All language subtitles for American.Detective.With.Lt.Joe.Kenda.S01E03.Hazard.Lights.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP.2.0.H.264-FLUX.[eng]

[music playing]

[owl hoots]

LT. KENDA: On this
particular evening,

Ronald Jacobs is ridingaround through the back woods

of northern Vermont.

It's bitterly cold.

And he can't find his
friend, Melissa Jenkins.

Come on.
Pick up.

Pick up.

Pick up.

[phone ringing]

He knows she's
out here somewhere.

She isn't answering
her cell phone.

This is very unlike her.

And he's becoming
very, very frightened.

[dramatic music]

And eventually, he runs
into his friend's car

parked on the side of the road.

Melissa, everything OK?

[low, suspenseful music]

LT. KENDA: Melissa
Jenkins is not in her car.

Where could she be?

Oh, my god, Tim.

HANNAH MCDONALD:
The engine is on.

And Melisa's two-year-old
son is in the backseat.

This little boy is her world.

Why would she not be with him?

Melissa!

Melissa!

Melissa!

LT. KENDA: Something's wrong.

Something's very wrong.

[owl calls]

RONALD: Melissa!

Melissa!

[clock ticks]

LT. KENDA: I spent my
career closing murder cases.

[theme music]

But I'm not the only one
who answered the call.

It takes a rare breed
to solve the unsolvable,

to catch a ruthless killer,
to find justice for the dead.

That's what it takes to be
an "American Detective."

[music playing]

CAPT. CUSHING: My name
is Robert Cushing.

I'm a captain with the
Vermont State Police.

Back in 2012, I was the
supervisor for the Bureau

of Criminal Investigations.

I was a lieutenant-- field
lieutenant-- in plainclothes.

[phone rings]

I was at home asleep when
I received a phone call.

What they had told me caught
my attention enough so

that I got up and went to work.

But I never thought
that a call like this

on that particular night would
turn into what it became.

[suspenseful music]

[INDISTINCT VOICES ON POLICE
RADIO]

[siren]

Goss Hollow Road
is a dirt road.

In this particular location,
there was nothing around.

[INDISTINCT VOICES ON POLICE

RADIO]

How's the kid doing?

He's in the care of
a relative right now.

CDR. SINCLAIR: When I
got the initial call,

the only thing we
really knew was the car

was registered to
Melissa Jenkins.

I knew who she was.

And to hear that her child
was left alone in the car just

didn't make any sense.

[siren]

Melissa Jenkins was a household
name in Saint Johnsbury.

She was a very sweet
woman, grew up on a farm,

certainly knew what it was
to put in a hard day's work.

She was a single mother
working as a beloved teacher

at Saint Johnsbury Academy.

Melissa was my
physics teacher.

She was really just a verykind, loving, warm person.

She was also a great mother.

I remember there were
a few times where

she didn't come to class
because her son was sick

or he needed her.

I had got to see
him a few times.

And he was such a
cute little boy.

CAPT. CUSHING: She
also waitressed

at a local restaurant.

And my wife and I had
been to that restaurant,

and we had seen her in
there waiting tables.

LT. KENDA: Cushing was facedwith something every homicide

detective faces, including me.

The likelihood is great
that someone he knows

is the victim of
a violent crime.

It is extremely disturbing.

But you have to do what
you're meant to do--

get to the bottom of this.

CAPT. CUSHING: Time
is of the essence.

We didn't know exactly
what had occurred.

Is she close by?

Is she far away?

I mean, we didn't
know at the time.

[discordant notes]

In the vehicle was a
smashed cell phone.

I didn't know what to make
of that at that point.

But our department will
process those phones.

They will retrieve whatever
information we can.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Lieutenant,
have a look at this.

[suspenseful music]

There was a shoe
found at the scene.

And also, next to
the front of the car,

there was a black ball capsitting on the ground, which

certainly was out of place.

There has been a physical
confrontation between someone

in front of this car.

Whoever grabbed Melissa Jenkins
lost his cap in the process.

CAPT. CUSHING: In
front of the vehicle,

there was what appeared
to be some sort

of foot tracks or foot marks.

CDR. SINCLAIR: We also
found some tire prints

that were in the
dirt that indicated

to me that another
vehicle had accelerated

quickly away from the scene.

[suspenseful music]

[INDISTINCT VOICES ON POLICE

RADIO]

LT. KENDA: Cushing
feels it in his gut.

This is going south
very, very quickly.

Somebody found her and took her.

CAPT. CUSHING: So we're
gonna have to ramp it up.

Now we're basically flooding
this with detectives

and outside resources
in order to find her

as quickly as we possibly can.

DET. NALLY: Bob Cushing isvery diligent on case direction

and what needed to be
done and how things

needed to be prioritized.

CDR. SINCLAIR: At that point,
we begin interviewing everybody

that becomes
present in the case,

including Melissa's friend
who found the car abandoned

with the child inside.

CAPT. CUSHING: He told me,
Melissa made a phone call

to Ronald, advising
him of the fact

that she was going
to go out and assist

a person having car trouble.

LT. KENDA: When Ronald
Jacobs got that call,

he felt as if there was
something amiss in her voice.

Did she say anything about
who she was going to help?

No.

CAPT. CUSHING: At
this time, we need

to figure out who
had contacted Melissa

on this particular night.

LT. KENDA: Cushing's
people have conducted

a search within a half a mile
of the car in total darkness.

But they find no
further evidence.

So it's time to end
it for now and refocus

the investigation
as to what steps

are going to be taken next.

[birds calling]

[music playing]

CAPT. CUSHING: So
early in the morning,

we knew that one of the people
that we needed to interview

was Tim, Melissa's son.

The child had been released
from the crime scene

to a family friend who brought
the child to the barracks

to do this interview.

But interviewing a child--

it's extremely
difficult. So we called

in an investigator
that specialized

in child interviews.

Tim, do you think you can
tell me about being in the car

with your mommy last night?

Do you know how many
people she left with?

And what happened to your mommy?

Everyone in that room
just stares at this child.

He's describing two people
attacking his mother.

Now we just don't
have one suspect.

We have two.

CAPT. CUSHING: It
was at this point

that we knew for sure
this was a kidnapping

and that she was taken
against her will.

LT. KENDA: Cushing's worst
fears have been confirmed.

Time is now everything.

[sirens]

CDR. SINCLAIR: And so we
immediately amass a very large

team of detectives
and investigators

to cover every possible
facet that we can think of.

CAPT. CUSHING: And
obviously, family

is going to be one
of those targets

that you look to for guidance
on this investigation.

They contact John Jenkins,
who is Melissa's brother.

And they ask him to
come to the station

so they can brief him about the
disappearance of his sister.

We begin asking, when was
the last time you saw Melissa?

How was she?

Has she been
threatened by someone?

Has she ever expressed
any concern over something

that happened at
work-- anything that

might give you an idea on who
might be involved in this?

I just saw her a
couple nights ago.

DET. NALLY: He said everything
appeared to be normal,

and she was in a good
place in her life.

And there was nothing that
stood out to be evil or bad.

What about any
past relationships--

any trouble there?

Well, there was
this guy named Ronald

Jacobs, who she used to date.

Ronald Jacobs is
the person who found

that car on the road
with her two-year-old

son in it and called 911.

Was it a serious relationship?

Ronald wanted it to be.

But Melissa wasn't interested.

I mean, she just
liked him as a friend.

But that was all.

LT. KENDA: Now, as an
experienced homicide detective,

that's going to pop a red flag.

You want something
you don't have.

What are you willing
to do to get it?

[anxious music]

So we ran Ronald
Jacobs' background.

And one of the crimes
that he had been

charged with in the past
was false information

to a police officer.

[discordant music]

LT. KENDA: Now,
that's distressing.

Jacobs tells the police that
he discovered this crime.

What if he's lying about that?

What if he is the crime,
because he could be?

He's in love.

Maybe he didn't get loved back.

At this point,
everybody has heard

Melissa Jenkins is missing.

People were concerned.

CDR. SINCLAIR: In
a small community,

that's on everybody's mind.

People are talking
about it everywhere.

And people are
very stressed out.

And you can really feel it.

Now, the police are
focusing their attention

on Ronald Jacobs, who
is the ex-boyfriend

of Melissa Jenkins.

CAPT. CUSHING: We knew thatwe needed to interview Ronald

a second time, because we haddetermined that in the past

he had been charged with givingfalse information to a police

officer.

So we don't know.

He may or may not be the
person that abducted her.

Well, yeah, we dated.

But she didn't want
to get serious.

And I was OK with that.

LT. KENDA: Jacobs
went on to explain

that the father of the child
was not involved in her life.

And Jacobs became a person
that she could confide in,

someone to be an anchor point.

And she saw Mr. Jacobs
as at least that.

So when Melissa
gets this strange call

about helping someone
with a flat tire,

he was someone that
she thought of.

We just need to
make sure that you're

not part of her disappearance.

Listen, whatever
you need to do, do it.

All right, get the boots.

Ronald gave us bootsthat he had been wearing,

which show that the
boot tracks in the dirt

were not the same as his.

CDR. SINCLAIR: We were able
to find evidence of the calls

that he had told us
in the beginning.

And so we knew he was
telling the truth.

All right, thank you, Ronald.

CAPT. CUSHING: It
was very apparent

and obvious that Ronald had
nothing to do with this case

at all.

He was just trying to find his
friend and help the police out.

LT. KENDA: With Ronald
out of the picture,

detectives look elsewhere.

Although he's absent
from the child's life,

they shift their
focus to the father.

CAPT. CUSHING: So the biological
father, Bruce Roberts,

came to meet with us.

DET. NALLY: We always speak withcurrent spouses or ex-spouses

to see if they arepotentially a suspect or not.

LT. KENDA: He is the
father of their child.

What if there is something
going on between Melissa

and he regarding
visitation for this child?

You have to inquire.

We're gonna have to
ask you your whereabouts

the night that this occurred.

In any crime, particularly in
homicide, you need opportunity.

Could you physically have been
able to commit this crime?

I was at work
down in Burlington.

It's where I live.

And you have people
that can vouch for that?

Yeah.

Mr. Roberts has the
best alibi in the world--

80 miles away, in front of a
number of people at the time

the incident happened.

He's not involved.

Mr. Roberts is out.

But Cushing is doing
exactly what you

do in a criminal investigation.

You march through the known
associates of the victim.

Somebody in that circle
is most likely involved.

They just don't know who
it is, at least not yet.

So Melissa lived
just down the street

from where her
vehicle was located.

Generally, crimes
such as this do start

and/or occur in a residence.

So we're going to look for
any signs of foul play--

forced entry, all of
those sorts of things.

LT. KENDA: Nothing
seems out of place.

There's no evidence
of a struggle.

Nothing is disturbed.

But they continue to look for
documents, love letters, phone

numbers, anything
that may connect

Melissa Jenkins to a person.

Hey, detective.

LT. KENDA: When
they're searching,

they find a bunch of papers.

But one thing unusual--

there's a business card.

CAPT. CUSHING: The business
card was for Allen and Patricia

Prue, who lived in Waterford,
Vermont, for a plowing business

that he had.

It didn't register with anyone.

LT. KENDA: They take the card
along with the other papers.

And they may be meaningless.

There's an old expression
in homicide investigation.

Everything's in until
it's absolutely out.

[chaos of reporters' voices]

So now, Detective
Lieutenant Cushing

decides it's time to ask
for the public's assistance.

Detectives are interested
in speaking with anyone who

may have information
regarding the disappearance

of Melissa Jenkins.

CAPT. CUSHING: The hope
was to ensure to the public

that we were working
on this investigation

in a diligent and quick manner.

Because Melissa was such a
popular person in the area,

it just heightened
everybody's awareness.

And people were more
concerned with the fact

that this young
schoolteacher was missing.

EMMA LAPLAN: Prior to
Melissa's disappearance,

I truly don't remember
anything rocking

the community like this did.

Listen up.

CDR. SINCLAIR: During
these investigations,

we would have periodic
updates and briefings

where one detective would
talk about what information

they had learned.

Everybody in the
room gets to hear it.

How are we doing with
Melissa's cell phone?

They said they
hopefully have something

within the next 24 hours.

All right, I think we gotta
change our thinking here.

At this point, we
gotta start considering

the worst case scenario.

CAPT. CUSHING: There
comes a point where

you know you're
actually going to be

looking for somebody deceased.

LT. KENDA: Cushing is a realist.

He tells his people,
search all places where one

would conceal or dump a body.

[melancholy music]

DET. NALLY: We started checking
pull-offs alongside the road,

checking rest areas,
checking rural areas

that you could get a vehicle
to and quickly dump a body.

LT. KENDA: A few of
the officers were

aware of a boat launch
open to the public,

10 miles away from the town.

CDR. SINCLAIR: And
they were able to look

to the far side of the bay.

And they saw
something in the water

that didn't look quite right.

[suspenseful music]

And they get
closer and closer.

And they look more carefully.

And they see human feet.

Apparently, Melissa Jenkins
has just been found.

CAPT. CUSHING: I receiveda phone call stating

that they had located a body.

Myself and three
other detectives

were shown where the body was.

We had members of the scubateam that came to the scene

to help retrieve
the body itself.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Recovery
of bodies in water

certainly present challenges,to say nothing of the fact this

was March in northern Vermont.

So the water was extremely cold.

She was in a fairly
shallow body of water.

LT. KENDA: Pine
boughs were placed

over the body in an attemptat concealment-- not

very efficient, but an attempt.

The body is nude.

The blonde hair is
covering the face.

They move the hair
away from the face,

and she's positively
identified as Melissa Jenkins.

Our victim has been found,
not in the way we wish to.

CDR. SINCLAIR: She obviously
had not been there very long.

Certainly, the very
cold conditions

would slow down decomposition.

ROBERT CUSHING: One
could see the bruising

on her upper torso.

So there were signs of
some sort of altercation.

Further, there are cinderblocks tied around the waist,

and her wrists are
loosely bound in rope.

These failed to keep
this body under water.

It's very difficult to
submerge a human body.

ROBERT CUSHING: The body is
then transported via hearse

to UVM Medical Center.

And that's where the
autopsy is conducted.

LT. KENDA: When that body
is removed from cold water,

contusions, abrasions,
and other marks

begin to rise to the
surface as the blood is

no longer frozen or very cold.

CDR. SINCLAIR: We also found
a number of circular injuries,

parallel and very similar
in distance from each other,

on multiple parts of her body.

LT. KENDA: This is
indicative of a stun gun.

Somebody used a stun
gun with great force

against her body to put her
in a position of being supine.

CDR. SINCLAIR: The
medical examiner

was able to definitively say,
she had been strangled and died

of manual strangulation.

ROBERT CUSHING: Strangulation
crimes such as this

are very up close and personal.

It's not like using a weapon.

Who would do this to Melissa?

Who would do this to a
person that everybody

seemed to think the world of?

ROBERT CUSHING: This
particular investigation

was hard for a lot of
people to understand,

because you never thought
that something like this

would happen in little
Saint Johnsbury, Vermont.

And we're talking about a school
teacher that was murdered.

It was so terrible.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Everything
that we knew about Melissa

from her friends and
family is that she

didn't live a risky lifestyle.

She wasn't into drugs.

Certainly, the violence
that obviously beset her

was very out of place for what
we knew she was like in life.

[birds chirping]

ROBERT CUSHING: At that point,
we went to where she worked

at Saint Johnsbury Academy.

We were looking for
anybody, whether it

be a student or a
staff member, that

would have an issue with her.

LT. KENDA: People
love to gossip.

And one thing homicide
detectives the world over

love very much is gossip,
because there's always a kernel

of truth in there somewhere.

She's a model
employee and very

well liked by the students.

Melissa was a
really good teacher.

She made me really
enjoy physics.

And she seemed to
understand when students

weren't understanding it.

And she would break it down.

She was just so
kind and welcoming.

The feeling is, is that
if this sort of thing

could happen Miss Jenkins,
it could happen to anyone.

People in small
towns are particularly

frightened by violent crime.

This is something that's
supposed to happen in New

York City or Los Angeles.

It's not supposed to happen
in Saint Johnsbury, Vermont.

I think it just woke
people up a little bit,

that it's not just a
sleepy little town,

that things can happen.

Would it be possible
to look over any work

related materials she may have?

Yeah, sure.

They explain, they'd like to
comb through her grade books.

They'd like to see her
emails, everything regarding

her activities at the school.

ROBERT CUSHING: Anything?

No, nothing.

LT. KENDA: There is always
dead ends in murder cases.

And people think
that's frustrating.

Well, it is.

But by the same token, you're
eliminating what didn't happen.

It allows you to focus
on what did happen.

Melissa's cell
records came in.

LT. KENDA: This is exactly what
Cushing has been waiting for.

ROBERT CUSHING: Prior to the
8:39 phone call to Ronald

on March 25, Melissa
had received a phone

call from a TracFone number.

CDR. SINCLAIR:
These sometimes are

referred to as burner phones.

ROBERT CUSHING: In
a lot of instances,

people that commit crimes
use TracFones, because

their identity is not divulged.

Criminals think
they are so smart.

The problem for them is
the police are smarter.

Using a TracFone might make
things more difficult for us,

but there are plenty
of ways to trace

that TracFone to its owner.

CDR. SINCLAIR: They were able
to trace this particular phone's

first point of purchase.

And they placed that phone
being purchased from a store

in Littleton, New Hampshire.

LT. KENDA: So now they know
where the phone came from

and what store it
was purchased in.

DET. NALLY: They
were able to get

cell tower hits from some
very significant areas.

LT. KENDA: The location
ping says, it's

at the scene of the abduction.

And more importantly, there
is also a ping at the scene

where the body's disposed of.

The buyer of this phone
is up to their neck.

The police have now
found the phone number

that was used to
call Melissa Jenkins

the night of her disappearance.

This phone is not only
pinging at the place

where Melissa
Jenkins was abducted,

but it's also
pinging at the place

where her body was disposed of.

[siren]

ROBERT CUSHING: Detectiveswere sent to the store where

the track phone was purchasedto try to pull any receipt,

because that person very wellcould be a primary suspect

in this investigation.

LT. KENDA: They know
exactly what time and what

day the phone was purchased.

The manager plows
through his records

and finds the buyer had paid
for this phone with a check.

ROBERT CUSHING: Patricia
Prue was the name

imprinted on the check.

Those detectives remember
a business card found

on the countertop of
Melissa Jenkins' house,

advertising a snowplow
service from one

Allen and Patricia Prue.

You are aware of the
potential of two suspects

involved in this crime.

Now, bells are going off.

Alarms are sounding.

We are close.

DET. NALLY: Wherever
you're going

to be, you're probably undersome sort of recording,

whether audio or visual.

Surveillance cameras
are really crucial.

And it's a great tool
for law enforcement

to solidify timelines in
criminal investigations.

ROBERT CUSHING: An interview
with Patricia and Allen Prue

was in order at this
point, because Patricia

Prue was the last person to
speak with Melissa Jenkins.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Things are
beginning to point more

and more towards the Prues.

But probability wise, ahusband and wife taking part

in a savage crime like
this-- it wouldn't

have been foremost in my mind.

To have a man and
a woman join together

to commit a violent
crime is incredibly rare.

For it to be a husband and
wife-- it almost never happens.

I've never seen it in my career.

CDR. SINCLAIR: One of the
surprising angles in the case

was when Allen and
Patricia Prue--

they actually showed up at
the barracks unannounced.

HANNAH MCDONALD: It's bizarrethat these people show up

at the state police barracks,because they are already

on the list to be questioned.

And here they are.

They had come down to talk to
us about a fraud investigation.

Patricia wanted to make a
complaint that somebody was

allegedly stealing her
identity and were falsifying

records using her name.

LT. KENDA: Based
on my experience,

they were trying to explain
away the purchase of that phone.

All of our checks were stolen.

Oh, my.

And God knows, somebody
could be using that.

This is panic.

This is rememberingsomething they had forgotten.

And they're coming to the
police to cover it up.

ROBERT CUSHING: I
was not in the room.

I was sitting in another
room watching the interview.

I remember to this day.

Allen was sweating bullets.

And it wasn't cold.

DET. NALLY: Allen was a
local, born and raised

in Waterford, Vermont.

He found Patricia
on the internet.

And they seemed
to be inseparable.

He did a paper route delivery
in addition to plowing snow.

LT. KENDA: They say,
by the way, what were

you doing on the 25th of March?

You recall that day?

Oh, yes.

ROBERT CUSHING: They
had said that they

had been in Littleton, New
Hampshire, running errands.

They also went through
a fast food restaurant.

And then they returned home.

And they had been in
bed since 7:30 PM.

At that point, Patricia
quickly redirects

the conversation
back to the identity

theft and says that she is
suspicious of her ex-husband.

We did ask if they were
familiar with Melissa Jenkins.

And they basically said that
they were familiar with her,

but they had no
contact with her other

than when they plowed snow
for her the previous year.

That could explain the
presence of the business card

on her counter.

What it does not explain is howsomebody named Patricia Prue

bought a TracFone 20
miles away and called

Melissa Jenkins on thenight of her disappearance.

DET. NALLY: Lieutenant
Cushing felt

it was not time to
go from an interview

into an interrogation.

And timing with that is crucial.

OK.

See yours.

LT. KENDA: There are moments
in murder investigations

where you feel it in your bones.

But you're not ready to turn the
key, not until you have it all.

Cushing felt the same way.

We'll wait.

We will let this simmer
until it becomes soup.

ROBERT CUSHING:
They left scot free,

but from that point forward,
they were under surveillance.

Cushing has his
sights set on the Prues.

And they have
absolutely no idea.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Any
information that we

gleaned from them
from interviews

would have to be corroborated.

So we would assign different
detectives different tasks

to follow up and either
corroborate or refute

what they had said to us.

[crickets]

LT. KENDA: The video
arrives from the store

where the TracFone
had been purchased.

And lo and behold,
there is Patricia Prue

and her charming
husband, Allen, buying

the phone used to
call Melissa Jenkins

the night of her disappearance.

ROBERT CUSHING: It was very
detailed video footage of both

of them looking at TracFones
and then grabbing a TracFone,

putting it in the basket,
and purchasing it.

They also said
that they had gone

through a drive-through at a
local fast food restaurant.

We were able to
pull surveillance

from that fast foodrestaurant of them driving

through the drive-through.

LT. KENDA: And their jaws
dropped to their chests.

Oh, my.

Allen Prue is
wearing the black hat

that was found at
the crime scene

of Melissa Jenkins' abduction.

That is, as they say in
tennis, game, set, and match.

NEWSCASTER: Melissa Jenkins'smemorial is ultimately

bringing everyone together.

MAN: I feel bad for
that little boy.

How could anybody do that,
to leave him motherless?

WOMAN: [CRYING] This is a very
hard time for our community.

LT. KENDA: A town of
7,000 people turned

upside down by the
brutal murder of a loved

member of the community.

The Vermont State
Police are gonna

arrest Allen and Patricia Prue.

But they wanna to
talk to them again

and see if they
can get a statement

from one, the other, or both.

ROBERT CUSHING:
Patricia and Allen Prue

came to meet with us
after being called.

They were split up, one inone room, one in another.

The only time we
ever talked to Melissa

was when we were
plowing her driveway.

The interview with
Patricia was very difficult.

She simply denied everything.

Detectives presented her with
surveillance footage, pictures.

And she still would not
cooperate and denied

her part in this case.

LT. KENDA: You have
a person who is

in complete denial of reality.

It's not me.
It's not me.

You can't see me.

You can't hear me.

La, la, la, la, la.

Yeah, we can, Patricia.

PATRICIA: I'm done
talking to you.

I want a lawyer.

LT. KENDA: Mrs. Prue would
not get an audition for

the Real Housewives of Vermont.

Now it's time to pursue Allen
Prue and see how he reacts.

He is the last
person in the world

that handles pressure well.

He's the kind of person
that if coffee gets spilled,

it tends to get spilled on him.

And it's about to
be spilled on him

by the Vermont State Police.

DET. NALLY: When somebodycommits an act like this,

it is extremely
mentally exhausting

to try to script answers
and remember the lies

that you told.

I said to Allen, there's
no way out of this.

We know what happened.

We want to get the how
and the why from you.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Ultimately, Ithink it became overwhelming

and pretty clear to Allenthat we were onto it,

and we had what we needed.

DET. NALLY: He
started reminiscing

about when he was a child.

He would spit-shake
for the truth.

And then he started
unrolling the chain

of events that took place.

Allen told me that
Patricia was bisexual

and that they had engagedin consensual threesomes

in the past.

LT. KENDA: Which they found
to be somewhat disappointing.

They began to discuss the fact
that they need a better girl.

They need one that
turns them on.

And they begin to develop an
obsession with Melissa Jenkins.

DET. NALLY: One thing he said
to me that struck me as very

peculiar is when Melissa
got out of her vehicle,

he didn't even ask
her if she wanted

to have an affair with them.

He just started to
strangle and choke her.

Allen advised that he
was able to overpower her

and dragged her to the vehicle
and put her in the back

where Patricia continued
to choke her to make

sure that she wasn't moving.

LT. KENDA: There was no
intent to kill this woman.

There was an intent to
make her a sexual slave.

Let us know if you need
us again for next season.

Yeah, for sure.

It was really
nice meeting you.

Nice meeting you too.

All right, bye.

She's pretty, huh?

Yeah, she is.

I think she likes me.

Yeah, I think
she likes me, too.

Melissa became the focal point
with both Patricia and Allen

as the person that they
wanted to get to be

part of their sexual fantasy.

So how are we
going to do this?

I think I've got an idea.

This desire for Melissa
just spiraled out of control.

[phone rings]

Hello?

PATRICIA [ON PHONE]:
Melissa, it's Patricia Prue.

Oh, yeah, hi.

PATRICIA [ON PHONE]: Um,
our car needs a jump.

We're just down
the road from you.

DET. NALLY: Melissa
was the type of person

that if somebody did need
help, she would do whatever

she could to help them.

Hey, Timothy, you need to come
with Mommy to run an errand,

OK?

CDR. SINCLAIR: I
certainly don't think

she suspected that something
like this could befall her.

Ron, hey, I just got
a really weird call.

CDR. SINCLAIR: But she was very
heads-up in calling her friend.

That played a huge part in
ultimately solving this case.

[crickets, owls]

Allen, Patricia, you guys OK?

[eerie music]

Everything OK?

[screams] Help me!

Help!

Help me!

Help me!

She's in the fight
of her life to protect

her child, which is why it takes
two people to overcome her.

[breathing heavily]

They never did know
that that child was there.

So now their whole fantasy
is blowing up in their face.

They're in total panic mode.

What do we do now?

They go home to their house.

They drag Melissa Jenkins'
body from their car.

They undress her.

ROBERT CUSHING: Put the
body on the blue tarp.

They used bleach, poured
that over the body.

LT. KENDA: They
found some cinder

blocks next to their house.

They tie the cinder
blocks to her body.

They dump her in the water.

And the initial reaction
with the cinder blocks

is the body sinks.

They stand there for a moment.

And the body rises.

Well, isn't that a surprise?

The Prues had no idea how to
plan a trip to the bathroom,

let alone how to try to dispose
of a human body in water.

Now they're in pure panic.

They cut boughs from a tree to
cover up this floating body.

And they run.

Patricia and Allen
Prue are barbarians.

DET. NALLY: So I ask Allen
what would he say to Melissa

if she was here right now?

LT. KENDA: So after all
of this, we now have why.

We know what.

And we certainly know who.

Your Honor, we think theevidence of guilt is great

and that he should thereforebe held without bail pending.

ROBERT CUSHING: Both
Allen and Patricia Prue

were charged with firstdegree murder, conspiracy

to commit murder,
and kidnapping.

After a lengthy trial, Allen
received life in prison.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Patricia
took a plea agreement

and was sentenced to
life without parole.

HANNAH MCDONALD: I
don't think anyone's

ever gonna be able to
forget that this happened.

It was almost that
this was an attack on--

on goodwill and kindness.

CDR. SINCLAIR: Certainly the--

the tragedy of
this case is never

lost on the investigators.

We know that her son is
very beloved by both sides

of his parents' family.

From everything I've heard,
he's doing very well.

There's a scholarship thatwas started in Melissa's name.

And the community stillholds her memory very dear.

ROBERT CUSHING: Why
this case sticks

with me is simply
because it was such

a horrific crime for the area.

But I'm very proud
of our agency.

It was just a--

a full team effort.

LT. KENDA: The loss
of Melissa Jenkins

is a hole in everyone's heart.

That hole will never heal.

But the people of Saint
Johnsbury, Vermont,

should realize,
the policemen that

serve them, like
Robert Cushing, did

an outstandinginvestigation in this case.

But it's a wonderful thing that
they were up to the challenge.

People in Vermont can sleep
tonight, because the state

police are awake.