48 Hours Season 39, Episode 23: The Root Beer Float Murder

1

The Boy Who Killed His Twin

Seventeen-year-old Benjamin Elliott fatally stabs his twin sister, Meghan, in the middle of the night – a crime with no known motive and an act his defense claims he committed while sleepwalking. "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty reports.

42 min

2

Murder in the Parking Garage

For years, Kenneth Fandrich told everyone he knew that he was being stalked by the nicest man in town. In 2023, after his wife calls 911 to report her husband missing, police discover his lifeless body in his car, parked inside a corporate parking garage. "48 Hours" contributor Natalie Morales reports.

42 min

3

A Death in the Stairwell

After her husband, Kevin Davis, is found dying at the foot of the stairs, a woman accused of murder fights to clear her name. "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports.

42 min

4

My Uncle Joe's Murder

Joe Shymanski was gunned down in the driveway of his Calvert County, Maryland, home in 2023. Now his niece mourns her uncle's murder and questions whether the convicted killer was the only one involved.

41 min

5

Closing the Cold Case of Robin Lawrence

Robin Lawrence was home alone with her 2-year-old daughter in Springfield, Virginia, when an unknown killer murdered her. Her toddler was left to fend for herself for two days until Robin’s body was discovered. Nearly 30 years later, cold case detectives uncovered a surprising suspect. "48 Hours" correspondent Anne-Marie Green reports.

42 min

6

The Han Family Murders

A beloved doctor, his wife, and their young daughter are murdered, leaving their Santa Barbara, California, community reeling. A suspect emerges with a fantastical story of shadowy figures and intrigue straight out of a spy thriller.

42 min

7

Tracker Dakota Black

Lieutenant Dakota Black is a trained tracker and detective with the Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office. When Makayla Meave goes missing, Black launches an investigation that leads to the discovery of the young mother found murdered.

42 min

8

The Setup Murder of Kristil Krug

A stalker sends menacing messages to a young mother before she is murdered. The investigation reveals a sinister setup.

42 min

9

Help Find Molly Bish's Killer

Molly Bish was just 16 years old when she went missing on June 27, 2000. She vanished after being dropped off at her lifeguarding job. What followed became the largest search in Massachusetts history. Her remains were eventually discovered, but her killer has never been identified. Decades later, Bish’s sister turns to social media, sharing her family’s story and urging the public to help generate new leads.

42 min

10

Joe Hunter's Mission

Joe Hunter's emotional tribute to his late sister Joanna became one of the most talked-about moments of season 48 of "Survivor". Joanna’s death was officially ruled a suicide, but Joe says she was murdered and has made it his mission to uncover the truth.

42 min

11

Coached to Kill

When a high school softball coach and one of her former players are arrested for the murder of Indiana man Shea Briar, the coach places all the blame on the player. Prosecutors, however, say the coach orchestrated the killing.

42 min

12

The Gaslighting of Hannah Pettey

When a gravely ill young woman is rushed to the hospital, doctors make a shocking discovery: she has an “astronomical” amount of lead in her body. What begins as a medical mystery quickly becomes a criminal investigation. Hannah Pettey, a young mother from Alabama, suffered debilitating pain and lost more than 45 pounds in the months prior as her health rapidly declined. Investigators focus on the two people she trusted the most as the police work to uncover who was poisoning Hannah, and why.

42 min

13

Melissa Rocuba's Final Moments

A Pennsylvania man claims a freak accident while handling his gun caused the death of his wife, Melissa Rocuba. Bruno Rocuba was not arrested or charged with any crime. Years later, investigators uncover disturbing new evidence that challenges Bruno Rocuba’s story, including surveillance audio capturing his wife’s final moments. The recording raises haunting questions about what really happened in that bedroom and whether Melissa Rocuba’s death was truly an accident.

42 min

14

The Mother I Wish I Knew

When Debe Atrops was murdered, her daughter, Rhianna Stephens, was just 8 months old. More than 30 years later, a cold case team from Washington County took a fresh look at the case by talking to witnesses and running new tests on old evidence. The team thought they had enough to prosecute Debe’s estranged husband at the time of her murder, Bob Atrops, who is also Stephens’s father. Stephens is convinced they have the wrong man—after losing her mother, she fears losing her father too.

42 min

15

The Sneak Attack on Katlyn Lyon

When Katlyn Lyon Montgomery died in October 2022, her mother turned to TikTok to share her grief and demand justice. As the case evolved from a possible accident to a homicide, she built an online community to help hold Katlyn’s killer accountable.

42 min

16

The Rx Defense

On December 23, 2023, police were called to a Texas home where two teenagers had been shot. Eighteen-year-old Ethan Riley died from his injuries, while 19-year-old Ben Bliek survived. Their friend, 17-year-old Connor Hilton, was arrested and later confessed to the shooting. He claims the shooting was triggered by a reaction to a popular prescription acne medication, saying it caused him to experience homicidal thoughts. Prosecutors, however, reject that explanation and say the evidence points elsewhere.

42 min

17

The Girl from Wahoo

In 1969, 17-year-old Mary Kay Hesse was stabbed to death in Wahoo, Nebraska. For more than 50 years, the murder remained unsolved. But advances in investigative techniques and renewed focus by law enforcement helped piece together long-overlooked evidence, ultimately leading to an arrest.

42 min

18

Sade Robinson and the Secret Beach

When a college student in Milwaukee vanishes after a first date, investigators race to retrace her final movements. Using data from an app on her phone, law enforcement begins to piece together where she went—and whom she was with. As the investigation focuses on a man named Maxwell Anderson, chilling security camera footage and evidence discovered on a secluded beach raise urgent questions about what happened to Sade Robinson.

41 min

19

The Woman Who Died Twice

When a woman’s remains found in a swamp outside Savannah are identified, friends are stunned. They had been told Mindi Kassotis died in a hospital. But five months later, authorities say she was murdered. Investigators work to unravel how she appeared to die twice, and what really happened in the months between.

42 min

20

Jocelyn Peters and the Notebook

The murder of third grade teacher Jocelyn Peters baffled investigators in St. Louis, Missouri, from the start. The crime scene contained unusual clues, such as potato fragments splattered near the victim, and the behavior of a person of interest before a police interview caught detectives’ attention. Why did this man eat pages from a notebook when facing questions about Jocelyn’s murder? What did investigators believe the notebook might reveal?

42 min

21

What the Neighbors Saw

Late at night in Barron County, Wisconsin, a couple watches as a rolled-up carpet is carted out of a nearby home. Soon after they learn the combative neighbor who lived there, Gary Herbst, is missing.

42 min

22

Denise and Aaron Quinn Get the Last Word

A high-profile kidnapping case that drew national attention, and was the subject of a 2024 Netflix docuseries, takes a new turn. Denise Huskins Quinn and Aaron Quinn worked with law enforcement to help uncover additional crimes committed by their attacker, Matthew Muller. In doing so, the Quinns helped bring justice to other victims and found a way to reclaim their own story.

42 min

23

The Root Beer Float Murder

What begins as a burglary investigation quickly turns into something far more sinister. When a thief is caught in the act, he sends police down a trail of evidence that reveals the murder of Harold Allen, involving thousands of text messages, unusual poisons and a root beer float. How did a sweet treat become central to a deadly crime?

41 min

24

Kimberly Langwell’s Hidden Grave

Tiffani McInnis was a teenager when her mother, Kimberly Langwell, failed to return home from work, leaving her family searching for answers. More than 20 years later, detectives in Beaumont, Texas, received critical information that would lead to a secret grave and a horrific discovery that finally revealed Kimberly Langwell’s fate.

42 min