Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Breaking News: Chase Massner Found?

Episode Date: August 1, 2017

Human remains believed to be those of Chase Massner, the Iraqi war vet who vanished from Kennesaw, Georgia, 3 years ago were found Tuesday, buried near the home where he was known to have last slept. This is a special Crime Stories report, including Nancy Grace's interview last March with the home's owner. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to an iHeart Podcast. This is Alan Duke for Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. We have breaking news about the search for Chase Masner, the Iraqi war vet who vanished more than three years ago. Cold case investigators in Cobb County, Georgia, tell us they believe they found Chase Masner, sadly, dead. Buried behind the Kennesaw, Georgia home where he had gone after an argument with his wife in March 2014. Human remains believed to be Masner have been taken from the home to the medical examiner's office for examination. Nancy Grace is focused intensely on this case. We've dedicated a dozen Crime Stories

episodes to finding Chase Masner, including interviews with his mother, Stephanie, his wife, Amanda, and the person known to have last seen him, Brad Clemens. You can hear those episodes in our Crime Stories feed over the past six months. We will post a full report on the newest developments on our Wednesday podcast and on Nancy's radio show, which will be devoted to the case. So listen on Sirius XM's Channel 132 beginning tomorrow, that's Wednesday, at noon Eastern. In the special report, we take you back to a morning last March when Nancy Grace, armed only with her iPhone, knocked on an Atlanta, Georgia motel room door where Brad Clemens was then living. Although startled to see Grace at his door at 8 a.m., Brad let her inside, and for 90 minutes,

she sat on his bed, grilled Brad about what he knew. Now, cold case detectives tell us it was this interview that gave them valuable clues leading back to the house where Brad once lived. Tracking dogs told them to dig. With this knowledge, it's enlightening to again listen to what Brad Clemens told Nancy Grace that morning. Do you think he's dead? I don't know. I mean i i hope that he's not but really i i don't know like i i've you know i've wondered about it and you know the the last time that i was with him like like i hardly knew them really like i met him maybe three or four times i thought you've been over to their house no i've been over to their house. No, I've been over to their house, like, after all of this happened. Like, I went over there.

Didn't you go put together a ping pong table or a pool table or something like that? No, no, never. That was the only time I'd gone over to their house is when, what's her name, Amanda? Yeah. Amanda called and asked me to come over there and, like, talk to her. And I went over there with my dog to, like know talk to her about all this and like it was kind of kind of odd me being over there and because you only need her three checks right and I never really you know talked to just her and it was you know I kept hearing all these, you know, mixed things, you know.

Well, this is later, I guess, like about her and like his friends and stuff. What do you mean her and his friends? I don't like the sound of that. I don't want to throw her under the bus or anything, but I mean, it's just, you know, I don't. Are you saying that she'd slip around? I mean, that's kind of the word on the street. Is that what Chase thought? I mean, that's kind of what I thought when street. Is that what Chase thought? I mean, that's kind of what I thought when I went over there to see her.

Like, that she, you know, wanted, like, I don't know. Did she hit on you? Oh, yeah. I mean, like, she was like, well, she called me up and was like, hey, can you bring me some pot to, like, smoke some pot? Do you want to smoke some pot with me? And I was like, at this point in my life, I wasn't smoking. And I was like, I think I have, like, a grinder that you can scrape. And she was like, yeah, bring it over here. And I was like, at this point in my life, I wasn't smoking. And I was like, I think I have, like, a grinder that you could scrape. And she was like, yeah, bring it over here.

And I was like, okay. She'd take it out of a grinder? It was like, you know, the resin stuff that you could, like, scrape. Yeah. And, I mean, because apparently they smoked, like, a lot. Because, you know, the whole thing where she called up, what, like, her mother or someone to, like, help them clean up something in the house? Like, they were growing pot plants. You know, they had a bunch of pot plants they were growing in the house and that's why she was like hey i need you to come over here and help me clean this up

because they were cleaning out all the pot plants before the cops came over there so that was like a big thing with that but um that could be part of the reason she doesn't want to talk anymore because she doesn't want to be dragged in some way. Yeah, she was really, like, you know, just, I guess, worried about that. And it's not even that big of a deal. It's like people grow pot plants all the time in their backyard, you know, especially here in the South. Yeah, see, I don't know about that, but okay, I'll just take your word for it.

A note here, Chase's wife, Amanda Masner, talked extensively to Nancy Grace about Brad's tendency to point the finger of suspicion toward her. You can hear her response in Finding Chase, episodes 7 and 8, which we posted in late June and early July. The thing is, I hardly knew them. They were good friends, semi-good friends with my friend Alan, who lived

in the house with me. I had to make him leave because he wouldn't pay me rent. I also caught him cross-dressing and he thought I was going to tell all our friends that he was dressing up like a girl and stuff. And so he told Amanda and them that I shot heroin into Chase and killed him and put this all in their head just to get me in trouble. Why would you use up heroin on somebody

else? And in fact, somebody that I don't even know. I mean, why would you do something where there's... That's another thing. It's like, I just don't know. Why would you not somebody that i don't even know you know i mean why would you do something where there's that that's another thing it's like i just don't know some why would you take somebody that you hardly know and then get them high with heroin where you know people overdose all the time and it's like okay what what do you think chase was on i don't really think it was on much other than pot and alcohol that night i mean that's i'm good. I'm glad to hear that. Yeah. I mean, I, you know, he was trying to get more like, and I gave him some cash. I gave him $60. Was he into it? He was trying to get the Roxy's or the 30 milligram Roxy pills. The, that was what everybody was taking. Alan was giving him those sometimes because Alan would take those. And so he assumed that I could get them because Alan could get them. And, you know, I, I brought him

and, you know, I was in a motorcycle wreck and I was on those at one point. And, you know, so I took him to my, like, that's one of the main areas I picked him up just to kind of talk to him that night and be like, you know, dude, you don't want that shit. Like, I was in a motorcycle wreck, man. Coming off of those pills is terrible. You know, I mean, I figured I could just, you know, hang out with him and, you know. If you didn't really know him that well, why did you let him come to your place? I mean, because he'd been over there before. Okay.

Like, and I mean, he worked at the Quick Trip right down the street from my house, so. So what do you think, just take me through what happened that, when he goes missing. I mean, it's really not that much, like, it's like everybody says, I like changed my story and all this stuff. But it's like, that was, what I did that day. You know, I mean, that wasn't really anything to do with Chase. It was like, you know, I ran a bunch of errands. What I was doing, you know, most of the time when I was fixing up my house. Like, he was there that night.

And then, you know, basically left sometime between when I was coming back from the store to when I started cooking. Like, I mean, he had to have. Like like I mean that that's the only logical thing right so you go on I think it was March the 26 ish to pick him up at Quick Trip and it was at night around 1030 or 10 okay all right you pick him up and bring him to your place directly or do y'all drive around no it's good right i mean it was right down the street okay so you didn't drive around to hit to score and nothing like that you got straight home all right so you go home what does he do i mean we just sit there and start talking we're actually i had a bunch of stuff that i was building a computer with so i had him help me carry a bunch of stuff in.

And then I started building the computer that I was... It's actually not this one, but a different one. And I had... You know, we just sat there and kind of just talked. Because we had talked, you know, two or three nights ago about the same thing. What? About him and Amanda fighting and all this stuff. What did they fight about? I mean, it was like money and stuff like that because

she wasn't working and uh you know he didn't really talk too much about it but i just told him you know that you know he was a lucky guy and you know he's got two beautiful kids a beautiful wife like i don't know you know it's okay what most people want you know in life is to be you know fulfilled with those two things. Yeah. Why was he not happy with that? Was it money problems? Dope?

What was it? I think it was more or less money problems. I mean, because, like I said, I really didn't know him that well. I mean, this was so long ago that we actually talked about this. And it was mainly me talking, know other than him you know to say they're listening and You know he said that he was like telling Amanda He was gonna run off and I sleep in the woods and all this stuff right yeah, you didn't hear that No, yeah, that's that's been another big thing like go off and sleep in the woods

Yeah, and why I wonder if he tried to do that and died. I mean, I figured they would have found him by then. Let me just... Go off and sleep in the woods. Okay. Go ahead. And the story has been that he would do that when they were fighting.

He would say, I just want to commit suicide. And so they were fighting during that time. So reportedly he made one of those threats and he was saying, hey, I just want to commit suicide. And so they were fighting during that time. So reportedly he made one of those threats and he was saying, hey, I just want to, like, go off in the woods and get lost. Did you hear him say that? Yeah. He said it, you know, a couple times.

And I was like, I always thought it was BS. And, you know, I was just calm. Because who wants to go sleep in the woods? Yeah, exactly. And, I mean, he has friends, you know, and it's like. So that night, y'all stay up late talking about Amanda, and you're working on the computer. Mm-hmm. Okay, then what happens?

Is he. I mean, he pretty much just, you know, I think he'd been up for, like, a couple days, like, tired. Like, I mean, you could tell he was barely hanging on and just passed out on my bed. And, like, I just continued to kind of you know work on stuff and uh you know it was uh gosh I think you know the roofers got there at like 6 a.m or something yeah they always do that and uh started really early and um you know so I was just you know continuing to get on with stuff for my day and uh you know I thought it'd be a good idea that I have, you know, Amanda come over and just kind of have like a cookout thing

because, you know, I knew Brandon and them and the roofers and, like, I like to cook and stuff. And I know it's kind of odd to have a cookout, but, like, it was, you know. Fun. Yeah, it was something, you know, nice to do, I felt like. Did Amanda tell you early that day she had to be at some kind of an appointment for her children? No. Because that's what they're saying now.

That what? There was an appointment? They told you, she told you early that day that she had to be at some appointment either with or for her children and could not come over. No. I mean, that's, she just said that she couldn't come over. And after a while, I guess. But, you know, I don't ever remember her telling me that that day. Like. Okay.

So, anyway, she didn't come over no and you tried to get him to call amanda and invite her over to kind of like make the peace right did he do it no not that i know of and i mean that's why i tried to talk to her on his phone because i didn't have her number like and that's why i had his phone in the first place was to call her and ask her mainly if he needed to be at work that day because I didn't know and he had to be at work at nights most of the time. And then what happened? And then I kind of just went on with my day. I mean, I just went and did stuff I normally do. I went to Lowe's.

I had to drop a laptop off that I'd fix for somebody. What did you need at Lowe's? I mean, I was fixing my house up, so I can't tell you exactly what it was. I mean, just... So you go to Lowe's, you go to the grocery store. First I went to go drop this laptop off that was down off of, gosh, it's my friend Ricky's house, which was like downtown pretty much. He's over, you're going about your day you're

doing your thing and you take the computer to Ricky he lives lives pretty much downtown I mean downtown Atlanta yeah and you are all the way up here in Kennesaw right and I told her that's come with me that's 40 minutes and 40 minutes at least yeah it's probably more like three hours or something like that yeah by the time you get get there 40 minutes in there 30 minutes back 40 minutes at best right okay so you leave him where she was upstairs just I mean that's fine I mean yeah he was just asleep because, you know, this was probably like 8 o'clock, you know, that I was talking about. A.M.

Yeah. All right. So, you do all that. He'd been asleep for like five hours probably. Not even. Maybe four, I'd say. Four or five. That's what I always say.

Nothing good happens after midnight. I mean, you always get in arguments. You know, everything goes sideways at midnight. Yeah, okay. So, yeah, because I don't want to get any, I don't want to lose any of this because I'm piecing it all together and make a timeline. always get in arguments you know everything goes sideways at midnight yeah okay so yeah because i don't want to get any i don't want to lose any of this because i'm piecing it all together and make a timeline all right so you go at 8 9 10 30 you get back what's he doing sleeping same exact thing door open closed doors open at this point because he's still in my room you're in yeah and this is

when i got him up um and i mean i basically woke him up and was like yo come with me come on i'm gonna have a cookout you know call amanda and i dropped all the plans on it because i was like man i figured he'd be up by now you know ready to go and rolling and uh got him up and then i you know got to put him in the other bedroom because i was going to work on some stuff in my room at this point. And, cause I had like a four bedroom house. So yeah, up in Kennesaw. And it was, you know, I was like, you know, there's no point letting him sleep in my room. Continue when I got crap I gotta do.

And, you know, I was kind of like irritated at this point because I was like, you know, wanting him to be up so we can get stuff kind of rolling. But you know, he was, you know, rolling but you know he was you know also you know had could tell he hadn't been sleeping for a couple days and you know had been fighting or whatnot so he went in the other bedroom door open shut door open so later that day you gave the roofers a tour of your home was he there see i didn't really give him a tour of my home because they've been there before they told me that you gave him a tour of my home because they've been there before. They told me that you gave them a tour of your home.

That you showed them around your house. I mean, I guess. But that would probably be at like 4 o'clock or something. 4 or 5 o'clock. I mean, I didn't really think that was significant. Later in the day. Yeah. So you come by.

You get back 10.30, 11-ish. You move him from your bedroom to the other bedroom. He crashes. Door open. And you do what? I start going and getting, you know, I have to, that's, at that point, I go to public. Is this a weekday or a weekend? I think it's a weekday, yeah. Oh, yeah.

Amanda wasn't working, so she could come over. Probably. I mean, that's what I thought. You know, I didn't think she was doing anything but taking care of the kids. And I kind of wanted to, you know, squash this, you know, fighting thing, if that's what I thought. I didn't think she was doing anything but taking care of the kids. And I kind of wanted to squash this fighting thing, if that's what it was. See, remember I gave Chase $60 too. I gave him $60 the night before he asked me for money. And I told him, yeah, I'll give you this.

But all I got was $60. He had it in his pocket the whole time, I'm pretty sure. I mean, I don't think he left and came back where I was, you know, gone that I know of, you know. Okay, so you get back, try to wake him up. He goes in the other room. Then you start doing what? After that, at that point, I go to Publix and Lowe's. And that's when I went and grabbed, I forget what it was I needed to grab at Lowe's and that's when I went and grabbed, I forget what it was, I need to grab it, Lowe's,

but I grabbed all the stuff to cook with at Publix and that's when I came back, basically started up the grill and it was probably, you know, one, two o'clock at this point and, you know, after I started up the grill, like set the backyard like i had a bunch of coals that pretty much one some blew out to the yard and like i mean roofers literally had to get off the house because it was like so smoky from the fire that i had to start in the back the pine straw yeah and because there's nobody behind me and can't saw it was like all woods back there and uh basically after that that's when i went and tried to, you know, get Chase up and was like, man, did you see the fire in the backyard? Because the bedroom he was in was directly by the back.

I mean, you could see that fire, like, you know, plain as day, you know, and that's when I realized he wasn't there anymore. And, uh. What time was that? I want to say it was like two or three o'clock or something like that. When you came back from Publix, was he there? I didn't check. Were the bedrooms upstairs? Yeah. So you leave for Publix at what time? It's probably 12-ish or something like that. And he was there? Mm-hmm. You get back from Publix, you don't

go up there, the pine straw catches on fire, and you go up there at what time about I'm gonna see you it was like between like one or two o'clock it'd been like maybe one or one hours like that not even that long like before the last time I maybe maybe one third for you to leave him go to Lowe's go to Publix get back start a fire put the fire out and go up there it's probably like two o'clock I mean he was gone and he was gone and like he he'd taken his bag and everything that he had like he had a little bag and then he had his he left his two little bottles of beer in my in the closet but other than that how big was the bag it's like a backpack was it a backpack yeah it was a backpack so he glazed with his backpack and 60 bucks you said

you helped him take his bags to the other room though right yeah it was that backpack it was just a backpack that backpack and like a you know grocery bag of two bottles of beer or something like that so did you see it coming that he was leaving yeah he did that every time like he would just disappear every time every time that i that he was over my house he would always every time he was leaving he would just disappear and man always like so that was his mo so i wasn't too worried you know how many times have you been over and disappeared two or three i mean each time he'd been in my house he always just left because i was always like trying to get him to do something or like you know something like a cookout or just i feel like something that he didn't want to do you know he was you know all about like just

kind of getting stoned at that point and you know like I said I wasn't really smoking so it was uh it was kind of another topic you? I mean, it was, you know, like, yeah. I would say yeah. Like what? Like, I mean, like she was mad at Chase. And it was just like, you know, basically, I'm stoned now. You know, anything goes. Like, you know know you just have like the eye connection thing and it's just like you know you can tell when people are why why why is this another man thing where he thinks oh she's so into me and she's like so not no i wouldn't say that

so you really think she was hitting on you i mean mean, not like hitting on me, like grabbing my ass or anything. But, like, I mean, she was, like, you know, feeling it out, at least. Like, I mean, she called me and told me to come over there to bring her some pot for, like, you know, just some bizarre reason. Like, you know, it was just kind of... You think she was trying to get back at Chase? You know, I hope so. Like, that just kind of you think she's trying to get back at chase you know i hope so like that was that was kind of what i was because otherwise that means it yeah yeah okay i mean okay back to the day all right so around you think two o'clock you notice he's not gone

and his backpack is gone now earlier that day you had taken his cell phone with you. Why? Because, I mean, I think I just really had it with me, but I really wanted him to stay and wait for Amanda to come over. Because I knew he always left. That was his MO. He would always leave. So if I had a cell phone, he wasn't going to leave right away. But that was early in the morning when I thought that Amanda and and a woman would come over before I, you know, moved from the bedroom. And because I really wanted to talk to him again, you know, to make sure that, you know, nothing crazy was going to happen. But, you know, sure enough. So would the roofers have been in a position to see him leave?

They should have. Like, that's what I thought. You know, that's why I assumed they just saw them leave because i mean they were work there the house had a steep um see at this point when it was really smoky they had to get down off the roof there because that's you know and that's why i assumed you know that chase had heard them running around or whatever. I don't even know how he was sleeping with all that noise. Like, I mean... I've been told that you had a big black bag of stuff you threw away in a dumpster. What was it?

A big black bag. Probably ceiling tiles. All kinds of crap. I mean, I'm completely redoing the house. I mean, the whole dumpster thing is kind of ridiculous to me. Because I had all my neighbor's throw stuff in it. Like, I mean, it was just like... Why do you think everybody's pointing the finger at you? Because I'm the person that nobody knows.

And I'm just like that odd piece of the flame. The last one to see him. And his disappearance doesn't make sense, but in a way, it does. If he kept telling people he was going to leave and go live in the woods. Are you sure about that? Yeah. I mean, that's well known, too. I'm pretty sure that he said that.

I think his mom knows that. How badly do you think he and Amanda were fighting? I mean, bad enough to where she would just throw him out of the car, like, randomly, because they want to fight in front of the kids and stuff. And, you know, that was... Do you think he would actually leave his children i you know wouldn't have thought that you know but i mean and i could see somebody leaving their wife if they fought all the time but the children that's the thing that's a where i don't buy him

going into the woods because i don't think he would have left those children. I mean, I don't think that he would have left for a significant period of time. But definitely a short period of time. And just to kind of... What was the relationship between him and his mother? I don't know. Because she says he always called her back. He always texted her back.

And that's how she knew something was wrong. I didn't really know his mom. Like, I'd never met his mom. Like I said, I only met him a handful of times, times really. Okay will you take a polygraph with me? Do you want me to take a polygraph? Yes! Not sitting right here. I'll set one up and just put the whole thing to rest. I mean I can if that's what it takes but it's just... Don't be afraid of the polygraph. It's not a big deal. They're not hard at all. I mean.

Because now I know where you live, kind of. Right. Despite that promise and our efforts to hold him to it, Brad Clemens never took a polygraph test. Watch for our Wednesday update on Finding Chase Masner. Alan Duke for Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. You're listening to an iHeart Podcast.