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[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at
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anytime you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support
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please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website at ten minutes past eleven on the night
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of Saturday November 10 2012 aloud and frightening sound erupted several miles south of the American city of
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Indianapolis the powerful force registered on a regional earthquake sensor and within minutes nine-one-one
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was jammed with over 500 calls from frantic locals reporting that their homes were left a rattling from the
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impact the noise had originated in Richmond Hill one of many suburban subdivisions
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in the Perry Township eleven miles south of the city the relatively new middle-class neighborhood was made up of
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125 immaculate houses similar in design single or double storey family homes with brick frontage gray roofing vaulted
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ceilings and manicured lawns that sat side by side along a small network of streets bordered on one side by the Smok
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golf course emergency services rushed to Richmond Hill and found the area in complete
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chaos properties were in varying states of destruction windows were shuttered walls
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cracked or collapsed doors blown off their hinges and ceilings caved in insulation and - rained down and rubble
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littered the streets and yards panicked residents had gathered on street corners
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describing being thrown from their beds seats or knocked off their feet by the impact and slammed against furniture or
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struck by falling debris Richmond Hills proximity to a Municipal Airport led to speculation that a plane
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had crashed others were convinced the bomb had gone off or a clandestine methamphetamine lab
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had exploded the level of destruction worsened towards the center of the subdivision where the apex of the
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unknown catastrophe was pinpointed to field fairway at number eight three five five thirty
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four-year-old a day on Longworth had been on the ground a level of his two-story home when the forceful impact
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went off blasting a hole through the floor and causing him to fall into the basement he suffered a laceration to his
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head but was otherwise relatively unscathed yet a fire was advancing and debris prevented his escape
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Dion called out from a cavity to the street outside catching the attention of his fleeing neighbors they tried to
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rescue him by chipping away at the plaster board but the materials had compressed and wouldn't budge
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Dion asked about the welfare of his wife Jennifer who had been upstairs his neighbor didn't know how to break
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the news that their house no longer had an upstairs the fire swept through at an alarming
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speed a police officer who had arrived to the scene frantically radioed to dispatch we've got a person trapped in
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the basement of a house they're burning he's trapped in the back he's screaming we need to get a hose to the rear as
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soon as possible Oh God I can't get any closer firefighters attacked the side of the
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Longworth house with an axe but the heat made it difficult to stay close Deon remained pressed against the cavity
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still pleading to know if his wife was okay when the firefighters stepped back to
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spray water towards the space the entire house suddenly collapsed [Music] [Music]
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the blaze was under control by the following morning of Sunday November 11 80 homes had been damaged 33 beyond
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repair Dion Longworth had been killed along with his 36 year old wife Jennifer who
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had died in the initial blast while laying in the couple's bed upstairs 12 other residents sustained injuries
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including broken bones lacerations and smoke inhalation as the investigation into the tragedy began
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a safety command post was established to coordinate the multiple insurance companies and officials that were
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present including representatives from the Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives and the
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Department of Homeland Security the neighborhood was put on lockdown as arson investigators sifted through the
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rubble looking for the explosions point of origin ruling out possible causes as they went
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the house alongside the longworth's number 834 9 filled fairway had sustained to the worst damage it had
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been completely leveled with nothing but a pile of ash and debris remaining homeowner 47 year-old intensive care
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nurse montserrat e shirley lived at the address with her partner 42 year old mark Leonard and her 12 year old
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daughter from a previous marriage the family were initially unaccounted for prompting fears they may have been
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killed as it turned out Monserrat II and Mark had been 90 miles away at the Hollywood
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Casino in Lawrenceburg for a weekend getaway and de monserrate E's daughter was staying with a family friend
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the property's gas meter was found amongst the destruction and displayed a reading twice the amount recorded by the
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households gas provider three weeks prior a volume equivalent to three tons of TNT
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when speaking with an investigator Monserrat e and mark reported that a week before the blast the distinctive
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rotten egg like odor of natural gas was permeating throughout their home which was ice-cold as the furnace was
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releasing cold air they contacted the gas company to see if someone could fix it but decided not to
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proceed with the appointment as an additional rate applied to weekend call-outs mark thought the problem late with the
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digital thermostat so he purchased and installed an older manual model but it didn't fix the problem so monserrate II
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asked him to switch it back the next day the source of the gas Li was isolated to
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a fireplace that was originally situated in the family's living room as per standard building code the home
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was fitted with a step-down regulator a device that reduces the pressure of gas flow to household appliances but a piece
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of black pipe had been fitted in its place the on and off switch for the fireplace
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was also missing with tool marks indicating it had been intentionally removed prior to the explosion an
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extensive search of neighboring properties rooftops sewers and cars commenced but neither the fireplace
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switch nor the gas regulator were found experts calculated that it would have taken nine hours for the house to fill
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with the amount of gas required to cause an explosion of that magnitude concluding the fireplace was likely
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turned on at approximately 2:00 p.m. the day of the blast a forensic scientist examining aerial
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photographs of the remnants of the Shirley home concluded from blast patterns that the detonation originated
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in the kitchen found within the rubble was the households microwave a general electric's pacemaker XL model its door
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had been blown off and recovered elsewhere meaning the appliance had sustained a buildup of pressure from
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within before exploding instead of being crushed from falling debris as no one was home at the time there was
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no explanation as to why the microwave had been in use remarkably investigators found the
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appliances instruction manual and to learned that it was fitted with a timer enabling it to be programmed to begin
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cooking up to 24 hours in advance a metal cylinder showed evidence of damage indicative of having blown out from
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inside the microwave additionally concrete samples of the property's foundation revealed gasoline
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was present in two locations including the living room where the gas fireplace was located
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with all these factors combined it was clear that the blast had not been an accident
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montserrat II surely had dreamed of living in Richmond Hill since the subdivision was first developed she had
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moved to the United States from Puerto Rico in her early 20s seeking better employment and financial
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stability setting her goal on raising a family in a large home in a nice neighborhood
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while completing her nursing degree in Michigan she fell in love with a pharmaceutical manufacturer named - John
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Shirley and the two were married shortly thereafter they relocated to Indiana and in 2001
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Monserrat II gave birth to their first and only child although Richmond Hill was a little out
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of their price range the Shirley's managed to get the bank's financial approval to purchase a block of land in
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the sought after location in 2003 they began building their dream home a two-story four-bedroom residence spread
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over 2784 square feet with an attached two-car garage and rear patio for entertaining
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over the years John and Monterey DS relationship deteriorated and in 2011 they filed for divorce
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as part of the settlement Monserrat II kept the house with the join agreeing to pay monthly child support and to
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financially contribute towards school fees following her divorce Monserrat II met
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and began dating mark Leonard a dancer turned successful construction worker with several developments and
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investments in the works that afforded him a luxury lifestyle theirs was a whirlwind romance and a few
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weeks after meeting monserrate II Mark moved into her Richmond Hill home where they settled into a comfortable suburban
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life together in early 2012 five months into their relationship mark fell into a coma as a
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result of a rare autoimmune disease Monserrat II stayed with him as he underwent treatment and in May he was
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finally allowed to return home she spent the next few months nursing him back to health and it was only
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recently that he was back on his feet the pair had spent the previous three weekends away together when on their
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most recent trip their house exploded obliterating all their possessions from Mark's Cadillac STS and harley-davidson
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motorcycle to an original Picasso painting as well as $20,000 cash the family had saved
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just over a week after the Richmond Hill explosion her funeral service was held for Dionne and Jennifer Longworth that
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st. Barnabus Catholic Church where they had been married 11 years prior in lieu of caskets a photo of the couple
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on their wedding day sat at the altar along with the visors of sunflowers which were Dion's favorite
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over 500 mourners attended as Dionne was remembered for his quirky sense of humor
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creativity and generosity as an audio engineer he helped develop award-winning electronic products for digital sound
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and video company indie audio labs Jennifer was a second-grade teacher at a nearby elementary school and was
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remembered for her compassion and optimism Monsignor Tony voles who oversaw the service said that the couple had used
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their wedding vows to promise to love one another until death and that now quote God has helped them live out their
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vows that evening police announced that the Richmond Hill explosion was officially
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being treated as a homicide confident that Dion and Jennifer Longworth had inadvertently lost their
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lives as a result of a targeted attack on the Shirley household through their investigations a possible
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suspect had emerged after the discovery of an unlikely survivor of the explosion
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a Persian cat named snowball the pet belonged to Montserrat II Shirley's daughter and over the past
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three weekends including the date of the blast Monserrat II had placed the cat in
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a kennel this was uncharacteristic of her as Montserrat II wasn't known to board
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snowball went away from home Montserrat II and marks alibis were checked with records from the Hollywood
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Casino confirming the couple checked in the night before the explosion their reservation was for one night and
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today returned to the front desk in the morning to extend to this day but no rooms were available
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instead the pair remained in the gaming area with CCTV capturing them playing blackjack before retiring to the bar
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where they remained for 11 hours intermittently checking their phones and watches until receiving news of the
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explosion investigators at the crime scene had also noticed something peculiar when
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examining the remains of the Shirley home household furniture doesn't disintegrate
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during an explosion but smashes into smaller pieces yet for a house that size there weren't
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many pieces of furniture strewn about they found several remote controls and television wall mounts but no evidence
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of the electronics themselves in March the year before Monserrat II had briefly put the house on the market and the real
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estate photos were still available online these images showed the house had been
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well furnished a tip-off and subsequent inquiries led police to mark Leonard's older brother
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Bob who had stored some boxes of clothing photographs personal items and a set of golf clubs in his son's
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basement Bob had told his son that the belongings were salvaged from the Shirley home
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following the explosion yet when speaking with detectives Bob explained that his brother had
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approached him two weeks before the explosion with the items claiming they belonged to Montserrat his ex husband
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Bob also reported smelling gas during a visit to the Shirley home but was uncertain of the source
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the couple's friends relatives and neighbors were questioned with one Richmond Hill resident recalling that on
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the day of the explosion the blinds in Monterey Dee's home which were typically kept open were pulled down
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another neighbor said that same day he saw mark Leonard's white work van parked outside the house at approximately 2:00
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p.m. two unknown men hastily exited the house before driving away in the van an acquaintance described mark as a scam
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artist who allegedly used online dating sites to meet and seduce older women he would romance them by picking them up in
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a nice car dressing sharply and taking them to fancy restaurants where he would then pretend to answer an urgent phone
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call to discuss a business matter making it sound as though he had an important construction job in the works
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once the women believed the corn he would ask to borrow money and would then disappear
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another of his schemes was to take a woman to the casino and after claiming to have left his wallet at home
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convinced them to place sizable bets on his behalf then keep any winnings according to Mark monserrate II was okay
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with him dating other women as long as the relationships weren't sexual a background check on mark Leonard
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revealed a criminal history that began when he was 18 years old in addition to criminal charges for cocaine
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possession and drug dealing as well as reports of stalking and intimidation he was being sued by multiple women
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accusing him of scamming them out of money he also had a history of insurance fraud related to a car accident
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at the time he met montserrat e mark was on house arrest with his movements monitored by a GPS ankle tracker a
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relative informed police that another of mark's games was to intentionally set off the air bags in his car then submit
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a claim with his insurance agency upon receiving the settlement he would keep the money instead of replacing the air
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bags he had also stolen a truck insured it in his brother's name and then set it on
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fire pocketing the payout he owed seventy seven thousand dollars in civil lawsuits and racked up over sixty
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thousand dollars in unpaid accounts three weeks before the explosion mark confided in a friend that he had lost
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ten thousand dollars at the casino Monserrat e's bank records revealed that she had financial trouble of her own
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struggling with their 160 thousand dollar mortgage she and her ex-husband had filed for bankruptcy in 2007 with
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montserrat e taking responsibility for their outstanding debts as part of their divorce agreement she had since taken
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out a second mortgage for $65,000 of which she was three months late making repayments
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she had put the home up for short sale in 2011 which meant that it was listed for less than what she currently owed on
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the mortgage and she would have to come up with the outstanding money to close the deal so she eventually decided not
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to sell and took it off the market by November 2012 she was sixty three thousand dollars in credit card debt and
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still owed ninety nine thousand dollars in bankruptcy repayments which she had stopped paying
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her port hearing had been scheduled in July to address this matter the montserrat II failed to show
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shortly after mark Leonard moved in with her in late 2011 she doubled her home contents insurance to $300,000 as
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suspicions arose around montserrat II and Mark the press requested interviews in social media ran rife with rumors
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about their personal lives Monserrat II told a local news station I don't wish this on no one I just want to
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go to sleep and to never wake up I don't eat I don't sleep everyone's been asking
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questions I don't have no financial issues on devastated that I lost it all my neighbor lost a life that my whole
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neighborhood is destroyed they need to wait til all of the investigation is done and I don't want
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nobody to point a finger to no one the couple hired a lawyer who issued a statement urging the public to leave his
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clients alone it read the to remain horrified at the tragic events destruction and a loss of lives
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that occurred they wish for the causation of this horrific and saddening tragedy to be determined
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assumptions by everyone have had a field day at their expense they continue to cooperate with
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authorities and will have no further comments investigators were yet to uncover any
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concrete physical evidence to prove Montserrat II surely all Marc Leonard had orchestrated the November tenth
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explosion GPS trackers were installed on the couple's cars and their phone calls were
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covertly monitored but they failed to uncover anything of significance a man named Mark Duckworth spoke to police
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he was the decade long friend of mark Leonard he recalled a phone conversation wherein mark mentioned looking at
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Ferraris online with the intention of buying one when asked how he could afford it mark claimed that tsunami
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winds had blown out their fireplace causing their house to blow up and they had received the $300,000 payout
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this conversation occurred eight days before the explosion Duckworth statement indicated that mark
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and Montserrat II had been plotting a scheme for some time the initial belief was that they had
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conspired with Mark's brother Bob to enact an elaborate insurance scam having him visit the property to release the
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gas and set the microwave timer while they were establishing their alibi at the Hollywood Casino
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then on November 30 an employee for gas company citizens Energy Group notified police that he ran into the Leonard
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brothers at a bar on the evening before the explosion as he was already acquainted with the pair the three
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struck up a conversation mark and barb asked about natural gas inquiring how much was needed to fill up
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a house the employee compared it to blowing up a balloon telling them that at a certain
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point there was nothing left for it to do but explode [Music] on December 21 2012 almost six weeks
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after the Richmond Hill explosion Monserrat e Shirley and Mark Leonard were arrested and served with a 49 count
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indictment which included charges for first-degree murder and arson as well as conspiracy to commit arson and insurance
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fraud their suspected accomplice Bob Leonard was also arrested for murder and arson
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but was spared the conspiracy charges given the severity of their crimes the trio face the death penalty
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many residents of Richmond Hill were left unsurprised by the arrests with one remarking there were too many
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circumstantial things that fell into line for it not to have been them while another said that it was clear from
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their very beginning that the explosion had not been an accident on December 24 the trio appeared in
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court where they each entered a plea of not guilty as the arrests occurred just a few days
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before Christmas the Richmond Hill community came together to replace some of the possessions montserrat his 12
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year old daughter had lost in the blast during the first few months of mark Leonard's incarceration he was placed in
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a cell with a Robert Smitty Smith a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang and neo-nazi organization as the soul mates
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got to know one another Marc discussed the Richmond Hill explosion he said the plan had been for his brother to start a
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fire by cracking a gas line while he and de montserrat II were away for the weekend the Bob had broken the line
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completely causing the explosion he believed the strongest piece of evidence the prosecutors had against him
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was mark Duckworth statement that he had been shopping for a Ferrari one week before the incident he was therefore
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convinced he stood a chance of beating the charges if he could just stop Duckworth from testifying
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Marc wrote Smitty a note asking if there was any way he could organize a hit on his friend
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the note said that he didn't want mark Duckworth to quote show up for court or show up at all and offered a payment of
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$15,000 to make him disappear by staging an accident a hand-drawn map the Duckworth's house was
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included along with details about the car he drove Smitty told mark that he knew a hit man
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who would be willing to do the job and the two made plans with mark suggesting walking right up to Duckworth's house
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and shooting him in the kitchen while he was sitting at his computer mark expressed hesitancy about using
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prison telephones to organize the plot as his calls were being recorded as Smitty was not subject to the same rules
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he gave his personal pin number so mark could make the calls without being recorded
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mark phoned Smitty's contact a man identified as Jay when asked how he wanted the hit to go down mark said
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why would take a chain and [ __ ] pounder through his [ __ ] groin area and hang him from a tree
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he offered Jay a $5,000 bonus if he could force Duckworth to call 9-1-1 and to retract the information he had
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previously given to police by saying I did not mean to frame mark and montserrat E for their own house in
00:28:12
Richmond Hill he ended up asking Jay to make it look like Duckworth had taken his own life
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wanting the job done quickly without causing any unnecessary suffering as that would take too much time
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Jay told him that he enjoyed torturing his victims to which mark laughed and responded well if you wanna
00:28:37
unbeknownst to mark he was actually conspiring the assassination with an undercover special agent from the Bureau
00:28:44
of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives furthermore his cellmate Smitty was actually a police informant
00:28:54
the phone conversations with the Jay were recorded including Mark stating he wanted another undisclosed target killed
00:29:02
once the hit on Duckworth was complete mark Leonard was additionally charged with conspiracy to commit murder to
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which he pled not guilty in August 2013 Monserrat II Shirley filed documents placing a majority of
00:29:22
the blame on the Leonard brothers saying that Mark had been abusive and manipulative throughout their
00:29:28
relationship two months later it was decided that the three defendants would all be tried
00:29:35
separately outside Marion County to ensure an impartial jury the death penalty was also taken off the table and
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replaced with life in prison without parole to mark the one year anniversary of the
00:29:51
Richmond Hill tragedy faculty members and students at the elementary school where Jennifer Longworth taught second
00:29:58
grade war Indianapolis Colts merchandise in tribute of the longworth's favorite football team and held a minute's
00:30:05
silence Richmond Hill residents were undergoing counseling and still had trouble coping
00:30:11
with loud noises one resident reported struggling to get to sleep as she was haunted by images of
00:30:19
blood-soaked people running from the neighborhood quote it was hard to get over it was hard to get those images out
00:30:28
of my head many expected that at least one of the accused would strike a plea deal but as
00:30:36
the years went by this seemed less likely then in January 2015 Monserrat e's defense lawyers approached
00:30:46
the prosecution team with an offer in exchange for dropping the murder charges their client would agree to plead guilty
00:30:53
to the less serious charge of conspiracy to commit arson and in return reveal the
00:30:59
truth about the explosion and testify against her accomplices the prosecution was torn
00:31:08
Monserrat EES cooperation would help clarify the unexplained - details of the crime and settle their suspicions
00:31:16
whether any other people were involved yet Monserrat II had been a key player in the plot and they wanted to see her
00:31:24
justly punished deputy prosecutor Denise Robinson quote she was too involved she was the one who
00:31:34
got her daughter and her cat out of the situation and to left her neighbors in the situation
00:31:40
while we knew that Montserrat II surely on her own would never have caused this crime that could not have happened
00:31:47
without her eventually the prosecution agreed to the deal much to the disapproval of Richmond
00:31:56
Hills community who wanted to see their former neighbor given the maximum sentence of life without parole
00:32:04
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for 10% off your first order within weeks of moving into Richmond Hill mark Leonard suggests that
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montserrat e double her home contents insurance stating he wanted to buy expensive items and to begin renovations
00:37:07
he also convinced her to sell her car so that he could replace it with a luxury BMW but ended up getting her a dated
00:37:16
Ford Taurus instead which cost him only $700 at this point Marc's true character
00:37:24
began to unravel he wasn't the high roller he made himself out to be after the explosion he told blas
00:37:33
adjudicators he owned a premium condition Cadillac entirely Davidson motorcycle in reality he had a beat-up
00:37:40
Cadillac he had purchased by selling stolen supplies and equipment from his construction sites and his motorcycle
00:37:47
was undriveable in early 2012 Marc's gambling habits led him to consider committing insurance
00:37:55
fraud by setting a small fire in the garage his friend Gary Thompson had done the same and gotten away with it he had
00:38:04
also helped another man named Glenn Holtz carry out a similar act in July 2012 mark urged Glenn to convince
00:38:14
Montserrat 'hey how easy it was glenn warned the pair to be careful has hidden you someone who had been
00:38:21
sentenced to 75 years imprisonment for arson as montserrat 'i had no criminal history or
00:38:28
prior insurance claims mark was confident they would get away with it but promised to take the blame if they
00:38:35
were caught Montserrat II surely quote I thought it was crazy but I went along with him
00:38:44
mark revisited this game towards the end of October 2012 Gary Thompson had agreed
00:38:51
to help but they just needed at Montserrat ease approval although she wasn't entirely sure what
00:38:58
the plan entailed she gave the green light on the weekend of October 27 she boarded snowball at a kennel sent her
00:39:07
daughter to stay with a friend loaded her valuable and sentimental items into marks man and the pair checked in to
00:39:15
Hollywood Casino mark had offered Gary $5,000 to dump 6 large cans of gasoline inside Montserrat
00:39:25
E's house but he panicked and couldn't go through with it he was supposed to call Mark and Montserrat II when the job
00:39:32
was done but they never heard from him the next morning they drove to Gary's house and he lied to the pair about
00:39:40
having to call the whole thing off after being pulled over by the police on his way to Richmond Hill
00:39:46
convinced Gary was flaking mark enlisted the help of his brother Bob offering him
00:39:52
$10,000 to start the fire the second attempt was scheduled for the weekend of November 3 in the lead up
00:40:01
mark and Gary blocked off the chimney and filled the fireplace with cardboard they replaced the digital thermostat
00:40:09
with a cheaper manual model and had discussions about programming the microwave in advance with a piece of
00:40:15
metal inside knocked turned on the fireplaces gas valve and his brother Bob was expected
00:40:22
to visit the home later to tinker with the thermostat to cause it to spark and start a fire
00:40:27
but the plan failed for a second time the Leonard brothers went to the library and researched the cause of house fires
00:40:38
afterwards they went for a drink at the bar where they ran into an acquaintance who worked for citizens Energy Group and
00:40:45
asked him about natural gas Glenn Holtz tried to deter mark expressing the possibility he was going
00:40:54
to blow up the whole neighborhood Monserrat II also begged him to call the whole thing off offering him the ten
00:41:02
thousand dollars in her retirement fund but mark was set on the sixth bigger insurance payout
00:41:10
on November 9 2012 before the couple left for the Hollywood Casino they gave Bob Leonard $40 for a part
00:41:19
needed to carry out the crime just after 11:00 p.m. the next day montserrat II received a word of the explosion and
00:41:28
returned to Richmond Hill where her and Mark discovered the magnitude of damage injuries and two deaths it had caused
00:41:38
police questioned 44 year-old Gary Thompson who admitted involvement in this game and corroborated montserrat
00:41:46
EES version of events although adamant that he was nowhere near filled fairway the day of the
00:41:53
explosion police were convinced he set the timer on the microwave consequently on January 29 2015 Gary was
00:42:04
arrested and faced over 40 charges including two counts of murder arson and conspiracy to commit arson
00:42:14
Glenn Holtz was also interviewed by the police he denied having any recollection
00:42:20
of the conversation in July 2012 about setting Monterey Dee's house on fire police check to Glenn's phone records
00:42:29
which showed ten calls and text messages between himself and DeMarco Leonard during the first two weeks of November
00:42:37
2012 on April 14 2015 Gunn was arrested for conspiracy to commit arson becoming the
00:42:47
fifth arrest in the Richmond Hill explosion case on Monday June 8 2015 Marc Leonard's trial commenced in the
00:42:59
County Courthouse in South Bend Indiana his defense team admitted that while he had been part of the arson plot he never
00:43:08
foresaw the power of the explosion and had no intention of damaging other properties or hurting anyone they
00:43:15
labeled it as quote a stupid and selfish insurance fraud that went horribly wrong
00:43:22
they called montserrat 'i'm master liar who was fully in on the plan from the outset the prosecution argued that
00:43:31
Markham knew that the entire house would be destroyed as he had advised montserrat e to remove her belongings
00:43:38
and relocate her daughter and car furthermore telling his friend Mark Duckworth that he was expecting an
00:43:46
insurance payout of $300,000 indicated he expected the house and its possessions to be a complete write-off
00:43:54
given that he understood the potential severity of the explosion the prosecution urged the jury to find him
00:44:01
guilty of murder as he knew his scheme came with the high probability of death [Music]
00:44:08
the fight weight trial saw the submission of over 2,000 pieces of evidence and the testimony of hundreds
00:44:16
of witnesses including Montserrat II surely as part of her plea deal she said she went along with her boyfriends plan
00:44:23
because quote I was scared I loved him so much I would do anything to make him happy
00:44:32
the outside court marks defense attorney told reporters she can tell the truth just as easily as
00:44:40
she can tell a lie and it's hard for the jury to know the difference during closing remarks prosecutor mark
00:44:50
Hollingsworth said every single victim in this case is a victim because of him every single
00:44:58
co-conspirator in this case would not be charged but for him it all comes back to
00:45:05
mark Leonard on July 14 2015 after four hours of deliberation mark Leonard was found
00:45:15
guilty of all 53 counts outside court Jennifer Longworth father Don told reporters the conviction was
00:45:26
the closest thing his family would ever get to justice saying my wife always talks about what she
00:45:34
won't have with her daughter you know going shopping and taking care of her kids and all of these things
00:45:42
we won't have any of that as far as I'm concerned the Leonard agang sentenced my family to outdoor
00:45:51
prison for the rest of our lives I grieve for my daughter every day and tomorrow I will go back to the cemetery
00:45:59
and knock the grass of the grave like I do every week and get right back to business
00:46:08
Dion Longworth spa though John said the jury had made the right choice adding this doesn't change anything that means
00:46:18
he won't hurt anybody else outside of prison but Dylan and Jennifer are still not with me
00:46:27
during mark Leonard sentencing hearing a month later Dion longworth's mother Elaine gave an emotional statement she
00:46:36
said I hate that it had to be my boy who lived the next door to mark and Vaughn's
00:46:42
arathi I hate that they were nothing but collateral damage to them I hate like hell that my brilliant son was brought
00:46:51
down by such fools I absolutely and completely hate that my smart strong curious kind hilarious and hard-working
00:47:01
son died at such an absurdly young age and in such a horrible way I hate that the ashes of my son and his wife shared
00:47:11
the space of a sealed box not much bigger than a gallon of milk I hate that he's tortured the last moments come to
00:47:18
me in flashbacks I so very much hate it was not me that died instead of him upon handing down his sentence Judge
00:47:30
John Minooka said a person ought to feel safe in their own home I know there will be natural
00:47:38
disasters and I know there will be burglaries and theft's unfortunately but I think people shouldn't have to worry
00:47:46
that someone might destroy the entire neighborhood Macklin had received two life sentences
00:47:54
without parole six months later on January 21 2016 marks brother Bob Leonard was tried
00:48:08
in Fort Wayne Indiana with over 150 witnesses called the testifier when montserrat II took the stand she
00:48:17
explained that upon hearing of Dion and Jennifer longworth's deaths she didn't want any of the insurance money
00:48:24
Bob allegedly responded with indifference saying oh well they died the jury found him guilty of all 51
00:48:36
charges he was sentenced to two life terms without parole Gary Thomson's trial was scheduled for
00:48:45
later that year but in August he agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit arson in exchange for having all other
00:48:53
charges against him dropped he was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison with 10 suspended
00:49:02
Bob Leonard called a local television station from prison to voice his disdain at the deal saying
00:49:09
Gary Thompson was in on this whole thing from start to finish in late December 2016 Glen Holt's also
00:49:20
entered an agreement with the prosecution pleading guilty to one count of assisting a criminal in exchange for
00:49:27
having the conspiracy to commit arson charge dropped he admitted to knowing about the arson plot beforehand and to
00:49:35
not doing anything to stop it he was sentenced to three years in prison for which he only served 18
00:49:43
months given that montserrat II surely had reached a plea agreement with the prosecution she was spared a trial
00:49:53
instead a sentencing hearing was held where her family and defense team requested leniency on the basis that
00:50:00
Mark Leonard was emotionally abusive leading to Montserrat II compliance her neighbors disputed this arguing that
00:50:09
she was a greedy person obsessed with portraying are wealthy image multiple victim impact statements were
00:50:17
read including one from day on longworth's father John who said it's kind of weird to think that you're
00:50:26
going about your life and someone has a target on your back and did they don't care
00:50:32
that's one thing I've never seen from any of these defendants much caring she protected her child and cat but she
00:50:42
showed no concern for anyone else in the neighborhood she traded the lives of our children for
00:50:49
her own upon delivering her sentence judge Sheila Carlisle said to Montserrat II
00:50:59
you were a mum you were a nurse you were a neighbor and you were a friend and in
00:51:08
each of those categories you betrayed your trust Montserrat II surely was sentenced to 50
00:51:17
years in prison she will be eligible to apply for parole in December two thousand thirty two aged 72 years old
00:51:29
one month later mark Leonard was tried separately for his attempt to hire a hitman to kill his friend mark Duckworth
00:51:37
to ensure he couldn't testify against him at trial the court found him guilty of conspiracy
00:51:44
to commit murder and he received an additional 50 years on top of his life sentences
00:51:50
he lodged numerous appeals but each was rejected in late January 2018 mark was transferred
00:52:00
to hospital to undergo treatment for his autoimmune disease On January 30 the Indiana Department of Corrections
00:52:09
released the statement announcing that he had died of natural causes upon learning of his brother's death
00:52:17
Bobby Leonard said I've only been in trouble twice in my life and both times where he's fault I
00:52:26
couldn't care less that he's dead I don't have a bit of sympathy for that son of a [ __ ]
00:52:32
in the years following the Richmond Hill explosion residents reported experiencing ongoing trauma a third of
00:52:42
the families moved away from the subdivision with six marriages ending in divorce
00:52:49
to honor their memory a scholarship titled the Southwest elementary Jennifer and dejan Longworth memorial award was
00:52:57
established in 2012 issued to one of her former second-grade students each year upon their eventual graduation from high
00:53:05
school a press release by the school said the scholarship would serve as a legacy for
00:53:11
Jennifer's excellence in education and allow her former students to carry on her love of learning quote
00:53:20
Jennifer had a way of reaching students like Anne no other teacher students who were tough to reach she set the
00:53:28
expectations on day one of school and she got results she loved her kids that's the longworth's we're passionate
00:53:38
supporters of the Indianapolis Colts football team the team's owner Jim Irsay was the first person to make a donation
00:53:45
to the fund Deon was an enthusiastic gardener with an extensive knowledge of native
00:53:53
wildflowers in the particular love of sunflowers he took pride in a hybrid pear tree he
00:54:01
planted in their yard on field fairway which continues to grow to this day [Music]
00:54:29
you