Family of murdered D.C. photographer wonders if his convicted killer acted alone

The murder of Joe Shymanski was first investigated as a missing persons case. In September. April 4, 2023, 7:47 p.m. M. when the famous photographer’s home was visited by Calvert County, Maryland, sheriff’s deputies.

In the driveway they were greeted by Heather Snyder, his ex-wife. She would report to the police that she had driven in at around seven o’clock. A. to transfer custody of their 7-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter from her Pennsylvania home.

Bodycam footage of HEATHER SNYDER: Well, I was meant to give the kids back to him.

DEPUTY: All right.

HEATHER SNYDER: Tonight at seven o’clock.

HEATHER SNYDER (bodycam video): … the kids entered the house because he did — he usually just leaves as soon as he knows they’re coming.

Yet no one was home. In addition to calling 911, Heather Snyder had consulted her neighbors.

Bodycam footage of HEATHER SNYDER: I’m not sure what I should do right now.

HEATHER SNYDER: It’s weird in every way.

DEPUTY: Alright.

Joe Shymanski, what happened to him?

There was every indication that Joe Shymanski ought to be present. His phone and keys were inside the house, and his car was in the driveway. Even a drone was used by the authorities as they began searching the property.

DEPUTY (bodycam footage): Do you know if he ever goes on any outdoor hikes or excursions?

HEATHER SNYDER: Well, I wouldn’t rule it out.

Heather Snyder: I addressed all of their inquiries, including the circumstances.

The divorce between Heather and Joe from the previous year was one of the many things investigators wanted to know.

Alison Stinson-Pounsberry: I am aware that it was highly controversial. There was much arguing, and their main point of contention was where to drop off the children.

That evening, Heather Snyder knocked on the door of Shymanski’s neighbors, Colton Pounsberry and Alison Stinson-Pounsberry.

She had inquired as to whether Joe was present, said Alison Stinson-Pounsberry. I replied, “No.”.

What was Heather’s behavior like, Nikki Battiste?

Alison Stinson-Pounsberry: Well, since she had already driven four hours, Heather was acting a little irritated that he wasn’t there to drop her off.

The Pounsberrys went to the residence of Joe Shymanski and informed the authorities that they hadn’t seen him since the afternoon before.

COLTON POUNDSBERRY (bodycam footage): We did indeed see him yesterday at around four o’clock. He was assisting me with some plasterboard.

DEPUTY: Alright.

COLTON POUNSBERRY: We served him some food.

DEPUTY: Are you suffering from depression?

Nothing that I could see, COLTON POUNSBERRY.

DEPUTY What are your thoughts?

HEATHER SNYDER: I’m clueless.

Deputy: All right. Okay.

In the end, Heather and the children were able to find overnight accommodations from the Pounsberrys. However, Heather entered Joe’s home first.

Heather Snyder: Since it was late at night and I had nothing to wear for the kids, they allowed me to enter and get pajamas.

Nikki Battiste: Can you recall your feelings when you entered?

Heather Snyder: It was debilitating.

HEATHER SNYDER: I apologize (bodycam footage). (crying).

DEPUTY: You’re okay. Perfectly okay. There’s a lot to manage.

HEATHER SNYDER: I’m sorry for my children. (crying) What am I going to tell them?

Ted Shymanski: Given that the children would be present, how could he have missed it?

She called Ted Shymanski, Joe’s older brother, and Ted’s wife, Heather Snyder, approximately two and a half hours later.

Heather Shymanski: I felt as though someone had punched me in the stomach.

Ted Shymanski: Joe could not have possibly missed this meeting with the children. This isn’t— There’s a problem.

Ted Shymanski was left to inform his sister Mary Shymanski of the situation.

Mary Shymanski: I knelt down and prayed as soon as I learned that Joe … was missing. I felt as though I immediately needed something bigger than myself because this was such an odd circumstance.

Afterward, something that investigators had not been able to see at night was discovered the morning after Joe vanished. His driveway was covered in blood.

Nikki Battiste: Were Joe’s enemies?

Alison Stinson-Pounsberry: We were unaware of it.

A detective invited Heather Snyder to the station.

Investigator Joshua Buck (interrogation): Do you know anyone who might be his enemy?

“No,” said Heath Snyder.

Inquirer Joshua Buck: .. Do you currently have a relationship?

HEATHER SNYDER: No.

Joshua Buck, the investigator: No boyfriends or—?

HEATHER SNYDER: No.

However, Heather Snyder informed them that she had just ended a relationship with a neighbor in Pennsylvania.

Questioning HEATHER SNYDER: I had a boyfriend, but only for a short time. I don’t, however.

Investigator Joshua Buck: Lately, perhaps?

HEATHER SNYDER: In the past few months, indeed.

Who is the investigator, Joshua Buck?

HEATHER SNYDER: Holbrook, Brandon.

Mary Shymanski: Brandon Holbrook’s name rapidly came into play.

Joe claimed to have never met Brandon Holbrook, according to the Shymanskis.

INVESTIGATOR JOSHUA BUCK (inquiring): How long did you and Brandon spend together?

HEATHER SNYDER: We spent some time together as friends. Since 2022? I would like to say.

Examiner Joshua Buck: All right.

Alternatively, it could have been November 2021, according to Heath Snyder.

After that, authorities made the decision to investigate Brandon Holbrook further.

The day Joe Shymanski disappeared, they found that a camera had captured his license plate close to his home. With a person of interest in hand, investigators made their way to Pennsylvania and informed the local police.

A bloody find.

In September. May 5, 2023, Sgt. Authorities in Maryland were looking into a homicide, according to a call received by John Chester of the Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, Police Department. They wanted to speak with Brandon Holbrook, who caught their attention.

Sergeant. John Chester: Mr. Dot Holbrook was previously arrested by us.

Holbrook had admitted to at least five charges of indecent exposure over the years. About 11 p.m., they arrived at his house. A.

Bloodshot eyes and an odd, distinct odor emanating from Holbrook’s body and the covered bed of his pickup in the driveway were observed by an investigator.

SGT. Bodycam footage of John Chester: This truck stinks.

That smells awful, man, said the body cam deputy.

SGT. JOHN CHESTER: There was a deathly odor.

Holbrook claimed to be a driver for a Pennsylvania facility that handles the waste from chicken slaughterhouses. He denied being in the vicinity of Joe’s home or in Maryland on the day that Joe vanished.

Sgt. John Chester: His truck was known to be in Maryland.

Moreover, he denied any communication with Joe, according to one police report. According to another, he “was not being entirely truthful dot.”. and seemed anxious. In the early hours of September, then. Brandon Holbrook was taken into custody by investigators on June 6, 2023, in connection with Joe Shymanski’s murder.

Detective Jessica Aurand had already reported for duty by that point.

det. Jessica Aurand: When they returned to the station with him, I was called in.

They were able to obtain warrants for Holbrook’s home and truck thanks to Aurand.

Sgt. John Chester: We still didn’t know … the magnitude of what we were dealing with ….

In the truck cab, investigators found gloves and plastic sheeting and in the truck bed, something described as human blood.

Sgt. John Chester: It looked like a homicide scene.

There were firearms in the house and plastic garbage bags, bleach, Lysol, and wet tools in a trailer outside.

In the garage, Aurand says, “there was an open tool case. ” And next to it, an open package of power saw blades. However, no matching saw was found by investigators.

Is that a weapon strong enough to rip a body apart, asks Nikki Battiste?

Detective. Maybe, Jessica Aurand said.

Authorities with cadaver dogs started to follow a dirt road into the woods and then catty-corner to Holbrook’s house. They discovered something gruesome in a clearing close to a creek the following day.

Detective. Jessica Aurand: The jawbone, along with some of the ear and some of the teeth, were discovered.

There was also a burn barrel that smelled of decomposition, according to incident reports. There are ash heaps all around. Authorities had a strong suspicion that the material was human remains and sent it off for testing.

The friends and family of Joe Shymanski gathered in Washington, fearing the worst.

Even in the rain, Alton McDougle was the kind of guy who would give you his shirt off his back.

After attending D.C, Joe Shymanski got to know Alton McDougle in 2000. to instruct social studies and history in middle school. According to McDougle, Joe became his mentor and introduced him to photography and new concepts.

“He taught you how to see the world,” said Nikki Battiste.

Yes, said Alton McDougle. via a lens.

They eventually became friends, says McDougle, and partnered in the photo business at Eastern Market. Joe and Heather Snyder first became romantically involved there. At the time, she was a vegetable business owner and a single mother of three children.

Heather Snyder: He was entertaining and endearing.

Nikki Battiste: And then he took you by surprise?

He did, Heather Snyder said.

In July 2014, Heather Snyder and Joe Shymanski tied the knot and purchased a home in rural Calvert County. After a year, Heather Snyder gave birth to a daughter and a son, but by 2020, according to Joe’s family and friends, the marriage was having problems.

Mary Shymanski: Joe Shymanski and Heather Snyder never had equal financial standing.

Alton McDougle: Without a doubt, the expenditure was an issue.

McDougle claims that after writing Heather Snyder a check for thousands of dollars to settle a debt on a home she owned, he gave her additional funds to assist her in starting a new company.

Alton McDougle: She’s taking advantage of you, I used to tell him constantly.

According to Heather Snyder, that is untrue. Joe’s money was never her goal. She attributes the marital problems to Joe, claiming that he exhibited erratic behavior and began shoving her and her older children away after the birth of their own children.

Heather Snyder: Those two kids were the only thing on Joe’s mind. To a certain extent, he was almost compulsive. It was that he was more interested in those two things than in what I was saying or thinking.

According to her, Joe mistreated her emotionally. She also asserts that there was one time when he became violent.

Heather Snyder: I was body-checked into a car by him. And after following me around the house, that is.

The Shymanski family claims that the Joe they knew is not the same as Heather Snyder’s alleged abuse. Snyder claims that she had had enough by 2021.

Heather Snyder: I was worried that he would lose it and hurt me, and my kids would witness it.

Nikki Battiste: You just left?

Heather Snyder: I left.

Mary Shymanski: He was devastated.

Joe’s friend Anneli Werner noticed it too.

Anneli Werner: That spark that made Joe “Joe” was gone, it was gone!

Heather Snyder had moved back to her hometown of Newport, Pennsylvania. She told investigators that it was a few months later that she began seeing Brandon Holbrook. All the while, say Joe’s friends and family, he and Heather Snyder were arguing over custody and cash. It got so bad Heather Snyder says she began recording their interactions around the kids. Werner says Joe was also upset and made recordings too, about Heather Snyder, for their children to hear one day.

JOE SHYMANSKI (audio recording): Mom has a way of manipulating everyone.

JOE SHYMANSKI (audio recording): Everyone. She’s toxic. Honestly, I am honestly afraid for your mental and emotional safety.

JOE SHYMANSKI (audio recording): There’s no safety in mom for me. It’s dangerous to be close to mom for me.

Anneli Werner: Joe was in a contentious, ugly divorce.

But Werner says things had slowly started going Joe’s way. Though he and Heather had joint legal custody of the kids, he had primary physical custody when school was in session. He’d bought a million-dollar life insurance policy naming the children as beneficiaries. And just weeks before he vanished, the court had reduced the settlement he owed Heather Snyder.

Anneli Werner: Joe had started winning! .

A haunting conversation.

In mid-September 2023, forensic experts matched the remains that they found in that clearing near Brandon Holbrook’s house to Joe Shymanski. The coroner for Mifflin County is Andrea Alcalde.

What caused the death of Joe Shymanski, Nikki Battiste?

Coroner Andrea Alcalde: Uh, he had a gunshot wound to the head.

Nikki Battiste: What was his manner of death?

Coroner Andrea Alcalde: Homicide.

INVESTIGATOR: Just give your name, please.

BRANDON HOLBROOK: My name is Brandon Holbrook.

BRANDON HOLBROOK: My entire mind is distorted by this.

Evidence found by authorities did not support Brandon Holbrook’s case.

Sergeant. John Chester: Based on the fact that the license plate reader had read the… tag and that the tag matched the car that was parked here, we were able to determine that the white truck had been in Maryland.

Additionally, it appeared that Holbrook had killed Joe in Maryland and transported his body to Pennsylvania, as evidenced by the saw blades in his garage, the cleaning materials and equipment in his trailer, and Joe’s remains in the nearby clearing. However, despite all of the evidence that investigators had, there were still some uncomfortable facts in the case.

Nikki Battiste: Were any of Joe Shymanski’s remains discovered on Brandon Holbrook’s land?

Det. No, Jessica Aurand.

Have you located the murder weapon, Nikki Battiste?

Detective. No, Jessica Aurand.

Holbrook’s phone only had pinged towers close to his Pennsylvania home the afternoon and evening Joe vanished, according to records. Additionally, keep in mind that pictures of Holbrook’s truck in Maryland did not identify the driver. Furthermore, tests revealed that the blood in the truck bed wasn’t human. The creature was animal.

Det. Jessica Aurand: Did he put items inside and hide them with the chicken remains since he had access to the … chicken plant?

It was hard for Joe’s friends and family to accept that Holbrook could have come up with such a complex scheme on his own.

Mary Shymanski: My brother’s death was not solely the result of Brandon Holbrook’s actions. He was, in my opinion, greatly influenced by Heather Snyder. In all of this, Heather Snyder is the one thing that unites us.

Heather Snyder was also implicated, according to Alton McDougle. According to McDougle, they were hanging out a few days prior to Joe going missing when Joe informed him that Heather Snyder would be dropping off the kids rather than meeting halfway between their houses as they usually did. He told Joe that worried him, according to McDougle.

Alton McDougle: I simply don’t trust her, so I don’t want her home, man.

He claims that although Joe downplayed his worry, the exchange still bothers him.

Alton McDougle: At the moment, I’m chilling. (screams).

Nikki Battiste: Do you feel that he might still be here if he had listened to you?

Alton McDougle: Well, he could be.

The investigation hasn’t found any proof of Heather Snyder’s involvement, and Joe’s family and friends admit their suspicion was based only on instinct. However, McDougle claims that he informed authorities of his conjectures.

Alton McDougle: At least it was planned by Heather. At the very least, her boyfriend had been helpful.

According to him, it seems odd to him and the family that Heather Snyder reported Joe missing before he had even been late by an hour.

Heather Shymanski: You’re making a hasty decision.

Ted Shymanski: He disappears, then leaves, so call the police.

When he goes missing, Heather Shymanski: — and you’re going to dial 911?

They say it’s especially because she didn’t tell them for over two and a half hours.

Mary Shymanski: It seems like she waited a very long time to inform her immediate family that Joe was missing.

When Heather Snyder entered Joe’s home with investigators, they also questioned her actions.

According to Anneli Werner, she enters the house and starts crying about her ex-husband, whom she would stop at nothing to avoid.

They thought it was all a ruse, but Heather Snyder disputes this.

Alton McDougle: She knew the plan and just wanted to paint a picture that he was missing.

She also lied to investigators about Brandon Holbrook, according to the Shymanskis.

INVESTIGATOR JOSHUA BUCK: . (surprise enquiry). Do you currently have a relationship going on?

HEATHER SNYDER: No.

The police were informed by Mary Shymanski that she had broken up with him and that they were no longer together. A——-.

According to Janine Shymanski, she believes Heather Snyder killed Joe Shymanski by using Holbrook.

Janine Shymanski: She just needed it done, and she found someone who could do it for her.

Do you believe Heather Snyder was the mastermind, Nikki Battiste?

Oh, Janine Shymanski.

Nikki Battiste: Were you unsure?

Janine Shymanski: Not at all.

The clearing had been searched by authorities, and Holbrook was under arrest. But when Mary Shymanski visited the location a few weeks later, she discovered more burned remains. According to her and Coroner Andrea Alcalde, there is another possibility, even though she admits that searchers might have just missed them in the woods.

Coroner Andrea Alcalde: I believe that the likelihood of remains being dumped after the fact is higher.

That would imply that someone else dumped them.

That’s a killer, Nikki Battiste is saying.

Yes, Coroner Andrea Alcalde said.

However, according to Alcalde, Maryland authorities appeared dubious. “48 Hours” requested an interview, but the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office turned it down. Nevertheless, Holbrook’s lawyers will make the claim that Joe Shymanski’s death was caused by someone else from the beginning of his trial.

Only one person’s life has improved since Joseph Shymanski’s murder, according to defense lawyer Brendan Callahan. That would be Heather Snyder.

Nikki Battiste: Did you have anything to do with Joe’s death?

Heather Snyder: I did not.

The trial of Brandon Holbrook.

On March 31, 2025, the trial of Brandon Holbrook for the murder of Joe Shymanski got underway. Prosecutors wanted a conviction on premeditated murder. They argued Holbrook fatally shot Joe Shymanski in Maryland, drove him back to Pennsylvania, put chicken parts in his truck to cover his tracks and then disposed of Joe’s remains in that clearing near Holbrook’s house. And they brought in the barrel searchers found, suggesting it was used to burn him. But Holbrook’s defense team says it was a tactic.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: It was there for the emotional impact.

There were no cameras allowed in court. Defense attorney Brendan Callahan tried to turn the jury’s attention away from Brandon Holbrook and towards Heather Snyder. Despite not having been charged with a crime, she was brought up more than 400 times during the trial.

Defense lawyer Brendan Callahan: Heather Snyder was the only one with a clear motive. She was involved in a contentious custody dispute that wasn’t going well.

Callahan also informed the jury that Heather Snyder had numerous other reasons. Callahan stated that since her children, the beneficiaries of Joe Shymanski’s life insurance, are still minors, she might be able to take control of the payout if he passed away.

When you add in a million-dollar life insurance policy, the motivations speak for themselves, according to defense lawyer Brendan Callahan.

Prior to Joe’s passing, Heather Snyder admitted to “48 Hours” that she was unaware of his life insurance.

Holbrook was the main focus of the prosecution. They showed footage of his truck outside Joe’s Maryland home the day Joe vanished, Holbrook going shopping for cleaning supplies in Pennsylvania the next morning, and a difficult-to-see video that they claim depicts Holbrook dumping something—burned human remains—near his white truck. It forced a defensive stoop.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: There’s evidence that he is involved at some point, but there’s very little evidence that he’s the one who committed the actual murder.

And while Holbrook’s truck might have been spotted near Joe’s house that day, Callahan says someone else could have been driving it.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: Brandon Holbrook had absolutely no reason to kill Joseph Shymanski.

The state contended Holbrook did have a motive: love for Heather Snyder and hate for Joe Shymanski intense enough that Holbrook took matters into his own hands.

Mary Shymanski: This man was obsessed with Heather Snyder ….

Prosecutors painted a picture of that obsession — showing an image taken nearly seven months before the murder, of a car Holbrook also owned, near Joe Shymanski’s house. And they showed a text exchange between Heather Snyder and Holbrook from Jan. 21, 2023, also months before the murder, in which she is complaining about Joe. “. I’m just tired of the abuse. ” Heather Snyder told him, “It’s been years upon years. .. ” Holbrook later suggested she see a therapist but added: “I have other solutions in mind, but probably not the best way to go. “.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: That could mean a lot of things. I mean it’s very easy to read in it – the most nefarious intent and that’s what the State tried to do in this case. But it could mean just about anything. It could be a joke.

Whatever it meant, Heather Snyder didn’t respond to Holbrook immediately. She later texted him: “I’m looking for a therapist. “.

Nikki Battiste: Do you think, how could Heather Snyder possibly not know?

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: There’s a lot in this case that you could say that for about Heather Snyder … and her behavior around the … time of the incident is overall very suspicious.

Callahan’s co-counsel Thomas Mooney points to texts between Heather Snyder and Holbrook suggesting they were still involved shortly before the murder.

Defense Attorney Thomas Mooney: She indicated to the police that … the relationship had —.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: On the outs.

Thomas Mooney, the defense attorney: — had calmed.

Joshua Buck, the investigator (asking): No boyfriends or—?

HEATHER SNYDER: No.

Defense lawyer Thomas Mooney: … but it appeared from the text messages that this was not the case.

Holbrook wrote, six days prior to the murder: “I enjoy the scent of your hair on my pillowcase. “And she texted later that day: “. If only I could be in your bed. The following morning, he replied, “You are welcome to visit my bed at any time. “Xo.”.

Heather Snyder is lying to the police and claiming she had nothing to do with Holbrook, according to Mary Shymanski.

Heather Snyder specifically voiced her dissatisfaction with her custody arrangement with Joe in a different text message. “Karma will eventually catch up with him,” she wrote. However, I’m fed up with waiting. “,”.

According to defense lawyer Brendan Callahan, Brandon Holbrook’s involvement in this is unclear if there is any indication that other individuals were involved. Therefore, it suggests that he is innocent.

However, prosecutors presented texts indicating that Heather Snyder arrived at Joe’s house and was shocked to discover him missing. Her letter to Holbrook read, “I have no idea, where he is.”. “Dot, the vehicle is here. ” Both the defense and the prosecutors wanted to question Heather Snyder under oath. But when she was called as a witness, she declined to testify — invoking her Fifth Amendment privilege.

Nikki Battiste: What does Heather Snyder pleading the Fifth say to you?

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: That a truthful answer could tend to incriminate her.

And Callahan wanted the jury to consider something else about Heather Snyder.

Did she have a gun, Nikki Battiste?

“She did,” said defense lawyer Brendan Callahan.

Before the murder, Heather Snyder had told police about a gun Holbrook had given her, but since no bullets or casings were ever discovered, it would have been impossible to determine whether the gun was the murder weapon. Callahan still claims that the authorities took a long time to get it from her.

Defense lawyer Brendan Callahan: They were aware of it, but it wasn’t looked into until a few weeks prior to the trial.

Furthermore, according to him, they never conducted a search of Heather Snyder’s house or land.

Defense Attorney Brendan Callahan: She has acres of land that the police are on that land, and they don’t even ask to look around. They just take her word for everything.

The most explosive evidence was saved for the very end of the case, according to the prosecution, who claim that a thorough investigation was conducted. They claim that Heather Snyder could not have killed Joe Shymanski. Why? You can see Heather Snyder on camera purchasing pizza in Pennsylvania, which is roughly three hours away, the afternoon Joe vanished.

Nikki Battiste: Heather Snyder has a cover story. She is actually miles away, purchasing pizza, on security footage.

Yes, says defense lawyer Brendan Callahan.

Nikki Battiste: She couldn’t have physically gotten there in time.

Yes, said defense lawyer Brendan Callahan. However, one can play a variety of roles in a crime.

According to Callahan, Heather Snyder had the opportunity to support Holbrook or at the very least be aware of his scheme. In closings, Holbrook’s lawyers remind the jury that there is no evidence that he was in Maryland that night, much less at Joe Shymanski’s residence. Holbrook does not take the stand.

Defense lawyer Brendan Callahan: The state bears the responsibility, and we believe they made a compelling case that he was involved after the fact, but we have yet to find proof that he was ever in that driveway.

However, it only took the jury 80 minutes to render a decision. Brandon Holbrook is guilty of Joe Shymanski’s first-degree premeditated murder.

Nikki Battiste: How are you?

Janine Shymanski: Very joyful.

Despite their happiness, Joe’s loved ones were not content. In addition to some of the audio recordings he had made for their kids about Heather Snyder, Werner’s photo montage of Joe was shown during sentencing.

And I’m concerned that you guys are growing up in a world where you’re afraid of your mother, says Joe Shymanski (audio recording). She takes her affection away from you, and you’re done if you annoy her.

Following that, a number of friends and relatives spoke in court, implying that Heather Snyder might also share some of the blame for the incident. Holbrook was given life without parole by the judge, who also stated that the case was not yet over.

You are the focal point of this case, Nikki Battiste said.

Heather Snyder: Indeed, I am.

A chat with Heather Snyder?

Nikki Battiste: Before this story brought us back together, do you recall the last time you saw me?

Heather Snyder: I think it was during the 1998 homecoming.

In small Newport, Pennsylvania, on the athletic fields of our high school, it happened over twenty-five years ago. I grew up with Heather Snyder. She actually succeeded me as the 1997 homecoming queen.

I put a crown on your head, and now here we are, Nikki Battiste said.

Heather Snyder: We’ve returned.

Since then, we hadn’t spoken, but covering this story took me back to some of my most comfortable surroundings. But it’s taken me into uncharted territory in the process — confronting someone from my youth. Heather Snyder told me she wanted to set the record straight. She agreed to the interview with no questions off limits. She acknowledged she was upset with Joe Shymanski during their custody fight.

Nikki Battiste: … did you ever say to Brandon Holbrook, I wish Joe were dead?

Heather Snyder: No. … The most I said to Brandon was that I thought Joe should be in jail for the way he was acting.

Nikki Battiste: Did Brandon tell you he wanted to kill Joe?

Heather Snyder: Nope.

Nikki Battiste: Did you help him cover up?

Heather Snyder: Nope. Nope.

So what about those texts between her and Holbrook, like when he mentions “. other solutions. ” to help deal with Joe?

Heather Snyder: I thought it was a — just a joke.

Nikki Battiste: It didn’t cross your mind for a second —.

Heather Snyder: No.

Nikki Battiste: — that he might hurt Joe?

Heather Snyder: No.

As for her text about karma catching up with Joe, in which she wrote she was “. tired of being patient” –.

Heather Snyder: That’s how I was feeling ….

Nikki Battiste: Do you think … that may have triggered Brandon?

Heather Snyder: I don’t know.

Heather Snyder, who at the time was in that custody fight with Joe, says she ended her relationship with Holbrook about a month before the murder when Holbrook had been arrested again for indecent exposure.

Nikki Battiste: What was the reason that you told Brandon you needed to end the relationship?

Heather Snyder: Because of his charge.

The Shymanskis suspect Heather Snyder was actually worried if Joe heard she was dating a sex offender, she would lose custody of their kids. They believe Heather Snyder continued to secretly see Holbrook.

Nikki Battiste: About a week before Joe went missing, Brandon Holbrook texts you. “I like the smell of your hair on my pillow. “.

Heather Snyder: He did. Mm-hmm.

Nikki Battiste: Did you accompany him?

Heather Snyder: … I stopped by his house ….

It appears that you are still involved, Nikki Battiste said.

Heather Snyder: Our friendship existed.

According to Nikki Battiste, you were intimate at the time.

Heather Snyder: We had a friendship.

Additionally, Heather Snyder texted Holbrook. If only I could be in your bed. “..”.

Wasn’t Brandon and you still involved throughout this entire situation, Nikki Battiste?

Heather Snyder: No, we weren’t. We weren’t. .

People will observe and accuse you of lying, said Nikki Battiste.

Heather Snyder: “We were friends, and losing a friend was difficult.”.

Why did your hair smell on his pillow, Nikki Battiste?

Heather Snyder: Since I was most likely resting on his pillow.

“They were just talking,” she says.

Nikki Battiste: What was discussed?

That was the last time, said Heather Snyder. When you think about it, it was almost like saying goodbye.

What did Brandon say? Was he upset? asked Nikki Battiste.

Heather Snyder: We were both angry. We were both in tears.

Even following Joe’s murder, Heather Snyder informed us that…

Heather Snyder: Brandon is still someone I love.

Whoa, Nikki Battiste.

Wow is correct, Heather Snyder said.

Nikki Battiste: How?

Heather Snyder: I don’t — I think obviously, psychologically, he snapped over something. …. It’s not like I don’t think he should be in jail. I think he did something horrible, horrific. He hurt my family. He caused me pain.

Nikki Battiste: What would be your first question if you could meet him in person?

Heather Snyder: Why? What happened?

And while she hasn’t seen him in person, she did have a chance to ask him. Shortly before his sentencing, she accepted his call from jail.

Heather Snyder tells Holbrook she believes Joe’s family is trying to incriminate her.

HEATHER SNYDER (jail phone call): The Shymanskis are trying to prove that I did something wrong ….

BRANDON HOLBROOK: … never in a million years would I say you had anything to do with this. I — I swear.

HEATHER SNYDER: Mm, well, cause I didn’t. I just wish I knew what happened. I just want the truth.

Holbrook tells her:.

BRANDON HOLBROOK (jail phone call): I would love to tell you everything that I know … but I’m not going to do it on one of these recorded lines.

And then he denies killing Joe Shymanski.

BRANDON HOLBROOK (jail phone call): I’ll tell you one thing for sure … I never saw Joe, talked to Joe, had any interaction at whatsoever with Joe, his entire life. I promise you that.

Heather Snyder says Holbrook never confessed to her – and she never had an inkling of his plans. She says there is nothing suspicious about her calling 911 so quickly when she didn’t find Joe at the house. She says it was her divorce attorney who advised her to make the call and a criminal lawyer who advised her to plead the Fifth in the trial.

Nikki Battiste: Did you have something to hide?

Heather Snyder: No.

Nikki Battiste: If you don’t have anything to hide, why not just get up there and testify?

Heather Snyder: People twist your words.

And the words Joe used to describe Heather Snyder in those audio messages?

Heather Snyder told us Joe was twisting reality at the time. She says Joe was the dangerous one. And she created a website, “Heather’s Abuse Story,” detailing her side.

We also asked Heather Snyder about that gun she says Brandon Holbrook gave her before Joe’s murder. She says it was only for target practice.

Nikki Battiste: is there any chance that gun is the murder weapon?

Heather Snyder: I don’t — no. No. Of course it was locked in my closet.

Are you withholding anything from us, Nikki Battiste?

Heather Snyder: Not at all…

Nikki Battiste: Look me in the eye. Are you lying about anything?

Heather Snyder: I am not.

Nikki Battiste: Either you’re a bold-faced liar or you are extraordinarily unlucky.

Heather Snyder: I am unlucky.

Heather Snyder says her focus is on raising her and Joe’s children, and she’s sad that they’ll grow up without a father.

Heather Snyder: They have very happy memories of their father and I try … I try to do what I can to honor and keep that safe.

She knows the Shymanskis want to see the kids but says Joe’s relatives can’t expect a full relationship with them while publicly pointing a finger at her.

Heather Snyder: There needs to be a place we move on other than this, where they’re constantly blaming me for something that I didn’t do.

Nikki Battiste: Are you afraid authorities will come for you?

Heather Snyder: No.

Nikki Battiste: Not at all? ….

Heather Snyder: I’m not worried at all, no ….

Ted Shymanski: If Joe never met Heather Snyder, Joe would be alive today. (crying).

Heather Shymanski: Still alive.

Robert Harvey, the top prosecutor in Calvert County, Maryland, replied to “48 Hours” that there was “no interview” despite declining their request. an in-depth and comprehensive investigation, dot. “after Mr. Dot Shymanski passed away. “Mr,”. Holbrook was given an impartial and equitable trial. The case against Mr. Dot Holbrook is still pending because it is being appealed. I will therefore refrain from answering inquiries about the investigation and from making any assumptions about what might or might not occur in the future. “.”.

We also questioned Pennsylvania authorities regarding Heather Snyder.

Nikki Battiste: Is Heather Snyder the subject of an active investigation?

Detective. Jessica Aurand: I’m not able to respond to that query.

Should there be, asks Nikki Battiste?

det. Jessica Aurand: I am unable to respond to that query.

Nikki Battiste: Do you think Heather Snyder is involved in this crime in any way?

Det. Jessica Aurand: I can’t answer that.

Nikki Battiste: But you do know the answer.

Det. Jessica Aurand: Yes. But I’m not allowed to say.

Nikki Battiste: So many people watching are gonna be frustrated –.

Heather Snyder: Uh-huh.

Nikki Battiste: — and they’re gonna think it — it just — logically, you have to had known something.

Heather Snyder: Right. But I didn’t. That’s the torturous part, because people will — it’s almost like they want to believe that I was involved with it. They want that true crime narrative. And it just simply wasn’t the case.

Brandon Holbrook is appealing his conviction.

A scholarship has been established in Joe Shymanski’s name for photography students in Washington D.C. public high schools.

Produced by Josh Yager. Shaheen Tokhi is the field producer. Michelle Sigona is the development producer. Atticus Brady is the producer-editor. Michelle Harris is the editor. Patti Aronofsky is the senior producer. Nancy Kramer is the executive story editor. Judy Tygard is the executive producer.