Missouri Wife Staged Reptile Breeder's Murder to Appear Like Snake Bite Death for Insurance Money
A woman from Missouri was convicted in the death of her snake breeder husband, authorities shared. Well-known breeder, Ben Renick, was found dead in Florence at his breeding facility on June 8, 2017, by officials, CBS News reported.
Ben Renick's brother Sam Renick made the 911 call after being informed of the victim's condition by Lynlee Renick, CBS News reported. Lynlee Renick was Sam Renick's wife and helped him in his business and farm.
Sam Renick informed the police that Ben Renick seemed to have been bitten or crushed by one of the many snakes in the building, CBS News reported. The victim's skull was crushed and two puncture wounds on his arm appeared to be bite marks.
On a closer inspection, police determined that Ben Renick did not die of snake bites, but rather from being shot eight times, CBS News reported. A shell casing was also found by officers on the scene. The victim was lying face down in a pool of blood. According to investigators, the body was positioned in such a way as to hide the true cause of his death.
Montgomery County Coroner, Dave Colbert, seeing the condition of the body deduced that the killer knew Ben Renick, CBS News reported.
"For some reason," Colbert said, CBS News reported, "somebody just really didn't like Mr. Renick — because of the amount of damage that was inflicted upon him. And, obviously, from bullet holes in the floor. This was something that was not just a random act."
Lynlee Renick told investigators that she was in a spa when she was informed that her husband had not shown up to pick up their kids, Oxygen reported. She came back home to find Ben Renick in a pool of blood, according to her statement.
Investigators looked into Ben Renick's social media and found that he was doubting his wife for cheating on him, Oxygen reported. Lynlee Renick confessed to the cheating and gave details of her boyfriend. The boyfriend's alibi during the murder checked out, so he was dismissed as a suspect.
Lynlee Renick's social media messages revealed that she was struggling to pay off her business loans, Oxygen reported. The agent handling the payout of Ben Renick's life insurance policy told investigators that Lynlee Renick had begun trying to cash her husband's policy within hours of her husband's death.
Lynlee Renick also attempted to sell Ben Renick's farm and reptile business after her husband's death, Oxygen reported. Officers looked into Lynlee Renick's messages and found chats between her and a man named Mike H.
"They talked the whole day of the murder, and they haven’t talked since," Devin Foust, Missouri State Highway Patrol Investigator shared, Oxygen reported. Mike H was revealed as Michael Humphrey, an old boyfriend.
Another name popped out from the messages, Brandon Blackwell, who was also involved in an affair with Lynlee Renick, Oxygen reported. "They had started a sexual affair, and it turned out it was just three days before the murder," Foust said. He had an alibi at the time of the murder and was let go by the police.
Soon after the death of Ben Renick, Lynee Renick and Blackwell went public with their relationship, Oxygen reported. "We started to see Lynlee’s social media accounts pop up with another man, and then very quickly after that, we found out she was pregnant," Sam Renick said. “Lynlee entered into a relationship with Brandon Blackwell almost immediately after the time of the murder. Brandon was married and had two kids.”
Lynlee Renick moved to Columbia, Missouri with her children, after selling the farm for almost $700,000, Oxygen reported. In 2019, Lylee Renick took out a restraining order against Blackwell.
Blackwell was arrested in January 2020, for violating the order, Oxygen reported. In prison, he confessed to the police that the week before Ben Renick was murdered, Lynlee Renick had confessed to him that she had tried to kill her husband.
"According to Brandon, Ashley Shaw, her coworker, helped her obtain narcotics — in this case, Percocet — and come up with a plan to poison Ben," Foust said, Oxygen reported. The drug had just made Ben Renick sick, so she reached out to Humphrey for help.
The authorities arrested Michael Humphrey. "Lynlee had spun this tale of domestic violence and domestic abuse. "Michael believed this. Michael wanted to help. He had brought her a gun to her spa in case she needed it," Foust said, Oxygen reported.
Humphrey confessed that Lylee Renick shot her husband in front of him, Oxygen reported. Shaw was apprehended and in exchange for immunity, confessed to having arranged the narcotics and helping to establish the alibi that Lynlee Renick was in the spa at the time of the murder.
Lynlee Renick was soon taken into custody, Oxygen reported. She was convicted of second-degree murder and received a prison sentence of 16 years in 2022.