Suvechha Sarkar
A normal cold night in February 1985 took a tragic turn when Koby Sandozsky and Lesia Clytelle Kahl were brutally killed in Dallas, Texas. The harrowing crime left their loved ones and the community completely shocked to their core. A swift investigation ensued, unraveling a tale of recollecting debt and a wrong person being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Investigation Discovery’s ‘The Playboy Murders: The Girl in the Red Tub’ delves deep into the haunting details of the double homicide and how a swift investigation brought the killers to justice. It also features interviews with officials and Lesia’s loved ones.
Koby Sandozsky and Lesia Kahl Were Found Killed at a Texas Residence
Born on February 26, 1963, Lesia Clytelle Kahl arrived as a ray of sunshine in the lives of her parents, Nenia Lorraine and Matthew Joseph Kahl. Growing up, she was surrounded by the love of her parents and her five siblings. She was the oldest among them and always made sure to take care of them as the oldest sister. Her sister, Crystal, was born after her, and the duo shared a deep bond. Since Lesia’s father was in the Air Force, the family had to move around a lot. After graduating from high school, Matthew received the order to move to Germany. Since Crystal was reluctant to go, she moved to Dallas, Texas, and asked Lesia to accompany her. She arrived in early 1983, and the sisters began enjoying the nightlife. Lesia took up a job as a waitress at Confetti Night Club.
In the Spring of 1984, Lesia came across the opportunity to shoot for Playboy. She was pretty excited about that new chapter of her life when she met Joey D’Amato, a bartender at Confetti. Their relationship soon blossomed into something more. Since Joey often hung around the club, he struck up a friendship with a low-level drug dealer, Koby Sandozsky. The latter was born sometime in 1955 and belonged to an Israeli family. On January 8, 1985, Lesia was featured in the Girl of Texas pictorial of Playboy Magazine and began receiving recognition. However, everything turned upside down on February 28, 1985. Joey had planned a surprise birthday party for Lesia on February 27. Since he was busy preparing, he had asked Koby (his friend) to give her a ride. Joey kept on waiting, but Lesia never returned.
In the early morning of February 28, John Hudgens was visiting his friend, Jeffrey Licker’s, residence in Blackbird Lane near the north side of White Rock Lake in Dallas, Texas. When he knocked and got no response, he let himself in. However, he made the horrific discovery of Lesia and Koby deceased in the upstairs bedroom. He promptly called 911, and when the officials arrived at 1:45 am, they found them beaten to death with their faces covered with plastic bags. While they identified Koby from his driver’s license, they found Lesia’s wallet in her purse. They also found a car phone inside Koby’s vehicle, through which they reached Joey as the last dialed number, further confirming Lesia’s identity. Detectives further found a safe with cocaine and cash inside it. The autopsy revealed that both of them had blunt force trauma to the head.
The Secret Life and Criminal Ties of the Killers Helped Unravel the Case
Investigators first questioned John, the 911 caller, who informed them that a tax attorney, Jeffrey Licker, owned the house. They discovered that it was more like a party house where his friends came to take cocaine and enjoy their time. He allowed his friends to visit the house as they wanted, and they knew how to enter the residence. When police questioned Joey, he admitted that he and Lesia had occasional arguments because he was insecure about her newfound fame. However, he informed them how he had asked Koby to give her a ride on the night of the party, and the latter had said that he needed to make a stop in between. After checking his alibi, Joey was ruled out as a suspect.
As detectives began questioning people who knew Jeffrey, they discovered that he was addicted to cocaine and his drug dealer was none other than Koby. Around 1:20 pm on February 28, Jeffrey went to the police himself. When he was questioned, he claimed that he was out all night drinking and had decided to come after hearing about the murders on the radio. Initially, he alleged not knowing Koby. However, when the officials informed him that they knew Koby was his drug dealer, Jeffrey admitted that Koby had stolen a safe with money and drugs from him. Hence, he hired two men, Raymond Hackman and Joel Gregory Arnold, to collect the debt. He confessed to luring him on the pretense of buying drugs, but claimed that he didn’t know that Koby was going to get hurt.
Jeffrey also gave the information as a written statement. He was arrested on the same day and charged with capital murder (related to both killings) and two counts of murder as a result of a murder-for-hire scheme. Officials tracked down Raymond and Joel and arrested them on March 2, 1985. While the former refused to give a statement, Joel confessed that Jeffrey had hired them to either collect the debt or kill Koby for $5,000. They claimed that Lesia was killed because she arrived at the scene inadvertently. While Raymond was charged with two counts of murder, Joel was charged with one count of murder.
Jeffrey is Likely Leading a Quiet Life, While Raymond and Joel Are Seemingly Incarcerated Today
Jeffrey, Raymond, and Joel all pleaded guilty, and none of their cases went to trial. Joel and Raymond were both convicted on two counts of murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison for the murder of Koby and life imprisonment for the murder of Lesia. Jeffrey was convicted of two counts of murder and sentenced to 10 years in prison, alongside 10 years of probation. However, since Lesia’s family felt he needed to be held accountable, her parents filed a civil suit against him, leading to a civil trial. Ultimately, on July 27, 1987, Lesia’s parents won the lawsuit and were awarded $9.3 million from him and his homeowner’s insurance.
Joel had appealed his conviction, which was originally upheld by the Appeal Court in 1986. Later on, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals said that the jury had been instructed about parole, which was later ruled unconstitutional. Although the higher court did send the case back to the lower court, it was ultimately decided that the error did not affect the conviction. So, the court again upheld the original verdict, keeping Joel’s conviction and sentences the same. There has not been much information on the three killers of Koby and Lesia. However, we believe Jeffrey is seemingly living a quiet life after serving his sentence. On the other hand, it seems that Joel and Raymond are still serving their time at a Florida Correctional Facility today.
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