hey guys welcome to my channel and today we're going to take a look at another horrible case with you one summer day in 2014 the New York Police Department received an unexpected call from a woman requesting to speak with the detective handling the shell colon case the caller was Deborah Holmes and she urgently requested a meeting with the investigators receiving such surprising news they hoped this unexpected call might help thaw the long stagnant investigation into a tragic loss that had been at a standstill for 5 years it was about the case of Shelley danes's tragic demise which had caused a stir in Manhattan on the eve of New Year's 2010 Shel covlin grew up on the West Side immersed in an Orthodox Jewish Community her family 's deep-seated roots in this tight-knit neighborhood shaped her upbringing shelle's Journey from a blissful childhood to an accomplished adulthood was marked by her love for Learning and academic Excellence this passion for knowledge eventually led her to a prestigious degree in Asset Management opening doors to a thriving career in the Swiss banking sector her rapid Ascent in the financial World saw her skillfully managing multi-million doll portfolios for her clients in 1998 despite a successful career in one of the world's wealthiest cities Shelley felt a void in her life she had Financial Security and a loving family yet her dream of having her own family and becoming a mother remained unfulfilled in February 1998 determined to change her Destiny Shelley attended a Jewish singles event aimed at helping those seeking their significant other it was there that she met 26-year-old Rod covlin a fellow professional in the banking sector actor the young couple shared many common interests both driven by Ambitions for success and stability in life their connection was instant and profound the relationship blossomed rapidly as they complimented each other perfectly disregarding the notable age difference Shelly and Rod were inseparable spending every moment together their love was so intense that shortly after meeting they decided to get married despite some acquaintances considering it a hasty decision for Rod and Shelly everything felt just right the happy couple soon welcomed two beautiful children a boy and a girl completing their family on New Year's Eve 2009 the idilic life of the covin family was shattered by a tragic accident that led to Shell's death initially the police deemed it a freak mishap at the early stage of the investigation they were convinced it was just that early in the morning of December 30 3st at the Manhattan police station two officers wrapping up their night shift were discussing their holiday plans over coffee however the calm atmosphere was abruptly disrupted at 7:30 a. m. by an urgent phone call Rod covlin from the Upper West Side in a frantic State informed the officers about bizarre occurrences at his ex-wife Shelley danishefsky's house he had found her in her bathtub submerged in bloodstained water lifeless Emergency Services hoped Rod could provide the necessary assistance to save the victim following the operator's instructions over the phone rod pulled her out of the water and attempted resuscitation but it soon became clear that saving her life was impossible shella's body was cold and motionless a distraught Rod covered her with a blanket he found in the bedroom and waited for the police to arrive thus on the last day of 2009 Manhattan witnessed a heartbreaking event in the life of Rod covlin the police team arrived swiftly at the scene of the incident upon arrival they quickly assessed the situation and cordoned off a Central Street in Manhattan they were greeted by a lavish residence just steps away from the city park the Upper West Side was known for its safety and the officers initially surmised that shell danishefsky's death was another tragic case of self harm entering the apartment they found children's toys scattered around not unusual given the upcoming holiday they then proceeded to the bathroom where the woman's body wrapped in a blanket by her husband lay the bloody water in the tub and the wet floor indicated that Rod had recently pulled the body from the water a wound on the back of Shell's head still bleeding was noticeable surveying the bathroom the officers noted an open cabinet door with a torn hinge suggesting the woman might have slipped and torn it off while trying to hold on to the door forensic experts who arrived shortly after conducted a thorough examination to rule out other possible causes of the tragic incident after a careful inspection they determined there was no Breakin and no signs of a struggle were found investigators increasingly leaned towards the belief that Shell's death was an accident the detective handling the case decided to speak with family members during their questioning it was revealed that Shelly and Rod's 9-year-old daughter was the first to discover her mother's body traumatized and shocked by what she had seen the girl managed to tell the police officer how everything happened it turned out that the previous night she and her younger brother had been sleeping in their mother's bed a fairly common occurrence waking up in the middle of the night and noticing her mother's absence she went to look for her and stumbled upon the horrifying scene in the bathroom the frightened child hurriedly contacted her father for help rod and Shelly had just separated and he had moved into a new apartment in the same building on on the same floor crossing the corridor was all it took to reach his apartment the girl called her father who was nearby and arrived immediately entering the bathroom he pulled Shell's body from the water and called for emergency services the girl's account matched exactly what Rod had described confirming the theory of an accidental death the police informed Shell's relatives about the tragedy which deeply shocked everyone the autopsy and forensic examination were scheduled for the day after the body was found however surprisingly it never took place when the medical examiner called the investigators to start the examination he unexpectedly learned that despite its necessity the procedure would not be conducted this baffled The Examiner wondering how this could happen it turned out that a rabbi from the synagogue shell frequented had intervened he contacted an organization responsible for the burial of Orthodox Jews which then requested the police for permission to access the tragedy site for religious rights required by the victim's family's Faith permission was granted and a team accompanied by the rabbi arrived at the scene they cleaned the bathtub of blood traces and prepared Shell's body before the burial all collected evidence and clues were destroyed before reaching the police's forensic Department the organization acted swiftly because autopsies are considered Taboo in Orthodox Jewish tradition seen as desecrating the deceased's body in this case the synagogue's rabbi exerted pressure on Shell's family grieving relatives and husband appreciative of the rabbi's assistance and with no doubts about The Accidental nature of the incident didn't object to his help the family also agreed to forgo the autopsy leaving the funeral arrangements to the burial preparation organization thus within 24 hours shell was buried hundreds of people attended to pay their last respects and offer condolences to the family later upon learning from the police that potential Clues were destroyed during the cleaning of the bathroom doubts about the official version of Shell's death began to haunt her parents a fall in the bathtub certainly posed a risk but the likelihood of death from such an accident seemed increasingly improbable to them although nothing substantiated their doubts the thought that their daughter's demise was not accidental troubled them deeply since the evidence was destroyed the New York police Police Department lost the opportunity for further investigation prompting the family to hire a private detective to clarify the circumstances and verify if Shell's death was indeed due to a tragic fall the private investigator hired by the woman's relatives began unraveling this peculiar case first visiting the deceased's family home to speak with the relatives from their statements he learned that rod and Shell's relationship was far from perfect and their marriage had been facing serious challenges the couple had celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary in 2008 but soon after their marital bliss began to crumble Rod faced difficulties in his career frequently changing jobs it was revealed that he had developed a gambling addiction investing huge sums in it these behavioral changes worried Shelly she was dissatisfied with her husband neglecting the family spending extensive time on computer games Rod was using their savings for back gamon tournament which shell had complained about to her close ones frustrated by the amount of family money he spent on his numerous travels additionally she discovered that he had been unfaithful during his many trips it's important to note that Shelly was neither passive nor naive regarding her husband's Behavior upon discovering his infidelities through his emails she decided to end their marital relationship and obtained permission for a religious divorce externally the couple still appeared as spouses but Rod had moved into another apartment in the same building an official divorce required some time to process despite their separation and strained relations Shelly and Rod tried to maintain a friendly facade especially for their children however conflicts and disagreements often arose due to Rod's Behavior shell had recently expressed to her close ones her grievances about her husband describing him as aggressive and hot-tempered she felt he was monitoring her entering her apartment when she wasn't home and checking her emails she also suspected that Rod had installed a camera in the building's Corridor to see when she came home these complexities in their marital life could have been grounds for further investigation into Shell's death Gathering all these details the private detective proposed the theory that Rod might have been involved in his wife's demise he needed to conduct further investigations to uncover the whole truth the detective's first goal was to determine if a crime had had indeed taken place at the scene where the body was found he planned to inspect Shell's apartment but encountered a problem the door was sealed without hesitation he obtained a court order to access the site and with it accompanied by New York police officers he arrived at the scene he attempted to unlock the door with a key provided in advance but the stubborn lock resisted for some time after a few moments Rod covlin emerged from his apartment at the end of the corridor he claimed to have heard noise and came to check what was happening upon questioning by the police and the detective Rod took the key and effortlessly opened the door this raised some questions for the detective did Rod really just happen to hear sounds in the corridor or was he intentionally monitoring the situation once inside the apartment the detective focused intently on finding evidence to support his theory of murder according to Shell's relatives she was home on December 31st first but her phone was missing the detective thoroughly searched all rooms only finding the woman's phone charger while the phone itself was not located the detective also faced the task of examining the bathroom the sight of Shell's demise he paid special attention to the hinge that investigators believed she had torn off during a fall the more he examined this item the more he doubted that shell could have torn off the metal detail which was securely attached to the cabinet it would have required immense strength and even considering the woman's weight there were significant doubts about such a possibility after a long discussion with law enforcement the detective tried to convince them that this was not an accident but a homicide the investigators were not persuaded citing a lack of evidence as a result a decision was made to perform an autopsy to conclusively determine the cause of death the impending exhumation of Shell's body sparked serious contemplation and debate within her family more than 2 weeks had passed since her burial and it was a difficult decision for her loved ones to make in the Jewish religion such interventions are viewed very negatively and religious leaders often oppose this practice the family needed time to decide despite the prohibitions they deemed it crucial to uncover the truth about their daughter's death and agreed to the exhumation however this step was complicated not only by moral considerations to carry out the ex um a special order from the prosecutor's office was required which was not easy to obtain despite the family's consent it took almost 3 months after securing the necessary documents the exhumation and autopsy were conducted the results were startling the examination revealed that shell did not die from a fall but from asphixiation due to Violent strangulation which had broken her neckbones consequently the official version of her death changed no longer could her passing be considered an accident and it was officially recognized that the young woman had been murdered the detective's efforts and suspicions proved to be well-founded the autopsy results of Shell's body played a pivotal role prompting the New York Police Department to immediately resume the investigation into her death investigators began meticulously examining new details including phone call records and bank statements all information crucial in a murder investigation besides family members everyone who had any interaction with Rod and Shelly was questioned The Nanny housekeeper and even the lawyer handling their divorce the lawyer informed the police about The Oddities he had observed in the couple's Behavior at the first divorce hearing in May 2009 Rod claimed he couldn't pay alimony due to unemployment the judge jokingly suggested that Rod might have to give up his favorite games which infuriated him in the courtroom revealing his true nature to everyone Rod didn't stop there he sought revenge against shell accusing her of an indecent lifestyle misusing funds and even calling her employer with slanderous claims about drugs and violence towards their son these false accusations caused significant trouble for Shelly an investigation initiated based on these claims found no evidence to support her husband's words however the most appalling aspect of this story was when rod and Shell's son revealed how his father had coached him to say phrases aimed at discrediting his mother Rod paid a heavy price for his vile actions at a new divorce hearing on July 7th 2009 he was prohibited from being alone with his children a measure that remained in effect even after Shell's death Rod was not granted custody of his children and a social worker handed them over to Rod's parents inciting his rage he likely believed that he would finally take responsibility for his children police ALS also interviewed a woman who had previously cared for Rod's children before being dismissed by him she provided detectives with intriguing information it turned out that on December 30th Shelly underwent an expensive keratin hair treatment worth several hundred post treatment recommendations included avoiding moisture and heat exposure for several days thus prohibiting baths or showers this raised a question why would Shelly risk damaging her hair by disregarding these recommendations investigators speculated that Shelly didn't take a bath on the day of her death however their conclusions weren't direct evidence and it was insufficient to charge anyone with murder based on this alone detectives also reviewed the building surveillance footage where the couple lived on the day of the murder they noticed Rod's peculiar Behavior at 4:00 a.
m. he left his apartment dressed as if he was going outside he returned after some time the the night Watchman at the building's entrance who was interrogated found Rod's early morning outing unusual as he had never left so early before the Watchman remembered Rod asking if he needed anything to which he replied negatively however Rod returned a few minutes later with chocolate bars offering them to him the investigators believed Rod's Behavior was deliberate to create an alibi for himself Rod now became the primary suspect and the investigator's task was to prove his guilt by any means necessary their main question was what could have driven Rod to murder his wife during the investigation despite two divorce hearings Shelley and Rod were still officially married meaning that without a will or divorce the property would automatically go to Rod it was a matter of over $5 million another crucial point was that on December 31st 2009 Shelly had made an appointment with her lawyer to change her will intending to exclude her husband this undoubtedly was a blow a rod and provided a motive for the crime the money $5 million which Rod could lose was undoubtedly such a motive since he was already a suspect all of Shell's assets were transferred to a secure account pending further evidence of his involvement in the crime it was clear that if Rod had been monitoring his wife he could have known about her meeting with the lawyer to remove him from the will investigators suspected that Rod had installed spyware to track his wife surveill footage also showed Shel returning home at 8:00 p. m.
