Suvechha Sarkar
Jonathan Conrad Cherol was a successful entrepreneur and brought joy to the lives of many. On a seemingly ordinary night in late October 2015, the life of the 33-year-old was cut short when he was brutally murdered in Bluffton, South Carolina. The shocking incident left his family and loved ones distraught and startled the entire community. The episode titled ‘Night Caller’ of Investigation Discovery’s ‘See No Evil’ delves into the chilling case and provides insights into how the investigators pieced together the events from that fateful night. Featuring the accounts of witnesses, authorities and people related to the case, the episode also showcases shreds of evidence that unfurled the motive and perpetrator/s behind the crime.
Jonathan Cherol’s Quiet Night With a Friend Took a Deadly Turn
Jonathan Conrad Cherol was born on December 19, 1981, to John Alan Cherol and Celeste Ruth DeBold Cherol in Newport, Rhode Island. Growing up, he was always surrounded by the immense love and support of his parents. He was also a devoted brother to his sister, Virginia Elizabeth Cherol, and never wasted a moment to spend quality time with her. Whether it was playing soccer in the backyard or sketching to bring out his existing artistry, his boundless energy was evident to everyone around him. He pursued his higher studies at Allegany College in Meadville, Pennsylvania, and his passion for connecting with people deepened from there.
Jonathan carved out a remarkable life for himself as a restauranteur and was the owner of Pepper’s Old Town Restaurant in Bluffton. He also co-developed the famed Char-Bar on Hilton Head Island. From bartending at Catch-22 to launching Trinity Restaurant and Rumors, his relentless drive and love for this industry knew no bounds. He was also an avid soccer player and had a knack for sports cars. In his leisure time, he enjoyed reading and collecting comic books. Jonathan was living a happy and fulfilling life until fate intervened on the morning of October 28, 2015. The previous night, he had called his friend, Joe, over for a drink at his home, who arrived around 11:59 pm.
While sitting on the back porch with his friend, Jonathan was shot out of the blue. After composing himself, Joe called 911 immediately and informed them about what had just happened. When the first officer arrived at the scene, he found Jonathan slumped over, with his cell phone still in his hand. While inspecting the crime scene, the detectives found two shotgun shells on the grass nearby as evidence. His cause of death was determined to be a gunshot wound. What followed was a swift murder investigation, which soon brought the killer to light.
A Couple Was Considered Prime Suspects in the Murder Case of Jonathan Cherol
The investigators soon shifted their focus to the footage from the neighborhood surveillance cameras. While watching the footage around the time of the murder, they reportedly saw a dark-colored vehicle that stopped before the house. It raised their suspicion, and they started following the car throughout the neighborhood. When Joe was again questioned, he claimed that a woman had arrived at his home two hours before the murder and was very flirtatious. To verify his account, the police checked the footage further and saw a woman with Jonathan. Her vehicle pulled away from his driveway just 50 minutes later, and they realized that it was the same vehicle that appeared in the footage during the time of the murder.
Upon checking Jonathan’s cell phone records, they found a person he had been chatting with just before the tragedy. This friend reportedly revealed that Jonathan was close with a couple living near his home — Seth and Colette. As the officials reached their home, they found the same vehicle from the footage parked near the house. The car belonged to Colette Collins, who was brought in for an interview. She informed the police that she had visited Jonathan that night because they had not met for a while. After talking with him, she claimed that she left and bought wine from a gas station.
Since Collete’s husband had been sober for 1 year, she drank it in the car while driving around the neighborhood before returning home. She claimed that she did not remember anything else because she blacked out. Seth’s real name was soon revealed as Samuel Collins, AKA Sam. When he came in for questioning, he alleged that he was sleeping when his drunk wife arrived home. While he refused to let them search the car, he agreed to provide his DNA. Just four days later, he was stopped by the police for speeding. They noticed the smell of marijuana in his car and, upon searching it, found a shotgun shell in his pocket, which raised suspicions because he had previously claimed that he did not own a shotgun.
A Jealousy-Driven Husband Shot Jonathan Cherol to Death
This incident was soon followed by a search warrant for Sam’s house, where they discovered more shotgun shells but no shotgun. However, they retrieved two to three mobile phones, two of which belonged to Sam. They found a text message from one of these cellphone, which was sent to one of his friends an hour after the murder. It stated that he had left the shotgun at the back of the trunk of his friend’s car. After questioning the individual, they finally found out that he had lent Sam the gun on the night of the murder. The police retrieved the weapon, and the DNA present on it completely matched the suspect’s. Moreover, the shells were also a perfect match to the ones that were found at the scene of the murder. Finally, he was arrested and charged with the murder of Jonathan Cherol in December 2015.
Upon checking the footage once more, the officials noticed that Colette’s car had stopped once at the location of the murder. This allegedly indicated that she might have picked up Sam after the murder was committed. Although initially she painted a different picture, she later confessed. She stated that Sam became enraged upon learning that she had been to Jonathan’s house and wanted to confront him with a shotgun. Colette drove him to the location and dropped him off at an area from where he slipped inside Jonathan’s backyard and shot him, after which he was picked up by her. Thus, she was also charged with being an accessory to the crime.
Samuel and Colette Are Presently Serving Their Respective Sentences in Separate Prisons
When the trial of Samuel Collins first started in October 2017, the prosecutors presented all this evidence before the court, which linked him directly to the murder. During his testimony, he mentioned, “I panicked, and I left as fast as I could. I went back to the vehicle.” After a short and swift trial followed by an hour of jury deliberation, he was convicted on the charge of the murder of Jonathan Cherol and sentenced to 50 years in prison on October 18, 2017. After his conviction, he reportedly mentioned that his wife had no idea about his original intentions to murder Jonathan. However, he stated that she knew about the fact after the crime was committed.
During Collete’s trial, Sam was the main witness of the state, and prosecutor Kimberly Smith noted, “She had kind of left him high and dry, and he wanted to make sure that her involvement did not go unnoticed.” Following her husband’s conviction, Colette Collins was also convicted as an accessory after the fact in the murder on January 24, 2018. She received the sentence of 15 years in prison, which was the maximum penalty that a person can get for the offense. As of today, Samuel Collins is serving his time at Tyger River Correctional Institute in Enoree, South Carolina, with his projected release date being October 26, 2050. Meanwhile, Colette Collins is seemingly incarcerated at another prison facility in South Carolina.
