i m craig melvin. and i m natalie morales. and this is dateline. i just collapsed. she s dead because she was my friend. first melissa disappeared. where s melissa? that s the million dollar question. i knew right then she absolutely never made it into her house. left behind in her garage signs of a struggle and a strange orange mist, then her boss went missing too. who is he afraid of am. he might have been afraid he s next. he left behind a bigger mess. we three kings be stealing the gold. a missing fortune. ballpark a billion, billion and a half dollars. a missing woman. we have know clue, no leads. some wonder was there a link? this had a twist to it. two crimes, one for money, one supposedly for love, and behind both, a lingering mystery. it s just so ugly and so wrong, and i can t fix it. welcome to dateline. hotshot florida attorney melissa lewis was living large in fort lauderdale dale, but then her seemingly charged life ended
and, why? because she was a friend. reporter: but the residue of pepper spray all over the garage was evidence that melissa had fought back and some had apparently gotten on the killer. tony s housemate testified the night of the murder, he saw his roomie scrubbing his arms. he said that, um, he got pepper spray on him and that his hands were burning and itching. reporter: then, an expert on cellphone tracking told the jury tony had both melissa s phone and his own personal phone with him the night of the murder and the next day when he was driving his train. they moved north and then back south along the railroad. reporter: but now prosecutors had to tackle the head scratching question of motive. why would tony kill melissa in the first place? debra villegas testified that tony became very jealous and angry with melissa because she d virtually replaced him in the household. was melissa helping you through this difficult time in your life now, through this
reporter: a funny thing happened to tony villegas on the way to the courtroom. he d exhibited bizarre behavior and stopped communicating with his attorneys and was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial. still in custody, he was in and out of treatment facilities for years until doctors found him competent again. finally, in the summer of 2016, eight years after the murder, tony went on trial. the defendant in this case reporter: the prosecutor shari tate argued that tony, fueled by a jealous rage, waited in the bushes for melissa to come home, followed her into the garage and then launched a brutal attack on his wife s best friend. it is a hands on, personal murder. it takes time. it takes premeditation. and, why? because she was a friend. reporter: but the residue of pepper spray all over the garage was evidence that melissa had fought back and some had apparently gotten on the killer. tony s housemate testified the night of the murder, he saw his roomie scrubbing h
the defendant in this case reporter: the prosecutor shari tate argued that tony, fueled by a jealous rage, waited in the bushes for melissa to come home, followed her into the garage and then launched a brutal attack on his wife s best friend. it is a hands on, personal murder. it takes time. it takes premeditation. and, why? because she was a friend. reporter: but the residue of pepper spray all over the garage was evidence that melissa had fought back and some had apparently gotten on the killer. tony s housemate testified the night of the murder, he saw his roomie scrubbing his arms. he said that, um, he got pepper spray on him and that his hands were burning and itching. reporter: then, an expert on cellphone tracking told the jury tony had both melissa s phone and his own personal phone with him the night of the murder and the next day when he was driving his train. they moved north and then
tony went on trial. the defendant in this case reporter: the prosecutor shari tate argued that tony, fueled by a jealous rage, waited in the bushes for melissa to come home, followed her into the garage and then launched a brutal attack on his wife s best friend. it is a hands on, personal murder. it takes time. it takes premeditation. and, why? because she was a friend. reporter: but the residue of pepper spray all over the garage was evidence that melissa had fought back and some had apparently gotten on the killer. tony s housemate testified the night of the murder, he saw his roomie scrubbing his arms. he said that, um, he got pepper spray on him and that his hands were burning and itching. reporter: then, an expert on cellphone tracking told the jury tony had both melissa s phone and his own personal phone with him the night of the murder and