Jessica Chambers ////// True Crime | Forensic Files

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Untapped all at true crime garage. >> That's enough of the business. Everybody gather around, grab a chair, grab a
beer, and let's talk some true crime. [Music] This is True Crime Garage and this is the case of Jessica
Chambers. [Music] Well, several people are being questioned, but so far no arrests yet in
the brutal murder of a Polola County, Mississippi teenager. >> Well, even seasoned investigators are
calling Jessica Chambers murder the most brutal crime they've ever seen. The 19-year-old was found Saturday near
Courtland, Mississippi. She was set on fire inside her car and died later. Reg's April Thompson tells us how her
family says they're barely barely holding on. >> I've been doing it 21 years now and as
far as the manner of death, this is is certainly one of the worst I've ever dealt with.
>> District Attorney John Champion said Tuesday investigators are leaving no stone unturned for the killer of
19-year-old Jessica Chambers. We're bringing, you know, folks in to interview and talking to different u,
you know, potential witnesses. Uh, but as far as arrests are concerned, there have been none made.
>> Champion wouldn't talk about Chambers's autopsy results or her activities the
night she died. He did say investigators are checking her cell phone to see who she'd been talking to. Something went
wrong and we don't know what yet. Charlotte Wilkersonson says she was brought in for questioning after her
phone number showed up and they took, you know, they took her phone records and I was in there as she called me
Auntie Shasha and I was in there shasha and I went and, you know, talked to them
yesterday Sunday evening. >> She was a loving child, man. 19 years old, just just finished high school, you
know, had her whole life in front of her. >> Ben Chambers, Jessica's father, says
he's in pain knowing how terribly she must have suffered. 98% of her body was burnt. Only thing wasn't burnt was the
bottom of her feet. Um, it's just destroyed our family. Man, it destroyed our family.
>> He says he has faith that investigators will find who's responsible for his daughter's death and is touched by the
show of support from people who heard about the tragedy. from New York to east coast to west coast people I've never
even heard a dream call me you know like Saturday night they all going to light a
candle for my daughter door [Music] 6th 2014 this case takes place in Portland, Mississippi, which is in the
northern part of the state. We have a young woman, Jessica Chambers. She's 19 years old, graduated from high school,
and she is staying at her mom's house, and she goes to a gas station nearby the home. Uh, and she tells her mother that
she is leaving to go clean out her car and to go get something to eat. um within a few hours of that, you know,
she is found in a situation that is is horrible beyond belief >> and this story very quickly becomes
national news. Jessica does not come home that night and unfortunately she will be dead by the next day. And yes,
all the cases that we cover are pretty brutal, but this one is uh especially brutal. So, if you're sensitive to that
stuff, uh we we normally try to stay away from the gore and the graphic nature of all the crimes going into
details. But with the Jessica Chambers case, uh some of that we can't get around. So, if you're sensitive to that,
then uh you might want to not listen to this episode. At 8:09 p.m., the uh fire department is going to respond to a
vehicle on fire call. Now, fortunately, in this situation, they were able to arrive very quickly to this uh to this
call because they were just on a recent call uh of a house on fire that they were leaving previously that put them in
the area. >> When they arrive, they are greeted with with a horrible site. This is a young
woman and she's been very badly burned. >> Well, I mean, I think you're skipping
over it. I mean, let me handle this for a second. The firefighters show up at the scene.
There's a car ablaze. Their first concern obviously is is there anybody in the vehicle and they don't assume so.
This is a firefighter group. These are all volunteers. It's a very small town. >> Mhm.
>> But then out of the darkness comes this figure and it's this young lady. 90% of her body is burnt.
And I I couldn't even imagine what that sight would be for them. And so now we have a whole different
situation. We're not just putting out this fire. Now we got to take care of this. I mean, she's 90% burnt over her
whole body. Pretty much the only thing that wasn't burnt was the soles of her feet.
>> Mhm. >> And now they are she is telling them or trying to communicate with them. Uh then
they end up rushing her to the hospital. >> Yeah. They they life flight her out of
there u in a helicopter trying to save her life and she's in in extremely bad condition, bad shape. She does try to
talk to uh one of the first responders and it's later rumored that excuse me, somebody at the scene had said that she
had tried to tell them who had attacked her, >> right? >> And that she had may have had said the
word Derek or Eric. Um but this person was uncertain. Now the the police were very quick to come out and say that you
know we cannot say with certainty that she said who attacked her. All we can say is that she did communicate with the
first responders and we are working on using that as a lead. So unfortunately when when they arrive when the first
responders arrive, you know, as the captain said, they're responding to a car on fire. That's all they're
expecting to see. You know, vehicles get in accidents, cars catch on fire. You know, this is a small town. We're
talking like 400, maybe 500 people live in this area. And so, they're not expecting to show up and see anything
out of, you know, above and beyond a car on fire. And so, when when they see the
young woman, when they see Jessica Chambers, she's described as stumbling blindly on the road. Um, and she she
again, as mentioned, she does go up to the first responders who are going to try to save her, and she's whispering or
trying to communicate with them in some fashion, and she's saying what what has been echoed as either Eric or Derek.
>> Um, again, this is not confirmed by either law enforcement or the district attorney. Um,
>> they they've been really good about keeping everything close to their uh vest in this case. Now, one thing they
would say after they uh rushed her out of there, they sent her to a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.
>> Um but she could not be saved. Uh and they were reporting that she had received burns on 90% of 98% of her body
and that doctors could not even insert a breathing tube because her airway had been so badly damaged. Now, Jess
Jessica's mother, Lisa Chambers, states that Jessica went to go clean out her car and then she was going to go get
something to eat and she never came home. Her father, Ben, would later tell the news and media a little more about
how his daughter was found. You know, he says that the fire department arrived. Jessica was walking down the road and on
fire. The only part of her body that wasn't burned was the bottom of her feet. And he would go on to say that
they whomever did this, they squirted light fluid fluid, >> lighter fluid, >> lighter fluid down her throat and in her
nose. And apparently she had been knocked out uh before this took place because she had a big gash on top of her
head. >> So you have the gash on the head. And the the interesting thing here is they
they constantly say lighter fluid. It's some kind of accelerant. M. So to to me it's like it it doesn't have to be the
car was set on fire with gasoline and then that somebody used lighter fluid to pour down her throat which is you know
barbaric. It chances are to me it's it whatever was used on the car was also used on her. Now, how did they get it
down her esophagus? Because she was so badly burned inside, down her esophagus, and then up her like nasal passages.
>> Mhm. And that's why the doctors are saying they could not use the breathing tube to uh try to help save her. Um, but
you know, this is this is why unfortunately because how she's found, this is why this case became such big
news and such national news so quickly. Um, we have a young woman who's burned alive and she may have said who who had
attacked her to the first responders. Um, you know, again, investigators would not comment on that to this day, but
especially back then when this case was new in the late part of 2014. Now, one can only speculate, you know, I'm sure
she probably tried to communicate something to the first responders, um, however, being that disoriented being
going, you know, she's probably in shock. Uh, she's got the gash to her head. She's so badly burnt, possibly
even on, you know, her throat and and face as well. I don't know how or what ability she would have to communicate
anything. >> Well, and again, all the these reports coming out by her father, there is no
autopsy report that I could find. So, again, there there's a there's the trial happening and so they can't they don't
release this information. I I at some point the autopsy is going to be released >> and we'd have more knowledge, but based
on we can just go based off of what the the father is saying. >> Right. Right. And that's that was his
comments to the news and media in the early goings of this investigation. Now, Ben, the father, he works as a mechanic
for the sheriff's department. So, he may have been privy to some information being that he's the father of the victim
and that he works with some of the people investigating this case. >> Well, and also his daughter is, you
know, was sent to a hospital. She passed away the next day. And then just the conversation that he's having with the
doctors. The doctors, it's not a full autopsy, but the doctors are obviously knowledgeable and the nurses are
knowledgeable on what's happening with her and her condition to try to save her life. Now, quickly in this
investigation, there's another bit of information that comes out. So, of course, they're trying to piece together
Jessica Chambers last hours. You know, what did she do that last day and who may have been with her and could have
had the means of attacking her that day. Um, and it's quickly reported that a there's a videotape that comes out. And
this is surveillance footage from the gas station that we had mentioned that she had stopped off at. Uh, on the
surveillance footage, you can see Jessica waving to someone out of the view of the camera. And then she goes
over and talks to whom I presume is whomever she was waving to. Jessica eventually returns to her car. She
finishes pumping gas and she drives away. Now, during this brief stop at the gas station, you can also see a man in a
striped shirt who appears to be filling up a gas can uh and then he walks off. So, of course, police feel that this is
a lead and that this is something that they need to find Jessica's killer. So, with the small town and this gas station
being a hot spot and all these cameras that are set up at the gas station, this is going to be something that is going
to give law enforcements a lot of clues and a lot of information to look into. >> Yeah. And let's introduce the district
attorney, John Champion, because if you start to look into this case, he is he's
very prominent. He's at the forefront of almost every news uh clip that you're going to see out there and he's given a
lot of interviews um since this attack. Um now, as said, >> well, since this murder,
>> yeah. Uh John Champion is the district attorney for the area, and he goes on to
clear up um a few things and better describe some of the surveillance footage and the scene to which
firefighters arrive. Champion does repeat that Jessica's mother had said that the 19-year-old had left the house
to clean out her car and to get something to eat. There had been a rumor going around early in the investigation
that Jessica was going to go to a party, but as anyone can see when you watch the
surveillance footage, she is not dressed like she's going to go to a party. She has her hair just like like she just put
it up in a bun and she's wearing what appears to be camouflage pajama pants. So, she's very extremely casual, almost
rolled out of bed casual. Uh, plus police would go on to speak with persons at the party that it was rumored that
she was going to go to, and they all say that they had never seen Jessica at the
party. This is all crucial stuff here because the authorities are trying to learn what happened to Jessica between
the stop at the gas station and then about 90 minutes later when she's found in very bad shape and very badly burned.
Champion also states that Jessica was not burning when she was found. This was just a rumor. She did go up to one of
the firefighters and she did speak. Of course, Champion would not say what Jessica had said, but told the news that
it certainly has given us a lead that we are following up on. He also states that
the volunteer fire department that had responded to the car blaze was able to respond so fast because they were only a
couple miles away at another call when the call came in. It was also clear early on that an accelerant, as the
captain had said, was used, but they were not able to determine if the accelerant was poured on the car or onto
Jessica or both. >> Now, Champion believes that the key to everything in this case is her cell
phone. >> Okay. >> Jessica's phone. Um he he was going under the assumption that she had
received a call before she left her house. Now Jessica's phone was found near her car. And so there's a bit of a
process here. Okay. Well, let's start with the PJs, right? Right. So we got the she's wearing PJs. So everybody's
assuming the her plan that night from all accounts is that she was going to go to this party. Based on the footage, it
doesn't seem like a lot of logical sense, but we're also coming from we're old dudes, you know, like if we are
going to a party, you know, it takes us a long time to get ready cuz we, you know, we we look like dog [ __ ] right?
>> But this and and yeah, and women do will take their time getting ready for events. But this is also not that
uncommon for a girl to, oh, I got to run to the gas station first. I'm in my pajamas. She could have ran to the gas
station and was expecting to come home, change, and then go to the party, >> right?
>> That that's totally possible. Does that factor into what happened to her? Is that some kind of lead? I don't know.
But that that's a possibility is what I'm saying. >> Well, it's only a lead because one, if
she actually went to the party, which I think they're able to determine that she
did not go to the party. Now, from there, your next lead is going to be, okay, well, who would she have attended
this party with had she ended up there? >> And then, did they go to the party? >> Right. Right.
>> Was there somebody else missing from the party? >> Yeah. Because now you have to piece
together who was with her at that moment. You know, we we have that 90 minutes from the from the time that she
leaves the gas station to the time that she's found. We need to figure out what happened during those 90 minutes. Now,
this is why the cell phone becomes so important because, you know, with the with the way everybody, you know, with
the way everybody texts and calls so much these days, there might be a text, there could be a phone call that that
took place that would lead them to figure out how she ended up in that wooded area with her car on fire.
>> Well, what's you know what happens as far as for me as far as fascinations with the case is you have a time frame,
right? You have a window, right? So, you have a window and in this case, she's at
the gas station and then she's found. It's a 90minute window >> and it's piecing together that now today
with social media, Snapchat, all that stuff. These windows of these cases are going
to become smaller and smaller >> cuz we're going to have, you know, because we, how many cases have we
covered where we're like, well, nobody really talked to her for days and days and then she was murdered. So now you
have days and days of a window, right? But now with social media and technology, these windows are going to
be very small. We're going to know what happened 15 minutes before or 5 minutes before. So that's what they're going on.
So >> what I'm also There's a call that sends her Does the call send her to the gas
station? Like Jessica gets a call. >> Mhm. Does that call send her to the gas station or was it just a random call?
>> Well, do you want to get into the gas station? I think we need to. I think we
got to talk about the gas station now. So, what what did she do while she was at the gas station that we know about?
She she arrived. Uh she was pumping gas. She waved to somebody, went and spoke to
somebody. Um, she does go into the gas station and apparently she is friendly with the uh store attendant and would
speak with him when she would go in there. Uh, he said something to media later that she had purchased for $14
worth of gas, which was more than usual for her. She was, you know, you know how
some people go in, you see them at the gas station, they give me five on pump two. Well, she was that kind of person.
She she took a few bucks and filled up the car, you know, but on this occasion, >> right? It might just be because she
didn't have money to fill up the tank. >> He just thought that it was a little abnormal because that's that's the first
thing that the detectives are going to ask him. Did she do anything or say anything abnormal that night? Well, she
purchased $14 worth of gas, which is >> considerably more than she usually buys.
He says that he had commented to her about the amount of gasoline purchased and she said that she was she had
somewhere to go but did not elaborate on that. Now in the video footage as the captain had said there's a lot of
cameras going on here. So you see different camera views uh you know camera one, camera two and so on and so
forth. But through piecing all these together you can see her movements, her her going over and saying hi to
somebody. She goes into the gas station. There are several >> Yeah, she puts out It looks like she
puts out a cigarette before she goes in. >> Yeah, there are several men inside this
gas station. There's about three of them and just hanging out. They're They're just hanging out. Like the captain said,
there's not This is kind of the spot, you know, the hot spot in town where people would go and they would just
chat. But there's three men kind of hanging out off to her side while she's up paying for uh presumably the gas that
she purchased. Well, I'm from a small town and for some reason we had a um a car wash that people would hang out at.
There's a bowling alley and a car wash and people would just drive their cars over to the car wash and hang out. Never
made any sense to me. >> Anyways, so yeah, people are just hanging out. Now is she it looks to me
as she goes to ATM machine in the footage. Yeah, she she I I don't know if she went to an ATM, but there
there are two transactions that take place with the teller um with the attendant. Uh she goes in and presumably
pays for the gas and then it's believed that she went back and purchased a like a pack of cigarettes.
>> Mhm. So again, we're back to this magical hour or this this 90 minutes of where was Jessica and how did she end up
at this wooded area. Now, the the thing that's troubling here is, you know, the captain asked why was she at the gas
station? It may just have been to pick up cigarettes and and gas up the car. Um we don't know what activity was going on
with that cell phone >> and >> Right. But but you one could assume like That's what I'm saying. We're trying to
close out this window. And so it's like, but one could assume if she's going to,
you know, in her PJs to get gas. Why? You're getting gas at night for a reason. Is it for the next day? Is it to
go to this party? Are you getting cigarettes just because you you're a smoker or you getting extra cigarettes
cuz you're going to a party? >> See what I'm saying? I'm trying to figure out what her intention is
>> for later on in the the night. >> Right. I I think that, you know, investigators are working off of the
assumption that they're taking her at her word, that she was just simply going to clean out her car and get something
to eat. She's dressed to me as though she's returning to her mom's house afterwards. Um, but yeah, you're right.
What What were her intentions after that? We don't know. >> Well, well, yeah. Yeah, I I think you're
totally correct. Her intention is to go back to her mom's house, but what is her
intention after that? It's at night. Why are you cleaning up your car? Are you cleaning up your car cuz you want to
pick up a guy? I mean, think about, you know, I kind of have a messy car here and there, but if I was going to pick up
a girl for a date, I want to clean it out, right? >> Mhm. >> I want I don't want to be Captain Slob,
right? They don't You don't want them to get in the car and go, "Uh, like there's
all these, >> you know, rappers everywhere." So maybe, but that's what I'm saying. Was that her
intent? And then did she meet up with this person earlier? You know, did she not go back to her mom's house, you
know? >> Right. Right. Well, well, but the the thing here is right, you've you've got
to figure out if she was if she met with the person that that that set the fire,
right? >> Or was she carjacked or did something something uh you know, get in the way of
of her plans that evening? you know, was was she was there a text or a phone call
that led her elsewhere, >> right? And and that's another difficult thing about this case. I mean, it's a
fascinating case, but because of the trial and because this, you know, it's not case closed that
this information is not out there. Normally, we cover a case and we can say, okay, based off of the based off
the trial and based of what the the cops released, we know their phone records. This we're kind of in the dark.
>> Yeah. There's there's been very little released on this case and due to that we've seen nothing but rumor and
unfortunately you know this case was very hard to read about and research uh for the obvious that she was the
horrible manner that she was killed. But on top of that, there are so many news articles and there's so many news clips
that you will read something in one article and then read another article that that will tell you that that first
one was all rumor, you know, and and so there's a lot of there's a lot of this back and forth when you look into this
case. Just a prime example, the father says that she was found burning when the first responders arrive and the district
attorney quickly says, "Well, that's not true. that was just a rumor that was going on in the area at the time. So,
with these rumors, you're going to see this time and time again in this case. I mean, very quickly into this
investigation, by January of 2015, there are some wild theories out there, and they're just about everything that one
can think of. >> Mentions of the KKK, of bikers, uh, Aryan Brotherhood, meth gangs,
everything that you can think of, there were theories for these for this case. >> Yeah. and we can dive into that right
after a quick beer break. All right, we're back. Cheers, everybody. Cheers. So, we're kneede in this case, right,
Captain? We have this young woman who was found and she's been murdered and we're trying to piece together her her
last hours before the attack and before she's killed. Now, as we said, there's rumors, there's theories coming out.
Why? Because the detectives, they're holding everything close to the vest here. They're not releasing a whole lot
of information. And this will cause the rumor mill to run wild, right? >> And with Jessica being so brutally, you
know, the murder was so brutal. I mean, somebody set her on fire, set her car on
fire as well. Everybody wants to know answers. Everybody wants to know why. And they also want somebody to pay for
this. somebody they want justice to be served. So, a close friend of Jessica, a man claiming to be close friends of
Jessica, claimed also that Jessica at some point lived with his mother for about 6 months or so, comes out saying,
"Well, look, this is this is pretty simple. This all goes back to her father, uh, her father Ben." So, he
claims that Jessa Jessica Chambers's father Ben was a meth dealer. Now, like we talked before, Jessica's father works
for the police department. He's like a mechanic. >> Uh, but this guy's claim is that on the
side that he's also a meth dealer. And this her death is a direct cause of him being a drug dealer. And so what he
comes out and then the other interesting thing here is that um her brother Ben, not her father, but her brother Ben a
year or so prior to all this uh was in a single car accident and he was he died.
So he also claims that that was related to um the father being a drug dealer >> that there's some kind of turf war going
on um >> right there's >> amongst drug dealers and that they're attacking Ben's family
>> right basically like hey if we we killed off your son you know so knock it off
and just and and in the hopes that he's going to stop selling uh meth and then again when that didn't happen now well
we're going to kill your daughter. He also makes claims that uh Jessica had some run-ins with these gangs before uh
because of her father as well. They're targeting this girl and she was gang raped twice. That was one of the hardest
parts about this case for me, Captain, when I was looking into it. There were so many rumors going on. But on top of
that, for every news story that you would read, you know, you have the the blog commenters below that you can read
their comments. And a lot of them were so a lot of them were so racist on on on both sides of the tracks, I guess you
could say. you know, whether it being uh African-American people saying racist things because she was a white victim or
white people saying uh racist things about African-American people being, you know, that that she was, you know, known
to have dated African-American men and that this case is probably that she pissed off some white boy that was
infatuated with her. >> Right. The motives being race related. >> Yeah. And and that's what was so
disconcerning for me when I was researching this case was that every every news article that I read, there
was some form of racism by the readers, you know, and at some point you got to be looking for justice
and not just pointing the finger at maybe some people you don't like for unknown reasons. Uh we're talking about
a small town here. Um this >> well well it seemed to me that a lot of people had you know previous agendas.
>> Yes. >> And then they're looking at this case and whatever their agenda is you know so
if it's like oh well I don't believe that white women should date black men. >> So then I see this case and I go oh see
this is what happens >> right? >> And it's like I mean maybe there is motive for that. I mean, we talked
roughly like it's possible that some of the guys that she dated were in gangs. It seems like this area uh you know has
a lot of gang activity and if she was dating a guy in one gang then maybe that's she w that her murder was
retaliation on that gang >> and that's very possible. >> Yeah. But the thing is here with as you
said most people they some of these people go into it looking at it one way and they skew the events to to follow
their theory. Right. >> The problem here is whomever did this they had they to to treat somebody this
way and to kill them in this manner. this to me there's something more involved that you're either dealing with
an absolute loose cannon or you're dealing with somebody that's got a lot of hatred and that is probably likely to
kill other people. Um this is not just something that that you do as a retaliation in my opinion not something
you do because of an infactuation. Uh but >> again it's a senseless crime though. So
trying to make sense out of a senseless crime in a bad spot, >> right? I don't agree on that level
because I think, >> you know, it's kind of this alpha thing, you know, who's the alpha dog in these
gangs and so it's always taking things to the next level. So yeah, if if it was gang related, if it was drugreated on
her brother's death, oh, we ran this guy off the road. He died in a car accident.
You then they're upping the ante and saying, "Okay, well, we can't just shoot somebody,
>> right? >> We we we're they're trying to make a statement here." So that's where I I
look, would this person kill again? Yeah. This who whoever did this is an absolute psychopath. is an absolute
[ __ ] monster, is an absolute [ __ ] animal, and you know, it's it's it's ridiculous, but they will kill again.
But to say that, well, I don't believe somebody would do this heinous of a crime uh just if it was gang related, I
I don't I don't buy that. I think it's very possible. >> So, let's get back into some of the
facts of this case, right? So we have at roughly 5:30 uh Jessica Chambers is seen
on the surveillance camera. This is at the gas station that we had discussed. Now we did say that they found they were
able to retrieve her cell phone near her vehicle at the scene of the crime. Now they are able to determine later that
there was phone activity at the crime scene where she would later be found. And this phone activity took place at at
approximately 7:30 p.m. Now, at 8:09 p.m. is when the report of a car on fire goes out and they get the call.
>> Now, at 8:13, remember we had said they showed up very quickly. Just 4 minutes
later, they find the vehicle and then they find Jessica Chambers. >> At 9:30 p.m., you know, Jessica has
already been lifellighted to Memphis to try to save her. But at 9:30 p.m., we still have a crime scene that we're
dealing with. Now, there is a tow truck driver who shows up and he removes the vehicle and he's going to take it to
back to the police impound lot where they're going to, you know, test it for whatever that they need to test it for.
Hopefully, they did some proper testing at the crime scene itself. >> But he is going to stop off along the
way, which I I think is probably extremely frowned upon. But he stops off at this very same gas station that
Jessica was seen earlier on the surveillance footage. Right >> now, what happens here is he's stopping
off to buy a pack of cigarettes. >> Well, the store attendant then proceeds to take pictures of the burnt vehicle
and he would later post those onto Facebook and he would also state some details about the crime. Now, later we
would learn that a lot of these details that he states on there is simply more rumor than actual fact. But what he does
here is he throws himself into the suspect ring. >> Well, and like we said before, this gas
station is kind of a social gathering. So, how many this rumor mill in this small town and who's seeing it or or
who's hearing it? It would be, you know, like the bartenders or in this case the
gas station attendant. And now for some reason he's posting this stuff on Facebook.
>> Yeah. And what this whole thing is going to come down to is going to be that hour, that last hour that she was alive
and her cell phone and the cell phone activity. This is what they need to figure out. And that's the process
though. There there's a process of figuring out that that cell phone. one, you have to get the rights to to look up
all the records of the usage of the cell phone. And once you've cleared that hurdle, you you may have to figure out
the password or figure out how to access the cell phone to view the activity. >> Yeah. And you'll see this time and time
again as they're interviewing people from the town uh saying, "Oh yeah, we were contact contacted by the police
because um Jessica at some point, you know, contacted me a couple days before or the day of and then the police are
starting to question these individuals." >> Now, I don't know what the father does,
you know, I don't know him from anybody, but uh I never really liked the father theory. um whether it be I believe that
that person that had mentioned that that this was in retaliation to something he
was doing or some kind of turf war that he had that man had also stated that he believed that Ben was a suspect and
being questioned by police. I don't know if that's the facts. What I do know is that the the sheriff's department, the
police department, the district attorney's office, they interviewed close to 200 people regarding this case.
And this was late in 2015. So, we're only less than a year after this whole investigation has started. And they've
interviewed over 200 people. We're talking about a town of only four to 500 people. you've almost interviewed half
of the the occupants of this town trying to figure out what had happened. Now, of
those 200 people that were interviewed during the course of this, they figure out a few things, okay? And a lot of
this is going to revolve around persons at the gas station that we had spoke of earlier. Now, first, we have that the
gas station attendant who became a suspect because he took the photos. And what ends up happening with his story is
he ends up basically being run out of town because once he becomes a suspect, he starts receiving death threats and
all kinds of threats and so he hightails it out of town. Now the police would go
on further to state that they do not see him as a suspect that they've interviewed this man and they don't have
him on their list. >> Right. But we see this all the time where you're guilty in the public eye.
>> Mhm. And now another person that was of interest, as we had said, was the man in
the striped shirt that was seen on the surveillance footage pumping gas. What looks like he's filling up a gas tank or
a gas can, I'm sorry. >> Now, he was interviewed as well, as well as the three men that were inside the
gas station at the time. And they the police it it's funny here because if you read certain newspaper articles, they do
say that none of these people are they or that they have been cleared. All right? that they've all been cleared in
the investigation. I've never seen those words or heard those words coming out of
the district attorney's mouth because what he simply says is that those those people have been interviewed. They've
been talked to and they are not suspects in this case. He's not saying that they're cleared, but they're not
suspects. Now what does take place in this investigation throughout the investigation there are rumors all along
like the captain had said that this could be some form of gang activity or some kind of gang related crime. What
that leads to and the district attorney's words are that he does not believe that this is a gang related
crime. However, it does lead them to several gang members or people involved in gang related type activities.
>> Right. But my argument would be if if she was murdered by a gang member, then
therefore it's gang related. >> Yeah. What what they end up doing is they they will uh arrest and speak with
um 17 suspected area gang members. This took place in December of 2015. They're arrested on gun, drugs, and counterfeit
charges amongst other charges. Um, but again, the district attorney, John Champion, he does not think that any of
these suspects of these 17 are related to Jessica Chambers murder. But he did say that while the investigation led
them to them being investigated for other crimes, he did state that in their plea negotiations, all will be given an
opportunity to help them help themselves and maybe that will bring us closer to the truth.
>> Right. Closure. And so almost over a year goes by and the rumor mill is going
crazy because the police are keeping everything close to the vest. But now we have a suspect. Now we have an
individual that we're going to charge in the murder of Jessica Chambers. >> Yeah. There's a man Quinton Telus. He's
27 years old. And the district attorney would say that he was a suspect early on
in the case. However, they let the investigation lead them elsewhere. and he did not become the focal point of
their investigation until the fall of 2015. Now tell us he had once lived in Courtland and that is where u the
district attorney says that he and Jessica Chambers had become friends. There is no we there's the district
attorney does not elaborate on the relationship that they had. Mhm. >> Uh but he states that Telus moved to
Mississippi, moved from Mississippi to Louisiana in the summer of 2015. This is the summer after Jessica Chambers is
killed. Right >> now, while he's there, Quinton Telus is arrested in August of 2015 on three
counts of unauthorized use of a credit card. Uh I'm sorry, a debit card. And this debit card would be in connection
to another homicide victim. Right. This is a woman that's identified as a 34year-old University of Louisiana
Monroe student uh from Taiwan. Um according to an affidavit in the case, Telus used her bank card uh belonging to
this missing woman on April 7th. This was the day before she was her body was found.
>> And again, he used that same card on August 18th and August 19th. uh each time he's withdrawing $500.
The authorities had also procured photo evidence and they interviewed Quinton Telus on August 20th, at which point he
admitted that he used the Chase bank card on the three listed transactions that I had just stated. And he also
admitted that he was the individual seen in the ATM photos that the the police were questioning him about. Following
the questioning of Quinton Telus and him admitting that he used the bank card and
that he was the person seen in the ATM photos, the police, they get a warrant to enter Mr. Telles's home. Now, this is
his home in Monroe. Uh, and they discover there a quarter pound of marijuana in his bedroom that is
packaged for sale. Um, so the suspect it he he had stated that, yeah, I I sell marijuana. Um, and so he's arrested and
booked on several charges. Uh, that being using the the dead woman's debit card as well as being charged with
possession of marijuana with intent to sell. So when they when Quinton Telus comes back onto the radar, right, when
he becomes the focal point of their investigation into the Jessica Chambers murder, Quinton Telus is already being
held in a correctional facility in Monroe, Louisiana. This is about a 4hour drive from Portland, Mississippi.
>> Like he was a suspect. >> There's somebody that was on the radar >> with Jessica's Chambers at the
beginning. Then he moves >> Yeah. >> after her death, which is a little sketchy. Anyways, then he's involved
with this debit card and now they're going, "Okay, maybe we need to look at this guy again."
>> Yeah. Right. And >> I just want it to be very clear. Well, and but the thing that is unclear here
is while they transport him from Louisiana to Mississippi, >> uh they then charge him with the death
and murder of Jessica Chambers. >> Yeah. So, what did they know? >> We don't know.
>> Right. That's what's so frustrating about this damn case. >> We don't know what they know. Uh because
they won't say anything. Now, what they will say is that if you listen to and read the district attorney and and what
he's said about this case all along, he's always said that this case will go back to the cell phone. That her cell
phone is going to present us with a lead that's going to lead us to an arrest and
then a an indictment and hopefully a conviction. So, in this case, while they won't state the specifics of that, we
know that they've arrested this man after they were able to access her phone and to see the activity of her phone.
Now, this guy, they bring him in and I it's unclear to me what the motive is, what his motive motive is for murder.
Now they they have gone on to say some things like you know the forensics the forensic evidence in this will be a big
part and a driving force in the prosecution of Quinton Telis. Now did they find something at the scene? I
don't know. Did they find something in his home in Louisiana? We don't we don't know that. However, there's there's been
something to connect him to this case and it's not just that he had some kind of friendship or relationship with
Jessica Chambers. >> Right. Right. Yeah. because we could just assume we're bringing this guy back
now. Let's start questioning him. They don't do that. They charge him. >> Mhm. >> So there's there was a smoking gun
somewhere. >> Yeah. And I think what we're going to see is now he's going to stand trial for
the murder of Jessica Chambers in 2017. So next year, I believe it's in June or July, this trial will start. And that's
when we're going to see how that they connected him to this crime. You know, they they did figure out one thing
forensically regarding this case, that they believed all along that the person that set fire to the car and set fire to
Jessica was most likely in the car before this took place. Um, I don't know what what information or evidence they
could retrieve seeing the state of the vehicle. I mean, the car was burnt so badly. It was a black car and when you
see pictures of it now, it's white. It's it's a completely white car. Um, but they've believed all along that this was
a very uplose and personal attack and murder that took place. That this person attacked her physically and was in the
vehicle when this happened. >> So then he stands trial for this case. >> Correct. He's going to be he's been
charged and he's been indicted and they will go to trial in the summer of next year. Now, this is a capital murder
case, >> right? So there is the opportunity for the death penalty in this case now, but
we all know that usually they're going to kind of weigh their options here. The district attorney has not outright said
that they're going to seek the death penalty. Now, obviously the community really wants that to happen, and I'm
sure a lot of people listening want this to happen because of how horrifying her
death was. >> Well, yeah. And if he's charged, maybe they should throw some lighter fluid
down his [ __ ] throat and set this [ __ ] on fire. >> Well, it but the thing is here, they
have to weigh their evidence because when you when you're going to seek the death penalty, it usually needs to be a
very open and closed case. You know, it needs to be very obvious to the jury that this guy deserves the death
penalty. And I again, because they've not released anything, we don't know what kind of evidence they have on this
guy. Now, we should point out though that he's also been uh indicted and he's been charged with the murder of the the
student, right, of the debit card that he was using. >> Yeah. Cuz at the time they they didn't
have enough evidence. So therefore, they just charged him with the use of the card that gets him in their custody that
gets them access to this information. So, you know, if you watch the Nancy Grace clips, you know, and she's going,
"And this guy, this guy got away 10 years. 10 years for murder." I don't know if that's how she sounds, but but
anyways, guys, she's annoying sometimes, but uh anyways, that was like, "Wow, this guy's going to get away with
murder." Boom. Now he's connected with Jessica Chambers. >> Hopefully, he gets sentenced to death
for that. Uh, like I said, I mean, this I think it's just because, you know, again, she's she's 19, whole life ahead
of her, all that stuff, right? But this is so brutal. I mean, if if that's true,
I mean, setting somebody on fire, that's like a nightmare, right? >> Yeah. That's that's everybody's
nightmare. Like I mean and it sounds bad because we talk about cases every week,
but there's there are some events to me that seem like they trump >> other you know as far as the brutality
of it. >> Well, yeah, you're exactly right. I mean this case and we talked about this
earlier that how how hard it was to research this case and half of that was because of the brutality of of the
violence in this case and then on top of that um you know it's >> you know it it it was just it was a
physically draining case to read about because of the violence. I mean you know you say sometimes there's there's ones
that aren't as hard to research. You know, last week we talked about Beverly Pots and of course that's a horrible
crime and a horrible case as well, but something that took place 60 years ago, you feel a little more distanced from
that that type of crime and it almost feels like you're reading about a story rather than this seems very
>> Yeah. more of a history lesson, which this seems very relevant. It's very new.
And uh and then also you just you know just think about when you're 19 and you're driving around and you know again
19-year-old when we talked about well she never really filled up the tank. Well it's something you do when you're
19. Throw in a couple bucks cuz that's what you have and you start just really identifying with this individual and
then if you lived in a small town or had friends you know grow up in a small town. And so I mean I'm not normally one
to just say let's kill this dude, you know, but for some reason this case like this is horri it's it's sad. And then I
see pictures of this guy and he's just he's the definition of a monster. He's the definition of of the devil, which
then also started rumors that this was a satanic act and all this other junk. Um,
>> but you're going to continue to see rumors about this case and wild theories about this case, even though they have
their so-called man. You know, you're going to continue to see that until the trial comes out and we start to see what
links him to the crime and who and who he is exactly. Now, I don't want to I don't want to prosecute the guy here in
the garage because we should we should assume that he was innocent before, you know, but but the thing is with
>> Well, I could do that if I wasn't drinking. >> With the death of with the death of the
student from uh Louisiana Monroe University, that was an extremely violent death as well. I believe she was
stabbed over 30 times. >> Right. That's why I'm saying I think this guy is just a a freaking monster.
And what we're talking about here though is somebody that is has the ability that
is capable of very heinous and violent violent murders that are up close and personal. I I can see why these two are
very linked. You know that that you can link these two together because of the amount of violence because of how close
you would have had to been when you were attempting to end that person's life. Whomever did this to Jessica, basically
they set her and her vehicle on fire and they walked away. They walked away hoping that she would never walk away
and that she would never be able to tell what had happened to her. Now, she survived long enough and we don't know
what tip she gave or what. >> Again, that will probably come out in the trial, >> right? We don't know what she said to
the first responders, but I hope she had the last word in this case. >> So, the stage is set. The trial is set
for the summer of 2017. So, this is a case that we'll we will jump back into once uh we hear news and I'm sure people
like Nancy Grace and stuff will jump all over these this trial. >> Yeah. And you know what though, maybe
for a form of punishment for, you know, whether you receive life or death or whatever, maybe you should have to spend
like an afternoon with Nancy Grace if you're if you're a guilty horrible person and just just let her yell at you
for for an afternoon. Now, but the thing >> that's mean because I I I do sometimes
watch her show and enjoy it. So, I don't want to I don't want to bash her too much. I mean, she's
>> Well, anyway, but but the thing is that we are going to what we will find out
about is there's going to be a couple things happen with this case even before the trial takes place, right? We're
going to have to figure out is this going to be a death penalty case? They'll have to figure that out and I'm
sure we'll hear more about that before the summer of 2017. But the other issue is here, when would he stand trial for
the murder of the university student? And will that be a death penalty case as well? Because both of those states carry
the death penalty. And these are both horrible crimes. >> And of course, this case has to come out
uh the week of Christmas, and I think I dropped the most fbombs I have on on an episode.
>> You're going to have to clean it up a little bit, mister. >> Yeah, I apologize if that offends. I
mean, we we set the bar at, you know, this is uh what we put the e little e on there.
>> Yeah. >> Um but yeah, I try not to drop them too. But this is just sometimes you read
about this stuff and it just hits you in in a weird way and >> it just just lingers with you and then
for three or four days you're just freaking depressed about everything and you just humanity. You just
>> you lost hope in humanity. Anyways, um so we'll we'll give updates on this case once we know something. And we got
any recommended reading for the week? >> We do. This week we are recommending Psychopaths in Our Lives by Diane
Emerson. Uh as you probably know, most of what is written about psychopaths are from the perspective of violent
psychopaths. But in some cases, serial killers are operating on a much lower level than psycho psychopaths that are
successful in masking their true character. This is not an, you know, one of those all of these people are bad
kind of stories, right? Uh the author wants people to see the truth about what psychopaths are doing and for people to
recognize how they operate. Again, that's psychopaths in our lives by Diane Emerson. And you can pick that up by
going to true crimegar.com and click on the recommended page. And thank you everybody out there for listening.
>> Yeah. I mean, I'm just going to take this moment to say happy holidays. Uh, merry Christmas. Happy Quanza.
>> I'm sure I'm going to >> Happy Hanukkah. >> Happy Hanukkah. I, you know, I'll I'll
light monoras for everybody. >> Whatever you're celebrating, do it with your friends and family. And let's all
be great to each other this holiday season and all of next year. >> And have a couple drinks.
>> Yeah. >> Break bread. Yep. We'll be here next week in the garage. And we will see you
next week in the garage. Until then, have a very merry Christmas and happy holidays. And until next week, be good,
be kind, and don't live. [Music]

Jessica Chambers ////// Episode: 68

TrueCrimeGarage.com

December 6th, 2014 a volunteer fire department is responding to a car blaze call when they are met with the unthinkable. A young woman has been set on fire and left for dead. Media sources are quick to report the woman was trying to communicate with the first responders. She unfortunately passed away shortly after she was attacked. Was the young woman able to name her killer? If she did why would it take a year to make an arrest? With Jessica Chambers' murder the focal point of so many news headlines why does the public know so little about the crime? Tonight we step into the garage and examine this very difficult and horrific case.

Beer of the week - Mississippi Mud - Black & Tan by The Matt Brewing CompanyGarage grade - 3 1/2 bottle caps out of 5

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Brief Summary

The episode discusses the brutal murder of Jessica Chambers and the investigation into her death, focusing on key suspects and theories.

Key points

The Case of Jessica Chambers. A brutal murder that shocked a community and drew national attention.
A Father's Pain. Jessica's father shares the devastating impact of her murder on their family.
Surveillance Footage Leads. Investigators find crucial evidence from gas station footage before the murder.
Gas Station Encounter. Jessica was seen at a gas station, purchasing gas and cigarettes, raising questions about her intentions that night.
Rumors and Theories. The investigation is clouded by rampant rumors and theories about Jessica's death, complicating the search for truth.
Gang Activity Speculation. Investigators explore possible gang involvement in Jessica's murder, but the district attorney dismisses it as gang-related.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It's just destroyed our family.

Jessica's father expressing the pain of their loss.

5:19WatchJul 28, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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