Host Eva Pilgrim

And then he played for a year at the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra before coming to Greenville, South Carolina. And he was on this mission to play all of the Beethoven sonatas from memorization. He was calling it the Beethoven Odyssey. The original plan was for him to play on a stage, but COVID happened. So he started recording them.

And John Mello met him as he was playing at a public space on a keyboard. And that's how their friendship started. So they didn't even know each other. Just a chance meeting and they connected over music. And so at some point, Zach Hughes goes to Italy to visit John Mello. Although when we talked to John Mello, he sort of blew off all the WhatsApp messages that existed.

And John Mello met him as he was playing at a public space on a keyboard. And that's how their friendship started. So they didn't even know each other. Just a chance meeting and they connected over music. And so at some point, Zach Hughes goes to Italy to visit John Mello. Although when we talked to John Mello, he sort of blew off all the WhatsApp messages that existed.

And John Mello met him as he was playing at a public space on a keyboard. And that's how their friendship started. So they didn't even know each other. Just a chance meeting and they connected over music. And so at some point, Zach Hughes goes to Italy to visit John Mello. Although when we talked to John Mello, he sort of blew off all the WhatsApp messages that existed.

And we didn't at that time know the nature of those messages because, you know, Zach Hughes had deleted those messages. So investigators were still trying to get them and they were encrypted. There were people who supporters, right? So many supporters. I mean, even at his trial, up until the moment that he took the stand and confessed to this murder, people kept telling us there's just no way.

And we didn't at that time know the nature of those messages because, you know, Zach Hughes had deleted those messages. So investigators were still trying to get them and they were encrypted. There were people who supporters, right? So many supporters. I mean, even at his trial, up until the moment that he took the stand and confessed to this murder, people kept telling us there's just no way.

And we didn't at that time know the nature of those messages because, you know, Zach Hughes had deleted those messages. So investigators were still trying to get them and they were encrypted. There were people who supporters, right? So many supporters. I mean, even at his trial, up until the moment that he took the stand and confessed to this murder, people kept telling us there's just no way.

I mean, this guy didn't even have like a traffic ticket, no prior criminal history, no even like angry outbursts that people could speak of people who had known him for a really long time. from childhood on, had nothing, they couldn't wrap their brains around the idea that he could possibly have been the person who did this very violent, brutal, I mean, this was a very, you know, messy scene.

I mean, this guy didn't even have like a traffic ticket, no prior criminal history, no even like angry outbursts that people could speak of people who had known him for a really long time. from childhood on, had nothing, they couldn't wrap their brains around the idea that he could possibly have been the person who did this very violent, brutal, I mean, this was a very, you know, messy scene.

I mean, this guy didn't even have like a traffic ticket, no prior criminal history, no even like angry outbursts that people could speak of people who had known him for a really long time. from childhood on, had nothing, they couldn't wrap their brains around the idea that he could possibly have been the person who did this very violent, brutal, I mean, this was a very, you know, messy scene.

Here he is. He's confessed to this killing. And now he's implicating someone else. And we were like, what? One of our producers was in the courtroom. So she immediately started texting John Mello that this just occurred in court. And he wrote back to her almost right away. It never happened. But then I'm texting with another one of our producers as well. floored, mind blown that this is going on.

Here he is. He's confessed to this killing. And now he's implicating someone else. And we were like, what? One of our producers was in the courtroom. So she immediately started texting John Mello that this just occurred in court. And he wrote back to her almost right away. It never happened. But then I'm texting with another one of our producers as well. floored, mind blown that this is going on.

Here he is. He's confessed to this killing. And now he's implicating someone else. And we were like, what? One of our producers was in the courtroom. So she immediately started texting John Mello that this just occurred in court. And he wrote back to her almost right away. It never happened. But then I'm texting with another one of our producers as well. floored, mind blown that this is going on.

That That's the thing that I think we all were really trying to figure out how, why, why would he put himself in the middle of this custody dispute? He didn't know Christina Purcell. He'd never met her before that day, right? He just walked up to her house, didn't have a conversation with her. And admits to stabbing her to death. A stranger.

That That's the thing that I think we all were really trying to figure out how, why, why would he put himself in the middle of this custody dispute? He didn't know Christina Purcell. He'd never met her before that day, right? He just walked up to her house, didn't have a conversation with her. And admits to stabbing her to death. A stranger.

That That's the thing that I think we all were really trying to figure out how, why, why would he put himself in the middle of this custody dispute? He didn't know Christina Purcell. He'd never met her before that day, right? He just walked up to her house, didn't have a conversation with her. And admits to stabbing her to death. A stranger.

And so, I mean, that's the sort of lingering question that exists is, and I think really only Zach Hughes could answer, why did he? And when you hear him on the stand, you hear how calm and just certain he is of what he's saying. He, from what we could gather on the stand, seems very sure that this child is in a bad situation.

And so, I mean, that's the sort of lingering question that exists is, and I think really only Zach Hughes could answer, why did he? And when you hear him on the stand, you hear how calm and just certain he is of what he's saying. He, from what we could gather on the stand, seems very sure that this child is in a bad situation.

And so, I mean, that's the sort of lingering question that exists is, and I think really only Zach Hughes could answer, why did he? And when you hear him on the stand, you hear how calm and just certain he is of what he's saying. He, from what we could gather on the stand, seems very sure that this child is in a bad situation.

So there was so much made of the rose petals because, you know, when you hear that, you think like almost like romantic or ritualistic. They were chopped off, like not strewn about in a romantic way, very kind of haphazard chopped. And he said the roses were just a ruse, flowers at the door when he got there. They meant nothing more than that.