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The sinister crimes of Christian 'Kit' Martin were elaborated upon in a Dateline: Unforgettable episode titled The Evil That Watches. The said Dateline: Unforgettable episode aired for the first time in February last year and chronicled the chilling case of Christian Martin, a former Army Major and pilot who worked for an American Airlines subsidiary.
As the Dateline episode illustrated, Christian Martin was arrested in the otherwise sleepy Kentucky town of Pembroke and was soon charged with the triple murder of his neighbors, Calvin and Pamela Phillips, who were a couple, and Edward Dansereau. Martin was facing court-martial owing to allegations of passing on government secrets, and Calvin was supposed to appear as a witness on the court-martial trials if he were alive.
Here's everything that we know about the case.
Dateline: Christian Martin's crimes explored in detail
Calvin Phillips lived with his wife, Pamela Phillips, in their Victorian home Pembroke in Kentucky. On the morning of Wednesday, November 18, 2015, Calvin missed receiving a delivery at his home, and this caused his wife to worry. Pamela then left work early to find out the reason behind her husband's being unreachable on the phone.
Meanwhile, another friend of Calvin named Marlene LaRock had tried reaching Calvin on the phone, but to no avail. When she later swung by the residence, she found the door open, which she thought was highly out of the ordinary. Calvin, by then, was nowhere to be seen.
As Marlene later called up Pamela, who by then had reached their home herself, the call was disconnected mid-sentence, and Pamela wasn't heard from again. The authorities were later called to the site of a burning car, which was eventually identified as Pamela's. Inside the car were two charred bodies. Upon tracking the license plate, authorities then arrived at the Phillips' residence to find Calvin's body lying in the basement. He had been assaulted and shot.
Dateline: How was Christian Martin apprehended?
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The Dateline episode elaborated that Calvin's son Matt Phillips had discovered a dog tag belonging to Martin while cleaning their home following the death of his parents. The police then questioned Martin, who initially denied the charges. But when the authorities found out that Calvin was a key witness in the upcoming army court martial of Martin and that if Martin were to be convicted in the court-martial, he stood to jeopardize his entire military career, the motive behind the crimes was well-established.
It was only a matter of time before forensic evidence and ballistics reports were gathered to pin him to the crimes. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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