MIAMI COUNTY — Jurors heard more testimony about a mistress and the search for a missing murder weapon.
News Center 7 was in the courtroom for day 5 of Caleb Flynn’s murder trial.
Flynn said someone broke into his home and shot and killed his wife as their two young daughters slept.
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News Center 7’s John Bedell has been following this story since February.
On Wednesday, we heard about how investigators discovered this affair.
It was FBI agents who testified about the affair and they also talked about why they felt that they had to interview the mistress.
The defense had questions about the follow-up work investigators did after interviewing her twice.
“We needed to conduct an interview with all potential witnesses involved in this case,” said Special Agent Sarah Deamron of the FBI.
The jury in Caleb Flynn’s trial heard from the FBI about the two times they interviewed Flynn’s mistress, Alleigha Botner.
She was a worship leader at the Flynn’s church.
“The focus of our discussion was on her relationship with Caleb Flynn,” Deamron said.
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One FBI agent said, at first, Botner was not being truthful the first time they interviewed her four days after Ashley’s murder.
“She denied having a sexual relationship or an intimate relationship with Caleb Flynn,” Deamron said.
FBI agents testified they got a tip about Ashley’s death from her aunt which led them to one of Ashley’s friends.
“Who had stated that she had confided in her about a potential infidelity between Caleb and Ashley,” Deamron said.
The FBI also testified about a text they found on Ashley’s phone about Botner.
“That had indicated that there was a contentious relationship between her and Ashley,” Deamron said.
A Dayton Police Detective assigned to an FBI Task Force testified Botner was house-sitting for her pastor in Vandalia the night of Ashley’s murder.
He said he got three home security camera videos from a home right across the street that showed Botner’s car that night.
“Leaving the driveway right in the area of I believe it’s like 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.,” said Detective Zachary Farkas, Dayton Police Department.
“This is on February 15?” asked Miami County Prosecutor Paul Watkins.
“This is on February 15,” Farkas answered. “Returning back to that location at just after midnight on February 16.”
“Pulls directly into the garage,” Farkas continued. “And then it appears that the garage door closes…I believe 10 a.m. on February 16. We have the vehicle leaving the garage and then driving out of the driveway.”
After that, the defense questioned investigators about how they followed up on that property and Botner’s car.
“Did you ever do a search of 1518 Hurst?” asked Emily Smith, Caleb Flynn’s defense lawyer.
“We did not, no,” Farkas said.
“Did you ever do a search in the area surrounding 1518 Hurst?” Smith asked.
“No, we did not,” Farkas said.
Smith: “Did you ever conduct a search of Alleigha Botner’s vehicle?” Smith asked Farkas.
“We did not. Not that I’m -- I did not, no,” Farkas said.
Defense asked about this and the FBI admitted they did not search the home Botner was house-sitting, nor her car.
Investigators detailed the hours they spent looking for the gun in the Flynn house. In the yard, a field, and wooded areas near a bike path close to the home, with no luck.
Several local and federal law enforcement officers testified that the damage to the side garage door was inconsistent with the break-in story Flynn gave police.
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