When All Blows Up
On October 11, 2015, Officer Carnickel was dispatched to EZ-Gas, on reports of shots fired inside the store. When Officer Carnickel arrived on the scene, flames were engulfing the gas station. He was unable to search the scene for any victims or suspects until the fire was under control and the situation was pronounced safe. While the fire department was en route to the station the gas tanks ignited and the gas station blew into a sea of flames, lighting up the dark night sky into a bright orange blaze. Now it was a race against time to put out the fire, before all the evidence was destroyed. Once the
fire was doused and the structure was deemed structurally safe, Officer Carnickel entered the EZ- Gas. Upon entry, a body was discovered and, the EZ-Gas was taped off and the CSI squad was called.
When the CSI arrived, they interviewed Sarah Kelley, an eyewitness who was pumping her gas shortly before the shots were fired. While Sarah was pumping gas she saw a man arguing with the female store clerk inside the store. As she was getting into her car, she heard him yell “You’ll pay for this!” Sarah does not remember what the man looked like, but she remembers the store clerks name was Rebekah. She also remembered that the man had a ring of keys on his belt jingling like Christmas bells. Being a regular at the station, she recognized three men, who are also regulars. She did not know their names but knew that two of them were brothers and the other must be a friend.
Upon examining the scene, the investigators see the body, charred like a melted wax doll. The identity of the victim was believed to be Rebekah, due to the name tag on the chest, but they would have to use dental records to confirm her identity. The investigators found five bullet casings from two different guns, leading them to believe the victim and/or the perpetrator was shot and wounded. The casings were collected and sent to ballistics. They also found a handgun outside the store. They dusted it for prints, swabbed it for DNA, and sent it off to ballistics. A half melted wallet belonging to Tyler
Abbott was found near the victim’s body, perhaps dropped as he fled the scene. The police were sent to pick him up and take him in for questioning. Dried, directional blood drops, outside leading away from the station, most likely from the perpetrator, were found and samples were collected for DNA. Many sets of tire tracks were found but one set stood out because the blood led directly to them. They took a cast and sent it to the lab to identify the make and model of the car.
The tapes of the security cameras at the EZ-Gas were melted beyond restoration in the fire, so investigators examined nearby stores to determine if any of the security cameras from the surrounding stores had caught the crime.
The only camera they found was in the pharmacy parking lot across the street. Due to the angle of the camera, not
much could be seen except for the bright flash from the blast. In hopes of finding something they further examined the video and upon sharpening the video they saw someone fleeing the scene down the alley behind the station. Using facial recognition they discover the boy was a local druggie named Maxwell Grant. The Police went to pick him up and bring him in for questioning.
The coroner, upon examining the body, used dental records to confirm that the body is in fact Rebekah Smith. Also during the examination, he determined the cause of death to be two gunshots to the chest, and determines she was dead before the fire started. This information leads the investigators to believe the fire was started to cover up the crime. Once the identity of Rebekah Smith is confirmed, they leave to inform the husband.
As the police turn onto the street that Frank and Rebekah live on, they notice that most of the windows of their house are broken. Upon parking in front of the house, the officers see some broken furniture strewn across the lawn. When Frank Smith answers the door the police notice the inside of the house is demolished, and the officers ask what happened. He states that he and his wife got into a fight the previous night and that things got out of control, but it was fine now.
After hearing this, the police informed him that his wife had died earlier that evening and since they had gotten in a fight, he needed to come in for questioning and to make a statement.
The testing on the handgun that was found at the scene came back, but only partial prints were discovered. The DNA swabs were of greater success because they got a testable sample of DNA to send to the lab. When the results came back on the DNA testing it was discovered that Bruce Spruce’s DNA was found on the hammer of the gun. Bruce was
Rebekah’s coworker at the EZ-Gas and is the man Frank, Rebekah’s husband, accused of having an affair with Rebekah.
The officers went to Bruce’s house to bring him in for questioning.
The DNA results on the blood found at the scene match a local man named Wyatt Earp. They show his picture to Sarah Kelley, who immediately identifies him as one of the brothers. They look into him and discover that he has a brother named Virgil Earp, and they are living as roommates with a man named Doc Holiday. They show the other images to Sarah Kelley and she identifies them as the other two men. The police go to pick up these men and bring them in for
questioning.
fire was doused and the structure was deemed structurally safe, Officer Carnickel entered the EZ- Gas. Upon entry, a body was discovered and, the EZ-Gas was taped off and the CSI squad was called.
When the CSI arrived, they interviewed Sarah Kelley, an eyewitness who was pumping her gas shortly before the shots were fired. While Sarah was pumping gas she saw a man arguing with the female store clerk inside the store. As she was getting into her car, she heard him yell “You’ll pay for this!” Sarah does not remember what the man looked like, but she remembers the store clerks name was Rebekah. She also remembered that the man had a ring of keys on his belt jingling like Christmas bells. Being a regular at the station, she recognized three men, who are also regulars. She did not know their names but knew that two of them were brothers and the other must be a friend.
Upon examining the scene, the investigators see the body, charred like a melted wax doll. The identity of the victim was believed to be Rebekah, due to the name tag on the chest, but they would have to use dental records to confirm her identity. The investigators found five bullet casings from two different guns, leading them to believe the victim and/or the perpetrator was shot and wounded. The casings were collected and sent to ballistics. They also found a handgun outside the store. They dusted it for prints, swabbed it for DNA, and sent it off to ballistics. A half melted wallet belonging to Tyler
Abbott was found near the victim’s body, perhaps dropped as he fled the scene. The police were sent to pick him up and take him in for questioning. Dried, directional blood drops, outside leading away from the station, most likely from the perpetrator, were found and samples were collected for DNA. Many sets of tire tracks were found but one set stood out because the blood led directly to them. They took a cast and sent it to the lab to identify the make and model of the car.
The tapes of the security cameras at the EZ-Gas were melted beyond restoration in the fire, so investigators examined nearby stores to determine if any of the security cameras from the surrounding stores had caught the crime.
The only camera they found was in the pharmacy parking lot across the street. Due to the angle of the camera, not
much could be seen except for the bright flash from the blast. In hopes of finding something they further examined the video and upon sharpening the video they saw someone fleeing the scene down the alley behind the station. Using facial recognition they discover the boy was a local druggie named Maxwell Grant. The Police went to pick him up and bring him in for questioning.
The coroner, upon examining the body, used dental records to confirm that the body is in fact Rebekah Smith. Also during the examination, he determined the cause of death to be two gunshots to the chest, and determines she was dead before the fire started. This information leads the investigators to believe the fire was started to cover up the crime. Once the identity of Rebekah Smith is confirmed, they leave to inform the husband.
As the police turn onto the street that Frank and Rebekah live on, they notice that most of the windows of their house are broken. Upon parking in front of the house, the officers see some broken furniture strewn across the lawn. When Frank Smith answers the door the police notice the inside of the house is demolished, and the officers ask what happened. He states that he and his wife got into a fight the previous night and that things got out of control, but it was fine now.
After hearing this, the police informed him that his wife had died earlier that evening and since they had gotten in a fight, he needed to come in for questioning and to make a statement.
The testing on the handgun that was found at the scene came back, but only partial prints were discovered. The DNA swabs were of greater success because they got a testable sample of DNA to send to the lab. When the results came back on the DNA testing it was discovered that Bruce Spruce’s DNA was found on the hammer of the gun. Bruce was
Rebekah’s coworker at the EZ-Gas and is the man Frank, Rebekah’s husband, accused of having an affair with Rebekah.
The officers went to Bruce’s house to bring him in for questioning.
The DNA results on the blood found at the scene match a local man named Wyatt Earp. They show his picture to Sarah Kelley, who immediately identifies him as one of the brothers. They look into him and discover that he has a brother named Virgil Earp, and they are living as roommates with a man named Doc Holiday. They show the other images to Sarah Kelley and she identifies them as the other two men. The police go to pick up these men and bring them in for
questioning.