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An Austin-based beloved jeweler, Ted Shaughnessy, was the victim of a cold-blood murder-for-hire plot laid down by his son, Nicolas Shaughnessy, and his ex-wife, Jaclyn Edison. Ted was shot multiple times during a home invasion by armed intruders on March 2, 2018.
The bullet shell fragments recovered from Ted's body were found to be consistent with the .380 caliber ammunition found at Nicolas Shaughnessy's home. Besides, phone records, internet history, and surveillance footage placed Nicolas at places where he could be tied to Ted's murder in 2018.
The Dateline NBC episode Ghosts Can’t Talk showcases Ted Shaughnessy's murder as it airs on January 12, 2024, at 9 pm EST. The synopsis reads,
"When deadly gunfire erupts in an Austin, Texas, home in the middle of the night, detectives wonder if the homeowners' jewelry business is a possible motive; an investigation uncovers a suspect that no one saw coming."
Details of evidence used to convict Nicolas Shaughnessy and Jaclyn Edison explored
The Austin-based jewelry store owner, Ted Shaughnessy, was murdered by Johnny Leon and Arieon Smith after they entered the Oliver Drive home through a window in Nicolas' bedroom, where the screen was removed and propped against the outside wall.
The Travis County Sheriff's Office officials discovered that the home security system was turned off remotely from College Station moments before the home invasion took place. During this time, Nicolas Shaughnessy and Jaclyn Edison lived in College Station. Per Austin American-Statesman, Nicolas Shaughnessy's arrest affidavit stated,
“The only people with access to the alarm system were Ted, Corey, and Nicolas.”
The investigations into the murder quickly revealed the financial distress Nicolas and Jaclyn were in, as Nicolas owed Corey around $30,000, which she lent him to fund his day-trading business. The two argued about the money the week Ted Shaughnessy lost his life. Nicolas and Jaclyn additionally owed a neighbor $2,600. The speculation about his involvement in the murder began when he was found to be the beneficiary of his parent's $2 million insurance payout.
The surveillance footage at Nicolas and Jaclyn's Capital Station home showcased them being in contact with the 21-year-old Johnny Leon. There was also another man who later spoke to the police and shared the young couple's plan to hire men to kill the Shaughnessy duo.
While Corey Shaughnessy believed in her son's innocence, a sweep of the Capital Station house on March 5, 2018, yielded evidence, as stated in the affidavit,
“A box of .380 caliber ammunition was found, with six rounds missing from the box. The ammunition matched the caliber and brand of the fired .380 caliber casings found in the area of Theodore Shaughnessy's body.”
The .40-caliber shell casings were also found at the crime scene, and an empty box for the same was recovered from the dresser drawer in the bedroom by the open window. The phone records gave away conversations between Nicolas and Jaclyn dated February 2018; the conversations were about the money problems and men for the murder-for-hire plot.
Nicolas Shaughnessy and Leon had first approached a man on February 28 and offered him $10,000 for the job. The two had also traveled to Austin the same day, intending to carry out the murder. Instead, they kept observing the Austin house and their parents' movements.
Another woman from Nicolas's apartment complex was offered a $20,000 per head plus $15,000 incentive deal two weeks before Ted Shaughnessy's murder, per Austin American-Statesman. The police were told by informants that Nicolas was allegedly looking to make $8 million from his parents' death - $2 million from the life insurance and $6 million from the jewelry business. However, he told his family he would be entitled to $1 million from the insurance.
Nicolas Shaughnessy and Leon met another man with whom they wished to drive and briefly visit Austin around 1 am or 2 am. The police affidavit stated,
“At first, Nick and Johnny would not tell the source what they actually wanted him to do, but they eventually told him they needed two people to kill two people, by shooting them and possibly shooting some dogs, if needed."
Nicolas Shaughnessy had allegedly bragged about being demoted from being a person of interest to a friend after he got his cell phone back from the investigators. He also offered to show pictures of the crime scene. There were no signs of forced entry at the Austin home.
Catch the Dateline NBC episode, Ghosts Can’t Talk, on January 12, 2024, at 9 pm EST.
