The Murders of Rusty and Rebecca Porter
For this case I watched an episode On the Case with Paula Zahn. It’s season 15 episode 9, titled ‘Trail of Betrayal'.’
A newlywed couple is kidnapped from their farmhouse in rural Missouri.
Background
Rebecca Porter was a 46 year old mom, who had just recently married a man named Rusty Porter. The couple was described as being madly in love, and happier than they’d ever been before.
They lived on the Porter family farm in Willard, Missouri, which is about 10 miles west from Springfield. According to family, they loved being on the farm and were just starting their new lives together.
Rusty and Rebecca Porter
The Disappearance
On Monday, April 17, 2011, Rebecca’s daughter, Jessica, talked to her mom. She said her mom had been feeling sick, and she’d talk to her the next day. Jessica never heard from her mom again. She said she tried contacting family members, and they hadn’t heard from her either.
Jessica said she had a gut feeling, so she drove the 45 minutes to the farmhouse. She said she arrived around 12am on April 18, and the door was opened. She went up the door and called out for her mom. There was no answer, and she became even more worried. She called 911, and the Greene County Sheriff’s office arrived within minutes.
The police walked into the home, and told Jessica that there was no intruder inside. The police walked into the master bedroom, and found some disturbing things. The mattress was crooked, he blankets were pulled off the bed, and Rebecca’s purse and cell phone were scattered on the ground.
There was an overwhelming smell of bleach in the home, and there were puddles of it. The police wondered if the bleach had been used to get rid of any evidence or fingerprints left behind.
The police also found a cut window screen in the kitchen, and realized that was mostly the point of entry.
The police went through the rest of the house, and found that Rusty’s office had been ransacked. There was a computer monitor on the floor, but the computer itself was missing. The police also found out that the couple’s security cameras that overlooked the driveway had been destroyed.
The police believed that there was sign of foul play, but there was no sign of Rebecca or Rusty.
The First Lead
At the start of the investigation, the police talked to Rebecca and Rusty’s families. They asked them if there was anyone that might have seen them or would would have wanted to hurt them.
Kay Simmons, Rusty’s mom, said she last saw her son on April 17. She said he came by her home, which was also on the farm property, to get ibuprofen for Rebecca.
The police asked Kay if she knew of anyone who would want to hurt the couple, and Kay said they should look into Rebecca’s ex-husband.
Rebecca and her ex had been feuding about a restaurant they had owned together, and she had even filed an order of protection, which was denied by a judge.
The police went to question her ex. He was described as being devastated and emotional when he found out about her death. He was also eventually ruled out because he had an airtight alibi.
A Family Feud
The police were back to square one. They did found some interesting information while they were searching the couple’s home. They found letters from Rebecca to Rusty stating she was unhappy about a situation that was going on.
The police asked Jessica about it, and she said Rebecca had been unhappy in the days leading up to her death. She said she and Rusty had been fighting a lot because of a feud he had with his uncle, Robert Campbell. Robert was apparently upset that Rusty and Rebecca were living in the farmhouse. Robert had also made accusations that Rusty was spying on him.
Rusty and Rebecca believed that Robert was running an illegal business, and selling stolen equipment.
Rusty applied for an order of protection, and when Robert found out he drove by the couple’s home and said “you better watch yourself.” This was written down by Rusty about the incident.
Robert Campbell
The police wanted to talk to Robert, but it would have to wait a few days. He was away at work, traveling because he was a long haul truck driver.
When he did return, Robert told that about the feud, but he said he wouldn’t hurt either Rusty or Rebecca. Robert also told the police that he had an alibi. He was 100 miles away in Texas for work and that his wife was with him.
The police obtained Robert’s phone records, and did confirm that he was in Texas on the night the couple disappeared. He was eliminated.
Meanwhile, the couple’s families were out searching for them. They also put up missing persons flyers and posters all over Missouri. The search would lead to a tip.
A Tip
After a few weeks of searching, the police received a tip from a jail house informant. He said he knew who killed Rusty and Rebecca. The informant said a few weeks before he went to prison, he was approached by a man named Tony Friend. Tony told him that he had “taken their birthdays,” which is slang for murder.
The police looked up Tony in the system, and he had quite a record. He had many arrests for assault, domestic assault and manufacturing firearms. The police knew he was a very violent person, and needed to speak to him.
The police also obtained Tony’s cell phone records. It placed Tony near the Porter’s home on the night they disappeared. The police realized that the informant was actually very credible.
The police brought Tony Friend in for questioning. He was very arrogant and evasive. He said he didn’t know the Porter’s, and even lied about where he was from.
Tony Friend was from Cedar Creek, Missouri. The police realized that Cedar Creek had more to do with this case than they thought. Tony’s phone records placed him in Cedar Creek on the night of the disappearance.
The police traveled to Cedar Creek to interview Tony’s family. They asked where Tony liked to go when he was home. They told him that Tony often went to the Mark Twain National Forest, and would go to a abandoned cabin that had a boat landing and an abandoned bulldozer.
The Greene County Sheriff’s office contacted the Taney County Sheriff’s office to begin an investigation there.
A Murderous Plot
Sgt. Matthew Wheeler of the Taney County Sheriff’s office was one of the responding officers. He took the other police department to the cabin. The terrain was very rough, but when they arrived they smelled a strong odor of decomposition.
On July 21, 2011, 3 months later, they entered the cabin, where they found a pile of debris and in the pile they found human remains.
Even though the couple was out in the elements for several months, it was easy to see that the couple had been murdered. They were both in pajamas, and the autopsy stated that they had both been shot in the head, execution style. Their DNA and dental records confirmed that these were the bodies of Rusty and Rebecca Porter.
The police also realized that the couple had been kidnapped, driven to this cabin and killed here. There was blood found all over various items of debris.
Tony Friend was their prime suspect, but what they found out was that he didn’t work alone. He had gotten help from his wife, Windy, his son, Phillip and his cousin Dusty.
A Confession
The police knew that they were never going to get any information from Tony, so they brought in the weakest link, Phillip.
Phillip denied it at first, but after he was arrested and charged with murder, he said he would tell them everything. Phillip said his dad came to him and said he had a $100,000 job to “take a birthday,” which Phillip knew meant to murder someone. Phillip also said that his dad was hired by none other than Robert Campbell.
Phillip said on the night of April 18, 2011, he broke into the Porter’s home with his dad and Dusty, while his mom waited in the car. The three men cut the kitchen, and lifted Dusty inside. Dusty unlocked the door, and the three men ambushed Rusty and Rebecca. A struggle ensued, and the couple was led to the car, and their hands were bound with zip ties.
Before they left, the three men poured bleach around the house to destroy evidence and destroyed the cameras. They then drove to their house first, dropped off Windy and then drove to Cedar Creek.
Phillip said he and Dusty waited in the car, while Tony led the couple to the cabin. He said he heard two gunshots and knew his dad had just killed them. Phillip agreed to testify for a lighter sentence.
The Ringleader
The police went through Robert and Tony’s phone records one more time, and realized they two had been in constant contact before and after the murders. They hadn’t spoken for years until they decided to kill Rusty and Rebecca.
Robert Campbell was arrested, when the police confronted him he said “I swear on the Bible, I didn’t do it.” The police didn’t believe him.
Trials and Convictions
Tony Friend pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Dusty Hicks was given two life sentences.
Dusty Hicks
Windy Friend took her case to trial and was sentenced to life in prison.
Phillip Friend testified against his co-conspirators and was sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Phillip Friend
In 2016, Robert Campbell went on trial. This case was purely circumstantial, but Phillip testified against him. Robert was found guilty of two counts of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Robert Campbell
Carolyn, Robert’s wife, was also involved. She was charged with perjury, but before she was given any kind of a sentence, she committed suicide.
FINAL THOUGHTS
So many people’s lives were destroyed over land and a house. Two innocent people were murdered because of a greedy asshole. I 100% believe that Robert was doing shady business, and maybe that also had something to do with why he wanted the couple dead. I also think he really was jealous of Rusty. Rusty’s mom, Kay, is Robert’s sister and she said that her brother deserves to rot in prison for what he did. He took her baby away, and the woman that made her son the happiest he’d ever been. SO many lives were destroyed by this, and I hope the families can be at peace after getting the justice they deserve.
Sources
https://www.ky3.com/content/news/robert-campbell-sentence-393170901.html
