commentary by Patrick H. Moore
There’s nothing better than a juicy ménage à trois story that culminates in murder when you’re reading about it in a titillating crime novel. It becomes a bit more problematic, however, when: 1) it’s real life; 2) it culminates in a murder-suicide attempt (the murder is successful and the suicide is botched); 3) the killer is the son-in-law of the murder victim (i.e., he’s married to the victim’s daughter; 4) the son-in-law is also allegedly the victim’s male lover; 5) the victim is a popular television host who is under investigation for possibly entering the U.S. from his native Britain under a false name; 6) while still in Merrie Olde England, the victim beat child molestation charges which is possibly why he may have used a false name to immigrate to the US; and 7) the murder victim was accused of running a cult-like dance studio while back in Britain.
Clearly, if even some of this is true, this has got to be one of the better crime stories we’ve come across lately.
Let’s break it down as reported by Quincy Hodges of Nola.com who writes:
A Baton Rouge television personality, who died Wednesday, had a sexual relationship with his son-in law, who allegedly shot and killed him, Iberville Sheriff Brett Stassi said Thursday evening.
Scott Rogers, 52 and the host of the Around Town show that aired on WAFB-TV, died from a single gunshot wound to the head in what authorities are investigating as a murder-suicide attempt. Stassi believes Matthew Hodgkinson shot and killed Rogers and then attempted to commit suicide. Hodgkinson survived and was transported to Our Lady of the Lake Hospital where he remains in critical condition.
A much younger Scott Rogers
The child molestation charges, of which Rogers was acquitted in the UK, occurred in the early 1990s and involved a 13-year-old boy. Although Rogers arguably had a strong yen for the male sex, he certainly didn’t eschew women, at least not entirely, considering that when he moved to the US in 1996, he brought his daughter, Kimberly Ann Scott-Rogers, over here with him.
In Merrie Olde England, Rogers had the perfect profession to come in contact with all types of young people; i.e., he owned the “cult-like” dance studio during the early 1990s, which is where he met his murderer/lover Matthew Hodgkinson, now 36. Hodgkinson, according to Sheriff Brett Stassi, was one of Rogers’ students.
At this point, it is unclear whether Rogers’ sexual relationship with the critically wounded Hodgkinson began decades ago at the dance studio or was of more recent origin.
Sheriff Stassi, who smells something fishy in all of Rogers’ actions, claims that Hodgkinson’s marriage to Rogers’ daughter was a ploy to get Hodgkinson citizenship in the United States. If this is true, it suggests that the torch Rogers carried for the younger Matthew certainly began back in England.
According to statements made by Rogers’ attorney, Seth Dorner, “Rogers was concerned that the child molestation case in England would come back to light as he was undergoing a federal investigation.”
This could be because the US may not have accepted Rogers as a candidate for immigration if it had known he had faced sexual molestation charges in England, despite the fact he was acquitted. Then again, Rogers could have been facing some other charge in Britain. The one sure way for Rogers to avoid an unwelcome inquiry into his past history was to come here under an assumed name which is allegedly what he did.
Our fountain of salient information, Sheriff Stassi, reports:
“A federal grand jury had been called to investigate if Scott Rogers was really Scott Rogers.”
To add a further layer of complexity, when Hodgkinson shot and killed Rogers on Wednesday, before botching his own suicide attempt, his wife (and Rogers’ daughter) Kimberly Ann was reportedly testifying before a grand jury, and was almost undoubtedly grilled as to her father’s actual identity.
Attorney Dornier was hired to represent Rogers in a child custody battle after his two young children were taken away by state authorities last week. He has a 10-year-old adopted son and a two-year-old boy whose adoption by Rogers was in its final stages.
Stassi also says that Rogers is accused of falsifying adoption documents by using a fake name and reportedly left Britain, where he may be facing fraud charges, under a different name (a third name?).
“He used his fake name to get the adoption,” Stassi said. “The feds were investigating fraud. Rogers left the UK under a different name and may have left some outstanding charges.”
Lindsey DeBlieux, a spokesperson for the Department of Children and Family services, says the department cannot comment whether or not DCFS took children away from Rogers’ home but says the department is dedicated to the safety of any child.
Well, yeah. Of course they would say that, but the fact they removed the children from Rogers’ home could have something to do with the fact he allegedly obtained (or was obtaining) the boys under false pretenses.
Stassi also reported that “last week the sheriff’s office got a call from Rogers’ friend who said that Rogers may have taken too many pills and had a suicide attempt.”
“The deputies arrived there and he woke up, and told them he just took some sleeping pills because he had trouble sleeping,” Stassi said in reference to what Rogers told deputies. “He was under a lot of stress at his home.”
According to Stassi, Hodgkinson was subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury and he believes Rogers was upset that Hodgkinson had testified.
“The pressure got so great it culminated with a murder-suicide attempt,” Stassi said.
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What makes little sense is the fact Hodgkinson agreed to ruin his own life by killing Rogers’ prior to his own suicide attempt. Why? No matter how devoted he was to Rogers, such drastic measures seem quite unnecessary unless Hodgkinson also faced a serious criminal inquiry in Britain that has not yet been disclosed. Even if it was proved that he married Rogers’ daughter merely to get US citizenship, which could presumably lead to his deportation, such a scenario hardly seems sufficiently serious to convince the young man to take such desperate measures unless Rogers had a powerful and unhealthy hold over him, which, sadly, may well have been the case.