American Sniper Chris Kyle murder trial: Jurors hear 'bizarre' voicemail message left for Navy SEAL by alleged killer
Messages were left prior to fatal trip to a Texas shooting range
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Jurors in Texas have been played voice mail messages left for 'American Sniper' Chris Kyle by the man charged with his murder.
“Kind of a sad day when it rains. It’s a good sad,” said one of four messages left by Eddie Ray Routh for Mr Kyle before their fatal visit to a gun range . “Rain will come and rains will leave. I guess that’s what they do.”
Mr Routh, a troubled former Marine, is accused of shooting dead Mr Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield in February 2013. His lawyer said he was not legally sane at time of the incident. He has pleaded not guilty to two charges of murder.
Jeff Shaffer, a former Secret Service agent who now specialises in cybersecurity and computer forensics, analysed the calls and said Mr Kyle, 38, and Mr Routh, 27, spoke several times, the Associated Press said. Those calls lasting between two and 15 minutes each.
Mr Kyle’s call logs show that in addition to receiving two calls from his wife, Taya, he had missed calls from people close to Mr Routh. Mr Routh's girlfriend, Jennifer Weed, tried to call Kyle at 1.37 pm and 6.14 pm on the day of his death, along with Mr Routh's mother, who called the former Navy SEAL at 6.06 pm.
Mr Kyle, whose memoir was turned into a recently released movie directed by Clint Eastwood, regularly worked with veterans after retiring from the military. He offered to try and help Mr Routh after the younger man’s mother got in touch with him.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments