CRIME HUNTER: Texas triangle fueled by porn, passion and a principal

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Residents of the area around mammoth Kentucky Lake take pride that it’s the largest artificial lake east of the Mississippi River.

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The man-made lake is 649 sq. km. and was built in 1944 by the Tennessee Authority to control flooding and generate hydroelectric power. In addition, the waters are a magnet for anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts.

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More than 1,000 km away is Dublin, Texas, on the banks of the Brazos River, southwest of Fort Worth.

On June 20, 2020, Traci Leigh Jones, 41, was far from her hometown in the Lone Star State.

Her body was discovered in a plastic container floating in Kentucky Lake. Cops suspected that her death chamber was dumped near Paris, Tennessee and drifted over the state line into Kentucky.

How in the hell did Jones land in Kentucky? One thing was certain: She had been murdered.

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Tammy Rogers had once been an Arlington ISD elementary school principal. The fact that her husband, Jeffrey Rogers, 60, was a porn producer didn’t go over well with the PTA set.

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His wife was also an active participant in the sex-rated antics for Circle V Entertainment and that also was not particularly appreciated.

Jones’ disappearance led detectives to the Rogers, who lived in suburban Arlington.

It emerged that Jeffrey Rogers had hired Jones to make pornography along with his wife. Cops in Tennessee and Kentucky had asked for help from the couple early in the investigation into Jones’ disappearance and they gladly obliged.

But it was the Texas Rangers who got the first sniff of blood. Ranger Danny Briley contacted Jones’ lawyer who told the lawman that his client was worried about a dispute with the couple.

The Star-Telegram reported that Jones told him the trio made pornography together. At one point, she even lived with the pair before she became frightened and split to live with a pal in tiny Dublin, her hometown.

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The roommate told the lawyer that Jones had told her in multiple conversations that the Rogers’ paid her cash for engaging in sex with the pair while the cameras were rolling.

Tammy Rogers confessed to the hormone-charged hijinks and confirmed that Jones engaged in regular sex with the pair and the amorous antics were recorded on video. However, the relationship had soured, she said.

For Jones, the clock was ticking. She complained to the local school board about the raunchy escapades being recorded under the auspices of Circle V Entertainment and it cost Tammy her job of 30 years.

Jones was also allegedly threatening to go to the media.

Jeffrey Rogers was nothing if not a dog. He continued to pay Jones for sexual favours, even though his wife was no longer involved.

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On June 16, 2020, Jeffrey Rogers told his wife he was taking a short jaunt to Dublin where Jones now lived. He told his wife he was going to give her some money.

Security video caught Rogers and Jones together multiple times that day. Chillingly, she was wearing the same clothes she had on when her body was discovered four days later. Investigators learned Jeffrey had purchased a 50-gallon plastic container.

It was the same one the mother-of-one was found in.

Cops also learned the Rogers had embarked on a trip to Kentucky to visit Tammy’s ailing father. She would tell detectives “(She knew) there was a cooler in the back of the pickup with drinks, but never looked in the back of the pickup during the trip.”

After arriving in Kentucky, Jeffrey rented a boat in Paris, Tennessee, When he returned at noon, the barrel was gone.

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Unfortunately for Jeffrey, CCTV captured him on the dock with the barrel loaded in the front of the boat. Traci Leigh Jones’s body was discovered two days later.

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All roads were pointing to the porn-loving Rogers. He was arrested at their Fort Worth mobile home when they returned from Kentucky. And his wife was quick to fill in the blanks.

“Tammy was upset that Jeffrey Rogers would still have sex with Jones, constantly paying her more and more money,” the complaint states.

Texas Ranger Danny Briley later said in an affidavit that Jeffrey Rogers asked to speak with him. The amateur pornographer confessed he caused Jones’ death after they had sex at a Holiday Inn.

He claimed he “became scared” of the petite woman and “subsequently caused her death.”

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CCTV footage confirmed the tale.

Rogers told the Ranger: “I want to tell you why and how I did it, (after Tennessee drops charges). I have the pieces to the puzzle you need.”

The problem, Rogers confessed, was that Jones had contacted local TV stations about the trio’s cinematic hormone-charged hijinks. His wife had nothing to do with the murder, he added.

“I own it, and Tammy had nothing to do with it,” Rogers said in the affidavit.

Before Rogers could be tried for Jones’ murder, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

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@HunterTOSun

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