In 1983, Vernice Ballenger, with the help of her estranged husband Mac Ballenger and two other men, arranged the robbery and subsequent murder of her elderly aunt Myrtle Ellis. Her motive was simple—money.
It all began earlier that year, when Myrtle Ellis was involved in a car accident. She was taken to the hospital, where a rather unusual discovery was made. Ellis had $60,000 in cash on her person. This large sum of cash made headlines. Local newspapers ran stories on the odd occurrence. These stories caught the eye of Ellis’s niece, Vernice Ballenger.
Believing that the elderly Ellis likely still had the cash, Ballenger devised a plan to rob her aunt and get the money. She enlisted the help of her estranged husband Mac Ballenger, who hired two acquaintances to rob Ellis in her home. However, they were unable to get the money and instead resorted to violence, murdering Ellis and setting fire to her home.
The crime went unsolved for years, until the wife of one of the men involved went to the police.
This is the story she told...
It all began earlier that year, when Myrtle Ellis was involved in a car accident. She was taken to the hospital, where a rather unusual discovery was made. Ellis had $60,000 in cash on her person. This large sum of cash made headlines. Local newspapers ran stories on the odd occurrence. These stories caught the eye of Ellis’s niece, Vernice Ballenger.
Believing that the elderly Ellis likely still had the cash, Ballenger devised a plan to rob her aunt and get the money. She enlisted the help of her estranged husband Mac Ballenger, who hired two acquaintances to rob Ellis in her home. However, they were unable to get the money and instead resorted to violence, murdering Ellis and setting fire to her home.
The crime went unsolved for years, until the wife of one of the men involved went to the police.
This is the story she told...
