Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
The forthcoming episode of Investigation Discovery‘s Murder in the Heartland, “Spring Breaking Up,” will be aired on ID on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET. It will revolve around the disappearance and murder of Tynesha Stewart by her ex-boyfriend Timothy Shepherd.
In October 2008, Shepherd was found guilty of killing Tynesha Stewart and dismembering her body. He admitted to authorities that he had strangled the 19-year-old student until she died. Stewart had returned home from college, i.e. Texas A&M University, to visit her mother for the spring break. This was when she met Shepherd, her former boyfriend. As per NBC News, she was reported missing on March 19, 2007.
Tynesha Stewart was last seen on March 15, 2007, the same day she spoke to her sister at about noon. As per KLTV, neighbors noticed an odd stench and black smoke coming from Shepherd’s Balcony on March 16, 2007. Their suspicions grew when they saw the smoke continue for two days. After multiple complaints, firefighters arrived at his residence, according to Oxygen.
However, Shepherd did not open the door to the firefighters until the H.C.S.O. appeared. The firefighters noticed a large amount of meat in the premises, and some ice in the bathtub. They did, however, leave after extinguishing the fire. Officers investigating Tynesha Stewart’s death learned about this and questioned Shepherd, who initially claimed that Stewart never came to his place.
Stewart’s family then contacted Quanell X, a civil rights activist. Eventually, Shepherd confessed to Quanell X that he killed Tynesha Steward and burned her remains on a grill. Shepherd was 27 at the time of the murder.
Why did Timothy Shepherd kill Tynesha Stewart?
According to Shepherd’s initial confession, at around 4 or 5 a.m., he picked Tynesha Stewart up on the day of her disappearance. The two were then driving to his place when she got a call from Mark. Timothy Shepherd claimed that he had questioned Stewart about the call, which prompted her to leave the place. Although the end of the relationship between Stewart and Shepherd was evident, his claim that she never made it to his house was disproven later.
During the trial, the prosecution argued that Shepherd believed he could kill Tynesha Stewart because she had, according to him, disrespected him. As per NBC News, they also claimed that he had abused Stewart during their relationship. Moreover, he allegedly could not accept that Stewart had moved on. The couple broke up at the beginning of the school year.
According to Fox News, the human body has to be subjected to extremely high temperatures so that it gets incinerated. Timothy Shepherd had dumped the remains in a community trash bin that was emptied soon, which could be at different landfills. This complicated the search to a great extent. NBC News also reported that 30 pieces of charred bone and hair were recovered from Shepherd’s residence.
As per ABC 13,Timothy Shepherd was sentenced to a maximum of 99 years in prison and was asked to pay a fine of $10,000.
“Spring Breaking Up,” the upcoming episode of Murder in the Heartland, will air on ID on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at 9 p.m. ET.
