He Blamed His Identical Brother To Escape Life In Prison
This was no accident. >> What tipped police off that something was a miss? >> They found some bruising around her neck. >> John [music] and Jessica often argued over custody issues and money issues. >> Was this a crime of opportunity? She was going to be home alone. The murder suspect used that information. >> Her ex-boyfriend denied having anything to do with her murder.
Amen. >> Hi, I’m Nancy Odell. Today’s crime expose [music] takes us to Debolt, Nebraska. The small town was rocked by the senseless murder of a young mother. As police tried to find out what [music] happened to Jessica Nelson, her friendship with two men pulled the investigation in [music] different directions.
But police and family would soon learn, “Be careful who you call [music] your friend.” The day was June 25th. A 28-year-old woman named Jessica Nelson hadn’t shown up for work, and her [music] mother was contacted. Jessica didn’t show up for work that day, which was highly out of character for Jessica because she was an extremely reliable employee, never really missed any work, and they were concerned.
>> Missy Nelson couldn’t reach her daughter by phone. So, she drove to Jessica’s home to check on her. >> She immediately went to Jessica’s house, saw that her car was in the driveway, and felt, “Hey, she’s home. She’s safe.” Thought maybe she had gotten in an accident. Getting no answer at the door, Missy used her key to let herself into the home.
>> When Missy walked into Jessica’s house, she was alarmed to find it completely dark, but heard water running from the bathroom. Missy open the door and found Jessica in the fetal position, [music] water up to her nose, holding a phone charger. She initially thought that, oh my god, Jessica fell in the tub.
She’s laying there. She’s unconscious. [music] So Missy, in a panic, drains the water in an attempt to try to revive and bring her daughter back and save her. >> Initially, her mother didn’t know exactly what had happened, whether foul play was involved or, you know, if her daughter had a bad accident. >> As Jessica lay lifeless, Missy [music] drained the bathtub of water and called 911.
>> 911, didn’t you? Police, fire, rescue. >> My daughter’s dead in the bathtub. >> I don’t understand a word you’re saying. What’s going on? >> I just saw my daughter dead in the bathtub and she slipped. I don’t know how long she’s been there. [music] >> She tried to revive her unconscious daughter, but it was too late.
Omaha police arrived and confirmed that Jessica Nelson was dead, but something [music] about this death was unsettling. So, at what point did police [music] notice that there was something more to this? They immediately noticed there’s some inconsistencies. They [music] noticed the blood in the bedroom and living room.
One of Jessica’s fingernails is bent back. Police were able to determine that Jessica’s situation was highly [music] suspicious and believed foul play was involved. >> Police have the training to figure out things almost immediately when on the scene. [music] And while they were on this scene, they were able to figure out that this was no accident.
They could see there was some sort of a struggle. Looking at Jessica Nelson’s body, they found some bruising around her neck and quickly understood that this was no [music] accident. Upon closer inspection of the crime scene, police knew that there was some suspicious behaviors due to the nature of Jessica holding the phone cord.
It appeared that strangulation was a possibility at this time. The medical examiner collected DNA [music] blood evidence from the couch, the bedroom, and under Jessica’s fingernails for analysis. Police walked through the house looking for signs of forced entry, but saw none. >> Anytime that we have a crime scene and no forced entry, [music] it would indicate that Jessica willingly opened the door for the person and was comfortable having them in her house.
>> The possibility that Jessica Nelson knew her killer alerted police to look at those closest to the victim. They started with [music] John, an ex-boyfriend and father of her six-year-old son. The ex would be the first person police would look at. Correct. >> When police believe that the suspect could be [music] possibly somebody that the victim knew, they automatically looked to close relationships.
Jessica [music] had an ex-boyfriend that she shared custody of a six-year-old son. >> Ex-boyfriend was identified as a possible suspect in her murder. because of some issues between their custody situation with their son and he had even dropped off their son the day before a Jessica’s [music] murder. >> Police immediately contacted John in an attempt to find out his whereabouts on the night of Jessica’s [music] murder.
>> So, what did you learn about their relationship? What was it like? Jessica’s mom. She revealed that [music] John and Jessica often argued over custody issues and [music] money issues. >> Police asked John to come in and talk to them about Jessica’s murder, and he agreed. >> He’s a natural suspect, too, [music] because they have a history and they have a shared baby.
Police brought Jon in for questioning due to his volatile relationship with Jessica. >> Her ex-boyfriend denied having anything to do with her murder. >> John [music] gladly shared his phone data and also submitted to a [music] DNA sample. >> Omaha police detectives looked into Jessica’s phone records [music] in the hours before she was killed to determine who she may have been in contact with.
and one number appeared again and again [music] up to the day when she was found dead. So, what did the phone records show? >> Jessica’s phone records indicated that she had received multiple text messages from a family [music] friend for the last several weeks. >> Police went through Jessica’s phone records.
They were able to identify somebody that she had been texting and talking to up until the day that she was murdered. Police needed to speak with a friend and find out what they might know about Jessica’s murder. There was no way to know where this would go, but every lead would be investigated to find the killer. [music] Omaha police investigating the murder of Jessica Nelson learned that a family friend named Matthew [music] Kder had been texting her in recent weeks.
Police also learned that Kder was well known to Jessica and her family for years. >> Matthews and Jessica’s fathers were both best friends. Jessica and Matthew had grown up together. You were lifelong friends [music] and were like brother and sister. >> The text suggested that Kder was trying to move from the friend zone into something more >> as far as what their relationship was like.
What did you learn >> from Jessica’s text messages? Matthew Kder wanted to have a serious relationship with her and she wasn’t ready to do that. She was trying to ease him down gently. >> Matthew [music] had been trying to persuade Jessica to become more than friends. And according to the text messages that Jessica had sent back, she was trying [music] to explain to him that she did not like him in that way.
Police needed to hear Matthew KD’s explanation for the text and [music] about his interest in the victim. >> Matthew was brought in for questioning and he adamantly denied any involvement in Jessica’s murder. >> I’m not responsible for Jessica’s death. I’m not responsible for what happened to her. >> What information did he share with police? He offered up information that Jessica’s post on Facebook [music] had let everybody know that she was going to be home alone that night.
>> Somebody had been watching the house for a while to know that she was 100% alone there. >> And the murder suspect must [music] have used that information in order to catch Jessica home alone that night. Detectives asked about the text that Kder had been sending Jessica, which hinted he wanted more than just a friendship.
>> Me and Jess, we’ve always had a relationship where we have like inside sexual window jokes, even though we we never had interest in each other like that. >> Get her denied that he was wanting a serious relationship with her, saying that their relationship was more of a brother and sister and it was more playful than serious.
>> She had a really good heart. >> Yeah. good mother, good friend. Uh, I don’t think I’ve ever heard her not putting herself out for somebody in need. >> Kder told police that he was working the night of Jessica’s murder and could verify his alibi. >> So, before the interview wrapped up, investigators noticed something suspicious on Kder’s hand.
What was that? >> They noticed that he has a small cut on his hand. When questioned about the injury to his hand, [music] Matthew stated that he received the cut at work. He made up something to say that he had actually cut it while he was at work and he had never been at Jessica’s house the night she was murdered. >> KD offered to provide his DNA to prove any evidence found at Jessica’s home wasn’t his.
Omaha police collected a sample as they had with others in contact with Jessica. So with nothing concrete to keep holding him, Matthew Kder was released. And days later, Jessica Nelson’s autopsy results came back. What did the autopsy show? >> The autopsy confirmed that Jessica Nelson had been strangled to death with that phone cord that she was found holding.
There were signs of sexual assault. >> Following the interviews conducted as part of their investigation, there was no one who could be tied to the murder. It was as frustrating for police as it was for Jessica’s family. Jessica’s murder case seemed to hit a stalemate. It went cold. No more suspects or leads [music] were to be followed and now all evidence was relying on the DNA.
>> Until the DNA tests were completed, it was a waiting game for investigators. Police were no closer to identifying a [music] suspect than they were the day Jessica was killed. They needed a break if they were to find [music] her killer. Omaha police were at an impass in the murder investigation of Jessica Nelson.
Potential suspects had been eliminated, but family friend Matthew KD had come onto their radar. Until DNA tests were completed, investigators had little to go on. But 2 weeks later, the test results arrived. Jessica’s [music] ex-boyfriend, John, was actually several miles away from Jessica’s home at the time of her murder, and the DNA did not match [music] any of the DNA found at the crime scene.
>> Police eliminated him as a suspect. >> Two DNA samples were identified on the phone court. One of that being Jessica Nelson and the second DNA was attributed to Matthew Kder. Matthew Kder’s DNA was also located [music] under Jessica’s fingernails. >> When investigators find DNA underneath the fingernails, that usually tells them that there’s been some sort of struggle.
And Jessica before her death scratched him, did anything that she could to try to save her own life at the hands of one of her friends that she had known for a really long time, showing that there may have been a struggle, but also how close of contact the victim had with the suspect. >> The DNA results electrified the investigation.
[music] Police ran KD’s DNA through a police database, and the results were even [music] more surprising. They discovered this family friend had a disturbing history. What exactly [music] was it that police learned about KD’s past? >> Matthew was a convicted sex offender. He had [music] been convicted of sexually assaulting a family friend and spent [music] 5 years in jail for that assault.
He was a registered [music] sex offender with the state of Nebraska. >> [music] >> Police would need more to build a case, but Kder was now their prime suspect. They called him in for a second interview, [music] and this time they had a plan. They only informed the suspect that [music] they found his DNA holding back any specifics. Kder took the bait.
Once Matthew Kder understood that his DNA could be linked to [music] Jessica’s house at the scene of the crime, he started making up multiple excuses [music] as to what may have happened. Matthew Kidd, he said that he had helped her move and his sweat may have been all [music] over the couch, plus his blood because he was picking a scab while he was there.
>> Pretty much bleeding everybody’s houses I I go to cuz I get bored and either pick at a scab or I cut myself on something. trying to justify why his DNA would have been all over her house. When asked for a DNA sample, Matthew Kder willingly went along with it. Either he was too arrogant or just too stupid to understand that giving up a DNA sample could tie him to this murder.
And that surprised investigators that he was willing to give [music] it up so quickly. >> Police began to track KD’s movements in the hours leading up to Jessica’s murder. They subpoenaed his cell phone records. So, what did you learn from those phone records? >> The cell phone records proved that he had actually been in the area of Jessica’s house the time she was believed to be murdered.
His cell phone pinged off a nearby tower. The cell phone records and the DNA were two things that Matthew Ker couldn’t get around when it came to the physical [music] evidence. Prosecutors believe the text messages really played out that night that Jessica was murdered. They believe Matthew Kder knew that she was alone because of the Facebook post that Matthew Kder was wanting a sexual relationship with Jessica, going to her house, making advances on her.
When she denied him, Matthew killed her. >> Police theorized that Kder [music] placed Jessica’s body in a bathtub of water to destroy evidence of sexual assault, but he failed immeasurably in hiding his DNA. >> I’m not responsible for Jessica’s death. I’m not responsible [music] for what happened to her.
I wish I was there to stop it. I wish I had known something was going on so I could have saved my friend. [music] >> Matthew Kder was charged with first-degree murder and the death of Jessica Nelson. >> Stand up, man. >> No, I’m not going to jail for this. >> It’s not up to you. Decision’s been made. So, I need you to >> It’s the wrong decision.
>> That’s something you can take [music] up with your attorney. Matthew Ker never showed any remorse for killing Jessica Nelson. He still denied it. >> Matthew [music] Kder was tried and convicted for the murder of Jessica Nelson. >> Matthew Kder never showed any remorse for killing [music] Jessica Nelson, a family friend of his family for decades.
Their fathers were best friends for 25 years. Even at his sentencing, [music] he still denied it and he was defiant towards the judge. >> He was sentenced to life in prison plus an additional 50 [music] years. The so-called family friend was exposed as a predator who had assaulted a friend previously and done time.
Jessica bravely [music] fought her attacker and in the struggle inadvertently saved evidence that would send him to prison. The senseless murder of the young mother was solved through forensic evidence. And Matthew [music] Kder’s arrogance at believing he was untouchable. Jessica Nelson’s family is now left to raise her son without a mother.
And the man they used to call a family friend will live out his days in prison. And now it’s time for today’s safety spotlight. While exes are always the primary suspect for police investigations, in [music] the case of Jessica Nelson, it was a jilted friend who was behind her brutal slaying. Jessica had rejected Matthew Kder, but he wouldn’t take no for an [music] answer.
While hurting someone’s feelings is never easy. It’s important that you consider the following precautions in order to ensure your safety. [music] If you plan on rejecting someone, try not to do it face to face. But if you have to meet them in a public place, [music] this can help mitigate any potential for escalation.
And if you know the person has a history of violence, take [music] extra care to stay alert and avoid contact. And if the situation does escalate, contact the police or the National Domestic [music] Violence Hotline at 1800799 SAE. I’m Nancy Odell. For all of us here at Crime Expose, [music] please join us next time and stay safe. Oh, we had to go when that model lady just got shot.
[music] >> What caused her to die? >> There was a single gunshot wound. >> The victim had no identifying information on their person. [music] >> The vehicle [music] is the crime scene. >> We scoured the streets to find his car cuz without it, I had no evidence. You felt armed with the knowledge that fingerprints don’t lie.
The fingerprints aren’t going to lie. Hi, I’m Nancy Odell. Today’s crime expose takes us to Duth, Georgia, [music] a quiet suburb of Atlanta. This tight-knit community became the unlikely setting for a [music] disturbing mystery when a mother of three was shot at pointblank range inside her own car. As detectives launched an intense investigation to find the gunman, they had no idea of the twisted path that would unfold on their journey to justice.
It was July 18th and a humid summer night when numerous panic calls came into the police department. >> Oh, we got to go in that model lady just got shot. She’s on the tree laying down. >> Is she breathing conscious and alert? >> Yeah, she she moving the lift. >> They reported that an individual [music] that was shot uh just outside the bus depot.
When the first responder arrived on the scene, it was clear the situation [music] was critical. >> He observed the victim laying in a small pool [music] of blood. She noticed blood coming from her left breast area. >> Was the victim still alive? >> She was trying to [music] moan something to him, but he couldn’t understand what she was saying.
>> The victim was immediately rushed to the hospital while doctors worked to try and save her life. Detectives questioned the traumatized crowd which had gathered So, could anybody tell you what happened? >> The bus driver who was basically sitting probably about [music] 20 to 30 feet away from where the incident occurred and she had observed a gold colored vehicle [music] backed into a parking space.
She’s heard shouting, then she observed a male get out of the passenger side, walk around to the driver’s [music] side, and then heard a single gunshot. >> The gunman then pulled the victim from the car and sped away. The bus driver saw the crime happening right in front of her. >> Correct. She was the key witness >> and she was able to provide a detailed description of the killer.
>> She described [music] a black male who was wearing white but with green over top. >> Based on the eyewitness account, it seemed possible that the killer had been someone the victim knew. >> Perhaps it was a domestic related incident that maybe started somewhere else and then carried over to that location.
It was then police received a heart-wrenching call from the hospital. The victim had not survived. What caused her to die? >> There was a single gunshot wound that perforated her lung, her heart, her liver. >> Detectives focused [music] on finding her identity. >> The victim had no identifying information on their person. So the next choice I had was to reach out to our dispatch operators and put out basically a lookout for anybody who calls in a missing person for not just our jurisdiction but neighboring jurisdictions.
[music] >> 6 hours later someone called about a missing person and the details [music] revealed the victim’s identity. >> What was her name? >> Janai Coleman. The tragedy of the murder deepened when police learned how the 40-year-old mother of three had spent her last hours alive. >> I know the time she dropped off her daughter at work was approximately 5:30 that evening.
I know she was communicating on her laptop [music] in her car on a religious website with a friend of hers up until about 5 minutes before the shooting happened. Uh so I had a good timeline of the events of her for that day. Officers fanned out to find surveillance footage from nearby stores. >> The incident location is a bus stop that’s adjacent to a mall and a couple strip mall.
I scoured multiple locations and inquired if different stores near the crime scene had surveillance video. I don’t want to miss a clue. I’m looking for evidence >> because without a break, they had nothing to push the investigation forward. I did not have a lot to work with because the vehicle [music] is the crime scene and it was missing.
A statewide all points bulletin was sent out to locate her car. It was all hands on deck to put Janai Coleman’s killer behind bars. 40-year-old [music] Janai Coleman had been gunned down in her own car and detectives looked closely at her background [music] to see if the killer had been someone she knew. >> Miss Coleman was a school teacher.
She was a military service member. She went to church. [music] She didn’t have a boyfriend. There was no type of uh domestic issue she had. She didn’t create enemies. Didn’t put herself in harm’s way. >> So, who did you think [music] murdered Janai? So it it led us to start believing that the person who committed [music] this crime was a stranger rather than a known party to her.
Maybe this is a robbery or a carjacking that’s gone wrong. >> Which made locating Janai’s car even more critical. >> We scoured the streets to find this car cuz without it I had no evidence. That vehicle was my crime [music] scene. >> Within the hour they found Janai’s car. It had been abandoned in a parking lot about 40 miles from where she had been shot.
>> It was parked in a parking stall just half-hazardly in between two spots. >> Crime scene analysts examined the vehicle and were impressed by how pristine Janai had kept it. Her car was really clean. There [music] was no excess of trash or random items that you may generally find in somebody’s vehicle, >> which gave them confidence that anything they found would be crucial to their case.
>> As you’re searching the car for fingerprints, what did you find? I found fingerprints on the exterior driver’s door and mainly on top of the driver’s door to where somebody is leaning over the window and putting their hands on top of the hood. >> The prince did not belong to Janai or anyone in her family.
Did you believe those prints belong to the killer? >> There was no doubt in my mind that was the [music] killer’s fingerprints that was left behind. So now what became the challenge? >> The challenge then was to figure out who they belonged to. >> Forensic specialists located another promising clue. >> I noticed that underneath the driver’s seat was a used cigarette butt.
>> The cigarette was a Bronson light long. Was Janai a smoker? >> Absolutely not. Nobody was even allowed to be in the vehicle who smoked. Did you think the cigarette belonged to the killer? >> I was 100% hoping. >> The prince and cigarette were transported to the lab for testing. Meanwhile, investigators have been scrolling through hours of surveillance videos from nearby stores, searching for a lead.
>> I spent several hours going through lots and lots of surveillance video, kind of looking for a needle in a hay stack. Security cameras from the convenience store across from the crime scene had captured a man walking in at 8:40 p.m. about 20 minutes before Janai had been shot. As you watch that video, what stood out to you? >> He’s wearing a [music] a white shirt with green sleeves, >> which was exactly what the eyewitness reported the killer had been wearing.
And the videotape documented the man’s movements inside the store. The guy comes in and he orders some alcoholic drinks, beers, has a little conversation with the clerk, and then he comes back in and he orders a pack of cigarettes, and you can hear him and he says, “Something light longs.” And I I must have played it a hundred times, but eventually I slowed it down enough to hear him say Bronson light longs.
>> Bronson light longs. >> When you realized it was Bronson Light longs he had purchased, what went through your mind? >> That was my needle and haste. A Bronson light long matches the cigarette butt that was recovered from underneath the driver’s seat [music] of Miss Coleman’s vehicle. >> The man left the store just minutes before Janai was murdered.
>> He leaves the store at about 8:40, 8:42. The murder happens probably around 8:53. >> Investigators immediately released his image to the media, hoping someone would recognize him. So now I knew I had a picture and video of my suspect. I just didn’t know who he was. >> Detectives investigating Janai Coleman’s murder believe surveillance cameras had captured an image of her killer at a store just moments before the crime.
His picture was quickly released to the media. Did you get any [music] promising tips? >> No, we didn’t get any good tips that would lead us to identifying who the male in the video was. How frustrating was that? >> Is extremely frustrating because at this point in [music] time, I’ve got video, I’ve got fingerprints, and I’ve got a cigarette butt.
So, I have a ton [music] of evidence except I don’t know who it belongs to. >> Now, you’re just at a standstill. [music] There’s really nothing else that you can do or rely on until you get some type of answers or results back. >> As time went by, the case slowly started growing cold. But when the lab called with their results, the investigation instantly started heating up.
>> They’re like, “Hey, look, we got a DNA [music] code mismatch on this case.” >> The national database had found a match to the DNA found on the cigarette butt left inside Jai’s [music] car. >> I’m immediately like, I’m stoked, you know, hey, great. Now the case is moving forward.
We might have somebody who matches [music] this. Who’s this person? >> He was 50-year-old Donald Smith. And when they pulled his mugsh [music] shot, it looked shockingly similar to the man recorded on the surveillance video from the [music] night of Janai’s murder. At what point did you feel like you were closing in on Jana’s killer? [music] >> I was 100% charging confidently that we were on the right path.
I knew that this was the right person. >> So now we actually have a [music] name to go by and now the ball can start rolling again. Detectives found a cell phone number for Donald Smith [music] and then cross-cheed it against cell tower records from the crime scene and the area where Janai’s car had been abandoned.
Smith’s phone had been active at both locations. It was a critical clue. >> Very, very [music] important because it put the cell phone number that he utilized in the area of the murder during the time of the murder and in the area of where the vehicle was dumped at the time frame the vehicle [music] was dumped.
So, some of the background information I started learning about him also assisted in this case. >> Donald Smith seemed to be on edge when he was brought into the interrogation room. >> I I would like you to just to explain to me why I’m here. >> Okay. >> During questioning, Donald Smith insisted he was not the person in the surveillance footage and had nothing to do with the crime.
>> He initially stated he didn’t know anything. And so I showed him the surveillance video from the convenience store. >> That is definitely not me. I don’t have a shirt like that. I don’t have Y’all only can see the face on that person, but that’s not me. >> Okay. So that’s not me. >> No, definitely not me. >> I showed him [music] the victim’s photo.
He said he didn’t recognize the victim. I showed him the victim’s vehicle. He said he didn’t recognize the victim’s vehicle. >> Have you ever met this woman before in your life? >> No, I haven’t. Have you ever seen this vehicle before or been in it? >> No, I have not. >> So, you must have thought he was lying to you.
And >> you could tell that [music] he was giving me some truths and that he was also lying. >> Detectives confronted him with the DNA evidence they had against him. >> That vehicle you said you’ve never seen before. >> Mhm. >> And the woman you’ve never seen before? >> Yes. >> Okay. >> Your DNA ended up in that car.
That’s interesting because my DNA couldn’t have been in that car because I’ve never been in that car. >> Okay. >> He agreed to take a polygraph and when he failed, it seemed to rattle him. >> Did you believe at that point he was about to confess? >> He says, “Uh, I wasn’t being truthful with you.
” I’m like, “Okay, about what?” And he says, “I do recognize the person on that video.” I said, “I know you’ve got to recognize that person.” And he goes, “But it’s not me.” He goes, “It’s my identical twin brother.” >> That is much funny. All I’m saying is that wasn’t me in the video. That’s him in the video. >> And he says, “The reason I was lying to you is cuz I didn’t want to implicate him and I didn’t want to come to believe that my brother could do something like this.
” So now we’re [music] at a point where, okay, now is it your twin brother or are you just pushing it off on your twin brother and trying to not take responsibility? [music] >> It was a bombshell. Donald had an identical twin brother named Ronald. And [music] since identical twins had the same DNA profile, detectives wondered if he was trying to pin the murder on his twin.
But they were confident the fingerprints found on [music] Janai’s car would reveal the truth. Fingerprints are different in everyone because those are formed in the womb. So, I’m immediately [music] thinking, “All right, we’re going to get a search warrant. We’ll get your fingerprints and we’ll compare them to the ones we have on file.
” >> You felt armed with the knowledge that fingerprints don’t lie. >> The fingerprints aren’t going to lie to me. >> While detectives fanned out to bring Ronald Smith into custody, they showed the surveillance video to the twins family members. >> Get two teams [music] to go to two separate locations.
One team goes speaks with his mother and father. The other team goes speaks with his sister. [music] and they show them the video and they say, “Hey, look, we know they’re identical twins. Which one do you recognize on this video?” And so they [music] watch the surveillance video, they see the mannerisms, they can hear the voice, uh they can see the body language, and [music] when they do, mother and father say, “That’s that’s my son Ronald, not Donald.
” And so we go to the sister and she says the same thing. >> They located Ronald Smith and compared his prints to the evidence in the case. What were the results? Ronald Smith’s fingerprints were identical matched to the fingerprints that were left behind on the exterior of the vehicle and the interior of the vehicle. >> When law enforcement brought him into the station, they noted the brand of cigarettes he had in his possession.
>> He did have a pack of Bronson [music] light longs. >> And that wasn’t all Ronald had in his possession. the cell phone detectives had connected to Janai’s killer. Were you convinced you finally had Janai’s killer in custody? >> I mean, that’s it. [music] I’ve got the DNA from the vehicle. I’ve got a cigarette butt, which is the exact same type of cigarette that Ronald [music] smokes.
I’ve got his fingerprints matching not only points inside the vehicle, but outside the vehicle. We knew [music] at that point in time that was our killer. Detectives confronted Ronald with the mountain of evidence they had against him. >> You could just tell he was defeated by that mountain of evidence. Um, and he just said he needed a bit of time.
He needed a bit of time. And then he goes and smokes a cigarette and he came back in and the first words out of his mouth to me and the other detective were guilty. I mean, he just he started off with guilty. Uh, and then he broke down exactly what [music] occurred. Ronald said when he approached Janai’s vehicle and tried to force her out at gunpoint, she tried to reason with him.
>> He said she stalled. She started telling him that she was a religious person. He had details that she was in the military. Nobody else knew that. He told us details of the caliber of the gun. >> He said he intended to steal her car, [music] but instead stole her life. I did not mean to shoot this woman. It was a hair trigger.
The woman didn’t deserve this. >> The man who had taken Janai’s life as well as all her hopes and dreams was finally behind bars. >> You always want closure on every case, but [music] knowing the type of person she was and how good and sweet her family are, I wanted to solve the case for them. Donald Smith was tried for Janai Coleman’s murder.
He reversed his statement to detectives and tried to point the blame on his twin brother. However, it was clear to the jurors that fingerprints don’t lie. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison plus 25 years. And now it’s time for today’s safety spotlight. Janai Coleman, a beloved teacher and devoted young mother, was tragically murdered by an armed robber.
And while we cannot foresee when a crime may occur, we can take proactive measures to improve our safety. Situational awareness is a critical tool that helps us make informed decisions in emergencies. When alone in public, stay vigilant and avoid distractions such as being on the phone or listening to music.
If you sense a potential threat, take immediate steps to relocate to a safer environment. Trust your gut. If something feels off or if you sense a threat, act on your intuition to avoid or prepare for a potential confrontation. And if you are violently confronted, your priority should be to escape, not to engage in a physical altercation.
But as much distance between yourself and the attacker as possible, and if you can, consider carrying a personal alarm that can emit a loud sound to attract attention and deter an attacker. I’m Nancy Odell. For all of us here at Crime Expose, [music] please join us next time and stay safe. >> What exactly could you see in that surveillance video? >> I could see what looked like a person slumped over to the side in side of that car.
>> Grainy images captured the suspect fleeing the scene of the crime. >> Her headlights were still on and the headlights were actually facing the camera system. I lost sight of them and you couldn’t see anything else at that point. Police searching for answers. >> Step out with your hands up. Hands on your head. Hands on.
Step out with your hands up. >> He begins insulting her and berating her. He tells her to have fun while she can. >> It ends as he’s at her driver’s side door. She made a Snapchat video before he began firing into the window of her watch car. Hi, [music] I’m Nancy Odell and today’s crime expose takes us to Walter Burough, South Carolina.
50 miles west of Charleston, a horrific homicide shocks a small town to its core. Known as the front port to the Low Country, this quiet community was catapulted into headlines when the sound of gunshots turned a sleepy residential area into the scene of a tragic murder. Investigators left no stone unturned when tracking down their suspect, but it was ultimately a clue left by the victim that would tear the case wide open.
It was a warm May 22nd night when police received a call from an offduty officer. >> Copy that. >> Hey, it’s Ros. I just had about nine gunshots back behind my building. Stepping outside right now to try to find out what’s going on. Sergeant Ross Hance was in his apartment watching TV with his wife at roughly 10 p.m. when he jumped into action.
What was your reaction to hearing gunshots at home while you were relaxing? >> While I called 911, I started grabbing my vest, my firearm, my police radio, and a flashlight and went outside to begin looking for these source of where the gunshots came from. [music] >> Within minutes, the sound of police sirens could be heard approaching the scene.
Other officers began to arrive on scene and the flashlight that I had started going dim. So I decided to go out to my patrol car to get the flashlight out of my patrol car. >> As Sergeant [music] Hans looked for his flashlight, he came across an unforgettable sight. >> As I looked across out my driver’s side window to the Lexus parked next to mine, I could see what looked like a person slumped over to the side and there were a number of bullet holes in the front driver side window.
The engine of the silver Lexus was still running. The doors were locked and the headlights were on. >> We were able to use a lockout kit to gain access to the [music] inside of the car from the passenger side. >> But there was nothing they could do to save the young woman. She had been shot four times and was pronounced dead at the scene.
>> It was the gunshot wound to the neck that proved fatal [music] immediately. >> The motive for the crime wasn’t immediately clear. Inside the car, investigators found the victim’s wallet and cell phone. >> When we identified the female in the car as Dasia Holloway, the resident of that complex, >> investigators collected any evidence they could find from the area, including six shell casings found just [music] outside of the car.
>> A lot of the prints I may have lifted may have been from first responders uh trying to gain access to a locked vehicle. Several people heard the gunshots, but few reported seeing anything. >> There was at least one witness stating that they saw an individual. They stated they believed it to be a black man.
>> Grainy surveillance video collected from the [music] apartment complex could not prove or disprove the eyewitness account. >> So, could you see anything in the surveillance video? Lucky for us, uh, we were able to see Miss Holloway, uh, enter the complex uh, followed closely by another vehicle.
The vehicle following her, uh, takes a left into the first, uh, parking area. >> Investigators could not clearly see the car trailing Denia’s. From the distance of the headlights and the tail lights, it looked like a pickup, but because of how dark it was, and there was no street lighting in that area.
Couldn’t tell any sort of a make or model of the the truck. >> The unknown car parks across the street from the entrance to the apartment complex near the mailboxes. >> He parked in a darker place away from the apartment buildings. >> The silver Lexus backs into the parking spot next to Sergeant Hans’s patrol car, but the driver does not exit the vehicle.
However, police could see a man walking nearby. >> It turns out it’s not in fact a black male. It was a white male about average height, kind of a stocky bill. >> The grainy footage made it impossible to discern facial features, but police noted his appearance. >> Thick hair, some kind of beard or mask, and looked to be wearing dark pants, dark shirt.
>> The mysterious man first walks towards the building Denasia lived in. The individual stands there briefly looking towards the parking lot between the 200 and 300 building. And from there he comes around onto the main sidewalk and you could see where he approaches her vehicle.
He gets to her vehicle due to the fact that her headlights were still on and the headlights were actually facing the camera system. I lost sight of him and you couldn’t see anything else at that point. >> Less than 10 minutes later, the cameras capture activity again. There was approximately a 7m minute time frame. And then after that 7 minute frame, you can see that same male running from the direction of her car [music] and runs back across in front of the office to the complex and runs back over to where the vehicle had parked by the mailboxes.
And then you see that vehicle start up. The headlights actually come on, backs out, and then you see the tail lights exit out of the apartment complex. Whoever had shot Dasia Holloway appeared to have known her. 22-year-old [music] Daasia Holloway had been the bright light of her parents’ lives. The oldest of three, she had her whole life ahead of her.
>> She was an independent woman and um she was very close with her family and her mother in particular. >> Police learned Dasia had driven back to Walterboro from a holiday trip to Fort Lauderdale, Florida on the night she was murdered. She had a new man in her life, but she confided to her mother that she was still worried about her ex-boyfriend.
They had broken up months ago, but he had not been able to move on. >> Through a prior report, which had a domestic [music] violence call, and the offender in that case was uh Mr. Justin Carol. >> Denisia had obtained a no contact order against Carol, which immediately put him in the crosshairs of the investigation. >> Through his DMV information, he had a local address.
We went to that address, spoke with family. >> Carol was out of town at the time, but agreed to speak with investigators. >> Where was Carol when police finally spoke with him? >> He was coming from Charleston area and was making his way back to Baltimore. >> Roughly 4 hours after the murder, the Colton County Sheriff’s Office located Carol.
when he comes back into uh into town, uh the Colin County Sheriff’s Office does make contact with him and initiate a traffic stop on him. >> Step out with your hands up, hands on your head. Turn around. Walk to my void. Go down to your knees. Lay flat on your stomach. Hands out in front of you. At this point, we uh took him into to our investigations unit for an interview.
>> Carol was cooperative with the investigators and walked [music] them through his evening. >> He had said he had worked at his uh job and then his [music] he and his friend went to the Charleston area. >> Carol was not able to provide police with specific details. >> He had told me that they didn’t really go anywhere. They just driving around.
I had no way of verifying where he was. >> Corporal ship decided to break the news of Dasia’s murder to him. [music] >> When I did bring up that uh Dasia had been shot, he had uh put his head down in his hands. It was at this time I I noticed that, you know, Mr. Carol had a shaved head. He had no hair on his head.
>> It was a stark contrast to what police had seen in the surveillance video. [music] I noticed that the video we saw, we saw an individual with pretty good thick hair on his head. >> Ship was hoping the news of Denasia’s death would elicit a new lead from Carol. Something to move the case forward, but it actually did just the opposite.
>> The further the interview went on, Mr. Carol, especially after being advised of Miss Denia’s passing, uh, decided that he wanted to end end the interview and, uh, seek a lawyer. >> Were you able to test his hands for gun residue that night? >> I asked him if he would consent to a GSR kit with his gunshot residue kit.
Um, he consented and I went ahead and uh tested his hands and that kit got sent off to SLED, which is the state law enforcement division uh for South Carolina. >> A cursory glance at Carol’s phone seemed to confirm his alibi. >> There was evidence that placed him moving towards Charleston. >> And with no physical evidence tying him to the crime, police released him.
I had to release him because at the time I just had a previous report where he’s listed as an offender in a domestic violence uh report. >> Walter Burough police had just released Justin Cole Carroll, [music] but a stunning new piece of evidence was about to blow the case wide open. >> We seized his phone and his truck and subsequently did search warrants to search both.
So, did you find anything that helped move the case forward? >> So, upon the search of the truck, I was advised that the truck had nothing in it, >> that it was [music] extremely clean. It did not even contain a piece of paper in it. >> After seizing Carol’s phone, police noted that its call history had been [music] erased. >> Initially, the there was nothing that we could see like phone call uh log wise or text message wise.
The phone was essentially wiped clean of a lot of information, >> but analysts were still [music] able to extract significant data. >> So, the phone records revealed there’s almost no logs of calls, messages, but it did give pings in the area of the Force Porn Apartments during the time that Dasia was shot. >> It was a promising lead, but not enough to issue an arrest warrant.
Police turned to Dasia’s phone for more leads. >> Investigators got in touch with her current boyfriend who was able to give them her passcode. [music] >> At this moment that the officer that unlocked her phone [music] looked into just anything, just messages, call us. >> Her text messages offered insight into [music] her volatile relationship with Carol.
He was supposed to have no contact with Denasia, but he continued to contact her [music] and in fact was text messaging her while she was on a trip out [music] of town in Florida. >> The text at first appeared cordial. >> They started out nice enough. [music] He obviously still had feelings for her and love for her and he was texting that to her.
But when Dasia didn’t respond right away, he became increasingly impatient. >> He continues to reach out, I think probably around seven times the week before the murder and is not getting any answer from her. >> Carol’s tone became menacing when he learned Denasia was out of town. >> Eventually, she says, “I’m in Fort Lauderdale.” And he, you know, starts in with, “Well, who are you with? what are you doing? You know, she’s saying she’s on [music] vacation.
She’s with a new guy and they just deteriorate from there. >> And the text ended on an ominous tone. >> He begins insulting her and berating her and tells her to have fun while she can. And that’s just a few days before she gets back from this trip. Police then searched Dasia’s photos and videos and found a stunning new piece of evidence.
>> That officer stumbled upon a video that was timestamped for the time of the offense that showed Dasia in her vehicle sitting in her vehicle in the same uh spot that she was parked in at the Forest Point Apartments. >> The clip showed the same stocky man from the surveillance video approaching her car.
You could tell it’s taken from the point of view of the driver’s seat. Um, you see a white male approach the vehicle. That white male as he approaches, uh, I could I could identify at this point as Justin Carol. >> Carol had a lit cigarette in his hand and police noted he had tried to alter his appearance after the crime. >> That video also shows Mr.
Carol with a full head of hair. It’s not Shay. As he approaches the vehicle, he does have a mask and he pulls it up over his face. >> Dasia’s video included a caption that read like a plea for help. >> She had asked this behavior to stop, that he had followed her into her apartment complex and this was ridiculous and it just had to stop.
[music] That was mere minutes before he began firing into the um closed window of her locked car. >> The video does last [snorts] maybe 10 seconds or so. It ends as he’s at her driver’s side door. >> What was your reaction to seeing the video? >> It was something else. It it was a sense of relief in in the fact that uh we we could identify the shooter at this point.
Once I’ve got him identified, that gives me the probable cause to charge him with the murder of Dasia Holloway. >> What were the results of the gunpowder residue test? >> It showed that Mr. Carol did have a particle for gunshot consistent with gunshot residue on his right hand. >> The Snapchat video gave prosecutor Hunter Swanson a unique advantage.
something that we never have in a domestic homicide case because these cases really involve a lot of what goes on behind closed doors. The Snapchat video was really a window into what was going on [music] just moments before Denasia’s horrible murder. And so that was the best evidence.
In her [music] closing statements, Swanson made sure the jury had no doubt about Carol’s guilt. >> And I told the jury um that in this case, Denasia was able to [music] be heard from the grave. And she told that jury who did this. And she ended up being her best advocate in that moment when she was videotaping him.
The jury deliberated for 23 minutes [music] before returning a guilty verdict. And 24year-old Justin Cole Carroll was sentenced to 60 years in prison for Denasia Holloway’s murder. Dasia Holloway’s parents have said [music] they did everything they could to protect their only daughter. They blocked Carol on social media, changed [music] Donasia’s phone number several times, let her stay at their home, and even reached out to Carol’s family.
The parents said her senseless murder has given them [music] a life sentence of pain. And now, it’s time for today’s safety spotlight. Dasia Holloway was a young woman in the prime of her life when she was stalked and brutally killed by an abusive ex-boyfriend. Protective orders can sometimes be an effective tool, but for [music] those with a truly unhealthy fixation on someone, it may not deter them.
How quickly you react could be the difference [music] between life and death. If you see the person anywhere within the parameters of the order, remove yourself from the danger zone. [music] Drive to a safe place, like the nearest police station, and while in route, dial 911 and alert law enforcement in the [music] event you are being followed.
You also don’t have to handle this alone. It’s important to lean on family and support groups. They can offer emotional aid and practical advice. Seek the help of therapists or counselors who can provide guidance on managing relationship issues and personal safety. And if you are in an abusive relationship, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1 800799 SAFE or visit the hotline.org today.
I’m Nancy Odell. For all of us here at Crime Expose, please join us next time and stay safe. [music] >> [music] [music] [music]
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