it sits with me every day. do you feel that, perhaps, you let anton down? i feel that i probably let everybody down. how do you want us to think of and remember anton? as a good child, a good son, a good citizen. i want anton to be a symbol of what could happen to anyone's child. i want anton to be remembered forever. now, that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." i just flipped out.

i lost it. we could not understand how anybody would want to murder him. craig melvin: he looked like he was sleeping, except for the bullet hole. he was in bed. his head was on a pillow. his entire upper body was tucked in. craig melvin: the first guess was suicide, but-- there was no gun on the scene. hard to have a gun suicide with no gun. that's correct. craig melvin: and this was a man who had everything to live for. eric loved life. craig melvin: he loved his family and women, too, many women. did one of them love him too much? no shortage of lovers to question. craig melvin: no sign of a break-in either. someone either had to have a key or have been let in by eric. craig melvin: so it must have been somebody he trusted or maybe someone who didn't trust him. inside the safe was a .380 handgun. josh mankiewicz: that's the same kind of gun that killed eric.

the same kind of gun. craig melvin: everybody loved him. so who killed him? we knew in our hearts that this murder was going to be solved. we believed that justice was going to be served for eric. hello. and welcome to "dateline." it was a crime scene that offered little evidence. and those who knew eric somuah could not imagine who would want the outgoing salesman dead. but one determined detective refused to give up. it was an investigation packed with twists and turns and an ending few saw coming. here's josh mankiewicz with "while he was sleeping." josh mankiewicz: he was the life of every party. at 34, eric somuah was charming, magnetic, successful.

in 2012, he was living the kind of life that young men liked to brag about to one another. call it the good life, the lush life, the fast lane. it's a world without too many rules, one in which you get close in a hurry to a lot of people you don't know too well. and it was perfect for eric. living just outside the nation's capital, eric somuah was not only living the american dream. he was selling it, too. the son of immigrants from ghana, eric was a top salesman, delivering luxury cars and the fantasies that come with them at this jaguar dealership in bethesda, maryland. he was focused and motivated to be the best. and he turned out to be our number one salesperson. josh mankiewicz: this was the guy who could sell ice in alaska. - right. - oh yeah. right. i tell him that, eric, you could sell anything.

josh mankiewicz: eric's older sisters, suzy and cynthia, spotted his drive and business savvy at an early age. suzy somuah: and he started a lawn cutting business in our neighborhood. the neighborhood kids, they were actually working for him. and he would pay them i think what, $2, to cut the grass. a born capitalist. suzy somuah: yeah. i mean he'll tell me, suzy, i'm going to be really rich one day. you know, he wanted to go all the way to the top. josh mankiewicz: from the day he was born, eric was a charmer. and his sisters and big brother michael always adored him. michael somuah: and he was just a wonderful, wonderful joy to our family and to my sisters and i. cynthia somuah: eric was the baby of the family. but we all enjoyed him because he was very vibrant. it was just the three of us and then he came along. so he was sort of a little doll. yeah. josh mankiewicz: then eric grew up and became a living doll to the women of the nation's capital.

michael somuah: he was a ladies man. it's no secret. he loved women. he'd walk in a room and everyone liked him, like, oh, who's this guy? he's so nice. had a beautiful smile. and he'll just start a conversation with anyone. i mean he just had that type of personality where women liked him. josh mankiewicz: but his sisters hope their playboy brother would finally settle down. in fact, they were counting on it. suzy somuah: we were waiting for a huge wedding that my sister and i were planning for him. the bride hadn't been picked out. no. the bride hadn't-- but the wedding planning was already going. right. the bride had not been picked out yet but we already knew pretty much how the wedding was going to be. josh mankiewicz: eric's sisters admit they knew little about his dating life. his big brother knew much more. michael somuah: our relationship was very, very close. even though he's my sibling and my younger brother, he was my best friend as well. we'd talk about everything. josh mankiewicz: eric's 1,000 watt charm and his work ethic had earned him success on the job,

a high rise apartment in the dc suburbs, and a busy and exciting social life. he was a young man on top of the world. but his big brother still felt the need to occasionally offer advice, like that playing the field has its risks and can't last forever. michael somuah: he really respected me and the fact that i've been with my wife-- we've been together 28 years. he always would communicate and say, hey, i want to be that but i just can't find the right one. josh mankiewicz: even as the youngest and the only one who hadn't married, eric was the glue that bonded his family. suzy somuah: eric was the person that kind of brought the family together. he remembered everyone's birthday. he made everyone feel really special. so it wasn't just his customers he was charming. no. he was charming his family, too. - his family as well. - all of you. you know, he wanted everyone to come together. josh mankiewicz: in june 2012, he brought them together again. but this time it wasn't for a holiday or birthday.

it was because they were worried sick about him. june 5, a tuesday, eric didn't show up for work at the jaguar dealership. initially, his boss brian armstrong let it slide. i chalked it up to, hey, he was taking a day off, unscheduled day off. and i didn't think too much about it. and then the following day, which was the wednesday, again scheduled to come in. no call, no show. and then i got worried. josh mankiewicz: word spread. and soon eric's sisters and the rest of their close-knit family were trying to find him. no one had heard from him. now you're really worried. i'm really worried. josh mankiewicz: cynthia took a deep breath and called 911. police were dispatched to check out eric's apartment in silver spring, maryland. his family raced to meet them. eric somuah, a man about town who lived life at full throttle, had seemingly fallen off the map.

what had happened to him? craig melvin: coming up, an unanswered knock and lots of questions-- suzy somuah: we were all in shock. we were just shocked. i said there's no way. there's no way. craig melvin: --when "dateline" continues. (marci) what is going on? (luke) people love how the new homes-dot-com helps them get quick answers about any property by connecting them to the actual listing agent. (agent) oh! so, i'm done? (luke) oh, no, no, no! we're still not sure everyone knows that we're the only site that always connects you to the listing agent rather than selling off your contact info. so, we're gonna keep you up there a little while longer. (agent) okay, ya! i'm getting great exposure. (marci) speaking of exposure, could we get him a hat? (luke) ooo, what about a beret? (vo) homes-dot-com. we've done your home work. resolve! your pet knows if a mess is really gone; if not, they may re-mark the spot. resolve gets rid of pet messes better than the leading competitor. destroying stains,

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you follow? i'll just look it up. hmm. that went well. long after guests leave, viruses and bacteria linger. air fresheners add a scent. but only lysol air sanitizer helps erase the trace, eliminating odor and killing 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in the air. scent can't sanitize. lysol can. the season finale is upon us. huzzah! libations? help thy yourself. thou keep this dog food in thy fridge. oh, it's not dog food, it's freshpet. real meat, real veggies. for thy beast? thy what now? wait! wait! wait! there's always a betrayal in the finale. freshpet. it's not dog food, it's food food. theresuzy somuah: itrayal was just alarming

when we heard that he hadn't shown up for work. wow. i mean, that's not like eric at all not to show up for work. josh mankiewicz: as his sister cynthia and other family members arrived at eric somuah's building, their fear level was off the charts. they stood vigil in the lobby as police went up to eric's sixth floor apartment. what do you think's happened? i was just trying to figure out where could he have gone. josh mankiewicz: sister suzy was still on her way when cynthia got her answer from a police captain who'd been in eric's apartment. when the captain came and gently placed his hand on my arm, and said that, ma'am, i'm sorry, it looks like your brother has taken his life, i mean, i was raging with screams. and i said there's no way. there's no way he took his life. eric loved life. josh mankiewicz: through her grief, cynthia managed to call her sister.

and she was screaming. and she was bawling. and then when she told me eric was dead, i just flipped out. i just lost it. and you show up how long after that? we showed up about 40 minutes later. josh mankiewicz: detective dimitry ruvin led the second wave of montgomery county maryland police after patrol officers made that initial suicide call. dimitry ruvin: they tried not to disturb the scene. so they didn't really look around too much. tell me about the scene. he had a gunshot wound to his head. he was in bed. his head was on a pillow. his entire upper body was tucked in. it looked like he was sleeping. josh mankiewicz: detective ruvin and a forensic team continued to work. josh mankiewicz: no sign of a struggle? no sign of a struggle anywhere in the apartment. no signs of ransacking. the one thing i noticed right away was that there was no gun. there was no gun on the scene. hard to have a gun suicide with no gun. that's correct. so this isn't a suicide. right. this was a murder.

josh mankiewicz: in some ways, dimitry ruvin was like eric somuah, young, successful, driven. but even working homicides, ruvin had none of the world weariness of some veteran detectives so he was the right cop to break the difficult news to the family. dimitry ruvin: i just went downstairs and i said, we have reason to believe that eric was murdered. that's when everybody lost it. i mean his sister was just crying. his dad had just had his head buried in his hands and just like people just couldn't believe it. we were all in shock. we were just shocked. who would want to murder eric? josh mankiewicz: that is exactly what detective ruvin wanted to know. dimitry ruvin: when we started right there, we started our investigation with the family and those that were close to him just to see if he had any enemies, if there was anybody in his life that would want to hurt him. what's the answer? the answer is eric was loved by everybody. and there was no one out there that the family knew

that would want to hurt him. josh mankiewicz: eric's head wound, from a .380 caliber gun, indicated to detectives that he was shot at point blank range. dimitry ruvin: it appeared that he was sleeping when it happened so it would be someone that eric trusted so much that he went to sleep and had that person there. josh mankiewicz: and ruvin quickly learned that his victim, mr. popularity, had welcomed lots of people into his life and into his home. dimitry ruvin: he used to hang out at a local bar just down the street from his house. the owner of the establishment knew him by name. and he would tell us he would be here every night. and he would go home with a different girl. and his family knew that. they didn't deny that. no. josh mankiewicz: it was the kind of thing eric's brother michael had already warned him about. michael somuah: could it have been some revenge situation, someone wanted to have him. he didn't want to be with them. they came in and took them out. i mean we just didn't know. josh mankiewicz: but michael and his sisters did know about one particular girlfriend named denise.

there were several members of our family who did point to her. denise dated eric for a little bit over a year. she's older. about 20 some years older. what did you learn about his relationship with denise? majority of this family did not like denise. because? because they thought she was using eric or she-- they just didn't like her. josh mankiewicz: detective ruvin's interest in denise intensified when he learned something else. he said denise told him that for a brief time, months before the murder, she had a key to eric's apartment. they were going out. that seems to make sense. right. and there was no evidence of a break-in so someone either had to have a key or been let in by eric. well, i mean denise certainly would fit the profile of somebody that eric trusted, somebody he'd be willing to go to sleep while they were still there. absolutely. josh mankiewicz: police were eager to interview her but they knew that if denise had been in eric's apartment recently, any forensic trail she might have left

might not mean much. and the same was true for all those other women police hadn't even identified. dimitry ruvin: because the dna belongs there. the dna belongs everywhere in the apartment. their fingerprints belong in the apartment. so now you have to prove it some other way. josh mankiewicz: after day one, ruvin said, denise topped his list of people to check out but she would not be ruvin's only lead. josh mankiewicz: a witness came forward. he'd seen a man meeting with eric just before the murder. like eric, he was a salesman. but he wasn't selling cars. craig melvin: coming up, a possible new suspect. craig melvin: --and a possible motive as old as time-- jealousy leads to murder. craig melvin: --when "dateline" continues. with vaseline, hydrated skin is just the beginning.

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waiting for? nesuzy somuah: i was heredy lbut i wasn't really here.. it was very, very difficult. josh mankiewicz: people tell you grief diminishes over time. but days after eric somuah's death, his close-knit family could only dream about whether that moment would ever arrive. when i received the paper the next day and i opened it to the obituary section, and i saw this young handsome guy in there, i just lost it.

josh mankiewicz: sadly, i meet a lot of people in your situation. there are families that really want to know what happened. and then there are other people who were like, not going to bring him back, and i won't spend another minute thinking about the murderer. you guys clearly in that first group. you wanted an answer, didn't you? oh yeah. we wanted to know who would do this because we just could not understand who would want to kill eric. josh mankiewicz: the family had pointed detective dimitry ruvin at eric's girlfriend denise. we interviewed denise multiple times. josh mankiewicz: ruvin's interest in denise picked up when he learned from the family that her romance with eric was on the rocks. michael somuah: and he was with her probably about a year. and then after a while, he was just tired of being, i guess, bogged down by someone. josh mankiewicz: according to ruvin, denise told him that she and eric were talking about breaking up by mutual agreement.

ruvin said she also acknowledged eric was dissatisfied with their relationship, giving the detective a theory to consider. older woman, younger man, and now he wants to end it and maybe see somebody else. right. that breeds jealousy. and we know what that leads to. correct. jealousy leads to murder. josh mankiewicz: while he continued to investigate denise, rubin learned from residents in eric's building that there was a woman there he'd been dating for just a few weeks. that's why we wanted to talk to katrina. josh mankiewicz: katrina ben came down to police headquarters for an interview. she's visibly upset here. oh. josh mankiewicz: just earlier that day, detective ruvin and his partner had told her that eric was dead. stalked, followed home. yes. josh mankiewicz: they wanted whatever

leads she could give them. but they began with the basics. josh mankiewicz: outside their building. josh mankiewicz: katrina did work as a nurse for the nih, the national institutes of health. it turned out she and eric had plenty in common. i'm a basketball fan. and so was he. so that was our connection. josh mankiewicz: the relationship quickly turned more than friendly. katrina said she and eric had been dating weekly, usually on mondays, ever since. katrina wanted to know about progress in finding her lover's killer. josh mankiewicz: she asked if they could at least say where eric died.

josh mankiewicz: the interview topic returned to the vibrant eric she knew. josh mankiewicz: that explained, katrina said, why he never answered her recent texts. josh mankiewicz: the detectives consoled her but also continued to probe about that last night together, two days before eric's body was discovered. josh mankiewicz: but then she said the night got strange.

out of the blue, eric said he wanted to smoke some pot. josh mankiewicz: but she told him she wasn't interested. she did agree to ride with eric so he could buy weed at a nearby apartment complex. josh mankiewicz: they drove up to this building. almost immediately, katrina said, the pot dealer jumped into the backseat. josh mankiewicz: after driving back to their building, eric and katrina spent the rest of the night watching the basketball game before they

became focused on each other. josh mankiewicz: a little later, she told the detective, she was woken up by the sound of eric talking to someone outside the bedroom. through a crack in the door, katrina thought she could make out a face. and the man looked familiar. she believed the guy to be the drug dealer. the same guy she'd met earlier. yes. josh mankiewicz: this was only hours before eric was murdered in his bed. detective ruvin now had another major suspect. so we concentrated on this drug dealer. this would prove to be a critical moment in the case but not for the reasons you think. craig melvin: coming up, did police strike gold in the drug dealer's apartment? josh mankiewicz: that's the same kind of gun that killed eric. it's the same, same kind of gun. craig melvin: when "dateline" continues.

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i richard lui with the news update. sirens sounding in central and northern israel , saturday the idf continuing to pummel lebanon and gaza. cease-fire talks this week yielded little hope of ending hostilities on the ground. i run supreme leader vowing up tooth-breaking response against israel and the united states, saying iran is prepared to change its policy on using nuclear weapons if faced with an existential threat. for now, back to dateline. for now, back to dateline. i'm craig melvin. the murder of a bachelor in the prime of his life had stumped investigators. detectives first focused on his many lovers but they got nowhere in the search for a motive or the weapon that killed him and then a break. one of those women offered up a tip, a pot dealer.

but would it lead police to the smoking gun they sought? back with "while he was sleeping." here's josh mankiewicz. josh mankiewicz: detective dimitry ruvin has worked a lot of homicides, but the death of eric somuah angered him more than most. you know, he was just sleeping. to kill somebody while they're sleeping is just, it's horrible. josh mankiewicz: eric's sisters were grateful to have someone as committed as ruvin working their brother's case. he is a phenomenal investigator. josh mankiewicz: and now just days after eric was murdered, it looked as if detective ruvin might give the family some resolution. one of eric's lovers, katrina ben, handed the investigators a new suspect, eric's pot dealer. josh mankiewicz: katrina told them how uneasy she felt with the dealer in the apartment.

josh mankiewicz: so just around 5:00 am, katrina said she got out of there. dimitry ruvin: and she said the guy then just came up to her as she was leaving and basically pushed her out with the door. josh mankiewicz: based on katrina's account, police believe eric was killed sometime in the early morning hours of june 5, 2012. ruvin brought in the dealer for questioning, a man named william woodfork. and he was like, i have no idea who that is. never met him before. did you believe him? no. i knew eric called him. and katrina's story tied him to eric. josh mankiewicz: ruvin even hammered away at woodfork for hours, finally getting him to admit he sold eric marijuana the night of the murder. but the dealer balked when ruvin asked why he later went over to eric's. dimitry ruvin: and he was like, what are you talking about? he was so adamant about not even knowing where eric lives.

you know, i'm a weed dealer. i'm not a delivery man. i don't deliver. people come to me. josh mankiewicz: detective ruvin wasn't about to just take a drug dealer at his word. so i end up getting a search warrant for his place. and we recovered a safe from his apartment. and inside the safe was a .380 handgun. and it was just like, did he lie? is this our murder weapon? that's the same kind of gun that killed eric. it's the same, same kind of gun. josh mankiewicz: the gun was sent to the firearms lab as ruvin checked to see if he could prove william woodfork was in eric's apartment. but woodfork's dna and fingerprints weren't on the door or anywhere else. josh mankiewicz: when you look at the security tape, is he on there anywhere? they looked at the security tapes. he was never on the security tapes. josh mankiewicz: then the tests came back on the dealer's .380. it was not the gun that killed eric. it was the same caliber, but the ammunition was different so it was just one big coincidence. josh mankiewicz: now eric's dealer wasn't looking

as good for the murder. not only was the gun not a match, ruvin was convinced the dealer was never at eric's apartment. as for denise, the woman who had been eric's girlfriend, investigators interviewed her three times. she was cooperative and allowed them to look at her phone. her phone records put her at home the night of the murder. josh mankiewicz: so they eliminated denise as a suspect and again ruvin started from scratch. you don't just come in in somebody's apartment and murder them while they're sleeping and expect to get away with it. and i felt like this was my job to find the killer. and i felt like i wasn't doing my job. josh mankiewicz: the detective circled back to the person who pointed them towards the pot dealer in the first place, katrina ben, the woman who'd been so surprised and distraught by her lover's death. now the cops wondered if she had deliberately misdirected them. ruvin and his partner asked her back for another chat.

josh mankiewicz: just days before, katrina had spoken of eric lovingly but no longer. at some point, i asked her to give us her phone because i knew she exchanged messages. and she just flat out refused to give us her phone. well, that has to make you sort of sit up and think. it was a little odd. but at the same time, if it was somebody-- it was my significant other that was murdered, i think i would do anything to help the police. and she wouldn't do it. no. josh mankiewicz: katrina's abrupt change in behavior was strange, even alarming, to the detectives. but all they could do was say their goodbyes as katrina headed off to a new job in baltimore. at this point, there was enough weird

behavior from katrina ben. and we had nothing solid, nothing really incriminating, but it was just something not being right there. josh mankiewicz: the cops had a nagging feeling katrina ben was lying. that pot dealer wasn't in the apartment the night eric was murdered. but katrina was. and suddenly, she looked suspicious. but suspicions don't make a case. and right now, someone was getting away with murder. with katrina bound for baltimore, the investigation into her lover's murder threatened to stall. then a remarkable roadside discovery. craig melvin: coming up, a damaged gun helps a determined detective shoot a bullseye. it was recovered the day after we found eric's body. and i was like, let's just test this gun. this gun makes sense. craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. (luke) homes-dot-com is a new,

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josh mankiewicz: as his murder investigation slowly rolled forward, detective dimitry ruvin developed a certain affection for eric somuah, the guy he'd never met, the successful, charismatic, charming victim. josh mankiewicz: you kept a picture of eric on your desk at work? just to remind you. we called him the most interesting man in the world. that was the name of this case. and i've always had a picture of eric that just kind of remind me to keep going and keep working the case.

josh mankiewicz: unfortunately, what wasn't next to eric's photo on ruvin's desk was any hard evidence against katrina ben, the woman ruvin thought knew more than she was telling about eric's murder. he decided to take yet another crack at his suspect. and along with another detective, ruvin paid katrina a visit up in baltimore. for the most part, her story remained the same. josh mankiewicz: but katrina was also on guard and defensive. josh mankiewicz: instead of focusing on the detective's tone, katrina should have paid more attention to their clothing. detective ruvin secretly had a tape recorder in his pocket. dimitry ruvin: and that's when i asked her about owning any guns. josh mankiewicz: armed with a warrant, ruvin searched katrina's apartment but did not find a gun.

he seized her phone and computer but cops didn't find anything incriminating. josh mankiewicz: there was no gun registered to her anywhere. no. and no sign that she'd ever owned one at any point in her life. that's correct. josh mankiewicz: ruvin kept going. i subpoenaed her bank records and credit card records just to see if she purchased any ammunition somewhere. you didn't find it. no. josh mankiewicz: ruvin didn't stop there. he kept looking everywhere. he even went all the way to katrina's hometown in mississippi where he learned something interesting. i talked to her dad who said that he had guns, multiple guns in the house, and that katrina had shot guns before. so we knew she lied. josh mankiewicz: but that is no criminal offense. still, ruvin was certain he could eventually find something concrete and he kept looking. weeks passed, then months. i think that's probably the toughest thing about this job is if it goes unsolved for a while--

you feel like you're letting the family down. right. exactly. and especially families that do stay in contact with you. josh mankiewicz: eric's family was eager for answers. they were not shy about letting ruvin know that. he gets probably daily phone calls from each one of us. and he was so patient in just explaining. detective ruvin never said to you, hey, maybe like one of you could call me and tell the other people? never. and you look at your phone and you're like, you don't even want to answer because you have no news. it's the same that it was last week. we think we know who did it but we can't prove it right now. josh mankiewicz: may 2013. the one year anniversary of eric's murder approached. and frankly, the investigation had come to a standstill. ruvin wasn't just angry. he was frustrated. he needed to make something happen. ruvin thought about the gun that had killed eric. and he knew a lot of handguns just

like it were already in police custody all across the dc area. he decided to examine all of them. it was an immense task. he began in montgomery county. so i decided to look at all .380s recovered in the past year. which had been how many? it was about 60 guns. josh mankiewicz: ruvin combed through the records for each of those guns, most seized by cops in traffic stops or drug busts, but none matched up until ruvin read the second to last file. it was handgun number 59 out of 60. it was a gun turned in by a tourist from montana who had spotted it lying by the side of the beltway, dc's most traveled road. the only reason the man saw it was because he was parked in dc's famous bumper to bumper traffic. it was recovered the day after we found eric's body. it was a short distance away from the crime scene.

and i was like, let's just test this gun. this gun makes sense. this seems like succeeding against unbelievable odds. one in a million. josh mankiewicz: the gun was a mess, missing most of its components. and it looked as if it might have been run over after it hit the pavement. but the barrel intact. using spare parts, the police firearms lab reassembled the weapon and test fired it. [gunshot] the result-- a close match to the bullet that killed eric somuah. and on the gun, a serial number. from it, ruvin learned something else. where was it originally sold? it was sold at a pawn shop in columbia, mississippi. josh mankiewicz: why was that a big deal? because that little pawn shop was just a few miles down the road from silver creek, mississippi, which was the hometown of katrina ben. ruvin just couldn't buy that as a coincidence

so he took another trip down to mississippi, this time to track down the gun's original owner, which was harder than it might sound. this gun had multiple owners. it would take me 30 minutes just to persuade somebody to talk to me. why? because in mississippi you sound like a stranger? that's so weird. possibly sound like a stranger. also, nobody wants to talk about guns. they always think that i'm there to get them in trouble. josh mankiewicz: it was a lot of shoe leather. and ruvin still didn't have a solid link to katrina. it would take some persuading from for me to even have people talk to me. josh mankiewicz: but slowly, the persuasion paid off. and each would tell us, yeah, i had it for a year and then i pawned it at this pawn shop. after interviewing six former owners of the gun, ruvin arrived at a pawn shop that bought and sold it sometime around 2003. dimitry ruvin: so the owner, he was like we kept our records in diaper boxes in the back of the shed. and the rats were eating on them so we decided

to just send them to the atf. josh mankiewicz: ruvin offered to come look through those diaper boxes. the response from the atf-- thanks but no thanks. the atf agent was just saying, just let us take care of it, so we left mississippi really with nothing. josh mankiewicz: ruvin returned to maryland wondering if he'd hit another dead end. he wondered for about a week. it was late june, now more than a year since eric was murdered, when an atf agent called back. we found these diaper boxes. we found these records. and we're faxing a receipt. so i was waiting by the fax machine. the fax came through. i looked at the name. and it was katrina ben. she was the last purchaser of that handgun. and you've got her. oh yeah. it was pretty incredible. i was literally jumping up and down. josh mankiewicz: now he just had to lasso katrina ben. easy? you decide.

craig melvin: coming up, was katrina ben a monday night girl? woman: a girl who you do not take out, you do not show off, and you do not introduce to your friends-- she has her purposes. craig melvin: and was that a motive for murder? when "dateline" continues. resolve! your pet knows if a mess is really gone; if not, they may re-mark the spot.

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josh mankiewicz: eric somuah had been dead for more than a year and still no one had been arrested for his murder. but his family, bound together by grief and faith, felt a kind of serenity. i believe that there were certain people that were destined or ordained, i would say, to work this case. detective ruvin, outside of his normal business hours, was very determined. and he persevered beyond what a normal detective would do. josh mankiewicz: the family didn't know it yet, but that perseverance was about to be rewarded. detective ruvin had an arrest warrant for katrina ben. she was living back in mississippi, which is where the cuffs went on to her wrists. josh mankiewicz: but katrina ben did not

remain silent, not at all. josh mankiewicz: ruvin had dropped the friendly facade he'd once presented to katrina. now he came at her full force. josh mankiewicz: remember, katrina had told police she didn't own a gun, hadn't even fired one. josh mankiewicz: it was simple, they told her. she murdered eric.

josh mankiewicz: the question was why. it's gonna be bad. i'm telling you. josh mankiewicz: but katrina wouldn't give it up and asked for a lawyer. the detectives put her in lockup and ruvin stepped outside to call eric's family. i was just like, you know, thank you god. they're going to get this woman. josh mankiewicz: getting a conviction was ultimately the responsibility of montgomery county state's attorney john mccarthy. josh mankiewicz: even with the gun, which gets you an arrest and into a courtroom, this is pretty far from an ideal case. john mccarthy: absolutely. you can sell this to a jury when you were basically saying that she felt so betrayed after a three week relationship that she was driven to murder. that's a little bit of a tough sell. josh mankiewicz: mccarthy assigned

the case to assistant state's attorney jessica zarella. at trial in the fall of 2014, she gave katrina a nickname that few would envy. josh mankiewicz: why'd you refer to katrina as the monday night girl? it was used in the context of a girl who you do not take out, you do not show off, and you do not introduce to your friends. she has her purposes but those purposes are relegated to monday nights and not the more high profile saturday and friday nights. josh mankiewicz: this was the prosecution theory. katrina learned, maybe from eric's phone, that she was far from the only woman in eric's life. jealousy and anger did the rest. and katrina shot eric while he slept. human emotion fuels most homicides. what i keep thinking of is sort of fatal attraction, an insignificant relationship on one side and a very significant relationship he has with the other person. obviously, he made a misjudgment when he became intimately involved with her.

and the sense of betrayal that she felt is what fueled this homicide. josh mankiewicz: and, said prosecutors, after katrina killed eric, she quickly ditched the gun and began playing the part of the concerned lover. but she couldn't keep her story straight. lies upon lies upon lies to bury the truth. and that ultimate truth in this case was that gun. josh mankiewicz: the crux of katrina's defense was that she had no reason to kill eric because she just wasn't that into him. josh mankiewicz: what's wrong with the argument that this was a woman who discovered there were other women in his life, and she got incredibly jealous and angry, and that tipped her over and she killed him? it just doesn't work for ms. ben. josh mankiewicz: carl henri govan was one of katrina's lawyers.

we have to look at the time in which these two parties were intimate with one another, a matter of weeks. and so to say that the relationship was at such a strong level that she would become jealous or irate to the point where she would murder somebody doesn't resonate with the time in which they were together. josh mankiewicz: as for that gun, katrina's attorneys argued that the traveling nurse had long since lost track of it. they said someone could have stolen the gun along the way and used it on eric. as she shifts from one residence to another from state to state because of her profession, she may have left the gun or she was unaware rather where the gun may have been. josh mankiewicz: jurors were not swayed. it took them just six hours to find katrina band guilty of murder in the first degree. there's no doubt in my mind that had she not been convicted of this crime, katrina ben was just as likely to encounter someone else who disrespected her in the same way that she felt eric did and--

with the same result. --visit that ultimate consequence, which is take his life. josh mankiewicz: but the real jaw dropper came at sentencing when katrina addressed the courtroom. she stood up as if she was giving a eulogy of my brother, telling us i'm sorry for your loss and all this stuff. it was like a slap in the face. she was talking about the murder as though she wasn't even there. you killed this person. you're the reason why we're here. it was just unbelievable. josh mankiewicz: the judge sentenced katrina ban to life plus 20 years. justice has been served today. and what you have sown into the life of our dear brother, cousin, nephew, friend, you will reap bountifully with life in prison. josh mankiewicz: now years after saying goodbye to eric, his large, loving family still feels the pain of his loss. we do remember eric every day,

all the good times we had. it's unfortunate that we have to think about the day that he was brought home from the hospital to the day that we actually closed the casket. josh mankiewicz: what they want to do is warn other families to watch out for the other katrina bens in the world. cynthia somuah: i pray and continue to pray that even in doing this that it will bring awareness to other people out there about certain types of people and just being very cautious and being aware. josh mankiewicz: so the lesson is be careful who you get close to. very careful. very aware. very important. that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. i was in a deep sleep. i remember the barrel of a gun to my mouth. i felt like my head was on fire. i was at his mercy. donna (on phone): he told me if i