'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The cold-blooded murders of Pensacola residents Byrd and Melanie Billings came as a shock to the community, especially because the couple were parents to nine adoptive children with special needs. A home invasion driven by greed led to the Billings' death and the conviction of eight people in the massacre.
All of the nine children who were present at home were left unharmed while the perpetrators stole a safe containing legal documents, jewellery, and children’s prescription medication, as reported by WKRG.
The Final Moments season 2 episode 9 explores the double homicide of the beloved couple as the synopsis reads:
"Bud and Melanie Billings lovingly adopt a houseful of special-needs kids; when a home robbery ends in Bud and Melanie's murders, police look for clues in the couple's home security camera system and find a video that is both horrific and heartbreaking."
The episode, titled House of Horror, will re-air on December 9, 2023, at 10 pm EST on Oxygen.
Byrd and Melanie Billings had 16 children
Byrd Starling “Bud” Billings was born on September 23, 1942, in Greenville, Washington County. Meanwhile, Melanie Anne Brock Billings was born on September 12, 1965, in Alabama, United States.
Byrd and Melanie were introduced to one another through a mutual friend and the two went on their first date on Christmas Eve of 1990.
Per Oxygen, Melanie used to work at one of Bud's clubs as a waitress at one time.
Both of them were divorced with children from their previous marriages. Byrd divorced his second wife Cynthia Reeve Billings in January 1993 and went on to marry Melanie, who had two children from her previous relationship - Ashley Markham and Nicole "Nikki" Billings.
Byrd Billings had two biological children - Michael and Melissa Billings.
The pair then adopted 12 children, most with developmental disabilities and special needs like their deceased child Nikki, to provide them with a home and loving parents.
They had 16 kids in total, including their biological children and stepchildren. In an interview with the Pensacola News Journal, Melanie said in 2015:
"I just wanted to give them a better life."
Melanie Billings used to own a used car dealership while Bud Billings owned a company named Worldco Financial Services. He also dealt in used cars and was formerly a strip club owner.
With time, Billings' biological children had moved out of the house and the remaining 9 children, aged from 4 to 11, lived with the Billings in their Pensacola, Florida home.
What happened to Byrd and Melanie Billings?
Bud Billings (66) and Melanie Billings (43) were found dead at their 9717 Mobile Highway, Pensacola home on July 9, 2009. On the day, the Billings had already put their children to bed when a red van pulled up to their home and a group of men broke into their house.
The break-in was allegedly called an ambush by investigators as the men dressed in black from head to toe entered from the front door and the back door at the same time.
Bud Billings was watching the television when the break-in happened. He was shot in both legs, zip-tied and dragged to the bedroom along with Melanie Billings, where the couple were shot to death.
The house had an intricate surveillance system comprising 16 cameras which helped investigators understand the happenings on the night from the footage.
The eldest of the Billings' children, Ashley, had dialled in around 7 pm when one of the children answered crying on the line. Ashley Markham then called her friend and neighbour, April Spencer, who performed a welfare check, only to find the Billings dead.
The surveillance cameras depicted one of the men carrying out a small object which was later verified by Ashley and Bud’s son, Justin, to be a safe picked up from the Billings' bedroom.
According to Oxygen, the safe contained birth certificates, adoption records, and jewellery of sentimental value. The one containing around $100,000 to $200,000 was left behind possibly in error.
