Oxygen is re-visiting the Dateline: Secrets Uncovered investigation into the murder of Brittany Tavar by drifter Joseph Roberts in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
Brittany was last seen alive on July 6, 2010, and was reported missing by a friend a few days later. The friend’s worst fears were later confirmed when Joseph Roberts admitted to detectives that he had brutally murdered the 45-year-old at her home.
Brittany and Roberts met at a bookstore during the summer, and at some point, Brittany invited the drifter to live with her.
However, a few weeks later, the pair got into an argument over DVDs, and Roberts beat her to death with a hammer. The killer hit his victim multiple times with the hammer, causing blunt trauma to her head.
After the murder, Roberts stole Brittany’s credit card and her SUV and fled the state.
However, the detectives knew Roberts had fled to the Pacific coast after he was spotted using the credit card in Oregon. A short time later, he was arrested in Seattle, WA, for stealing meat from a deli.
Joseph Roberts admitted to killing Brittany Tavar with a hammer
When the Seattle cops learned his identity, Roberts confessed to killing Britany, and he was with murder and sent him back to St. John’s County, FL.
Watch the Latest on our YouTube ChannelThe killer helped detectives to locate Brittany’s remains in scrubland off State Road 207, not far from Ponte Vedra Beach.
Roberts was facing a life sentence, but he eventually agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Joseph Roberts showed remorse for Brittany Tavar murder
Judge Michael Traynor asked the killer if he had anything to say before sentencing, and he responded with, “Sorry, I never meant for any of this to happen, and … sorry.”
Roberts was also sentenced to five years in a separate case for battery. He committed that crime while incarcerated at St. John’s County Jail in 2012.
His guilty plea led to prosecutors dropping the charges of grand theft auto for stealing Brittany’s car and tampering or harassing a witness in the jail battery case. He also received credit for about 1,300 days spent in the county jail.
Roberts is currently incarcerated at the Apalachee Correctional Institution in Sneads, Florida.
This episode of Dateline: Secrets Uncovered re-airs Tuesday at 9/8c on Oxygen.