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ID's Murder in the Heartland is set to revisit the 2011 kidnapping and subsequent murder case of Russell "Rusty" and Rebecca Porter of Willard, Missouri, who were shot execution-style by a hired hitman over a family feud. The all-new episode, titled Orders of Protection, airs on the platform this Wednesday, December 14, 2022, at 9 pm ET.
The synopsis of the episode reads:
"A tip comes in from an unexpected Willard, Mo., resident that leads to the final resting ground of missing newlyweds Russell and Rebecca Porter."
In April 2011, Rusty, 34, and Rebecca, 46, mysteriously went missing from their farmhouse in rural Missouri. The scene at their house led authorities to believe that they may have been kidnapped. A thorough investigation led nowhere until an unexpected tip came in about a man named Tony Friend.
It was then revealed that Rusty Porter was having issues with his uncle, Robert Campbell, concerning the family farm. Eventually, things escalated to the point where the uncle hired Friend, his brother-in-law, to murder Rusty and Rebecca Porter. The hired hitman then enlisted the assistance of three others to carry out the evil crime.
Russell and Rebecca Porter were killed in a murder-for-hire plot over property feud
Robert Campbell believed that his nephew Russell, aka Rusty, was watching him and informing the authorities about his whereabouts. What bothered Campbell the most was that his sister gave Rusty the home they had grown up in, which was a portion of a 120-acre estate that belonged to generations of his family.
The animosity between the two grew to the point where they both sought orders of protection against each other in the spring of 2011. Robert even took the opportunity to warn Rusty to watch out on one occasion. Campbell also filed a lawsuit, claiming Porter allegedly threatened him.
Rebecca Porter called her daughter Jessica Bullock on Sunday, April 17, 2011, and informed her that she had an upset stomach. The following day, Jessica tried to check on her mother but could not get in touch with her. She then drove to the Porters' residence only to realize that the couple had mysteriously disappeared from their home.
Deputies found Rebecca's handbag, phone, and car keys, which were in the vehicle's ignition. But there was no sign of the couple. The security cameras had been tampered with, and there was a strange bleach stench in the air. Meanwhile, family members and friends searched the 120-acre property for any evidence of the couple.
Rusty and Rebecca Porter's remains were found in an isolated area miles away from their Willard farmhouse
Rusty and Rebecca Porter's decomposing bodies were found three months later, on July 21, in a remote area in Taney County, Missouri, roughly 80 miles south of Willard. Jim Hufft, Rebecca's brother, asserted that he was positive there was malicious intent in the murders. An autopsy revealed that they both died from gunshot wounds to the head.
Robert Campbell was a person of interest in the case from the very beginning. However, his alibi was checked off, given that he was out of town at the time of the murders. It was later revealed that he hired Tony Friend to get rid of the couple.
Campbell's wife Carolyn and Friend's family, including his son Phillip, wife Windy, and cousin Dusty were also involved in the murders and were later charged with the same.
Phillip Friend eventually confessed, claiming that on the night of April 17, 2011, he and his father broke into the Porters' house while Dusty and his mother waited in the car. The three men cut through the kitchen and unlocked the door. Following a struggle, the couple was taken to the car with their hands restrained using zip ties. They then destroyed the cameras along with any evidence using bleach.
After dropping Windy off at their house, they drove to Cedar Creek, where Tony allegedly took the couple to the cabin as Phillip and Dusty waited in the car and shot them dead.
Murder in the Heartland airs with an all-new episode on Wednesday, December 14, 2022.
