AFTER Todd Chance's body was found in an almond orchard in Bakersfield, California, police scrambled to figure out what happened to him.
CCTV helped police identify a suspect, but they couldn't be sure it was the same person or why they would want Todd dead.
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Who was Todd Chance?
Todd Chance was born on March 10, 1968.
He was remembered as a loving father to his daughters Jessica, Sarah, and Samantha.
He was also a truck driver and loved motorcycles, cars, and trucks.
He was married to Leslie Chance, a local elementary school principal and his wife of 17 years.
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What happened to Todd Chance?
On August 25, 2013, Todd's body was found in an almond grove.
Nearby were tire marks that belonged to his 2011 Ford Mustang, but his car was missing.
Autopsy reports concluded that Todd was shot twice at point-blank range.
Police soon discovered his missing car at an intersection 20 miles away, according to Dateline NBC.
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It was abandoned and unlocked, and Todd's revolver was found on the floorboard, according to police reports.
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Who was suspected of killing Todd Chance?
The mystery of who killed Todd Chance quickly came together with the help of CCTV footage from the intersection near where Todd's car was found and eyewitness reports.
Neighbors told police that a middle-aged woman had left the car, which set them on the hunt for all possible footage of the suspect.
Piecing together footage, police couldn't determine whether it was a man or a woman by their clothing.
The suspect also allegedly went to great lengths to disguise themselves and throw off police, including calling a cab from a pay phone and changing clothes multiple times.
Ultimately, the suspect led police back to Todd and Leslie Chance's house.
Leslie Chance was deemed a suspect.
But what was her motive?
Did Leslie Chance kill Todd Chance?
According to court files, Leslie Chance was arrested for the suspicion of the murder of Todd Chance on August 29, 2013.
Authorities claimed that Leslie had been after Todd's life insurance policy.
But then, the District Attorney’s office ordered the case to be sent back for further review by the Sheriff’s Office, and Leslie was released.
In the continuation of their investigation, police found nude photos and text exchanges from Todd's ex-fiancée in his phone.
Now, Leslie had more than one motive to kill her husband.
Three years later, Leslie was once again arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
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In September 2020, Leslie Chance was found guilty of murdering her husband.
The Dateline episode featuring their case will air on March 5 at 7pm EST on NBC and the next day on Peacock.
