Snapped: Women Who Murder - BONUS: Thadeshia Clark & Omar Savior (Snapped: Killer Couples)

Episode Date: September 12, 2024

The disappearance of a well-respected Georgia man triggers an investigation into the dangers of online dating, and reveals a disturbing plot borne of lust and greed.Season 16 Episode 08Origin...ally aired: June 5, 2022Watch full episodes of Snapped for FREE on the Oxygen app: https://oxygentv.app.link/WatchSnappedPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 With Audible, there's more to imagine when you listen. Whether you listen to stories, motivation, expert advice, any genre you love, you can be inspired to imagine new worlds, new possibilities, new ways of thinking. And Audible makes it easy to be inspired and entertained as a part of your everyday routine, without needing to set aside extra time. As an Audible member, you choose one title a month to keep from their ever-growing catalogue. Explore themes of friendship, loss, and hope with Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. Find what piques your imagination.
Starting point is 00:00:33 Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca to sign up. From Wondering comes a new series about a lawyer who broke all the rules. Need to launder some money? Broker a deal with a drug cartel? Take out a witness? Paul can do it. I'm your host, Brandon James Jenkins.
Starting point is 00:00:52 Follow Criminal Attorney on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, Snap listeners. We are bringing you a special bonus episode today from Oxygen's hit series, Killer Couples. You can also watch full episodes live or on demand on the free Oxygen app or on Peacock by clicking the link in our description. Enjoy. Tragedy strikes a close-knit southern town. You see these types of killings a lot of times with the cartel or mafia. This is probably one of the most complex homicides that I've been a part of.
Starting point is 00:01:32 Family and friends are left wondering who could target such a beloved member of his community. He treated us like each of us were part of his family and he was just simply taking care of us. That of his family, and he was just simply taking care of us. That was my only son. It hit hard that somebody had taken my baby from me. In search of justice, investigators unearth a disturbing plot.
Starting point is 00:01:57 I need you to ask me honestly, did they kill my brother? You and your sister now, you're making me cry. One born both out of greed and deadly romance fueled by a macabre obsession. He described dancing around in a ritualistic manner. He told me, I think she just wanted to play with a dead body. She's crazy. It was kind of like a Bonnie and Clyde situation.
Starting point is 00:02:23 We can do whatever ride it died. I don't believe they could have done it without the other because they both had sinister intentions and they relied on each other. It's a cautionary tale about the dangers of meeting people online because you don't know what their true intentions may be. It's hard to imagine that kind of evil can live in the world. In the heart of the Deep South, Metro Atlanta is a mix of vibrant city life and pastoral settings. The further out you move from the metro Atlanta area, such as Indicob and even to Paulding,
Starting point is 00:03:11 the more rural things get. You expect that there's going to be a lesser crime rate. But on the evening of June 3, 2016, the Paulding County Sheriff's Office receives an alarming phone call. Palding County 911. Yeah, I'm calling from Palding Chrysler Jeep. And we have a neighbor who just walked down the road and said he's found a dead body right across from our dealership on Old Griffin Road. road. A man was walking his dog when he came across what he suspected to be a decomposing body.
Starting point is 00:03:51 He became alarmed and he went to a neighboring business and called 911. Is it all intact did he say? Well that's what I don't know. Do not know. No, I'm walking. Any other description? Do not know. The body was found off a major sort of four-lane roadway in Pauling County. The first responders arrived, and they discovered that it was, in fact, human remains.
Starting point is 00:04:19 The deceased victim had been wrapped in a tarp and lit on fire. Despite extensive injuries, police determined their victim is an African-American male approximately five feet three inches tall. Even though the remains had been burned and charred, you could tell that there was a bullet hole in the left temple area of the head. It was apparent that they were dealing with a homicide. Police searched the area around the body
Starting point is 00:04:53 and find no obvious signs of a struggle. You can imagine that if somebody was alive in that situation, they would be flailing and there would be a tremendous amount of turmoil in that area and there was none of that. Palden County quickly realized that this body had been dumped at this site and had been lit on fire post-mortem.
Starting point is 00:05:19 Probably because the perpetrators were trying to cover up the crime and distance themselves from what they had done. You see these types of killings or these types of body dumps a lot of times with the cartel or mafia where people are just killed. They're killed and then they're burned. So I thought he had to be linked to something that would be so bad to where these people had killed him and mutilated his body.
Starting point is 00:05:54 They searched the area around the remains and they searched the actual remains themselves and they did not find any identification or anything that could help identify that person at the scene. Our coroner did contact the GBI and requested an autopsy for this decedent to give us more information to proceed with the investigation. In the meantime, authorities turned to reports of missing persons in search of a match for their John Doe. The GBI agent who was assisting us with this case was viewing the local news and saw a family
Starting point is 00:06:35 on the local news making a broadcast about a missing person. It's a very short mail matching the description of the human remains that were discovered in Paulding County. The missing person was a Howard Sewell. We kind of put it together that this could very well be, in fact, our person. Howard Lewis Sewell Jr. was born on May 29, 1981 in Vicenza, Italy. My parents both were in the Army and they were stationed in Italy and that is how Howard came about. Faith and Howard were close. They played together all the time when they were younger and he he was a protector, too, so he looked out for her.
Starting point is 00:07:29 Howard Sewell was in between Faith and I. So he was like our little watchman, watched over us at all times. And he was always comforting for us. Howard remained close to his sisters throughout his life. In his 30s, he and his sister Faith shared an apartment in Smyrna, about 10 miles from downtown Atlanta. They also found jobs together at a beauty salon. He was the housekeeper, but he was the best. It goes more beyond the task.
Starting point is 00:08:00 It was just the amount of effort and pride he put into his work. It was inspiring. Howard was the MVP, and that was because he treated us like each of us were part of his family, and he was just simply taking care of us. He loved working around the people that he was with. He had a lot of good people, positive people. I could say that his second family were the people on his job.
Starting point is 00:08:30 On the eve of his 35th birthday, Howard Sewell's future looked bright. When I saw him on that Thursday, he asked if we could move his birthday party from Sunday to Monday. He said that he had plans. I said, oh, Howard, that sounds like a lady. And he just smiled and kind of grinned.
Starting point is 00:08:56 But that was the last time any of Howard's friends or family heard from him. On Tuesday, mid-morning, the location that he worked at actually called me and said, hey, we've tried calling Howard. He was a no-call, no-show, and that's very unusual for him. So I tried calling him multiple times,
Starting point is 00:09:18 and I didn't get an answer. I know my brother, and I know he wouldn't ignore my calls, unless something was going on, something was wrong, and it just didn't feel right with me. Faith called me, and she said, Mama, I don't want to worry you or scare you, but Junior didn't show up for work today,
Starting point is 00:09:38 and he's not at his apartment. She said, I've been calling him all day. I can't reach him. Me being a mother, immediately I know my son. And at that particular time, I have to say that my heart dropped. My heart actually dropped. Because I know him. And I knew something was wrong.
Starting point is 00:10:07 That's when we dropped everything and went to the police to file a missing persons report. Local agency Cobb County Police Department documented the last time that they saw and spoke with him and began their investigation. They also wanted to get some stats on him, how much he weighed, how tall he was so that they could circulate that around the metro Atlanta area in the hopes that we could discover where Howard had gone. Days pass with no news or leads on Howard's whereabouts. Then, one week after his family reported him missing,
Starting point is 00:10:42 police in nearby Palding County, Georgia find the remains of an unidentified male matching Howard's description. Detectives contact Howard's family. They said they found a body. And I was very hopeful that it wasn't him. I was just like, you know, I hope it's, just hope it's not him, it just can't be him.
Starting point is 00:11:08 They asked us a lot of questions about Howard, about his job, about where he lived, and all the things that he did. The family made it very clear to us that this is not like Howard, and that he would not go a length of time without speaking to his family, whether it be by phone or in person.
Starting point is 00:11:29 He was very involved with his family. On June 6th, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation conducts an autopsy on their victim. The autopsy was rather revealing. We learned very quickly that he had died from multiple gunshot wounds, at least four gunshot wounds. They could also tell from the recovery of the projectiles that this was done with a 9mm handgun. The autopsy also confirms the family's worst fears. Looking at dental records, the GBI was able to confirm for us that indeed this was Howard's body.
Starting point is 00:12:12 The police called and they gave us the information and that was probably the moment I remember, probably the most. He said, Mrs. Edmond, are you all together? I said, yes, we're all together. And he said, the coroner just came back into the room and he has informed us that the body that we found is your son's body.
Starting point is 00:12:43 At that point, I lost my breath. Like like I almost began hyperventilating. I remember it just vividly getting out of the car and screaming and literally screaming to the top of my lungs. We stood at the truck screaming and crying and hurting because that was my only son. It hit hard that somebody had taken my baby from me. Coming up, an anonymous tipster comes forward. And the investigation uncovers a sordid romance with sinister intentions.
Starting point is 00:13:29 He kind of had a bad boy thing going on that she liked, and she really started spending all of her time with him. They fell in love with each other. Investigators in Pau Palding County, Georgia have identified the remains of 35-year-old Howard Sewell. And both law enforcement and Howard's family are desperately searching for answers on why someone would do this. We were torn into pieces because of the way he was done more than anything. The way he was abandoned, you know, and left there to die. When we learned that this is Howard, we have to go back and look at his victimology even closer. We have to look at his last footprint, if you will, where he was seen, who he was talking to.
Starting point is 00:14:29 Just hours after Howard has been identified, his family meets with detectives at headquarters. They indicated to us that the last day that they talked to him was his birthday, May 29. I called my brother that morning, kind of early, and wished him a happy birthday. And he hadn't really woke up yet, so I was like, you know, I'm sorry, I just wanted to tell you happy birthday. I told him, you know, I'll let you sleep, and you just call me when you wake up.
Starting point is 00:15:05 It was on Sunday, as a matter of fact. After church, I gave him a call. I said, what are you going to do today? He said, I'm going to rest for a while, and then I'm going to get up, and I'm going to clean up my apartment, and then I have a date. He planned on meeting up with a young lady that he had met online.
Starting point is 00:15:27 He was from Virginia, but that's about as much information that investigators were able to ascertain. I didn't question him about the young lady that he was going out with. That's when the family reveals they had received a disturbing phone call from an anonymous woman earlier that morning.
Starting point is 00:15:50 She told us that she had overheard some guys talking about my brother, and one of them was her boyfriend. I put her on speakerphone for my mom and my sister to hear because we were all sitting together, and my sister took her phone out and she was like, this is for court. She explained to us that she had a son and that she was expecting at that moment. And if it was her child,
Starting point is 00:16:15 she would want someone to come forth with information to help her find her child. The family tells detectives that the caller said Howard had planned to meet a woman for a date the night of his birthday. trying her challenge. The family tells detectives that the caller said Howard had planned to meet a woman for a date the night of his birthday. And she's gonna send an email to her boyfriend. Okay.
Starting point is 00:16:34 When he got there, their whole plan was to rob them instead of them, you know, do what he had to do with the girl. Yeah, they're gonna set him up, uh-huh, okay. They set him up and I guess, you know, they all got to set him up, uh-huh. OK. OK. She was like, he's been shot. And I asked her, and by then, tears were flowing. And I said, did they kill my brother? Can you just ask me honestly, did they kill my brother?
Starting point is 00:17:24 I'm sorry. I just want to know if they killed my brother. I need to know. I know you are. I know you are. We have to know this information. I know you are. But we have to know this information. We have to know. I actually got on the phone with her and I said, sweetheart, this is Sonia.
Starting point is 00:17:56 I'm Howard's mother. And I said, I really need to know, all that you know, as to what happened that night. He's my only son. And I am so proud of you for coming forth. I can't say it. I know you're scared. I know you're scared, but look, we are Christian people.
Starting point is 00:18:18 And we will promise you we're going to ask God's protection upon you. As detectives listen to the recording, they learn Howard's death might be connected to a man in neighboring Cobb County. Our homicide team learned that Howard Sewell had went to an apartment in the Marietta area, and the apartment belonged to a person that this source identified as Chris Hanna's. While the informant never reveals her name, she indicates she's a friend of Chris Hannah. We immediately contacted the Marietta Police Department and give them this information and they were able to research and locate Mr. Hannah's apartment and learned of several calls to that apartment.
Starting point is 00:19:10 Detectives discovered that in the early morning hours of May 30th, the same night that Howard went missing, a 911 call had summoned Marietta Police to Chris Hannah's apartment building. The law enforcement had not only been called to that apartment complex, but actually called to Christopher Hannah's apartment on the night in question due to a fireworks or shots fired complaint. Officers investigated the exterior area
Starting point is 00:19:40 of the apartment complex, but was unable to determine if shots were fired or if they were fireworks. The police went back into service. Nothing came of it. But detectives learned that later that same night, Marietta police became involved in another incident involving Chris Hanna. They received a second call from an officer
Starting point is 00:20:04 that was working a part-time job at the local hospital. The officer had a car drive up into the emergency room ramp. Three people got out of that car. One of them had been shot. Imagine you're walking through the park one day and you see a suspicious backpack sitting underneath a bench. You report it to the police and upon investigating, they discover two live pipe bombs inside.
Starting point is 00:20:37 You rush to clear the area before they explode, saving countless lives and preventing injury. Everyone declares you a hero for a fleeting moment until everything changes and you are declared the prime suspect. This was the story of security guard Richard Jewell. After the Centennial Park bombing killed one person and wounded more than 100, public pressure and a media witch hunt pushed a desperate FBI to find a suspect. Despite obvious holes in the case and unethical tactics used by the FBI, security guard Richard Jewell was under pressure to confess. I'm Aaron Habel. And I'm Justin Evans. Join us as we explore the aftermath of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing and the newest season of our podcast, Generation Y,
Starting point is 00:21:17 the Olympic Park bombing. Follow Generation Y on the Wondry app or wherever you get your podcast. You can listen to Generation Y ad free right now by joining Wondery Plus. This is the emergency broadcast system. A ballistic missile threat has been detected inbound to your area. Your phone buzzes and you look down to find this alert. What do you do next? Maybe you're at the grocery store or maybe you're with your secret lover or maybe you're robbing a bank. Based on the real life false alarm that terrified Hawaii in 2018, Incoming, a brand new fiction podcast
Starting point is 00:21:48 exclusively on Wondery+, follows the journey of a variety of characters as they confront the unimaginable. The missiles are coming. What am I supposed to do? Featuring incredible performances from Tracy Letts, Mary Lou Henner, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Paul Edelstein, and many, many more.
Starting point is 00:22:05 Incoming is a hilariously thrilling podcast that will leave you wondering, how would you spend your last few minutes on earth? You can binge Incoming exclusively in ad-free and Wondery+. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Less than a week after police in Palding County, Georgia found the body of 35-year-old Howard Sewell, his family struggles to cope with the tragic loss. We weren't able to have a proper funeral for my brother. You know, there was nobody there for us to even glance at one last time.
Starting point is 00:22:46 We decided as a family not to even buy a casket to put any charred remains in because that wasn't my boy. That was not him. So we ended up cremating his body. We weren't able to really say goodbye. Thanks to a tip from an anonymous informant, detectives believe they have connected Howard's death to a man named Chris Hanna. Police have also just learned that Chris Hanna was involved in a second shooting the same night Howard disappeared and that the victim had been treated at a local hospital.
Starting point is 00:23:27 He had sustained gunshot wounds to his arm and his leg, however, that they were non-life-threatening. The gentleman that was shot, he was identified as Omar Saviar. The female was identified as Tadeja Clark. The male who had driven the car was Chris Hanna. Detectives learned that an officer working on duty at the hospital that evening had attempted to question the group, but they were unwilling to provide many details.
Starting point is 00:24:01 Marietta detectives told us that they did not buy the story that they were given. However, there were not many leads to pursue at that time. When the uniform officer went out to the car to look inside the car, right dead center in between the two front seats, he saw the butt of the 9mm handgun sticking out. Marietta detectives contacted Chris and said, you have a handgun in plain view in your car, and his words to them was,
Starting point is 00:24:37 it's not mine, go ahead and take it. At that point in time, it was abandoned property. The fireman and the vehicle were seized by police that night on May 30. Police had no reason to hold Chris or Tadeja, so they left the hospital and Omar Saviour was treated and released the next day. But police still had very little information about the shooting. And now authorities from Palden County, Marietta, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation theorize that the incident may be related to the murder of Howard Sewell.
Starting point is 00:25:18 It was apparent to the police that Chris Hannon was somehow involved. We now had two additional names of people that might be involved as well, Omar Xavier and Thadasia Clark. We created BOLOs or Lookout forms for those people and then they were sent out to various agencies in the metro Atlanta area. We were now gathering all the information and intelligence that we could pertaining to Chris, Omar, and Tadeja. We searched all of the social media
Starting point is 00:25:50 that each of the three may have. What we learned about Chris Hanna is that he lived at an apartment complex here in Marietta. His profession was working as a personal trainer at a local gym. Chris Hanna met Tadeja through the gym. Detectives learned that 20-year-old Tadeja Clark had moved to Atlanta from Hampton, Virginia five years earlier.
Starting point is 00:26:17 I looked into Tadeja Clark quite extensively. She was living with Chris Hanna. She was actually, at the time of this investigation, was taking classes at a local community college and how to become a mortician. Detectives also connect Tadasha to 21-year-old Omar Xavier. Omar and Tadasha were involved in a romantic relationship.
Starting point is 00:26:41 What we knew about Omar, he wasn't from around here. We knew he was from the Pennsylvania area. We believe that due to the arrest or some criminal activity that he had there, he actually left Pittsburgh, fleeing from that area, and coming to Georgia to try to start a new life. It seemed like he had actually only been in this area for a very short period of time. He was basically homeless. Omar didn't really seem to have a steady job or home. He did have family in the area, but they couldn't really tell police much.
Starting point is 00:27:17 He seemed to honestly be drifting through when he met Tadasia. Authorities run a background check on Tadasha and discover her record is clean. When detectives reach out to her friends and family, they're surprised to learn police are searching for the 20-year-old college student. Tadasha, she was like the smart person, then it was like everybody else.
Starting point is 00:27:44 She never really been the type of person to follow anybody, you know? She had a lot of energy. She was open to a lot of people. I mean, she states herself at the same time, but never really had problems. But what did Tadasha, Omar, and Chris have to do with Howard Sewell's murder? Detect to do with Howard Sewell's murder.
Starting point is 00:28:05 Detectives scour Howard Sewell's phone records in the hopes they'll find a connection to the trio. We knew from Howard's sister he intended to meet up with a young lady from Virginia. Once we were able to get those records from the provider, we were able to see that he was indeed in communication with the Dacia Clark. we were able to see that he was indeed in communication with the Dacia Clark. According to messages exchanged through a personal ads website, Howard planned to meet
Starting point is 00:28:32 Dacia for a date. We know that he also contacted a taxi cab company in the early morning hours of May the 30th. He had gone to the area of Roswell Road, near this apartment complex where Chris Hanna and Tadasha live. That was the last time Howard Suell placed a telephone call. We were very concerned at this point that this was going to be our homicide location. On June 10th, investigators serve a search warrant at Chris Hanna and Tadasha Clark's apartment. We gathered the City of Marietta SWAT team together because we did not know what was potentially there or who was potentially there. We knew that the people responsible for Howard's death had a strong propensity for violence.
Starting point is 00:29:27 And so dynamic entry was made into the residence. I can remember the SWAT team exiting the apartment with a dumbfounded look on their face. And I said, what's going on? One of the SWAT team members looked at me and said, there's nobody here and there's nothing in the house. Coming up, a forensic search leads investigators to discover a key piece of evidence left behind by the suspects.
Starting point is 00:29:58 I can remember the crime scene technician walking over to the bench and opening the bench up and I looked inside and it was full of blood. And the manhunt for the missing suspects leads to a shocking tell-all confession. The next thing he recalled was hearing gunshots, waking up to the sound of these gunshots. She's like, I'm gonna burn him and say her prayers and sh-t. MUSIC MUSIC In Marietta, Georgia, homicide detectives
Starting point is 00:30:35 are searching the apartment of Chris Hanna and Tadasha Clark, where they believe 35-year-old Howard Sewell was shot and killed on May 30, 2016. The apartment was abnormally clean. There was no furniture. Each room had a very strong odor of bleach or cleaning solution in it, which raised a huge red flag in my investigation.
Starting point is 00:31:05 Police were able to recover projectiles, bullets from the wall. They also found some shell casings that had been missed during the cleanup process. Those projectiles were then linked back to a 9mm handgun. linked back to a 9-millimeter handgun. Which was very significant because we know that Mr. Sewell was killed with a 9-millimeter and that a 9-millimeter firearm had been found in the car that Chris Hanna had drove to the hospital with Omar Xavier and Tadeisha Clark.
Starting point is 00:31:43 As detectives continue processing the apartment, they make a crucial discovery in one of the few remaining pieces of furniture. It appeared to be a piano bench. I can remember the crime scene technician walking over to the bench and opening the bench up and I looked inside and it was full of blood. There was blood that had leaked down like the lid was open and then the blood was leaking down into or leaching into the middle of the piano bench. We took swabs from the blood located in the bench and that blood was later matched to Howard's soul.
Starting point is 00:32:28 Now you have DNA shell casings and projectiles from the back room of this apartment. We all but confirmed that the shooting happened at this apartment and this is where Howard was actually killed. Unfortunately there are no signs in the apartment of where the suspects had fled. Then, five days later, on June 15, detectives receive word that one of the three suspects has been taken into custody, but on unrelated charges. As it happens, Omar was arrested for an unrelated assault charge in a neighboring city. We were contacted by another agency stating that Omar Saviour was actually in custody in our local jail. And I decided that we were going to go interview Mr. Saviour. When detectives sit down with Omar for a formal interview, the 21-year-old is less than cooperative.
Starting point is 00:33:27 Police did bring up Howard Sewell by name to Omar and asked if this was somehow related to this missing persons report and the discovery of Howard's body in the neighboring county. He denied any involvement in it whatsoever. You could tell that he was getting mad. He was getting frustrated with us asking these questions until the point to where he just said, I don't want to talk to you guys anymore. I want to go back to my jail.
Starting point is 00:33:49 So I need to talk to an attorney. And we ended the interview right after that. Omar essentially shut down, but police let him know in no uncertain terms that they believed he was involved in this fatal shooting and that charges could be forthcoming. He was involved in this fatal shooting and that charges could be forthcoming.
Starting point is 00:34:06 Two days later, investigators catch another big break. Chris Hanna got picked up on a pandering charge and we found that he was in jail. So we attempted to interview Mr. Hanna about our investigation. Chris volunteered to speak with us. When we met with him, we went through, essentially, his life history,
Starting point is 00:34:29 and we went all the way up to the point of this case. Chris is giving background into his relationship with Tadasia. They had actually been friends and roommates for several years, but Omar had just recently come into the picture a few weeks ago. but Omar had just recently come into the picture a few weeks ago. Tadeja Clark met Omar's savior at a park. They had run into each other and had an interest in each other.
Starting point is 00:34:56 She found out that Omar was homeless. She then in turn went to Chris Hannah, who she was living with, and requested that he allow Omar Saviour to either stay on the couch or in this back sunroom. Chris tells detectives that while the relationship between Tadasha and Omar was new, the couple had already formed an unfbreakable bond. I think what she was trying to do is she was trying to help Omar feel like he had a family, like he had some self-worth, because she saw good in him. And in turn, he took care of her.
Starting point is 00:35:35 He protected her. They fell in love with each other. When detectives pressed Chris for information about what happened in his apartment the morning of May 30th, he doesn't mention anything about the murder of Howard Sewell. But he does go into detail about how Omar's savior was shot. According to Chris, he was asleep when the shooting occurred. Chris Hanna articulated to detectives that he had gotten so drunk the night of the shooting,
Starting point is 00:36:08 he actually went and passed out in his room. The next thing he recalled was hearing gunshots, waking up to the sound of these gunshots, and seeing Omar run into the room where he said, she shot me, she being the Deja Clark. He said, she shot me, she shot the Deja Clark. Christopher stated to me in the interview that it took him a second to gather his thoughts. He didn't really know what was going on, but he knew that Omar was hurt, he was shot, and he needed help. So he stated that he had gotten up out of bed and they drove to the hospital. Chris explains that after dropping Omar off at the ER, he and Tadeisha returned home.
Starting point is 00:37:02 Once Chris and Tadeisha got back to the apartment, this is when Chris said that he first realized that Howard had been shot in the back room. Chris tells police he had no idea who Howard Sewell was, but he assumed Tadeja had killed him after she made several bizarre comments. Tadeja is telling me how she's, oh, I can't wait to involve this guy.
Starting point is 00:37:31 She makes this to you that she may want to involve this guy? She told me she did or something. She said she did something like, boy, it bleeds in his mouth or something, I don't know. She told you that? Yeah. Or that she wanted to or result in something of that nature. She said she wanted to involve the guy.
Starting point is 00:37:51 Did she ever talk to you about any of this before? I mean, obviously you said that she was. She said she wanted to be a mortician, but that was as far as it went. And then it's like she was starting to get with it like, don't f*** with me. He told me, I think she just wanted to play with a dead body and she's crazy.
Starting point is 00:38:10 He became afraid of her. However, he wanted this body out of his house and so he assisted her in wrapping the body, packaging it, and they worked together to load this body under the cover of night, and they removed the body from the apartment complex. Did you guys have this predetermined location, or did you just drive along and you're like... Just driving along, and she decided,
Starting point is 00:38:35 just stop here. It's at that point that Deja had actually lit the tarp with Howard's body inside on fire. She said they want to burn him and and say her prayers or some sh-. He described her activity as very bizarre. Dancing around Howard's body while it was burning in a ritualistic manner. He decided to get back in the car and just wait on her. Once Chris and Tadasia Clark had abandoned Howard's body in the field, they quickly went back to Chris's apartment
Starting point is 00:39:18 so that they can continue to clean up. Chris claims that the next morning, Tadasha left. Tadasha had packed up her things and left the apartment. Chris left the apartment, and Chris said he hadn't seen Omar since they left the hospital. So at this point, he couldn't say where anyone had gone. Following his confession, police charge Chris with concealing a death.
Starting point is 00:39:46 They also continued their search for Tadasha Clark, putting pressure on her known associates to help bring her to justice. Undoubtedly word got back to Tadasha that police were quickly honing in on her. Lieutenant Mike Hill and I were in my office at the City of Marietta Police Department when we received a telephone call and I just so happened to answer the phone and it was to Deja Clark. She said, hey, I know you guys are looking for me. It's time for us to meet and talk.
Starting point is 00:40:23 Coming up, detectives finally hear toadasha's side of the story, but what she reveals changes everything police thought they knew about the case. Howard was kind of in a fight for his life, and he managed to get the upper hand on Omar. and the police were able to find him. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot.
Starting point is 00:40:55 He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. He was arrested on the spot. lot and we conducted an interview with her. Tadasha starts her story by admitting to police that late in the night on May 29th, she had lured Howard Sewell to her apartment under false pretenses. He was intended to be the first of several victims that Omar and Tadasha had planned
Starting point is 00:41:21 to target. What was revealed through the interview with Tadasha had planned to target. What was revealed through the interview with Tadasia was that this was a scam. That their whole intent was to lure people to this apartment so that they could rob them of their money. And that Tadasia had met Howard online. She had made some promises to him. Howard showed up at this apartment, thought that he was going to celebrate his birthday, thought that he was going to maybe have a hookup with Thaddaisha. So initially it was amicable, they were kind of flirty with each other, and then all of a sudden Thaddaisha and Omar pulled a gun on him and started trying to rob him.
Starting point is 00:41:55 Omar starts demanding money from Howard Sewell. I believe Howard Sewell felt that he didn't have any other recourse. He attacked Omar's save yard. Omar was significantly bigger than Howard. Howard was kind of in a fight for his life. And he managed to get the upper hand on Omar, such that Omar actually lost the gun during this physical fight. Thaddeja picked up the gun at Omar's request.
Starting point is 00:42:22 She said that Omar instructed her to shoot Howard. She picked up the gun at Omar's request. She said that Omar instructed her to shoot Howard. She picked up the gun and began shooting. She mistakenly struck Omar, but she also struck Howard a couple of times as well. And it's at that point that Howard was incapacitated enough that Omar could retrieve the firearm. He fired the fatal shot into Howard's head. In interviewing to Deja, she discloses to us that once Howard is killed and that he
Starting point is 00:42:55 is lifeless there on the bench that we had found during the first search warrant, that Omar essentially removes all of Howard's personal effects, part of which is $400 in cash. And when asked about her receiving any of those funds, she explains to us that she didn't get any of the money. He never gave the Deja Clark any money. He took all the money, kept it for himself. Set the conclusion of the interview that we did take Tadasha into custody and she was
Starting point is 00:43:25 ultimately charged with felony murder. Based on her confession, authorities charged Tadasha Clark and Omar Xavier with malice murder, felony murder, and concealing a death. We felt grateful that they had now been arrested, but we also were angry. We were upset. We wanted justice to be served. In April 2018, nearly two years after the murder of Howard Sewell Jr., Tadasha Clark appears in court for a pretrial hearing.
Starting point is 00:44:04 Ultimately, she played guilty to murder. She also agreed that she would testify against Omar. Three months later, on the eve of his trial, Omar's savior also pleads guilty. To our surprise, he said, I'm going to get convicted anyway. It's time for me to just plead guilty to the murder counts too. Chris Hanna was also convicted.
Starting point is 00:44:30 For his lesser offenses, he received a total sentence of 15 years with eight years to serve the balance on probation. Omar and Tadeja were sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. I think they were equally responsible in this case. I don't believe they could have done it without the other because they utilized Tadeja to lure Howard Sewell and Omar handled the robbery aspect. I think that they both had sinister intentions in this case and they relied on each other
Starting point is 00:45:03 to carry it out. I felt like she got into a relationship and was probably so deep in love with this person that she would do whatever. It's kind of like a Bonnie and Clyde situation. Maybe she had a certain type of feeling for this guy that I'ma stick with you through thick and thin and do whatever ride or die type of situation. It's heartbreaking to know that you have someone out here
Starting point is 00:45:34 that can be so cruel. Howard was always the person that was the calm in the storm. And so they robbed the earth of someone that was the calm in the storm. And so they robbed the earth of someone that was the calm in the storm. I want this message to get out. I want people to hear about this. I want them to learn, you know, to be cautious in situations.
Starting point is 00:45:57 You know, if you're doing online dating, be very cautious. Just understand that your life is precious, you know, and that you need to be careful. Dr. Death, a closer look. This live tour experience brings you face to face with accounts of doctors who caused irreparable harm, the system that failed to protect their patients, and the heroes who stopped them. You'll hear from me, Laura Beal, reporter and host of the Dr. Death podcast, along with our panel of experts and whistleblowers. It's hosted by Suspects, Matthew Schaer.
Starting point is 00:46:43 It's an important evening with one of the most iconic True Crime podcasts of all time. Don't miss your chance to be part of the conversation. Exhibit C Live presents Dr. Death, A Closer Look. Tickets go on sale August 9th, so get your truest True Crime fans together and get tickets before they sell out.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.