Man accused in wife's death wanted to hire man to marry daughter
NEW YORK -- Four years after prosecutors say Roderick Covlin killed his wife in 2009, the suspect plotted to end a custody battle for their then 13-year-old daughter by arranging for her to marry a man in Mexico.
Covlin was charged Nov. 1 in Shele Covlin's New Year's Eve death. The victim, who was found strangled to death in her apartment's bathroom. was reportedly scheduled to meet the next day with an attorney to remove her estranged husband from her will.
Prosecutors said in announcing Roderick Covlin's arrest that he had long been suspected in his wife's case, and a grand jury ultimately decided to try him. In the intervening years, Roderick Covlin has pitted his wife's family in legal cases involving both Shele Covlin's estate and custody of his daughter, who was left a $1 million trust fund.
In court on Monday, an assistant district attorney in Manhattan played recordings of Roderick Covlin and an unidentified accomplice discussing a plot in 2013 to pay a Mexican man $10,000 to marry his daughter.
"Some Mexican law firm can handle it, make sure it gets done properly," Covlin said in the recording.
Prosecutors said the idea behind the plot was that one married, the girl would no longer be considered a minor, and therefore her mother's family would no longer have control of her trust -- potentially opening the door for Roderick Covlin to gain control of it.
In an interview with 48 Hours' Crimesider, Roderick Covlin's attorney said it "wasn't a well thought-out plan," but said the plot had nothing to do with getting the girl's money.
"This was a statement by the father who was trying to figure out what to do to save his daughter," said Robert Gottlieb, Roderick Covlin's lawyer. "The thought was if she's married and emancipated, then she's free to make her own decision as to who she lives with."
Gottlieb said prosecutors played the tape because they don't have enough physical evidence to convict his client.
"The case is entirely circumstantial," Gottlieb said.
Roderick Covlin's trial has not yet begun, and prosecutors have not commented on what evidence they will be presenting in court. The suspect was charged with second degree murder after a grand jury decided there was enough evidence to arrest him.
Roderick Covlin is being held without bail. He has also been barred from making personal phone calls or receiving visitors after prosecutors raised concerns in court that he might tamper with potential witnesses in the case.