Secrets Unmasked

Summary

Dateline NBC: "Secrets Unmasked" (June 23, 2026)

Host: Lester Holt | Reporter: Keith Morrison

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Episode Overview

"Secrets Unmasked" dives into a 24-year-old cold case in Willard, Ohio: the mysterious death of young mother Regina Hicks. The episode intricately unravels the combination of heartbreak, family suspicion, small-town rumor, and calculated manipulation that kept the truth buried for decades. Through investigative breakthroughs—including a stunning frame job involving a lifelike mask and a late confession from a key witness—the episode explores how Regina’s estranged husband, Paul Hicks, evaded justice for over two decades, only to finally be convicted thanks to relentless family advocacy and new forensic analysis. The case’s resolution brings closure for Regina's family, but not without a reckoning over lost years and lingering trauma.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Disappearance of Regina Hicks & Initial Investigation

• Setting the Scene & Regina's Disappearance

  • The story begins in 2001 in Willard, Ohio, a close-knit town where rumors traveled faster than truth ([02:31]).
  • Regina Hicks, 25, failed to pick up her son, Montana, from her estranged husband Paul, as planned ([03:34]).
  • Family panic quickly sets in, leading to a frantic search.

    "We just couldn't find her. We was losing our mind." —Carl Petrick, Regina's uncle ([04:34])

• Discovery & Immediate Aftermath

  • Regina’s body is found in her car, submerged in a pond ([05:34]).
  • The autopsy shows she drowned but does not conclusively determine whether it was homicide or accident, stalling the case ([06:43], [12:21]).

• Initial Suspicions and Official Hurdles

  • Regina had recently separated from Paul. The estranged husband was questioned, and so was her new boyfriend, but leads ran dry.
  • Rumors swirl involving everything from Paul to drug cartels ([12:01]).
  • A lack of official homicide ruling hampers deeper investigation ([12:21]).
  • Regina’s family keeps pressure on authorities and the public, including buying billboards and offering rewards for tips ([12:44], [13:00]).

2. Paul Hicks’ Life After Regina & New Patterns

• Paul’s Reinvention and Controlling Behavior

  • After Regina’s death, Paul maintains custody of their son and distances himself from her family, eventually moving and starting a new relationship with Kelly ([17:05]).
  • Kelly describes a relationship that shifts from comforting to manipulative and threatening, culminating in custody battles ([18:18], [18:30]).

• Shocking Frame-Up: The Arson Plot

  • In 2015, Paul’s house is set on fire in what looks like an open-and-shut case of ex-girlfriend revenge ([19:24]).

  • Surveillance video appears to implicate Kelly, but fire investigator Zach McCune quickly grows suspicious given the staged nature of the evidence ([22:10], [22:53]).

  • Discovery of digital tools—such as “spoofcards” (forging phone calls/texts) and an ultra-realistic face mask purchased online—proves Kelly was framed ([24:01], [24:35]).

    "We find out that that's my face is a company that makes custom wearable masks of anyone's face." —Zach McCune ([24:35])

  • The true culprit collaborating with Paul is strongly suspected to be his friend Terry Sweet, who conveniently dies before questioning ([26:04]).

  • Paul is eventually charged with insurance fraud and arson, but gets away with only a misdemeanor after a plea deal ([27:19]).

3. The Break in Regina’s Case: A Witness Comes Forward

• A Secret Witness Reveals All after 24 Years

  • A former friend of Paul, Steve Gates, comes forward, prompted by declining health and a guilty conscience ([30:31]).

    "I was tired of the threats. I was tired of looking over my shoulder." —Steve Gates ([34:21])

  • Steve describes being present with Paul when Regina arrived for the planned custody handoff. An argument erupts, and Steve leaves. When he returns, Regina is unconscious. Paul directs Steve to drive Paul’s car, following Paul (driving Regina’s car with her body inside) to a pond, where Paul drowns Regina in the Camaro ([32:15]–[33:36]).

  • Steve explains his silence due to intimidation and fear of retaliation ([34:36]).

• Prosecutors Act on New Evidence

  • Steve is granted immunity in return for testimony. Paul is indicted in April 2025, charged with murder and kidnapping ([36:40]).

4. The Trial and Aftermath

• Trial Proceedings

  • Paul pleads not guilty. The prosecution focuses on motive, discrepancies in Paul’s timeline, and Steve’s testimony ([37:33], [38:38]).
  • Defense attacks Steve as a liar with no forensic evidence linking Paul, but the jury is unconvinced ([40:49], [41:07]).

    "If lying was an Olympic event, that guy wins the gold, the silver, the bronze." —Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich ([40:49])

• Verdict and Impact on Family

  • Paul is found guilty of all counts just hours into jury deliberation ([41:39]).
  • Regina’s family expresses both relief and frustration that justice came too late for her mother.

    "Glad he came forward finally. So we got justice. But you could have done it 24 years ago." —Carl Petrick ([42:20])

  • Kelly finally regains custody of her son, but describes lingering trauma ([43:14]).

    "He punished me and got away with it. But he didn’t get away with Regina." —Kelly ([43:17])

• Regina Remembered

  • Regina’s brother and best friend remember her as vibrant, loving, and irreplaceable, expressing bittersweet relief and sorrow ([09:09], [44:03]).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Family’s Grief & Determination

  • "Every time I went somewhere, I carried her picture of my billfold. Still got it there. I thought about it every time I got up. Every night I went to bed." —Carl Petrick ([13:15])

• On the Framing Plot

  • "He set me up for the arson and took my son. That’s the only thing that could hurt me." —Kelly ([25:17])
  • "The mask looked like this. So the person in the video wasn’t Kelly. It was someone wearing a mask to look just like her." —Narrator ([24:50])

• The Breakthrough

  • "He always had an angle...there was threats. What could have happened to you? My life. He threatened your life many times." —Steve Gates ([34:36], [34:44])

• Final Justice

  • "The defendant, guilty of murder. Guilty on all counts." —Narrator ([41:39])
  • "If you ever had the best moment in your life, times that by 10." —Carl Petrick on hearing the verdict ([41:50])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Regina goes missing & discovery
  • [03:34]–[06:43]
• Initial investigation and community rumors
  • [09:43]–[12:21]
• Family pushes for answers
  • [12:44]–[13:53]
• Paul Hicks’ new life, relationship with Kelly
  • [17:05]–[18:41]
• The arson scheme & frame job
  • [21:00]–[27:19]
• Witness Steve Gates steps forward after 24 years
  • [30:31]–[36:21]
• Paul Hicks indicted and trial begins
  • [37:33]–[41:39]
• Jury verdict, family reactions, and aftermath
  • [41:39]–[44:20]

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Conclusion

"Secrets Unmasked" is a deeply human account of how one family's resilience, a community's whispers, and dogged investigators finally broke two decades of silence. The episode is a testament to the long shadow cast by unspoken secrets—and to the healing power of truth, however long it takes.

Transcript

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[Commentator / Analyst]

This was a very well thought out plan. The video of the fire is just insane. Betrayal, lies, manipulation, death.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

The female, she's got a hood on. She lets her long curly blond hair hang out of the hood. Later on we will learn a wig is purchased and that a mask is purchased.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

He is dressing somebody up in a disguise to look like you.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

It's devastating. I had nobody to protect me.

[Commentator / Analyst]

I do a little more digging. I started reading about the death of Regina Hicks. A young mom, a young wife.

[Family Member / Friend]

They found her. She was in her car.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

She was crumpled up on the passenger side of that car. Someone drove her into that pond.

[Commentator / Analyst]

There was a man, a secret witness.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Did you tell your wife or anybody about this?

[Paul Hicks]

No.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Never.

[Steve Gates]

No, I'm sorry I didn't come forward.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Like your heart's jumping out of your chest, all that darkness comes to light.

[Lester Holt]

A mother murdered. A mysterious fire, a mass disguise. Just how devious could one killer be? I'm Lester Holt and this is Dateline. Here's Keith Morrison with secrets unmasked.

[Narrator / Host]

There is a town, little place planted firmly in the wide flat farmlands of north central Ohio called Willard Railway Town, among other things. Sort of place where rumors travel fast and truth doesn't always catch up. This is where it started a quarter century ago. The trouble and the gossip that if somebody had said a true thing about it way back then, might all of it have been prevented? All 24 years of it. Well, who knows?

[Commentator / Analyst]

It is just mind boggling how one person can be responsible for all of this drama, this heartache, this death. It's hard to wrap your mind around

[Narrator / Host]

it and get away with it for so long.

[Commentator / Analyst]

Silence for so long.

[Narrator / Host]

That day. When it started, the year was 2001. It was an October evening past sunset. 25 year old Regina Hicks was due around eight to pick up her four year old son, Montana. The boy was with his dad, Regina's estranged husband Paul. They'd arranged to meet at a friend's house. Paul said he started calling her when she didn't show up. Left her a message.

[Paul Hicks]

Ask me Paul. Just want to know if you're going to come get him tonight or what. Should you be here at 8, 8:30? It's 9. Give me a call. I'll have my cell phone on. Bye.

[Narrator / Host]

And when Regina didn't arrive at her mom's as expected later that evening, her mother got on the phone and called Regina's brother, Chuck Rowe.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

She said, have you seen Regina? She was supposed to be here like two hours ago. And I was like no, I haven't seen Regina.

[Narrator / Host]

Then the whole family began to panic. Regina's uncle, Carl Petrick. What happened?

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

We just couldn't find her. We was losing our mind. I mean, where was she? I've got seven brothers and sisters. Why didn't somebody in the family know where she was at or contacted her?

[Narrator / Host]

This is Regina's cousin and best friend, Jennifer Donenworth.

[Family Member / Friend]

I knew she didn't run away. She would never leave her son. She loved him more than anything.

[Narrator / Host]

Family and friends left messages on her cell phone and on her answering machine.

[Paul Hicks]

It's me, honey. We're only the 5 cents.

[Family Member / Friend]

When they said that they couldn't locate her, all of our cousins and all of her brothers, her stepdad, everybody went out looking for her.

[Narrator / Host]

Next day the family called the Willard Police Department, filed a missing person report. So the police and the family, all of them went looking for Regina. But they couldn't find her. Not that day or the next day for the frantic day after that.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

And then my ex wife calls me and tells me, hey, they found a car in the pond. And I went there as fast as I could get there and I watched them fish her car out of the pond. And they said yes, there's a body in the car.

[Family Member / Friend]

My mom said they found her. She was in her car.

[Narrator / Host]

She's not with us anymore. An incalculable loss certainly to the family, to that little boy of hers.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

That would be an awful day.

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

There's no way to explain it until you experience it yourself.

[Narrator / Host]

Probably not a moment you'll forget.

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

No, you'll never forget it. I ain't forgot it in 24 years.

[Narrator / Host]

Dane Howard remembers too. Dane was the sheriff's investigator back then. Can see it still. That woman in the car in the pond. How she got there, well, who knew?

[Detective Dane Howard]

Early in the investigation, we had no idea. We didn't have any facts. We didn't know what happened to her at all.

[Narrator / Host]

The autopsy didn't help much, showed the cause of death was drowning, the method undetermined. So they could have chalked it up to an unfortunate accident. But Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

explained she had marks on the top of her head. She had marks underneath her shoulders as if she was dragged. And she had marks on her wrists. But there was no doubt about it, she was alive when she went into the pond.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Possibly unconscious, but alive.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

She's unconscious, right.

[Narrator / Host]

And this was strange. She was found on the passenger side of the car. So maybe someone made sure she went into that pond.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

She didn't drive the car into the pond by herself. Someone drove her into that pond.

[Narrator / Host]

But who could have done it?

[Interviewer / Reporter]

She had suspicions, but she couldn't prove it either.

[Commentator / Analyst]

She couldn't prove it either.

[Narrator / Host]

And then years later and nearly 200 miles away, like the Twilight Zone.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I don't even know what you're talking about. I don't even know what the hell is going on. And she's like, his house burnt to the ground. And I'm like, what?

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

He came in and he saw the video and said, that's her hair, that's her face, that's her body shape.

[Narrator / Host]

Regina Hicks had been dead a long time before Investigative reporter Karen Johnson of WLWT TV heard a thing about her. But pretty soon she was hooked. What did you learn about Regina?

[Commentator / Analyst]

So Regina was a 25 year old woman. She wanted this happy life with someone she loved, with her child, with her family.

[Narrator / Host]

All very close, that family. Tell me about her.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

She was a very fun, loving girl. She never really met no enemies. She was seven years younger than me. I brought her up a little rough. Like a tomboy.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

At the local watering hole. They could be 50 people in there. And when she laughed, you could hear

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

her over the music.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

And I'd be like, there's my sister right there.

[Family Member / Friend]

She was so warm and loving and kind and just such a beautiful, beautiful soul. She was my best friend. She was my hero.

[Narrator / Host]

Regina and her husband Paul had been a couple since high school.

[Family Member / Friend]

It was a love affair at first sight. They were together constantly. She was head over heels in love with him. She just knew that this was going to be her future.

[Narrator / Host]

How did he treat Regina?

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

At first they got along great while they was in school.

[Narrator / Host]

But marriage is quite another matter. And theirs unravels. So when Investigators found out that Regina and Paul had recently separated. Well, of course they talked to him along with a bunch of other people.

[Detective Dane Howard]

I think we worked all through that night, the next day interviewing folks connected to Regina. So we interviewed the husband, Paul Hicks.

[Paul Hicks]

You're up here.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

You're cooperating, man, that's really good.

[Narrator / Host]

Thing was, though, they had not yet revealed the fact that they found Regina's body.

[Steve Gates]

I think you know where she is now. You don't have to lie to me.

[Paul Hicks]

I'm not lying.

[Steve Gates]

I've had five or six people call that's buddies with the fire department saying you guys pulled a camaro out with 30 day tags on it.

[Paul Hicks]

I'm not stupid.

[Steve Gates]

I put two and two together.

[Narrator / Host]

How does it make you feel? You love her?

[Steve Gates]

Love with all my heart. I'll always love her.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

She knows her.

[Narrator / Host]

And last he knew, she was supposed to pick up their son at his friend's house. But she never comes and pick up my ass.

[Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich]

She never showed up.

[Narrator / Host]

That friend was Steve Gates.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

They came to you. The police did, didn't they?

[Steve Gates]

Multiple times, yeah. They came to a lot of people.

[Narrator / Host]

Steve told investigators he was at his farmhouse with Paul, playing around with a bulldozer.

[Steve Gates]

We were kids, you know, with a dozer. Let's go push some dirt around.

[Narrator / Host]

And Steve said what? Paul said they waited at his house, waiting for Regina, but she didn't show up. In there somewhere is when the investigators found out that Regina was dating another man. Now after her split with Paul. So they brought that guy in, too.

[Detective Dane Howard]

Any sexual partner, any tip that they would have had anybody who had access to her that night, like her boyfriend, boyfriend's buddies.

[Narrator / Host]

But that was pretty much a dead end. The boyfriend said he last saw Regina when she left to pick up her son. And there was no way to disprove. All became, well, a little like social media is now these years later. Lots of conspiracy theories, truth and lies, indistinguishable.

[Commentator / Analyst]

When Regina went missing, I think there was a lot of speculation. There was a lot of whispers around town.

[Narrator / Host]

There were stories about drug runners and Mexican cartels and friends and family.

[Detective Dane Howard]

One of the big problems early in this case was the rumor mongering, and it would just be a dead leap

[Narrator / Host]

and worse, said investigator Howard. Regina's death was not officially ruled a murder.

[Detective Dane Howard]

Our county coroner refused to list it as a murder. He said it was an undetermined manner of death. That's a major hiccup in this case.

[Narrator / Host]

Meaning Howard was hamstrung, Couldn't intensify the investigation. The way he wanted to. And as the months went by and the investigation seemed stalled, Regina's mother contacted local TV stations to drum up interest in the case.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I stay in touch with the detectives

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that are working on it. I just try to keep it alive

[Narrator / Host]

as much as possible. On the first anniversary of Regina's death, she told how she paid for billboards and offered a reward for solid information.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

My mother put up a lot of money that she was going to pay

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

out of her pocket.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

No one ever come through. Nothing ever happened.

[Narrator / Host]

And it went on like that for years. Did you give up hope that this would be solved?

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

No. Every time I went somewhere, I carried her picture of my billfold. Still got it there. I thought about it every time I got up. Every night I went to bed.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

So did you and your family push

[Narrator / Host]

for answers over that whole course of years, or did you give up on it?

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What?

[Narrator / Host]

What happened?

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

Oh, we never gave up on it. I mean, we had our lives to go on with, and it seemed like nobody gave a crap.

[Narrator / Host]

But no, said Detective Howard wasn't like that. Everybody cared, he said. They never gave up.

[Detective Dane Howard]

I mean, the case file has hundreds of pages in it from different interviews and different things. We turned over every leaf, and we did everything we could do.

[Narrator / Host]

Then, 14 years after Regina's death, her mom died.

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

Her mother passed away in 2015. She died with a broken heart.

[Commentator / Analyst]

I think in Regina's mom's heart, she knew who was responsible.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

She had suspicions, but she couldn't prove it either.

[Commentator / Analyst]

She couldn't prove it either, but they

[Narrator / Host]

could practically feel it. Feel they were sure. Him.

[Family Member / Friend]

It's like slime oozing through a screen. Like he just gets through things.

[Narrator / Host]

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[Narrator / Host]

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[Detective Dane Howard]

I went with the late Regina's mother to the prosecutor. We met with him, and she pleaded with him to take the case, and he refused. He said there just wasn't enough there and that's his prerogative.

[Family Member / Friend]

It's like slime oozing through a screen. Like he just gets through things.

[Narrator / Host]

She is talking about Regina's estranged husband, Paul. In fact, one of Regina's uncles told investigators he had seen her car at the house where she was supposed to meet Paul on the night she went missing. Which, if true, would put the lie to Paul's alibi.

[Family Member / Friend]

It was obvious to me. It was obvious to everybody in the community. Everybody knew that he did it.

[Narrator / Host]

But through the years, Paul resolutely maintained his innocence, maintained custody of their son, Montana, too. At first, he allowed Regina's family to visit, but that didn't last. And then eventually, Paul left the boy with his own mother. His job took him back and forth to southern Ohio, far from Regina's family and the rumor mill. There he met a new woman. This woman, Kelly.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Did he tell you what happened to his wife?

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Yeah, I believe it was our second time hanging out, I believe. And he actually told me that she died in a car wreck. And he cried.

[Narrator / Host]

For privacy reasons, Kelly asked us not to use her last name.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I just turned 23, and he was 33. He had his life together. He seemed like a great guy. He knew what he was doing. He acted like he wanted to take care of me and be good to me.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

But you were in love, Lost.

[Narrator / Host]

They moved in together and had a son. Paul worked on the railroad, and Kelly was a practical nurse. But as time went by, Paul became more and more controlling, said Kelly. And manipulative.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

I've heard some people describe those kind of relationships as when it's good, it's very, very good. And when it's bad, it's awful.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

That's More when I get more to know him. To when the true Paul Hicks comes out.

[Narrator / Host]

She and their son put up with it for years, she said, until finally she asked him to get out, leave.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I was just done at that point. And he kept saying, I'm gonna. I'm gonna do something that's gonna hurt you the most.

[Narrator / Host]

They were in a bitter custody battle at that point. Paul had moved into a new place. And one day in June 2015, Kelly was dropping off her son at this supermarket for visitation with Paul.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Before we knew it, both. Both doors were open and we had Taser guns pointed at our head. From Claremont County Sheriff's Department.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What's it like to have Taser guns pointed at you by cops as you were pulling out of a parking lot?

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Shock. I don't know when you're really in a moment like that where you're just so surprised, you just don't think. You just go with the moment.

[Narrator / Host]

Yeah.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

You know, you can't really describe it. It just. It's like your heart's jumping out of your chest.

[Narrator / Host]

A deputy arrested her like a criminal.

[Steve Gates]

I have no record at all.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

She's like, do you know what happened to Paul's house last night? I'm like, no, I don't even know what you're talking about. I don't even know what the hell was going on. And she's like, his house burnt to the ground. And I'm like, what? Did you hear anything about what happened?

[Narrator / Host]

No, no, no.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

I was at home.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

You know who he's pointing the finger at? Well, he could prove it at me.

[Paul Hicks]

Pointing at me on. He wants. I got.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Where were you at last night? I was at home with my mom and my son, watching tv.

[Narrator / Host]

It was as if Kelly had been forced into an alternate universe in which she was the criminal chief suspect in an arson investigation, arrested because she had an outstanding warrant for damaging a hot tub at Paul's house. This is video of that incident, and it looked like her, but she swore to those cops she was never there. It didn't help. And were you actually charged with crime?

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Criminal, damaging. And they use that to take me in, to question me about the fire.

[Narrator / Host]

In this interview, her face is obscured. Investigators showed her security camera photos of a woman who set fire to Paul's house.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

Well, I want to show you some pictures of actually the woman who came

[Commentator / Analyst]

in for the arson.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul claimed it was Kelly. She's rather large.

[Paul Hicks]

Oh, my God.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul also accused Kelly of harassing him the night before the fire.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

There's numerous, numerous phone calls from your phone to his phone. Oh, no, that's what I was just showing you right here.

[Paul Hicks]

Okay.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I never called him at all.

[Narrator / Host]

What in heaven's name was going on? How did you find out what happened? What really happened?

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

The insurance. They dug really deep into it, and

[Narrator / Host]

they couldn't believe what they found.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Have you ever seen a case like this one before?

[Paul Hicks]

No.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

This was the wildest case that I have ever seen.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul Hicks house burned to the ground in an arson fire. But something was very off.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

I am an attorney, but I have a specialty cases that involve fire investigation.

[Narrator / Host]

Zach McCune was brought in when Paul filed a claim with the insurance company.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What made them suspicious about the claim, and what made you suspicious about it?

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

Paul Hicks reported that he was three hours away from the residence where the fire occurred when it happened. He drove down the morning of the fire and reported the law enforcement that he had surveillance footage of the fire because it was stored inside of two fireproof gun safes.

[Narrator / Host]

That seemed odd, said McCune. Hard drives of video recordings and fireproof gun safes. But then the content of the video itself was odd, too. Not just odd, brazen. The arson by a man and a woman was as blatant as can be.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

And the female, she's got a hood on. She also lets her long, curly blond hair hang out of the hood and be displayed for the cameras. And she also looks at some of the cameras kind of directly with her face right to the camera. They bring in multiple cans of gas and pour them and ultimately light them.

[Commentator / Analyst]

Somehow the cameras were placed right in the perfect spot to capture everything.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul told police he had no idea who the man in the video was, but he certainly recognized the woman.

[Commentator / Analyst]

And he's saying, wow, that's my ex girlfriend.

[Narrator / Host]

Had to be Kelly.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

Exactly. He came in and he saw the video and said, that's her hair. That's her face. That's her body shape.

[Narrator / Host]

Those were the images the police had shown Kelly at the time. Her hair was Curly. But to McCune, it all seemed a bit too convenient. As did this.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

Hull Hicks had been posting to his Facebook accounts all of his Facebook friends. He'd been using screenshots from his iPhone that made it appear Kelly was stalking him and harassing him and calling him, like, initially 60 times and then 90 times, then more than 100 times. Lo and behold, a few hours later, there's this arson that she's blamed for.

[Narrator / Host]

So McCune started digging.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

He actually handed over his cell phone to us, which was analyzed, and one of the contacts in his cell phone Was a company called spoofcard.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What is that? Spoofcard.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

Spoofcard is a company that allows you to buy minutes with them. And when you use them, I could call you and make it look like it's someone completely different calling you.

[Narrator / Host]

So all those messages from Kelly were fake. Then more digital evidence led to a phone Paul shared with another woman. Her name was Terry sweet. When mccune looked at those phone records, he found receipts from a company with a strange name. That's my face.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

We find out that that's my face. As a company that makes custom wearable masks of anyone's face, to create the mask, you have to have pictures of the person's face from front angles and side angles.

[Narrator / Host]

The mask looked like this. So the person in the video wasn't Kelly. It was someone wearing a mask to look just like her. Kelly was being framed. Was she a victim in all of this?

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

She's the main victim in all of this, yes.

[Narrator / Host]

And that wasn't all. Paul made false accusations about her using drugs and harming her son that resulted in her losing custody.

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

He set me up for the arson and took my son. That's the only thing that could hurt me. It's like cutting off your leg, Taking your heart out. All I wanted to do is be a mom. And he knew that, and he took him.

[Narrator / Host]

Once they learned about the scheme, prosecutors dropped the hot tub charge against Kelly, and she was never charged for the arson. But who was the female arsonist wearing the face of the mask if it wasn't Kelly? Well, mccune was pretty sure it was Paul's friend, Terry sweet. She denied having anything to do with the fire, but she shared that phone with Paul, the one used to order the mask. So, of course, mccune wanted to ask her all about it, but when he tried to set up a deposition.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

So we call over her family, and we find out that she died the previous day.

[Narrator / Host]

Unbelievable.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Was there any investigation of that death?

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

Not that I'm aware of. We were told that she was an alcoholic and that she was told if you don't stop drinking, there's a chance that you could die.

[Narrator / Host]

Mccune was never able to identify the man in the video. After a two year investigation, he turned over his findings to the police. In 2019, four years after the fire, though he did not torch the house himself, Paul was charged.

[Zach McCune (Fire Investigator)]

They arrived at ultimately charging him for arson and insurance fraud and counts of perjury.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul denied it, Denied it all. Denied committing arson, Denied framing Kelly and pleaded not guilty. However, by then, investigators trying to solve Regina's case, got wind of the bizarre arson claim.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

We were hoping he would get convicted of some felonies and receive some incarceration, go to prison. Because if that happens, then we can go to these witnesses now and talk to these witnesses and he's in prison. So since he's in prison, maybe you'll be more likely to talk to us.

[Narrator / Host]

But that didn't happen. Instead, after three more years of legal starts and stops, Paul got a plea deal. He pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor, never went to jail.

[Grainger Advertiser]

What?

[Mazda Narrator]

What?

[Commentator / Analyst]

Wait a second, like rewind. Say that again. Paul Hicks, who's charged with aggravated arson, who's accused of creating this elaborate scheme to frame his ex girlfriend, pleaded no contest and he's not convicted of any of the serious crimes, just a misdemeanor.

[Narrator / Host]

But that old case, Regina's death at the bottom of the pond, that was quite another matter that was escalated to the state attorney General's office and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. What happened? Well, for one thing, Caceres and a team of investigators met with the coroner and asked him to take another look at the case. He did. And that's when he changed the manner of deaths from undetermined to homicide. And suddenly, after 24 years, a very big break.

[Commentator / Analyst]

There was a man, a secret witness who said he knows what happened to Regina.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

This young woman was suddenly. Was. Was killed almost in front of you. For a 20 year old kid, that's got to be a pretty horrific thing to see.

[Narrator / Host]

Or was it?

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[Narrator / Host]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts. It's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking. With Capital One, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how Capital One cafes are open seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. What's in your wallet terms apply. See capital1.com bank capital1NA member FDIC. He has a life threatening kidney disease and he said he wanted to clear his conscience. That's why it happened. Of course, it might not have happened at all. Except 24 years after the murder of Regina Hicks, the investigators tried one more round of questions and this man finally unburdened his soul.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Did you tell your wife or your family or anybody about this?

[Steve Gates]

No.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Never?

[Paul Hicks]

No.

[Narrator / Host]

Nobody?

[Steve Gates]

Nope.

[Narrator / Host]

Steve Gates, remember him? For all those years he denied knowing anything about a murder. But with mortality staring him in the face, he said it was time.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

When you denied knowing anything about it, what was going on in your gut?

[Steve Gates]

Very uncomfortable. I knew it was wrong. I knew that that wasn't the way it should have played out.

[Narrator / Host]

It happened here, says Steve on his farm in Willard. He was just 20 at the time. And Paul, Regina's estranged husband, was there with him. Paul was his buddy though, and taller and a bit intimidating. So Steve was really more follower who happened to have the toys Paul liked.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

So take us back there. What actually happened that night?

[Steve Gates]

Well, we hung out that day. I had a dozer and tractor and scuffed around in the mud.

[Narrator / Host]

At around eight in the evening, he said Regina pulled into the driveway intending to pick up her son Montana. And right away she and Paul started arguing.

[Steve Gates]

I remember she showed up and all they did was fight. Whether it was about money or who was in charge or who's going to get a job or. It was always something. How much of that can you take? I just, I'm tired of it.

[Narrator / Host]

So Steve said he walked away for about 15 minutes and when he returned

[Steve Gates]

to her car, it was like twilight dark. And I remember seeing the dome light of the car. When I got over there, she was crumpled up in a ball on the floor. It was already done. She was, you know, dude, you know, she's hurt, she needs help. Let's call 91 1, he said.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul snapped back at him.

[Steve Gates]

Dude, she's effing dead. And I just, you know, come on, follow me. I guess I didn't really know at the time where we were going.

[Narrator / Host]

But Steve said he did what he was told. Started up Paul's car with 4 year old Montana sleeping in the backseat while Paul drove Regina's car with her in the passenger seat beside him.

[Steve Gates]

He took her in her car and I followed him in his car. I didn't know where we were going. And then we went down the road, there's a, there's a little driveway that goes into a pond. And when I pulled up, he kind of had her car blocking the whole thing. And I went down to turn around and when I come back I just remember seeing the car up in the air. He put it into the pond and he came out and you know, I'm involved, I did this. Whatever he says, yeah, that makes sense to a 20 year old kid. I didn't touch her, I didn't drive the car in the pond, I didn't know anything to do with it. I didn't tell the truth about it.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Some people were saying, well, why didn't you call 911 from the other car?

[Narrator / Host]

You wouldn't have known that you were calling.

[Steve Gates]

Yeah, that's a good idea. I don't know.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

This young woman was suddenly, was killed almost in front of you and then the COVID up happens almost in front of you. For a 20 year old kid, that's gotta be a pretty horrific thing to see.

[Narrator / Host]

Or was it?

[Steve Gates]

Or was it? What do you mean?

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Well, I'm asking you. I mean, I don't know, I don't

[Narrator / Host]

know what you felt.

[Steve Gates]

It wasn't comfortable at all. It was terrible, terrible.

[Narrator / Host]

And yet he did not say a word about it for decades.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What made you come forward after 24 years, finally, after all that time, what was it? What was the deciding factor?

[Steve Gates]

There was a lot that decided against it. I was tired of the threats. I was tired of looking over my shoulder waiting for him to see where he's going to be.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Was it like that all those years,

[Steve Gates]

having to look over your shoulder, watching out for him?

[Narrator / Host]

Yeah, really.

[Steve Gates]

He always had an angle. I didn't do very well documenting the threats with law enforcement, but there was threats.

[Narrator / Host]

What could have happened to you?

[Steve Gates]

My life. He threatened your life many times.

[Narrator / Host]

Didn't have to be directly. He said sometimes he heard about the threats through the grapevine.

[Steve Gates]

It's a tiny little town, everybody knows everything. It's a small town and just everybody knows everybody.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Steve, are you saying that then that this little town kind of.

[Narrator / Host]

They all knew that he did it

[Interviewer / Reporter]

and they all knew that you saw that he did it and they all knew that you were not saying anything because of threats against you?

[Steve Gates]

No, I don't think that they knew the whole truth. I think they knew that I saw it, but I think they thought I was involved. I think they thought that I helped perform the act. I think that's what the town thought.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Yeah. Some people still think that you were

[Narrator / Host]

involved in this in a direct way

[Interviewer / Reporter]

that you participated in murder.

[Steve Gates]

I didn't. I never touched that girl. I never did anything with that girl.

[Narrator / Host]

His attorney, Bernie Davis, when this happened,

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Steve was a very young guy. And I think he was intimidated by Paul Hicks to the point where he believed him when he said, you're involved in it. And he kept his mouth shut.

[Narrator / Host]

And one more thing. In 2015, 14 years after Regina's death, Steve was called in for questioning yet again. And he said he was willing to talk. But investigator Howard saw it differently.

[Detective Dane Howard]

He sat down there. He was defiant. He was not. He did not cooperate at all. He handed in the card of his attorney, and that's the last we heard of him.

[Narrator / Host]

Steve said he wanted investigators to talk to his attorney first. And after he gave them the attorney's card, nothing happened.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

It's fair for Steve to say, hey, I tried to come forward in 2015, and no one listened to me. That's the reality of what happened. You can't sugarcoat it.

[Narrator / Host]

When he finally spoke in 2024, Steve Gates could have been charged with obstruction of just. Instead, he got an immunity deal to testify against Paul. Based on Steve's sworn testimony, Paul was indicted by a grand jury. He was arrested in April 2025, charged with murder and kidnapping.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

Paul, I don't know if they told you yet.

[Steve Gates]

We got a war fear arrest.

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

Okay.

[Narrator / Host]

But what a jury believe the state star witness.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

We called him a liar.

[Narrator / Host]

Paul Hicks pleaded not guilty when he went on trial for the murder of his wife Regina in December 2025. All right, please. But Regina's family felt confident.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

I thank God that these prosecutors finally got the right people to testify.

[Narrator / Host]

Were you sitting in the courtroom watching him?

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

I never took my eyes off from him.

[Narrator / Host]

I bet you were boring a hole

[Interviewer / Reporter]

through the back of his head with your stare.

[Chuck Rowe (Regina's Brother)]

Yeah, he might have looked at me three times the whole time.

[Narrator / Host]

Co prosecutor James Sitterly asked the jury to remember what this case did to the entire area.

[Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich]

But it all started when the defendant, Paul Hicks, 24 years ago launched his wife's coffin in the shape of a 1994 Camaro into the Whetstone pot.

[Narrator / Host]

Prosecutors presented phone records which they said showed Paul staged a voicemail message for Regina left when she was already dead.

[Paul Hicks]

That's me, Paul. I just want to know if you're gonna come get him tonight or what. Should you be here at 8? 8:30? It's 9. Give me a call. I'll have my cell phone on. Bye.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

He says to Regina, you know you were Supposed to be here at 8 o'. Clock. You're not here. Here at Steve Gates's house. While Hicks was telling people and the police that I left at 8:30. But it's five after nine when he's telling Regina on her voicemail. Hey, why aren't you here? Here at Steve Gates house?

[Paul Hicks]

I said that.

[Narrator / Host]

Looks like the prosecution also put on the stand that uncle of Regina's who saw her car at Steve's place.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

He drives by Steve Gates house and he sees Regina's Camaro parked on the property. So park Paul Hicks story is Regina was never here.

[Narrator / Host]

And this might sound familiar. The alleged motive for murder.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

Who put Regina in the pond or who had the motive? The defendant who benefited, benefited from her death. No custody dispute, no child support. She's dead. The defendant.

[Narrator / Host]

The state alleged Paul knocked Regina unconscious while Steve Gates was inside his barn. Of course, Steve was the star witness, though he asked his testimony not be recorded.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What was it like testifying in court?

[Steve Gates]

Very easy.

[Narrator / Host]

He was sitting there in court looking

[Interviewer / Reporter]

at you as you testified. You still found it easy at that

[Steve Gates]

point I didn't care. I don't care about him anymore.

[Narrator / Host]

Steve told the jury the same story he told police and us. He saw Paul Hicks drive the Camaro into the pond with Regina crumpled in the passenger seat. Steve unaware she was still alive. The defense obviously is going to call Steve a liar. Were you prepared for that?

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

Did you expect that we called him a liar. We got out in front of it. I told the jury that he lied. And we fully knew that defense counsel was going to do that. Any defense attorney would.

[Narrator / Host]

And as expected, defense attorney J. Anthony Rich attacked Gates credibility.

[Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich]

If lie was an Olympic event, that guy wins the gold, the silver, the bronze. Yet the government is asking you to take a huge leap of faith in a witness who they have acknowledged has lied for 25 years.

[Narrator / Host]

They had nothing. Nothing linking Paul to the murder, said the defense.

[Lester Holt]

Zero.

[Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich]

Forensic evidence linking Paul to the alleged crime scenes.

[Ohio Assistant Attorney General Dan Caceres]

Zero.

[Defense Attorney J. Anthony Rich]

Not.

[Narrator / Host]

It was six days before Christmas when the jury took the case. And just three hours later, a verdict the jury filed. The defendant, guilty of murder. Guilty on all counts.

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

That's the only emotion he showed during the whole trial is when they said he was guilty and he threw his head back like, I can't believe it.

[Narrator / Host]

What was that moment like for you

[Interviewer / Reporter]

when they said guilty?

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

Oh, you can't describe that. I mean, if you ever had the best moment in your life, times that by 10.

[Family Member / Friend]

I felt it all the way to my toes. Like my soul knew what was going to happen. I felt her with me. I just knew it.

[Narrator / Host]

The jury believed Steve Gates, the man who finally told the truth after all those years. So what do you think of Steve Gates now? What do you think? What do you think about him?

[Carl Petrick (Regina's Uncle)]

Mad madness. I'm glad it came forward finally. So we got justice. But you could have done it 24 years ago. My sister Regina's mom could have seen justice.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

What you say to the family, that's clearly something that you still are dealing with, aren't you? Have you talked to them?

[Steve Gates]

I haven't talked to them in 24 years.

[Narrator / Host]

Would you like to?

[Steve Gates]

I don't know what I would say. There's nothing to say.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Except. What?

[Steve Gates]

I'm sorry I didn't come forward. I'm sorry I didn't help with the

[Narrator / Host]

resolution for your mother and Kelly. Eventually, Kelly got full custody of her son. But even now, the trauma lingers.

[Interviewer / Reporter]

Would you classify him as a type of predator?

[Kelly (Paul's Ex-Girlfriend)]

I would say so, yeah. He preys on weak or young. He punished me and got away with it. But he didn't get away with Regina. Thank God.

[Narrator / Host]

A representative read an impact statement from Regina and Paul's son, Montana. He's in his late 20s now. Montana asked the judge to show mercy, but the judge had seen Paul Hicks had seen what he did and sent him away for putting. His case is under appeal, And Regina's family takes what comfort it can from its memories of a woman who once upon a time was as alive as a person could possibly be. Regina.

[Family Member / Friend]

Her laugh was beautiful. It was loud. It was contagious. It was amazing. I missed the sound of her laughter. It was my favorite part of her.

[Lester Holt]

That's all for this edition of dateline. And don't forget to check out our Talking Dateline podcast, which will go behind the scenes of tonight's episode, available Wednesday in the Dateline feed. Wherever you get your podcasts, we'll see you again next Friday at 10, 9 Central. I'm Lester Holt. For all of us at NBC News, good night.

[Narrator / Host]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts, it's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking. With Capital One, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how Capital One cafes are open source seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capital1.com bank capital1NA member FDIC.