1 00:00:02,160 --> 00:00:06,233 ♪♪ 2 00:00:06,266 --> 00:00:08,350 Narrator: Up next -- a late-night walk 3 00:00:08,383 --> 00:00:12,000 in an upscale neighborhood results in murder. 4 00:00:12,330 --> 00:00:16,160 The victim suffered a horrible, agonizing, painful death. 5 00:00:16,500 --> 00:00:19,166 Narrator: Surprise evidence sends investigators 6 00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:21,250 in an unexpected direction. 7 00:00:21,283 --> 00:00:23,160 Murder has no boundaries. 8 00:00:23,500 --> 00:00:24,200 We're going wherever we got to go. 9 00:00:24,233 --> 00:00:26,300 Narrator: After weeks of investigation, 10 00:00:26,333 --> 00:00:30,330 the case comes down to a single phone number. 11 00:00:30,660 --> 00:00:34,160 The bottom line to this investigation is forensics. 12 00:00:34,500 --> 00:00:36,366 The cellphone forensics actually brought 13 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:39,350 the whole focus 180 degrees. 14 00:00:39,383 --> 00:00:43,383 The forensics is the glue that sticks it all together. 15 00:00:44,160 --> 00:00:51,383 ♪♪ 16 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:59,383 ♪♪ 17 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:01,116 Narrator: After meeting online 18 00:01:01,150 --> 00:01:03,500 and living for a while in Europe, 19 00:01:03,830 --> 00:01:05,660 Fred and Sherry Engel married 20 00:01:05,100 --> 00:01:07,500 and moved his consulting business 21 00:01:07,830 --> 00:01:10,183 to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, in 2006. 22 00:01:10,216 --> 00:01:13,250 The couple, both in their early 50s, 23 00:01:13,283 --> 00:01:16,216 lived in a complex called Carolina Forest. 24 00:01:16,250 --> 00:01:19,366 Carolina Forest -- it was really a planned-unit development, 25 00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:23,316 but it stretches into what was just a bare tract, 26 00:01:23,350 --> 00:01:28,150 a wildlife tract, for many, many acres. 27 00:01:28,183 --> 00:01:30,133 Narrator: Tom and Karen Rickerson were 28 00:01:30,166 --> 00:01:32,183 the Engels' next-door neighbors. 29 00:01:32,216 --> 00:01:37,500 We knew her first because she lived in Myrtle Beach 30 00:01:37,830 --> 00:01:42,660 before Fred was able, with his job, to move there. 31 00:01:42,100 --> 00:01:44,150 They were very quiet, you know, 32 00:01:44,183 --> 00:01:46,166 like, you know, to themselves. 33 00:01:46,200 --> 00:01:49,233 Very nice people. 34 00:01:49,266 --> 00:01:53,266 Narrator: Shortly before midnight on April 21, 2008, 35 00:01:53,300 --> 00:01:56,250 Sherry woke up and couldn't find Fred. 36 00:01:56,283 --> 00:01:58,000 He wasn't in the house, 37 00:01:58,330 --> 00:02:00,266 but his car was still in the garage. 38 00:02:00,300 --> 00:02:02,250 She had worked herself up into a panic. 39 00:02:02,283 --> 00:02:04,116 She knocked on her next-door neighbors' door 40 00:02:04,150 --> 00:02:07,500 and very plainly said then, but in a panicked way, you know, 41 00:02:07,830 --> 00:02:10,150 "I can't find Fred. I don't know where Fred is." 42 00:02:10,183 --> 00:02:12,266 Narrator: Tom Rickerson searched the Engels' home 43 00:02:12,300 --> 00:02:16,366 and found no sign of Fred in the house or surrounding area. 44 00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:19,333 But Sherry noticed that the keys to the mailbox 45 00:02:19,366 --> 00:02:21,100 were not in the house. 46 00:02:21,133 --> 00:02:24,250 The mailboxes for this development -- 47 00:02:24,283 --> 00:02:26,183 it's a bank of mailboxes 48 00:02:26,216 --> 00:02:29,166 that's right at the edge of the community, 49 00:02:29,200 --> 00:02:32,266 and it's in a very wooded area. 50 00:02:32,300 --> 00:02:35,250 Narrator: This bank of mailboxes was about two blocks 51 00:02:35,283 --> 00:02:37,830 from the Engels' house. 52 00:02:37,116 --> 00:02:39,383 Sherry Engel and Tom Rickerson drove there. 53 00:02:40,160 --> 00:02:44,100 Thomas: I get out the car, and in front of the mailbox, 54 00:02:44,133 --> 00:02:46,133 I see a pair of glasses. 55 00:02:46,166 --> 00:02:52,660 And when I get up close, I see blood on the pavement. 56 00:02:52,100 --> 00:02:53,333 Well, Sherry comes up, and I said, 57 00:02:53,366 --> 00:02:55,366 "Sherry, get back in the car," 58 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:58,300 'cause I'm thinking whoever did this 59 00:02:58,333 --> 00:03:01,150 is still there. 60 00:03:01,183 --> 00:03:03,330 Narrator: Police were called to the scene 61 00:03:03,660 --> 00:03:04,366 and immediately searched the area. 62 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:08,366 Cestare: And approximately 10 to 15 yards inside the wood line, 63 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:11,300 they see what appears to be a body laying there. 64 00:03:11,333 --> 00:03:13,183 [ Camera shutter clicking ] 65 00:03:13,216 --> 00:03:15,330 Narrator: It was Fred Engel. 66 00:03:15,660 --> 00:03:18,366 He'd been strangled with a highly unusual murder weapon. 67 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:22,233 We see what appears to be a bootlace or a shoelace 68 00:03:22,266 --> 00:03:24,366 tied around Fred Engel's neck, 69 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:27,300 and it's tied from the back. 70 00:03:27,333 --> 00:03:29,383 Narrator: There was also a bloody gash 71 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:31,166 on the back of his head. 72 00:03:31,200 --> 00:03:34,383 Detectives assumed that, while he was at the mailbox, 73 00:03:35,160 --> 00:03:37,116 Fred had been knocked unconscious, 74 00:03:37,150 --> 00:03:40,333 dragged into the woods, and then strangled. 75 00:03:40,366 --> 00:03:42,266 This gave detectives one piece 76 00:03:42,300 --> 00:03:45,160 of vital information straight away. 77 00:03:45,500 --> 00:03:49,250 Fred was well over 6 feet and weighed 250 pounds. 78 00:03:49,283 --> 00:03:52,383 Dragging him into the woods would not have been easy. 79 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:56,166 Cestare: This is not gonna be a skinny, little kid. 80 00:03:56,200 --> 00:04:00,366 You know, this is going to be an adult-size male. 81 00:04:02,383 --> 00:04:05,133 Narrator: Fred was still wearing his wedding ring 82 00:04:05,166 --> 00:04:07,133 and an expensive watch. 83 00:04:07,166 --> 00:04:09,183 His cellphone was in his pocket. 84 00:04:09,216 --> 00:04:11,660 It's quite apparent at that point, 85 00:04:11,100 --> 00:04:13,300 robbery is probably not gonna be the motive. 86 00:04:13,333 --> 00:04:16,200 Narrator: The only motive appeared to be murder. 87 00:04:16,233 --> 00:04:19,160 But who would want to kill Fred Engel? 88 00:04:19,500 --> 00:04:20,316 No one had a clue. 89 00:04:20,350 --> 00:04:24,266 ♪♪ 90 00:04:28,166 --> 00:04:31,500 Narrator: Evidence at the scene of Fred Engel's murder 91 00:04:31,830 --> 00:04:34,333 appeared to indicate his killer was lying in wait, 92 00:04:34,366 --> 00:04:38,266 that he knew where Fred would be and at what time. 93 00:04:38,300 --> 00:04:41,830 This was a particularly vicious crime. 94 00:04:41,116 --> 00:04:43,266 It was the type of crime that, in my opinion, 95 00:04:43,300 --> 00:04:46,166 happens because someone knows someone. 96 00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:49,150 Narrator: When Fred's wife, Sherry, found out what happened, 97 00:04:49,183 --> 00:04:51,133 first responders nearly had 98 00:04:51,166 --> 00:04:53,150 another emergency on their hands. 99 00:04:53,183 --> 00:04:58,133 Thomas: She became very hysterical, disbelief. 100 00:04:58,166 --> 00:04:59,316 She passed out. 101 00:04:59,350 --> 00:05:04,150 They were able to revive her, but she wasn't the same. 102 00:05:04,183 --> 00:05:07,660 Hawes: It was heartbreaking to watch someone process 103 00:05:07,100 --> 00:05:10,000 and go through that instant grief of understanding 104 00:05:10,330 --> 00:05:13,283 that their loved one, their husband, has passed. 105 00:05:13,316 --> 00:05:15,383 Narrator: When she could finally communicate, 106 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:19,150 Sherry said she had no idea who would want to kill Fred 107 00:05:19,183 --> 00:05:23,160 and freely gave permission for police to search her house. 108 00:05:23,500 --> 00:05:25,283 We're looking for anything that can help tell us 109 00:05:25,316 --> 00:05:27,150 what happened to Mr. Engel. 110 00:05:27,183 --> 00:05:30,116 Does he have a beef with any of the neighbors in the area? 111 00:05:30,150 --> 00:05:35,200 Has any business partners or business contracts gone bad? 112 00:05:35,233 --> 00:05:38,200 Any threats against him? 113 00:05:38,233 --> 00:05:41,383 Narrator: And it turned out that Fred did have a confrontation 114 00:05:42,160 --> 00:05:44,500 shortly before his murder 115 00:05:44,830 --> 00:05:46,300 with a teenager who lived in the neighborhood. 116 00:05:46,333 --> 00:05:48,350 This young man was so troublesome 117 00:05:48,383 --> 00:05:52,166 and scared so many residents that he and his mother 118 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:54,150 had been kicked out of the development. 119 00:05:54,183 --> 00:05:57,300 Hawes: This young man had committed some small fires, 120 00:05:57,333 --> 00:05:59,100 had been accused of, like, 121 00:05:59,133 --> 00:06:01,316 shooting an air rifle at passing cars, 122 00:06:01,350 --> 00:06:04,266 different things of that nature that had basically made him 123 00:06:04,300 --> 00:06:07,250 unwelcome on other people's property in the neighborhood. 124 00:06:07,283 --> 00:06:11,133 Narrator: And he fit the bill as a potential suspect. 125 00:06:11,166 --> 00:06:15,160 He had a significant temper, was the size of a regular man, 126 00:06:15,500 --> 00:06:17,500 so we're not talking about dealing with a child. 127 00:06:17,830 --> 00:06:19,383 We're talking about a child in a man's body. 128 00:06:20,160 --> 00:06:23,333 Narrator: Even more telling, the killer used a shoelace -- 129 00:06:23,366 --> 00:06:25,333 a crime-of-opportunity weapon, 130 00:06:25,366 --> 00:06:29,250 the kind of weapon a person might resort to on impulse. 131 00:06:29,283 --> 00:06:31,183 Seeing the shoelace around his neck, to me, 132 00:06:31,216 --> 00:06:33,300 immediately started gears spinning in my head. 133 00:06:33,333 --> 00:06:36,116 The first thing it told me was this most likely 134 00:06:36,150 --> 00:06:37,350 was something that happened in a hurry. 135 00:06:37,383 --> 00:06:40,100 Narrator: Perhaps Fred had another altercation 136 00:06:40,133 --> 00:06:43,316 with this teenager, and it escalated into murder. 137 00:06:43,350 --> 00:06:46,660 The young man's police interrogation 138 00:06:46,100 --> 00:06:48,150 did little to knock down this theory. 139 00:06:48,183 --> 00:06:50,383 Hawes: His personality was very confrontational. 140 00:06:51,160 --> 00:06:53,183 He did not want to be there. 141 00:06:53,216 --> 00:06:56,350 He would not provide any direct answers. 142 00:06:56,383 --> 00:06:58,200 Everything was evasive. 143 00:06:58,233 --> 00:07:01,150 Narrator: He finally admitted to being in the neighborhood 144 00:07:01,183 --> 00:07:03,383 but said he'd gone to a nearby shopping center 145 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:05,150 later that night. 146 00:07:05,183 --> 00:07:07,283 Surveillance video from that shopping center 147 00:07:07,316 --> 00:07:09,830 showed he was there. 148 00:07:09,116 --> 00:07:11,160 And, most important, 149 00:07:11,500 --> 00:07:14,283 he was there during Fred's estimated time of death, 150 00:07:14,316 --> 00:07:16,116 between 11:00 and midnight. 151 00:07:16,150 --> 00:07:18,300 So, that takes him out of the equation. 152 00:07:18,333 --> 00:07:22,366 Narrator: Investigators now had to consider another possibility. 153 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:25,183 Fred's job tended to make enemies. 154 00:07:25,216 --> 00:07:27,183 Hawes: He would come and evaluate businesses, 155 00:07:27,216 --> 00:07:29,000 see what was working, what was not, 156 00:07:29,330 --> 00:07:31,266 and very frequently, whenever Fred came in, 157 00:07:31,300 --> 00:07:33,660 people lost their jobs. 158 00:07:33,100 --> 00:07:34,316 A lot of people didn't like Fred. 159 00:07:34,350 --> 00:07:36,166 He was kind of the hatchet man. 160 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:39,283 Narrator: This meant a huge pool of potential suspects, 161 00:07:39,316 --> 00:07:42,266 not only in America, but also overseas. 162 00:07:42,300 --> 00:07:45,116 If you jump into a pond, you're gonna make a splash, 163 00:07:45,150 --> 00:07:48,200 and Fred had jumped into quite a few ponds 164 00:07:48,233 --> 00:07:50,200 through his business. 165 00:07:50,233 --> 00:07:53,150 Narrator: As detectives began the painstaking search 166 00:07:53,183 --> 00:07:54,366 for possible suspects, 167 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:57,266 they hoped DNA might provide a break. 168 00:07:57,300 --> 00:07:59,166 Could analysts get DNA 169 00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:01,350 from the very unusual murder weapon -- 170 00:08:01,383 --> 00:08:04,150 the shoelace used to strangle Fred? 171 00:08:04,183 --> 00:08:07,160 Hawes: The shoelace looked dingy and old, 172 00:08:07,500 --> 00:08:10,160 so I immediately got optimistic, hoping, "Okay, great. 173 00:08:10,500 --> 00:08:12,830 Hopefully, there's gonna be DNA on this shoelace." 174 00:08:12,116 --> 00:08:15,500 Narrator: But in a setback no one anticipated, 175 00:08:15,830 --> 00:08:17,166 no foreign DNA was recovered. 176 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:20,333 Jurors believe that DNA is everywhere, and it is. 177 00:08:20,366 --> 00:08:22,100 But it's very fickle, 178 00:08:22,133 --> 00:08:24,183 and it's very hard to get a lot of times. 179 00:08:24,216 --> 00:08:25,300 Hawes: We're really looking for it, 180 00:08:25,333 --> 00:08:28,330 and not having it in this case -- 181 00:08:28,660 --> 00:08:29,183 it really hurt me. 182 00:08:31,216 --> 00:08:33,166 Narrator: As police dug for leads, 183 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:35,350 they had to deal with a community on edge. 184 00:08:35,383 --> 00:08:37,366 Karen: A murderer was at loose. 185 00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:41,250 No child was playing outside after 5:00 186 00:08:41,283 --> 00:08:43,330 when the sun went down. 187 00:08:43,660 --> 00:08:45,200 Nobody was jogging any longer. 188 00:08:45,233 --> 00:08:47,316 Hawes: We've already crossed that 48-hour threshold. 189 00:08:47,350 --> 00:08:49,100 The investigation reached a point 190 00:08:49,133 --> 00:08:52,200 where I had essentially ran out of leads. 191 00:08:52,233 --> 00:08:55,660 Narrator: But a few weeks into the investigation, 192 00:08:55,100 --> 00:08:58,500 detectives got a potential break in the case. 193 00:08:58,830 --> 00:09:01,366 Sherry's friends and family said they saw something strange 194 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:04,160 shortly after Fred's murder, 195 00:09:04,500 --> 00:09:06,383 on the very day he was laid to rest. 196 00:09:07,160 --> 00:09:09,316 During the memorial services for Fred, 197 00:09:09,350 --> 00:09:12,183 several family members and friends of Sherry noticed 198 00:09:12,216 --> 00:09:15,266 her having conversations and interactions 199 00:09:15,300 --> 00:09:16,366 with someone they didn't know. 200 00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:18,250 It was a tall, redheaded stranger. 201 00:09:18,283 --> 00:09:20,233 Narrator: And this behavior continued 202 00:09:20,266 --> 00:09:22,233 well after the funeral. 203 00:09:22,266 --> 00:09:26,160 She seemed to have a very friendly, very cordial, 204 00:09:26,500 --> 00:09:28,316 on the borderline of being flirtatious relationship 205 00:09:28,350 --> 00:09:30,166 with this man that none of them knew. 206 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:33,150 Narrator: Who was this man, and was it possible 207 00:09:33,183 --> 00:09:36,200 he held the key to Fred Engel's murder? 208 00:09:36,233 --> 00:09:40,300 ♪♪ 209 00:09:44,150 --> 00:09:45,216 Narrator: Even though Fred Engel 210 00:09:45,250 --> 00:09:47,216 had moved his business to the U.S., 211 00:09:47,250 --> 00:09:49,266 he still spent a lot of time on the road. 212 00:09:49,300 --> 00:09:53,183 He would fly to New York for business meetings. 213 00:09:53,216 --> 00:09:55,100 He would go to China. 214 00:09:55,133 --> 00:09:57,366 He would fly all over. 215 00:09:58,000 --> 00:09:59,200 Narrator: And when he was gone, 216 00:09:59,233 --> 00:10:02,200 Sherry would often stay with her family in Kentucky. 217 00:10:02,233 --> 00:10:04,383 Fred accompanied her whenever he could. 218 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:07,266 Sherry's family in Kentucky absolutely loved Fred. 219 00:10:07,300 --> 00:10:09,200 They enjoyed every time he visited. 220 00:10:09,233 --> 00:10:11,100 They really appreciated him. 221 00:10:11,133 --> 00:10:14,830 Narrator: But there was something about Sherry's behavior 222 00:10:14,116 --> 00:10:17,183 that concerned her family in Kentucky. 223 00:10:17,216 --> 00:10:21,100 She was increasingly seen in the company of a man 224 00:10:21,133 --> 00:10:23,830 her family had never met. 225 00:10:23,116 --> 00:10:26,233 And they seemed to be more than friends. 226 00:10:26,266 --> 00:10:28,283 In Kentucky, she had been seen 227 00:10:28,316 --> 00:10:31,283 with this unknown redheaded man, redheaded stranger, 228 00:10:31,316 --> 00:10:34,166 several times over the course of her visits, 229 00:10:34,200 --> 00:10:38,160 and she had been visiting frequently back home. 230 00:10:38,500 --> 00:10:40,100 Narrator: Family members didn't know him. 231 00:10:40,133 --> 00:10:41,283 And after Fred's murder, 232 00:10:41,316 --> 00:10:44,316 Sherry seemed to be spending even more time with him. 233 00:10:44,350 --> 00:10:48,250 The scuttlebutt on the street in Breckinridge, Kentucky, 234 00:10:48,283 --> 00:10:50,350 is Sherry is having an affair 235 00:10:50,383 --> 00:10:55,830 with some redheaded guy that's really big. 236 00:10:55,116 --> 00:10:56,333 Narrator: Family members in Kentucky 237 00:10:56,366 --> 00:11:01,000 contacted the local sheriff to express their concerns. 238 00:11:01,330 --> 00:11:03,316 That sheriff promptly called his counterparts 239 00:11:03,350 --> 00:11:05,116 in South Carolina. 240 00:11:05,150 --> 00:11:09,160 Both offices agreed to work together to find out what, 241 00:11:09,500 --> 00:11:11,300 if anything, was going on. 242 00:11:11,333 --> 00:11:14,000 I asked the sheriff in Breckinridge County, 243 00:11:14,330 --> 00:11:17,160 "Is there any way -- would you mind, please, going out 244 00:11:17,500 --> 00:11:19,316 and kind of doing the legwork there in Kentucky 245 00:11:19,350 --> 00:11:22,500 and finding out who this person may be?" 246 00:11:22,830 --> 00:11:24,100 And he agreed to do that for me. 247 00:11:24,133 --> 00:11:27,366 Narrator: Detectives in Kentucky were eventually able to identify 248 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:32,000 the man seen with Sherry Engel as Tim Rogers, 249 00:11:32,330 --> 00:11:34,166 a divorced 40-year-old contractor 250 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:36,100 with no criminal history. 251 00:11:36,133 --> 00:11:39,166 He was 6'4", 240 pounds -- 252 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:42,330 almost the exact size as Fred Engel. 253 00:11:42,660 --> 00:11:45,330 I immediately realized I had a person 254 00:11:45,660 --> 00:11:46,283 that was physically capable 255 00:11:46,316 --> 00:11:48,233 of doing the things that the crime scene 256 00:11:48,266 --> 00:11:50,300 and the body showed me happened that night. 257 00:11:50,333 --> 00:11:53,300 Narrator: Tim Rogers drove a red pickup truck, 258 00:11:53,333 --> 00:11:56,233 which turned out to be potentially significant. 259 00:11:56,266 --> 00:11:59,233 The night of the murder, a woman in Fred's neighborhood 260 00:11:59,266 --> 00:12:03,500 saw a red pickup driving around the mailboxes 261 00:12:03,830 --> 00:12:04,316 where Fred was attacked. 262 00:12:04,350 --> 00:12:08,133 The truck, which she had never seen in the neighborhood, 263 00:12:08,166 --> 00:12:13,133 drove very slowly to the bank of mailboxes and parked nearby. 264 00:12:13,166 --> 00:12:16,383 She said she never saw the driver exit the vehicle. 265 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:18,116 She doesn't recognize the vehicle 266 00:12:18,150 --> 00:12:19,266 because, obviously, she lives there. 267 00:12:19,300 --> 00:12:21,330 She's never seen it before. 268 00:12:21,660 --> 00:12:24,150 She believes it's a Chevy S-10 pickup. 269 00:12:24,183 --> 00:12:28,133 Narrator: This truck was the same model as Tim Rogers' truck. 270 00:12:28,166 --> 00:12:30,660 But when South Carolina detectives 271 00:12:30,100 --> 00:12:34,183 went to interview Tim, his truck was no longer red. 272 00:12:34,216 --> 00:12:37,300 Hawes: So, he changed the color from maroon or red 273 00:12:37,333 --> 00:12:39,250 to basically primer gray, 274 00:12:39,283 --> 00:12:42,133 which was very suspicious in and of itself. 275 00:12:42,166 --> 00:12:46,000 Narrator: Meanwhile, detectives were questioning Sherry Engel. 276 00:12:46,330 --> 00:12:47,116 On the night of the murder, 277 00:12:47,150 --> 00:12:49,333 she allowed police to search her house. 278 00:12:49,366 --> 00:12:52,183 One item they searched was her cellphone. 279 00:12:52,216 --> 00:12:55,200 There appeared to be nothing unusual on this phone. 280 00:12:55,233 --> 00:12:57,660 But a few days later, 281 00:12:57,100 --> 00:13:00,233 while going over Sherry's physical phone records, 282 00:13:00,266 --> 00:13:03,283 analysts found something unexpected. 283 00:13:03,316 --> 00:13:06,000 She'd deleted a series of calls 284 00:13:06,330 --> 00:13:09,830 that happened in the days leading up to Fred's murder. 285 00:13:09,116 --> 00:13:14,330 All of these calls were to a number in the 502 area code. 286 00:13:14,660 --> 00:13:17,283 The area code was a Kentucky phone number. 287 00:13:17,316 --> 00:13:19,100 Narrator: And analysts traced the number 288 00:13:19,133 --> 00:13:22,283 Sherry had called to a disposable burner phone 289 00:13:22,316 --> 00:13:26,133 purchased by none other than Tim Rogers. 290 00:13:26,166 --> 00:13:28,283 A concentrated burst of these calls 291 00:13:28,316 --> 00:13:31,000 happened the night of Fred's murder 292 00:13:31,330 --> 00:13:35,830 at a time when Sherry told police she'd been asleep. 293 00:13:35,116 --> 00:13:38,366 Her whole story now was suspect. 294 00:13:39,000 --> 00:13:41,283 Not only was Sherry lying to me, 295 00:13:41,316 --> 00:13:44,500 she was lying to me during the exact time period 296 00:13:44,830 --> 00:13:46,830 that we're investigating where a homicide occurred. 297 00:13:46,116 --> 00:13:48,160 Definitely something is up. 298 00:13:48,500 --> 00:13:50,100 Narrator: Analysts now did a deep dive 299 00:13:50,133 --> 00:13:52,216 on Sherry and Tim's phone activity, 300 00:13:52,250 --> 00:13:54,316 and it revealed a murder conspiracy 301 00:13:54,350 --> 00:13:56,350 in the works for months. 302 00:13:56,383 --> 00:13:58,383 Sherry was brought in for questioning 303 00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:02,830 and denied any involvement in her husband's murder. 304 00:14:13,383 --> 00:14:17,366 But when confronted with the evidence from her phone, 305 00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:20,830 would Sherry's story change? 306 00:14:20,116 --> 00:14:25,100 ♪♪ 307 00:14:27,366 --> 00:14:31,500 Narrator: Sherry Engel's reaction to her husband's murder -- 308 00:14:31,830 --> 00:14:34,216 she was so shocked, she had to be treated by paramedics -- 309 00:14:34,250 --> 00:14:37,183 made her an unlikely murder suspect. 310 00:14:37,216 --> 00:14:40,183 But if she was having an affair with Tim Rogers, 311 00:14:40,216 --> 00:14:45,660 investigators and even her relatives weren't so sure. 312 00:14:45,100 --> 00:14:50,100 Sherry's own family is saying, "This is closer than friends. 313 00:14:50,133 --> 00:14:53,660 These two have something going on." 314 00:14:53,100 --> 00:14:54,250 Narrator: Rumors of an affair 315 00:14:54,283 --> 00:14:57,133 and a lot of suspiciously timed phone calls 316 00:14:57,166 --> 00:14:59,216 were hardly proof of murder, 317 00:14:59,250 --> 00:15:02,100 but detectives believed those calls 318 00:15:02,133 --> 00:15:04,500 might be able to tell the story 319 00:15:04,830 --> 00:15:07,330 of what happened the night Fred was killed. 320 00:15:09,160 --> 00:15:11,000 Investigators got the locations 321 00:15:11,330 --> 00:15:13,316 of all the cellphone towers in the area 322 00:15:13,350 --> 00:15:16,166 and then did what's called a tower dump. 323 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:18,350 Cestare: A tower dump shows you every phone number 324 00:15:18,383 --> 00:15:22,316 in and out of a particular tower and the times that it occurs, 325 00:15:22,350 --> 00:15:24,250 how long the call lasted, 326 00:15:24,283 --> 00:15:26,233 the phone number it connected with 327 00:15:26,266 --> 00:15:29,250 or called to or called from. 328 00:15:29,283 --> 00:15:32,300 Narrator: Forensic analysts were able to pinpoint 329 00:15:32,333 --> 00:15:36,250 almost exactly Sherry and Tim's locations 330 00:15:36,283 --> 00:15:39,200 as they called each other the night of Fred's murder. 331 00:15:39,233 --> 00:15:41,216 So, they could put the signal 332 00:15:41,250 --> 00:15:43,200 down into the size of about a car, 333 00:15:43,233 --> 00:15:46,100 I would say about 6 feet by 10 feet. 334 00:15:46,133 --> 00:15:49,200 I could say that this person was accurately within that area. 335 00:15:49,233 --> 00:15:53,000 Narrator: Sherry and Tim had five phone conversations 336 00:15:53,330 --> 00:15:54,366 around the time of Fred's murder. 337 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:58,660 The tower dump showed that four of those calls 338 00:15:58,100 --> 00:16:02,283 were either made or received right next to the mailbox 339 00:16:02,316 --> 00:16:04,150 where Fred was attacked. 340 00:16:04,183 --> 00:16:07,330 The last call was from a hotel 341 00:16:07,660 --> 00:16:09,350 about seven miles from the site of the murder. 342 00:16:09,383 --> 00:16:13,500 I immediately walk in with the staff, show them a picture, 343 00:16:13,830 --> 00:16:14,383 and they immediately recognize him, 344 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:16,216 say, "Yeah, that's Timmy. 345 00:16:16,250 --> 00:16:18,300 Timmy's been staying here off and on for several months." 346 00:16:18,333 --> 00:16:23,660 Narrator: Hotel staff said he drove a red Chevy S-10 pickup, 347 00:16:23,100 --> 00:16:26,000 the same make and model a witness reported seeing 348 00:16:26,330 --> 00:16:27,366 on the night of Fred's murder, 349 00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:31,133 and he checked out the day after Fred Engel's memorial service. 350 00:16:31,166 --> 00:16:34,100 Sherry Engel had been paying for Timmy Rogers' hotel room 351 00:16:34,133 --> 00:16:35,266 with her credit card. 352 00:16:35,300 --> 00:16:37,300 Narrator: Sherry and Tim were both questioned 353 00:16:37,333 --> 00:16:39,383 in connection with Fred Engel's murder. 354 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,330 Richardson: Timmy is denying any involvement in the crime, 355 00:16:43,660 --> 00:16:47,233 and he's denying any relationship with Sherry. 356 00:16:47,266 --> 00:16:50,316 He essentially played dumb about every topic 357 00:16:50,350 --> 00:16:52,830 that I asked him about. 358 00:16:54,660 --> 00:16:55,350 How did... 359 00:17:00,233 --> 00:17:03,133 Narrator: Sherry's story wasn't much different than Tim's. 360 00:17:03,166 --> 00:17:06,300 She said that Timmy was a very dear friend of hers, 361 00:17:06,333 --> 00:17:08,116 that they spent time together, 362 00:17:08,150 --> 00:17:10,266 but they strictly had a friendship, and that was it. 363 00:17:10,300 --> 00:17:12,300 Narrator: Now detectives confronted Sherry 364 00:17:12,333 --> 00:17:15,000 with the evidence from her cellphone. 365 00:17:25,166 --> 00:17:26,316 This interview ended, 366 00:17:26,350 --> 00:17:30,266 but it apparently had quite an effect on Sherry Engel. 367 00:17:30,300 --> 00:17:33,333 Later that day, she came back to the police station 368 00:17:33,366 --> 00:17:37,216 and told detectives it was time to come clean. 369 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:44,150 Detective: Okay. 370 00:17:45,366 --> 00:17:47,183 Okay. 371 00:17:47,216 --> 00:17:52,160 A rattled Sherry now confessed to the affair with Tim Rogers. 372 00:17:56,350 --> 00:17:58,116 Listen... 373 00:18:00,500 --> 00:18:03,216 She told police Tim wanted to kill Fred and marry her, 374 00:18:03,250 --> 00:18:06,830 but she never thought he'd go through with it 375 00:18:06,116 --> 00:18:07,383 and was shocked when he did. 376 00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:09,133 Tell me, what did -- 377 00:18:19,300 --> 00:18:22,250 Prosecutors say the phone evidence created 378 00:18:22,283 --> 00:18:25,233 a remarkably clear picture of what happened 379 00:18:25,266 --> 00:18:30,150 and proved Sherry was in on the murder plot from the start. 380 00:18:30,183 --> 00:18:34,830 At 9:43, Tim called Sherry from the mailboxes. 381 00:18:34,116 --> 00:18:36,366 This was him calling Sherry, saying, 382 00:18:37,000 --> 00:18:39,660 "Hey, I'm in position. I'm ready to go. 383 00:18:39,100 --> 00:18:41,233 Send him down here as soon as you can." 384 00:18:41,266 --> 00:18:44,150 Narrator: At 10:35, Sherry called Tim, 385 00:18:44,183 --> 00:18:47,660 saying the plan had been delayed. 386 00:18:47,100 --> 00:18:50,160 At 11:05, she called Tim again. 387 00:18:50,500 --> 00:18:52,660 Hawes: This is Sherry telling Timmy, 388 00:18:52,100 --> 00:18:54,216 "Get ready. I have sent Fred to the mailbox." 389 00:18:54,250 --> 00:18:57,300 Narrator: Sherry asked Fred to get something from the mailbox, 390 00:18:57,333 --> 00:19:01,333 knowing full well he was walking to his death. 391 00:19:01,366 --> 00:19:05,116 The evidence shows Tim Rogers hit Fred in the head 392 00:19:05,150 --> 00:19:09,150 with some sort of object, knocking him unconscious. 393 00:19:09,183 --> 00:19:11,233 Tim dragged Fred into the woods, 394 00:19:11,266 --> 00:19:15,830 took one of his own shoelaces, strangled Fred to death, 395 00:19:15,116 --> 00:19:18,216 and then made his way back to his truck. 396 00:19:18,250 --> 00:19:21,216 At 11:42, Tim called Sherry. 397 00:19:21,250 --> 00:19:24,366 That is him telling Sherry, "The crime has been committed. 398 00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:27,830 I've done it. I'm heading back to the hotel." 399 00:19:27,116 --> 00:19:31,166 Narrator: At 12:03, Tim called Sherry from the hotel. 400 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:33,150 He tells her, "I'm back at the hotel. 401 00:19:33,183 --> 00:19:34,250 I'm cleaning up." 402 00:19:34,283 --> 00:19:36,250 Narrator: And now, in a clear indication 403 00:19:36,283 --> 00:19:38,660 she was in on the plot, 404 00:19:38,100 --> 00:19:41,330 Sherry deleted all her calls to Tim 405 00:19:41,660 --> 00:19:45,000 before she informed neighbors that Fred was missing. 406 00:19:45,330 --> 00:19:50,500 When they got those records, it was a definite "a-ha" moment. 407 00:19:50,830 --> 00:19:52,233 Narrator: In October of 2010, 408 00:19:52,266 --> 00:19:56,660 Tim Rogers was convicted of first-degree murder 409 00:19:56,100 --> 00:19:59,330 and sentenced to 35 years. 410 00:19:59,660 --> 00:20:02,166 In December, Sherry went before a judge. 411 00:20:02,200 --> 00:20:05,166 She hoped her story of being an unwitting accomplice 412 00:20:05,200 --> 00:20:09,216 in her husband's murder would buy her some mercy, 413 00:20:09,250 --> 00:20:13,500 but the evidence exposed that story as a lie. 414 00:20:13,830 --> 00:20:14,283 Richardson: The judge couldn't stand her. 415 00:20:14,316 --> 00:20:16,383 He gave her 30 years. 416 00:20:17,160 --> 00:20:19,500 Narrator: As unlikely as it seemed, 417 00:20:19,830 --> 00:20:21,500 Tim and Sherry apparently thought 418 00:20:21,830 --> 00:20:23,133 they could pull off this crime. 419 00:20:23,166 --> 00:20:24,350 Their main mistake? 420 00:20:24,383 --> 00:20:26,150 They had no idea 421 00:20:26,183 --> 00:20:30,500 their cellphones had been tracking every move they made 422 00:20:30,830 --> 00:20:32,183 and proved without a doubt 423 00:20:32,216 --> 00:20:35,300 they had conspired to kill Fred Engel. 424 00:20:35,333 --> 00:20:38,100 The cellular data definitely shifted the direction 425 00:20:38,133 --> 00:20:40,233 of the investigation straight at her. 426 00:20:40,266 --> 00:20:42,133 Richardson: I've described it over and over again 427 00:20:42,166 --> 00:20:45,316 as a busted lamp or a busted vase. 428 00:20:45,350 --> 00:20:50,300 The forensics is the glue that sticks it all together. 429 00:20:50,333 --> 00:20:54,000 Cestare: That's what turned the whole investigation around 430 00:20:54,330 --> 00:20:56,383 to focus at her, to focus at Timmy. 431 00:20:57,160 --> 00:20:59,266 That's what also told us there was no other players 432 00:20:59,300 --> 00:21:02,100 involved in this other than those two.