00:00:00
And also before their interview starts
00:00:01
with him, they're getting as much
00:00:02
background on Ernest as they can.
00:00:05
But honestly, the more they learn about
00:00:07
this guy, the more shocked they are by
00:00:09
this crime. And the more they have to be
00:00:12
thanking their lucky stars that Linda
00:00:14
survived because without her, I don't
00:00:16
know if they would have ever gotten to
00:00:19
Ernest. Cuz 58-year-old Ernest does not
00:00:21
fit the profile of a violent offender
00:00:23
that they might have gone looking for.
00:00:25
Cuz he's been married to the same woman
00:00:27
for his whole adult life. They have two
00:00:29
kids, grandkids, and he has no adult
00:00:33
criminal record that they can find. Know
00:00:35
what else they can't find?
00:00:37
Any connection to Linda. I mean, aside
00:00:39
from living a minute away from her, they
00:00:41
don't seem to really know one another or
00:00:43
have any history. I mean, like Linda and
00:00:45
her husband would wave to Ernest when
00:00:47
they would walk their dogs, but that was
00:00:49
it. And even in that, like barely any
00:00:51
words are spoken between them. And
00:00:52
Ernest was never alone with Linda or
00:00:55
anything like that. So,
00:00:57
by the time Kentucky State Police
00:00:59
investigators get in a room with Ernest,
00:01:01
hours after his arrest, [music]
00:01:03
they are dying to get to the heart of
00:01:05
their questions.
00:01:07
Why? And I'll warn you, what you're
00:01:10
about to hear, the actual interview
00:01:13
audio between Ernest and the detectives,
00:01:17
it is explicit and troubling.
00:01:20
Okay. My name is Detective Jason Pope
00:01:22
with the Kentucky State Police. The date
00:01:25
is August 26th, 2008. Time is 1:35 hours
00:01:30
Eastern Standard Time.
00:01:32
Uh we're currently in the uh
00:01:34
Breckenridge County uh Sheriff's
00:01:36
Department. Um
00:01:37
myself and Detective Matt Johnson, with
00:01:39
the Kentucky State Police, will be
00:01:41
attempting to interview Ernest Pope.