Suvechha Sarkar
A&E’s ‘Sex, Money, Murder: Murdered for Millions’ revisits the devastating homicide of 44-year-old Charles Richard Chance, lovingly known as Rick, in August 2002, in Tempe, Arizona. On that fateful day, he had gone to the Best Western Inn in hopes of selling his jewelry, worth approximately $1 million, when he was brutally shot. His untimely demise shook the community and left his family and friends completely devastated. The episode also features interviews with his loved ones and the officials, who uncovered evidence like surveillance footage that led them to the killers.
Rick Chance Died From a Gunshot Wound Inside a Room in an Arizona Inn
Charles E. and Eloise Chance welcomed their son, Charles Richard Chance, lovingly known as Rick, into the world on August 1, 1958. He grew up in a household filled with love and laughter in Mesa, Arizona, alongside his three sisters, Susan Rubel, Carol Daugherty, and Cynthia Wiles, and his brother, James M. Chance. Eventually, the siblings grew up in the area of Casa Grande and Maricopa. Rick was often described as a kind person and a man of faith. After graduating from Maricopa High School, he completed his higher education at Central Arizona College and Grand Canyon College. Eventually, Rick’s entrepreneurial drive helped him establish an automobile-glass replacement company, Empire Glass Company.
Over time, Rick came to be popularly known as Empire Glass Company’s TV Pitcher across five states. As the company expanded, its success helped him become a millionaire. Simultaneously, he began working in jewelry design and jewelry dealing, further showcasing his business mindset. In adulthood, he met Norie Ann Rose, and it didn’t take much time for their connection to deepen. On January 17, 1979, they tied the knot at a beautiful venue in Las Vegas, Nevada. Over the next few years, they welcomed their son, Charles R. Chance II, and daughter, Stephanie E. Chance. Unfortunately, cracks soon formed in Rick and Norie’s marriage, leading to their separation.
Rick got another chance at love when he crossed paths with Jill Scott. Within just six weeks of meeting each other, they got married live on ‘Good Morning America’ on February 14, 1996. Sadly, their differences became increasingly difficult to mend, culminating in their divorce in 1999. On August 9, 2002, Rick was staying at the Best Western Inn in Tempe, Arizona. A housekeeper found his door open and discovered him lying in a pool of blood, prompting her to call 911. When officials arrived, they found he had been shot, and his satchel containing jewelry worth around $1 million was missing. They also recovered a spent shell casing at the scene. The autopsy determined his cause of death to be a fatal gunshot wound.
CCTV Footage, Search Warrants, and a Confession Helped Officials Solve the Case
During the initial investigation, officials spoke with a woman who was staying in one of the rooms near Rick’s. In her statements, she informed them that she heard a woman asking someone not to hurt Rick before four shots were fired. The woman’s account suggested that more than one person was involved in the crime. Reports state that when investigators checked the inn’s CCTV footage, they discovered that the 44-year-old checked in with an Asian woman on the night of August 8, 2002, and he had his satchel with him. When the woman’s picture was released to the media, they received multiple tips identifying her as Brandi Lynn Hungerford. As per police records, they also learned that she was working as a stripper.
Multiple other tips led officials to Brandi’s former boyfriend, Robert Donald Lemke Jr. According to reports, search warrants were executed at Brandi and Robert’s home, where authorities uncovered a hat containing $20,000 in cash, small tags similar to Rick’s jewelry, and a Rolex watch. On August 14, 2002, Robert was arrested in Tacoma, Washington, on unrelated felony weapons charges, following which detectives learned that he might have been in the area with Brandi. They soon tracked her to the home of Robert’s mother, where she was taken into custody. Court records state that during questioning, she confessed that she met Rick through a matchmaking website and had expressed her wish to buy his jewelry on Robert’s request.
According to reports, Brandi admitted that she and Robert planned to set up a meeting with Rick to buy his jewelry and then rob the 44-year-old. In her statements, she claimed that she was not present in the room when Robert shot Rick, but saw her ex-boyfriend entering the hotel room with a gun and leaving with the satchel. She further confessed that Robert had promised to split the money with her and insisted that she didn’t know Rick would be killed. She was then charged with first-degree murder, robbery, and conspiracy to commit robbery. In September 2002, Robert pleaded guilty to two unrelated felony weapons charges and was sentenced to 12 months in jail. He was later extradited to Arizona, where he was charged with felony murder, armed robbery, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
While Brandi Hungerford is No Longer Incarcerated, Robert Lemke Remains Behind Bars in Arizona Today
After Brandi was extradited to Arizona, she avoided a jury trial after reaching a plea agreement with the prosecution in exchange for her testimony against Robert. On November 5, 2002, she pleaded guilty to the charges of second-degree murder, armed robbery, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery. She was eventually sentenced to 14 years in prison. Robert’s jury trial commenced on August 15, 2005, during which the prosecution presented Brandi as a witness. She testified that she and the defendant had conspired to rob Rick at gunpoint. In her testimony, she insisted that she and Robert originally didn’t plan to shoot the 44-year-old.
On the other hand, Robert testified as a part of his defense, claiming that he wasn’t involved in the robbery and murder but acknowledged helping Brandi sell a piece of Rick’s jewelry. On September 16, 2005, the jury found him guilty of the lesser charges of theft and conspiracy to commit theft. However, they could not reach a decision regarding his felony murder charge. Robert was ultimately sentenced to 27 years in prison for his two convictions. However, the Trial Court declared a mistrial on the felony murder charge. A few months later, his defense team filed a motion for the dismissal of the murder charge, claiming that its retrial was barred by double jeopardy.
However, the court rejected the double jeopardy claim, indicating that the murder charge would proceed to a new trial. In 2007, Robert avoided a second jury trial by pleading guilty to felony murder. He subsequently received a concurrent life imprisonment sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years. Although he later filed a federal habeas corpus petition, the court rejected it. Reports state that Brandi was released from prison in August 2016. She currently appears to be maintaining a low profile. As of writing, Robert is serving his sentence at the Arizona State Prison Complex – Safford in Safford, Arizona, and is unlikely to be released before 2032.
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