Bloody Lies: A CSI Scandal in the Heartland

1. Easter Massacres

eAster MAssACres 1 1 easter Massacres it was easter Sunday night, april 16, 2006, in a remote section of cass county, Nebraska. a visitor strolled up to Wayne and Sharmon Stock’s impressive, tan, twostory farmhouse on a desolate stretch of gravel road. it was none other than charlie, the friendly mixed-breed dog belonging to the Stocks’ son andy and his fiancée, Cassondra Alexander. The Stocks were only too happy to feed charlie. about 9:30 p.m., Wayne called his son about the wandering pet. andy and cassondra arrived around 10 p.m. to retrieve charlie. The two young adults stayed for about fifteen minutes, sharing small talk about their trip earlier that day to visit cassondra’s parents and grandparents. The Stocks lived about two miles from the nearest town, Murdock, population 269. it’s a vibrant little farmingcommunitynestledalongNebraska’stwo-laneHighway1,sandwiched between Omaha and lincoln. The Stocks’ large extended family stretched out across a remote corner of southeastern Nebraska, a region dominated by cornstalks , combines, and cattle. Rolling hills, rich black soil, and soybean fields surrounded the Stock farm. Together, andy and his father ran the Stock Hay Company. Wayne, age fifty-eight, ran his lucrative agriculture business from his farmhouse. He stored his company’s financial records and sales receipts in his upstairs office. That easter Sunday night, andy and cassondra said goodbye to Wayne and Sharmon and headed home with their dog in tow. andy lived right around the bend from them. Upon returning, cassondra soon went to bed. andy took a shower and then joined her ten minutes later. charlie slept inside the couple’s house, as always. 1 2 bloody lies· · · Sometime after 10:30 p.m., Wayne and Sharmon locked their doors and turned off their house lights. They put on their pajamas and prepared for a good night’s rest after a very full day. Their easter Sunday had begun with a morning worship service at the ebenezer United Methodist church in Murdock.1 Then they had enjoyed an afternoon brunch with Wayne’s elderly mother at her house, about a half-mile from the Stocks’ farm. More than a dozen relatives attended the brunch, and the family gathering broke up at about 5 p.m. Back at their farm, Wayne and Sharmon hosted an easter egg hunt around suppertime for their grandkids. Finding the colorful eggs had left the youngsters wide-eyed and beaming. Family meant so much to the Stocks. Their two oldest children, daughter Tammy and son Steve, both lived in the lincoln area. andy Stock, the youngest of the three siblings, was the only child to remain steadfast to his parents’ farming operation. as Wayne and andy farmed the land, Sharmon operated a popular cake-decorating business out of the farmhouse. The Stocks considered themselves truly blessed in so many ways. likewise, everyone in this part of rural Nebraska regarded the Stocks as pillars of their community—salt-of-the-earth types. The Stock name stood for honesty, integrity, and loyalty. Wayne and Sharmon had a strong commitment to family and a deep devotion to their christian faith. Few people knew, however, that Wayne and Sharmon were millionaires. They never flaunted their wealth or discussed their personal financial affairs, even within the family.2 And so Wayne and Sharmon Stock’s hectic and fulfilling Easter drew to a close. Their window shades were drawn. They closed their bedroom door, as always. The two empty-nesters rolled into bed together, barefoot and clad in their pajamas. When they closed their eyes and pleasantly drifted off to sleep, they had no idea they had only hours left to live.· · · Sometime around midnight, a vehicle cruised along Nebraska Highway 1 and the two occupants inside scouted the country for houses off in the distance . Several houses dotting the rural landscape caught their eye, but these sites were bypassed for many reasons. Some of the properties had barking dogs roaming the front yard. Others had multiple cars in the driveway or eAster MAssACres 3 illuminating house lights. all of these places appeared too risky to approach. eventually, the two occupants passed along a county spur with a giant grain elevator towering over the landscape. Soon after passing this town, the two occupants veered off the two-lane asphalt road and turned onto a gravel road. Their vehicle rolled along 286th Street, kicking up gravel dust as its...