Dateline NBC: Details of evidence in Linda Collins' murder explored

The high-profile murder case of ex-senator, Linda Collins, raised multiple questions regarding the investigation. As the case was built, the authorities collected evidence pointing towards her best friend and campaign worker, Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell.

With phone, text, and computer records, Rebecca was found to have been reportedly stealing money from Linda and trying to avoid arrest which led to the horrific murder in June 2019. The Dateline episode titled The Hands of a Killer aired on NBC on July 12, 2024, at 9 pm EST sheds light on the evidence in the murder case. The episode was originally aired in April 2022. The official synopsis reads:

"When former Arkansas State Senator Linda Collins is found fatally stabbed outside her home, detectives investigate if her murder is connected to her political career or her personal life; the victim's children speak out about the case."

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What evidence was found in Linda Collins' murder investigation?

Episode 21 of Season 30 of Dateline brings the horrific story of Linda Collins' stabbing to viewers. Collins' son and father had conducted a welfare check at her Pochahontas home a week after she had returned from a trip from Washington D.C. However, her family found her body in an advanced state of decomposition in the driveway.

According to an August 2020 ABC news report, her son, Butch Smith, shared in a statement,

"I was the one that found my mother's body on June 4th 2019 at her home. She was lying face down wrapped in one of my old comforters and shoved under a tarp in her driveway. I will never not be able to see that picture burned into my brain."

Butch and Benny Smith had entered Linda's home to find a giant stain on the kitchen floor which they mistook to be spilled coffee. Soon after, they made the horrific discovery of her body in an advanced state of decomposition and covered with maggots and flies.

Butch had expressed his concerns over Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell stealing money from his mother. The investigations revealed that Rebecca's fiance had removed some of the cameras due to charging issues. However, these removed cameras were never recovered after a sweep of Rebecca and her boyfriend, Tim Loggains' home, per K8 News, August 2020 report.

The investigators got hold of the security footage from the company to find that the surveillance videos were destroyed by Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell. She was also spotted on video with a bloody knife in her hand. Additionally, a June 2019 NEA report stated that she was also spotted on camera buying an unusual amount of bleach at a Walmart in Pocahontas.

When confronted with the details, Rebecca justified by saying that she had been at the airport to pick up Linda following which she had cooked her a meal. The blood on her hands was allegedly from cutting the chicken per K8 News. The same outlet reported that Rebecca had had the cameras from Linda's residence removed after she had been found murdered.

An extensive search conducted by the authorities brought to the surface the gold and silver Rebecca had sold on three different occasions in 2018 and had reportedly made a profit of $15,110, per the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The investigators reported that she would write checks off Linda's bank account by forging her signature, per K8 News.

The authorities went through phone and message records, evidence from computers and other smart electronic devices, 911 audio recordings, personal documents, and security documents to arrest Rebecca Lynn O'Donnell while she was on her way to Linda Collins' funeral. She was convicted and sentenced to 50 years in 2020.

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Catch all the details about Linda Collins' murder as the Dateline episode streams on NBC.