Reyes Pleads Guilty To Laclede County Triple Murder:

Joshua Antonio Reyes

A Springfield man has pleaded guilty to killing his ex girlfriends parents and her boyfriend last October in Laclede County.

Prosecutors say Joshua Antonio Reyes, 23, was the ringleader in the triple murders of 51 year-old Jeff and 48 year-old Glenda Smith; and 25 year-old Zack Porter, Elkland on October 10, 2009.

Laclede County Prosecutor Anie Hemphill-Wright (courtesy Lebanon Daily Record)

Laclede County Prosecutor Angie Hemphill-Wright dropped three counts of armed criminal action and burglary charges against Reyes in exchange for his guilty plea. Reyes was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for his part in the murder spree.

Deputies were first called to Miranda Smiths apartment on Tower Road a little after midnight Saturday (10-10-09) for a reported shooting. When first responders arrived they found twenty five year-old Zachary Bryan Porter with a gunshot wound to the chest. Porter was transported to St. John's hospital in Lebanon where he was pronounced dead.

Zack Porter (family photo)


While cops were trying to gather information at that crime scene Smith told authorities that she was concerned for her father and step-mother who she could not reach by phone.

A nephew of fifty one year-old Jeffry Smith and forty eight year-old Glenda Smith found them covered in blood on their living room floor in nearby Phillpsburg.

Jeffry and Glenda Smith (facebook)

Sheriff Richard Wrinkle says investigators believe the elder Smiths were gunned to death first and that Reyes then went to his ex-girlfriends apartment and gunned down Porter, who was her current boyfriend.

According to court documents, two other people were to be killed that night but the men got lost trying to find their home.



Laclede County Sheriff Richard Wrinkle

When the alleged murderers got to Miranda Smith's apartment in Lebanon Jacky Wong told investigators that he and Benjamin Stidham stayed in his dads truck while Reyes and Steven Pyykola went to the apartment, "because he had business to take care of with Zachary Porter for sleeping with Miranda."

Friends of Porters say that Reyes had allegedly been stalking their friend and his ex-girlfriend for a few weeks. They say that they begged him not to move out of their apartment and in with Smith on October 5th because they were concerned for his safety.

Sheriff Richard Wrinkle says that jealousy sparked the deadly rampage "she took everything he loved away from him, so he was going to take everything she loved away from her."

As part of the plea agreement Reyes will NOT have to testify against any of the other three alleged co-conspirators.




Jacky Wong

Pyykola, Wong and Stidham have been charged with three counts of first-degree murder, burglary and armed criminal action for their alleged involvement in the Porter/Smith murders.

Pyykola is scheduled to stand trial in March of 2011 in Camden County; Jacky Wong's trial is scheduled for this July.




Steven Pyykola

Sixteen year-old Benjamin Stidham's, who was certified to stand trial as an adult, case is scheduled to be heard this November in Camden County where it was moved on a change of venue.


Benjamin Stidham

Miranda Smith had asked the court for orders of protection from Reyes on at least three separate occasions, the most recent being filed on September 17, 2009. However, eleven days later she asked the court to lift the order, which was granted.

Sabla Sentenced To Life Without Parole For Killing Wife And Encasing Body In Concrete:

A man from Lebanon found guilty of first-degree murder by a jury in April of killing his wife then encasing her in concrete will spend the rest of his life behind bars.

Really today's sentencing was just a formality for Horst Sabla, the automatic sentence for a first-degree murder conviction in Missouri is life without the possibility of parole.

Back in November of 2008 hunters stumbled across a black plastic tool box in the woods near Lebanon, not far from the RV Sharon and Horst Sabla shared after they lost their home to foreclosure.

Billy Blattell told jurors that he asked his father-in-law to help him move the box, but that it was too heavy. When they smelled a foul odor emitting from the container they Blattell called 911 and told his little boy to stay back.

Authorities had to use bolt cutters to open the box, which was wrapped in chains and locked, to open the container. What they found inside was disturbing, the body of a woman dressed in pajamas, that had been encased in several hundred pounds of concrete.

The "lady in the box" remained unidentified for almost a month and investigators were getting antsy in trying to determine who she was. At the time of the discovery Laclede County Sheriff Richard Wrinkle told me, "Someone loved this lady---she was well taken care of."

Sheriff Richard Wrinkle

Wrinkle appealed to the local and national media for help in identifying "the lady in the box." Their break came about a month later when a friend of Sharon Sabla's called authorities on December 8, 2008, who said he believed he knew who the victim might be. Armed with that information, investigators obtained a DNA sample from Sharon Sabla's daughter, Ginger Coffelt, which came back positive.

On December 10th, Sabla was arrested and read his miranda rights. At first he denied having any knowledge of what happened to his wife of 19 years, telling investigators that he had gone to the store and when he returned his wife and $32,000 were gone. Eventually he admitted to detectives that he shot his wife in the back of the head on August 9, 2008, then "folded" her body at the waist, stuffed her in the black plastic hinged tote toolbox and hid her rotting body in the garage of the family home. He masked the decomposition odor with lime before encasing her in concrete.

The Sabla's were under a tremendous amount of financial stress at the time of the murder, they had recently lost their home and were living in a travel trailer. Sabla, who is a native of Germany, told detectives that his wife was depressed, that they were both HIV positive (Sharon Sabla contracted the disease following a surgical procedure,) and that she said she would shoot herself if he didn't shoot her. He later told detectives that moving the box from his vehicle and pushing it downhill nearly killed him.

In testimony presented at trial on of the investigators said on the stand, "He admits shooting her---I always did what she told me to do,” he (Sabla) says. “... When somebody says I cold-blooded shot my wife, they need to talk to the people that know us.

Sabla, whose trial was moved to Camden County on a change of venue, was also convicted of armed criminal action in his wife's death. He was sentenced to 50 years for that charge, which will run consecutively (after the life without parole sentence.)

Trial Begins Monday For Man Accused Of Stuffing Wife In Concrete Lined Toolbox:

Jury selection begins Monday (04-05-10) for the trial of a LaClede County man charged with killing his wife then stuffing her body in a toolbox.

Prosecutors say that Horst Gunter Sabla, 55, allegedly shot Sharon Sabla in the back of the head at Thompson's RV Park in Lebanon on Aug. 9, 2008. Sheriff Richard Wrinkle says Sabla then "folded" his wife's body and stuffed her in a black plastic hinged tote toolbox and hid it in the garage of the family home.

According to the probable cause statement, a few days later Sabla filled the box with lime and concrete. Authorities won't say how long Sabla kept his wife's remains hidden in the garage before he eventually dumped the box off of AA highway--about six miles from the couples home.

Hunters found the plastic hinged toolbox on opening day of firearms deer season on November 15th, 2008, and smelled a foul odor emitting from the container and called 911. Authorities had to use bolt cutters to open the box, which was wrapped in chains and locked, to open the container. What they found inside was disturbing, the body of a woman that had been encased in several hundred pounds of concrete.

Laclede County Sheriff Richard Wrinkle

Authorities asked for help from the national media to help identify "the lady in the box." Their break came about a month later when a friend of Sharon Sabla's went to the Sheriff's department to say she hadn't seen or heard from her friend in some time.

Armed with that information, investigators obtained a DNA sample from Sharon Sabla's daughter, which came back positive.

The Sabla's were under a tremendous amount of financial stress at the time of the murder, they had recently lost their home and were living in a travel trailer. Some sources close to the investigation say that the Sabla's, were both HIV positive, and that Horst Sabla was tired of caring for his wife and wanted to return to his native Germany.

Laclede County prosecutor Angie Hemphill-Wright says that she expects the trial to last most of the week, "We have a lot of witnesses and DNA evidence that we need the jury to hear. Jon Morris will be the lead prosecutor for the case, and I will sit second chair."

Sabla's trial will be heard in Camden County where it was moved on a change of venue.

Change Of Venue Granted For Accused Laclede County Killer; Stidham Formally Arraigned:

Steven Pyykola

Two Springfield teenagers charged in the October murders of three people in Laclede County made appearances in court today (03-01-10.)

Steven Pyykola, 18, was granted a change of venue for his first degree murder trial to Morgan County. Benjamin Stidham, 16, waived formal arraignment in Circuit Court. Stidham was certified as an adult to stand trial last December.

Benjamin Stidham

The two teens are alleged to have taken part in the shooting deaths of Jeff and Glenda Smith in Phillipsburg, and Zack Porter in Lebanon on October 11, 2009, with Joshua A. Reyes and Jacky Wong.




Jeff and Glenda Smith

The Smith's were the parents of Miranda Smith, who is the mother of Reyes' two children.

Prosecutors allege that Reyes was upset because Miranda Smith had recently started dating Porter.





Zack Porter

At the time of the murders, Laclede County Sheriff Richard Wrinkle said the motive was robbery and, "Jealousy......she took everything he loved away from him (Reyes), so he was going to take everything she loved away from her."

Josh Reyes is scheduled to appear in court on March 8th on a change of venue motion.

Jacky Wong's trial is tentatively scheduled to begin on July 12th in Laclede County.