Shawkey Admits His Stories Sound Unbelievable

Sleepy jurors perked up Tuesday when accused murderer Gary Shawkey uttered the words "I killed him" after he was asked about the fate of Robert Vendrick during a videotaped interview with police.

On the tape, detectives Ken Hoffman and Mike Thompson grilled Shawkey, highlighting his inconsistent statements before asking, “If 12 licensed drivers [jurors] are looking at you, how do you think they’ll vote? What will they think happened to Bob?”  

“I killed him,” Shawkey replied, causing some jurors to lean forward in their seats. But Shawkey quickly denied the accusation: “But I didn’t."

Day 6 in the murder trial of Shawkey, who stands accused of killing Phoenix resident Vendrick and dumping his body in the Pacific Ocean, had a number of twists, including Shawkey’s revelation that if he were in the jury box he wouldn’t believe his own story. 

“Confession? No, can’t say that,” Detective Thompson said after Tuesday's hearing. “He comes back and denies it. We ask people that at times.” 

Most of Tuesday's developments centered on the question: Where in the world is Robert Vendrick, whose body hasn't been found? In a series of recorded interviews with detectives after Vendrick was reported missing in Dana Point and Shawkey was identified as a possible suspect, Shawkey answered with an extensive travel itinerary, from Chile to Florida. 

In tapes played Tuesday, Shawkey told detectives he began looking for Vendrick in Daytona Beach, Fla. While there, he called Detective Hoffman to say Vendrick contacted him through a bartender who looked like a biker. Shawkey claimed the rough-looking biker bartender, whose name he did not remember, told him Vendrick “has serious medical issues and doesn’t want to be contacted. He has serious medical issues and wants to be left alone.”  

Shawkey told police he sojourned to Tijuana for a rendezvous with Vendrick. But Vendrick, who Shawkey said seemed to be suffering from dementia, blew him off and went to Matamoros, Mexico, where he was living under the assumed name of Mike Vendrick.  

Shawkey, intent on clearing his name, told authorities he intended to visit Matamoros and trick Vendrick into returning to the United States by telling him his brother was sick. When that plan failed, Shawkey said he tracked Vendrick to Calexico and Tijuana.

In another interview with detectives, Shawkey insisted Vendrick was in Mazatlan. Authorities said there is no evidence to substantiate any of these claims.

Deputy District Attorney Ebrahim Batiyeh wanted to call Shawkey’s cellmate to testify Tuesday, but the inmate reportedly claimed he "feared for his safety" and was allowed to return to state prison without having to take the witness stand.

“He was a cellmate of Gary Shawkey,” Batiyeh said. “He didn’t testify because he didn’t want to. Gary Shawkey told him, 'They’ll never convict me, they don’t have a body.' ”

The trial is scheduled to continue Wednesday in the Santa Ana Central Justice Center.

Catch up on Patch's coverage of the Shawkey murder trial:

: Key Witness Fails to Show in Shawkey Trial

: Shoeless Shawkey Dropped Wad of Cash, Witness Says

: Prosecutors Aim to Sink Sharkey With Inconsistencies in His Story

: Shawkey Invokes Pirates and Underwater Fences