Investigation Discovery’s “Evil Lives Here” is a true-crime series that explores those harrowing cases in which the victims’ loved ones — people they knew and trusted — turned out to be their heinous perpetrators. So it’s all about first-hand accounts of the critical moments leading up to the dark crimes, as well as dramatic re-enactments, to really get to the heart of what precisely happened and why. So, of course, it’s Season 6 Episode 4, “Until We Meet Again,” depicting the 2011 double homicide of Amy Henslee and Tonya Howarth, is no different. Here’s everything we know about it.
How did Amy Henslee and Tonya Howarth die?
On the afternoon of January 24, 2011, a stay-at-home mother of two, Amy Henslee, was reported missing by her husband, James, after she failed to return his calls and fail to meet their sons after school. The 30-year-old former department store worker didn’t have a personal mobile phone, but it was highly unusual for her not to be there for her children or even to leave the house without telling anyone. beforehand. After all, according to James, she rarely went out alone suspecting strangers, much less opened the front door to them, leading to the start of a thorough search for her.
With no sign of forced entry, a locked house and just a missing Amy, there wasn’t much initial information to go from, but thanks to the dedication of officials as well as sniffer dogs, she was found. three days later. . It was not as anyone had hoped, however, as her body, alongside that of Tonya Howarth, was found in a shallow grave near County Road 687 in rural Van Buren County. Tonya was a 36-year-old single mother herself, whose daughters weren’t living with her at the time, meaning she hadn’t even been reported missing.
Both women had been shot, according to their autopsy reports. As Amy took one bullet each to her chest and left thigh at close range, Tonya was shot at close range in the back of the head and behind her right ear. Along with this, not only did Amy have bruises on her arms and legs due to an altercation/struggle just before her death, but the report also stated that she had Xanax and marijuana in her system. Coming to Tonya, her toxicology tests showed traces of methamphetamine, amphetamine, and nicotine, and her kneecap likely broke after her tragic death.
Who killed Amy Henslee and Tonya Howarth?
The man responsible for the murders of Amy Henslee and Tonya Howarth is none other than the cousin of the husband of the first and the recurring boyfriend of the second, Junior Lee Beebe. According to official documents, the mixed martial arts fighter arrived at Henslee’s home around 9 a.m. on that fateful day, after which Amy voluntarily accompanied him to his trailer in Bangor Township. According to Junior, they had been having an illicit affair for about a year and a half (which no one around him believes), so they settled down, only to start kissing after smoking some marijuana.
That’s when Tonya unexpectedly showed up, Junior said after being questioned by detectives after coming across traces of blood inside his trailer during a search on January 27, 2011. He said added that she reacted badly to the situation, going so far as to grab her shotgun near the kerosene heater and wave it around. She was the one who allegedly shot Amy before turning the gun on him, if her statements are to be believed, prompting him to fight for control of the gun and then shoot her to kill her in ” self-defense”. However, their injuries suggest things could have turned out differently as well.
Junior originally told investigators he had last seen Amy alive two weeks prior – when he gave her 10 Vicodin pills – but changed his account to the one above as soon as they mentioned the blood. “I shouldn’t have, but I hid it,” he finally said. “Covering them was a huge mistake. I should have called. I am not a bad person. I am not a murderer. It is not me. This “confession” came around the same time a group of volunteers with tracker dogs discovered the shallow grave containing the remains of Amy and Tonya near Junior’s trailer. He was therefore arrested and formally charged.
Where is Junior Lee Beebe now?
Junior Lee Beebe went on trial for the charges against him in early August of that year, and it only lasted just over a week before he was found guilty. With evidence of his victims’ injuries, as well as allegations that his actions were premeditated due to the cover-up, he was convicted of second degree murder in Amy’s death and first degree murder in that of Tonya. The jury asked if they could only consider the lesser charge of accessory to murder in the first case, but it was not allowed by the State of Michigan.
He was also convicted of two counts of criminal use of a firearm. Therefore, after being sentenced to two life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus two years each for the firearms charges, Junior remains behind bars. At 45, he is currently incarcerated at the medium-security Kinross Correctional Facility (KCF) in Kincheloe, Chippewa County, in Michigan’s eastern Upper Peninsula.
Read more: Murder of Sheila Hachmeister: Where is Jason Hachmeister now?
