Unseen - The Sleeping Suspect | The Case of the Oxley Family | UNSEEN

Episode Date: December 6, 2024

“It was like making a deal with the devil”  At 3:30 am on February 21st 2008, Melissa Oxley frantically calls 911 from her bedroom. She’s just woken up next to the dead body of her husband, Ben, who’s been murdered with a shotgun in his sleep. She hides with her 6-year-old stepdaughter, Alyssa, pleading with dispatchers to hurry, since she can hear footsteps downstairs, but when police arrive, there’s no intruder found. As all clues point to Melissa, Ben’s daughter, 6-year-old Alyssa, breaks her silence: she was the only one awake in the house, and what she saw that night will take the investigation in a whole different direction. Directing, writing & editing by Matthew Rice Research by Tianyi Zhang Produced by Alexandra Salois & Salim Sader Voiceover by William Akana Sources: Documentary: Dateline NBC - While They Were Sleeping 2019 Discovery Plus - Does murder sleep - S01E01 Deadly awakening Oxygen - Killer Motive: S2E7 Waking nightmare Apple TV - In Plain Sight : Family Nightmare Interrogation Footage: Law & Crime Network - She Woke Up Covered in Her Husband’s Blood Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the worst feeling thinking that you're going to blame for your husband. This is Melissa Oxley. Five hours before this footage was recorded, Melissa was living a picture-perfect life with her husband, Ben, and her six-year-old stepdaughter, Alyssa. The couple had been married for over a year, and Melissa had even adopted Ben's daughter on the day of their wedding. She was the mother Alyssa never had.

But on February 21st, 2008, things took a disturbing turn for the worst, when at 3.30 a.m., Ben Oxley was found murdered in his bed with a shotgun wound to his head. His wife, Melissa, claims she was asleep next to him, but saw nothing. She was covered in blood and was physically unharmed. Another thing I don't understand is why if somebody shoots him, I just see anything. I was still with his boot like I sleep down. Police are convinced she killed her husband. If she was just a random murder, why don't they take you out?

You're right there. The problem is, Melissa is innocent. The plot behind the murder of Ben Oxley would remain a mystery if it wasn't for one clever six-year-old girl who wasn't asleep. That night, Alyssa saw something she should have never seen, and it could save her mother's life. Alyssa, how old are you? Sick.

I woke up in her discreet at the front door. I just looked out and I saw someone walking in. Do you know who they were? It's 2004. In the town of Minden, Nevada, 32-year-old Ben Oxley is a newly single dad, trying to rebuild his life after a somewhat bitter divorce. After gaining shared custody of his daughter Alyssa, he pours his whole heart into raising his three-year-old.

Together, they share a special bond like no other father and daughter. He takes Alyssa everywhere, even to a Valentine's Day event where the young father and daughter danced to their favorite song, Butterfly Kisses. He was truly her best friend and he was the best dad. That's all he cared about was Alyssa. That was his priority was to take care of her. He drove himself to be the best he could be for Alyssa. Everybody said that he loved me more than anything and I think it's true.

A year later, Ben begins looking for love again. He meets a woman named Melissa, and it seems like almost instantly, in their first few conversations, sparks are already flying. As they plan to finally meet in person, the single dad even brings Alyssa. on their first date, as her approval meant the world to him. Our first date, Alyssa was there. Alyssa's like, don't talk to my dad. I remember meeting her.

I didn't really like her. Melissa, although taken aback by Alyssa's rejection on her first date, isn't upset at all. Rather, she absolutely falls in love with the bright child, finding her childish jealousy adorable. As Ben and Melissa's love blossoms, the three of them start forming a new blended family. It's now September 17, 2006,

almost a year after the young couple started dating. And now, they're getting married. And of course, they don't forget to create a special ceremony for the now four-year-old Alyssa, the little flower girl. During the wedding, Melissa the bride bends down to the little girl and gently puts a bracelet on her wrist, engraved with her promise, but they will always love each other and be there for each other as family. Letting her know that I will always love her as my own.

Shortly after the wedding, Ben and Melissa were granted full custody of the little girl, no longer having split custody with Ben's ex-wife, Dawn. This brings together the full family, Ben's daughter and Melissa's teenage brother Craig under one roof. From this day forward, Alyssa has a new stepmother, built on love, and with a bright future ahead of them, the new family has no idea that their life will take the most unimaginable turn. It's February 21st, 2008, two years after the happy wedding, at around 3.30 a.m., the Nevada police station receives a disturbing 911 call. or severe emergency.

I'm sleeping. I turned up in the line to make my husband and it's really, really bad. On the phone with 911 is Melissa Oxley. The stepmom, her voice shakes as she tells him she just woke up in bed next to her husband, covered in blood. The operator quickly dispatches police to the scene

while continuing questioning. Is he awake? No, he's dead. She's dead. So you think somebody came in and shot him? Yeah. Where's your husband at? Lay down.

Lay down. I'm so sorry. Who are you talking to right now? My daughter. Just stay in the bedroom with your daughter, okay? Six-year-old Alyssa is in a state of shock as she begs her stepmother to let her see her dad, but Melissa refuses, holding on to the little girl. Boy, I want to go see my dad.

I want to go see my dad, and I just told her you can't go see her dad. Suddenly, the stepmother hears noise coming from outside the room. She urgently updates the dispatcher, fearing an intruder might still be in the house. Okay, while I'm talking to you, my partner is dispatching units out, okay? We immediately called code 3, lights and sirens, driving as fast as we can to get to the scene. When police arrive, the front door is wide open. On alert, they approach the empty foyer. It's pitch black.

All the lights are off, and they hear nothing but the eerie silence. I was thinking, am I going to see a deceased person or I'm going to encounter someone pointing a gun at me? Police quietly make their way through the house and head to the first bedroom. There, as they peek inside, they find a dark figure lying. in bed, covered by blankets, not moving. We're yelling Sheriff's office, show us your hands, multiple times, and we're getting no response from the subject that's in the bed under the covers. All of a sudden, a young man emerges from under the blankets, seemingly waking up from

a deep sleep as he raises his hands in the air, panicked. He tells the police who are pointing their guns at him that his name is Craig. The 17-year-old is Melissa's younger brother, who was living with the family at the time. And from that point, my attention got drawn back up to the hallway, and I saw Melissa. She's standing there. She's got blood on her clothing and just in shock was her face. Melissa stands in the hallway, holding a phone in one hand and her stepdaughter in the other. Police quickly clear the rest of the house, finding no one else except the body of Ben Oxley in the master bedroom. I could tell that there was a shotgun wound to the back of his skull.

It appeared when I did my initial investigation that he was asleep when he was killed. There are no signs of a break-in, no shattered windows, no forced in, doors. To the investigators, it feels like the killer wasn't a stranger. Maybe it was someone who lived there, Melissa, or her teen brother, Craig. They are brought into the police station for interrogations, and little Alyssa is now separated from her stepmother. Everyone is doing everything they can to make sure she's safe, but at only six years old, she cannot comprehend what is happening. She does not yet realize that she will never see her loving father, her closest friend, ever again. Trying to figure out who is responsible for Ben's murder,

suspicion tightens on Craig. When police find two shotgun shells on his nightstand, the ammunition is his. He's the only one in the family with an interest in guns. Craig had duck hunting equipment, avid hunter, and somebody who knew a firearm. Ben Oxen had been shot with a shotgun. That was very suspicious.

However, despite two shotgun shells standing on his nightstand, Craig claims he was sleeping until police arrived. I was pretty tired last night. I was in a pretty deep sleep even when I got there. I didn't even know what was going on, really. She didn't hear anything. My doors were shut. Did you kill Ben?

I did not. Investigators aren't convinced by Craig Story. But when the test results come back, the room falls silent. There's no gunpowder residue on his hands, no evidence that he fired a weapon. He was, as he claimed, in his room asleep at the time of the murder. The focus shifts. Now, all eyes are on Melissa. Why somebody shoots him?

I just see anything. I want to tell her sheriff and I'm not really at all. I'm just feeling the evening. Death is no. It's counterintuitive to your thought process when you see she's covered in blood, but she wasn't hurt. She's given me a story. I want to know the truth, obviously, but is this really the truth?

Because how could you be in close proximity to somebody that gets killed and not be involved? Melissa quickly becomes their prime suspect. She insists she knows nothing about her husband's death, but the detectives don't believe her. How could she have been sleeping right beside him and not noticed anything? To them, she's the only lead they have. But at this moment, they have no proof, no hard evidence to arrest her, or to arrest anyone for that matter.

At this point, the investigation hits a wall, as they neither have any physical evidence putting Craig at the crime scene, nor any proof that Melissa has killed her husband, and police are forced to release both suspects. However, police then uncover a $400,000 life insurance policy Ben left behind, all of which would go to Melissa if he passed away. Though Melissa claimed to know nothing of the policy, this feels like a smoking gun,

particularly to Ben's family, who feel that it's very possible that Melissa killed her husband for this big payout. With rumor swirling, now the whole town is closely watching this newly widowed woman, and they all have their own theories of how she escaped the murder charge. Everybody in town just assumed that his wife

murdered him while he was sleeping. She's the princess. She's the wife. She was laying. in bed with him. It doesn't make sense that she wasn't shot. As the investigation goes on, to protect the little girl, a judge sends Alyssa back to her birth mother, Ben's ex-wife. Alyssa is left in a family she knows very little about, now living with her birth mother, Dawn, Don's new boyfriend, James, and her other children.

But despite being back with her birth mother, the little girl desperately misses her stepmother, Melissa. The six-year-old is dealing with the sudden grief and sadness of losing her father, a man who was always there for her, someone who cared for her, supported her, and sacrificed everything for her. His daughter was his priority. Alyssa was everything to him. He was so joyful, fun, loving dad. He drove himself to be the best he could be for Alyssa. All Alyssa wants is for things to go back to normal with her dad and stepmother, but, separated from Melissa at her new home, the little girl is exposed to all the nasty rumors and accurate. accusations being thrown at her stepmom. Everyone around her is talking about her father's killer, and they are all pointing the finger at Melissa, especially her mother Dawn. She told me that she thought my stepmom killed my dad that night. Yeah, I didn't believe it, but...

Against all odds, the six-year-old is the only one who believes in Melissa's innocence, even though the pair of being kept separate. Despite what others say, Alyssa trusts herself that the love she experienced and the happy time she spent with her father and stepmother were true. What she's able to tell detectives is something that nobody has been able to confirm until now. One thing investigators did not expect was that Ben's six-year-old daughter, Alyssa, could have been a witness. I woke up and heard this creek at the front door. I heard it and I just looked out and I saw someone more. She just recognized it as a person that was looking in on her.

That was the first time we now had somebody else possibly involved. Alyssa's testimony drops a bombshell on detective's theories about Melissa, and they begin going over everyone who might have had conflicts with Ben. But what they don't realize is that the true killer has actually been right under their noses. I couldn't think of anybody that would want him dead, you know, besides Don. After Ben's death, Don finally gets her daughter back from her ex-husband, something that she's always wanted since the divorce several years prior. Thinking it's finally time to start a new life with little Alyssa,

Don is unaware that the detectives are actively launching an investigation into her. And soon, they discover that Dawn is not the mother that every daughter hopes for. In fact, it seems Dawn has a history of neglect of not providing for her daughter. She met a guy and she would stay the night at his house. I mean, when her kids are calling us up saying, we don't have any food in the house, can you come and bring us food? There's a problem. Detectives begin to uncover Dawn's long history in and out of jail for her drug addiction, which turns out to be the exact reason why she lost custody of Alyssa to Ben and the divorce

in the first place. The child custody dispute between Ben and Dawn. That weighed heavily on Dawn, she took that very personally. In contrast to the happy family household Alyssa had with her father and stepmom, She must now deal with her mother's struggle with addiction to drugs and alcohol, petty crime, and neglect all over again. Investigators now bring Dawn in for an interview, trying to find out if she had any connection to Ben's murder, and to figure out where she was the night of the murder. She stated that she was at the house the whole time, and that was all that she knew.

Who was at the house? My son, Devon, and James, and James is my best friend's son. He hangs out there a lot. That's 4.30, who else was still up? Um, James would still like with me? I think he told me to burn him. Are you romantically involved in terms? No. I have no, you're just really good friend.

As Don tells investigators that James Metlene is her new friend, they soon discovered that he has a long history of being in and out of prison, and has recently been living with Don for a while. The night of Ben's murder, he claims he was watching a movie with Don at home. Although this sounds like the perfect alibi, something doesn't sit well with the detectives. We're starting to put James Matlin and Don Oxley into the forefront of our investigation because we felt they had something to do with it. We just didn't know what it was.

Now, James is brought into the police station for questioning. He sits across from detectives in a small room. The questions begin, circling around one thing, his possible connection to the murder of Ben Oxley. Did I kill Ben? No. Do I know who killed Ben? No. Do I know who killed Ben? No. Do I know anything about the murder? No. Were you and Don in any way involved in the planning of the death of the matter? No. I'm looking you in your eyes.

I did not kill him. I had nothing to do with him. There is no physical evidence, nothing to prove them guilty, and they both adamantly deny any involvement, but time is running out. And if James or Don are involved in the murder of Ben Oxley, six-year-old Alyssa is in great danger. Melissa desperately hopes to be reunited with her stepdaughter. But, legally, the police's hands are tied, and unless they have solid evidence, evidence against Don and James, they have no reason to take the girl away from them.

Alyssa remains in the custody of her birth mother. With no other options, the police focus all their efforts on uncovering the truth. They need evidence, something solid to act on. That's when they turned to their next move. Surveillance. We did open surveillance where we followed them and made sure they knew we were following them around. We wanted them to see us following them. We wanted them to see us out and about in the community where they were at to add pressure.

As we started looking at Don and James Matling, we start hearing a little bit about them being in a relationship, which was denied at first. And the question is, is why was that held from us? Initial interviews at the house, they said they never left. They obtained the surveillance video. We found that James was at the community store, the morning of the homicide. So we know that now his story has changed. At first, he never left the house, and now we know he's out and about in the early morning hours of the night of the homicide. What do you think I lied to you about?

In that first interview, when I originally asked you if you had gone out of the house that night, you told me no. You made up a big story about how you guys watched the movies all night long, how you passed out of the couch, how you were excited, you went on about that. Later I found out through surveillance video that you were at 7-11. We're finding holes in his story. Now we start looking into them deep, like, okay, so if you're lying, what else is not true? true. But even with the surveillance footage as proof that James was lying about his and Don's whereabouts the night of the murder, there still isn't enough evidence to arrest anyone. All other

evidence leads to Melissa, who only wants one thing, to be back with her stepdaughter. Police are unsure where to turn next. When, in a twist no one saw coming, a new voice emerges in the investigation, a voice that cuts deeper than any other. Don's own teenage son and Alyssa's half-brother, Devin. He walks into the police station, his face heavy with the weight of what he's about to reveal. Says there's something he needs to confess, something crucial that he saw at his mother's house the night before Ben's murder. Throughout the night, she kept going that she wants Ben dead. Devin tells investigators about Don's rant that night. She hated Ben for ruining her life, for making her child support, and she blamed him for taking Alyssa away from her.

Then James, just out of nowhere, kept saying, you know what, I'll go kill him for you. Just give me the word, and I'll go kill him for you. She just kept saying, I just want him dead. Devin's account changes everything. Suddenly, the walls close in on Don. Even her boyfriend, James, turns against her, coming forward with chilling details about the lies, the motive, and how Dawn was the true mastermind behind Ben's murder.

She had always ranting and raving about Ben. I said, I'll take care of Ben. She said, I don't want you to take care of Ben. I want you to kill Ben. She said, yes. With Ben out of the picture, Don would rid herself of the $200 monthly child support payments. and gained custody of Alyssa.

With Devin and James testimonies, the cracks in Don's story were no longer cracks. They became gaping holes. Coming to terms with how Don had manipulated him all along, James recounts exactly what happened on the night of the murder. He tells investigators that both he and Don were in the Oxley's house on the night of February 21st, 2008. And as I'm walking down the hallway, Don stops in front of an open doorway,

which wasn't... I was this bedroom. And... almost to the master bedroom and I turned around and see that Don's not following me. I woke up in Curtis Creek, I was scared. I just looked out and I fell up on my marking room. The scary, dark figure standing in Alyssa's room was her own mother, Don. Dawn had asked if I killed a obstitute.

I agree to it. At this moment, James is ready. The shotgun sits heavy in his hands. hands as he stands in the master bedroom. Two shells loaded. Outside, Don rushes to start the car, the engine rumbling, ready for a quick getaway. Slowly, he raises the shotgun, aiming it squarely at Ben. I don't know how long I'm staying there. Something happened. He jolted and I pulled the trigger the shot Ben. He killed Ben. Next, he pointed the gun at Melissa, his second victim. His finger hovered over the trigger, ready to end another life. But then, something shifted. It's as if a wave of

hesitation washed over him. Without firing, he lowered the weapon, turned, and ran out of the room. Moments later, the sound of his footsteps faded as he rushed towards the car, leaving Melissa and the six-year-old alive. With James' confession confirming their worst fears about dawn, police are horrified that Alyssa had been in the custody of her father's murderers all along, but the six-year-old's loyalties never wavered. She knew Melissa was entirely innocent and stuck up for her when no one else believed in her. She told police about the shadowy figure she saw that night, who would prove to be the mastermind behind her father's death, none other than her own biological mother. After taking Don and James into custody, Alyssa is finally reunited with

her beloved stepmother. Throughout the entire investigation, Melissa had fought for her stepdaughter, and she had been doing the same thing all along. When Alyssa steps through the door of their family home, there is joy and happiness. But at the same time, being back together means the pair must come to terms with the magnitude of the loss of their husband and father, and how to move forward as a new family. Four years later, on January 31, 2012, the stepmother and daughter finally prepare themselves for the trial against Ben's killers, James and Don. Alyssa, now 10 years old, sits in the courtroom watching the proceedings. In the four years since her father's death, the wounds she carries are deep, and her path to healing will be long, but at this moment, Alyssa knows she has to be strong,

and thankfully, she's had a great role model. Her stepmother, Melissa, takes a stand, Facing the man who pulled the trigger that fateful night, she testifies against James, the one responsible for taking everything from them. It's only getting every customer's order right. It's only a point-of-sale system connected by Spectrum fiber-powered business internet helping you track hundreds of secure transactions.

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Service is not available in all areas. Emotionally, the damage you have caused me is almost unbearable. For Alyssa, you crumbled her foundation and everything she knew to be right and true. Elisa's half-brother and Don's son, Devin, also takes a stand to reiterate his statement about his mother's involvement in the murder. In the four years since the initial arrest, Devin has left his mom's house and joined the army, and now bravely testifies against her, telling the court about the horrible environment he and his siblings grew up in due to her neglect and addictions. Don's parental rights to Alyssa are fully terminated and she has officially put behind bars for numerous offenses, including parole violations, DUI, and domestic battery.

However, with the solid proof that James was the one actually pulling the trigger, the evidence against Don now seems mainly limited to only claims of plotting and manipulation, and the case becomes circumstantial. Don manages to gain immunity to the murder charge in exchange for her testimony against James, ultimately betraying their supposed initial plan. James pleads guilty to first-degree murder and is sentenced to life without parole. Finally, Ben Oxley has justice. But then, just as James is being taken away to be imprisoned forever, Alyssa speaks up with a surprising and remarkable request. She wants to speak with her father's murderer one-on-one.

I told him that I decided to forgive him. and that I wanted him to have hope. Despite the tears, grief, and pain of losing her father, Alyssa, at only 10 years old, found the extraordinary courage to forgive her dad's killer. She had only kindness and love to give, even in the face of all she had endured. This allowed her to start the journey of healing and begin to come to terms with the tragedy she experienced. With the guidance and love of her stepmother, Melissa, the pair made their own unlikely family

together as true mother and daughter. Their new family even includes Brandy, another of Dawn's children, and Alyssa's half-sister, who was left motherless after the conviction. Though she herself had no connections to Brandy, Melissa committed to paving a new way forward for herself and her stepdaughter, welcoming Brandy as she had Alyssa, becoming the loving mother and safe family that both girls needed. It is a family, and that's what I need. Investigation being finalized, I was able to have Alyssa back full time. It was like another piece given back like we could go on. As Melissa and her two new daughters adjust to their blended family life, they find ways to move past the events of February 21st, 2008. I try not to think about the murder. I try to just

really think about Ben and the memories. It's just like that sense of security and love and smile that I come home to every day. There's still sense of him here. and with us, like he has so much to live on and the legacy here that he's left and how he loved. The pair cherishes their memories of Ben and know the happiness and connection that three of them felt will live on forever. I miss him a lot. I think he still loves me and that I'm doing much better than I was at my other house. It will always be in my heart. They'll never be forgotten. On her wedding day, Melissa made a promise to be with Ben and Alyssa for the rest of their lives. The love we choose is the love that lasts forever.