1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,520
Mountain State Mysteries contains adult content that may not be suitable for all audiences.

2
00:00:06,520 --> 00:00:08,760
Listener discretion is advised.

3
00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:10,160
I'm your host Mark Covey.

4
00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:11,560
And I'm Courtney.

5
00:00:11,560 --> 00:00:37,560
And this is Mountain State Mysteries.

6
00:00:37,560 --> 00:00:55,240
The case we have for you today has to be one of the craziest cases we've ever covered.

7
00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:59,880
It's about a 19 year old woman that goes missing after telling her mom she was visiting

8
00:00:59,880 --> 00:01:00,880
a friend.

9
00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:04,200
This is the case of Samantha Burns.

10
00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:08,480
Samantha Burns was born on April 23, 1983.

11
00:01:08,480 --> 00:01:13,280
To Candy and John Burns, Samantha grew up in Hamelin, West Virginia.

12
00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:17,360
She went to Guyant Valley High School in Birchland, West Virginia.

13
00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:23,720
In 2001, 18 year old Samantha graduated from Guyant Valley High and went to attend Marshall

14
00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:29,680
University in Huntington, West Virginia, which is only 45 minutes away from where she grew

15
00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:31,000
up.

16
00:01:31,000 --> 00:01:35,800
When Samantha wasn't in school, she worked at JCPenney's inside the Huntington Mall

17
00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:37,760
in Barborsville, West Virginia.

18
00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:42,500
On November 11, 2002, Samantha went to work as usual.

19
00:01:42,500 --> 00:01:49,080
She was wearing an orange sweater over a tank top, flared jeans, and mule shoes, and carried

20
00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:50,840
a leopard print purse.

21
00:01:50,840 --> 00:01:55,800
She had diamond earrings and a heart shaped gold ring with a diamond in the center of

22
00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:56,800
it.

23
00:01:56,800 --> 00:02:01,360
Samantha saw Tammy Atkins actually came into the store that day to buy some clothes for

24
00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:07,000
Samantha's cousin and to say hi around 6.30pm that evening.

25
00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:11,600
She confirmed that Samantha was there and everything was going well with her.

26
00:02:11,600 --> 00:02:17,720
At 9.46pm, Samantha called her mom Candy to tell her that she had been with some friends

27
00:02:17,720 --> 00:02:23,640
or that she planned on visiting some at the Marshall University Courtyard Apartments.

28
00:02:23,640 --> 00:02:28,800
Which one it is, I'm not too sure because I've seen both in different articles, which

29
00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:34,160
in one of them it said that she decided on staying at a friend's place in Huntington.

30
00:02:34,160 --> 00:02:37,640
After this call, she never made it home.

31
00:02:37,640 --> 00:02:41,000
When her parents hadn't heard from her, they reported her missing.

32
00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:46,160
Her family found out that the call she made when she called her mom was at the last time

33
00:02:46,160 --> 00:02:52,560
her phone was used and it was turned off at 3.30am, which was on Tuesday, November 12.

34
00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:58,520
It's actually found Samantha's 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier in flames.

35
00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:04,760
They were able to confirm it was hers from the Tiger bumper sticker and the license plate.

36
00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:07,760
5x9326.

37
00:03:07,760 --> 00:03:14,320
Samantha's car was found in a desolate area about a 20 minute drive west of the mall where

38
00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:20,400
she was last seen near the intersection of German Ridge Road and Haney Branch Road.

39
00:03:20,400 --> 00:03:25,240
So this left everyone wondering what happened to her in the 20 minute drive.

40
00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:29,600
When police looked in and around the car, there was no sign of Samantha, which in theory

41
00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:34,760
is a good idea because it meant that she wasn't in the car when it was on fire.

42
00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:39,840
But it confused police and her family because they had no idea where she was.

43
00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:46,280
Sadly, there isn't much more that we would find on Samantha during our research or really

44
00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:48,200
where the investigation went from there.

45
00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:53,680
So as it appears that after leaving work or her friend's apartment, she had been followed

46
00:03:53,680 --> 00:03:58,440
to her car or she was abducted as she was getting in her car.

47
00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:04,360
Just a few days after she went missing on November 17 and the 20th, the two men believed

48
00:04:04,360 --> 00:04:09,800
to be responsible for her disappearance and possible murder were arrested.

49
00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:15,200
Their involvement in Samantha's disappearance was only part of their two week crime spree

50
00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:19,160
that went on in multiple states across the United States.

51
00:04:19,160 --> 00:04:25,440
What we're going to tell you now is the timeline of their crimes leading up to Samantha's disappearance.

52
00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:33,360
25 year old Chad, 25 year old Chad Fox and 19 year old Brandon Basham were cellmates

53
00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:35,880
in jail in Madisonville, Kentucky.

54
00:04:35,880 --> 00:04:41,400
They didn't know each other before becoming cellmates, but they became close and I mean

55
00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:46,680
close enough to become conspirators during the time they were in the cell together.

56
00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:51,360
Chad was originally from Huntington, West Virginia, which he already had an extensive

57
00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:52,880
criminal history there.

58
00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:57,720
He had met and married a woman in Kentucky named Veronica who had a three and a half

59
00:04:57,720 --> 00:04:59,520
year old son named Miles.

60
00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:04,280
From my research, he took care of the family the only way he knew how and that was through

61
00:05:04,280 --> 00:05:05,320
theft.

62
00:05:05,320 --> 00:05:10,720
He had a history of violence against women and multiple of his past partners, including

63
00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:17,960
Veronica actually came forward after his arrest, claiming that he had been violent and aggressive

64
00:05:17,960 --> 00:05:21,320
towards them, even sexually assaulting them.

65
00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:27,680
Two months before Samantha went missing on August 25, 2002, Chad stole a credit card

66
00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:29,200
and drove to Walmart.

67
00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:35,160
He told Veronica to go inside and use a stolen card to purchase a necklace, but instead she

68
00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:40,680
went inside and contacted the police, claiming that Chad was in the parking lot with a gun

69
00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:43,480
and that she was afraid he was going to kill her.

70
00:05:43,480 --> 00:05:49,200
While searching Chad's car, police found multiple stolen credit cards and the gun that Veronica

71
00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:50,520
told them about.

72
00:05:50,520 --> 00:05:56,040
Chad and Veronica were arrested and Veronica son Miles was placed in foster care.

73
00:05:56,040 --> 00:06:01,440
Chad was charged with robbery, 12 counts of credit card fraud and after spending two months

74
00:06:01,440 --> 00:06:07,160
in prison, the Kentucky State Police also charged him with first degree child abuse

75
00:06:07,160 --> 00:06:10,200
for his poor treatment of Miles.

76
00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:13,360
His cellmate Brandon was a native of Kentucky.

77
00:06:13,360 --> 00:06:19,320
He had a significantly less serious rap sheet and was serving time for a felony forgery

78
00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:24,160
charge for forged checks when they were both in the cell together.

79
00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:32,600
On November 4, 2002, around 6.30pm, Brandon asked a correctional officer if he and Chad

80
00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:38,320
could be admitted to the recreational area of the Hopkins County Detention Center.

81
00:06:38,320 --> 00:06:42,160
After they were outside for a little bit, the correctional officer became distracted

82
00:06:42,160 --> 00:06:45,880
while administering nightly medications to other inmates.

83
00:06:45,880 --> 00:06:50,680
When she went outside to bring Brandon and Chad in at 8pm, they were gone.

84
00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:56,120
The only evidence of them even being outside was a rope that had been made out of old blankets

85
00:06:56,120 --> 00:06:57,680
and sheets.

86
00:06:57,680 --> 00:07:03,680
By November 5, the two had made it on foot about 10 miles to Henson, Kentucky.

87
00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:09,560
Chad fell back into his old habits and immediately committed an armed robbery, this time with

88
00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:11,160
the help of Brandon.

89
00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:16,560
Brandon approached the home of a man named James Hawkins, claiming his car had been

90
00:07:16,560 --> 00:07:20,520
broken down and asking to use a phone.

91
00:07:20,520 --> 00:07:25,640
James said yes, likely just wanting to help someone in need, and observed him making two

92
00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:27,080
phone calls.

93
00:07:27,080 --> 00:07:31,720
James even offered to drive him to a local convenience store, which Brandon took him

94
00:07:31,720 --> 00:07:32,720
up on.

95
00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:37,920
Once the two were in James' pickup truck, Chad jumped in the truck as well, pulling

96
00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:43,800
a knife on James and ordered him to drive around so the three eventually reached southern

97
00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:49,400
Indiana where Brandon and Chad tied James to a tree and left him for dead.

98
00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:56,520
After abandoning James and stealing his truck, Brandon and Chad drove to Portage, Indiana,

99
00:07:56,520 --> 00:07:59,540
which is five hours away from the border of Kentucky.

100
00:07:59,540 --> 00:08:05,160
After driving there, they ditched the truck and went to the nearby home of a friend named

101
00:08:05,160 --> 00:08:08,880
Tina, who was living with a roommate named Andrea.

102
00:08:08,880 --> 00:08:15,160
Oddly enough, Tina had actually been a correctional officer at a jail which Chad served time for

103
00:08:15,160 --> 00:08:18,880
in the past, and for some reason they kept in touch.

104
00:08:18,880 --> 00:08:24,640
So Tina drove Chad and Brandon to a motel with her roommate Andrea, before them spent

105
00:08:24,640 --> 00:08:26,960
two nights together there.

106
00:08:26,960 --> 00:08:32,440
So despite her previous career, she was helping these two commit more crimes.

107
00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:36,960
Chad actually asked Tina if she knew where he could obtain a gun.

108
00:08:36,960 --> 00:08:42,520
She remembered that a friend of hers named Robert owned multiple guns and he kept them

109
00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:46,180
in his home in Michigan City, Indiana.

110
00:08:46,180 --> 00:08:51,080
So they all went there together and Tina and Andrea got Robert away from his home while

111
00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:57,600
Brandon and Chad broke in and stole multiple guns, along with some jewelry and a checkbook.

112
00:08:57,600 --> 00:09:03,480
After this robbery, the four of them drove an hour and a half inland and just north

113
00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:10,320
of the Indiana border to Sturges, Michigan, where they got another motel room.

114
00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:16,000
So Brandon and Andrea spent the night there while Chad and Tina drove to nearby Goshen,

115
00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:21,280
Indiana, to meet up with Chad's brother Ronnie, who is said to have lived in the area.

116
00:09:21,280 --> 00:09:27,200
Chad, Tina, and Ronnie smoked meth and marijuana together and went back to Sturges to retrieve

117
00:09:27,200 --> 00:09:29,840
Brandon and Andrea the following day.

118
00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:33,600
But they found Brandon hunched on the floor holding a gun.

119
00:09:33,600 --> 00:09:39,480
After Brandon saw police officers knock on the motel room doors, he became convinced

120
00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:45,360
that the police were catching up with him and he had repetitively threatened to shoot

121
00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:46,360
one of them.

122
00:09:46,360 --> 00:09:51,600
They were able to talk Brandon down and they all left the motel to stay with Chad's brother

123
00:09:51,600 --> 00:09:53,960
Ronnie.

124
00:09:53,960 --> 00:10:00,840
On November 10, 2002, the four left the area for Ohio, where they used bad checks to purchase

125
00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:04,120
items and then returned them for cash.

126
00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:09,680
They went to a nearby Walmart where Chad stole a purse and a cell phone from a car in the

127
00:10:09,680 --> 00:10:10,840
parking lot.

128
00:10:10,840 --> 00:10:17,600
On November 11, 2002, they drove to Canova, West Virginia, which is just 15 minutes away

129
00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:19,440
from Huntington.

130
00:10:19,440 --> 00:10:21,600
They checked into another motel.

131
00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:26,780
Tina would tell the FBI that Brandon and Chad left the girls in the motel and they went

132
00:10:26,780 --> 00:10:32,960
to go smoke meth and steal purses from cars at the nearby mall, which would be the mall

133
00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:34,580
Samantha worked at.

134
00:10:34,580 --> 00:10:39,520
She said they didn't return until the early hours of November 12.

135
00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:44,840
Brandon and Chad headed to the Huntington Mall and split up, both looking for cars to

136
00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:46,680
break into.

137
00:10:46,680 --> 00:10:52,120
The next time that Brandon actually saw Chad, he was driving Samantha's burgundy Chevrolet

138
00:10:52,120 --> 00:10:55,840
Cavalier with her live in the front seat.

139
00:10:55,840 --> 00:11:01,560
Chad and Brandon would switch places and Chad drove the van belonging to Tina following

140
00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:04,400
Brandon while he drove Samantha's car.

141
00:11:04,400 --> 00:11:10,480
So Brandon and Chad drove to the nearby Foodland grocery store and left Tina's van there before

142
00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:15,640
driving to different ATMs, forcing Samantha to pull out cash for them.

143
00:11:15,640 --> 00:11:20,120
Chad then drove Samantha's car back to Foodland to get the van.

144
00:11:20,120 --> 00:11:25,560
And Brandon said that he wanted to find a place to assault Samantha.

145
00:11:25,560 --> 00:11:31,440
According to Chad's testimony, the man drove to a secluded area near the Ohio River.

146
00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:36,280
He said that he watched Brandon get out of the car with Samantha and disappear for about

147
00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:37,440
20 minutes.

148
00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:42,480
When he returned alone, Brandon told Chad that he wanted to purchase gas to pour on Samantha's

149
00:11:42,480 --> 00:11:46,840
car to set it on fire in order to remove fingerprints.

150
00:11:46,840 --> 00:11:52,720
After burning and abandoning Samantha's car, Brandon and Chad returned to their motel covered

151
00:11:52,720 --> 00:11:54,320
in mud.

152
00:11:54,320 --> 00:12:00,440
So later on November 12, Brandon, Chad, Tina, and Andrea moved to a different motel this

153
00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:06,480
time in Little River, South Carolina, which it said Chad lived there for a while so he

154
00:12:06,480 --> 00:12:09,400
was familiar with the area.

155
00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:14,200
Tina said she remembered Brandon repeatedly asking her if she wanted to go swimming in

156
00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:19,400
the Ohio River, which she had no idea what he meant by that.

157
00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:24,560
Tina and Andrea later pointed out that they observed mud in the van along with a box of

158
00:12:24,560 --> 00:12:27,920
candy for a Marshall University fundraiser.

159
00:12:27,920 --> 00:12:33,800
The two also found Samantha's ID in the van, which in all honesty is huge.

160
00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:38,200
Apparently Tina and Andrea were unaware what happened to Samantha.

161
00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:44,280
Brandon actually started wearing a heart-shaped diamond ring strung on a necklace claiming

162
00:12:44,280 --> 00:12:46,360
that he stole it from a car.

163
00:12:46,360 --> 00:12:51,680
And like I said earlier, Samantha had a heart-shaped ring with a diamond in it.

164
00:12:51,680 --> 00:12:56,680
The four nights in Little River was uneventful compared to the rest of the trip.

165
00:12:56,680 --> 00:13:00,120
They smoke and drink together in the hotel room.

166
00:13:00,120 --> 00:13:05,120
On November 14, they headed to nearby Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

167
00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:09,880
In hopes of stealing more guns, they left the girls in the motel room and broke into

168
00:13:09,880 --> 00:13:12,360
the home of Sam Jordan.

169
00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:18,240
As Brandon and Chad were leaving the house, Sam's father, Carl Jordan, drove by so Chad,

170
00:13:18,240 --> 00:13:23,680
who was driving away, started to ram Carl's car with Tina's van.

171
00:13:23,680 --> 00:13:30,320
While Brandon ran from the house and fired his gun to scare Carl off, he hit a nearby

172
00:13:30,320 --> 00:13:32,600
greenhouse while shooting the gun.

173
00:13:32,600 --> 00:13:39,440
So Carl drove away, but Brandon and Chad followed him, still firing shots but now at Carl's

174
00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:40,440
car.

175
00:13:40,440 --> 00:13:44,680
The two then abandoned Tina's car and stole a white pickup truck.

176
00:13:44,680 --> 00:13:53,320
At 2.37 pm, Walmart surveillance footage showed a 44-year-old Alice Donovan driving her blue

177
00:13:53,320 --> 00:13:58,680
BMW into the parking lot, closely followed by Brandon and Chad.

178
00:13:58,680 --> 00:14:03,440
Alice was a mom of two daughters and had been picking up some supplies for Thanksgiving

179
00:14:03,440 --> 00:14:04,440
dinner.

180
00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:10,520
When she parked her BMW, Brandon approached her and Chad circled in the stolen truck.

181
00:14:10,520 --> 00:14:15,760
Chad left the truck in the Walmart parking lot and started to drive Alice's car with

182
00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:21,920
Alice and Brandon in the backseat, basically holding her hostage, just like they did with

183
00:14:21,920 --> 00:14:23,560
Samantha.

184
00:14:23,560 --> 00:14:28,680
Brandon and Chad used Alice's debit card to withdraw money from multiple ATMs and later

185
00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:33,920
that evening they crossed state lines into North Carolina and stopped at a cemetery where

186
00:14:33,920 --> 00:14:38,920
both Brandon and Chad assaulted Alice.

187
00:14:38,920 --> 00:14:43,320
Alice sensed that the two were planning to kill her, so Alice begged Brandon to leave

188
00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:46,480
the gun in the car, but he refused.

189
00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:51,760
Brandon walked Alice away from the car and just like with Samantha, Brandon returned alone.

190
00:14:51,760 --> 00:14:57,400
After this, the two men went back to the hotel to meet Tina and Andrea and informed them that

191
00:14:57,400 --> 00:15:02,600
the police had taken Tina's van and that Brandon and Chad needed to go back to West Virginia

192
00:15:02,600 --> 00:15:03,800
without the women.

193
00:15:03,800 --> 00:15:08,720
Chad would later say that it wasn't until his trip back to West Virginia that Brandon

194
00:15:08,720 --> 00:15:12,680
admitted that he killed both Samantha and Alice.

195
00:15:12,680 --> 00:15:18,760
On November 15, 2002, the men arrived back in Huntington, West Virginia and spent the

196
00:15:18,760 --> 00:15:24,120
next two nights smoking crack cocaine at the house of a friend of Chad's.

197
00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:29,760
This friend would later testify that despite Chad trying to pin the murders on Brandon,

198
00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:32,960
Chad was the ringleader and had controlled what the men did.

199
00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:36,760
It's the opposite of what Chad said.

200
00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:42,960
Two days later, the two were back to their ways and were breaking into cars in a nearby

201
00:15:42,960 --> 00:15:44,760
mall parking lot.

202
00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:51,600
On 7.30pm, Brandon attempted to steal a car from a woman named Deanna Francis with her

203
00:15:51,600 --> 00:15:55,080
and her 15-year-old daughter inside.

204
00:15:55,080 --> 00:16:00,400
Luckily the two were able to escape and Deanna immediately reported this to the police.

205
00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:06,200
A police officer was in the vicinity and was able to catch up and spot Brandon quickly,

206
00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:09,480
so the officer pursued him on foot.

207
00:16:09,480 --> 00:16:16,440
Brandon did elude the officer by hiding behind train cars near the Ohio River, but he was

208
00:16:16,440 --> 00:16:18,680
apprehended by 9pm.

209
00:16:18,680 --> 00:16:21,680
Chad however was still on the run.

210
00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:27,280
That same night, Chad saw a news report that Brandon had been arrested, so this spooked

211
00:16:27,280 --> 00:16:28,680
him.

212
00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:33,560
Knowing he would more than likely be next, the following day Chad was out driving Alice's

213
00:16:33,560 --> 00:16:35,240
BMW.

214
00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:40,640
He decided to go to his brother's house in Goshen, Indiana, but while driving through

215
00:16:40,640 --> 00:16:47,920
Ohio, a state trooper recognized the vehicle as stolen and this started a high-speed chase

216
00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:51,080
reaching up to 130 miles per hour.

217
00:16:51,080 --> 00:16:56,880
However Chad managed to get away from the cop and made it to his brother's house.

218
00:16:56,880 --> 00:17:01,160
With help from his brother and his brother's girlfriend, they were able to get Alice's

219
00:17:01,160 --> 00:17:06,120
car in a barn, hoping the police wouldn't stumble upon him.

220
00:17:06,120 --> 00:17:10,440
However, the police were one step ahead of him.

221
00:17:10,440 --> 00:17:15,280
Knowing that he was more than likely going to his brother's house, police set up surveillance

222
00:17:15,280 --> 00:17:17,360
outside of Ronnie's home.

223
00:17:17,360 --> 00:17:25,040
On November 20th, 2002, after 16 days on the run, Chad was arrested, so while police were

224
00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:28,400
working on apprehending Chad.

225
00:17:28,400 --> 00:17:33,800
Brandon was being questioned by police regarding what he had been doing the last few weeks.

226
00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:40,840
He admitted to a series of crimes in numerous states and even admitted to kidnapping Alice,

227
00:17:40,840 --> 00:17:44,280
but he insisted that she was alive and with Chad.

228
00:17:44,280 --> 00:17:49,560
He even mentioned Samantha Burns telling investigators that Chad got a girl in West

229
00:17:49,560 --> 00:17:50,560
Virginia.

230
00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:58,400
On November 20th, the day after Chad was arrested, the FBI interviewed Brandon for about seven

231
00:17:58,400 --> 00:18:00,160
hours.

232
00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:05,520
This time he said that Chad had actually dropped Brandon back off at a hotel and then driven

233
00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:08,440
off with Alice alive.

234
00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:13,520
Over the next few days, he attempted to aid investigators in finding Alice, who hoped

235
00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:20,520
that Alice was still alive, even drawing out maps of his and Chad's whereabouts.

236
00:18:20,520 --> 00:18:24,400
Investigators were unable to find any trace of Alice.

237
00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:30,920
On November 26th, Brandon finally admitted that Samantha Burns was dead and told investigators

238
00:18:30,920 --> 00:18:36,680
that he and Chad disposed of her body by rolling it down a river embankment.

239
00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:41,880
So police started to search for the bodies of both Samantha and Alice, hoping to reduce

240
00:18:41,880 --> 00:18:45,000
his sentence by aiding them to search.

241
00:18:45,000 --> 00:18:51,880
Brandon, his lawyers and a team of FBI agents and state investigators orchestrated a search

242
00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:57,000
of the area in North Carolina where Brandon claimed they had taken Alice.

243
00:18:57,000 --> 00:19:03,440
At one point during the drive, Brandon said, I never could kill a deer and here I have,

244
00:19:03,440 --> 00:19:06,680
but was cut off by his lawyers before he could finish.

245
00:19:06,680 --> 00:19:12,240
So Brandon led the group to a cemetery where he said he and Chad had assaulted Alice and

246
00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:17,280
even left evidence in the form of her purse strap behind.

247
00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:23,920
He also said that he and Chad had taken her body into the woods nearby and left it covered

248
00:19:23,920 --> 00:19:28,600
but not buried and that it shouldn't be hard to find.

249
00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:33,160
Despite this, investigators were unable to find any signs of Alice.

250
00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:38,280
So when Chad was questioned, he admitted to all the accounts against him, but maintained

251
00:19:38,280 --> 00:19:41,240
he didn't kill Samantha or Alice.

252
00:19:41,240 --> 00:19:46,560
Brandon and Chad were held without bond in the anticipation for a lengthy trial on September

253
00:19:46,560 --> 00:19:49,880
12, 2003, the following year.

254
00:19:49,880 --> 00:19:54,240
The prosecution announced that they would be seeking the death penalty for both men.

255
00:19:54,240 --> 00:20:01,160
Chad's trial began on June 1, 2004 and his legal team attempted to blame Brandon for

256
00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:03,760
the murders of both Samantha and Alice.

257
00:20:03,760 --> 00:20:08,920
The judge disregarded the finger pointing between Brandon and Chad saying, quote, didn't

258
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:14,360
matter, no sense is going to change what you've done to these people, end quote.

259
00:20:14,360 --> 00:20:19,840
Chad's defense team also attempted to paint Chad as a product of his environment, raised

260
00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:26,800
by an abusive alcoholic parents and a victim of fetal alcoholic spectrum disorder.

261
00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:33,680
His legal team claimed that despite his circumstances, he was incapable of murdering two innocent

262
00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:39,200
women, at least not without the influence of someone else.

263
00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:47,480
On June 30, 2004, after deliberating for just one day, the jury recommended the death penalty

264
00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:48,480
for Chad.

265
00:20:48,480 --> 00:20:53,120
That same year, Brandon was also sentenced to death.

266
00:20:53,120 --> 00:20:58,840
Since then, both men have appealed their convictions numerous times and have been denied every

267
00:20:58,840 --> 00:21:00,400
single time.

268
00:21:00,400 --> 00:21:06,360
Brandon read a statement to Samantha's family in the court saying, quote, I know she had

269
00:21:06,360 --> 00:21:08,840
something I never had.

270
00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:12,800
She had a good family that loved her and cared for her.

271
00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:15,640
I helped Chad take her away.

272
00:21:15,640 --> 00:21:20,040
I wish I could bring her back, but I can't, end quote.

273
00:21:20,040 --> 00:21:25,840
Samantha's parents both made a victim impact statement with Samantha's dad saying, quote,

274
00:21:25,840 --> 00:21:31,840
You took my son's only sibling, you took my wife's best friend, and you took my little

275
00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:34,280
girl, your pure evil.

276
00:21:34,280 --> 00:21:40,200
I hope that what you've done eats away at your mind and soul for the rest of your life,

277
00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:41,200
end quote.

278
00:21:41,200 --> 00:21:48,040
Her mom, Candy said, quote, all of her dreams were taken away from her on those hours of

279
00:21:48,040 --> 00:21:52,400
a cold and I imagine very frightful night.

280
00:21:52,400 --> 00:21:57,160
Samantha would have given you her car and her money, so why did you have to do those

281
00:21:57,160 --> 00:21:58,800
things to her?

282
00:21:58,800 --> 00:22:01,080
She was there by herself.

283
00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:05,280
I feel so hopeless that I couldn't be there to help her, end quote.

284
00:22:05,280 --> 00:22:10,960
Brandon apologized to Samantha's family saying, quote, I wish I could bring her back, but

285
00:22:10,960 --> 00:22:20,800
I can't, end quote, which Candy replied, quote, it's too late now to feel sorry, end quote.

286
00:22:20,800 --> 00:22:25,920
To this day, Samantha's remains have still not been located.

287
00:22:25,920 --> 00:22:34,280
On January 24th, 2009, investigators finally located the remains of Alice Donovan in Horry

288
00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:41,920
County, South Carolina, not the area Brandon had told them, which was North Carolina.

289
00:22:41,920 --> 00:22:48,880
In 2017, an Ohio man named Jimmy started posting on Facebook claiming that he had reason to

290
00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:53,600
believe that Samantha Burns was buried on his property.

291
00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:59,480
Jimmy posted about it numerous times, hoping the police would see it, and alleging that

292
00:22:59,480 --> 00:23:05,600
a family member of his told him that Samantha was buried behind his home on his land.

293
00:23:05,600 --> 00:23:09,760
However, it seems like Jimmy just wanted attention.

294
00:23:09,760 --> 00:23:15,040
In Hamlin, West Virginia, a softball field was named in honor of Samantha, caught the

295
00:23:15,040 --> 00:23:18,400
Samantha Burns Memorial Field.

296
00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:24,000
If you or anyone you know has any information on the whereabouts of the remains of Samantha

297
00:23:24,000 --> 00:23:34,040
Burns, contact the West Virginia State Police at 304-528-5555.

298
00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:38,640
We'll be back next week with a brand new episode.

299
00:23:38,640 --> 00:23:43,560
If you find yourself enjoying Mountain State Mysteries, take a second to follow, rate,

300
00:23:43,560 --> 00:23:47,600
and download the show on your favorite podcast platform.

301
00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:51,680
It helps others find good West Virginia true crime podcasts.

302
00:23:51,680 --> 00:23:58,720
Don't forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, all at Mountain State Mysteries.

303
00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:01,080
Do you have a case you want us to cover?

304
00:24:01,080 --> 00:24:06,680
Send us an email at MountainStateMysteries304 at gmail.com.

305
00:24:06,680 --> 00:24:25,200
For show notes, check out our website, MountainStateMysteriesPodcast.com.