Since the sheriff has far more information than we do, I'm tempted to believe him and wait for more of the story. But if this is just about a disgruntled employee, that seems hard to believe. Who asks a friend to help them kill the boss who fired them? [No answers please!]
Good point regarding the odds of somebody agreeing to help a friend murder an ex-boss (essentially zero)
In the end, this could have been a "rolling" or "amalgating" type crime. Perhaps:
- Dimwitted lead perpetrator enlists an equally dimwitted accomplice for a robbery. Informs the accomplice that the victims are wealthy and carry cash. For both men, "business owner" and "wealthy" are synonyms. Likewise, both men equate "wealth" with carrying massive bands o' cash and wearing "raging" bling jewelry 24/7/365.
- Accomplice agrees to participate in a robbery. The lead perpetrator is stewing with negative emotions: rage at the past firing, a desire for cash, a need to impress the accomplice etc. The victims ethnicity only aggravates the situation.
- Hare brained robbery initiated. But.... the anticipated massive bands o' cash and raging bling of the music video world are not present in reality. Rather, there is evidence of hard work and relative modesty.
- The crime escalates to kidnapping / ATM withdrawals that fizzle. The lead perpetrator is now in a killing rage. No cash, slipping reputation, and having increasingly violent revenge fantasies. The "treacherous" ethnicity of the victims is getting more thought.
- Are the bling 'n cash are at their homes? May be go there? Perhaps the the victims could be held hostage until its delivered? Are the perps really prepared to move to what, Plan C? In either case, the victims will go to the police-right?
- At this point, the accomplice, sensing that the crime is escalating towards a horrific end, bails out. Left alone, the lead perpetrator then murders an entire family?
