Snapped on Oxygen: What happened to Larry Thomas?

47-year-old Larry Thomas was beaten with a baseball bat before being driven to the Mountain Pass in California and run over by a truck in 2006. His body was found by some hikers about a month after his murder.

Thomas' wife, Stephanie Thomas, and her boyfriend, Shawn Pritchett, were found guilty of carrying out the heinous crime.

Larry was an instructor for the College of Southern Nevada in the auto technology department. He had come to know about Stephanie and Shawn's affair and was about to separate from his wife in April 2006, but was killed before that.

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The chilling details of auto-technology instructor's murder will be explored on Snapped. The episode will air on Oxygen on February 5, 2023.

Here's a short synopsis of the episode:

"The abrupt disappearance of a Henderson, Nev., husband and father of five brings to light accusations of infidelity and cover-ups over a two-year hunt for evidence and truth."

Trigger warning: This article contains mentions of murder. Discretion is advised.

The Larry Thomas murder: Motive and other details explored

The background

Thomas was born in New York and grew up with four brothers. He always had a knack for car repair and opened his own garage when he was only 21 years old. A year later, he began dating waitress Stephanie Peters. The couple married in 1986 after dating for about four years.

In early 2000s, the couple relocated to Henderson, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas with five of their children.

Here, Larry took up a job as an auto-technology instructor for the College of Southern Nevada, while Stephanie began a part-time job. At her workplace, she met bouncer Shawn Pritchett.

Former Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sergeant Randy Sutton told Snapped:

"Shawn and Stephanie’s painting business seemed to be on the rise. Larry was doing well enough at school where he actually had a series of promotions and was doing pretty well by himself. Things were going good for all the parties involved."

Stephanie's brother reported that he was missing

When Stephanie's brother, William Peters, did not hear from Larry for a long time, he asked his sister, who gave him evasive answers.

Stephanie began a part-time job. At her workplace, she met bouncer Shawn Pritchett (Image via Oxygen)

When Peters noticed that his messages to the auto-technology instructor were not being returned and all his calls were going to voicemail, he reported a missing person's complaint on April 21, 2006.

When Stephanie was enquired about him going missing, she answered that the couple had a big fight and that he had left the house. She claimed that she last saw her husband on April 13, 2006. She also added that it was not unusual for him to suddenly leave the house.

Pritchett beat Larry in his house with a baseball bat before killing him

A thorough investigation proved that both Stephanie and Shawn were responsible for Larry Thomas' death. According to prosecutor Mark DiGiacomo, when the body was discovered, the victim had a depressed skull fracture, and “his whole face was crushed in. His head was split in half. His ribs in his chest area were all cracked and his spine was bent."

Stephanie and Shawn's phone data also revealed that the two of them were in touch prior to the auto-technology instructor's killing.

It was eventually deduced that Pritchett attacked Thomas in the latter's house and struck him with a baseball bat. He then ran over the body before disposing of it. He also dismantled the truck and sold its parts to avoid detection.

Shawn was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for armed robbery, first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Stephanie was also sentenced to 10-25 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.