48 Hours season 39 episode 4 explores the case of Joe Shymanski, a Washington, D.C., photographer. He was gunned down and murdered over Labor Day weekend in his driveway in 2023. The 51-year-old father of two had simply been awarded main custody of his younger youngsters throughout a contentious divorce from his estranged spouse, Heather Snyder.
Authorities swiftly attributed the crime to Brandon Holbrook, Snyder’s ex-boyfriend, who traveled greater than 200 miles from Pennsylvania to commit the assault. Holbrook pleaded responsible to first-degree homicide in 2025 and was sentenced to life in jail with out parole.
Nonetheless, the motive stays unclear, and Joe Shymanski’s household is speculating whether or not others have been concerned, inquiring about custody disputes and secret tensions.
This case of violence and ongoing suspicion is investigated within the 48 Hours particular, My Uncle Joe’s Homicide, with unique interviews with Snyder, relations, associates, and investigators. Correspondent Nikki Battiste, who grew up with Snyder, examines the non-public facet of the sport. The episode airs on Saturday, October 18, 2025, on CBS or may be streamed on Paramount+.
48 Hours: The life and household dynamics of Joe Shymanski
Joe Shymanski was a photographer within the Washington, D.C., area. He offered his work at locations akin to Jap Market and earned a fame for being pleasant and dedicated to his work. Joe Shymanski was born right into a tight-knit household and cherished relationships. He and Heather Snyder met at a neighborhood truthful, the place he was promoting his paintings and he or she had a vegetable stand, in line with CBS Information.
They acquired married in July 2014 and moved right into a home in Calvert County, Maryland. The couple had a daughter in 2015 and a son in 2016, marking the start of what Snyder later termed a “fairy story” begin, as per CBS Information.
Through the years, tensions inside the union arose. Snyder alleged that Joe Shymanski grew to become too centered on the youngsters, creating emotional and, in a single case, bodily rigidity, in line with the outlet.
She reported pushing incidents and feeling remoted, notably through the COVID-19 pandemic. Shymanski’s family and friends, nevertheless, painted a special image, describing him as sort and denying abuse allegations. They reported that the divorce grew to become bitter, with custody and monetary disputes arising. In response to CBS Information, by July 2021, Snyder had departed with the children and returned to Newport, Pennsylvania, her fatherland.
Court docket rulings favored Joe Shymanski in key areas. He gained main bodily custody through the faculty yr for the youngsters’s stability, and a choose decreased the monetary settlement he owed Snyder.
In summer season 2023, Joe Shymanski secured a $1 million life insurance coverage coverage naming his minor youngsters as beneficiaries, as reported by CBS Information. Snyder started courting Brandon Holbrook, a Pennsylvania resident she met on-line, who labored as a driver at a hen processing plant.
Their marriage lasted for roughly two years. Throughout this time, Holbrook grew to become shut with Snyder’s older youngsters from a earlier marriage and the 2 Shymanski youngsters, who affectionately referred to him as Uncle Brandon, as per the web site Justice for Joe. Joe Shymanski and Holbrook by no means truly met.
Pals akin to Anneli Werner described the divorce as ugly, however confused Shymanski’s growing courtroom victories as a dedicated father. This household transition offered the muse for tragedy, as Shymanski labored tirelessly to make sure a safe life for his son and daughter, as per CBS Information.
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The disappearance and preliminary response to the homicide
Round 4:00 PM on Labor Day Sunday, September 3, 2023, was the final time Joe Shymanski was seen alive. He had assisted a neighbor with a challenge on their house earlier than returning to his home in Huntingtown, Maryland. Neighbors later heard the sounds of gunfire however had no concept that Shymanski had been shot in his driveway in broad daylight.
The next night time, Snyder got here down from Pennsylvania for a court-mandated custody switch. With nobody house, she discovered Joe Shymanski’s pockets, telephone, keys, and flip-flops there, however no signal of him or the youngsters, who have been about to enter faculty quickly. She contacted 911 at 7:47 PM and reported him lacking, describing the abnormally silent home.
Calvert County Sheriff’s Workplace deputies got here, canvassed residents, and reported no rapid proof of a wrestle. They beneficial ready till morning to completely search, because of the darkness, as reported by CBS Information. By September 5, the scenario grew extra severe. Deputies found blood on the driveway, indicators of violence, and remodeled the lacking individuals report into an investigation of murder.
An interview with Snyder and Shymanski’s social circle uncovered the custody background. Snyder rejected any present boyfriend in early questioning on September 2, noting solely a fleeting previous relationship to Holbrook.
Shymanski’s household was later knowledgeable, who felt shocked by the delay in alerts. His niece, Janine Shymanski, afterwards expressed frustration on the youngsters’s misplaced faculty time and farewells to associates, in line with WUSA 9.
Snyder’s conduct was questioned. She had introduced the youngsters to Maryland beneath court docket stress from Joe Shymanski’s new lawyer. Cooperating totally, her alibi house images from Pennsylvania and grocery store video saved her three hours away through the roughly timed demise. They took her reported house gun however withheld a full search of her property.
The swift transition to tragedy highlighted the underlying dangers in damaged properties, and a multi-state investigation ensued. This stage emphasised the confusion attributable to sudden demise and the preliminary concentrate on private relationships, as CBS Information reported.
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The investigation resulting in Brandon Holbrook’s arrest
The Calvert County Sheriff’s Workplace spearheaded the investigation, partnering with the Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, police. License plate readers captured Holbrook’s truck close to Joe Shymanski’s house on September 3, matching the gunshot timeline. The hyperlink to Snyder surfaced shortly, revealing that Holbrook’s residence was simply half-hour from hers, as reported by WUSA 9.
On September 5, round 11:00 PM, investigators approached Holbrook’s Reedsville house. He agreed to the questioning however denied any journey to Maryland. Plain-view gadgets inside, akin to firearms, plastic tarps, rubber gloves, cleansing fluids, and an unopened pack of energy noticed blades and not using a matching noticed, raised alarms, in line with CBS Information.
A foul odor emanated from his truck, the place checks discovered what seemed to be blood, later recognized as animal stays from his hen plant job, probably used to masks proof. Surveillance confirmed Holbrook shopping for cleansing provides the morning after the homicide and dumping luggage close to a Weis Market; these contained human stays, as per WUSA9.
With out discovering a physique, authorities arrested Holbrook on September 6 for first-degree homicide, firearm use in a violent crime, and proof tampering. The subsequent day, searchers discovered dismembered, burned stays in woods and fields behind his property and alongside a creek, confirmed as Joe Shymanski’s through DNA. Fuel station footage tracked his truck’s route again to Pennsylvania after the killing.
A burn barrel exterior his house, photographed days earlier, aligned with disposal efforts, WUSA9 reported. Textual content messages between Snyder and Holbrook added context to the scenario. He instructed “different options” to her ex-husband’s points, which she known as a joke. She vented frustrations, like hoping “karma” would hit Shymanski, however denied inciting violence, as per CBS Information.
Detective Jessica Aurand famous the noticed blades might dismember a physique, whereas Sgt. John Chester described the scene as a transparent murder. No direct forensics tied Holbrook to the driveway, however circumstantial proof constructed the case. Snyder’s gun was recovered slowly. Her house was initially unsearched, drawing criticism in the direction of the protection.
The multi-agency effort, deemed “thorough” by State’s Legal professional Robert Harvey, closed in on Holbrook swiftly, remodeling a lacking particular person case right into a cross-state manhunt decision, as per CBS Information. This investigation relied on expertise and persistence to uncover the grim path of the crime.
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The trial, conviction, and ongoing household considerations
Holbrook’s trial started on March 31, 2025, in Calvert County after he rejected a plea deal. Prosecutors argued premeditation: the 200-mile drive, driveway capturing, physique transport, dismemberment, and disposal proved intent. Proof included truck surveillance, buying movies, dumping footage, and stays restoration.
The jury deliberated 80 minutes earlier than convicting him on April 9 of first-degree homicide, firearm use, and proof alteration, and he was additionally responsible of assaults, as WUSA9 reported. Snyder’s position loomed massive, talked about over 400 occasions. Known as as a witness, she invoked the Fifth Modification on recommendation from her lawyer, citing fears of twisted phrases.
Prosecutors offered her alibi; the protection instructed she benefited most, gaining custody management and insurance coverage oversight. They questioned the probe’s concentrate on her, such because the delayed gun restoration. Holbrook’s group admitted disposal involvement however denied homicide ties, citing no motive or direct scene hyperlinks, in line with CBS Information.
On July 18, 2025, Choose Robyn Riddle sentenced Holbrook to life with out parole in a courtroom crammed with Shymanski supporters. Motive stayed elusive, probably tied to Snyder-Holbrook breakup or custody woes, however unproven. Joe Shymanski’s household, together with sister Mary and niece Janine, attended, calling it a “nightmare.” Janine acknowledged, “She simply wanted it completed and he or she discovered her particular person,” implying deeper involvement.
They sought entry to the youngsters and the complete reality, urging suggestions through public channels. Snyder denied roles in interviews, saying, “I did not… That is the torturous half.” She expressed sorrow however frustration at suspicions, noting that folks wished the “true-crime narrative.” Investigators like Aurand know extra however keep silent because of the attraction, as per CBS Information.
The conviction introduced partial closure, but doubts persist, fueling the 48 Hours examination of justice’s gaps.
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Edited by Riya Peter
