We delve into the puzzling disappearance of Aleah Beckerle . We're joined by Detectives Brent Melton and Jeff Hans, who provide a fascinating look at their investigation, including their interviews, the chilling details they uncovered, and the shocking discovery that turned the case on its head. We also hear from defense attorney Glenn Graham, who challenges the narrative and keeps us questioning. This episode is not for the faint of heart, but if you're ready to challenge your understanding of the depths of human behavior, join us on this exploration into the darkest facets of humanity.
We delve into the puzzling disappearance of Aleah Beckerle . We're joined by Detectives Brent Melton and Jeff Hans, who provide a fascinating look at their investigation, including their interviews, the chilling details they uncovered, and the shocking discovery that turned the case on its head. We also hear from defense attorney Glenn Graham, who challenges the narrative and keeps us questioning. This episode is not for the faint of heart, but if you're ready to challenge your understanding of the depths of human behavior, join us on this exploration into the darkest facets of humanity.
Ali Bekrel, a 19 year old with severe disabilities who had to use a wheelchair, was first reported missing on July 17, 2016. They came into my house and took my disabled daughter, cara Bekrel. Ali's mother said she needs a wheelchair and they just took her. Welcome to this episode of Human Wreckage. This case is about Ali Bekrel and the tragic ending of her innocent life. Let's get into it. Terrence Roche, 25, is charged in 19 year old Bekrel's July 17, 2016 disappearance and death. He was charged with murder, burglary, kidnapping, criminal confinement and abuse of a corpse. The latter charge comes from Roche's statement to police that he had sex with Bekrel's corpse after she died. Two telephone calls Roche made to his mother, dawn Eastwood, on April 2, 2017, after he told police details of how he said he took Bekrel. In those calls one from the Evansville Police Department and one from jail Roche repeated what he told police. Terrence Roche said he took Bekrel to get back at her mother, cara Bekrel, because he believed she had set up his father, demarco Roche, to be arrested. Demarco Roche, who was Cara Bekrel's boyfriend, was arrested in June 2016 after reportedly firing a gun inside Bekrel's house at 403 Iowa Street.
Speaker 1:Evansville Police said a decomposed body was discovered inside a vacant home on South Bedford Avenue. Two days after the body was found, he was identified as Aleve Bekrel. Aleve Bekrel's remains were discovered in the attic of a vacant house at 1628 Bedford Avenue and March 27, 2017. The house was next door to where Roche lived with Eastwood and her husband. Then, two days after the body was identified, terrence Roche was arrested in connection with the case. Terrence is the son of Cara Bekrel's former boyfriend, demarco Roche. The day of the arrest, terrence's stepfather shared his reaction, saying this is crazy, because I asked him a long time ago when she came up missing. This is so weird, it just seems like a damn nightmare. The house on South Bedford Avenue where the remains were discovered was right next door to the house where Terrence Roche stayed. It doesn't even make sense that you did all that. Eastwood said in the jailhouse phone call. Were we home next door? Mom? I don't know. I was so damn high. Roche replied.
Speaker 1:During the jail call, roche asked his mom to delete some of his Facebook posts. Roche, I don't want to go to prison. Eastwood, you're probably going to have to claim insanity or something. Throughout the conversation, eastwood expressed disbelief about what her son was telling her. She asked Roche if he was going to just feed Bekrel and hang out with her for a few days. That was the plan Roche said.
Speaker 1:Roche also told his mom he was real high on K2 during the call. Roche's mom asked him how he carried Bekrel and he said he cradled her in his arms. On the call he said I didn't plan on killing her. She died on her own. Roche said he opened and reached through Bekrel's bedroom window, pulled her off her bed and through the window and then carried her to his truck. However, he told her that he did not know that Bekrel, who was disabled and unable to walk or talk, needed to be fed through a tube and that she needed daily medication. Eastwood also pushed Roche about whether he told anybody about it during the nearly nine months Bekrel was missing, but Roche said he never told anybody.
Speaker 3:Yeah, okay, so you remember that. You remember the house? No, I'm saying that you remember that's her house. Okay, that's all I'm asking you Now. This is the back windows. I think one time you said when I talked to you it was the back window, but then you said it was a Leah's bedroom window. So this is a window that was found partially open in the back. But then we have some pictures of. Let me move forward here Now. This is looking down, like right here. If this is, I'm just sticking together there on the If this is. This is looking down the side of that. This is like if I'm standing right here with my camera looking down the side of the house right here. This is the angle, this is the view I'm looking at Now. You see there's a window right there that goes into her bedroom. Is that my chance to window? You went in. I didn't go in here. You didn't go in.
Speaker 5:What do you mean? You didn't go in. I didn't go in, you just reached through the window.
Speaker 3:Well, I mean, this is pretty high. You would have had to crawl through at some point. Look, look, look. Then, when we're on, that, this is the window. So that window is right there. That's her bed. Now, obviously you'd have to reach pretty far. Tell me again how you did that, because this is what we need to clarify. Okay, tell me for sure how you took her off that bed without completely getting into that window.
Speaker 4:Pretty sure I just reached an ingratitude.
Speaker 3:Let me answer the question. I'll give you a better shot. This shot right here, for example so see how these curtains, these blinds, are messed up. Did you just push the blinds open with one hand and you're saying you reached across the bed and drug her? Is that what you did? Show me exactly. You showed me yesterday how you lived it. Once you stand up for me and show me how you drove her across then, what you did from there. This is the bed right here. That's the toy box you're sitting on. Show me how you did what you did. I reached through the door, okay. Did you pull her through the window? Okay?
Speaker 3:Do you remember this? Do you remember that growth that high? That's probably started with tree or some type of growth. I don't know what that is, but did you remember going past that or anything? You got a row of this fence by yourself. You didn't tell me the part about her being alive, but she left the house and you apologized for that and I commend you for that. Terrence, I'm just tough on everybody. It really is. But I commend you for being honest with me and you told me everything about the sex with Aliyah when she was dead upstairs and you told me about all that stuff and I think I asked you for it and I'll make sure you had sex with Kara before the incident when you were dead and was arrested for the shooting, or after Before, and you just had sex for one time and it was involving drugs and alcohol Okay.
Speaker 3:Okay, you pretty sur. Tell me again how that duct tape was wrapped. Okay, you think you could have covered her nose up at all. You sure about that, or are you positive? I'm just a little. Just. Her mouth was covered up around her head and I was her. Being handicapped, she probably didn't breathe very well with you. Anyway, how did you lay her upstairs when you put her down?
Speaker 4:I don't remember. Okay, go ahead. And then I just pop in my head and go, do what I did.
Speaker 3:Where were you at smoking the K2?
Speaker 4:It sounds like a thing, but the one on Blackford, yeah, I think I was sitting down in my truck and that's how the red dodge you know what I'm saying Okay, wait. And then I just popped in my head and I just did it Wait until I got it.
Speaker 3:Okay. So with it being that amount of time that you've been in there you know I've been a little while since you've been in there how did you pick that window? How did you? I mean, take a deep breath here. The best of your recollection, let me know how this night went.
Speaker 4:Parked in Alley.
Speaker 3:Do you remember what clothes you had on?
Speaker 4:My home remover Okay. Night time Okay. I know there's dark and much short time time Okay.
Speaker 3:And we park in the Alley. And then what do we do? Let's go step by step through this.
Speaker 4:Okay, no matter if I went through the gate or a jump fence. Okay, but I went to Leah's window as I'm locked, okay.
Speaker 3:We're walking up, we're walking up, we get out of the truck, okay, okay so this would be the alley. Do you remember who came down and turned in this way? I think in your other statement you said you backed into the alley.
Speaker 4:No, I'm not talking about a one-time Bedford.
Speaker 3:Oh, okay. Oh, you backed into the alley over on Bedford. Okay, that's one thing that we just wanted to clear up. So here we go. So you think you either you can't remember if you went through the gate or you jumped the fence. Did you look in any of the other windows to see if they were? Did you look in any of the other windows to see if they were asleep? Do you remember the TV being on? Mm-hmm. Just take a deep breath and just the best. You can remember how this went.
Speaker 4:Something was on. I don't know if it was a TV or like a light or something.
Speaker 3:Okay, and you know how the layout of the house is here? Mm-hmm, I have one of the Could you, could you? What do you want to put in there? I want one with the couch. Okay, the best I can do is it's right here. You've got the room where Aliyah's at in there and then you have the room over here. Tell me what you remember seeing over on the couch over there. Can you remember what I was going to do for you? Do you remember where Carly was sleeping? Who else was in this? This is Aliyah's bed, right here. This is the living room. Who's out in the living room? You know, it's kind of a little picture. It's kind of facing at a, looking down and down. You know the kind of the funky L-shaped couch. Mm-hmm.
Speaker 3:Carly was right there. Carly was lying like that. Okay, so Carly's here and Carly's here, okay, and what are they doing?
Speaker 4:Carly was sleeping. Carly was just laying there sitting up. She was working out.
Speaker 3:Okay, what, and what do you mean? Just how you said Carly's sleeping and she's sitting up. How, how do you or what do you remember of that? Did she make any contact with you or anything? Okay, and where's Roscoe at? I didn't see him in there. Okay, did he ever come in there? Mm-hmm, okay, so.
Speaker 4:That's the cup he was talking about. That's one of them, I didn't see that, do you?
Speaker 3:do you always wear your glasses? I mean, I now remind, sometimes, sometimes I don't, I don't know how. Sometimes, sometimes I don't. Do you remember if you had them on that night? Mm-hmm, I don't remember. Okay, so we go, we go around in here. Where do you think he went when you got into the backyard? Do you remember going over that fence on the side of the house, this fence here?
Speaker 5:Mm-hmm.
Speaker 3:You do. Okay, so you get back here. How did you know her window would be unlocked? I didn't. I didn't know her window. Where's that one up in that in that chair, in the long picture of that? That's. So did you try any other windows, two, two or four, or that's up? Okay, so you remember going over the fence, is that true? You do remember going over the fence? Okay, is this the window you went to, do you think? Or was it the window on the other side, that one? Okay, that's the one that was right by her bed. That's the one you think you went through? Okay, do you remember sliding up the screen? It looks like in that picture that it's a little bit of a gap, like it's been pushed up on the window. Okay, alright, so is it Terrence?
Speaker 3:is it? I don't know how to word this? It's just people running. Are you pretty quiet? I mean, I guess it sounds like you're good at going through a window and getting into a house without somebody hearing you. Boy, it sounds. Is that pretty accurate? I mean, how much you weigh 130. 130 pounds. So you're small, you're skinny, so do you think that you got through that window and drugged a lead out of that window across that toy box? And Karen never heard you?
Speaker 4:I don't know if she heard me, but I've not recently reached in. I've never heard of my whole body, never heard me.
Speaker 3:Okay, but I mean that Karen never got up and said hey, you, Terrence, what are you doing on her? Nothing. She never heard you or woke her. Whatever she was doing, asleep or and nurse and Okay, Do you like, Karen?
Speaker 4:I look down upon her somewhat. You what, I'm sorry. I look down upon her somewhat. You look down upon her, and why? Why is that? Because she let me stay outside in her coat one day.
Speaker 3:She wouldn't let you in. And when was that? You mentioned that before. When was that?
Speaker 4:Sometime when I was staying at the rescue mission.
Speaker 3:A year ago, longer, a long time ago.
Speaker 4:What A year ago.
Speaker 3:What music is getting at this? You've had relations with her before. Do you have enough feelings for her, intimacy-wise, when you why you would you protect Karen? Would you protect Karen Because you, you, deep down, care for her? No, you tell us the truth. Do you have a certain loyalty to her? Because it's your dad's girlfriend and he's in jail and you were trying to help her out anyway, see, up until I talked to you there today, I think you you probably caught on to this one.
Speaker 3:When I was talking to you, it was hard for me not to believe that Karen was not truly involved. Very hard for me to believe that Because, you gotta understand, I've investigated this from day one, you know, and she's been involved with drugs, she's made bad mistakes, she's been involved with a lot of bad stuff. So, terrence, it was very hard for me to believe that Karen was not involved with some of that. And you remember I even told you that I said don't let Karen, you know, push it on you. You remember all that.
Speaker 3:Is that what made you kind of make up that lie, you know? Because I was believing that and therefore you thought that would be an easy excuse. I had no one to see my mom. So that's how you came up with a lie about her taking $20 for sex and for her asking to get rid of the body. Yeah, on top of sex as well. Had you had thoughts prior about having sex with Aliyah prior to that night of smoking K2? Any of the other nights you got high, did you ever have any feelings or anything like that when you get high to have sex?
Speaker 4:Sometimes, but not like that, because normally it makes you pass out.
Speaker 3:Okay, why do you think this time is different? I don't know. And do you know why we picked Aliyah? I don't know. I mean, why not Mikaela?
Speaker 4:I had no clue. I was wondering who to take her for like a few days, just to get back here, because I thought she said my dad.
Speaker 3:Walk me through how this happens.
Speaker 4:I can't remember if I was leaning like that or not, but I might have been.
Speaker 3:Can we stand up and let's rotate over the window right here? Yeah, let's say this is the window right here. I mean, did you do this to slide the window up? Do you remember? Did you do this?
Speaker 4:I can't remember how I split up, I just knew it was unlocked. Okay, and why would you know that? I know I pushed it up for a reason.
Speaker 3:I can't remember if I used both hands to pull it up or not, okay, and then just kind of just thinking this is the window here and just think, just kind of try to recreate how you got her, because she weighs 190 to 100 pounds. Let's take a deep breath, parents, and just think of how this all occurred and it may be easier. Use this chair. Imagine this chair is the window seal and, like, did you actually remember leaning over that and then reached in? Or did you actually climb? Like that? If that's the window seal and that's the top of that toy box, did you step one foot in? You definitely didn't step one foot in. Show me, like that, If that's the window seal right there. Recreate how you did that.
Speaker 3:Okay, so you're reaching towards the bed. Did you grab her shirt or her hands? What part of your body did you grab? First Grab her arms and you just drive her. Okay, show me, show me how you did that. I think my head is pushing forward. Your what? My head, my eyes, I haven't really. Your head pushes the blinds forward. So you're using your head to push the blinds while you use your hands to grab her. Okay, then show me how you did it Come over and show me that.
Speaker 3:Okay, oh, that's fine, I'm not gonna lie. Okay, okay, I'll get the idea. Okay, so you just move over and then you grab it by your arms and then you just pull her through the window. So you never really really later like flat on the grass or anything, you just brought her out the window again. You showed me how you cradle her, like a, like a what's that? Will you cradle someone like a bear hug? I guess? Like a bear hug, is that how you cradle her? And you said you struggled to get her to the truck. Did you ever lay her down at all or did you just I did sit her down for a second.
Speaker 4:You remember why that was. That I don't know.
Speaker 3:What is she doing during this time? Is she waking up or is she? It's like running, is she saying. Is she you know how she burrows and makes those sounds Laughing? She was laughing, so she thought you was probably playing with her or something.
Speaker 4:I think. I'm not for sure.
Speaker 3:She was like, I heard her run like mom. Like mom, was she able to run anything that she understood? So she probably thought she was playing with her. You said she was actually laughing. I know she laughed, but she laughed and grinned when I was there the first time.
Speaker 4:Okay, what was the line too?
Speaker 3:So she said she was having a diaper. Do you know where that's at? Did it fall off when you were moving her in the truck or anything, or did it go? Did you ever remove it so you could? It's that, sir. How did you? Where would that diaper be at?
Speaker 4:It wasn't at the house.
Speaker 3:We're trying to confirm. Did you put the trash? Did you throw it somewhere? You just said you don't remember where it was at.
Speaker 4:I thought it was in the house On Bedford Okay.
Speaker 3:Okay, I know we had the duct tape. I know we had that. Do you remember where you got that from? Where did that come from? Did you bring that with you? Was it in your truck or where did that? How did that get introduced into this whole?
Speaker 4:Look at this in my truck my glove box.
Speaker 3:And how does it get from your truck to up there?
Speaker 4:I'm sorry I covered my mouth with it, Okay.
Speaker 3:Did you grab it? When you grabbed her? When you take her out of the passenger suit and take her up and put her in the house, Did you grab that? Then Do you come back down and get it? When would you have got that duct tape?
Speaker 3:I assume I went back out there and got it. You didn't put it on the duct tape on her in the truck. You put it on when she was upstairs. That's what I told you. I don't know, I just want to make sure I'm safe. Okay, and I probably interrupted you. It was my fault. But back to the thing of is there anything that you can think of that can help us out in this case? I assume that you're a 100% remorseful God for what you've done. Is there anything that we don't know about that we need to know about in this case? Okay, what do you do after that?
Speaker 4:I either smoked or I went to errands.
Speaker 1:I went to the hospital. I went to the hospital. I went to the hospital. I went to the hospital. I went to the hospital. The tip about a Lee Beckrell's body came from a jail inmate who was told about it by his girlfriend, who texted detective Brent Melton a picture of the remains in hopes of a deal to get out of jail. That girlfriend, cathy Murray, never reported the remains until then.
Speaker 1:Defense Attorney Glenn Graham questioned detectives Brent Melton and Jeff Hans about their investigation of Rocha's claim. He said that the remains outside her window or in the backyard, through which Rocha said he carried Beckrell. Melton also said that when he arrived at the Iowa street house on the day Beckrell disappeared, that the windows appeared locked and crime scene detectives told him there were no signs of forced entry. Evansville detective Jeff Hans testified about how he was able to recreate Rocha's statement about how he took Beckrell from her home. Hans said the window could be opened from outside and he could stand there and reach Beckrell's bed with his hand. He also testified that he is several inches taller than Rocha.
Speaker 1:Another witness in the trial, evansville police crime scene detective Phil Luke, went to the vacant house on South Bedford Avenue where Beckrell was located. He said it was unlivable and disrepair and stirring with trash. Her body was found upstairs in what Luke said was an attic. The body was on a mattress and covered in old clothes and junk, a sheet was nailed over the window and the attic was full of trash. In his testimony, luke said a cigarette butt was among about 20 items sent to the Indiana State Police Lab for testing. The cigarette butt was found in the body bag at the autopsy and Luke can't say how it got there.
Speaker 1:Nicole Hoffman, state police DNA forensic analyst, testified that Roach's DNA was found on the duct tape discovered on and around Becquerel's body in one of 23 samples she analyzed from the tape. Hoffman's analysis excluded the DNA profiles of Becquerel's mother, cara Becquerel, sisters and many others, meaning the DNA matches Roach, but not those others. The DNA on the cigarette butt matched Roach. There was also was one unidentifiable bit of DNA on the cigarette butt in addition to Roach's DNA. During Roach's trial in May of 2018, the jury found him not guilty of three counts of murder, burglary and kidnapping. However, the jury did find him guilty on charges of criminal confinement and abuse of a corpse. The jury deliberated for nearly 11 hours. Becquerel family was left broken as the verdict came down, anger boiled over as family members stood and yelled in the courtroom after court adjourned 17 years in prison.
Speaker 5:That's the sentence the judge handed down for Terrence Roach after a jury found Roach not guilty of murdering Leah Becquerel. But Roach was found guilty of criminal confinement resulting in serious bodily injury and abuse of a corpse. Katie O'Rourke was in court today, so did he get the maximum sentence.
Speaker 6:Randy. 17 years is just about a year and a half shy of the maximum sentence, but considering time already served in the way days are counted, roach will actually be serving closer to 10 years in prison. Once charged with murder, terrence Roach is now sentenced to 17 years. It's nearly the maximum, but it's still not the sentence. Prosecutors, or Leah Becquerel's family, were looking for Her mother, grandmother and great aunt read statements to the judge, grandmother Lydia LaRue, saying I never want him on the streets again. I'm fearful of the day he will be released, that day coming in just over 10 years.
Speaker 7:He said in his statement that his motivation for doing this was to get back with the mother for reporting his father and having him incarcerated. So I think the family is concerned. I think certainly, as the court indicated, he has a history of criminal behavior and so there is certainly a concern in that regard.
Speaker 6:Throughout the entire process, Roach has declined to comment, both in and outside of the courtroom, responding to the judge in hushed mumbles.
Speaker 8:He shows almost no emotions of any kind. He's almost got a flat effect. You know, and I think that speaks to his character. Frankly, you know the guy, I don't think it's a lack of remorse. It just doesn't have that mental capacity to have that kind of emotion.
Speaker 6:But filled with emotion. Great aunt Laura Jackson said while we accept the verdict in Mr Roach's trial as final, we will never accept it as just. We were extremely angered, shocked and saddened at this egregious miscarriage of justice.
Speaker 7:I don't agree with it. I don't have to agree with it, but I do have to respect it and I do have to accept it.
Speaker 6:In the words of her mother, kara Aliyah, was and still is perfection. What Terrence Roach did to her did not and will never change this. She was an angel on earth and is now one in heaven, and Roach has 30 days to file an appeal. In the meantime, he will stay in the Vanderbilt County Jail. He's expected to be transferred to prison on July 26th, while he will serve the rest of his sentence, randy.
Speaker 1:Aliyah's grandmother, lydia Laru, said it was very hard. It was hard to sit there, not scream, not cry, get up and stop my feet. It was harder and harder to sit there in the same room as him, sometimes just 12 feet away from me. This was a baby. She was disabled. She couldn't run away, she could not scream out, she couldn't fight him and he did some horrible things to her. Truly a disturbing case. Little Aliyah did not deserve what happened to her. When I was researching this case I read about how she probably smiled at her kidnapper as she was being taken. Terrence did not get the punishment he deserved. Can only hope he has a rough time serving his sentence. It was a waste of space. Thank you for joining me on this episode. If you like what we do, please hit the like and subscribe button. Take care of yourselves. Thank you.