Jesse Weber (00:01):
On prime crime.

(00:03):
"If anybody has some bad news, like might have done a robbery wrong."

(00:07):
 When plans are set in motion,

Officer Duran (00:09):
She's not very cooperative. I'm just going to have to put a bullet in her myself.

Jesse Weber (00:14):
The evidence points in all different directions.

Various speakers (00:17):
There was plausible deniability with respect to what he wanted. He asked me, are you wearing a wire? Just get it done. You'll get the payment.

Jesse Weber (00:37):
Hey there everybody. I'm Jesse Weber

(00:39):
And welcome to Prime Crime. This is where we break down the most high profile and memorable true crime cases. Now, anybody who follows this program knows we focus a lot on recordings like nine one one phone calls, body cam footage, interrogations, but the

(00:52):
Recordings in this case tell a whole different kind of story. The question is, what exactly is that story? What's going

(01:03):
On? He needs to talk to you. It's around 3:00 AM on March 10th, 2017 in Houston, Texas. Police arrive at the home of veterinarian Valerie McDaniel. I'm afraid anybody has your ex-husband's been found. It looks like it turns out to be a fatality. Looks like it might've been a robbery gone wrong. Police are referring to Valerie's ex Marian Mack McDaniel. Have you heard from him recently? I was at the house last night. I called the police.

Valerie McDaniel (01:40):
Why'd you call the police?

(01:41):
Because he had my daughter.

(01:43):
Where's your daughter now?

(01:44):
She's in bed.

(01:46):
Is she the only one here. Just her?

(01:48):
No. My boyfriend's here.

Jesse Weber (01:49):
At one point. Valerie's boyfriend, Leon Jacob comes into the room...

(01:55):
"Oh my God. "

(01:57):
"Might've been a robbery going wrong. I'm just trying to..."

(01:59):
As police break the news of the death of McDaniel to the couple. They also ask more about the two.

Leon Jacob (02:07):
I'm a doctor here too.

(02:07):
 What kind of doctor are you?

(02:09):
Unlicensed transplant surgeon,

(02:11):
so have you ever practiced?

(02:12):
Yeah, I just haven't practiced in a while.

Katherine Smith (02:14):
His medical career was interesting. He did not go to medical school here in the States, so he sought a degree elsewhere and then tried on two separate occasions to secure a medical degree or standing within the states and by all accounts they were met with poor work performance.

SGT. Quinn (02:32):
Joe, any idea who might wanted to harm your husband? Was he worried about anything?

(02:39):
Like I said, I laid him once,

Jesse Weber (02:41):
But let's rewind three days earlier.

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (02:46):
Hello? Hey. What's up man? How you doing buddy? Very good. Hey listen, I am going to set up a meeting with you tomorrow so we can finish this, okay? Okay, and I'm going to bring with me the Navy SEAL guy because he wants so we can get this done.

Jesse Weber (03:02):
On this recorded call. Jacob is speaking with Army veteran Motez Aza AKA. Zach.

Leon Jacob (03:11):
We're taking care of both problems.

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (03:12):
What? Both problems,

Leon Jacob (03:14):
Both of the individuals that we're talking about. I'm talking about my issue and Valerie's issue.

Jesse Weber (03:20):
It would later be revealed those two people Jacob was referring to are Valerie's ex, Mack and Leon's ex-girlfriend, Meghan Verikas.

Leon Jacob (03:31):
Are they both going to be take care of?

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (03:32):
Yeah. Yeah. We'll talk about it tomorrow. He'll take care of them.

Leon Jacob (03:36):
He'll take care of both of them.

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (03:37):
Yeah.

Jesse Weber (03:37):
The next day Zach meets with Jacob and McDaniel at an olive garden. It's there when Zach introduces the couple to a third person, it's penalty. I don't want that the only option, but I prefer that not be the option. There's only one problem for Jacob and McDaniel. That third man wasn't who he seemed to be.

Officer Duran (04:09):
This is Officer Duran with the Houston police department. I will be meeting suspect Leon Jacob and Valerie McDaniel. They have solicited me to commit murder. I was assigned to the major offenders division. The way that I was brought into this investigation is there is a bondsman who also happens to be a city of Houston council member. His name is Michael Kubosh. He was approached by Leon Jacob. He told Mr. Kubosh that he was looking for a guy named Zach, whom he had paid a lot of money to take care of some problems and Mr. Kubosh felt very uneasy with those questions, so he contacted the police department.

Leon Jacob (04:56):
Valerie wants to talk to you about what she wants to do with her ex-husband.

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (05:00):
Okay, that's good.

Leon Jacob (05:01):
Okay, but Megan, are we taking care of too this week?

Motez Aza - AKA. "Zach" (05:05):
Yeah.

Officer Duran (05:05):
Motez was actually the original hitman. He wasn't going to actually kill her. He was just stringing Leon along for money. When we found out about the murder for hire plot, we contacted Motez and he became a cooperating witness and his purpose was to introduce me to Leon so that I can become the new hitman. I

Leon Jacob (05:32):
Want that taken care of ASAP too.

Officer Duran (05:34):
No, we will take care of it.

Jesse Weber (05:37):
Jacob reveals to undercover Officer Duran. The trouble that not only McDaniel is having with her ex, including a custody battle that

Leon Jacob (05:46):
The daughter, you won't give her back. She's head over there to the police. He's a,

Jesse Weber (05:52):
But also at the time, Verikas had taken out a protective order against Jacob for allegedly assaulting and stalking her and was planning to testify against him. I just want her to leave and I want my legal problems to go away and this isn't the first time Jacob has run into problems.

Katherine Smith (06:09):
He had a marked history of violence towards women and acting out when he did not get his way

(06:17):
Yet. What exactly is Leon Jacob asking for? As far as my situation goes, I that no one is hurt.

Leon Jacob (06:34):
I don't need to see anything. They're going to come after me. They're not going to

Jesse Weber (06:39):
Houston, Texas 2017 authorities are investigating Leon Jacob and his girlfriend, Valerie McDaniel. They suspect the couple of orchestrating a murder for hire plot one Target being m McDaniel, Valerie's ex-husband, the other Jacob's ex-girlfriend, Megan Varios. In fact, at the time Jacob was facing felony charges of stalking and assaulting varios, but little did Jacob and McDaniel realize that the person they're speaking with is actually undercover police officer Javier Duran. I worry about the in person stuff because I worry about that. I'm being set

Officer Duran (07:18):
Up to get here too, but I got to trust you. Okay? What you need to understand from my side, I'm worrying about being over the phone. That's how people get caught on the phone.

Jesse Weber (07:27):
Duran was introduced to the two through cooperating witness Motez, Zach Za and the conversations between Jacob and Duran are interesting. I don't have Zach's number because we communicate

Leon Jacob (07:41):
Via a secret email. This is a burner phone. As far as these phones go, they're going to get put to an incinerator. I understand exactly what we're using. Alias. I got it. That's clear. The fact that he told me he was using a burner phone and that he was using an alias told me that he was serious about this

Jesse Weber (08:02):
And then there was the money trail.

Officer Duran (08:05):
MOAs was paid $10,000 and two Cartier watches and a laptop. At least you start, I'll need the $2,500 payment. Just get it done and you'll get the payment. When I agreed with Valerie and Leon to kill Mac McDaniel, we agreed that'd be an additional fee of $10,000.

Katherine Smith (08:27):
It's clear that this was not a fleeting concept that just entered into his mind, but something that over time he was willing to pay for to achieve.

Jesse Weber (08:36):
However, what exactly did Jacob think he was paying for? Is this really a case of him soliciting a murder?

Officer Duran (08:44):
When you're doing a murder for hire investigation, you want to make sure that they're actually planning to go through with the murder. Sometimes you find out that the person who is looking to have somebody killed, they were just angry at the time. In that case, the investigation is pretty much over. I can get him out of the picture real quick. Whatever you got to do in any other situation, we'll deal with the next couple of days. Leon's very intelligent. He was being very cautious with the words that he would use, so he never came out and said, I want her dead. I want you to kill her. He also would say things like, I don't want her hurt.

(09:26):
I understand that you don't want her hurt. I know that I just want her to leave. I have these charges go away.

Katherine Smith (09:31):
There was plausible deniability with respect to what he wanted to have achieved. Jacob clearly laid out other than fatal options for the intended target and specifically he mentioned having her go out of town, having drugs planted on her. I know he used to get her

Officer Duran (09:48):
In trouble. I don't see that playing out too much. It's not, I have contacts. It's not like in the movies where

(09:55):
Somebody's calls a freaking cop, but at the same time he would make comments like inject her in the heart with Potassium chloride. He would also ask me to kidnap her.

Leon Jacob (10:08):
Where Do you take her to talk to her?

Officer Duran (10:10):
Either a storage unit,

(10:12):
But then we thought about that and we thought about cameras. Camera's, tons of cameras there. I'm going to be honest with you now, wasn't on her coming back alive.

Leon Jacob (10:22):
I already just wanted to leave, get in her car, pack her up and go home.

R. Scott Shearer (10:26):
I think that plays into his mental illness and his personality disorder. He spent some time in a facility here in Houston. He was treated for narcissistic behavior, bipolar and a couple other syndromes. I don't think he understood the consequences of what he was doing. The question of whether Jacob actually wanted Megan and Mack dead would become even more complicated by what happened next. What exactly did she say to you

Officer Duran (10:58):
When you told her she needed weed? In so many words, I don't give a fuck anymore. I'm willing to do what I need to do to make sure that his doesn't get away with what he's done. When we've done this in the past, people have requested messages. Some people want their target to get hit shot 10 times in the head or something. Whatever you and Valerie

Jesse Weber (11:24):
Discussed in 2017, authorities are conducting an elaborate sting operation of Leon Jacob and his girlfriend, Valerie McDaniel out in Houston, Texas. They believe the couple are orchestrating a murder for hire plot against their respective exes. Megan Varios and Mack McDaniel. What Jacob and McDaniel don't realize is that the person posing as a hitman is actually undercover police officer Javier Duran,

Officer Duran (11:52):
So there's something else we can do, which is where her body won't be found. I'm going to be honest with you. I need to protect myself. What's your real name? I can't give you my name. Are you using my real name? I don't know if that's your real name or not.

Jesse Weber (12:08):
Duran has to make sure though that Jacob and McDaniel are actually soliciting a murder and that's when authorities take a dramatic step in this operation.

Officer Duran (12:18):
Well, my friend, this is why I was trying to tell you. I have some good news for you, but I need to meet you. Mack assisted us by faking his own death. We took him to a secure location. From there we staged a murder in his real vehicle,

(12:34):
The male subject, which I'm sure you know who I'm talking about. He's gone. He's done. He's done.

(12:40):
When I met Leon and Valerie to tell them about M Mack is dead. He's gone. I have a picture. He didn't really say much. He just looked at it and shook his head up and down.

Leon Jacob (12:54):
You don't have a reason why wires or anything you mind showing.

Officer Duran (12:59):
No, that's no problem. His immediate reaction to that, he asked me, are you wearing a wire? It shows that he was very cautious for his own safety, so he did check my shirt. I was wearing more than one recording device. I was not wearing a wire. Luckily, I was not wearing one of those

Jesse Weber (13:24):
And Mac McDaniel wasn't the only cooperating participant in this operation.

Officer Duran (13:29):
For Megan, we actually staged her kidnapping. We took Megan to a secure location, which in this case was a garage and zip tied her hands. We had to make it look very real. I sent you a picture of her. Do you want me to take care of her myself? You have to do that. You should see how Megan is acting. Yeah, she's not very cooperative. I'm just going to have to put a bullet in her, her myself. I need an answer. Well, I don't want her hurt, but if she's going to go to the cops and does she understand what's going to happen to her if she doesn't leave? I'm pretty sure she knows I'm not playing with her.

Jesse Weber (14:09):
Officer Duran takes another step in this stage scheme.

Officer Duran (14:13):
Hello? Hey bud. I just wanted to let you know that there, there's no reasoning with her. Put too much risk on us. That's pretty much it, man. She's dead. She's gone. You already took care of it. Yeah, nothing's going to come back to her. Absolutely nothing. I'm taking care of everything as we speak right now. He immediately went into protection mode. He never expressed any type of regret. He never expressed any type of anger at me. Why would you do this to Megan? I told you not to do this. He was concerned with himself

Jesse Weber (14:52):
And that brings us back once again to the early morning hours of March 10th.

SGT. Quinn (14:58):
If anybody knows Anything or no, we able to help us.

Leon Jacob (15:02):
 Are you okay baby?

Katherine Smith (15:04):
That reaction was priceless because you could see immediately what we now recognized is feigned shock.

Leon Jacob (15:12):
We've been here all night when we were watching movies. We haven't been out of the house all day.

Katherine Smith (15:17):
It leads a lot to be desired in the realm of acting

SGT. Quinn (15:23):
Right now. We're going to read you your rights, because both of you're being arrested. Solicitation of capitol murdered.

Leon Jacob (15:28):
 Why?

SGT. Quinn (15:31):
Solicitation of murder. You have the right to remain silent.

Officer Duran (15:33):
I walked Inside of the living room

(15:35):
And

(15:36):
They both

(15:37):
Looked up at me and both of their

(15:40):
Faces just fell to the ground.

(15:42):
They knew

(15:43):
That they were in really big trouble,

Jesse Weber (15:46):
But how strong of a case is this really? Up next, the trial is on.

SHOW INTRO (15:51):
Did you ever pay money for the purpose of harming or hurting either Megan or McDaniel?

(15:58):
No...

(16:07):
I mean, I don't know why I'm being arrested. Okay, well, he just told you solicitation

Jesse Weber (16:14):
Down in Houston, Texas, Leon, Jacob and his girlfriend Valerie McDaniel are arrested in charge with solicitation of murder. Police say that two attempted to hire a hitman to kill their exes. Megan Verikas and Marian "Mack" McDaniel, but the two didn't realize the man they were dealing with was actually undercover Police officer. Sergeant Javier Duran,

Officer Duran (16:37):
I need an answer.

Leon Jacob (16:38):
Tell her scout a decision to make right now. It's here, actress

Jesse Weber (16:41):
Up and goes, or you do. However, something happens with Valerie McDaniel before she ever steps foot in front of a jury

Katherine Smith (16:52):
When she was arrested, she took the drastic step of taking her own life and when her friends and family were spoken to afterwards, they firmly and consistently blamed her interaction with Jacob,

Jesse Weber (17:06):
But that didn't halt the prosecution of Leon. Jacob and his criminal trial began in 2018.

Cameron Calligan (17:12):
He knew exactly what Valerie wanted. She was sitting right there when the officer said, this is what she wants. This is how we're going to do it. I need the payment, and Leon immediately offers the payment and that night he wants it done and he wants it done right. Then

Katherine Smith (17:27):
The prosecution used the tapes to support their version of the events.

Leon Jacob (17:32):
Showed me this time that You do what you gotta do

(17:33):
reasonable doubt is all over the place. Every act is all instigated by the police department.

Katherine Smith (17:42):
The defense argued that really he had never intended this murder and that the undercover officer through time had baited him and made him believe that the only option to achieve his results to not have this woman testify against him was murder. Did you actually

Officer Duran (17:59):
Talk to her? I don't know if talking's going to do much help at this point.

Jesse Weber (18:05):
The Jury heard from multiple witnesses connected to the case,

(18:09):
But all

(18:09):
Eyes were on the

(18:10):
Defendant.

(18:11):
Leon Jacob,

(18:12):
When he

(18:14):
Took the Stand

Leon Jacob (18:14):
At the time, I was not a hundred percent of what those services were because Valerie had made that negotiation with him.

Katherine Smith (18:21):
Jacob has said repeatedly that it was really Valerie's idea,

(18:26):
whatever you and Valerie discussed, that's between you and Valerie because we have a difference of opinion about that and of course Valerie is not here to posit her version of the events at trial.

Leon Jacob (18:36):
I never asked anybody to kill anybody 177 times during these these conversations. Do I say the words, I don't want to harm or hurt or kill anybody.

Katherine Smith (18:47):
Jacob is an intelligent individual and he has carefully crafted what he was trying to say while he was on the stand.

Samantha Knecht (18:57):
When you tell the members

(18:57):
Of this jury that your heartsick over Megan, that's not really true, is It?

Leon Jacob (19:01):
I have no problem sitting here and saying that I slept with Valerie seven days after Megan and I broke up, but I'm not on trial for being a womanizer. I'm on trial for citation of capital murder.

(19:11):
He could not control his anger and I think the district attorney Samantha Connect. I think she did a great job.

Samantha Knecht (19:19):
You told Javier snatch

(19:21):
Her,

(19:22):
Put her in a room

(19:23):
And tell her if

(19:24):
She doesn't leave, I'm going to kill

(19:26):
Her parents,

(19:27):
Right?

Leon Jacob (19:28):
If that's what you say, I said.

Samantha Knecht (19:29):
Did you say it Mr. Jacob?

Leon Jacob (19:32):
Sure.

Katherine Smith (19:33):
Regardless of the evidence that's presented at trial, it's really anybody's game. Would the jury will think,

Trial Judge (19:39):
We the jury find the defendant? Leon Philip Jacob guilty of solicitation of capital murder is charged in the indictment. We the jury, find the defendant, Leon Philip Jacob, guilty of solicitation of capital murder is charged in the indictment.

Katherine Smith (19:52):
Personally, I've rarely seen a case that had so much videographic damning evidence against the criminal defendant.

Trial Judge (19:58):
We, the jury, having found the defendant, Leon Philip Jacobs guilty of solicitation of capital murder, assess his punishment of confinement in the institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life assess fine in the amount of $10,000...

(20:13):
 Leon has filed a writ of habeas corpus with the Court of Criminal Appeals. We are awaiting a decision on that case. He's claiming that his trial attorney was ineffective. The trial attorney should have told him that there was no defense and that he should have pled guilty and put on a punishment case.

R. Scott Shearer (20:35):
I think

(20:35):
He's got a fairly good chance

(20:36):
Of getting a new punishment. Hearing

Magen Verikas (20:41):
You manipulated me to leave my family in the life I had. I believe everything happens for a reason.

(20:49):
While you sit in jail, I hope you think of me, the girl that you called poor and uneducated because because of me you will be in prison for life.

Officer Duran (20:58):
It's my belief that I don't think he could live with the fact that she didn't

(21:03):
Want him.

(21:04):
He's Leon Jacob. He's God's gift to women and he couldn't believe that he was turned down by this girl and I think he wanted Mac out of the picture so that Valerie didn't have to pay him any of the money. Ultimately, I believe that Leon's motivation is just greed and vanity.

Jesse Weber (21:27):
Despite Jacob's attempts to show, he didn't mean what he said on those tapes. It didn't really work and the jury convicted him. Now, here's something to consider. Imagine if Officer Duran wasn't there. Imagine this wasn't an undercover operation. Imagine this was all for real. What could have ended up happening to two people is very scary to think about. That's all we have for you here on prime crime. As always, thank you for joining us and until next time, stay safe.