The Music Stopped (Scott Sessions & Heather Frank)

Summary

Anatomy of Murder: The Music Stopped (Scott Sessions & Heather Frank) Hosted by Anna-Sigga Nicolasi and Scott Weinberger

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Introduction

In the gripping episode titled "The Music Stopped," hosts Anna-Sigga Nicolasi and Scott Weinberger delve deep into a harrowing murder case that intertwines passion, obsession, and tragedy. The episode meticulously dissects the layers of the crime, the victims, and the intricate investigation that ultimately led to justice.

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Background of the Victim: Scott Sessions

Scott Sessions, a 53-year-old trumpet player in a beloved blues and rock band from Greeley, Colorado, was known for his exceptional talent and magnetic stage presence. Described by a local journalist as "the kind of magnetic performer that many people wanted to get close to," Scott was a reliable bandmate who never missed a gig.

On Saturday, February 8th, 2020, Scott informed his father that he was heading to Fort Collins for a date with Heather Frank. However, Scott never returned from that evening, setting the stage for the investigation that would follow.

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Discovery of the Body

On Sunday morning, February 9th, 2020, a snow plow driver in Pingree Park, a remote and rural area in northern Colorado, discovered the burned remains of an unidentified male. The body was severely mutilated, with extensive burning and a brutal throat wound, indicating a savage homicide.

Donnie Robbins, Lieutenant of the Larimer County Sheriff's Office, reflected on the case:

"I've worked a lot of homicides over the last 30 years and this is the first one that I had a set of circumstances anywhere close to this... it's one I'll think about for a long time."
[04:07]

The initial discovery raised immediate questions about the true location and circumstances of the murder, as the crime scene did not match the condition of the body.

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Linking the Missing Person to the Body

By Monday, February 10th, Scott Sessions was officially reported missing after failing to show up for a scheduled band performance. The timing was critical, as it was just one day after the body was found. Investigators quickly matched the missing person report to the unidentified body, confirming Scott as the victim.

Scott's disappearance and subsequent identification as the John Doe shifted the investigation into high gear, focusing on uncovering the motive and identifying the perpetrator.

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Investigation Progress

Donnie Robbins and his team began by examining Scott's cell phone records, which placed his last known location in Greeley, contradicting his claim of being in Fort Collins. This discrepancy led investigators to a local King Soopers grocery store, where Scott's car was found parked just hours after his body was discovered.

"The car didn't yield any immediate clues about what had happened to Scott Sessions or why his car was parked at a Greeley store instead of being in Fort Collins."
[09:58]

Surveillance footage from the grocery store revealed that Scott's car entered the lot at 6:30 AM on Tuesday morning, indicating that Scott was already deceased when the car was parked.

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Identifying Key Suspects: Heather Frank and Kevin Eastman

Through meticulous investigation, it was uncovered that Scott had been in communication with Heather Frank, a woman he had been romantically involved with. Heather lived just 200 yards from where Scott's car was found, placing her in close proximity to both the victim and the crime scene.

Investigators discovered that Heather had invited Scott to her home the night he disappeared. Additionally, Heather's ex-boyfriend, Kevin Eastman, a 48-year-old with a history of assault and weapons possession, emerged as a person of interest. Eastman had a volatile relationship with Heather, who had previously reported him for domestic violence.

"Donnie and his team were convinced that Eastman was involved with not only one, but both murders."
[22:19]

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Collection of Evidence

Cell phone data played a pivotal role in connecting Eastman to the crime locations. Tracking revealed that both Heather and Eastman’s phones were near the Poudre Canyon area, the site where Scott's body was ultimately dumped. Additionally, surveillance footage placed Kevin Eastman's vehicle close to the body discovery site, strengthening the case against him.

"Eastman's claims that he was incompetent to go to trial was denied."
[43:16]

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Arrest and Interrogation of Kevin Eastman

One week after Scott's disappearance, Donnie Robbins tracked Kevin Eastman to a rural gas station in Kersey, Colorado. Eastman was seen filling a gas can, presumably to burn evidence, similar to how Scott's body was disposed of.

During the interrogation at the Larimer County Sheriff's Office, Eastman initially appeared cooperative but gradually became evasive and contradictory. He confessed to an abusive relationship with Heather Frank, expressing jealousy and possessiveness.

"I love somebody, I can't go screw somebody else."
[31:03]

Despite his initial cooperation, Eastman's inconsistent statements and mounting evidence against him led detectives to suspect his involvement in both murders.

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New Developments: Discovery of Heather Frank’s Body

While conducting the investigation, a second body was discovered near the original crime scene. This body was identified as Heather Frank, who had been shot twice in the chest. The proximity of her body to the burn pit where Scott was found further implicated Eastman.

"Inside of a sheriff's office interrogation room, investigators were listening to Eastman's repeated denials when miles away, Lieutenant Donnie Robbins team made a horrible discovery."
[38:22]

The revelation of Heather's death solidified the theory that Eastman was responsible for both murders, either acting alone or coercing Heather into assisting him.

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Conclusion of the Case

Kevin Eastman was formally charged with two counts of first-degree murder and additional charges related to tampering with evidence and domestic violence enhancement. The prosecution presented compelling evidence linking Eastman to both crime scenes, including cell phone data, surveillance footage, and the presence of his vehicle at critical locations.

After a three-week trial in Greeley, Eastman was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 27 years without the possibility of parole.

Reflecting on the case, Lieutenant Donnie Robbins expressed deep frustration and sorrow:

"If we would have been one day earlier of getting the arrest warrants, if we'd have got them both in custody safely and she would probably still be alive."
[45:11]

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Final Reflections

"The Music Stopped" serves as a poignant reminder of the tragic consequences of obsession and abuse. Scott Sessions' vibrant life was cut short by violence rooted in possessiveness and control. Heather Frank's untimely death underscores the devastating impact of abusive relationships.

The episode also highlights the relentless pursuit of justice by law enforcement, emphasizing the challenges and emotional toll of homicide investigations. Robbins' reflections offer a sobering perspective on the "what-ifs" that often haunt those tasked with protecting the community.

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Notable Quotes:

• Donnie Robbins:

  "I've worked a lot of homicides over the last 30 years and this is the first one that I had a set of circumstances anywhere close to this... it's one I'll think about for a long time."
  [04:07]

• Scott Weinberger:

  "If I can't have you, no one will. It's tied to many domestic violence homicides. It often reveals the deeply rooted possessiveness and control that can drive a domestic partner to murder."
  [45:37]

• Anna-Sigga Nicolasi:

  "Scott Sessions, an innocent, likely had no idea the violent web he was entering when he went to Heather's home."
  [46:25]

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Conclusion

In this episode of "Anatomy of Murder," Anna-Sigga Nicolasi and Scott Weinberger expertly unravel the complex and tragic case of Scott Sessions and Heather Frank. Through detailed investigation insights and emotional reflections, listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted nature of murder investigations and the profound human stories behind them.

Tune in next week for another compelling episode of "Anatomy of Murder," where more intricate and riveting cases are dissected and explored.

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This summary was crafted based on the transcript provided, excluding advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections as per the instructions.

Transcript

[Scott Weinberger]

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[Anasiga Nicolasi]

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[Scott Weinberger]

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[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So cheesy my plate was filled with saucy slices. Then a flimsy store brand plate.

[Scott Weinberger]

No no no no.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Ruined it. Next time get Dixie Ultra plates three.

[Scott Weinberger]

Times stronger than the leading store brand 10 inch paper plate.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Dixie make it right.

[Donnie Robbins]

I've worked a lot of homicides over the last 30 years and this is the first one that I had a set of circumstances anywhere close to this. And as law enforcement, our job is to protect people, or try to anyway. And the fact that we couldn't in this case. It's one I'll think about for a long time. Yeah, it is something that you live with, for sure.

[Scott Weinberger]

I'm Scott Weinberger, investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

I'm Anasiga Nicolasi, former New York City Homicide prosecutor and host of Investigation Discovery's True Conviction.

[Scott Weinberger]

And this is Anatomy of Murder.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Romantic relationships can be exhilarating and bring out the very best in people when they are open, supportive, and simply want to make their partner's life better.

[Scott Weinberger]

Looking at the other side can be difficult and a bit revealing. You're vulnerable, needy, or even controlling when you wish you just weren't.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

All things that go straight to the heart and mind and can impact a person's sense of self worth, their sense of belonging. And when things go wrong, it can be like stepping on a coiled rattlesnake. And if so, the fangs just might come out.

[Scott Weinberger]

Today's case delves into a relationship gone wrong. So wrong it ended in murder. But it's not just a simple tale of betrayal. Investigators found themselves navigating through a web of twists and turns, each one raising more questions. Who's really to blame?

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

The events unfolded quickly, at times at a dizzying pace, leading a veteran homicide investigator to uncover acts of revenge more volatile than any bad breakup and more chilling than the coldest rejection.

[Scott Weinberger]

For today's case, we spoke to Lieutenant Donnie Robbins of the Larimer County Sheriff's Office in northern Colorado. He's been in law enforcement for a little over 30 years. Nothing in that long career prepared him for the call he got early on a Monday morning in February of 2020.

[Donnie Robbins]

Pingree park is an extremely rural area, mainly forest service property. Around it, there was a snow plow driver that was driving in the area of Pingree Park Road that day. He observed smoke and went to investigate. And that's when he located the body, wrapped in plastic and a terminal. I use his belling wire. It was some wire that was wrapped around the body to hold the plastic around the body as well.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

The driver immediately called 911. When first responders arrived at about 9:30am they found the remains of an unidentified male.

[Donnie Robbins]

Body was in pretty bad shape overall. Majority of the body had extensive burning on it. There was a severe laceration cut to the neck to the point that the spinal cord that was the only thing that was keeping the head attached to the body.

[Scott Weinberger]

The brutality of the wounds left no doubt that a savage crime had taken place. But the mystery deepened when investigators realized something unsettling. The crime didn't happen here where they found the body. While this was a crime scene, it was clear it wasn't the only one.

[Donnie Robbins]

With that kind of wound to the neck. There would have been a copious amount of blood strewn throughout the area. There was no signs of any kind of struggle. So it was pretty obvious that the actual assault and death had occurred somewhere else and the body had been transferred to that location. The cause of death was the wound to the throat and the manner of death was homicide.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

As soon as Donnie was notified of the discovery, he drove right over to the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.

[Donnie Robbins]

We were getting our team together to decide how we were going to handle the investigation.

[Scott Weinberger]

Investigators were able to quickly determine that the body had not been there very long. So Donnie began by looking for anyone in the area who had recently gone missing. By the next day, a missing person's report of a local man was located. It would be this case's first big break.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

On that Same day, Monday, February 10th, 53 year old Scott Sessions was a no show at one of his band's regular performances in Greeley, Colorado, which is a small city that he lived about an hour north of Denver. And that trumpet that you hear is actually Scott Sessions playing.

[Scott Weinberger]

Scott was a beloved musician who played trumpet in a popular blues and rock band. He was considered to be one of the best trumpet players in northern Colorado. A local journalist once wrote that he was the kind of magnetic performer that many people wanted to get close to.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Scott was also a responsible bandmate and never missed a gig. His absence on that Monday night immediately concerned his bandmates.

[Scott Weinberger]

It was only two days earlier on Saturday when Scott had spoken with his father and told them that he was heading to Fort Collins, another Colorado city about 30 miles away.

[Donnie Robbins]

His son indicated he was going to Fort Collins to go on a date and he hadn't heard from him since and wasn't answering his phone. So that raised some concern with the father.

[Scott Weinberger]

By Tuesday morning, three days with no word from Scott, his bandmates and his family went to his house and using a spare key, went inside, but did not find him there. Scott's father immediately generated that missing person's report to police.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And just to keep the day straight here, that Tuesday again is one day after that body was found in the woods. So the report was quickly linked to the murdered John Doe, which was then linked to the disappearance of Scott Sessions. And it threw the investigation into even higher gear.

[Donnie Robbins]

We found a recent missing person that met the general description and we were able to identify the body as being Scott Sessions.

[Scott Weinberger]

Scott's friends and family were shocked. No one had any idea who could possibly want to harm him.

[Donnie Robbins]

Everybody described him as an easygoing, nice guy, no issues, didn't know anyone would want to hurt him. We were looking at anything from a carjacking to a crime of passion involving somebody we wasn't aware of at that point, based on the severity of the neck wound, was obviously this person who had committed the crime was pretty passionate and wanting to kill Mr. Sessions. This appeared to be an intentional act. He was killed rather quickly in a pretty brutal manner.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So by that Tuesday, the same day the missing persons report was filed, the Larimer county coroner identified, identified Scott Sessions as the John Doe found in the woods. And as suspected that he'd been the.

[Scott Weinberger]

Victim of a homicide, the investigation continued to move quickly.

[Donnie Robbins]

We actually got the phone records first through his cell phone carrier, and we were able to locate the last place that his cell phone pinged off the cell tower at. It was in Greeley.

[Scott Weinberger]

Scott Sessions phone record showed that he wasn't in Fort Collins that past weekend, as he had told his dad. Instead, the cell tower covered a one mile radius within the city of Greeley, a leafy suburb about 50 miles northeast of Denver.

[Donnie Robbins]

The largest business in the area was a King Soopers grocery store complex very close to where the cell tower was located. I directed investigators from my criminal impact unit to go over there and start looking for his vehicle. And basically, as soon as they arrived in the area, they located the vehicle in the parking lot at King Soopers grocery store.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Within only 23 hours of finding Scott's body, Donnie and his team found his car. But the car didn't yield any immediate clues about what had happened to Scott Sessions or why his car was parked at a Greely store instead of being in Fort Collins.

[Donnie Robbins]

As he'd said, there was no signs of struggle inside the car and there was no blood or evidence visible. From an exterior view.

[Scott Weinberger]

It almost looked as if Scott simply parked his car to do some grocery shopping. Investigators poured over security camera footage of the parking lot, hoping to catch a glimpse of Scott arriving, maybe even potentially with his killer. What they found raised more questions than answers.

[Donnie Robbins]

This seems to be our luck in law enforcement. There was multiple cameras located in that business area, and all of them but one were solar powered and were covered with snow, so they weren't working at the time.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

We got one video, and that video showed that Scott's car didn't appear in the parking lot until 6:30am Tuesday morning, which is one day after the snowplow driver found his body. Which would mean Scott was already dead when the grocery store camera recorded his car pulling into the lot. But the footage wasn't the most extensive, to say the least.

[Donnie Robbins]

That gave us a very, very limited view of somebody parking the car there and walking away to the west. Couldn't tell anything about the person getting out other than a direction of travel.

[Scott Weinberger]

Now it's important to point out the timing in this case, investigators arrived at the store to find the car a mere two hours after the mysterious driver abandoned it.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So whether it was their quick police work luck, or most likely a bit of both, police are going to take good evidence any way they find it. However, even though only those few hours had passed, they missed whoever had abandoned Scott's car.

[Scott Weinberger]

But Donny's next move yielded better results, and the case soon turned into the most bizarre and puzzling of Donnie's career.

[Donnie Robbins]

We executed search warrant on Scott Sessions house. He had written down passwords to some of his social media. The last person he had talked to was a female by the name of Heather Frank. He was going to meet Heather Frank the night he went missing. She was living in Greeley, less than 200 yards from the King Supers in the condominium.

[Scott Weinberger]

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[Anasiga Nicolasi]

After 53 year old Scott Sessions burned body had been recovered in remote woods, investigators searched his Greeley, Colorado home looking for clues to help identify who killed him.

[Scott Weinberger]

Inside his house they hid paydirt a list of Scott's passwords to his online accounts and with a warrant investigators logged in.

[Donnie Robbins]

We were also able to get into Facebook Messenger. The last person he had talked to was a female by the name of Heather Frank.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

The single musician had been exchanging romantic messages with a woman, which in itself was not especially revealing. It was only when investigators learned that Heather had invited Scott over on Saturday night. The last night he was heard from that alarm bell started going off.

[Donnie Robbins]

It was obvious that they had been in a relationship to some degree. He was going to pick some alcohol up and meet her at her residence and that's basically the last communication anyone had with him over his phone or through social media.

[Scott Weinberger]

Scott disappeared that same night and by 9:30 Monday morning police had discovered his body in the woods. His throat had been cut. Adding to the suspicious timing, investigators learned that Heather Frank lived only 200 yards from where they found Scott's car, which was left there just two hours after Scott was discovered.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Not one of Scott's friends or family had heard him mention seeing Heather. Donnie put Heather Frank and her home squarely on his radar.

[Donnie Robbins]

The first time we had heard of the name was going through the Facebook messenger and I immediately requested a covert camera to be placed on the condominium parking lot. And I went there myself and observed two vehicles sitting there, one belonging to her and then one belonging to another male, Kevin Eastman.

[Scott Weinberger]

Donny did some digging into Heather Frank and Kevin Eastman's backgrounds.

[Donnie Robbins]

She worked at a local cafe. She had adult children. She was single.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

It turned out that Kevin Eastman was Heather Frank's 48 year old ex boyfriend. He had a police record that included assault and weapons possession. Eastman and Heather had lived together in Denver several months earlier. Heather called police after Kevin allegedly had repeatedly Punched her. An arrest warrant for harassment was issued, but it hadn't been executed, and Eastman remained free.

[Scott Weinberger]

The surveillance warrant allowed Donnie to attach GPS trackers on both Heather Frank and Kevin Eastman's cars and to also access their phone records. But beyond that, Donnie decided not to knock on Heather's door or to try to arrest Eastman, believing it was too early to make a move.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Investigators suspected that they likely had found the suspect in Scott's murder, but a hunch wouldn't get them into court. Would there be evidence?

[Donnie Robbins]

What was the motive? Was it financial? Was it a crime of passion? What was the true motive of it? Our initial thoughts were that it probably was a crime of passion where Eastman had found out about Sessions. But our concerns were that if we contacted Eastman and arrested him, was not able to contact Heather Frank, that we could lose potential evidence, and it might jeopardize our ongoing homicide investigation if we picked him up on the domestic violence warrant.

[Scott Weinberger]

Beyond Heather reporting Kevin Eastman's abuse to police, Donny didn't find a reason to suspect her of foul play, at least on paper.

[Donnie Robbins]

She really didn't have any past criminal history to speak of at all. Seemed to be a fairly well respected person of the community.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

But Heather's co workers had something intriguing to report. They told investigators that Heather called in sick to work on Sunday, which was the night after Sessions had supposedly gone to her home, and she seemed out of sorts on Monday. Those are significant dates. Heather was out sick the day after Scott Sessions disappeared, and she was upset at work the day police found his body.

[Scott Weinberger]

Just as Donnie was hearing about this from other detectives. The surveillance he placed on Heather and Eastman did turn up some really bizarre clues.

[Donnie Robbins]

We saw them numerous times traveling together and traveling separately from her house. She went to work. And then one day they were traveling together, and they basically were on a shopping spree. It appeared that they had probably been in a somewhat volatile relationship. It didn't appear that either one of them were in any kind of distress from being around each other.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Their phone records told a story that heightened investigators suspicion that one or both of them had something to do with the murder of Scott Sessions.

[Donnie Robbins]

We were able to track them the morning of the homicide from Heather Frank's residence to the mouth of the Poudre Canyon. And Poudre Canyon is the route you have to take to get to Pingree park, where the body was dumped. It stopped there because that's where cell phone service stops. Three hours later, they show up at the mouth of the canyon when the phone reconnects and we able to track them back to her house from there. So pretty good indication that both of their phones had been in the area where the body had been dumped.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

You know, Scott, even just hearing about their phones and where they were, there are various possibilities.

[Scott Weinberger]

Yeah. So this is obviously a big red flag, I'm sure, for both of us. You do have two people that are connected to your victim and both individually carrying cell phones located in the very area where Scott Sessions body was dumped. Now, I always get really excited about phone cell data as evidence, but I also recognize anestiga that the fact is that it's very possible that one of the subjects may have been carrying both phones. So while it's a great lead, there's more work to be done. Yeah.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And people also might be saying, well, wait a second, wasn't there an arrest warrant out there for him? So what are police doing? But remember, they are investigating a homicide. They're keeping close tabs on these two. So they are watching, waiting, hoping to gather evidence in Scott's murder while still also keeping track of where they are and what's going on while they continue their investigation.

[Scott Weinberger]

And there is also some history that indicated that Heather may have had a reason to be afraid of Eastman. So, you know, at this point, the arrest wasn't made for the warrant that was outstanding. So there's a lot to untangle here.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And again, there's various possibilities. Neither of them may have done this Right. But it doesn't seem to be pointing in that direction. Is it one or both? And if she had filed a report against him in the past, why is she now with him? And they seem to be fine. There doesn't seem to be tension between them. But unfortunately, Scott, as we know, in relationships that are abusive, there can be this unfortunate cycle that even after abuse, whether it is control or physical, that the survivor remains in the relationship or goes back in. So as. As you said before, there's just. It's really too tangled at this point, and there's too many unknowns to really figure out the what is going on or what happened. And while it's too early to tell, like, even if it's an abusive relationship, again, is this some sort of scheme? You know, did they together want to kill him for the money? Like, is it one or both? Is it jealousy? Is it some sort of grift? You know, who knows? But Donnie and his team were wondering the same thing.

[Donnie Robbins]

It appeared that both of them had some culpability into homicide. That was the discussion we were having. They obviously, more than Likely based off their cell phones, had dumped the body together.

[Scott Weinberger]

Dottie began to suspect one or both of them in Scott's death. But what he was missing was any hard evidence to prove it.

[Donnie Robbins]

We sent team out to do a video canvas of that area, and there's a R and grill about halfway up the Poudre Canyon. And they had very good external video surveillance than we were able to pick. Kevin Eastman's vehicle traveling both eastbound and westbound from the area. But we could not tell how many occupants or who was in the vehicle.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Even more than the cell phone records, it was the security footage that placed Kevin's car even closer to the area where Scott's body was discovered. And that would prove to be a key piece of the puzzle.

[Scott Weinberger]

Seven days after Scott Sessions went missing, Donnie discussed the case with the local prosecutors and from there decided to draft a search warrant for Heather's house. An arrest warrant for Kevin Eastman and one for Heather Frank, too.

[Donnie Robbins]

It definitely led to the setup being a motive more than anything.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

But as they got ready to execute their warrants, things got even less clear and more puzzling.

[Donnie Robbins]

Late Saturday, as we're getting them finalized and make sure the DA has everything. We observed that Heather and Kevin Eastman had came out of the residence and had entered into Eastman's vehicle. The tracker placed them going to a small town to the east of Greeley, very rural, called Kersey. Went to a basically a farm out there, which was strange. We had never seen either one of them go that direction or in that area. And we could not find any connection with the property that they were on.

[Scott Weinberger]

Donnie decided to drive to the farm to see what Eastman and Heather Frank were up to in such a remote location in the middle of the night.

[Donnie Robbins]

By the time I got out there, it was dark and basically couldn't see anything. I couldn't see his vehicle, although I knew it was on the property. Based off the tracker, the arrest warrants were at the judge about that time, it's probably 10 o'clock, we made the decision that we would execute the arrest warrants and search warrants. The next morning at her house, Donnie.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Left the area and headed out to prepare for executing the warrants in the morning. But in the light of the next day, it was news of suspicious activity regarding Eastman's car that got their first attention.

[Donnie Robbins]

It had moved a couple of times during the night. I had observed it moved to the Platte River. I had some concerns that maybe they were trying to get rid of evidence in that area, maybe throw it in.

[Scott Weinberger]

The river instantly Donnie started driving to the Platte river area while the rest of his team prepped for the arrest and the search warrants.

[Donnie Robbins]

It was probably around 8:30, 9:00 I got into the area. As I was getting into the area, I noticed smoke coming from the farm that both Kevin Eastman and Heather Frank had been on the night before. I diverted to the farm area to see what was going on there. I'm out there by myself and I was able to identify as Kevin Eastman standing next to, for lack of a better word, a fire pit actively burning something. I start making phone calls and radio calls to get people spun up so we can prevent the loss of potential evidence.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

After establishing Eastman's location but not seeing Heather anywhere, Donnie headed for the Platte river himself to see if the couple dumped evidence there the previous night.

[Donnie Robbins]

Probably gone 10 minutes, 15 minutes, didn't see anything there.

[Scott Weinberger]

On his way back to the farm, Donnie made an abrupt U turn.

[Donnie Robbins]

I met Kevin Eastman driving his vehicle going the opposite way. So I began to conduct one man surveillance on him. I was in an unmarked vehicle. I followed him to the town of Kersey itself where he pulled into a gas station and had exited his vehicle and was trying to pump gas into a small five gallon gas can.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Donnie knew that an accelerant like gasoline had been used to burn Scott Sessions body.

[Donnie Robbins]

My concerns of losing potential evidence was out the roof at this point my belief was he was coming to get more gas so he could feed that fire to make it destroy remainder of the evidence there. I made the decision that I wasn't going to allow this to go on any longer alone.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And knowing that backup was nearly 45 minutes away, Donnie got out of his car and went towards his main suspect and deeper into a twisted case of love and hate.

[Scott Weinberger]

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[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Donnie believed Eastman was filling a can with gasoline to take back to the mysterious farm where he'd just seen Eastman tending a burn pit.

[Scott Weinberger]

By this point, Donnie had seen enough.

[Donnie Robbins]

I had the perfect opportunity to attempt to take him in custody. Got out of my vehicle and began to give him commands. He had a look of shock on his face, but he was compliant with commands, and I ended up taking him to custody without incident. One of the things I did ask him was where Heather was, and he told me he didn't know, which I knew was a lie.

[Scott Weinberger]

Eastman was taken to the Larima County Sheriff's Office for an interview. A team remained behind at the farm to search the grounds and nearby Pawnee National Grasslands for evidence or signs of Heather Frank.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

While that search was going on, back in Larimer county, two investigators interviewed Kevin Eastman. Eastman appeared relaxed and cooperative at first.

[Investigator]

You understand that you don't have to talk to us right now?

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Yeah.

[Investigator]

Okay. And after explaining that.

[Scott Weinberger]

Do you still want to talk with us?

[Investigator]

Yeah, sure.

[Scott Weinberger]

Kevin told investigators that he had an on again, off again relationship with Heather Frank. They often stayed together at her house, except for the numerous times she kicked him out during an argument. When that happened, according to Eastman, he went to stay at the farm, the.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Same farm where Donnie observed Eastman stoking a burn pit earlier that day. The farm was owned by a friend.

[Scott Weinberger]

Of Kevin, so the two investigators questioned Eastman about Heather's whereabouts.

[Investigator]

So when was the last time you actually saw Heather? It was yesterday. Yeah. That still live? With all my heart, and we're trying to work it out.

[Scott Weinberger]

Eastman claimed that he believed that Heather was actually working at the diner as they spoke. While they had him in the interview room, investigators tried to put together a timeline of events during the week Scott Sessions was murdered. They started by asking Kevin about the day Scott disappeared.

[Investigator]

And you said that she had a date, Right. Tell me more about that. So when you showed up to Heather's house and she said that she had a date, was the date already there or was the date coming? Um, I don't know. She kept me on the outside of the screen. She just said she had a date and she didn't want to see me that night. So go ahead.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And the detectives knew exactly who Heather had planned to see that night. She had invited Scott to her home through online messaging.

[Scott Weinberger]

If Eastman was telling the truth that Heather rejected him, what were the chances Scott was already there inside her home. And how would that rejection have affected Eastman?

[Investigator]

I was really hoping that it would have been different. What would have went different? If she would let me come in and shower and it would have been like it used to be between us, you know, Although that's really emotional. I mean, yeah, I didn't want to live no more, you know, Is that, is that because you're jealous of the lifestyle that she has? No, no, it's because she doesn't want me. You want somebody that cares for you. Yeah. Ideally, I'm told, I don't understand how she can say that she loves me when she does what she does. But I'm just wired different. If I love somebody, I can't go screw somebody else. But it didn't seem to make any difference to her.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So listening to him, Scott here, you know, he sounds like a broken hearted man, but at the same time he's being interviewed by detectives. So, you know, is this legit or is he doing this, putting his best foot forward to gain favor with them? You know, there really is multiple possibilities.

[Scott Weinberger]

I mean, if we're just looking at it, the three important factors in a standard homicide investigation, and it's eager, which, you know, which is motive, means and opportunity. You have a significant other here who may have been rejected by the other. And when it comes to a potential motive. Yeah, that checks that box. And as an investigator, you're trying to circle around those three factors. Motive, means, an opportunity within your questions. And I do believe those three boxes were being checked right here and now.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And I also just think it's interesting that so early on that he is going to put this all out there to them, you know, oh my gosh, like she's so different than me. If I love somebody and I love her, I would never be doing the things that she does with other people. I don't know. That goes to someone who is very quickly putting out that they are less than thrilled with what he sees as her slightly to him.

[Scott Weinberger]

Let's also remember that he already has a violent history with Heather. There's an active warrant for beating Heather in Denver. And I think that absolutely factors into the impression of his behavior in the room that someone sitting across from you as an investigator is capable of violence.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And I'm Just to play devil's advocate here, I'm gonna throw something totally sideways for a moment, because just on its face, you know, investigators have to look at things from every way. So could it be Heather, maybe for some reason, who committed a crime and that it's Eastman who's helping her get rid of evidence because of his love and. Or infatuation for her? You know, at this point, for investigators, really, anything's still possible.

[Scott Weinberger]

Yeah, I mean, they're following the evidence, but they're trying to gain as much information. And always. And this is so important in these types of interrogations and interviews is keeping the person talking. If you approach them too quickly, too soon, and try to make that turn, to make them feel uncomfortable, they may just shut down.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And detectives did just that. They played to Eastman's emotions to try and uncover the truth.

[Investigator]

Saturday night, you, Heather, and Scott were all at Heather's house for an extended period of time.

[Scott Weinberger]

We know that is fact.

[Investigator]

Till Sunday morning. Kevin, I'm thinking that what happened was there was some sort of conflict between him and her, and you wanted to protect her, and things went wrong, Things went bad. You could tell us. We're not gonna be mad at you. I don't remember seeing anybody when I was there, Kevin. Kev, are you covering for Heather? Did Heather do something?

[Scott Weinberger]

Was Heather defend. Was Heather defending herself against this guy?

[Investigator]

You went over there. She freaked out. There was a mess. And being the devoted partner you are to her, you helped her, didn't you? You cleaned up Heather's mess because you are devoted to her. You will do anything to help her. When she's in a jam, she doesn't respect you, but you will respect her. You will do anything to help her get out of a mess. Right? I love her a lot.

[Scott Weinberger]

Eastman repeatedly denied seeing or even hearing of Scott Sessions. And throughout the interview, he maintained that he had a memory problem and was under psychiatric care and could not recall anything else about Saturday night. In fact, he even said something may have happened, but, quote, I could be blocking it out.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

And as he continued speaking, slowly Eastman's story began to change.

[Investigator]

Okay, she told me that she told him no, and he just kept going and that he raped her. And I feel bad speaking ill of the dead.

[Donnie Robbins]

Right?

[Investigator]

That's not very polite. And here's the thing. Where did we find Scott? You said that you didn't want to speak ill of the dead. I told you that he was a missing person.

[Scott Weinberger]

Okay.

[Investigator]

You said that you didn't want to speak ill of the dead.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So Eastman isn't admitting a crime by him or Heather. But he is now saying that Scott Sessions did something to Heather. Almost as if he's starting to set up a self defense claim for one or both of them eventually.

[Scott Weinberger]

But while Eastman kept changing his story and possibly lying, investigators kept pushing forward with their case.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Don't forget that Donnie had tracked Eastman driving around the night before. From there, he sent a team to Pawnee National Grasslands to look for evidence. While he stayed behind.

[Scott Weinberger]

What he found would change this investigation and Donnie Robbins mindset forever.

[Donnie Robbins]

While that was going on, we located another body on the property next to the burn pit underneath a pile of wood. It was wrapped in plastic similar to what Scott Sessions had been wrapped in and appeared to be a female.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

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[Scott Weinberger]

Inside of a sheriff's office interrogation room, investigators were listening to Eastman's repeated denials when miles away, Lieutenant Donnie Robbins team made a horrible discovery on the very.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Same piece of land where Donnie had found Eastman tending a burn pit just a few hours earlier.

[Scott Weinberger]

Not far from the ashes, investigators found a body hidden beneath planks of wood, burned and wrapped in plastic, secured with wire and duct tape. It was eerily similar to the way Scott Sessions body was dumped just a few days earlier.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Investigators could see that the body was that of a woman, and it didn't take long to make an identification. It was Heather Frank.

[Scott Weinberger]

Heather had been shot twice in the chest. And remember, investigators were still in the room with Eastman when Heather's body was found. Their strategy of putting their suspect at ease had just entered its third exhausting hour. Heather puts you in this position, you're.

[Investigator]

Not the bad guy. I don't want to hear it, okay?

[Donnie Robbins]

You're the victim here.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

When investigators got the call telling them that Heather's body had been found, beyond the obvious horror, it also presented investigative opportunity as they sat with him. Now, would this new information finally get him to tell the truth?

[Scott Weinberger]

This next piece of audio is investigators coming back into the interview room after learning about the discovery of Heather Frank's body.

[Investigator]

I'm gonna move over here so I wanna be able to see. I know you guys are probably tired and frustrated. I'm sorry, I can't answer your questions any better.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

At this point, law enforcement was convinced that Eastman was involved with not only one, but both murders. So they decided to confront him head on.

[Investigator]

Heather's dead, okay, if you gave your.

[Scott Weinberger]

Word to Heather, that doesn't matter.

[Investigator]

She's no longer around. Don't say that, you guys, that's mean. You can't sit tell me like that. You're trying to make me, doc.

[Donnie Robbins]

All right?

[Investigator]

That's how. Fuck. I'm trying to get cool about her, man. That's function below the belt, guys.

[Scott Weinberger]

Except instead of talking, Eastman broke down and anesthetic. I don't think this was unexpected by investigators. I mean, this was a pure opportunity for investigators to be completely honed in on Eastman's reaction. Could it be in his eyes, in his shoulders? The jig is up here, right? They wanted to know, is this the very moment an opportunity for Eastman and Sega to confess to everything?

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

You know, we talk about him breaking down and crying, which, you know, it's not uncommon to see this in an interview, you know, as, you know, Scott, certainly in a circumstance like this, when there is this relationship aspect that they suspect being the motive, you know? Yes. Is he crying? Because now this object of his obsession, at least from how it appears, is gone, even if it's at his own hands. Or is he just crying for himself because he knows he's been caught? And the skeptic in me is clearly pointing that way right now. But, you know, in the end, Scott, whatever his words, his tears, they are. There's still all this. This other evidence that investigators are accumulating against him and putting together right now.

[Scott Weinberger]

And one of the first places they're going to go from there is executing the search warrant for Heather's condo. I mean, they ended up carrying it out that same day later in the afternoon. And when they were there, they were met with a lot more than they expected.

[Donnie Robbins]

The floor was soaked with blood right at the entranceway. We went down to the plywood, actually removed the plywood from flooring which the blood is soaked into. We also found some cast off blood on some of the furniture and other pieces of the wall.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So by this point, Donnie had two victims, one suspect, and now at least one actual crime scene. And when I say crime scene, I'm referring to the place where the actual murder likely occurred.

[Donnie Robbins]

So we deducted, and this is speculation to some point, that as soon as Scott Sessions arrived at Heather Frank's residence that he was attacked by Eastman and killed at the doorway.

[Scott Weinberger]

Kevin Eastman was formally charged with two counts of first degree murder and two counts of tampering with a deceased body and tampering with evidence for the abuse Heather endured at Eastman's hands in Denver. A domestic violence sentencing enhancer was also added to the charges. Eastman's claims that he was incompetent to go to trial was denied.

[Donnie Robbins]

It was mainly circumstantial. Putting him at both death scenes, putting him transporting the body of Scott Sessions from Heather Frank's property up to the dump site in Pingree park, obviously seeing him standing next to the burn pit where Heather franks was found 10 yards away.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Multiple cell phone reports provided direct evidence linking Eastman to Scott and Heather's locations throughout their final days. Arguing that Eastman killed Scott Sessions in a jealous rage, the prosecution concluded that he killed Heather to keep her quiet.

[Scott Weinberger]

After a three week long trial in Greeley, Kevin Eastman was found guilty on all counts. He was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences, plus 27 years without the possibility of parole for murdering Scott Sessions and Heather Frank. During Donnie's conversation with Aneciga, she asked the question we've all been wanting to ask. Did Heather have any hand in the murder of Scott Sessions or was she being completely controlled by Eastman?

[Donnie Robbins]

Our belief after everything was compiled that Heather Franks wasn't involved with either homicide. As far as actually partaking in it, I think we think she was probably forced into assisting and covering up the murder of Scott Sessions. With Eastman and her relationship, he was pretty domineering. She was afraid of him. It was probably Kevin Eastman that was actually typing the message, using Heather Frank's Facebook messenger to lure Scott Sessions over to the property.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

When Donnie found Eastman at the gas station filling the can, presumably so he could burn more evidence, he also observed that Eastman had a lot of cash on him, so Donnie might have grabbed him just before Eastman was about to.

[Scott Weinberger]

Run but there's a darker side of how things came together during the investigation. Could Heather Frank's life have been saved had things gone a little differently? It's something Donnie has thought about a lot.

[Donnie Robbins]

It's frustrating. If we would have been one day earlier of getting the arrest warrants, if we'd have gotten probably 12 hours earlier, we would have got them both in custody safely and she would probably still be alive.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

This is the kind of hindsight that undoubtedly keeps members of law enforcement up at night.

[Donnie Robbins]

Our job is to protect people, or try to anyway. And the fact that we couldn't in this case, it's one I'll think about for a long time.

[Scott Weinberger]

It's a chilling phrase. If I can't have you, no one will. It's tied to many domestic violence homicides. It often reveals the deeply rooted possessiveness and control that can drive a domestic partner to murder. In these cases, the individual may view their partner not as an independent person, but as something they own, fueling an obsessive need to control their fate. When they feel that control slipping, whether through separation, infidelity, rejection, it can trigger a violent, deadly response. For these individuals, the loss of power becomes intolerable, leading them to believe that ending their partner's life is the only way to maintain control, even in death.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

So much tragedy and violence in this case. Scott Sessions, an innocent, likely had no idea the violent web he was entering when he went to Heather's home. Heather Frank, an on again, off again relationship that was tumultuous, violent and clearly obsessive. Eastman controlled her and then he killed her. For law enforcement, the hindsight reflections are also painful. Could they have stopped Kevin Eastman before it was too late for Heather Frank? They are natural thoughts that most of us would have. But what happened to Heather Frank rests on one man's shoulders alone. Kevin Eastman. Police work to try and solve one murder as quickly and thoroughly as they could. Heather Frank's murder in the midst of that investigation, obviously horrible. But there doesn't seem to be any signs that would have predicted that what Eastman did to her in the middle of that night was about to come. The music made by Scott Sessions in his lifetime with his trumpet was a thing of beauty and skill. It made people smile, including Heather Frank. And that is how we should remember them both. Tune in next week for another new episode of Anatomy of Murder.

[Scott Weinberger]

Anatomy of Murder is an audio Chuck.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

Original produced and created by Weinberger Media and Frasetti Media.

[Scott Weinberger]

Ashley Flowers is executive producer.

[Anasiga Nicolasi]

This episode was written and produced by by Walker Lamond Researched by Kate Cooper Edited by Ali Sirwa, Megan Hayward and Phil John Grande so what do you think, Chuck? Do you approve? Netcredit is here to say yes because you're more than a credit score. Apply in minutes and get a decision as soon as the same day. Loans offered by NetCredit or lending partner banks and service by Netcredit application subject to review and approval. Learn [e-mail] partners NetCredit credit to the People so many options for toilet paper, quintuple, ply. This roll is titanium in forest. This one is made from elderly trees. Is that good? Just grab AngelSoft. It's simple, soft and strong. And for any budget, AngelSoft soft and strong.

[Donnie Robbins]

Simple.