>> when she died, i genuinely felt like a piece of me died as well. >> sarah says a committed effort by so many to solve the case is a testament to her mother's character. >> she had a beautiful personality that clearly speaks, i mean so many people care about her today. the efforts that her friends put in over the years, i kind of felt -- it was for her, it was for justice for her, and i understand that and appreciate that i think it speaks to the type of person she was. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ hello andrea canning in this is dateline they were a gorgeous couple. >> he felt happy just being with her. >> he was once a pro athlete,

football royalty. she was expecting their first child. >> the baby was moving she said come and feel my tommy. >> that a crime that stunned the city, the beaming mother to be gunned down in her own home >> bullet holes in the floor. my sister was murdered. it was terrible. >> so full of love and life, who would want her dead? her celebrity boyfriend? >> trying to say, they're naming me as a suspect? >> or maybe, one of his other girlfriends. >> she said, you don't know that he is seeing other girls? >> mysterious letters were spilling secrets. did someone want her out of the way? >> i don't wake. i had dark sunglasses this big covering my face. >> a mother to be, killed. and a mother of three, who was not what she seemed. now, an undercover plan to catch a killer. >> she opened up the door, she started screaming. i took the first shot. >> hello and welcome to

dateline. she was a small town girl from rural wisconsin. he was a chicago superstar, a hometown hero with a legendary bears. together, they were expecting their first child. but no one was expecting their tale to end in the deadly way that it did. here is rob stafford with, deadly liaison's. >> it was morning in a condo complex in the upscale chicago suburb of deerfield. the day was just getting started. until the screaming. i woman in the building heard it. so, she called her pregnant neighbor upstairs. >> are you okay? i heard a woman screaming and -- pretty loud and then it got quiet. would you give me a call, please? >> no response.

now, feeling something like dread, the neighbor picked up a phone again and dialed 9-1-1. >> i heard a woman screaming and then a pop, pop, and then it went totally silent. >> police rushed to the scene. the 9-1-1 caller had been right to be worried. in that unit above her, they found her pregnant neighbor, dead. what had happened upstairs and why? solving the mystery would lead police to a famous and beloved pro football player. would involve several women in his life and would set the stage for a high stakes cat and mouse game between authorities and the person they ultimately came to believe killed an expectant mother in cold blood. her name was rhoni reuter >> from the minute you saw her, you felt happy. just being with her. rhoni was stunning, stylish,

and sweet. her brother's, thad and wade, as did their, wife -- and lori. >> ronnie is the person you see that you would want to be. she was everything. she would do anything for anybody. >> she was very caring, always thought of other people. she called us every night. >> there was a warm tenderness that followed her where she went. >> rhoni was a woman with no enemies. who on earth could have wanted her dead? the investigation began at a crime scene that was only minutes old. detectives vincent and ron, of the deerfield police department caught the case. >> if -- you can still smell the odor of gunpowder. no immediate signs of a struggle. >> no signs of forced entry. bullet casings and live ammunition from a nine millimeter beratta

semiautomatic handgun littered the kitchen. deerfield police chief thought that was telling. >> the sheer number of shots would indicate that there was some emotion. there was something driving the shooter. in all likelihood, the victim could have known the offender. >> so, who is the first person you want to talk to? >> shaun gayle. >> the boyfriend? >> correct. >> shaun gayle, her boyfriend of 17 years, was an ex football player. smart, popular, and charming. the two met in 1990 at a charity event. back then, shaun was a member of the iconic 85 bears team that won the super bowl. >> super bowl champion! >> for the most part, they were just together all of the time. they talked every day on the phone. they took trips together. >> rhoni's family says she and shaun seemed to make it work. a revered pro athlete and the girl from a small town, living in the big city. she eventually

juggled two jobs, one in the food industry and the other part time at macy's because she loved fashion. then, in march 2007, after many years with shaun, rhoni became pregnant at age 41. she would finally become a mother. she was elated. it was obvious when wade, his wife and parents visited rhoni in chicago that september. >> that was the happiest i've ever seen my sister in my life. she was glowing. >> and the baby was moving. she said, mom, come in feel my tummy! the baby is moving. i will never forget that. rhoni was a woman in love. even though this was no conventional relationship. she had been with shaun for close to two decades. they never married or even look together. so, and wondered why rhoni stayed with him when she wanted both. >> i would say, what is it about? him she said, i don't know what to tell, you santa. i just love him. >> and it was unclear if anything will change. even after the baby was born. >> did she want to get married? >> yes. she did. >> did he? >> i don't know. >> and

there was one other thing. rhoni's family rarely saw sean. >> we just knew that ronny said shawn was a private person and didn't want people bothering him. >> just as ronnie's family was wondering how a baby might affect ronny and shawn's relationship, she was suddenly gunned down early that october morning. >> that was probably the most angry i have ever been in my life. i was an uproar. i just wanted to go down there and get the person. i wanted to grab him myself and do what they did to my sister. >> police too, were committed to bringing the killer or killers to justice. so, they started this investigation by the book. look at the people closest to the victims. that is why they wanted to talk to shaun gayle. they didn't have to wait long to do it. >> coming up -- >> shaun gayle, they said they're naming me as a suspect. >> a sobbing boyfriend, under suspicion. [crying] >> is he

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plus, ask how to get up to $1000 prepaid card ♪ ♪ ♪ with qualifying internet. >> rhoni reuter, more than six months pregnant, had been shot to death in her own home. it would have been a shocking crime anyway, but it was especially so in deerfield. a

affluent chicago's suburb that had not seen a murder in more than 30 years. who would have committed such a crime? first on the list of people police wanted to talk to was shaun gayle, rhoni's longtime boyfriend. but before police could call shaun, he called them himself a few hours before the murder. shaun didn't know that rhoni was dead and sounded confused about just what had happened. >> i've been getting calls from the media. this is shaun gayle. they're trying to say, they're trying to say - they are naming me as a was a runny writer? is she okay. >> it was rhoni and know she is not. >> i'm driving her her house right now. >> okay, don't go to her house. if you want to go somewhere, go to the deerfield police station. >> and she -- is she -- >> shot, don't go to her house, okay? >> shaun? >> yes. >> come to the police department. do you know where it is? >> yes. >> a,

shaun, do you want me to stay on the phone until you get here? >> please. no. >> shaun seemed shocked and distressed. but detectives weren't necessarily buying it. as police officers, you are listening to see, is he acting or is this real grief? >> that's what releasing for. being sincere. >> you're not basing any conclusion on that tape. >> that is correct. >> you want to talk to him. >> oh, absolutely. >> shaun maybe part of football royalty, a player on a super bowl winning team, but now he was a potential suspect in a high-profile murder case. detective say shaun was still emotional as they sat down with him in an interview room and started with the basics. where had shaun been at the time of the shooting? >> he was early, he started to go get a haircut. in our chicago. >> he is not far from the murder scene at the time the murder? >> no, he is not. >> investigators checked out shaun's alibi. the

barbershop confirmed he had been there that morning of the murder. >> we also have the video from his complex, which captures the alley where he would drive out and drive there to leave his house. sure enough, he is captured leaving his house. >> and terms of timeline and shooting, does that videotape clear him of being at the murder scene at the time? >> yes. >> no gunshot residue was found on shaun. he did not match the description police had from neighbors. a small, dark complected male with black hair, wearing a big a sweat suit who was last seen at rhoni's condo that morning of the murder. but that didn't let shaun off the hook as far as police were concerned. they said they had to consider whether someone else, perhaps connected to shaun, had committed the crime. the victims family was wondering the same thing. >> i first i thought, well, maybe it was something hired as a hitman to do this and that was them running away from the scene. i didn't think the person behind this would be stupid enough to do it themselves in broad

daylight. >> did you think that person could have been shaun gayle? >> did it crossed my mind? certainly. >> that maybe he didn't want the baby in the picture. >> we didn't know what to believe. >> reeling with questions and anguish, rhoni's family made the sad pilgrimage to her condo to collect her things. >> we walked in and it was stark quiet and cold and empty. i just -- i felt awful. all of her stuff, but not her. it was awful. >> she had all the baby clothes that people had gotten her that were on a table next to the kitchen. >> we could see bullet holes on the floor for my sister was murdered. it was terrible. >> as rhoni's family grieved, they hope the police would find answers. and one tantalizing

lake gave -- shaun, if not, him then who? shaun gave him a name, a woman's name. >> another woman in shaun's life? was she a possible suspect? coming up -- >> spurned lover? yes. >> jealous? >> yes. >> motive? >> yes. >> when dateline continues. long after guests leave, viruses and bacteria linger.

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>> shaun gayle was a handsome and popular ex football player

for the chicago bears. now, his girlfriend, rhoni reuter, was dead and it wasn't long before police learned that rhoni wasn't the only interest in shaun's life. they learn that from shaun himself. >> it was an open relationship. he had made it clear to her. >> it is not exclusive. >> right. >> shaun told police one of the woman he had dated a year before might be responsible for rhoni's murder. monica --, originally from poland, she is a fitness trainer who met shaun at a bears promotional event in 2005. she was 27 at the time. he was 43. >> he was a person who i can truly open up. gentlemen manner. >> she said that she never mentioned other women. she assumed she was the only one he was dating. >> did he tell you that? >> he didn't have to tell me that because we were seeing each other quite often. >> then, late one evening, after nine months of

dating, monica says she happened to be in shaun's neighborhood and decided to stop by his home. >> i came up from the car and i stopped by the window. i saw him sitting with another woman. i never suspected that there was someone else. it was not for me. i was shocked. >> she started knocking on shaun's window. i really got upset because they went upstairs. if it was just a friend or something, why when you open the door? >> monica admits breaking the window, although she says she didn't intend to. >> i was very angry. i don't think i was ever cheated by anybody. it was shocking for me. >> monica remembers confronting the other woman as she left. >> i asked her, are you seeing him? she said, you don't know that he is seeing other girls? i'm like, no. >> monika says that night marked the end of her relationship with shaun. just a few weeks later, something strange started happening. women in

shaun's life began to receive letters. >> describing the fact that he was not only seeing this one particular woman, but seeing many women at the same time, trying to dissuade these other ladies from seeing him. >> dateline has obtained some of the letters, which not only contained angry allegations that shaun cheated and lied, but also include copies of what looks like very personal emails between shaun and the women. as well as supposed traveling intineraries indicating shaun had taken trips with two different women lesson two months apart. one was written in poor english, as if by an immigrant like monica. shaun, who says the letters were full of lies, immediately accused monica of sending them. after all, she'd broke in his window and confronted that woman. he got an order of protection against monica. but the letters and other harassing behavior continued for more than a year. it seemed to shaun that monica

was repeatedly violating that order of protection. by the fall of 2007, shaun was so frustrated with harassment that he wanted monica jailed or fined. his request was filed in court on october 4th, 2007. the same day rhoni reuter was killed. >> so, rhoni reuter didn't have any enemies? >> that's right. >> you learned that shaun did. >> yes. >> shaun told police about monica and those letters. not only did they think they would have a direct connection to the murder, but one of those letters was found in rhoni's purse the day she was killed. >> how big a break does that seem at the time? >> definitely a suspect. she knew of rhoni. if you mail this letter, rhoni had letter, she had to know rhoni's address. >> just monica sounded like a spurned lover? >> yes. >> jealous? >> yes. >> motive? >> yes. >> monica's alibi for the time of the murder was that she was training one of her regular clients who happen to live in a town right next to deerfield. her alibi seemed to

check out. >> as soon as you talk to the client, she says that she was with, is she crossed off the list? >> not immediately. we don't know what their relationship is. he could be lying for her. >> police had their hands full juggling shaunn gayle and monica as potential suspects when yet another woman in seans circle popped up on their radar from tipsters. >> three phone calls from people who gave the name of marni. >> marni yang. >> yes. >> the information they were leaving was that she would be an individual capable of doing something like this because of the relationship she had with shaun gayle. >> capable of this kind of murder? >> yes. >> the plot, as they say, was thickened. >> coming up -- who is marni yang? >> she tells us that marni has shawangunk her boyfriend. >> place zero in on a mysterious single mother and famous shaun gayle to help them. when dateline continues.

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hours top stories. dangerously cold weather from montana de, florida's blanketing much of the country. this week long weather system has been blamed for nearly 60 deaths so far. treacherous systems and form -- in a major blow to nikki haley, south carolina senator tim scott has endorsed trump for president, ahead of the new hampshire primary. scott was appointed to his senate seat in 2012, by then governor haley, and now back to dateline. dateline >> welcome back to dateline. i'm andrea canning. i'm sandra cannon. detectives investigating the murder of

mother to be, rhoni reuter, or add two potential suspects in their sights. an explosive tip about a girlfriend with a grudge was about to break their case wide pen. here is rub stafford with more of our story, deadly liaisons. >> not long after rhoni reuter was gunned down in her own home in -- suburban deerfield, illinois, long term boyfriend, shawn, gayle and former lover of his, monica, were being investigated as possible suspects in rhoni's murder. now, the mystery was deepening. callers had given police a new name, yet another woman in shaun's life. marni yang. police soon learned she was a divorced mother of three, a chicago native who work multiple jobs, including as a real estate agent to support her family. she was also an aspiring witness model. >> someone promoting sales of fitness equipment, like we see on tv all the time. >> photographer jason stoler first met marni during a quick photo

shoot in her garage in 2006. marni's children were their, twins, a girl and boy, 15 at the time, and a younger son h ten. >> how is she with her kids? >> i saw a very in control mom, protective of her children and communicated very well and was liked by her children's friends. >> he took more than 1000 photos of marni during four modeling sessions in 2006 and 2007. nearly 40 years old, marni was in great shape. jason says marni was incredibly driven. >> she was looking for success in realestate. she was looking for success as a fitness model. >> was the modeling about ego or trying to make money? >> i think both. i think this woman was trying to make all the money she cut for her and her family. >> jason's girlfriend, miranda bauman, did my knees make up. >> she had a lot of interest. athletics, skydiving, scuba diving, these kinds of things. >> marni was also fascinated by police work, even

applied twice to be an officer. but was turned down. still, she was very active in the chicago police departments neighborhood watch program. >> she talked about wanted to make sure that her neighborhood was safe, be concerned about her children's safety. >> this was hardly the profile of a murder suspect. still, please continue to look into her background and learned about her connection to shaun gayle. jason said he first learned about what was happening between the two of them when she brought it up in a shoot. >> she mentioned shaun gayle, she was involved in real estate transactions with him and this is who she was seeing. she knew shaun was with people, she was aware it wasn't something exclusive. >> marni has shown up some of the ships with a man she described as a family friend. she was, in fact, seen a few men. it appeared to both investigators and that photographer that it was shaun she was really interested in. on her last shoot in the winter of 2007, jason says that money

arrived with an outfit and a request. >> she said, i wore this specifically and i would like to get some pictures specifically for shaun. it's a chicago bears on the front and it said, chicago bears on her butt. she wanted to take some pictures in this outfit for shaun. >> police were investigating those tips they had received from callers pointing them to marni yang. one was from a former friend of hers and what she told police refocus their entire investigation. >> tells us that marni has also bragged about shaun being her boyfriend and then starts tell stories about these letters that marni is being accused of. when he has break to her how she hacked into shawn's email count and got all these women's information. rhoni break to her how monica was getting in trouble for all of it, help monica would be deported and she left. >> she laughed about monica being deported, possibly?

>> yes. >> what does that tell you that marni? >> that just told us that she is very vindictive and she would do anything to get anyone out of the way. >> just hours after speaking with marni's former friend, police went to the alley behind martins chicago home and seized her garbage, no search warrant needed. they simply scooped up all of her trash and took it with them. in it, they found bank statements. on that, they discovered she had been paying for background checks on other women that shaun was seeing. police also learned about the time marni planned a trip to the same resort and mexico at the same time he was going there with rhoni. >> she tells him, he's for scuba diving. >> aside from that incident, saying marni never suggested she wanted more from the relationship than what they already had. basically, some estate dealings and sex. yes, sex. police found it very interesting that marni had gone

to shauns to bring him dinner and have sex that very evening before the murder. when it came to women, shawn's life seemed complex. as police became more interested in one woman, marni yang, they were crossing another off of their list of suspects. they determine monica had nothing to do with sending those nasty letters to women in shaun's life and she had nothing to do with rhoni rider's murder. the ordeal was a nightmare for her. >> it was so mysterious. everything sounded crazy. here in the middle, it is me, my name, i did nothing besides just going out and dating a person, at the wrong time. >> shaun gayle was also fully cleared of the murder. within a few weeks of the shooting. the investigation was soon focused on marni yang. shaun then went from possible suspect to unofficial police agent. he allowed police to wire his home and then he invited marni over to see what she might say about the murder. investigators who hovered

nearby and listened and later said marni sounded more like a concerned friend than a killer. she has questions about the investigation. >> did you talk to the police today? what do they think? >> police and got a warrant to search for computer work. >> we find she had googled rhoni reuter's address from her workplace to rhoni's residence. >> marni had also checked online for photos and videos of rhoni. police felt it was time to bring money in for questioning. >> she tells us about how she met shaun gayle. how the chat about real estate. >> investigators were particularly interested in her whereabouts the night before the murder, which is that they already know from shaun, included a couple of hours at his home. she was honest about that. >> she was there october the 3rd between 7:30 and 9:30 pm in his residence. >> and marni told them something else about that night. something that would become central to their investigation. >> she then tells us on that evening, she was supposed to meet a

friend, for real estate deal and chris's place. but we had counsel because her vehicle broke down. should stop at home, check on the kids and that her vehicle broke down. >> kchristi paschen, that name comes up. how important with that name prove to be? >> it would be the most important piece of this whole puzzle. >> in early january, 2000, and three months after the murder, police stepped up their investigation of marni yang and brought her, her children, and her friend, kissed-y passion, in for questioning. what they've learned was surprising. especially from marnie's older son. >> coming up -- >> police dropped a bombshell on marni yang. >> all of those things lead your 16-year-old son to believe that you are responsible for this. >> oh, god. >> when dateline continues. new crispy salt & vinegar shrimp. it's all that... and a batch of shrimp. now one of seven endless choices.

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>> three months after rhoni reuter was gunned down in her own home with a 9 mm beretta, police for zeroing in on marni yang, who had also been involved in rhoni's longtime boyfriend, shaun gayle. police had been told marni was obsessed with shaun, was a woman who loved guns, and hated people who got in her way. >> conniving, manipulative, very eerie. >> is there sure home as well as her mothers were marni had stashed some of her firearms. you are hoping to find the murder weapon, the nine millimeter beretta. >> we

found a few weapons, but nothing of a 9 mm. >> they did find evidence of marni's true feelings about shaun. revealing photo of shaun and two bears momentous that she kept in her top dresser drawer. they came across a letter she wrote to shaun but never sent. in it, she complained, you go on these romantic trips everywhere with all these other women, you bring back a two dollar key chain and i'm supposed to feel special about that? what message does that send about how you view me? police also found mailing labels for those letters sent to women in shaun's life. the noose was tightening. now, as cameras rolled, police questioned marni on and off for three days. marni was very talkative. in fact, she had answers for everything and seem confident, even cocky. when asked what her reaction was one shaun told her about rhoni's pregnancy, marni responded, the condom rule doesn't apply to everybody. he got mad. >> marnis attitude was

interesting to investigators. more important to them were the specifics up the case. they asked her about the murder weapon. marni told police she had had a nine millimeter gun and had gone missing along with other things in her home, but she never reported it. >> i did not make a police report because i had no homeowners insurance at the time. >> they asked her about the receipt she detained, saying she purchased two books online in early august 2007, two months before the murder. about how to make a homemade silencer. she said, she had bought the silencer books for a child's school project. >> besides project on noise displacement. >> there is no such project. in fact, when she bought the books, school hadn't even started. >> well, right, but, you have to start thinking about the project ahead of time. >> she then

changed her story and said she actually bought the books for a brand, as a gate but they get. >> first birthday, i got him tickets to a show and dinner and a show and then that is a joke. >> police testimony about the information she collected on women in shaun's life. she said she did that because shaun has started to get closer to her children. she portray herself as a vigilant mother, wary of the people around her friends -- kids. >> i make my business that anyone who comes in contact with my children, i will check you, i will check out everyone connected with you. when i'm done, i will check out your mother and your two sisters to. >> most importantly, they asked money where she was at the time of the murder. she said she was home because she was having car trouble. indeed, herself phone had bounced off towers near her home that morning. but there were witnesses they wanted to talk to who coach or light on her alibi. mary's own children. >> we'll december said that mom's home. he had stayed home from school because he was sick. >> then they spoke with the sister that said that money had asked the older brother to life for her. so, police confronted him with what his sisters at. >> that's when he

said yes, i'm done for it. >> he then admitted his mother, marni, had told him to tell police that she was home with him the morning of the murder when it back, she had not been. then, he startled police by what he said next. >> he told the investigators that after hearing and seeing the story on tv, some of his friends brought it to their tension that one of the reactions was that she somehow might be involved. >> his own mother might be involved in the murder of rhoni reuter? >> correct. very unusual response. for a son to do that, i think every investigator was the case, that's an honest response. the sun would have no other reason to answer that way. >> police confronted marni with what her own children said about her. >> all of the things lead your 16-year-old son to say you are responsible for this. >> oh, god. i also think the time and recollection is off a little bit, but, like, no way. >> investigators also questioned

marni's best friend, christi paschen. the women had known each other for 15 years, ever since christy, a psychic, read mary's terrell cards at a cycle for. >> she -- marni planning or committing the murder. >> you believe her? >> no. >> investigators were convinced both christie and marni were lying, but they didn't have anything close to a confession. true, police did have circumstantial evidence to prove she had a gun like the murder weapon, that she bought the silencer books and purchase parts to make one. even prove she purchased a bucket of cement that day after the murder. investigators believe she lied about most of that on tape. the late county states attorney, michael waller, said it was not enough to make a arrest. >> we don't have any physical evidence tying her to the scene. >> blood, hair, anything like? that >> no, no physical evidence. >> that was not all police are missing. >> one of the questions i asked

was, can we put marni anywhere near the field on the morning of the murder? they said, no. okay, that's a problem. >> police had checked security tape from a gas station near the murder scene for marni effendi suv, but bam nothing. >> when we discuss it, i said, have you checked all potential avenues, rental cars, disposable cell phones? which is what they did. >> that turned out to be fruitful. >> we find she rent a car in 2007 and returned it on the day the homicide. >> it was from enterprise and the pickup address on the farm led directly to the home of marni's best friend, kristie passion. more interesting was the odometer reading. >> it was a black volkswagen and returned with 40 miles. >> 40 miles. detective had a hunch. he drove between enterprise, christie's home, and the murder scene. round-trip, it added up to 40 miles. >> i know the route. i know she did it. then, he checked that gas station acuity

video again. this time, looking for a black vw. he watched the video more than 50 times. finally, located what looked like the vw passing by less than an hour before the murder and speeding through just minutes after. what's more, there was a phone number on the rental form that was new to investigators. turns out, marnie had bought a disposable phone with cash a week before the murder. she made only a few calls on it, but that was enough. >> there was at least one call that placed her in the vicinity of deerfield on the day of the murder. >> more strong circumstantial evidence. still, not enough, the prosecution said. >> it was aggravating. they kept pushing, one more thing, for more than. >> it was maddening for police. they were their prime suspect would never be brought to justice. but they had a plan. an undercover sting. they thought they could convince someone in particular to try

and get marni into confessed on tape. police were about to get her own best friend, kristie passion, to turn against her. >> coming up -- >> i had a wake. i had dark sunglasses this big covering my face. a hoodie on, okay? >> marni yang is about to chat up a storm. when dateline continues. for almost everything you own. -but do you really need... -my weighted hoop? it's for my snatched waist. that's my dog chaise lounger. foot treadmill. that's my tuesday chalice. purse that says purse. hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber. i can't live without oxygen. solid gold coffee machine. -lake making kit. -really? -can progressive cover that too? -yes, but -- -hi it's janice. i'll take 5. is my voice on tv right now? my late father-in-law lit up a room, but his vision dimmed with age. he had amd. i didn't know it then, but it can progress to ga, an advanced form of the disease.

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gone by since rhoni's murder and there had been no arrests, not even a publicly named suspect. to the community, it seemed the case had gone cold. but the deerfield police and lake county major crimes task force had been working hard since day one, including months preparing for a wiretap operation. they wanted to try to catch marni young talking about the murder on the phone as they geared up for that, police broaden marni's close friend, christi paschen, a second time for questioning. >> if marni told anybody, this was going to be the individual. she knew more than she was living on. >> police figured from a car rental form they had seized with christi's address on it, that money had actually gone from shaun's place to christie's and stay there that

night before the murder. and they discovered christie's employer routinely records of phone calls. they found one money place to christie at 9/11 the morning of the murder. it seemed to include some kind of code. they didn't know what it meant. >> christi paschen, how can i help you? >> do you want some dinner? >> okay. that's fine. >> it's everything all right? >> yeah, i'm fine. >> it seems like christi is bothered by something with that call. she's hesitating, thank you. suspicious nature, forcing 9:00 in the morning you're asking. >> at first, christi wasn't giving police much. eventually, under pressure, she relented. police say no deals were made, but once it was clear they had a lot of evidence, she opened up. >> we know you know, not as much as you know. it was a big wow. it was a president. >> christi told marni had nicknames for shaun's various girlfriends. her neighbor rhoni was miss macy's, a little degette rhoni because she worked at a department store.

>> marni thinks retell is beneath her. >> right, exactly. >> because she's a realtor? >> right. >> because he said the night before the murder, money asked her to bring her terrell cards. she then posed a most unusual question. will i be successful in killing miss macy's? christy pulled out the sun card. >> it indicates that money was going to have success and whatever she was planning on doing. >> kristie try to top out of it? >> she tried talking part of it. she really did believe she was going through them. >> because of the last couple of times you talked about it with christie, about killing rhoni, and she and bolder. that >> because he told police that before she went to

sleep that night, monte told her if she were indeed successful in killing miss macy's, rhoni writer, she would call christie that morning with a code. please had been right about that phone call. >> cold was going to be, do you want to go to dinner? >> police struck pure gold. kristie told them that that evening after the murder, money went to chris's home and confessed. >> she tells us she murdered running better. she shot her. >> christy told police she and her friend got in marnie's car and began stocking dumpsters. money through about a big it was about just toss and a sudden, when christy stopped her. >> chris tells money, well, don't dispose of it. just don't need it. >> donated? >> donate. it just so patient army. >> which is what they did. >> as investigators drove christy around, she showed him which dumpsters they had visited that night. >> we're driving. she says, she buried something. >> marni had buried something small that night of the murder. christy had no idea what it was or how important, how damning it would be. investigators needed a metal detector to find it. once they pulled it out of the eight, they knew it was meant for them and special to running. >> it was a bracelet. it's that pregnant on it. >> ventilator identified that brazen as belonging to rhoni. >> case closed? >> it was probably the defendant a piece of evidence investigators had been looking for for 16 to 17 months. >> it tied marni yang

to the crime scene directly. the case was still not close. yet again, prosecutors wanted more. they wanted to get marni talking about that murder on tape. because she was being so guarded on the phone, christi agreed to wear a wire and meet marni at their usual dining spot. kristie, like shawn, became an unofficial police agent. she even had her own ideas on how to trap her best friend. >> she knew how marni's mind work. >> what was her approach? >> that we had information that would link both of them to the scene. that's how she got marni to talk. >> on the audiotape, as many thought she was confiding in her close friend, she was actually giving police an astounding confession. she told christy how she put the nine millimeter beretta in a bucket of cement and threw it in the dumpster. and explained what she wore the night of the murder. >>. i had dark sunglasses this big covering my face. a hoodie on, okay? i had dark makeup on my face. and

i've got on. >> just like the mysterious figure neighbors described senior crannies condo the morning of the murder, she then whisper details that seemed only the killer would know about the shooting itself. >> she opened up the door, she started screaming. i took her shot. i remember screaming. at that point, i realized we are now at the point of no return, okay? i thought about turning back, we got officials. now and i just started emptying the clip. >> she described how rhoni started walking backwards in the kitchen, bell against the counter and fell on to the kitchen floor. >> and she took one good kick me, got musician. i was, like, this week by that time. it was, like, oh. like that. i just took one last shot in the head and finished her off and i took off. nichols the door behind me, cooking out of the hallway and the kick inside. then i slam the door,

took off and that was it. >> the next morning, after 17 months of painstaking investigation, police headed to marni's home and put one of her garbage cans in front of her garage door to block her in. >> started with the garbage, and about the garbage. the detective that lot more hours on the case and everyone else then wrap handcuffs around marnie's rests. >> she has, what is this all about. >> mourning pleaded not guilty. so, she went on trial on multiple counts of first degree murder. for killing rhoni writer and her unborn child. the state called the shooting and execution, cold, calculating, premeditated. prosecutors provided a parade of evidence and witnesses, including kristie passion, who testified against her once best friend. and the pathologist who concluded that rhoni died while trying to shield her unborn child from the fatal shots. >>

marie's defense attorneys who declined our request for an interview said she was the victim of an investigation them tart -- unfairly targeted her and never found physical evidence tying her to the crime. in the end, marni's own words seemed hard to ignore. shaun gayle, the person at the center of the tragedy, declined as well to speak with dateline. after the verdict, he talked about how difficult life has been for him since rhoni's murder. and about his regret about never knowing running and where that relationship like. >> the fact that rhoni is not here, we don't have a three-year-old daughter, that's going to be something that i live with. >> for the investigators who worked tirelessly on the case, witnessing the conviction of marni yang was supremely satisfying. >> did you see any signs of remorse? >> no. at the beginning of the trial, she seemed confident. i'd like shipley she could be this. after christy passionate testified and after the

audience, but look at her face was there -- anymore. now, she was scared. >> how did you feel about that? >> pretty good. she knew that it was over. >> as for rhoni's family, they say a weight has now been lifted, but their sorrow remains. >> it's something you can ever get out of your head. it's never going to be over and are lots. we've lost a dear member of our family. this is never going away for us. that's all for this edition of "dateline." that's all for this edition of i'm andrea canning. dateline. i'm andrea cannon thanks for joining us. for joining us