Randy Scheffield murdered by wife Doretta over business debt: A Time To Kill investigates

This week on A Time To Kill, the team looks at the case of the “Snowplow King” Randy Scheffield, who was found shot dead in the back of his head in the Newbury Township in Geauga County, Ohio.

His wife, Doretta Scheffield, managed to avoid justice for four years before she was convicted of his murder.

On December 27, 2011, Randy, the 53-year-old proud owner of Scheffield Lawns Landscaping Business, was found dead in his bed. His wife, Doretta Scheffield, told the sheriff’s deputies that she thought he’d had a heart attack.

At first, the police had no reason to suspect foul play. Randy was in poor health and suffered from Diabetes. It appeared that he had succumbed to an aneurysm.

However, a medical examination revealed a small-caliber gunshot wound in the back of his head. An empty gun box was subsequently found at the scene, but no firearm was ever recovered.

Police began inquiring as to whether Randy had any enemies. His stepson, David Rowles, Doretta’s son, told the police that Randy had recently fired three black men from his business. But the police soon established that Rowles was lying.

Doretta had let their business get into debt

Investigators also learned that Doretta was the bookkeeper for her husband’s business and that the company was $100,000 in debt. The cops believe Doretta was hiding this debt from her husband and murdered him to keep it secret. They also suspect that she and Rowles were hoping to take over the business for themselves.

The police worked on the case for four years, gathering mostly circumstantial evidence, until, in 2015, they finally decided they’d enough to charge Doretta with murder. David Rowles, and his live-in girlfriend, Gina Battaglia, were also charged in the case, with aiding and abetting.

In The fall of 2015, a jury found Doretta guilty of aggravated murder, murder, and tampering with evidence. She was sent to prison for what will probably be the rest of her life. She will be eligible for parole when she is 91 years old.

More from A Time To Kill

Follow the links to read about more murders profiled on A Time To Kill.

Christopher Rivers organized the murder of his business partner, Joe Connell, and his newlywed wife, Olga. He had then gunned down so he could claim on an insurance policy that he and Connell had taken out on their business.

Eric Babos was convicted of killing his friend of over 20 years, John Riebe, because he owed him a debt of $150. He reportedly shot Riebe in his house just moments before his two daughters came home from school.

A Time To Kill airs Thursdays at 10/9c on Investigation Discovery.