Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
Financial Feuds, A Buried Body — What To Know About The Martha Beatty Case Before ‘Snapped’ Returns
Did a married Florida couple’s argument about money turn fatal? “Snapped” digs into the gruesome mystery when it returns for Season 32.
Money is a common motive for murder: It was central in the investigation into Martha Beatty, a Florida wife whose story is explored in the Season 32 premiere of “Snapped,” airing Sunday, February 19 at 6/5c on Oxygen.
In advance of the series return, here’s what to know about the case.
Martha’s husband, Bradford “Bill” Beatty, managed a convenience store in Clermont, Florida. But in August 2001, Bill failed to show up for work, which was out of character. Naturally, his supervisor was alarmed.
Martha, reportedly, was less concerned. She told the local Mascotte Police Department that her husband grappled with depression and that he had previously left for months after they had a disagreement.
Officials said Martha suggested her husband ran off with another woman, according to a 2006 Orlando Sentinel report. But detectives were unable to track down credit-card receipts to follow a paper trail.
She also declined to fill out a missing-persons report — and to give police permission to search her property, reported the Orlando Sentinel in 2005.
On March 4, 2004, after Martha sold the house and moved away, law enforcement with cadaver dogs were able to search the house and the property. That's when they made a disturbing discovery: They found Bill’s remains.
RELATED: Holistic Medicine Mogul Has Private Eye Ex-Lover Kidnapped, Tortured and Killed
Bill had been shot twice in the head and buried in a hole in the yard. It was filled in with sand, concrete, scrap metal, and broken bicycle parts.The partially-decomposed body was covered with lime and wrapped in a tarp and trash bags.
Bill was identified by his unique tattoos that included a howling wolf on his right arm.
Martha and her son Andrew Paul Norman, who had previously run afoul of the law, both had fallen under suspicion early on in the case. Money issues related to legal fees and Norman’s new truck fueled acrimony between the spouses, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Jeanette Sanchez, who lived with Norman, told investigators that Martha Beatty had asked her son to come over on the day of the slaying.
What actually happened that day and why? Who pulled the trigger and shot Bill Beatty? Who buried his body in the yard under dirt and debris? Where is Martha Beatty today?
For the answers as well as more details about this gripping case, watch “Snapped,” airing Sunday, February 19 at 6/5c on Oxygen. You can stream past episodes here.
