Rebecca Schwartz's attorneys on why they say Leo Stragaj killed her husband | Forensic Files

what do you believe happened on May 28th 2014 well the only thing I can tell you
that we believed happened is that Leo had keys to the home uh to do maintenance work and so forth that he
let himself in um he probably thought that Dr Schwarz had already left for the hospital uh and Dr Schwarz had not He
Came Upon Dr Schwarz Dr Schwarz probably said what the hell are you doing in my home uh and uh at that point in time Leo
who was there to commit the burglary to make the theft had no choice but to kill
the only witness that could finger him and killed Dr Schwarz Leo claims though he was in in a financially good place
that he was making about $130,000 a year that he didn't need money why would he be going over to do
some petty theft over at the Schwarz house well rich people steal from department stores uh no matter how much
he was paid he knew that there was Cash inside that house uh it was ready cash it was I'll call it vas cash uh you know
maybe he was told uh by the person that cleaned that house uh what he could get from it I don't know uh I know Leo
denies that but uh he certainly is the killer why do you believe Leo straga murdered Dr Steven
Schwarz you know there there's a couple theories as to why Leo straga might have
killed Dr Schwarz one could be that he went in for other motives which was to take jewelry and money and happened upon
him and felt he had no choice another is he could have seen his gravy train coming to an end it was Rebecca Schwarz
who did most of the overseeing of Leo straga she's the one who provided for his work she was very generous with him
I think that because she was working so hard for Dr Schwarz to be able to retire
Leo saw that as a threat that he was going to be home more he was going to be overseeing it more and he was not as
liberal with the money as Rebecca was to have this work done so Leo stroga had no
criminal record is that true that's my understanding he had a relationship with the Schwarz family of more than 15 years
right correct by according to family members friends he had a loving relationship with this with this couple
that Rebecca referred to him at times as son and he would call her mom correct he had a good life in
Florida give me a case that he would want to suddenly turn into this vicious killer doesn't make sense well you're
assuming that he went there to commit that murder uh and he may very well have done it as Mrs rivini indicated that he
felt that Dr schwarz's retirement might jeopardize that 130,000 but he also could have happened
on Dr Schwarz and I'm not I'm not discounting that that he went over there to um uh to commit the theft and that Dr
Schwarz had not left I think normally speaking Dr Schwarz would would have left by then to go to the hospital he
was obviously on his way out because he was dressed just like he normally does to go to the hospital so Leo may have
come upon him and uh had no choice but to kill the witness

Laying out their theories of the murder of Dr. Steven Schwartz, his widow's defense attorneys, Denis deVlaming and Kym Rivellini, place blame solely on the handyman employed by the couple.

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Brief Summary

The episode analyzes the murder of Dr. Steven Schwarz by Leo Straga, exploring motives and circumstances surrounding the crime.

Key points

The Murder of Dr. Schwarz. Leo Straga's unexpected actions lead to a shocking murder.
Leo's Financial Situation. Despite earning a good salary, Leo committed theft, raising questions about his motives.
Theories Behind the Murder. Multiple theories suggest why Leo might have killed Dr. Schwarz.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

He was in a financially good place.

Contradicting the idea that Leo needed money.

0:40WatchFeb 12, 2017

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