Original subtitles

♪

♪ I can feel you finding ways ♪

NARRATOR: When you deal with snakes,

there's a good chance you'll get bit.

♪

♪

BEN RENICK: Welcome to the basement of Renick Reptiles.

This is a T Positive Albino Green Anaconda.

NARRATOR: Ben Renick makes a killing

breeding pythons and anacondas...

- Here we have a normal sunset.

LUCAS GEISLER: We have a 29 year old

at the top of the game of the reptile world.

NARRATOR: until his obsession

ends in horror.

[woman weeping]

♪

NARRATOR: But there were far more snakes

in Ben's life than just reptiles.

- Well, I think everybody is a suspect in the beginning.

NARRATOR: And no one knew

that a little poisonous joke would be laced with venom.

- I think those messages were really crucial.

We've got evidence right here.

♪

♪ Theme music playing ♪

MAN 1: She solved her own murder

from beyond the grave.

MAN 2: The fitness app on the phone,

it was overwhelming evidence.

♪ I've been haunted by the visions ♪

♪ That I've seen with my own eyes ♪

♪ And the only way to find you ♪

♪ Is to go beneath the lies ♪

♪

MAN: She did help catch this killer.

♪

NARRATOR: This is New Florence, Missouri,

Ben Renick's hometown.

[birds chirping]

It's where this 29 year old

is amassing a fortune

in snakes.

♪

But on June 8th, 2017...

♪

His success story

turns tragic.

[keypad beeping rapidly]

[Lynlee weeping]

[crying]

♪

LUCAS: My name is Lucas Geisler.

♪

I am a news anchor and investigative reporter

for ABC 17 News, KMIZ in Columbia, Missouri.

♪

NARRATOR: Lucas is 26 years old

and three years on the job

when he in the small community

of New Florence changes forever.

- It was certainly one of the bigger stories

that I've ever covered

and maybe one of the biggest ones I ever will cover.

♪

You got a guy at the top of his game

in the reptile breeding world.

LUCAS: A beloved figure killed,

struck down in his prime.

- I thought there's gotta be something strange going on here.

♪

NARRATOR: Ben's older brother Sam

thought the same thing.

SAM RENICK: On June 8th, I was working at the farm.

[phone line ringing]

♪

That's when I got the call from Ben's wife Lynlee.

[Lynlee screaming indistinctly]

She called hysterical,

so I headed towards the snake facility.

♪

She led me to the body.

♪

When I found Ben's body, he was face down.

♪

I had to turn him over to check him.

♪

He was a mess.

♪

[wailing]

NARRATOR: What police will be walking into

is horrifying.

♪

♪

NARRATOR: It's no way for someone

to find their kid brother.

♪

- He deserves much better.

♪

He could have done anything.

He had his whole life ahead of him.

♪ Lay it down ♪

♪ Lay it down ♪

♪ Lay it down ♪

♪ On me ♪

♪ On me ♪

NARRATOR: Ben and Sam grew up

on the Renick Family Farm in New Florence.

♪ Talk it out, talk it out ♪

♪ Talk it out ♪

♪ Just breathe ♪

- Ben and I as... young kids.

♪

Ben was a big fan of snakes at a young age.

♪

He was out in the wilderness catching snakes all the time.

♪ Lay your head upon my shoulder ♪

And he managed to turn that passion into a business.

♪ Hold me closer ♪

NARRATOR: As Ben's work in the reptile world grew,

so did his reputation.

CHERYL METULA: My name's Cheryl Metula.

I work with exotic animals, primarily reptiles.

♪

Ben was introduced to me as one of the largest ball python breeders,

the most well-known one

across the entire world.

♪

NARRATOR: Cheryl became friends

with Ben and his wife Lynlee...

♪

And got to know both of them well.

♪

- Lynlee was probably the sweetest person ever.

♪

She was extremely kind.

♪

They just seemed so in love.

♪

BOBBETTE TUCKER: My name is Bobbette Tucker.

♪

Ben was so happy.

♪

We fell in love with her just like Ben did.

She was a perfect partner for him.

NARRATOR: Ben and Lynlee have busy lives

with two kids and two businesses.

Renick Reptiles and a spa

that Lynlee operates in Columbia, Missouri.

- They're a young, attractive family with seemingly everything going for them.

♪

They live in the big country estate out in Missouri

doing this quirky business

that is netting them a literal million dollar sum to do this.

♪

♪

NARRATOR: Some of Ben's anacondas

are 12 to 15 feet long

and weigh more than 400 pounds.

♪

Large enough to be lethal.

SAM: When I saw Ben's head the way that it was,

his skull had been crushed.

In my mind, the only thing that could have happened

would've been an accident with the snakes.

♪

[wailing]

♪

♪

NARRATOR: When sheriff's deputies and EMTs arrive,

they think a killer snake is on the loose.

[Lynlee crying]

NARRATOR: Ben's wife Lynlee doesn't think

a snake is responsible for his death.

[Lynlee crying]

♪

[Lynlee crying]

NARRATOR: Deputies find themselves

inside a horror movie...

NARRATOR: looking for a missing and anaconda.

[Lynlee crying]

OFFICER 2: Where's the victim?

♪

- Ben, that's Ben Renick.

MAN: Uh-huh.

NARRATOR: Officers find Ben,

but don't find any evidence of a killer snake on the loose.

MAN: He's not under there.

NARRATOR: But they do spot evidence on Ben's body.

♪

[wailing]

NARRATOR: The coroner is sent in.

♪

And soon,

what seems like a fatal snake attack...

[camera shutter clicks]

♪

Becomes far more mysterious.

More sinister.

[camera shutter clicks]

SAM: At that point in time,

we were outside the facility.

Then the coroner came out

and he let me know that it was not a snake attack.

♪

My brother had been shot.

♪

NARRATOR: Who shot Ben Renick?

He was successful,

loved.

♪

A rock star in the snake world.

Now everyone's a suspect.

♪

[gunshot]

♪

♪ Take a breath ♪

♪

♪

Family and friends are in shock

after they learn that Ben Renick's been murdered.

But it's so much worse.

♪

LUCAS: They found shell casings,

bullet fragments throughout a snake barn.

♪

NARRATOR: Ben was shot eight times.

♪

SAM: His skull was crushed

by that eighth bullet.

That's why I thought it was a snake when I first saw him,

because his head was destroyed.

♪

NARRATOR: Who could hate Ben enough

to pull the trigger over and over?

[gun firing]

It's almost impossible to believe.

♪

- Ben Renick was incredibly well liked by people.

NARRATOR: Members of the reptile community

like Cheryl and Ben's best friend Chase

desperately wanna know who gunned down their colleague,

but there were no weapons found at the scene.

And if authorities have a suspect or a motive...

♪

They're not sharing.

♪ I've been washed in the blood of the lamb ♪

- There was a theory that perhaps it was a robbery.

♪ Dancing with the devil ♪

Maybe somebody just happened to stumble upon this barn...

♪

And in a panic...

[gunshot]

killed the person there.

♪

NARRATOR: Or was it something more personal?

♪

Someone hiding like a snake in the grass.

♪

Ben's reptiles sell for thousands of dollars each

and he's got thousands of them.

♪

♪

♪

BOBBETTE: We didn't know if maybe somebody

from the reptile community maybe came in.

♪

Somebody that was looking for a fast buck to steal some of his snakes.

♪

Maybe he'd been taken by surprise and it was a robbery gone bad.

[gunshot]

♪

NARRATOR: But within days,

those closest to Ben confirm,

no snakes were stolen

and nothing else is missing from the reptile house.

So another theory takes shape.

Before he died,

Ben was working on a deal that would've changed his life.

Maybe someone in Ben's circle wanted a piece by any means necessary.

♪

- Ben Renick had made a million dollar deal

to sell most of his pythons and anacondas

to a hockey player who is going to pay the installments.

Two hundred thousand dollars every quarter throughout the year 2017.

But around the time the next payment was due...

♪

Ben is killed.

♪

What becomes of these snakes, what becomes of the money?

♪

It seems very contentious.

INTERVIEWER: Ben Renick is possibly

one of the most meticulous snake breeders out there.

And so how do you, how do you maintain it?

- A lot of work. Yeah. INTERVIEWER: A lot of work?

- Certainly when you rise to the top of your game,

there might be a target on your back.

♪

Maybe a rival reptile breeder had it out for Ben.

♪

That Ben had something that they wanted

so they'll go off Ben.

♪

NARRATOR: There are people in the snake community

who might benefit from Ben's death.

♪

But what about someone closer to home?

♪

LUCAS: Sam and Ben did not particularly

get along well before Ben's murder.

♪

That relationship as it frayed put Sam, I think,

on the lead investigative radar as well.

♪

NARRATOR: Sam and his family

live on the Renick property.

♪

CHERYL: One of the last times I spoke to Ben,

he was clearly aggravated

and venting about his brother.

♪

There was some kinda stress going on.

So first person I thought of was Sam.

♪

♪

NARRATOR: Authorities bring Sam in for questioning.

♪

♪

NARRATOR: Sam and Ben argued over money

and ownership of the property.

♪

Something Ben's widow Lynlee stands by in her interview.

♪

♪ I've got skeletons in my closet ♪

NARRATOR: Lynlee's not a fan of her brother-in-law,

but what is Sam thinking during all of this?

SAM: I was initially told that I was a person of interest

in Ben's murder and I needed to stay put

and I did exactly that.

♪ Don't go snooping around ♪

NARRATOR: But what about Lynlee, Ben's widow?

Authorities have to wonder, could she be involved?

- Well, I think everybody is a suspect in the beginning.

♪ The picture's growing clearer ♪

NARRATOR: They even tracked down

one of Lynlee's former boyfriends who was at her spa the day of the murder.

♪ You're closer with every clue ♪

LUCAS: Michael Humphrey is an ex

of Lynlee Renick.

He says he went to Columbia to get a massage.

So that's where he said he was on June 8th,

that he did visit the spa, he got a massage and then he left.

♪

NARRATOR: Humphrey is the dead end.

♪ Don't look back ♪

It's all questions, no answers.

♪

♪ The past is fading ♪

Traumatized, Lynlee takes the kids

and moves in with her father.

♪ What's to come ♪

But then days after Ben's death,

Lynlee makes an announcement that throws everyone.

♪

She wants to unload the snake business

and the farm.

♪

♪ When the walls keep falling down ♪

- Oh, God, everything was up in the air with the farm at the time.

♪

Ben had just taken out

a one million dollar life insurance policy on himself

because he did not have a will.

When he was murdered all of his assets went directly to Lynlee.

♪

It was shortly after the murder that I was informed though,

that I had about 30 days to leave the property

because Lynlee was gonna sell it.

♪

♪

I had a hard time with that.

We had a...

That home was everything to us

and I was alone out there.

I had to make the, I...

I'm glad I didn't kill myself.

Got close.

♪

[exhales deeply]

♪

- Oh, sorry.

- Oh. gosh, sorry.

- Gotta calm down.

NARRATOR: Sam and his family

are evicted from the house.

♪

♪ I see shadows on the wall ♪

NARRATOR: By the fall of 2017,

Cheryl Metula and her boyfriend

are living on the property to look after Ben's snakes.

- I moved in to Ben's house

after Sam already left.

There was no one else there

to take care of, uh, Ben's animals.

♪

NARRATOR: Four months pass

since Ben Renick was killed.

♪

But as far as finding his murderer...

- At this time, law enforcement was not willing to talk,

not willing to share updates

other than to say the investigation is ongoing.

A constant refrain from the sheriff's office

and the Highway Patrol throughout this.

♪

Still no updates.

♪

NARRATOR: No updates, no arrests,

no peace of mind.

♪

Cheryl spends every day at the Renick property

scared out of her mind.

- Living at the farm was absolutely horrifying.

♪

Because, you know, the killer could come back.

♪

NARRATOR: Turns out the killer

has been within striking distance all along.

♪

♪ Humming ♪

♪

♪ Little drops of doubt ♪

♪ Dripping down from ♪

♪ My brain and my heart ♪

NARRATOR: By the fall of 2017,

police still aren't revealing any details

about Ben Renick's murder,

but Ben's widow Lynlee has her suspicions.

Maybe it was her brother-in-law Sam.

♪

SAM: Lynlee suggested that my relationship

with the farm and the ownership levels

and the fact that I was gonna have to leave the farm

was motive for me to-to hurt Ben.

♪

NARRATOR: The whole history

of the Renick family farm

is what you would call complicated.

Back in the '80s, Ben and Sam's father Frank Renick

started a pet food company.

Then he bought the land and built a big house

where he raised his two boys.

- Unfortunately, there was a gas leak.

The house filled with gas and it exploded...

♪

And completely destroyed the home.

♪

And then immediately after that happened,

my mother was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer.

♪ We lost our way ♪

My father attempted to maintain the company,

and however, with my mother being ill,

a lot of the focus went to-to her.

NARRATOR: Frank spent 15 years juggling the company,

the property, and his wife's medical bills

until it all came crashing down on June 4th, 2012.

♪

[siren wailing]

DISPATCHER [over radio]: 20-29, come in.

♪

- Frank Renick is indicted by a federal grand jury.

♪

SAM: Unfortunately, he had taken investors' money

and he used it to pay back other investors,

and, and by the time we knew it was, it was too late.

NARRATOR: Frank ripped off a lot of people.

[siren wailing]

♪

OPERATOR: [echoing] 9-1-1.

NARRATOR: It was millions of dollars

and it could come back to bite him.

- We were gonna lose our family farm.

LUCAS: Frank wasn't willing to let that happen.

♪

BOBBETTE: Unfortunately, he took his life

on Father's Day.

♪

And Ben was the one that found him in his home.

♪

NARRATOR: In a desperate attempt to salvage

something for his sons, Frank shot himself.

So maybe Frank's scam five years earlier,

provoked a killer to finally seek revenge

and shoot his young son.

- It had to have been somebody from the past

that still harbored a lot of bad feelings

about his dad's legal problems.

Maybe one of the investors.

♪

SAM: We definitely thought that

that could have been an issue

that related to Ben's murder.

However, we didn't know.

♪

NARRATOR: Until one day in October, 2017,

four months after Ben's death.

- We had someone come to the property looking for Sam.

♪

We said he no longer lived on the property, he was gone.

Then this guy said he heard about the murder,

what happened and details,

and he apparently knew Ben got shot in the head.

♪

We were, of course, a little freaked out about that.

We contacted the authorities.

NARRATOR: Suddenly investigators

have another potential suspect.

CHERYL: It was possible

that one of Frank's investors

wanted a little bit of revenge.

The fact that one of the

"supposed investors" showed up

and knew these details that we didn't even know.

So we were suspicious of him.

♪

NARRATOR: As investigators search

for a scorned investor,

friends and family noticed there's something up with Lynlee.

♪

- I think she had wanted to put this behind us

and start over as she very quickly,

soon after entered into another relationship.

NARRATOR: Lynlee's new boyfriend

is a local man named Brandon Blackwell.

CHERYL: You really can't judge someone, you know,

you lost the love of your life.

You need that, you need some kind of comfort there.

NARRATOR: Then in January, 2018,

seven months after Ben's death,

Lynlee dropped some crazy news.

- She's like, just so you're not surprised, I'm pregnant.

BOBBETTE: And I'm like, "Wow."

You know.

And we were, we were quite shocked.

CHERYL: So Lynlee and Brandon ended up

getting their own little townhouse,

but she was looking a lot healthier now that she was pregnant.

♪

NARRATOR: Lynlee appears to be moving on

while the investigation into Ben's murder

is stuck in place.

- I'm constantly in touch with Sam

or a couple of the Highway Patrolmen that I know personally.

We've been asking, you know,

what's going on with Ben's murder?

Where's the investigation?

♪

[indistinct police radio chatter]

If you don't catch a murder right away, it goes cold.

And so we were really worried that this somebody

has gotten away with murder.

♪

NARRATOR: Months turn into two and a half years

of frustration, grief, pain.

Then in early January, 2020,

investigators get lucky.

Lynlee's boyfriend Brandon Blackwell is arrested

on criminal charges, including stalking.

And for years of nothing comes something big.

♪

LUCAS: On January 14th, 2020,

Brandon Blackwell claims to have information

about Ben Renick's murder.

♪

♪ In the tug I feel it come to life ♪

♪ The way it grows inside of me ♪

NARRATOR: Two and a half years

after the murder of Ben Renick,

there's a break in his cold case.

♪

Lynlee's boyfriend Brandon Blackwell has just been arrested.

[indistinct chatter]

And he's got a secret to share.

He says he knows who killed Ben.

♪

- It was because of Brandon coming forward

that we were able to get the case finally moving again.

NARRATOR: Brandon has a baby

with Ben's widow Lynlee Renick.

But after their child is born, the relationship blows up

and Lynlee files a restraining order against him.

♪

- So Brandon Blackwell has his own legal troubles to worry about.

NARRATOR: He's charged with two counts

of first degree stalking

and five counts of violating a restraining order.

♪

LUCAS: He's in jail with a pretty significant bond.

For violating the protection order that Lynlee took out against him

and in a moment of incarceration,

had something to give in order to get something.

♪

NARRATOR: Over the course of Brandon's relationship with Lynlee,

he'd ask her about Ben's murder

and something felt

off.

♪

♪

- He tells Missouri State Highway Patrol investigators

that Lynlee had shot Ben.

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

♪

[cocks gun]

♪

♪

[gunshot]

[gun firing]

♪

♪

- Brandon said Lynlee was the one who did it.

NARRATOR: But is Brandon lying?

♪

Trying to fire back at Lynlee for getting him thrown in jail?

[door buzzes]

Why would Lynlee kill Ben?

♪

- He had just sold his snakes for almost a million dollars.

♪

He, according to the bank,

was the sole owner of that property.

And so when that happened, everything went to Lynlee.

♪ I'm on a mission, I'm about my business, I gotta get it ♪

Between the life insurance money...

♪ I'm on a mission, I'm about my business, I gotta get it ♪

a million dollars.

The sale of snakes, a million dollars

and about a million dollar family farm.

She was set to inherit...

♪ I'm on a mission, I'm about my business, I gotta get it ♪

♪

Quite a bit after my brother's death.

♪

NARRATOR: Inheriting money isn't a crime,

but it can be one hell of a motive.

[indistinct police radio chatter]

BOBBETTE: We wanted to still believe that,

you know, she was innocent of everything.

♪

NARRATOR: Brandon tells investigators

not to take his word for it.

Then he gives police two names.

Ashley Shaw and Rachel Hunt.

They worked for Lynlee at her spa.

- Hi, I'm Ashley, I'm the spa manager.

- I'm Rachel and I'm one of the estheticians here.

- And it wasn't until after that

that the police had reached out

to Ashley Shaw and Rachel Hunt.

♪

♪ You got something to hide ♪

♪ Secrets behind these lies ♪

CHERYL: So Ashley Shaw and Rachel Hunt

have the same story

that Lynlee admitted she pulled the trigger.

LUCAS: Ashley Shaw has essentially told police

that she knew about Lynlee's plot to kill Ben.

♪ I see trouble ♪

And in fact helped her with certain aspects of it.

♪ Trouble ♪

The state has given her immunity

from first degree murder charges

in exchange for giving up this information.

NARRATOR: The plot includes a name

that rings a bell with investigators,

someone police questioned right after Ben was shot.

Lynlee Renick's ex-boyfriend,

Michael Humphrey.

♪

♪

LUCAS: In June of 2017,

Highway Patrol interviews Michael

and they start asking him,

"Do you know Lynlee Renick?

♪

Were you with her on June 8th of 2017?"

♪

NARRATOR: At the time,

Michael claimed he got a massage at Lynlee's spa

the day Ben was killed and then he went home.

♪

In 2017,

police had no reason to hold Michael,

so they let him go.

♪

[door buzzes]

In 2020,

not so much.

♪

- My name is Michael Humphrey.

And I'm currently housed

in the Jefferson City Correctional Center.

♪

NARRATOR: Michael now admits he went to the farm

with Lynlee the day Ben died.

♪

MICHAEL HUMPHREY: Earlier Lynlee was filling me in

on some different abuse situations that was going on

with her and Ben.

From physical altercations to different sexual altercations.

♪

She was like, "Can you go out there with me?

I need somebody that I trust."

♪

Then she ends up telling me that she's going to try to kill him

or wants somebody to try to kill him.

♪

NARRATOR: On the afternoon of June 8th,

Michael says he picked Lynlee up at the spa

and they drove to the farm.

♪

About 45 minutes away.

♪

MICHAEL: We're out there in the middle of nowhere.

♪

I figure she's gonna go down there

and have her conversation that she needs to have.

♪

I'm more locked in on that there's a whole lot of snakes to this.

♪

And then the next thing I hear is a gunshot go off.

♪

[gunshot]

When I look up, I see her posed up like this

with a firearm in her hand.

♪

On the way out the door, I hear another two or three shots.

[gun firing]

♪

After I'm outside, another one or two.

[gun firing]

♪

Later I'm told there was eight total.

NARRATOR: Humphrey swears up and down

he had nothing to do with Ben's death.

- Never meant for anybody to get hurt.

I don't know the guy.

I don't have any bad intentions for the guy whatsoever.

NARRATOR: On January 16th, 2020,

two and a half years after Ben Renick is gunned down,

police are finally ready to make a move.

♪

♪

SAM: So Michael and Lynlee

were both arrested and charged for first degree murder.

♪

♪ The mystery in you just pulls me in ♪

♪

- My ex-boyfriend got a phone call

that Lynlee was being arrested.

♪

♪ Can't you see my eyes? ♪

♪ I'm hypnotized ♪

When he told me that, I cried, um, I felt horrible.

It still didn't make sense.

- I just couldn't believe it, It just broke my heart.

Knowing how their relationship was,

knowing Lynlee and how sweet and loving

and she, she is not the Lynlee I knew.

♪ I'm under your spell again ♪

♪

[phone ringing]

NARRATOR: But it's not so easy.

Investigators have confessions and eyewitness accounts,

but little to no hard evidence.

♪

Who really pulled the trigger?

♪

So they look at every bit of information

they've collected on Ben Renick,

including his phone records.

- They had the messages that they were able to look at,

text messages between Ben and his friend Chase.

NARRATOR: Chase and Ben are great friends.

They text each other nearly every day

and in those text messages,

a disturbing conspiracy comes into focus.

A calculating plot with poison.

- May 24th of 2017.

"I have a fun story.

"Food poisoning is dumb.

Or just poisoning."

NARRATOR: And Ben believes

Lynlee is the one who poisoned him.

LUCAS: Chase, "LMFAO.

I literally think y'all were poisoned at this point."

Ben, "Agreed.

Or it was Lynlee all along."

♪

- Once the police took a closer look,

they realized there was more there.

It was definitely a red flag.

♪

[keypad beeping rapidly]

OPERATOR: 9-1-1. What's the address of the emergency?

NARRATOR: Did Lynlee Renick

finish what she started with eight bullets?

[gunshot]

♪

NARRATOR: In a series of texts before his murder,

Ben Renick offers clues about who wanted him dead.

♪ Now I've been haunting ♪

♪ Wrapping my arms around you ♪

NARRATOR: The clues point to his wife Lynlee.

But first a little backstory.

♪ Only death knows ♪

♪

♪ Are you afraid, are you afraid of dying? ♪

It begins about two weeks before Ben is killed.

- May 23rd, 2017.

Lynlee had told a spa employee Ashley Shaw

that Ben had been abusive.

Lynlee never filed any police reports about the alleged physical abuse.

♪

Ashley felt sorry for Lynlee and wanted to help her.

Ashley and Lynlee got about 12 to 15 Percocet pills.

♪

And their plan was to grind up the Percocet pills...

♪

And put them in a smoothie.

♪

Lynlee gave it to Ben under the guise of,

"Could you please try this shake?

We're thinking of selling it to customers."

♪

Shortly after Ben and Lynlee both drink the shake,

Ben becomes very ill.

[retching and coughing]

- If he hadn't thrown up, he probably would've died.

♪

♪

NARRATOR: Ben tells his friend Chase what happened.

LUCAS: May 24th of 2017.

"LMAO.

"Why would she do it to herself too?

"Maybe the customer gave it to you and laughed

because they dislike their service."

Ben, "Right?

"Maybe, who knows why.

She didn't seem as bad as me, so..."

From Chase,

"LMAO. Lighter dose."

From Ben,

"Besides, she needs the deal

"to pan out first before I die,

"she would walk away with legit three mil

"before selling property for another mil.

"If I died next year,

"Lynlee would be set for life.

Fuck."

♪

NARRATOR: The deal calls for Ben

to be paid in installments.

SAM: Ben was in the process of selling

a large majority of his snakes to a-a major buyer

and Ben had received payments in part

for the first half of this transaction

and the other rest of the transaction

should have just sailed right through.

However, when Ben was murdered, um,

it was renegotiated.

This murder had everything to do with money.

♪ Truth be told, I'm leaving ♪

♪ You're so cruel, you're the devil in disguise ♪

♪ Death on the path you're leading ♪

♪ I've seen the madness in your eyes ♪

NARRATOR: Now Lynlee and her ex-boyfriend Michael Humphrey

both face charges of first degree murder.

♪

But only one of them shot Ben.

- Humphrey claims that

Lynlee is the one that pulled the trigger,

while Lynlee claims that Michael Humphrey is the one that pulled the trigger.

♪

NARRATOR: Michael goes on trial first

in October, 2021.

More than four years after Ben's death.

LUCAS: The state says Michael knows

what they're going to go and do,

that under the law

he bears as much legal responsibility

for the charge of first degree murder, as does Lynlee,

who the state says pulled the trigger.

♪

NARRATOR: The defense argues

Michael only drove Lynlee to the farm,

that he never planned to hurt Ben.

- So I took it upon myself to bring her a firearm that I'd had.

When I went into the spa that day and I told her,

"You could use this for self-defense."

And then I gave her that firearm.

♪

CHERYL: I do not believe Humphrey saying that

he went there not knowing what was gonna happen.

♪

I genuinely believe he did go there with a full, you know, intent to do it

and she ended up just

doing it herself.

[gunshot]

♪

[gun firing]

♪

[gunshot]

♪

♪

NARRATOR: The jury deliberates for a few hours

before returning a verdict.

♪

Michael Humphrey is guilty of first degree murder.

♪

- When they first initially announced the verdict, disbelief,

a hundred percent disbelief.

♪

- The state had waived the death penalty in this case.

He has only one sentence he can receive

and that his life in prison without parole.

[rattles, thuds]

- It's a lot to take in.

♪

You're never going home.

♪

- His fate's been sealed with this conviction.

♪

NARRATOR: Two months later,

Lynlee Renick murder trial begins.

LUCAS: This is the person

they say pulled the trigger.

This is Ben's wife,

this is the state trying to prove who did this.

If they can't prove this,

then what is their theory anyway?

[camera shutter clicks]

SAM: During the trial,

it came out that Ben and Lynlee had fought over the finances

of the spa, which weren't going well.

I believe she's pulling money out of the spa

for personal use and-and other things,

things that Ben didn't even know about

and that he was going to be informed of that by the bank prior to the murder.

♪

♪

LUCAS: These financial issues

are a huge part of the case

because it also speaks

to what motive Lynlee may have had to kill Ben Renick.

If he's questioning her business acumen, hounding her about money

and that might upset someone to the point

that they maybe wanna kill that person.

NARRATOR: Prosecutors also reveal

Lynlee's history of cheating.

ASHLEY SHAW: They were together.

- Right.

NARRATOR: This wasn't the fairytale marriage

everyone thought it was.

- During the marriage she had numerous affairs.

♪

SAM: She had a very active

Ashley Madison account

while she was married to my brother.

♪

And she was involved in multiple affairs prior to the murder.

CHERYL: And they just always seemed happy.

It just warps your reality.

NARRATOR: And then another surprise,

the defense calls their star witness.

LUCAS: It's not often that somebody takes the stand

in their own defense.

♪ Play along with the game ♪

- Hey, I'm Lynlee Renick.

♪ Do whatever it takes ♪

SAM: When she got on the stand,

she knew exactly what she was doing.

- Ben started really, getting really upset

about all of the time that I was focusing on the kids

instead of dedicating it to him and Renick Reptiles.

- Lynlee testified that

she had gone out there with Michael

to confront Ben about a divorce.

- Michael turned around and I saw a gun in his hands

and then I heard shots.

[gunshot]

♪

And everything just went numb.

♪ Who did we become? ♪

♪

SAM: And then she was so distraught,

she got back in the car with him

and went about her day.

Continuing to text Michael, other people.

♪

She even put it on a show for the school to pick up the kids.

She covered her tracks

before and after the murder.

ATTORNEY: Do you regret it?

- Yes.

CHERYL: She was the "woe is me, I'm the victim."

To me that was a complete show.

Complete BS.

BOBBETTE: Both sides rested their case

and the jury goes out to look over all of the evidence.

And we're feeling pretty confident.

♪

You know, that she's gonna get life.

♪

And the longer, the more hours go by,

the more concerned we're getting.

NARRATOR: In the Show-Me state of Missouri,

juries can convict for first degree murder

or settle on a lesser offense.

Juries also determine the sentence for any reduced charge.

So when the decision finally arrives,

everyone is holding their breath.

- The jury in Lynlee Renick's case

says that she was guilty of murder in the second degree.

♪

SAM: They gave her 13 years,

just over the minimum of ten

and three years for armed criminal action.

JUDGE: I don't know what they were thinking.

Somehow they got confused.

You're awful lucky, ma'am.

You're gonna get out in your 40s,

and my 40s weren't too bad.

I just hope you don't kill again.

That's it.

♪ Turn down the lights ♪

NARRATOR: In a way, Sam Renick was right all along.

♪

NARRATOR: His little brother was killed by a snake.

♪

- It's tough, I mean, she would've gotten more years in prison

if she had walked in there and killed all of those snakes.

Eight bullets into my brother's 29-year-old body.

He deserved better.

♪

♪

MICHAEL: In the long run at this point,

I'm the one sitting here on a life sentence

while she has 13 years.

That's... that's

unbelievable.

♪

NARRATOR: Despite her sentence, in the end,

Ben was able to catch his killer

through the messages he left behind.

♪

- It was a crucial part of the case in keeping Lynlee squarely in their sights

and obviously played a huge part in the trial.

♪

SAM: Lynlee's gonna be out someday.

I want her to know that she'll never be free of this.

I won't forget and I don't want others to, either.

♪

♪ I don't know where my head is lately ♪

♪ Have I lost my mind? ♪

♪

♪

♪ But I know that I have a secret ♪

♪ And it's only mine ♪

♪

♪

♪ And the only way to find me ♪

♪ Is to go beneath the lies ♪

♪