12x27 - In the Bag

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: up next, a young boy is the only witness to

m*rder, but he didn't see the man's face.

Whoever came there, came there with a specific purpose --

To k*ll.

Narrator: the k*ller did almost everything right...

The serial number on this w*apon was obliterated.

Narrator: ...until he made one small mistake.

That masking tape was of the same color as the masking tape

That was wrapped around the homemade sil*ncer.

Narrator: it was a crime that defied a simple explanation.

The goriest crime scene I've ever witnessed in my years

In law enforcement.

If they had not found the big bag of evidence, this crime may

Never have been solved.

Narrator: -year-old johnny huffman was usually

Driven to preschool by a family member.

On this morning, he ran to school, wearing only his pajamas

And a pair of boots.

When he got to his classroom an hour late, he was covered in

Blood and told his teachers some horrible news about his

Great-grandparents.

I found them melting.

[ Siren wailing ] narrator: police were

Immediately called to johnny's home.

I ended up entering into the myers' bedroom, where I found

Jack and linda myers lying in bed, and both were deceased as a

Result of g*nsh*t wounds to their heads.

Narrator: apparently, the k*ller used some sort of

sil*ncer.

It was quilting material used to make quilts for baby

Blankets.

It had masking tape on one end and some black powder on it.

It was shaped in the form of a cone-shaped thing.

Narrator: the m*rder w*apon was a -gauge shotgun, and it

Was apparent that jack was k*lled before linda.

Because her injuries were not just to her head, but also to

Her hands.

So she may have started to wake up and raise her hand, because

It showed an injury to the hand, as well as to her face.

Narrator: this raised the possibility that jack myers was

The primary target.

The motive didn't appear to be robbery.

No money or valuables were missing.

There was a deposit bag in plain view in the kitchen that

Was the money from the pizza business that they ran.

There was a significant amount of cash in that deposit bag.

Hadn't been disturbed, hadn't been taken.

Narrator: the medical examiner estimated that the time

Of death was between : and : a.m.

Police canvassed the area.

And one of the neighbors saw a minivan in the myers' driveway

As she left for work around : in the morning.

She wasn't familiar with either jack or linda having a

Minivan.

So it struck her as very odd that a minivan would be backing

Out of the residence at that time of the morning.

Narrator: the neighbor could not provide a detailed

Description of the van or the driver.

Outside the myers' home, the phone lines had been cut, and

The basement window had been removed.

Investigators also found shoe impressions in the dirt.

Casts were made for later analysis.

It was a partial print of the shoe.

We did not find a complete, full impression of the entire shoe,

Just a partial print.

Narrator: -year-old johnny was the only other person living

In the house.

His great-grandparents had custody because his mother was a

Teenager and too young to care for him.

When questioned, johnny told police he didn't hear any loud

Noises like g*nshots during the night...

Only that he found his great-grandparents in a pool of

Blood when he woke up.

He had taken a kleenex and he tried to wipe the blood and he

Reported to us that the blood was just too much and he

Couldn't do anything about it.

Narrator: but johnny was able to tell investigators one

Important thing.

He said sometime during the night, he saw a green monster in

His bedroom.

Did this mean that johnny saw the k*ller?

Narrator: just before dawn, an unidentified gunman broke

Into a farmhouse in bradford, ohio, and k*lled the owners,

Jack and linda myers.

[ g*nsh*t ] [ g*nsh*t ]

It was clear to investigators that the double homicide had

Nothing to do with robbery.

Nobody appeared to have ransacked through drawers or

Closets or anything, looking for anything.

So it appeared to the investigators that whoever had

Entered the home had obviously done it because they intended to

k*ll jack and linda myers.

Narrator: the couple had been married for seven years, and

Each had children from previous marriages.

Even though my mom met jack at a later time in her life,

That was her soul mate.

That was her knight in shining armor.

Narrator: investigators knew that the couple ran a pizza

Shop.

But they found no indication they had problems with business

Associates.

However, jack's side businesses raised concerns.

Jack started a car business.

He would buy cars, repair them, and sell them to people.

And a majority of these vehicles would be sold on payments, you

Know, to help people out.

Narrator: not surprisingly, some of these people were unable

To make the payments.

We had learned that if people weren't paying their car payment

On time, he had no problem going and seizing that vehicle,

Repossessing it, and taking it back.

Narrator: the myers also owned some rental properties and

Had recently evicted tenants who were behind in their rent.

And we had to look at that as a motive for the m*rder.

Narrator: when investigators asked family members if there

Were any relatives who wanted to do jack and linda harm, they all

Identified the same person -- andrew huffman.

Andrew huffman is the biological father of the

-Year-old little boy that jack and linda have custody of.

Linda and andrew huffman's relationship was strained from

The beginning.

Narrator: huffman had refused to pay child support for johnny.

Andrew did not like my mother.

She made him very angry, because she would not let him be around

Johnny.

It escalated to just a heated argument, and he threatened to

k*ll her.

That's why he was a suspect, because that is motive right

There.

Narrator: after an exhaustive search, investigators found

Andrew huffman in another state.

We were able to put a timeline together.

He was placed at his own residence in kentucky.

Would not give him enough time to get up to greenville, ohio.

Narrator: so huffman was eliminated as a suspect.

Another family member holding a grudge was jack myers'

-Year-old son, gregg.

Gregg was divorced and going through some financial

Difficulties.

He was missing work due to some drug and alcohol problems.

His house was about to be foreclosed, so he asked his

Father for help.

He didn't come out and say, "no, I'm not helping you."

It's like, "gregg, stay off the dr*gs and alcohol, go to work

Every day, pay your bills, and you can save your house."

Narrator: and police learned that gregg stood to inherit his

Father's farmhouse in the event of his death.

Gregg myers denied having any involvement in the m*rder of his

Father or stepmother.

Narrator: he worked miles away at a local car-parts

Factory and punched in at : a.m.

We spent a considerable amount of time at his place of

Employment, searching a number of dumpsters there.

But a search of those dumpsters at that manufacturing plant

Revealed nothing.

Narrator: police obtained a warrant to search gregg's house

And came up empty.

We were never able to locate a -gauge shotgun at gregg's

Residence.

We were also looking for any -gauge amm*nit*on, slugs, or

That sort of thing.

We never found any of those items at his residence.

Narrator: and they also learned that gregg wore shoes

Two sizes bigger than the shoe impressions found at the crime

Scene.

The inability to find a matching shoe at gregg's

Residence was extremely frustrating to the

Investigators.

Narrator: and police found no green overalls or hunting

Outfit, like the one johnny described seeing on the night of

The murders.

With no other viable suspects, police were starting to worry

That the murders might never be solved.

Narrator: the medical examiner estimated that jack and

Linda myers were m*rder*d sometime between : and

: A.m.

The prime suspect, jack's -year-old son, gregg, had an

Alibi for at least part of that time.

He said he was at work miles away and had a stamped time

Sheet to prove it.

He remembered specifically, I think, : a.m.

He remembered the exact time he supposedly clocked in that day.

Other than that, you know, he denied going near his father's

House.

Narrator: but gregg myers did have a motive.

He was in financial trouble and he would inherit his father's

Farmhouse in the event of his death.

It wasn't a significant amount of cash that was gonna

Come to gregg.

It was mostly assets that he would receive, and that asset

Was in the form of property.

Narrator: on a hunch, investigators and volunteers

Searched all known traffic routes between the crime scene

And gregg's workplace.

Systematically, we were going to all the bridges along known

Routes.

There's only so many you can take and then gotten there in a

Reasonable amount of time.

Narrator: it took five days to search the miles of roads

And bridges, and they had come up empty.

But they still had one more place to look.

The suggestion was made by a deputy and a division of

Wildlife officer that there was another location that they felt

Might have been used or another bridge that crossed the

Stillwater river.

Narrator: and it was there, in the shallow portion of the

Stillwater river, that investigators got their first

Break.

It was a -gauge winchester pump shotgun, and it had masking

Tape around the end of the barrel.

That masking tape was of the same color and the same width as

The masking tape that was wrapped around on the homemade

sil*ncer device left at the crime scene.

It also had the serial number scratched off.

My initial impression was, "we're never gonna get these

Numbers up.

And if we do, we might get one or two at best."

Narrator: the stillwater river bridge was just miles

From the crime scene.

About a half-mile downstream, police discovered a black

Plastic bag that had floated down the river and become caught

In some overhanging branches.

It only makes sense.

If the guy was gonna throw the shotgun in the river, he's also

Gonna throw the other forensic evidence in the river.

Narrator: inside, police found a pair of latex gloves,

Two spent shotgun shells, a green hunting jumpsuit, and

Quilting material similar to the stuffing for the homemade

sil*ncer.

We also found other items of clothing, in addition to a

Stocking mask that appeared to have been used.

Narrator: they also found tennis shoes, which were

Compared to the shoe impressions found at the crime scene.

Examination of the casts taken at the scene in comparison

Of those with the shoes revealed that they were consistent in

Tread design.

Narrator: but the tennis shoes were two sizes smaller

Than the shoe size of their prime suspect, gregg myers.

So, again, there was nothing in the bag which linked gregg myers

Directly to the murders.

They were certainly concerned that a m*rder*r could go free,

Unless they did a lot of work to put the case together after that

Point.

Narrator: since the serial number on the shotgun had been

Ground off, investigators sent the g*n to forensic scientist

Timothy duerr.

He knew that scratch marks usually weren't as deep as the

Original engraving.

The serial number may only be a few thousandths of an inch.

But the compressed metal goes a lot deeper into the metal.

Narrator: to restore the serial number, duerr applied an

Acid solution, which only works at one level and goes no deeper.

It will actually eat away, and you can actually burn past

The point of compression.

Reacts differently between the compressed and uncompressed

Metal.

The compressed being the serial number.

Narrator: the acid solution removed the top surface, leaving

The bottom, or compressed metal, virtually untouched.

Upon utilizing the restoration techniques on the

Shotgun, I was able to restore five of the eight digits in the

Serial number.

Narrator: those restored were "l," , , , .

But there was no shotgun with those serial numbers registered

To gregg myers.

Was this another dead end?

Narrator: investigators had no proof that the shotgun and

Clothes dumped in the stillwater river belonged to

Their prime suspect, gregg myers.

One of the things that we suspected was that he probably

Sought out a firearm through a classified ad, which also means

That there's no a.t.f.

Paperwork to connect gregg to the firearm.

Narrator: on a hunch, investigators subpoenaed gregg's

Cellphone records and looked for any unusual numbers.

Detectives basically went through those records on the

Time period, with a week or so before the murders.

First eliminating repetitive calls, looking for individual

Numbers that stand out.

Narrator: two numbers belonged to individuals who

Advertised shotguns for sale in a local newspaper.

One seller recalled making a sale that week.

Eugene adams had advised the detectives at that point that,

Yeah, someone had called his number, came, and purchased a

Shotgun from him.

Narrator: adams told investigators that a man who

Identified himself as gregg myers bought a -gauge

Winchester shotgun.

Adams identified myers' picture from a photo lineup.

Adams also had the serial number of the g*n he sold to myers.

It matched the serial number of the shotgun found in the

Stillwater river.

But prosecutors needed to find a way to definitively tie

Gregg myers to the evidence found in the garbage bag.

And to do that, scientists looked once more at the pair of

Latex gloves.

Most fingerprints are perspiration, and perspiration

Is % water.

I didn't hold much hope that we were gonna get any

Fingerprints because this bag had already been in the water

For several days, submerged in water.

So the chance of fingerprints was very minimal.

Narrator: but just to be sure, they used ultraviolet

Light, both inside and out.

The light will basically reflect off the surface.

And basically, I think the light's actually absorbed by the

Fingerprint itself.

Narrator: amazingly, inside, huston found what scientists

Might call an anomaly, but laymen call a miracle.

This is the only case I can remember I've ever had a print

That come up to this quality that had been in the water for

Over three, four, five days.

Narrator: it was a partial print of an index finger, and it

Matched gregg myers.

Oh, man, I'll tell you what.

I was jumping up and down, to be real honest with you.

I was like, "this is awesome."

Narrator: it survived, most likely because he touched skin

Oil first.

It's possible that gregg myers wiped his forehead

Before he put his hand inside the glove.

The oil from the forehead area would have maybe transferred to

His finger, making that more of an oil-based-type latent print.

With all the planning that he tried to do to avoid leaving

Evidence, he ends up leaving a fingerprint inside the glove

With the right index finger, which would be his trigger

Finger.

Narrator: lastly, police canvassed g*n stores in the area

And found an invaluable piece of surveillance tape.

That videotape conclusively showed gregg myers, while he was

Accompanied by his own two small children, purchasing the

amm*nit*on.

Narrator: it was federal brand amm*nit*on, the same used

In the murders.

And that happened just two days before the crimes were

Committed.

Narrator: gregg myers was arrested and charged with two

Counts of m*rder.

Prosecutors believe gregg bought undersized shoes, overalls to

Protect his clothing, and what he believed to be an untraceable

Shotgun.

He fashioned a homemade sil*ncer, then headed to his

Father's house around : in the morning.

He staged the scene to make it look like a break-in and left

His shoe impressions, evidence he wantedpolice to find.

According to the autopsy, he sh*t his father first.

[ g*nsh*t ] his stepmother woke up, raised

Her arm to protect herself, and he sh*t her, too.

[ g*nsh*t ] gregg then went upstairs to

Check on johnny, who must have pretended he was asleep, or else

He may have been k*lled, too.

Although johnny didn't recognize his uncle's face, he certainly

Remembered the green overalls.

[ Engine turns over ] it was gregg's van that the

Neighbor saw leaving the house around : in the morning.

On his way to work, gregg threw the shotgun into the

Stillwater river.

He put everything else in the garbage bag and threw that into

The river, as well.

The next morning, tragically, -year-old johnny woke to find

His great-grandparents dead.

Incredibly, he ran over a mile to his preschool.

No one knows how he possibly found it, but he did.

When he got there, he described the scene in the only way he

Could, by simply explaining what he saw.

I walked into my grandparents' room and I found

Them melting.

I was very angry, very sad.

He took my mother and my stepfather, by murdering both of

Them.

He was supposed to be my close brother.

It saddened me, sickened me, angered me.

Narrator: a jury found gregg myers guilty of two counts

Of aggravated m*rder.

He was sentenced to two life sentences with no possibility of

Parole.

For all his careful planning, he never realized two things.

First, that the police could raise the scratched serial

Number and tie the shotgun to him.

And second, that he left his fingerprint inside the latex

Glove that tied him to everything in the garbage bag.

When we found that shotgun, it was just amazing.

It was a sense of relief that we had some physical evidence we

Could get our hands on that I was hoping was going to connect

Him.

Mr. Myers attempted to commit the perfect crime.

He planned, schemed.

He purchased.

He had it all thought out.

But in the end, it didn't work out in his favor.

Thankfully, it worked out on the side of justice.