In 2010, Michelle and Nathan Paet were living in Las Vegas
with their four children aged between two and nine. They’d been
high-school sweethearts who’d fallen in love while growing up on the
small island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean.
Nathan joined the US Air Force
and had loyally served his country. He’d fought in the Iraq War, and
was working as a supply technician at the Nellis Air Base in Las Vegas.
He was proud to wear his uniform and worked hard to make a better life
for his family.
Michelle and Nathan, both 28, had only been
married four years – but Michelle’s heart had already strayed. She’d
started dating a man she worked with at a telemarketing company.
Suddenly, life with Nathan wasn’t enough for her.
Michelle’s
lover was Michael Rodriguez, 36, and for six months they had a
passionate affair. Michael had convictions for forgery, and that air of
danger excited Michelle. Together, they came up with a dark plan.
Michelle
wanted to be with Michael, but she wasn’t willing to walk away from her
marriage with nothing. She knew she’d be in line for $400,000
(£303,000) from the military in the event of Nathan’s death – plus there
was a life insurance policy worth $250,000 (£190,000). Michelle needed
Nathan dead.
Nathan didn’t have a clue that his wife was being
unfaithful – or plotting his murder. He continued to work unsociable
night shifts to pay the bills and ferried his children to and from
school. Nathan’s late working hours gave Michelle and Michael the
perfect set-up to carry out their evil plan.
On the night of 1
December 2010, Nathan got ready to go to work. He dressed in his
camouflage uniform, as always, and prepared for the night shift.
Outside, Michael pulled up in his black Cadillac and lay in wait. His phone received a message – it was from Michelle.
"He’s rushing to get out of the door. LOL," it read.
Michelle knew what was coming to her husband as soon as he stepped outside, but she did nothing to stop it.
Nathan said goodbye to his family and walked out to the garage.
Lurking in the shadows, Michael shot him five times in the back.
Incredibly, Nathan found the strength to stumble back into the house
where he collapsed in front of his wife and children.
Michelle
pretended to be hysterical as Nathan was rushed to hospital and acted
distraught when she was told her husband was dead. Then, a few hours
later, she sent a smiley face text message to her lover.
The
investigation was swift and Michelle quickly crumbled when questioned.
She admitted she was having an affair with Michael and they’d plotted
together to ‘get rid’ of Nathan for the insurance money. They’d been
planning it for two months.
Michael wasn’t so willing to confess.
He told police that he was having sex with another woman in a Las Vegas
hotel at the time of the shooting, but the woman, an ex porn star, said
she’d been offered money by Michael to give him an alibi. He had told
her he was about to come into a large amount of cash.
Both Michelle and Michael were charged with Nathan’s murder.
In
September 2015, Michael Rodriquez pleaded guilty in a deal to avoid the
death sentence. He received life in prison without the chance to appeal
or parole.
A month later, at a Las Vegas court, Michelle pleaded
guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and to first-degree murder with
use of a deadly weapon, in order to avoid the death penalty.
Michelle broke down as she faced Nathan’s parents.
"I’m sorry," she wept. "I love you guys and I love my kids, and I hope that this is closure for you."
She
still maintained that she’d been persuaded by Michael to go through
with the killing and the whole plan had spun out of control. Her cruel
text messages suggested otherwise.
In March this year, Michelle
appeared in court for sentencing and Nathan’s mother had the chance to
speak out. Carmelita Paet is now legal guardian of the four children.
Traumatised children
"As
a woman of faith, I forgive you because your soul clearly needs
forgiveness," she said to Michelle. But went on to describe the ongoing
impact of Nathan’s death on the traumatised children.
Despite
extensive therapy, they jump at loud noises and still fear their mum
could harm them like she hurt their dad. She urged the judge for life
without parole.
Michelle wiped away tears. "I was emotionally
vulnerable," she said. "I made a huge mistake and a really bad choice
and I’m truly sorry."
The judge called the killing
‘incomprehensible’ an‘unfathomable’ and was in disbelief that Michelle
had continued to sleep next to her husband at night, knowing he was
facing a needless death. The judge couldn’t believe that she’d been
powerless to stop the plot.
"You were much more involved than
you’re willing to admit," he said. Michelle, now 33, was sentenced to
life in prison without the chance of parole.
Michelle threw away years of devotion for a man she’d known just six months.
Four
children lost their parents, and a war veteran died simply because
Michelle saw dollar signs when she looked at her husband – not the
teenage boy who’d loved her since high school, and the father of her
children.
Sergeant Nathan was devoted to
his wife Michelle Paet, and their four children and worked the graveyard shift to make
extra money for them.
One ordinary evening, Nathan kissed his kids goodbye
and headed to his car to go to work. Meanwhile, Michelle sent a text
message on her mobile phone. Minutes later, the sound of gunfire filled
the night air. When Nathan staggered back into the house, he was
riddled with bullets. He collapsed to the floor in a pool of blood, as
his horrified family looked on. Tragically, Nathan couldn’t be saved.
The
war veteran had been gunned down in cold blood. It stunned his loved
ones and they wanted justice. Would the answer lie in the text message
Michelle sent as her husband walked out the door?
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