A mother disappears. Texts reveal she has coronavirus – was someone using COVID to cover up a killing? "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports.
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it's never dull. In palm beach,
We have some of the most famous people of that country or the world living here and our backyard, and this is my counting. This is my town and catching criminals. I enjoy it,
This case began back in march of twenty twenty.
the corona virus pandemic shuts down schools, sporting events and businesses, and the time ever was preoccupied with the krona virus. Locked downs had started rich ass. He was a resident of a
well to do community and Jupiter florida right here in palm each county. I met David and gretchen anthony several years ago at a local jem here. The first thing that you noticed about her just big blue eyes and a giant
smile, blonde hair tan asked,
headache, David's, very attractive man very charming had a big smile as well. There was magic there, and the energy between them was amazing,
the local officials issued in order not to leave your all less
from a necessary ass
then he starts to send text messages to friends and family members stating
She has been diagnosed with the krona virus and she describe
Is it as being an acute case, a serious case? Yes,
there are very concerned need only talk to her. The attacks. No one ever spoke with gretchen on the phone and she never answer her phone. He would go to voicemail. Yes, so efforts were made to speak with her spouse,
There's a dual track here. Where is gretchen anthony and where is her husband, David anthony gas? Neither one can be found. Please sit a welfare check of russian anthony
and what they learned was disturbing
So this is where the investigation began. Investigators were approach by neighbour. She heard it
why curdling screen something horribly nefarious had happened.
this case really hit differently. I mean we are talking about someone
Who is a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend
All I wanted to do was to be able to find her and I wanted to find her alive, and so
the chase was on
The
I
back in march, twenty twenty friends and family of gretchen Anthony were alarmed when they began receiving text. From her saying she had tested positive for corona virus
the news is saying a serious. The town atomic allows a state of emergency and the
The numbers are being reported and people are dying. A number of confirmed cases continues to grow
hundred hard for gretchen Anthony's friends like Kelly Hannah to picture her dying of anything much less. This frightening
iris. At fifty one years, old gretchen was a picture of fitness. She worked.
at the gym very hard. She took her health very seriously, credit
is someone who is tremendously heart centred. She just radiant and just a very carrying beautiful spirit,
but above all else, she was a devoted mother to her twelve year old daughter, gretchen was raised
her child in this house in jupiter floored, while sharing custody with an ex husband.
grudges daughter was her world. She was everything to her crochet mission and assistants. States attorney for palm beach county got involved in directions case
early on. There was nothing that gretchen wouldn't do for her daughter she hated being away from her after her divorce.
Friends say: gretchen fell in love with David Anthony the two men at a local Jim, where he was a trainer
the kind of a rock star, the gym,
It was the young hot trainer for sure is a huge presents. David was a popular
rayner at a owned by tabitha hopkins
She says he brought in lots of new members.
Is intelligent well spoken? He was charming. She didn't have to tell anybody that there was an attraction there. There was absolute sparks, there was
jake there no question about it.
Attraction soon lead to the couple getting married at an Elvis.
traveled in las vegas in twenty fifteen.
Like the happiest couple ever did you feel like she found the man of her dreams. Absolutely David, in all appearances, was a phenomenal step parent. She called him bonus dad, but friends,
the couples dream life came apart in late, twenty nineteen, when they
A and David moved out of their home a kind of sounded like they both lost themselves
a little bit and they were searching more for their own self identity. Now,
chins inner circle was dealing with it.
potential life or death situation
and then all of a sudden. There is bizarre cell phone messages,
over several days, starting on march. Twenty third friends
family received a series of tax from gretchen who said she was at home,
in corn tea. She sent this one to her daughter,
who was staying with her ex husband good morning, tested positive for
Rona virus early this morning. That means I have to stay here for at least two weeks. Her daughter replied. Okay, I really hope you get better
crochet mixing says there were multiple texts from gretchen phone over the next three days describing urgent
you're you're, writing condition I consulted with the virus screening hotline.
and admit it myself into the jupiter medical centres. Emergency room
So this is serious stuff. What is the family do with these tax? The family finds a text messages that they're getting from gretchen tv
worrisome alarming. What disturbed?
everyone receiving these tax. Is that no one not
even gretchen daughter had received a phone call,
from her at the just
so many things that are so wrong, including these tax, claiming that she'd been
transferred to an off site medical facility being run directly
by the cdc in build laid more than
our away in central florida, but there's a problem
there is no cdc facility and belgrade flora, so this text message alleged
lee from bretons own phone apparently was not sent by gretchen.
It definitely was not sent by gretchen dave ehrenberg. The state attorney for palm beach county agrees thoroughly. Whoever had sent those text messages were trying to take advantage of this pandemic of the fleet.
Out there trying to exploit the situation, so things were not adding up and things were not adding up very quickly.
family, along with friends,
the decision to reach out to law enforcement,
to do a welfare check on gretchen, anthony
I mean how for my friend, that's mentioned.
I don't know how to put that. I know
and very painter right now, jupiter police, detective Jared Henderson caught the case on the night shift
we reach out to the jupiter medical center. They did not have a record of gretchen anthony being impatient at their facility during that time.
So all of a sudden, this is getting serious yeah, that's a huge concern of mine,
desperate for clues police checked out the jupiter medical centres. Parking lot
it pay dirt. Gretchen Anthony's many cooper was recovered in the parking lot of jupiter medical center.
henderson says what they found inside gretchen's car was worrisome, her purse sitting in plain sight,
I think a woman normally carries pursue them if gretchen Anthony is not in a fast.
They in a hospital are being treated for covert if she doesn't have covered, whereas scrapped
That was the million dollar question. No one knew where,
and asked
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Five days had passed since anyone had seen gretchen anthony too.
or police investigators were determined to find her, so they canvassed her neighbourhood wearing body can
risk. Looking for clues, they were stunned when a resident approach them to say that early on the morning of Saturday march, twenty first she heard something terrifying
I heard a really serious woman strain lake just screaming, like shows being attacked, and then I heard a screen. No
heard something about it. Hurts stop at a screen was really serious.
This woman call nine one one should not so
People are apprehensive, well call the police when you heard that story. What are you thinking? I'm thinking that
nothing definitely happened at gretchen, Anthony's home saturday.
Officers, became even more concerned when another neighbour told them. He later noticed a soapy substance flowing from underneath gretchen garage door. Somebody was in their cleaning, that's when I take from that. We discuss
we're dead, her entrance door that leads from her patio into her garage that door was locked and it had the key broken off in the in the deadbolt could gretchen be inside investigators wasted no time finding out they force entry into the garage, and there was no gretchen inside, however,
They noticed that there was a strong pungent smell
out of a cleaning agent in the garage with body cameras rolling investigator,
search the home several times they found evidence suggesting
a violent struggle, a broken picture frames short
a glass on gretchen sped and stained towel. There was a piece of cloth that had what is
to his bill ass, a blood like substance on it. They gotta huge break when they discovered neighbors, had taken photos of a black nissan pickup truck park near gretchen home after the terrifying screens and who owns a black nissan pickup truck David Anthony.
David, Anthony, gretchen's, estranged husband, his vehicle was there that morning
investigators learn from friends and family that gretchen had filed for divorce in february of
when twenty and David had moved in with his mother. That's when David's former boss, Tabitha hopkins says he became increasingly.
Unstable. He regrets
behavior wise, so
he became more hard to manage gretchen sphere.
We told investigators she worried about her safety after the separation and had security cameras installed throughout her home and garage who was she afraid of. I was told that she had the cameras install because David had returned to her home after you left after they separated
the canvas discovered those cameras had been removed from the walls, possibly to destroy
incriminating evidence, but he learn that, while the cameras work on the issue
she's. They once recorded could be recovered from the cloud
we sent a search. Why to her camera provider? It is believed that this could potentially be the best piece of evidence at this point that
could give us some direction as to where is gretchen, Anthony,
while they waited for that crucial evidence investigator,
scrambled to find out just what David
anthony knew about corrections, disappearance they went to
look for him at his mother's home again with body cameras, rolling jupiter police allow
replace sorry to David's mom said she too had received a concerning text from gretchen pressure and then attach assassinated.
They say satire shares the virus
cdc center or she I don't know she texted me this morning and said she was in there. I have the tax. Would you like to see I'd love to? Thank you all right, nfl, okay,
when officers asked her where her son was maybe
I am alarmed
Costa rica David's mother told them that he packed up his truck and on tuesday, eight march twenty fourth, three days after gretchen disappeared. He grabbed his dog coolby and hit the
once they know that he is attempting to flee the country. He definitely becomes us. May they are very suspicious of him.
adding to their suspicion what they discovered on the video retreat from the Jupiter medical center parking lot were, gretchen car was found there
security footage that show gretchen Anthony's many cooper pulling into a parking space
and there is a tall figure walking away from her vehicle
if it Anthony, is about six seven six eight and deserve look like
Who could be six seven? Six, eight, absolutely investigators were convinced
anthony was somehow involved in gretchen disappearance now
Fucking gretchen's cell phone could be the key to finding David. They find that gretchen's phone is hanging off a tower. I'm in the area of Pensacola Florida. That's like six hundred miles away
Yes, your phone is on the move. It there's a lot of moving part here right, so we're trying to still answer the question where is gretchen Anthony, whereas David Anthony, and so these cell phone records become a very credible part in it
locating David Anthony, investigator, say phone records help track David across florida as he left a paper and video trail cameras
courted him. Stopping a drill, restores to sell gretchen jewelry. One
store owner shared a memorable conversation that he came in wanting to sell some jewelry that had been left to him?
by a family member that had died from covert nineteen covert. Yes covered strikes again, which strikes again
in all these videos that we really
What from these different businesses? Nowhere
was gretchen seem well. Do
anthony was leaving a tantalizing trail of electronic breadcrumbs. He had one
jude advantage. Remember they had learned from his mother that he was on his way to costa rica
and could be long gone
We are not operating days behind David, anthony understanding that his intentions at this point are to leave the country.
No, it's now from this perspective. Catch me. If you can yes now we're on the high for
anthony the the.
To her friend kelly gretchen, anthony with someone who connected instantly with
we won. She met our shoes
a radiant and just had this gentle gracefulness about her had the most beautiful laugh.
someone who should somehow be protected from harm in a perfect world. You
hope and pray. Those people have angels around them to keep them safe, but now gretchen had been missing for six days. What is going on- and why is my beautiful friend missing?
assistant prosecutor crocheted mixing, knew the key to finding gretchen was finding harassed
ranged husband, David Anthony. She had been told David was on the run to costa rica and had a head start we're trying to make up time we're trying to move quickly.
and play catch up. Investigators tracked reckons and David's cell phones signals which appeared to place both bones travelling together heading
word across texas now design.
suggest. The two of them may be on a trip together that she could
possibly still be alive. It suggested their phones are paying together to me, detective Jared, kennison, didn't know what happened to gretchen but fear the worst ass. He waited for evidence taken from gretchen home to come back from the lab. He issued a bolder and alert to be on the lookout
or David's black nissan truck. His vehicle is listed as a felony vehicle investigators, jug into David's past, and what they learned was studying for David Anthony originally was known as David Anthony deutsche and then later changed his name to David Anthony. Nobody knew that he's local. Here, too, the palm beach area he went to the same high school. My children went to
It's weird that nobody realised that there was a difference. Nobody realized, for instance, that is david, anthony deutsche, a star college basketball player. He held up a blockbuster
yo store armed with a squirt gun and
assaulted, a police officer. He reached a plea deal,
each case and spent a short stay
in jail, David Anthony, has had a history of criminal conduct, not that uncommon. For someone with chrome
ass, a try to escape that past tabitha, Hopkins David's former boss at the german jupiter had noticed something odd about David he's, very talented and his skill level,
the meeting, but his moods can be higher low. Do you feel is so he does have this chuckle and hide personality, one hundred percent,
Tabitha says he became so difficult to manage. She was forced to fire him in twenty seventeen
she gave him a second chance a few years later, but by early
when he twenty, he was increasingly unstable, evasively say: what's going on what's wrong with you
you are not the same person that I knew tabitha says she was forced to fire him again and this time she caught a glimpse of David's, frightening rage that look I'd never seen before. He was angry shaken tabitha, texted gretchen at the time separated from David with a warning stay away from him. She had said that he is crazy and that's the last time I talked the region that was february of twenty twenty two. Then
A few weeks later, just seven days before gretchen disappeared. This happened. Can I get off now get upstairs police received a report that David was allegedly following teenage girls at a nearby shopping center once again police body,
errors were rowley when they approached it.
get with kobe sitting quietly in the trunk.
in the car
lashed out and was charged with resisting arrest.
I david spin
a few days in jail, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and
these in the court of law investigators learned he posted bail and was released just three days before gretchen disappeared or an offender
Now, as they tracked him cross country, they knew they had a volatile
man on the loose and he was being cagey. He would turn on.
cell phones and we would be able to get
location, and then he returned cell phones off David stone pinged here in takeover texas or then
It's hundred miles away from jupiter the next day, David, stone paint here
unless las cruces new mexico
Henderson immediately reached out to las cruces police for help.
Still tracking his phone and armed with a description of the truck less cruces police located David and pulled him over when officers ass? David about gretchen, he told them she had covert Lhasa hurts heard sake, asserted
less. Sarah police sees David struck and his possessions, including his own and gretchen, spoke, but they didn't have
enough evidence to bring David in for questioning. So, along with Kogi, he was allowed to just walk away
Where does he go? I don't know where he went, but I knew that he was in
cruises on foot and you're here in florida. What do you do? We are awaiting the results of gretchen Anthony's
video cameras. Jupiter police finally received the electronic recordings from gretchen home. They released portions of that evidence like this video from security. Can
revealing a tall figure hidden in the shadows on the patio waiting to ambush her, the figure boo
throughout the patio areas, other footage was to dust
serbia to release to forty eight hours, including the moment. Gretchen appeal
who's on the patio and they figure forces her.
into the garage investigators also retrieved recordings from
wretches alexa device where she can be heard calling out for help?
She was screaming for alexa to call nine one one she's calling out to that electronic box
Call nine one one another. We call the police gretchen.
didn't know it, but unless you specifically programme your election device to do so, it does not call the police in any emergency. Do you think if the elects a unit had called nine one, one that gretchen Anthony might be alive,
It's possible video retreat from cameras in the garage showed the last images of gretchen alive. There comes a point we
This person that we see grab gretchen muffle her screams.
take her into the garage. This person looks up at the camera, realises that it's a camera and proceed
to take that camera and snatch down off the wall and throws it on the floor. And what do you see
we see David Anthony looking up and to the camera. We
that David Anthony killed, gretchen Anthony. He was the killer.
Investigators finally have the proof they needed to make an arrest, detective, countersign race to less process. To look for David Anthony
We searched homeless areas. We search
hotels, were you nervous he's going to get away? I was very nervous, I didn't know.
He could have gone that evening.
So we got a lucky break when they spotted David walking. His dog, hoping David, was detained and copy was taken to a shelter
My name is Gerald Henderson, I'm a detective with the jupiter police department with all six feet, seven inches of David Anthony
into the back seat of a small police car, detective, Henderson, knelt down and looked directly
in the eyes at the man he was.
certain had killed gretchen.
There's a warrant for your arrest, and I'm gonna explain that when we get down to the shooting, what homicide? For who the? Who do? You think the last one was we'll talk,
headquarters, Henderson had his man, but still had one looming question. We start
have a body where
is gretchen anthony
see what
since investigators pulled from the cloud had, four
eight hours darker
after a manhood
Racine six states spanning nearly two thousand miles David Anthony, was finally in custody.
with the murder of his estranged, wife, gretchen carry jupiter detectives kelly sanders and generic henderson would interrogate him here at this stage.
These headquarters in must reassess new mexico. They had one goal get David to reveal the location of gretchen spotty. We were in search of the truth in search of, whereas scratching
I wanted to be able to tell our family tell her daughter
I know where she is, and that was very important to us right away. David made it clear. It wouldn't be easy. We have obtained a warrant for your arrest for murder, okay, she she's
Kennison was stunned. When David claim gretchen wasn't dead. I will ellison this belief. I knew that she wasn't with us anymore, but he's defiant with you as crap
if client and dishonest police say the story, David told- was pure fiction shares travelling with me of adult also, but we were driving a vehicle. So she she
hold it. He said. Gretchen was on the run because she discovered
legal activities at the company where she worked, and someone was after her are you buy in any of this and that by now, when asked about the text
just sent from gretchen phone claiming she had covered David was evasive
there is no record of her being at any hospital for covered. Nineteen zero record was immediately when the detectives
harder, insisting David sent the messages he pushed right back. You have heard that when you text messages you plan to her heart,
medical center, because wrong video doing it
She had we do it
Henderson and Sanders even confronted David, with the evidence captured on gretchen
own videos system. You put your hand
now changing her into the garage. It's on video David
story, never changed. He repeatedly told the detectives gretchen was.
I've grudging still live. In fact, during the car
so the interrogation David Anthony.
Made that claim persons, laboratory, she's, still alive, she's thirty five times
He says that over and over and over that she's alive, why ceasing he's trying to deflect davis trying to deflect away from
himself with each denial. The detectives anger rose is very frustrated because we
she's, not alive. We have evidence of her
being alive, so Henderson switch tactics and tried to appeal to David's bond.
with gretchen young daughter
I will go with you. I want you to look. I love look. I know you do
a real good and for a brief moment it seems like it might work.
I was the one who taught her how to ride a bicycle. Who was yup. That is often do what's right for her. Never never. Never.
Well, you're hurting her indirectly by not letting us know were her mom. Is you have to ask her weekend after that she's
their mother. So why does it feel alive? And then David tried a new tactic? He dared them to prove their
case. You have video showing. How do you know what we have.
Show me the video video pregnant
I saw the video. I know that it exists. Ok, this one has the detectives decided it was time to take a break they left
and sent officers to adjust David's hancock
Henderson came back alone this time, quiet and friendly. He may well
last emotional plea by playing an audio recording of gretchen, his daughter begging David, to tell them where they could find her mother. Even that didn't work. There is no growth David claimed, falsely that it wasn't gretchen daughters, voice,
infuriated henderson decided to let him have it. You didn't like even you all our order in you
How do you do when you and everybody look at you like that?
for more than two hours, David abruptly ended the interview. I asked for a lawyer to prove I'm not asking questions, I'm still wondering where gretchen is. I wasn't able to leave that interview knowing where she was and that didn't necessarily sit well with me.
David Anthony was charged with second degree, murder and extradited to florida days late
his dog kobe was adopted by new owners in jupiter
David's arrest made the news. According to a just released arrest report, a neighbor heard a woman's blood curdling scream at about six in the morning march. Twenty first, when Kelly Hannah saw the story she says it broke her heart. I just sat down on my bedroom floor and just cried my eyes out, cried my eyes out for her daughter for her sisters for her parents for every one that loved her David's former boss, tabitha hopkins, felt she'd lost.
In france, it was just shocking. I wanted to believe it wasn't true, but it was obviously prosecutor, Dave, ehrenberg had evidence and a suspect in custody
but he knew getting a conviction wouldn't be easy. The most troubling thing for the family and for all of us quite frankly, was that we did not have
since body and we all have a body? Those are challenging cases to prosecute and david anthem,
He knew it.
While David Anthony was held in custody in palm beach county florida of grand jury indicted him on a charge of kidnapping and raised the murder charged from second degree to first, could he have face the death penalty with
charge potentially gas
to be modern one track of wine, but this search
Gretchen Anthony's remains continue. That was the thing he had in his favor. If this ever want to try
it was almost as though it was his ticket. It was the worst part of it. For me, the fact
that he was able to use evidence of his crime as leverage
in fact, also weighed heavily on gretchen's family, the thought of gretchen being out there.
alone forever.
Very unsettling for them. I think the family one at life in prison, but they want to grant
december, twenty twenty with the wider holidays looming, it was becoming tragically apparent that authorities may never fine gretchen without or alleged killers, health, and so we entered into negotiations with David Anthony's defence lawyer and were able to work out a settlement of thirty eight years.
in prison that settlement required David Anthony to plead guilty to second degree, murder and revealed
location of gretchen remains,
David Anthony appeared in court today, cleaning guilty David Anthony pleads guilty nine months to the day after gretchen anthony, went missing, David Anthony finally admit what everyone already knew. He murdered his wife,
we were able to find gretchen that day it was a relief.
Because I know that is what her family wanted.
And to be able to give that to them. It meant a lot david, open,
He chose this nondescript patch of grass just a few more
from gretchen house
find a walmart and next time
retirement home to hide his.
life's remains detective Jared kennison took us, there,
How does someone Beria body here and not get caught? I I don't know this discovery that must have
quite a moment for you, it will use very emotional for me- was very emotional, far from us that out
after months of uncertain wretches, family could finally lay her to rest and
I could see as hard of a time as this has been or had been further.
family I could see tat. There was some sort of peace
an autopsy was performed which explained why that neighbourhood screams the morning gretchen disappeared. What was the cause of death cause of death was stab wounds to the neck and to their torso. There were some defensive,
She felt for her life you
what you did to negotiate something for yourself. You are pure evil, gretchen sisters,
Sarah carry and the rest of their family came face to face with David Anthony at his
and seen hearing
stole a mother away from her child, a daughter away
Mother, you are a monster, you are a coward. You can never be
forgiven, then it came time for the man who created all this pain to speak, and he gave a bizarre explanation for his actions
the
You can tell us, because
Instead of being a man, I chose to be a coward.
I still have mine in the process. I ended up. Liking, provide value for life, or even still that I'll call bs on that hard. Pugwash, that's appalling. Absolutely
owing and he left so many questions unanswered.
We will never know
We will never know.
We will never know why he ended gretchen life.
Think that's the hardest question to ask. Is why and
Sometimes you just need to
I believe that there are higher powers in place that have a bigger plan.
And now, retchings, friends and family are left trying to makes
save it all how
corrections daughter doing
no children are resilient. She,
blessed to have her father and her life, and she appears to be doing well. If
person was touched by how much she loved people by how much
she loved her child by how much she just loved living life to the fullest. Then her life mattered
and the
when he was thirteen, he can do
thinkable crime that was just killing twenty leaves behind bars now,
out cited, as can what's next for Eric Psmith forty eight hours and next CBS
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Transcript generated on 2023-06-01.