By Phil Trexler, Akron Beacon Journal –
AKRON, Ohio — Accused Craigslist killer Richard Beasley wrote an Ohio woman, giving her instructions on where she could find a dead’s man’s wallet and computers buried in her backyard, an FBI agent testified Tuesday.
Another friend of Beasley had to surrender outdoor Christmas lights and take off his pants.
“Yes, we even took his pants,” agent Jack Vickery told a Summit County, Ohio, jury.
The lights and pants belonged to a second dead man, he said.
Vickery was one of a string of FBI agents called to testify in the trial of Brogan Rafferty, a Stow teen accused of helping Beasley kill three men and injure a fourth, each of whom responded to a Craigslist job listing.
Rafferty, 17, is charged with multiple counts of aggravated murder, kidnapping, robbery and theft. He has pleaded not guilty, and his attorneys are expected to argue to jurors that he was under duress and acted in fear for his life when he helped Beasley, 53, carry out the killings.
This week, prosecutors are expected to play a videotaped statement of Rafferty’s interview with law enforcement, given days after his arrest last November, that spells out the plot and the teen’s role. The state is expected to rest its case Thursday or Friday.
In the meantime, prosecutors have used the testimony of law enforcement, the dead men’s family members and the sole survivor, former Canton resident Scott Davis, to divulge details of the Craigslist job listing that all four victims had answered.
Nicholas Kern testified that his father, Timothy Kern, was happy about the job interview, but concerned about the move to southern Ohio and the distance it put between them. The son said he drove his father to meet with the prospective employers for an interview. He did not identify either defendant.
The job promised the use of an expansive property in Noble County and a trailer, plus $300 a week salary to oversee the land.
The ad appeared as early as July 2011, when prosecutors say Ralph Geiger, 56, of Akron, responded. Geiger’s body was found in Noble County in November, the same day the body of Kern, 47, of Massillon, was found in a wooded area near Rolling Acres Mall in southwest Akron. Prosecutors believe Geiger was killed around Aug. 9, 2011.
The scheme did not come to the attention of law enforcement until Davis, 48, was shot Nov. 6 while touring the property with two men believed to be Beasley and Rafferty. His escape led authorities to the body of David Pauley, 51, of Virginia, who was buried on the same property.
Authorities believe Kern was killed Nov. 13 and Pauley on Oct. 23.
Some of the victims were buried in shallow graves dug with Rafferty’s help, prosecutors say.
Davis’ escape ignited the investigation, which included FBI agents from Cleveland to Cincinnati, deputies from Summit County to Noble County, the Ohio Attorney General Office and police from several jurisdictions.
One agent testified Tuesday of recovering a shovel from the trunk of Rafferty’s 1998 Buick LeSabre. There was no blood found in the car, the agent said.
Another agent said she seized a metal container from Rafferty’s home under the belief it contained items one or more victims had owned. The box’s contents were not revealed in court.
Vickery testified about surveillance video shot about 5:30 a.m. Nov. 13 outside a Canton area pizza shop at which Kern’s car later was found. The video shows a white sedan and two men getting out and talking to a third man. All three drove away in the sedan.
Prosecutors contend the video depicts Kern driving off with Beasley and Rafferty. Kern was never seen alive again.
Later, Vickery said an Akron woman contacted authorities after receiving a letter from Beasley written after his arrest. The letter came with a handwritten map marked with an X showing the woman where a wallet and computers would be found in her backyard.
She was instructed, Vickery said, to keep any money found in the wallet and then to destroy the items. She also was asked to used the words “sunny day” when telling Beasley if she was successful or “cloudy day” if she had failed.
Investigators found the wallet buried under some leaves. It contained Geiger’s driver’s license, birth certificate, Social Security card and other personal items.
Under cross-examination by defense attorney John Alexander, Vickery said that Beasley was notorious for deceiving people by using different aliases, including Geiger’s name. Beasley also portrayed himself in local courts as a reformed Christian, who helped criminal defendants change their ways, Alexander said.
Finally, the questioning turned to a Akron home where Beasley had friends. FBI agents searched the home and recovered the Christmas lights and pants belonging to Pauley, Vickery said. The man who lived at the home performed auto work for Beasley in exchange for cash or property.
Alexander pointed out that the man was not charged with any crime, and Vickery said Beasley’s friend had no idea the items were the property of a homicide victim.
“He received the property in good faith,” Vickery said.
