Todd Kohlhepp's Arrest and Bond Hearing: Inside Edition Report, November 2016

An Inside Edition report from the week of Todd Kohlhepp's arrest in November 2016: his reported confession to the 2003 Superbike Motorsports murders, his Sunday bond hearing, and a victim's widow's reaction.

Subject

Todd Kohlhepp

Recorded

about November 7, 2016

Runtime

2:07

Content warning: Concerns the murders of seven people and a woman held chained in a storage container; no graphic detail.

The Report

This is a two-minute Inside Edition report broadcast in the week of Todd Kohlhepp's arrest in November 2016. It reports that Kohlhepp asked to see his mother before, police said, he confessed to the 2003 Superbike Motorsports murders, and it shows a few seconds of his Sunday bond hearing, where victims' relatives were present. Kohlhepp says nothing of substance. When the judge asks whether he wishes to say anything, a one-second reply follows that may be his declining to speak; this is not yet confirmed. The rest of the report is narration, comments from criminal profiler Dr. Casey Jordan, and an interview with Melissa Brackman, whose husband was killed in the 2003 shootings.

Historical Context

On November 6, 2003, four people were shot dead at Superbike Motorsports, a motorcycle dealership in Chesnee, South Carolina: the owner, Scott Ponder; his mother, Beverly Guy; Brian Lucas; and Chris Sherbert. The case went unsolved for 13 years. On November 3, 2016, deputies searching Kohlhepp's property near Woodruff and Moore found a missing woman chained inside a metal storage container. Kohlhepp, a local real estate agent, was arrested that day and began confessing on November 5. He later pleaded guilty, on May 26, 2017, to seven murders, including those of Johnny Joe and Meagan Coxie and of Charlie Carver, whose bodies were found on the property, and was sentenced to seven consecutive life terms plus 60 years.

Circumstances of the Report

The report was made in the first days after the arrest, while investigators were still searching the property. Kohlhepp appeared at a bond hearing on Sunday, November 6, 2016, the 13th anniversary of the Superbike killings. According to the report, he had asked to see his mother before confessing; Dr. Jordan suggests he wanted to be the one to tell her the truth face to face. The report also cites online reviews attributed to Kohlhepp in which he joked about stabbing someone and hiding bodies.

What the Report Covers

Melissa Brackman, who was pregnant when her husband was killed, describes being "speechless" at the news of the confession and having "a million questions for him". She says police told her Kohlhepp was a disgruntled customer. The narrator describes the discovery of the woman held captive in a container. Dr. Jordan explains the online reviews as "leakage", hints left by offenders who want to feel powerful and superior.

What Makes the Recording Significant

The report preserves early coverage of the case as it broke, including a few seconds of the first court appearance after Kohlhepp's arrest and a victim's widow's first public reaction.

Archival Importance

Kohlhepp's own voice is preserved in the interview videos released in June 2017 (see Related Content). This report records how the case was presented nationally in the week it broke, before his plea.

Important Caveats

Kohlhepp is not clearly heard in this video; at most a one-second reply at the bond hearing may be his. The report was made before any conviction, and its account of the confession comes from police. The reviews are "reportedly" his, in the report's own word. The figure of a "100-acre" property is the report's and has not been checked. The remark "I see someone without a soul" may be Brackman's or another relative's.

Narrator: The accused serial killer asked to see his mom before police say he confessed to killing as many as seven people. Criminal profiler Dr. Casey Jordan:

Dr. Casey Jordan: His mother always stood by him, never gave up on him, and he felt like it was the last courteous thing he could do, out of a sense of love for his mother, was be the person who told her in person, face to face, the truth.

Narrator: Cops say Todd Kohlhepp confessed to the long-unsolved massacre of four people at a motorcycle shop 13 years ago. The victims' families were in court when Kohlhepp appeared before a judge in an unusual Sunday hearing.

Judge: Anything you wish to say at this time?

Speaker: [unclear: "How about this time, sir?" / "Not at this time, sir."]

Melissa Brackman: I look at this person and I see someone without a soul.

Narrator: Melissa Brackman was pregnant when her husband, the owner of the bike shop, was killed. Her reaction to the news that Kohlhepp confessed:

Melissa Brackman: I was speechless, maybe for a second, and then I had a million questions for him, because I've had no answers for so long.

Narrator: Cops told Melissa Kohlhepp's motive.

Melissa Brackman: He was a disgruntled customer. He was mad.

Narrator: Kohlhepp was taken back to his 100-acre property in South Carolina, where he showed investigators where two other bodies are buried. The break in the killing spree came when police found 30-year-old Kala Brown locked inside a padlocked container like this one. She had been held there for two months, chained like a dog. We're also learning more about the workings of Kohlhepp's sick mind. He reportedly wrote this Amazon review for a knife: "Haven't stabbed anyone yet, yet, but I am keeping the dream alive, and when I do, it will be with a quality tool like this." And this one, for a shovel: "Keep this in the car when you have to hide bodies."

Dr. Casey Jordan: Those sort of details that come out in Facebook postings or Amazon reviews are typically referred to as leakage. They really want to feel a sense of power, and they do that by throwing these hints out there and feeling superior that no one is catching on.

Speaker: [unclear: "Thank you for watching on."] ---