Anatomy of Murder - Money Play - Part 2 (Makeva Jenkins)

Episode Date: April 30, 2024

A successful entrepreneur and mother is killed in bed while sleeping. Untangling the web of who committed the crime started with a car. View source material and photos for this episode at: anatomyofmurder.com/moneyplay-part-2Can’t get enough AoM? Find us on social media!Instagram: @aom_podcast | @audiochuckTwitter: @AOM_podcast | @audiochuckFacebook: /listenAOMpod | /audiochuckllc

We wanted to remind you that this episode is the second part of a two-part story. We're releasing both episodes on the same day, so you don't have to wait. If you haven't already heard it, go back and listen to part one first. She was someone from the community where she was raised that would be spoken of as someone who made it. I walked out of my house that morning and I saw the crime scene tape down the street from me, and I'm like, what's going on? This was not a home invasion robbery attempt.

This was a targeted murder. This is serious. That's my daughter who was popped inside. The odd parts of the story just didn't line up. So I think there was just a buzz in the community because people just felt like, this doesn't sound right. Someone did this to her. This is an inside job. I'm Scott Weinberger, investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff.

I'm Anasiga Nicolazzi, former New York City homicide prosecutor and host of Investigation Discovery's True Conviction. And this is Anatomy of Murder. There was that buzz that was sweeping through the community and that really drew attention to the case, not to mention, you know,

just Makeba herself, because I think she had a strong social media and online following. You know, you have someone who's because I think she had a strong social media and online following. You know, you have someone who's a businesswoman who's constantly doing videos and she's always updating you on her life and people loved her. Palm Beach County, Florida, prosecutor Alexia Cox is describing 33-year-old Makeba Jenkins, a businesswoman, online influencer and mother of three who was gunned down in her home in Boynton Beach. She was a sweetheart. She seemed very well liked. She was a beautiful woman. And I think people gravitated towards her. So to dim that light or take that light away from the community, you're going to receive a community response. There's going to be an outcry because of that.

And that's really what happened. They took a light away from the community and people were hurt, people were angry, and they wanted to know who did this. Bikiva had been shot at close range by a masked gunman while she was sleeping. And while her husband, Uri Jenkins, brother Marquise, or Quay, and friend Dimitri Dale were all in the house, investigators had ruled out robbery as a motive, which left them wondering if any of the three men had a motive to kill. Police were taking a hard look at Dimitri Dale, along with a man by the name of Jovan Joseph, another man now a fourth person who had been present at the Jenkins home earlier on the day

of the murder. But there was also suspicion growing around McKeever's husband, Yuri, as well. He hadn't helped his case either, with some eyebrow-raising behavior shortly after McKeever was killed. Here's Adrienne Ellis, chief assistant district attorney in Palm Beach County. Uri Jenkins, we spoke with the media. When we watched his video, his statement to the media, the local news, it was bizarre, to say the least. It was one of those videos that if you are a homicide prosecutor, you kind of know when you know that something's not right.

That entire interview is available online, but here's a small piece of what he said. It hit me on the head. Oh, God. Oh, man. I held her in my arms. She was alive. And then it was his body language, how he was just very fidgety.

The emotion seemed to be contrived, almost like he was trying to create emotion, but was having a very hard time doing it. But giving a cringeworthy interview was not the only thing that was raising suspicion. almost like he was trying to create emotion, but was having a very hard time doing it. But giving a cringeworthy interview was not the only thing that was raising suspicion. Less than two weeks after his wife's murder, investigators had become aware of an online video that was circulating on social media. A video that was recorded and posted by Yuri's ex-girlfriend, Tiffany, a woman who also happened to be the mother of one of his children. The video received a lot of traction because she was saying Akiva had just been killed, and some of the comments that she was making were not necessarily painting Akiva in this great light.

Her words were not only insensitive, and given that she was also Yuri's ex and mother to his child, they might also have been self-incriminating. She was basically admitting to the world that she and Makeeva had had a contentious relationship and one of the two had recently been murdered. That makes investigators want to dig. I think that just made the detectives want to speak to her, you know, just to say like, well, you know, does she know anything? Is there something that was going on between the two of them? Some friends of McKeever also came forward to tell police that Tiffany had actually confronted McKeever in the past. So you have to ask, was this a romantic rivalry that may have escalated to murder?

Or was it just further evidence that McKeever's husband had even more skeletons in his closet. What we learned through the course of the investigation is that he was still seeing her while married to McKeever and McKeever became aware. And it was at that point that McKeever started texting friends that, you know, she had had it. She had asked him for a divorce. So, Scott, these are three big bombs here. One, that he's still in an extramarital relationship. Two, McKeever knew and had just asked for, number three, a divorce. Everything here is pointing towards potential motive. The wife comes to the husband and says, I may want a divorce. I know about this affair you're having. Oh, and by the way, I'm the breadwinner now. I'm making all the money. So ultimately, you won't be able to survive without me. So essentially,

does this add up to a palpable motive? Can we touch it? Can we sense it here? And the various things that investigators had been uncovering, well, Tiffany didn't deny it. When she was questioned by police, Tiffany admitted as much. She told detectives that she and Yuri were not only still seeing each other, but Yuri had even been with her the very next day. Let me say that again. The very next day after McKeever's murder. So the day of the murder, you call him after someone performs you,

something happened to McKeever, and then that's when he tells you. Does he tell you over the phone what happened? I seen him the same night. She also revealed a very telling detail about her and Yuri's relationship. She told them that Yuri was supposed to be paying child support to her. He had not been paying child support. And so she was going to take him to court. and he pleaded with her not to take him to court and that he was going to make good on the bad child support that he owed. Basically, she'd just be patient that he was going to give her some money. Did he say he was going to give you any money? Yeah, he told me he'll give me $10,000 if I take him off child support. But considering Yuri was just getting

by on income as a part-time barber, you have to ask, where would this money come from? There was only one reasonable explanation. Sean said, well, you know what? Let me look into her insurance because this really is not making sense. And like we've seen countless times before, where there's money, there's motive. That's true, Anastasia. But of course, this theory would need proof. So detectives look at Yuri's pal, Dimitri Dale, to help fill in some of the details. Slowly we're hearing, oh, well, at one point, Yuri told me he wasn't in love with Makeva anymore. You know, so like the more pressure I think that was placed on Dimitri,

it was slow, a slow drip, but more and more information began to come out about, you know, the relationship between Yuri and Makiva. And then Dimitri Dale finally drops the bombshell, recounting one night in particular, just a couple days before Makiva's murder. Dimitri had gone over to Yuri's house, as he always did. He hung out over there a lot. They were walking to the car, and Yuri said to him, what if I kill my dad for some insurance money? And Dimitri, according to Dimitri, Dimitri said, you know, stop talking crazy.

That's ridiculous. And then that's when he sort of threw out there, what if I do Makeva? So I'm hearing it like you just heard it. What if I do Makeva? So I'm hearing it like you just heard it. What if I do Makeva? Haunting words from Makeva's own husband and the father of two of her children. What we sort of surmised is that this money that Yuri promised Tiffany, he was banking on the money coming from insurance money that he thought he was going to benefit from Akiva's death. We have to just stop here because equally as shocking as Jury's casual

talk about killing his wife is that his friend, Dimitri Dale, he doesn't do a thing, doesn't bat an eye, doesn't tell the police, doesn't tell McKeever. In fact, what investigators soon learned is that he helped facilitate what is now a full-fledged plan for a murder for hire. But Dimitri, at some point in one of his interviews, he does confess that the night before he and Javon went back to Yuri's house, He said that that's pretty much where the idea was born during that meeting. In other words, Dimitri was going to act as a middleman, setting Yuri up with his friend Javon Joseph, a man with a gun, a history of violent behavior, and a willingness to do anything for money. Dimitri, in a nutshell, Yuri tells you he's going to kill his wife. Two, you bring Javon to meet him.

I didn't voluntarily go along with this. I wanted to clear it. I wanted to go home. I didn't understand a lot of things. And so Dimitri starts to divulge what happened, but at the same time, still is in self-preservation mode. You can hear Dale hedging in the audio from that taped interview. I did not know this was going to happen. I was not promised to die.

Nobody did introduce him to Yuri so Yuri would have someone to do it. No, no. He starts to say, hey, yeah, I brought this guy over that night. And he says that when he introduced Jovan to Yuri, he said that he then went in the house to use the restroom. And so he didn't hear the conversation. But detectives pressed him, knowing that anyone in this deep was likely hiding a much darker truth. I'm tired of being lied to. I'm not lying to you at all. And Oliver says, so did you know when the person, when the gunman darker truth. But if you noticed, he's still stopping short of admitting his direct knowledge of the plan to kill McKeever. You're not going to convince me that one, a guy they introduced to Yuri 18 hours before murder, that Yuri's just going to trust this

guy unless you said this guy is okay to trust. And I'm not lying to you. I had no knowledge of this. I had no involvement in this. But his buddy, Jovan Joseph, would soon take care of that. I think it got really real for Jovan as he continued to wait it out. And he saw that Dimitri, who he was really close friends with, he saw that Dimitri was basically trying to pin everything on him. He realized that he had to do whatever it took to save himself. They may have been thick as thieves, but when it came to murder, in this case, it was every man for himself. After a while, Jovan decides that he is going to cooperate.

And his lawyer reaches out to us, and we learn through the proffer about the money. And the first thing that you're going to have is a proffer, which is an offer of evidence, but it's prior to any deal, but it's a necessary prelude. Obviously, prosecutors and law enforcement, they need to hear what this person is going to say to decide if they believe it's going to be truthful. And if so, if they're willing to strike a deal in exchange for that person's cooperation and truthful testimony. So here in Joseph's proffer, he laid out Yuri's entire sick plan. And so, of course, we reached out to Detective Oliver and we all sat there.

We were hoping and praying that this was what we needed. And it was. Jovan pulled it all in and pulled it all together. Because not only did he flip on Yuri, but he also flipped on Dimitri. He told us, you know, exactly what Dimitri's role was. I mean, but for Dimitri, Jovan never meets Yuri. To put it simply, Joseph says that Yuri Jenkins was looking for someone to kill his wife. He said that the first time he met Yuri was that night, the night of the late night hours of June 27th, 2017.

They had a brief discussion about it. He went back over there with Dimitri Dale that next day. He sat in a chair and Yuri cut his hair. After Yuri was done cutting his hair, he said that he went and got in the car and Yuri gave him $10,000. And after the job was done, that Yuri would give him money later. But apparently, Joseph had no idea that fateful phone call would come so soon. What we learned was that Yuri wanted it to happen that night. So Jovan leaves his car at the library.

He then gets into the Charger, which is the car that Dimitri is driving. And Dimitri drives into the development and parks the car on the street in front of Yuri's house. Jovan Joseph, dressed in all black and armed with a revolver, waited in the dark for Dimitri to enter the garage. Then he approached on foot. Yuri Jenkins, Dimitri Dale, and Makeva's brother, Quay, were all inside.

Only Quay didn't know what was about to happen next. They were in the garage when the intruder came in wearing a mask and he came in with a firearm. He ordered them into the home. They headed straight upstairs to where Makeva was asleep in her bedroom. And according to Joseph's statement, it was Yuri himself that gave the final order. Demetra Dale was coming upstairs with Quay and he says Yuri kind of motioned his head, telling him which direction to go to get to the bedroom. A moment later, Joseph put his gun inches from McKeever's right temple and fired. Uri Jenkins was arrested on December 15, 2017, nearly six months after his wife's murder.

When questioned by police and given a chance to confess or deny the accusations, Jenkins chose to exercise his right to remain silent. The strong evidence against him appeared overwhelming, but the state's case still largely rested on the statements of his two alleged accomplices. So safe to say that the defense would be quick to point out that their testimony would be unreliable at best. Alexia and Adrian, the two prosecutors on the case, knew they would have to be meticulous in their prosecution, presenting a narrative of the murder that was as airtight as could be. You know, there's an old adage, the devil is in the details. That's true. If there's something

on there that I questioned, then I know if I got a question, you know, a jury or juror may have a question. Uri Jenkins finally went on trial in May of 2022, facing charges of first-degree murder, charges to which he pled not guilty. Armed with the testimony of both Demetri Dale and the now-confessed shooter Javon Joseph, the prosecution presented a compelling case, alleging that Jenkins had hired Joseph to kill McKeever in exchange for at least $10,000. His motive? To collect on a life insurance policy that he believed to be worth as much as $500,000. And the proof came courtesy of a recorded phone call between Jenkins and McKeever's insurance company that occurred just two days after McKeever's death. Thank you for calling Northwestern Metro. This is Carrie. How can I help you?

According to Yuri, he needs to make funeral arrangements. And so family members were telling him to contact that insurance company to see if they will release the funds so that he could make the arrangements. So he said that was his reason for calling. Yeah, they need to know that I'm the beneficiary so that they can proceed with the service and for the funding company to go ahead and give them the money. As McKeever's family and friends were preparing for her funeral, her widower was already inquiring about what he hoped would be a substantial windfall.

But unfortunately for Jenkins, it didn't go according to plan. Hi there, sir. My name is Carrie. I understand you have some questions. About the beneficiary information. He called that insurance company. He told the customer service representative why he was calling, what had happened. And you were the spouse, sir? Yes, ma'am. Bear with me. I'm just looking up the file here to find the initial application and verify the beneficiary. I'm actually seeing on the application here that you were not listed as beneficiary. Oh, wow.

And so she asked for his name. And so she told him to hold on while she checked. And when she came back a minute or so later, he said, well, you are not the beneficiary. He was not the beneficiary. It turns out that when McKeever had bought her new policy, she named her grandmother, the woman who raised her as the sole beneficiary, not her husband, Uri Jenkins. There was a moment of silence from him. And he said, well, who is it? She was saying, well, sir, I can't tell you because you're not the beneficiary. And he then said, wow, she didn't change it in time.

Okay, I'm going to figure out who it was. Oh, wow. She didn't change it in time. And we all said, in time for what? I mean, by all accounts, Makeva was a very healthy young woman. This is not a person who had been diagnosed with some terminal illness or anything like that.

I understand. You just know that I'm not. You're thinking it's not. Right. Okay. I mean, Scott, his line that she didn't change it in time, all I could think about was Robert Durst in The Jinx. You know, that famous line in Killed Them All, of course, or whatever exactly the line is. Because it's just this thing that, again, he's not thinking what he's saying or what's recorded.

But what else could that mean when put together with everything else we know? We've had so many different mic drop moments in this story, and this is just another one. I mean, the raw audio of him exhausted leading up to collecting for this murder, paying $10,000 to have your wife murdered to collect a half a million dollars only to find out that it's not going to happen. You're not going to get anything. Not only is super deflating for him, but any jury who may get an opportunity to hear that tape, I'd rightfully say it's over.

Because just hear it. Like, she didn't change it in time. You know, does that fit into his where he's really just calling to help get these funeral bills paid for? Or is it really the before I had you killed, so now before I had the chance to now get all this money? It's just, it's really pretty amazing here. And the prosecution, they used this recording to argue that Jenkins was motivated by jealousy and greed. He was threatened by McKeever's success and envious of her wealth. And when his infidelity had caused McKeever to threaten divorce, he basically knew that his gravy train was soon coming to an end.

Now, as for corroborating the testimonies of his accomplices, the prosecution had phone records and cell phone data, which you guys know I love, that matched both of their versions of events. We had phone records that we mentioned that corroborated it. And then we had the statement of Quay, who was there, you know, Yuri's phone call with the insurance company. And then you just had the other things that, you know, I think were more common sense. When we talk about this robbery where nothing was taken. No one wanted anything but to kill the one person in the home who was not a threat to anybody who was asleep in her bed. Why would someone want to do that? Who would want to do that? And all evidence pointed back to Yuri.

We knew that the only reason Makiva Jenkins was killed was because her husband wanted her dead. The defense countered that Jenkins might not be the only person that had a motive to harm McKeever. In fact, they argued that McKeever herself had endangered herself by broadcasting her wealth on a public platform. They also hammered away at the

character and reliability of Dale and Joseph. But even Adrian had to admit they could not have made the case without them. So we knew that although we had this phone call from the insurance company, although we had some strange behavior from Yuri, we had a weird interview right after the homicide occurred, without other people that he conspired with, then this is just out there. These are facts with no context.

And so the only way for them to make sense is we needed someone who was involved with this. So far, what they had was their word. But then the prosecutors got a huge unexpected assist from Jenkins' own defense team. It turned out that Demetri Dale had actually recorded some phone conversations with Jenkins, but for various reasons, the prosecution had not been allowed to introduce them in their case in chief. Here's a portion of that recording. Nothing much, you know who this is? Yeah, I'm talking to you, boy.

Can you talk to me? Yeah, I can talk. So, you know, my homeboy trying to say that, my homeboy trying to say that, uh, homeboy trying to say that, uh, you got him to do this shit and da, da, da, da, da. And this is Demetri basically playing Uri, that Jovan is saying that he's going to confess

to Oliver that he did it. He trying to say that, uh, he finna just go ahead and go ahead and snitch. You know what I'm saying? he's going to confess to Oliver that he did it. He's trying to say that he's going to just go ahead and snitch. You know what I'm saying? That's what he's saying. Oh, man. Tell him off. Don't do that, man. This will mess my life up, your life up.

And so as soon as Demetri says that, that's when Uri says, man, tell your boy to be quiet. He's going to get us in trouble. You know, he just needs to sit tight. Although we knew that we couldn't play them because they were not at the request of law enforcement, they were very incriminating. That's what he's saying, bro. So he's going to just go ahead and tell the truth.

No, bro. We can't tell him nothing like this, man. Yeah. That's going to f*** everybody's life up, bro. But once Jenkins' defense decided to use those same recordings in their cross-examination of Dimitri Dale, they became admissible. Adding to the pile of damning circumstantial evidence, they proved that Uri Jenkins had ordered and orchestrated a cold-blooded murder.

And I'll just add one more detail that came out during the trial. Witnesses said that Jenkins had actually gone to a strip club the night after his wife was murdered. And Yuri's response was that that was how he grieved. It took the jury just three hours to find Yuri Jenkins guilty of first degree murder. I am just grateful to God that we were able to get a jury. They were smart and they took their oaths serious and they took this case serious. It is a purely circumstantial evidence case, but it was strong. And I'm glad that they didn't just dismiss all of these facts. Jenkins

would end up being sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He was the mastermind. But for him, none of these people, none of these people come back to his house. And so it is him who deserves the punishment. It is him who deserves the most. It is him who should spend the rest of his life in prison. And that was a sentiment that was shared by McKeever's grandmother, who told Alexia and Adrian that her hope was that the strictest punishment be reserved for Jenkins and ultimately gave her blessing for the lesser sentences handed down to his accomplices.

One of the hardest things I think that came with this case was having to make deals. Yeah, we had a lot of corroborating evidence, but to say that it was enough without that testimony, we would never be certain of that. And we knew what we felt it took to make sure that justice was served. Jovon Joseph, who pulled the trigger and then cooperated with investigators, pled guilty to manslaughter.

And Jovon Joseph received 15 years Dept. of Corrections. Demetri Dale also pled guilty to manslaughter. And Jovan Joseph received 15 years Depository of Corrections. Demetri Dale also pled guilty and was sentenced to one year in the Palm Beach County Jail with credit for time served. Say what you want to say about him, but realistically, but for him, this case would have been very difficult to prove because it was his conversation initially with just him and Yuri that led to this whole thing just spiraling into a conspiracy to kill Makeva. He has since been released. The impact made of Makeva's life on her family, her friends, and the huge numbers of people who admired her,

that would prove much more lasting. I couldn't tell you how many times, if I was in the courthouse, at the clerk's office, in the grocery store, people who knew that I worked on her case, who would come and hug me and say, oh, you know, let me tell you my Makeva story and how she helped me. Makeva was someone who I believe brought light into the lives of so many people. To cut her life short in such a tragic way is heartbreaking. You know, it really is heartbreaking. We see these things play out in movies. And we think that, you know, real life is not like that.

For some people, unfortunately, it is real life. And she was, in fact, sleeping with the enemy. She was sleeping with the devil. Three words, trust, commitment, love. It's hard not to be deeply moved by the story of Mekiva, whose life was a testament to trust, commitment, and love. Mekiva's unwavering trust in her husband, which was deeply rooted in their shared faith and fellowship within their church,

exemplifies the kind of trust that goes beyond the everyday. It's a trust born from shared values and a collective journey towards something greater. Their meeting through the church laid the foundation of a profound commitment, not just to each other, but to their family, their shared goals, and their community. But Kiva's dedication, pushing herself tirelessly to support her family and her husband, to manage their bills, and to provide the very best she could was the embodiment of commitment. It's a reminder that commitment often means working behind the scenes, often without accolades, but with a steadfast purpose. And love, the most transcendent of all, was the beacon that guided her.

The love for her husband and her children and her extended family was palpable. But when it went beyond that, it was the love of the idea that she can use her talents, her energy to convey powerful messages to empower others that they too could succeed. McKeever Jenkins was an American success story. She confronted adversity and difficult times for much of her young life, but she was strong and determined. She pushed through it all to educate herself, become a business leader, and then wanted to share her story to empower others. When I look at what happened to her,

I keep thinking that this ended up an American horror story. Although it was her husband who plotted and orchestrated her death, this was the act of three men, who each played a role in taking this woman's life as she slept in her bed. And for what? Insurance dollars? And it's a twist that the money never even came, because Makeba, perhaps with an inkling that her marriage wouldn't last, had named her grandmother, her rock, and the woman who raised her as the person to get that money if anything ever happened to her. But what does this murder say about how little all three of these people valued human life? I say that this became an American horror story because, of course, this could have happened anywhere, but it does seem

to happen here much more often. And as a prosecutor who has seen so much murder over these last decades, I do often wonder why. I don't claim to have the answer at all, and it's complicated, I know, but it's something I think about a lot. McKeva, they took your life, but not your light. Your success story and your strong will to empower others is the legacy that will live on. Tune in next week for another new episode of Anatomy of Murder. Anatomy of Murder is an AudioChuck original. Produced and created by Weinberger Media and Frasetti Media. Ashley Flowers is executive producer.

This episode was written and produced by Walker Lamond, researched by Kate Cooper, edited by Ali Sirwa, Megan Hayward, and Philjean Grande. So, what do you think, Chuck? Do you approve?