NARRATOR: We're in Canton, Ohio, for the case
of 73-year-old Philip Snider.
Seven months earlier, Snider said his wife of 53 years
died during a road trip the couple were taking
to Graceland in Tennessee.
But when his story didn't add up,
family members contacted police, and they paid him a visit.
OFFICER: You guys OK?
I'm OK, yes.
OFFICER: OK.
My wife passed away.
NARRATOR: Snider claimed that just four
days earlier, his wife died of a medical emergency
near Graceland.
She choked on her phlegm.
She kept-- she'd been choking for quite a--
about a year.
OFFICER: OK.
And she wanted to go down one more time before she died.
She thought-- I think she knew she was going to die.
NARRATOR: The already fishy story became more questionable
when Snider claimed he simply gave
his wife's body to paramedics.
OFFICER: What-- so what happened?
So where's your wife now?
What happened to her?
They took her to a place where they cremate people.
OFFICER: OK, and you don't know where that is either?
No, no.
NARRATOR: Police became even more suspicious
during follow-up interviews, when details of Snider's story
changed and they were unable to find
any record of his wife being admitted to a cremation
facility in Tennessee.
Investigators didn't have enough evidence
to charge Snider with any crime, so for him, life
continued as usual, including daily coffee and conversation
with other locals around town.
JOAN BAUER: You enjoying this weather?
Yeah.
NARRATOR: But unknown to Snider, the person indulging him
in conversation today is actually
undercover police officer Joan Bauer, who's
been sent in to crack the case.
JOAN BAUER: What's your name?
JOAN BAUER: I'm Missy.
JOAN BAUER: Yeah. PHILIP SNIDER: Nice to meet you.
JOAN BAUER: Nice to meet you.
NARRATOR: In the weeks that followed,
Bauer befriended Snider and earned his trust.
All the while, their conversations
were being recorded.
JOAN BAUER: It's going to be nice tomorrow.
You want to go for a walk tomorrow?
Maybe.
NARRATOR: Over time, Bauer got him
to open up about his wife's death
and the story he told police.
JOAN BAUER: What happened?
JOAN BAUER: Why?
JOAN BAUER: Oh, OK.
NARRATOR: Officer Bauer continued pressing Snider
for details, but no one could have imagined what
came out of his mouth next.
JOAN BAUER: OK.
NARRATOR: The recorded conversation
is enough for police to make an arrest later that day,
believing Snider killed his wife in their home
before ever leaving for a road trip.
Step out.
You're kidding.
OFFICER: Step up.
You're kidding.
Fun and games are over.
NARRATOR: Philip Snider was charged with aggravated murder
and gross abuse of a corpse.
No motive was established for the killing.
Now in court, he's looking to solidify a plea agreement
with the state, which calls for him to disclose the whereabouts
of his wife's body in exchange for a recommended
life sentence with parole eligibility after 20 years.
FRANK FORCHIONE: To the charge of aggravated murder,
how do you plead?
Guilty.
FRANK FORCHIONE: Is there anything
that you would like to say, prior to the sentencing?
FRANK FORCHIONE: So you're telling me
you put your wife in the Tennessee River.
Yes, sir.
FRANK FORCHIONE: OK, are you willing to take law
enforcement to the area where you placed
her in the Tennessee River?
Yes, sir.
FRANK FORCHIONE: Well, in this particular case,
I'm going to make sure that you do it.
NARRATOR: But before he learns his sentence,
a member of the victim's family has asked the court if he could
give a victim impact statement.
That family member is his own son.
This man sitting before you is not the father I know.
He is not the man who raised me, teaching
me many things, of which one was to have honor and respect.
I see no honor, and certainly no respect,
in his actions leading up to today.
NARRATOR: And finally, Judge Frank Forchione
has some harsh words of his own to share.
Now, to me, to accept this agreement between the state
and your counselor and you, it sickens me.
This is one of the most ghastly crimes I've ever seen.
You're going to die in prison.
That's the legacy that you've left this family.
And the last comment that I will make to you, sir, is this,
and I hope you think about this for the rest of your life.
The hottest places in hell are reserved for people like you.
As to the aggravated murder, I'm going to sentence you
to life imprisonment with parole eligibility
after serving 20 years of imprisonment.
Like I said before, you're going to die in prison.
NARRATOR: Following the hearing, Snider changed his story
again, claiming he dumped his wife's
body in a dumpster in Kentucky.
Her remains have yet to be found.