boyfriend, jason lowe. >> i was very determined to get to the bottom of what had happened to jessie bardwell reporter: jason lowe told him jessie had left their apartment on the morning of may 8 and never returned. detectives searched the apartment. there was a line of cocaine on the table, but it wasn't the drugs they were interested in. it was an odor coming from the garage. >> it's a smell that you never forget. >> reporter: it was the smell of death, and it was coming from the back of jason lowe's black audi. there was no jessie bardwell, but even without a body, jason was charged with in order. >> i had no doubt that he had killed her. >> reporter: but he did doubt they would ever find her. >> there are 100 million different places you could hide a body in texas. >> reporter: the police strcially found jessie bardwell. >> and she was thrown away leak a piece of trash. >> i don't feel he's guilty of murder. >> reporter: jason's court-appointed attorney andy farkas says he is sure that jason did not murder jessie, so he road tests the case in a mock trial with surprisingly results. >> not

jessie was killed. and when i woke up it was just a dream. >> reporter: but in his heart of hearts gary bardwell knew itorter: in may 2016 jessie vanished from her home in texas where she had been living with her boyfriend for four months. >> as the father of three girls i was very determined to get to the bottom of what happened to jessie. >> reporter: jason lowe said she left the apartment on the morning of may 8th and never returned. he never seemed concerned four days later. the detective recorded their conversation. >> they've been questioning me at work. >> reporter: the day detectives searched the apartment there was a line of cocaine on the table, but it wasn't the drugs they were interested in. it was the odor coming from the garage. >> it's a smell that you never forget. >> reporter: it was the smell of death and it was coming from the back of jason lowe's black audi. there was no jessie bardwell but even without a body jason was charged with murder. >> i had no doubt he had killed her. >> reporter: but he did doubt they would ever find her. >> texas is a huge state. there are 100 million diff