Snapped: Women Who Murder - Angel Sawyer

Episode Date: December 15, 2024

A local antique shop owner is murdered in a seemingly random home invasion.Season 31 Episode 06Originally aired: Aug 21, 2022Watch full episodes of Snapped for FREE on the Oxygen app: https://oxygentv.app.link/WatchSnappedPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Number one, location emergency. My next door neighbor just came and knocked on my door. She's crying and she says she thinks her husband is dead. She tells him the man had a gun, he came in and wanted my jewelry and her money. He attacked me. And the walk through the crime scene, it was very indicative of some sort of struggle. When the homicide investigation begins, a loving wife leads the charge.

But behind this picture-perfect marriage were dark secrets. He thought she was having an affair. He confronted her about it. Was this a rivalry fueled by jealousy? Her narcissism was very evident. She kind of played the damsel in distress. I got scared. He is obsessed with me. Or had a selfish desire to protect one's reputation led to the ultimate betrayal?

She loaded him and pulled the trigger. I'm sorry that I didn't love you like you deserve to be. Are you there? What the f***? The caller had hung up. With a population of less than 20,000 people, Elizabeth City, North Carolina is about as quiet as a city can be. But just before 2 a.m. on August 2, 2018, a homeowner is awakened by the sound of a panicked woman. She knocked on the door until he came.

When he went out there, he saw her. She's crying. She's upset. The woman is clearly injured, and the man instantly recognizes her as his neighbor, 45-year-old Angel Sawyer. She had a wound to the top right of her forehead. It was not very big. She did have some blood on her forehead.

She tells him, a man has broken into the house and killed my husband. Angel is too distraught to call for help, so her neighbor alerts dispatchers at the Pasquotank County 911. Now I'm on one location. Emergency. My next-door neighbor just came and knocked on my door at the Pasquotank County 911. He repeats her answers to the 911 operator, and she tells them the man had a gun, he came in and wanted my jewelry and her money,

he attacked me. She's got blood on her face where he hit her with the gun. Oh, my God. He did his best to calm her. You could kind of hear her in the background, and she was kind of frantic. Where's the other guy at right now? Where is the other guy at?

I don't know. I'm sorry. I don't know. I don't know. I'm sorry. I don't know. I don't know. While Angel remains at her neighbors, deputies arrive at the Sawyer home.

The front door is locked. There are two entrances in the home on the backside. The door was unlocked. They announced themselves, you know, Sheriff's Office, Sheriff's Office, is anybody inside? They go to the master bedroom. They walk in, and you can tell there's been a struggle. A lot of the drawers were dumped out. There was just mass amounts of just assorted jewelry,

either costume or silver, gold, just kind of all over the floor. It was very ransacked. Deputies find Angel's husband, 55-year-old Milton Sawyer lying in the adjoining master bedroom. Milton Sawyer was lying face down in the bathroom, though his hands taped up behind his back. There was a little bit of blood on the floor.

He's a big guy and it's a fairly small room, so he took up a lot of space. They see him face down. They on the floor. He's a big guy and it's a fairly small room, so he took up a lot of space. They see him face down. They check on Milton. He's deceased. He had some superficial injuries, but nothing that would cause his death. Deputies rush Angel to the hospital for evaluation and secure the scene while they await homicide investigators. and secure the scene while they await homicide investigators. News of the unfolding tragedy reaches Milton's sister,

Lisa Laux. It was about 3 o'clock in the morning when I got the phone call that Milton had been killed. I was in shock, and it took me a while to really get myself together before I started making phone calls to all the brothers. I see these missed calls from Lisa. I call Lisa and I'll never forget she goes,

hey bro, are you sitting down? I'm like, yeah Lisa, what's going on? And she goes, I don't know how to tell you this, but Milton has been murdered. And I remember like hearing it, but my brain is just not processing it. I was devastated. I couldn't hardly pull my thoughts together.

When I started getting the details of of Elizabeth City, North Carolina. My mom married his dad, Milton and Lisa's father, and we grew up together and we bonded rather quickly. And you know, typical childhood, we played outside in the woods, we built forts, we did all those kind of things. Even at a young age, Milton cherished rare items and was drawn to collectibles. He got that from his father.

He was exposed to collecting things and being aware of the value of things. And so I think that was always in his blood, so to speak. Collecting items was definitely his passion. So when he got older, my brother started an antique shop in Elizabeth City, and it was called the Treasure Hunter, where he would buy and sell gold as well.

However, Milton wasn't as lucky with love as with business. In 2000, his first marriage ended in divorce, but Milton prioritized spending time with his three young children. He was a good father. He took the kids with him whenever he could. If he was working in the store, he would take the kids to the store with him. They loved being with Milton. It seemed the only thing missing from Milton's life was a partner to share it with. But in 2011, while picking up his kids from school, he met just the woman,

38-year-old Angel Kessinger. Milton's children and a couple of Angel's children were similar in age and both went to the same school. And they ran into each other and talked. Milton learned Angel was born in New York and that she and her husband bounced around before landing in Elizabeth City. She was married and had four children, but according to Milton, what she told him was that they were in the process of separating. Despite their 10-year age difference, Milton and Angel bonded over the challenges of parenting and sharing custody of their children. He was very smitten with her when he first met her.

When Angel's divorce was finalized shortly after they met, Milton seized the opportunity and asked her out. They became physically involved fairly early on and as time progressed he became more and more committed to her. When the couple wed in 2012, they became partners in life and business. At the Treasure Hunter, Angel was a constant presence. Milton was going out buying. He would just a lot of times bring stuff and put it in the shop with no organization.

And when she came on the scene, she started to spend time organizing, staging the items so that the shop looked a little better. Milton appreciated that. Over the next five years, the couple worked to nurture their blended family of seven children. Life seemed good for the Sawyers until the night of August 2, 2018. A home invasion has left Milton dead and Angel in the hospital. We had drawers dumped out of dressers where she kept jewelry. They were emptied out. There was stuff all over the floor. So, I mean, it seemed consistent with the robbery. In the walkthrough of the crime scene, obviously discovering Milton in his position,

it was very indicative of some sort of struggle. They call him the medical examiner. At this point, they just start preserving the scene. They're going to look for DNA. They're looking for fingerprints. The medical examiner's preliminary finding is that Milton may have died by positional asphyxiation. There was no head trauma.

There were no bullet casings. His hands were taped behind his back, and he was laying on his belly on a hard surface and could have been unconscious. It would have made it hard to breathe. Authorities hope a full autopsy will reveal more details. Outside, deputies fan out to speak to neighbors. The only thing that came out that night was somebody said

they heard like a loud banging noise. And that's really kind of the only information we got. A further search of the home reveals the assailant's point of entry. There was no sign of forced entry. The back door was open, and there was a key on the table on the back porch. That is of particular note how unusual that was

and other crimes that I've investigated personally I don't think I've ever seen a key that was just openly available. We submitted that key for fingerprint testing along the train of thought that if the burglar used the key to get in, he would have had to put the key back either before he walked into the door

or after he walked out the door. Could this key hiding in plain sight lead them to the assailant? Coming up, Angel Sawyer recounts the last moments of her husband's life. I just saw a lot of things, I was just slinging, kept saying, get on the epping ground, and give me all your epping money. husband's life. And investigators find a person of interest who's no stranger to law enforcement.

The person was a frequent flyer, so when the name was said, everybody knew who it was. August 2, 2018. Popular antique store owner Milton Sawyer has been found murdered inside his home. His wife Angel is undergoing treatment at an area hospital after suffering a head wound in the late night attack. We're talking to each other off the top? Yeah. Angel explains that since her two teenage daughters were sleeping over at a friend's house,

she and Milton were home alone that evening. There were only two children that still lived in the house. So it was just Milton and Angel alone in the house that night, which was relatively out of the norm. Angel describes the events leading up to the attack, which she says took place around 12 a.m. Is all in your bedroom, master bedroom, watching TV? Yeah.

She says she gets up to go to the kitchen to get a snack or whatever, and when she opens the master bedroom door, there's a person standing in her hallway dressed in all black. Give me all your record money. According to Angel, this was most definitely a targeted attack. He says, I know, Milton, you're the biggest gold buyer in Elizabeth City.

I know you guys got nice jewelry, nice things, and money. You know, give me all that. I want the keys for the business. What do you know who you guys were? He came right in. He was right there. He was right there, scared the shit out of me. He didn't want to keep the door locked at your house? Yeah. Angel explains they leave a key on the table outside for their kids in case they need to get in late.

She suggests the intruder must have found it, and that's how he got in. The key always stayed on the table by the back door. She talked about him assaulting her husband, and the entire time she has no idea who this man is. And she was terrified. At some point in time, he actually pissed the whips her in the head. Angel says after the strike to the head,

she was disoriented and wasn't sure what was happening. She was very afraid. She had no idea how long she had been taped. She said it felt like hours. After the burglar left, Milton didn't move, and she didn't see him breathing. Angel says she was eventually able to loosen the tape enough to stand up. I couldn't roll him over to the street and make him happy. I couldn't get him to breathe.

You had a bad time? I don't know where he is. He didn't make it. No. No. I'm sorry. No. Oh, no. Oh, no.

Oh, no. Oh, no. Though she's distraught, Angel is able to provide investigators with a potential lead. Angel actually told us in the interview with the hospital that they deal with a lot of sketchy people in the business at the treasure hunter. They had people that would come in, would stole items, people on drugs. In fact, earlier that evening,

Milton had received a call from a man Angel believes could be Milton's killer. Around 8 p.m., 7 p.m., Angel and Milton had met with a young man who wanted to sell a TV. The TV, in her opinion, looked like it had just been ripped off a wall, so she thought it was a stolen TV. And she thought it was a stolen TV. Angel says the man showed up with his girlfriend

and admits she and Milton had done business with the couple before. Well, he met a guy named Dylan. Uh-huh. Dylan. I don't remember the last name. He was always with this one girl. I think that boy didn't just cut out of jail.

And the girlfriend came in, found herself stuck, so she could bail him out of jail. And your girlfriend came in trying to follow him stuff? She kept following him. So if I don't know these people I'm gonna follow, I'm gonna start following them. We knew the person. He was a frequent flyer.

So when the name was said, everybody knew who it was. This is not somebody unknown to law enforcement. We had prior cases with this individual. There wasn't a big stretch to think this gentleman wasn't capable of doing a home invasion. Because they weren't but a mile or two down the road from where they would have sold him to TV, so they could have followed him. Knowing this gentleman wasn't capable of doing a home invasion. Because they weren't but a mile or two down the road from where they would have sold him to TV so they could have followed him.

Knowing this gentleman's particular history and the timeframe of meeting themself on the TV to the home invasion, it didn't seem like a bad lead. Investigators leave Angel to rest and work to track down the couple she mentioned. And another unit is en route to see if the killer had in fact used the keys to the Sawyers Antique Shop. We had deputies there within a couple minutes, and there was no forced entry. And then in a view of the cameras

and looking through the inventory, nothing was missing. There was no signs that anybody was ever there. But investigators catch a break There was no signs that anybody was ever there. But investigators catch a break when the same couple Angel suggested may be involved are already in custody, albeit for a totally unrelated crime. During the course of a separate drug investigation, they were arrested for drug offenses. And during their arrest procedures,

we informed them that we wanted to talk to them about the murder, and they were both forthcoming on the murder and provided statements. And they both gave alibi information that, yes, they did sell him a television, but that after that, they went their separate ways. He's like, yeah, I sold him a TV, let the officers look at his phone, was completely cooperative, girlfriend,

backed up the story. The couple claims they weren't together at the time of the murder, but that they spoke to each other on the phone at approximately 12 a.m., the same time Angel says the attack occurred. We were able to gather phone records that confirmed that they were talking to each other. When we did phone records, we always do location histories as well to see if their phone was pinging in the area of Milton's house, you know, when the incident would have took place.

And it wasn't. So we completely rule them out. While the identity of Milton Sawyer's killer remains a mystery, the next day, investigators learn the medical examiner has revised their preliminary finding of positional asphyxiation to something far more personal. The autopsy was completed and the cause of death was manual strangulation. Coming up, allegations surface that suggest the Sawyer's marriage wasn't so perfect after all. Milton started calling me pretty regularly

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Spotify or Apple podcasts. August 3rd, 2018. Near Elizabeth City, North Carolina, a medical examiner has determined that 55-year-old Milton Sawyer was strangled to death. The sinister cause of death leads investigators to believe that the killer was someone Milton knew. The autopsy confirmed there was a fractured hyoid bone in some petechial hemorrhaging, which is strongly

indicative of strangulation. I don't recall many manual strangulations that I've seen where the assailant and the victim were strangers. Authorities turn their focus to Milton's inner circle for answers. They speak to his siblings first, who have been grieving since learning of their brother's death. They talked to several of us, just going over questions about different things.

His family says Angel and Milton had been married for quite a few years, and there's just no indication or motive that anyone in their past would have anything to gain by him being murdered. The family also shares details of the Sawyer marriage. Not all of it is flattering, especially when the conversation turns to their sister-in-law. Angel thought a lot of herself, seemed to be somewhat self-centered. I think she had a high opinion of herself. And, you know, she always thought she was the hottest chick in the room.

Angel's narcissism was very evident. If high dollar jewelry came through the store, he would set it aside and give it to her. He bought her a convertible. Then he bought her a Hummer. He was doing his best to try to provide her with all the accessories that she wanted. MUSIC

Milton's brother David says that after five years of marriage, that wasn't enough. Probably two months before the crime happened, Milton started calling me pretty regularly and telling me that he thought she was having an affair. Milton's suspicions began in late 2017 after Angel got into a fender bender. She had some shoulder and hip pain.

So she went to a local physical therapy office. And someone referred her specifically to Isaac Melcher because he did a particular procedure called dry needling. At first, she would just go get up out of bed, put no makeup on, put on some sweatpants, and a t-shirt and go. up out of bed, putting her makeup on, put on some sweatpants and a t-shirt and go. But Milton's brother says it wasn't long before there were some telltale signs of infidelity. Milton started noticing she was taking these long showers, dressing all up, putting on

makeup just to go to the physical therapist. Milton was convinced that Angel was using the physical therapy sessions to cover up an affair with the therapist himself, 38-year-old Isaac Melcher. He was concerned about it, and he said that every time he confronted her about it, she would deny it and say that she was not involved with him and that he was just putting thoughts in his head. Milton was suspicious. He had actually went down and tried to confront Isaac at the physical therapy office, made some angry phone calls. Isaac denied the affair to Milton. Armed with these blistering allegations against Angel,

authorities run a background check on Isaac. He was married, had three little kids, very religious, went to church every Sunday. Isaac was a, from outward appearances, he was a very professional family man. He just seemed like a normal guy. He was very nice I mean he well respected all his patients really liked him very good at his job liked in his church by all appearances he appeared to be a good dad. When detectives arrive at Isaac's home and explain the reason for the visit, Isaac denies the allegations of infidelity.

He does admit that there had been some problems with her husband being overly jealous, but he straight denies having any kind of sexual relationship, any affair with her and was no longer seeing her as a patient. It was noted that he said that he was going through a separation with his wife. Investigators ask Isaac for permission to search his phone. And he says, well, I don't have anymore. So we asked him why he didn't have his phone. He had awoken in the night to use the restroom

and kicked over a jug of water that he had for drinking beside his bed and that the water had destroyed the phone. What's more, Isaac claims he had just purchased the phone from Walmart around midnight on August 2nd, the exact time of Milton's murder. Any time that you kind of miraculously don't have your phone 12 hours after a murder is committed in which you are alleged to have an affair with the surviving person, that's just a super red flag. After that, he didn't have a lot to say.

Detectives believe that whatever was on Isaac's phone could connect him to Milton's murder. When they circle back to Angel, they confront her with the allegations. And like Isaac, she maintains their relationship was professional. She talked a lot about how attractive she was and how she frequently had to deal with male attention, unwanted male attention. She talked a good deal about her marriage and how her husband was extremely jealous. For no real reason, that it was basically all in her husband's head, that, you know, she was completely fateful. Over the next few days, Angel remains a cooperative witness, offering up several fresh leads to aid in the investigation.

She would say, you know, I saw some jewelry on this Facebook site. It looks like some of my jewelry that's stolen. She gave them some specific customer names that she thought perhaps potentially could have been one of the robbers. They're following up on leads that she's generating. We're reporting an investigation where all these leads didn't pan out at all. and pan out at all. One person that remains firmly atop of the suspect list is Isaac Melcher. Went to Walmart and looked at security and footage

and all that to see if he bought a phone. He was never at Walmart that night. That the incident took place. With Isaac's alibi in shambles, authorities have enough probable cause to search his home. On August 8th, when police arrive with a warrant in hand, they learn from Isaac's wife that he has conveniently left the state. Isaac's wife claims she did not know about his connection to Angel and that she cannot confirm Isaac's whereabouts the night of Milton's murder.

She's very cooperative and says he took a trip to his home state of Oregon to visit his mother. That's a really opportune time to go to leave the state, to go literally across the country in the middle of a homicide investigation in which you're at least a person of interest. Coming up, a once cooperative witness starts to shut down. She literally deletes the message right in front of us. If you weren't under suspicion before, now you definitely are. And a jaw-dropping story comes to light.

But is it true? Her story was, I'm so scared of this man. He's crazy. He's obsessive. He's obsessed with me. After debunking 38-year-old Isaac Melcher's alibi for the night Milton Sawyer was killed, police have just learned Isaac left town. Isaac had flown to Oregon and was no longer in the area.

Despite Isaac's departure, authorities proceed with the search of his home and vehicle, but they come up empty-handed. Things heat up when Angel alerts detectives that Isaac has contacted her. She was contacted by Isaac via Facebook, and he was just checking on her and wanted to see how she was doing, and she wanted to make us aware of that. wanted to see how she was doing, and she wanted to make us aware of that. However, Angel begins to exhibit some suspicious behavior. So I asked to see her cell phone, which she provided to me, and in looking through the Facebook Messenger thread, I saw a different thread from Isaac Dustin. And I already known at that point that Dustin was Isaac's middle name, Isaac Dustin Melcher.

He addressed her as love and talked about having bought her something, and the thread was very kind of like lovey-dovey. It appears to detectives that the cat is out of the bag. He hands the phone back to Angel. He's like, hey, can you tell me what this message is? And she literally deletes the message right in front of us. I thought that was very bold and just crazy. Like if you weren't under suspicion before,

now you definitely are. Investigators now wonder what other secrets Angel may be keeping. That 100% convinced me that she was complicit in whatever Isaac had done. We needed some more substantial proof than suspicion. After securing a warrant, detectives delve deeper into Angel's cell phone records for clues. But then, 10 days into the investigation, detectives receive a call that proves explosive.

The call came to the Paso Tent County Public Safety Center. A man was calling from Oregon and he said that he wanted to talk to an investigator about the Milton Sawyer case. So one of our investigative team members called him and he said that he had just had a visit from Isaac Melcher. The caller's name is Louie, a friend of Isaac's. Yeah, I mentored Isaac as a young man and he said Isaac called him while he was visiting and I asked if he could stop by. Of course, Louie said yes, he'd love to see him. According to Louie, Isaac had visited him for one reason, to confess.

Isaac had told him this kind of bizarre story of killing a man. He talked about how Isaac told him that he had strangled Milton, and that Isaac told him about being in an affair. None of those things were publicly available. The decision was made for some members of the team to fly out there and physically interview him in person.

The next day, police arrive at Louie's home. Louie describes a very different version of Isaac Melcher from the one he remembered. He said he looked beaten. He looked worn down. You could tell he was drained, and it wasn't the Isaac that he would typically recognize. from the one he remembered. He said he looked beaten. He looked worn down. You could tell he was drained, and it wasn't the Isaac that he would typically recognize. And that was when Louie learned Isaac had been carrying a heavy burden.

Isaac said that he had met this lady, identified as Angel Sawyer. They met through his work. He said from the very beginning he thought she was attractive, but he was married, had three little kids, but she got very, you know, flirtatious with him, but he didn't discourage it. Isaac resisted Angel's advances until one day it proved too much. At one point she's in a treatment room, so he walked in, she's got no shirt on, no bra, nothing.

And so he's like, oh, I'm sorry. And she's like, no, you can come in. And they had their first encounter. And from that point on, they just started meeting and it became this ongoing thing. The affair intensified over the next few months. Initially, it was just physical, but he started getting feelings for her.

And she told him all this stuff about her husband, none of it flattering, and that he was controlling and jealous. Louie explains that Isaac felt the need to save Angel from Milton. She told him, he will never let me leave. I will not be free of him unless he's dead. And she was serious about it. So it was at this point he was so ready to be with her that he's like, I'll kill him for you.

They start discussing ways to get rid of Milton. And after that is when they came to the plan of making it a home invasion. According to Louie, Isaac had been communicating with Angel the night of August 1st when he learned she and Milton were home alone and in bed. Using the element of surprise, he went to the Sawyer home dressed in black and armed with a gun.

Isaac talked about using the key. The angel told him it was on the back porch. He had basically just walked in. We submitted that key for fingerprint testing, but there were no results. He stands at the bedroom door. He's just kind of listening. And he's got his gloves and his mask on, and he's got a gun. He wasn't sure if he was going to go in or not, and Angel opens the door. He said after he got Milton tied up, he went behind him and did a chokehold

and choked Milton out until he knew it was past. Beyond the shocking confession to his friend, detectives ask if Isaac further implicated Angel. Isaac's adamant that when Angel opened the door, she knew for sure it was him. He slapped her, per her request. He didn't hit her hard enough, so he says she came and took her head and hit her head on the side table.

After trashing the room, on the side table. After trashing the room, Isaac filled a pillowcase with jewelry and fled the scene. He also had a solid plan to remove any DNA evidence on his clothing. He jumped in the neighbor's swimming pool that night to get rid of any DNA or any fingerprints, anything. He disposed of different items and trash cans all around the city in different locations.

With the gravity of Louie's statement, detectives want to hear it from Isaac himself and ask Louie if he'll take part in a wiretap. There were three total recorded calls, and in those calls, Isaac confesses to not only having the affair with Angel Sawyer, but that, you know, he murdered her husband, and that she was involved.

So at this point, now we know, okay, he's actually the one who did it, but per him, she knew it was gonna happen and was involved in the planning. With Angel and Isaac as the prime suspects, investigators first arrest Isaac Melcher at his North Carolina home on August 21st, 2018, 19 days after Milton's murder.

We're getting back to the office, myself and Agent Norman go to interview him, and he has nothing to say. With Isaac remaining silent, authorities lure Angel Sawyer to the Sheriff's office to tell her they've caught the man who killed Milton. At the turn of events this morning, Isaac has been under arrest. to tell her they've caught the man who killed Milton. Angel finally comes clean about the affair.

And she doesn't stop there. Eventually she does admit to knowing that Isaac wanted to kill her husband. She claimed that she tried to talk him out of it and wanted no part of it and had no idea he was going to do it. She claimed that she was going to come tell us at some point in time, but she was scared for her safety and the safety of her children, that she would put a lot of things on him. I got scared and I should have just called you all in the first place. You're like, he is obsessed with me.

Her entire story was, I'm so scared of this man, he's crazy, he's obsessive, he's obsessed with me. I'm so scared of this man. He's crazy. He's obsessive. He's obsessed with me. Investigators aren't buying it. We just started picking her apart on things that just didn't make sense. Like, obviously the fossil eats. You know, you knew Isaac did it. You could have told us. And at the end of that, we informed her that there was a warrant for her arrest, for conspiracy to commit murder. for her arrest for conspiracy to commit murder. Coming up, Angel's attempts to manipulate Isaac continue from behind prison walls. She was encouraging him to essentially take

the fall for her. Can you write down John 15, 12, 13? John 15, 12, and 13. And the prosecution paints a portrait of a woman obsessed with control. She used Isaac as a weapon and loaded him and pointed him at Milton and pulled the trigger. On August 21, 2018, authorities in Elizabeth City, North Carolina have charged Angel Sawyer and her lover, Isaac Melcher, for the murder of Angel's husband, Milton Sawyer. While the couple are locked behind bars awaiting trial, authorities learn they remain in communication.

Recordings reveal them using scripture as code. And she's quoting him scriptures from the Bible. One of the scriptures that she quoted him was from the book of John, and it was talking about that greater love hath no man than he would lay down his life for a friend. She was encouraging him to essentially take the fall for her. I mean, he took extreme steps to not be linked to the crime. So, I mean, he was a smart guy, but he was dumb over this woman. He did not want her to get in trouble. He was still head over heels in love with her. Isaac then makes a heartfelt apology, but Angel isn't having it.

I'm sorry that I didn't love you like you deserve to be. Do you understand what I'm saying? Angel, are you there? What the f***? The caller has hung up. When it comes time for the couple to stand trial, much of the state's case against Angel remains circumstantial, thanks to Isaac's meticulous actions after the murder.

So, prosecutors approach Isaac's attorney and share Angel's comments from her interrogation. He started talking to his lawyer and getting to hear what she was saying about him. He's a crazy stalker. She wants nothing to do with him. He's hearing all of that. It takes a little time to realize, oh wow I've been totally played. Isaac decides he's ready to cooperate with authorities, agreeing to plead guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for a 25-year sentence

and his testimony against Angel. At Angel's trial in September of 2021, prosecutors allege Milton's death wasn't motivated by money. My brother did not have a life insurance policy and he did not own the home that they lived in. She stood nothing to gain. The prosecution theorizes that this unhappy wife felt trapped in a loveless marriage and believed it was better to have Milton killed than bear the stigma of a two-time divorcee.

She did say in her interviews that she did not want to be a twice-divorced woman. She made that comment several times. On September 16, 2021, Isaac Melcher takes the stand. He testifies that Angel led him to believe she was afraid of Milton, though she admitted to him that Milton had never physically hurt her. She complied to damsel in distress. Angel took advantage of an opportunity that Isaac was willing to do anything to be with her, including to murder her husband.

So while Isaac ultimately committed the act of murder, Angel's manipulation directed that. She used Isaac as a weapon and loaded him and pointed him at Milton and pulled the trigger. Angel's attorneys do what they can for their client, but her lover's testimony is devastating. She didn't testify at trial. Her only defense at trial was that she was innocent.

Both sides rest on September 20th, and jurors quickly reach a unanimous verdict. The jury found her guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder. She was sentenced to life without parole. Who do I hold more responsible? I would have to say Angel because had Angel never gotten into this situation, my brother would still be here. Isaac would have never done this on his own. I'm 100% positive of that. And while Milton's store has closed, his family will never forget the impact

that Milton had on those around him. He loved his children. He loved his family. He always wanted people to leave him happier than when they came to him. Angel Sawyer is serving her life sentence at the Anson Correctional Institution. Isaac Melcher is currently housed at the Nash Correctional Institution. He is set for release in 2038. In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little known British territory called Pitcairn and it harbored a deep dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reached the age of 10 that would still

emerge. It just happens to all of them. I'm journalist Luke Jones and for almost two years I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn. When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with. In the Pitcairn trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island to the brink of extinction.

Listen to the Pitcairn trials exclusively on Wondery+. Join Wondery+, in the Wondery app, Apple podcasts, or Spotify.