant
35:42for arrest.
35:44I was so frustrated
35:45because the detectives
35:47did so much,
35:49but Ross kept
35:50sliding by,
35:51and we wanted
35:52justice for Jerry.
35:55Here we are,
35:56eight months
35:57into the investigation.
35:58I'm stalled.
35:59I'm sitting at work,
36:01and I answer
36:02the phone,
36:03and it's a sergeant
36:04from Woodstock
36:05Police Department
36:05about 10 miles
36:07from Jerry's house,
36:09and he's like,
36:10hey, I got this guy
36:11that showed up here,
36:13says he's got information
36:14on a bakery murder,
36:16and I was like,
36:18oh my God,
36:18can you send
36:20that guy my way?
36:21And shortly after,
36:22Michael Thomason
36:23shows up at our office.
36:27What is your relationship?
36:29He's my half-brother.
36:31You got the same mother,
36:32different fathers.
36:33So we know we're talking
36:34about the right person.
36:35Okay.
36:35Is that him?
36:36That's him.
36:37Okay.
36:37Jonathan Wheeler?
36:38Yes, sir.
36:39He said his brother,
36:40a few weeks back,
36:42made a confession to him
36:43about killing
36:45a business partner
36:46of the bakery.
36:47This is exactly
36:49the break we needed.
36:50Eight months after Jerry Morris
36:59found stabbed to death
37:00in his own home,
37:02there's still not enough evidence
37:03for investigators to charge
37:05their two main suspects,
37:07Ross Byrne and John Wheeler,
37:09with murder.
37:10But all of that changes
37:12when Wheeler's brother
37:13comes into the station
37:14with an incredible story.
37:16One day he came over drunk,
37:19just wasted off his ass.
37:21Like recently or?
37:22A few weeks ago.
37:24Okay.
37:24And started telling me,
37:27I don't even remember doing it,
37:28but I stabbed this guy.
37:31He had stabbed
37:33the hell out of him.
37:34The reason why he decided
37:35to come forward
37:36was because Michael
37:37didn't want anyone else
37:38to get hurt.
37:39I wouldn't be able
37:39to sleep at night
37:40if he had a shootout
37:41and died and a cop
37:42or somebody died.
37:43And he's told me before
37:44that he's not going back to prison.
37:46Michael also tells detectives
37:48that John Wheeler
37:49confessed details of the crime
37:51to his cousin
37:52and roommate Cynthia
37:53and that Ross knew
37:55that Jonathan killed Jerry.
37:58She explains to Michael
37:59that John told her
38:00that after the killing,
38:02he went up to Ross
38:03and Ross cleaned him up
38:05and provided him a shirt
38:06and pants.
38:09Cynthia is brought in
38:10and ultimately agrees
38:11to cooperate with investigators.
38:13With her statement,
38:15they have enough
38:15to charge John Wheeler
38:17with Jerry Moore's murder.
38:19But Cynthia can't connect Ross
38:21to the planning of the murder,
38:22only that John sought Ross' help
38:24after Jerry was dead.
38:27They still don't have enough
38:28to charge Ross Byrne.
38:31Our theory is
38:32Ross doesn't have it in him
38:34to commit this crime,
38:35so Ross put Jonathan up to this
38:37and he sent John
38:38to go to Jerry's house
38:39to kill him
38:40so he could take over
38:41the business.
38:43Ross was the person
38:44who had the most
38:45to gain from Jerry's death.
38:48Jonathan was arrested,
38:49but John refused
38:50to cooperate with us
38:51or conduct any more
38:52interviews with us.
38:53Jonathan wouldn't give Ross up.
38:55I don't know exactly
38:57what it was
38:57with that relationship,
38:59but even through
39:00the whole investigation,
39:01they lied for each other.
39:02and it seemed like
39:05that they weren't
39:06going to be the one
39:06that gave the other one up.
39:10Four years
39:11after Jerry Moore's murder,
39:13Jonathan's case
39:14comes up for trial.
39:16Cynthia testified
39:17in the trial
39:17against Jonathan.
39:18Michael testified
39:19against Jonathan.
39:21Jonathan Wheeler
39:22was ultimately sentenced
39:23to two consecutive
39:24life sentences
39:25without the possibility
39:26of parole.
39:28After we convicted
39:29Jonathan Wheeler,
39:30the jurors all asked
39:31a lot of questions
39:32about when we were
39:33going to charge Ross Byrne
39:34for his role in this case,
39:36they believed,
39:37as we did,
39:37that Ross Byrne
39:38was involved
39:39in orchestrating it as well.
39:42After Jonathan's trial
39:43was done,
39:44we started looking
39:45into Ross's financials
39:47and building
39:47all this evidence
39:48to be able to show
39:49how Ross gained
39:50from all of this.
39:52But it still wasn't
39:52the strongest case
39:53against him.
39:55But we decided
39:57to pull the trigger
39:57and say,
39:58let's do it.
39:58We arrested Ross Byrne
40:01and charged him
40:01for a conspiracy
40:02to have his former partner,
40:04Jerry Moore, killed.
40:06Ross is sitting in jail
40:07waiting for his court date.
40:09We decided to spread
40:10a rumor inside the prison
40:12that Jonathan Wheeler
40:14is planning to flip on Ross
40:15and implicate him
40:17in Jerry's murder.
40:19And Ross got nervous.
40:23Ross Byrne actually
40:24solicited another inmate
40:25to have Jonathan Wheeler killed.
40:27An inmate came forward
40:29and told one of the deputies
40:30that Ross was asking around,
40:33saying,
40:33hey, is there anybody here
40:35that would be willing?
40:36I'd pay him to kill him
40:38because this guy's
40:39going to try to flip on me.
40:41From a prosecutor's perspective,
40:43this is great evidence
40:44of what we call
40:45consciousness of guilt.
40:46There's no other reason
40:47why Ross Byrne,
40:48if he was innocent
40:48of these crimes,
40:50would want to have
40:50Jonathan Wheeler
40:51taken out.
40:53Ross Byrne is now slapped
40:55with two conspiracy
40:56to commit murder charges,
40:58one for Jerry Moore
40:59and one for Jonathan Wheeler.
41:02Facing life in prison,
41:03Ross decides to take a plea deal.
41:05He ended up getting 20 years.
41:08When the judge asked him,
41:09are you in fact guilty
41:10of all his charges?
41:12He said yes.
41:16He admitted his guilt.
41:20This is one case
41:21I'll never forget.
41:23Not only because
41:24it was my first one,
41:25but it was one of the most
41:26brutal ones I've worked.
41:28For Jerry Moore's
41:29friends and family,
41:30the long wait for justice
41:32is over.
41:34He really meant something
41:35to all of us,
41:37and especially to me.
41:39If he were in need,
41:40he was somebody good
41:42to have in your corner.
41:44I want everyone to know
41:45that Jerry Moore
41:47was a wonderful,
41:49wonderful friend.
41:51I miss his humor.
41:53I miss adventures.
41:54I just miss his friendship.
41:59Jerry Moore was a loyal friend
42:01and a shrewd businessman
42:03who strode for success
42:04both personally
42:05and professionally.
42:07His future looked bright,
42:08but he was betrayed
42:10by two people
42:11he should have been able
42:12to trust.
42:13Two people who valued money
42:14over friendship
42:15and put themselves
42:17before others.
42:19And unsuspecting Jerry Moore
42:20never saw it coming,
42:22all because of
42:23a killer relationship.
42:25Keeping your friendship.
42:26—
42:27—
42:28AMY
42:28—
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