Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Wife and Lover Plotted Pastor Husband's Murder: Police

Episode Date: November 13, 2024

Beau Shroyer, 44, was living in Angola, Africa with his wife, Jackie Shroyer, and their five children as they served as Christian missionaries. Late last month, Beau Shroyer was attacked in his SUV in a remote area. Now Angolan investigators say Jackie Shroyer was having an affair with the family's security guard and they hired hitmen to kill Beau. Law&Crime's Angenette Levy looks at the tragic case in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: If you’re ever injured in an accident, you can check out Morgan & Morgan. You can submit a claim in 8 clicks or less without having to leave your couch. To start your claim, visit: https://www.forthepeople.com/CrimeFixHost:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5Guest: Joe Tamburino https://x.com/tamburino_joeCRIME FIX PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinVideo Editing - Daniel CamachoGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. An alleged murder-for-hire plot leaves a beloved pastor dead and three men and the pastor's wife facing charges. I take a deep dive into the twisted murder plot and how investigators say the case unraveled. Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Anjanette Levy. Beau Schroyer was living in Angola in Africa with his wife, Jackie, and their five children.

He was serving on a Christian mission. From the photos posted on social media, he and his family looked very happy. Schroyer and his family moved to Angola in 2021 through a North Carolina-based organization, SIM, to teach residents about Christianity. On October 25th, something went terribly wrong. Beau Schreuer was murdered in Angola in what police there called a violent attack. Photos of his SUV show blood on the front seat, and we've blurred a little bit of this for you. Beau Schroyer, a loving father to five children, was murdered in his own vehicle. On October 27th, the pastor at Lakes Area Vineyard Church in Minnesota, where Schroyer and his family were members,

announced that Beau Schroyer had been murdered. And just three years ago, we sent them out to love and serve the people of Angola with the gospel. And this past Friday afternoon, we received the heart-wrenching news that Bo had been killed in what we've been told was an act of violence. And since the news of his passing went public, our community has been reeling.

At this point, there are still many details about what's happened that are unknown, and because of the nature of what's happened, it remains a bit complicated. However, I do want to inform you that Jackie and the children are in really good hands right now. Not only are they in the precious and tender care of our Lord Jesus, but they are surrounded with incredible support. A killer was on the loose in Angola, or maybe killers. Police in Angola would soon say something wasn't adding up. for the Criminal Investigation Service told Angolan media that Beau Schroyer's wife, Jackie Schroyer, was distraught at the scene and the investigation started with her statements. Investigators say they determined that Jackie Schroyer was having an affair with the family's

security guard, who was one of three alleged hitmen. The day of the murder, investigators said three men, hired by Jackie for $50,,000 rented a car and drove it to a remote area and staged a breakdown. Police said Jackie Schroyer and her guard lover apparently scouted the location a few days before because it wasn't populated. Police say the murder took place when Jackie Schroyer went into the woods to use the bathroom. At the scene, police recovered the murder weapon, a U.S.-made knife, $4,900 or 4.5 million Kwanzaas, and the getaway vehicle. Police say that Jackie Schroyer did not want to leave Angola despite her husband's mission coming to an end. After all, it was statements made by Jackie at the scene that prompted the criminal investigation. Jackie Schreuer and her alleged

lover, 24-year-old Bernardino Elias, were detained and after hours of questioning, they were both arrested. Another suspect known as Vin Diesel was detained while trying to cross the border, while the third suspect remains on the run. Now let's be clear, this is not Vin Diesel, the actor. There's no connection there. I just want to be 100% clear on that. According to the SCI, these men appealed to Jackie because of their past criminal convictions of robbery with a firearm and kidnapping. Sim USA leaders were shocked to hear the news and released a statement. It reads, We are grateful to Engel and law enforcement for their diligence in investigating this matter and encourage patience and respect for all involved as the legal process unfolds. The cases I cover each day here on Crime Fix show you just how scary the world can be.

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I want to bring in Joe Tamburino. He's a criminal defense attorney in Minnesota. Joe, this case, the allegations are pretty crazy and it's a very sad case. We have five children now who are without parents because their father is dead and their mother is being held on murder charges. Yes, it's extremely sad. I mean, think of it this way. You have this family of seven, a husband, a wife, and the five children, and they go to Angola to do missionary work, I mean, to help people in that impoverished country. And the next thing you know, he's dead and she's arrested as being an accomplice to his murder. I mean, it's extremely sad. Very, very sad. And talk to me about this area of Minnesota. You know, we were talking that this is a rural area. This isn't like,

you know, the Minneapolis-St. Paul area where you live. And this is an area that's, you know, a tourist area in some respects in the summer because of the lakes and things like that. And so this is a Christian family that goes overseas to do this missionary work. This has to be a shock to that community that this wife, Jackie Schroyer, is accused of hiring hitmen to take out her husband because she's having an affair with the family security guard. Yes, the community is definitely devastated. We see it in local media all the time. It's reported on local TV, newspapers, and the Detroit Lakes area is a very nice area. It's in northwest Minnesota. It's a very, you know, working class area with a lot of resorts

and lakes, a lot of people who love to be outside. In the summertime, it's quite busy because the lakes are beautiful, and a lot of people go fishing and boating, and in the wintertime, there's a lot of snowmobiling. So it's a really nice area. It's about two and a half hours northwest of the Twin Cities. And the people there, yes, as you see in the media, they're devastated about this. Talk to me about how quickly this case came together. You know, from everything we're reading from the Angolan media and from what the police there have said, they immediately became suspicious about Jackie Schroyer.

And, you know, she's innocent until proven guilty, of course. But they say at the scene she was hysterical. She made some statements to them and they became suspicious. And so they started investigating from there. You know, and the police are claiming that this was all a big setup, that they staged the scene, these hitmen, they made it look like they had a flat tire or something, or they had a broken down car. So I guess, you know, he would have stopped his vehicle to help. She goes into the woods to use the restroom, and then the attack

happens. So there was something that she had to have said that just didn't sit right with the law enforcement investigators on the scene. I would agree. I mean, and, you know, right now, hats off to the Angolan authorities. I mean, let's take a look at Angola. It is a former colony of Portugal. One of their main languages is Portuguese. It has a civil type law system that's based on basically Portuguese law and some French civil law. They don't have juries per se. They have a system where there's judges with some jurors, a couple of jurors on cases in serious crimes. And it's a very impoverished country and it has a very high crime rate.

But think about that. So you have these missionaries. And as we've seen media reports that have come out since his death, Mr. Schroer's death, we know that these missionaries also have experienced criminal behavior. They have been the victims because they have had to put fences and wire fences around their farms. So, I mean, that's the setting of all this. But all of a sudden when he's murdered, yes, these Angolan authorities, they put two and two together. They become suspicious of what Ms. Schroyer is saying, and they start the investigation.

And soon what's uncovered? Well, unfortunately, your typical story when people get involved in this. They hire the quote unquote hit men. Well, you know, of course, hit men are not reliable people. And we have a cast of these three young men who have criminal records. They were originally hired as bodyguards from what we've read. And the whole conspiracy starts falling apart. Two are arrested along with Ms. Schroeder, and one is still at large. Let's talk about the man she's accused of having the affair with. He's 24 years old. His name is

Bernardino Elias, and he was the family's security guard. And so apparently, she developed a relationship, according to the Angolan authorities, with Bernardino Elias. And so she didn't want to leave Angola once this mission was up, according to the authorities. And so this was the plan that was hatched. And they went to the area, according to what's being reported, and scouted out this location and thought this was the way to get this done. What's even more stunning to me, Joe, is the fact that all three of these suspects, including the family security guard, have prior criminal records for kidnapping, crimes with firearms, you name it. So, I mean, maybe that's part of this country being impoverished, that you have to hire a security guard that has a criminal record.

Yes. And as we were just talking about, that's right. I mean, you know, when you when you hire this, quote unquote, security guard or hit man. Yes. The conspiracy is going to start falling apart because you're hiring people who are criminals. They have criminal records. They've been through the system. And also, you have to understand the setting of all of this. You're hiring someone with a criminal record, and we would assume that this family knew they had a criminal record. I would imagine a missionary organization would have done some type of a background check,

perhaps have gone to Angolan authorities and said, you know, look, can we just see if there's any convictions or any arrests of these individuals? But unfortunately, in certain parts of the world, you do need security guards. And, you know, in Angola, when they were living, obviously they felt a necessity for them. But again, when you get involved in conspiracies, and a conspiracy is basically this, two people or more deciding to commit some type of crime and then executing the crime. But whenever you get involved in a conspiracy, a conspiracy is based on human beings. And many, many times conspiracies crack. Something happens, someone talks, someone doesn't do the job they're supposed to do. And in this situation, it cracked very quickly.

If you're Jackie Schroyer and you're in a foreign country like Angola and you're being detained like this, I mean, what do you do? I mean, I don't know where she goes from here. I mean, the children, hopefully, well, we know from the church that they're being cared for or somebody is caring for them who has a relationship with them.

However, she's overseas. I mean, who's helping her? And as an American citizen, does she have any, I mean, recourse or I mean, I don't know if I see the U.S. Embassy doing anything to really help her out when she's facing a murder charge for orchestrating her husband's murder. Of course, she's she's going to probably say she didn't do this. Yes. Well, no matter what an American might be charged with, you still have rights. Your embassy will still maintain contact with you. Your embassy will try to have messages from you back to your family, loved ones, or your friends,

your contacts in the United States. The embassy will still try to ensure that whatever country is prosecuting you, they're doing it by their laws, they're doing it fairly. So regardless of what you're charged with, you're still an American citizen, you still have rights. The embassy will still try to help. Now, from what we've read in the media, it seems that the missionary agency is also trying to help her,

trying to see if she could get counsel, local counsel, obviously. But it's going to be quite frightening because think of it this way. You're an American citizen used to American laws, American protection, coming from a rural area of Minnesota and living in Angola. Again, a very high crime area, very impoverished country with laws that are quite different from ours. And now you're in custody. So I would imagine it's a very frightening situation. Frightening situation. and more than anything, this is so incredibly sad. These children, I mean, this family has been torn apart

and I think we're gonna have to wait and see how this case unfolds. I think our hearts just go out to the children for sure. Joe Tamburino, thank you so much. I appreciate your time. Thank you for having me on. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. you so much. I appreciate your time. Thank you for having me on. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Genette Levy.

Thanks so much for joining me. I'll see you back here next time.