He Subjected His Wife to Brutal Sexual Torture for Money

Dorothy and Art Melman were overjoyed when their daughter Stacy joined the family in 1970. She grew up in Indiana alongside her two sisters, Elizabeth and Susan. Stacy was always described as outgoing, cheerful, and kind-hearted. Family meant everything to her. So, when her sister needed help caring for a newborn, Stacy packed her things and moved from Chicago, where she was living at the time, to Boston.

For a while, she worked as a live-in nanny. But more than anything, Stacy Melman dreamed of having a happy of her own. It seemed that dream began to come true when, during a trip to visit a friend in Montreal, she met a man named Robert Feldman. They immediately hit it off, and in 2005, they got married in Montreal and celebrated the occasion with family and friends at the Ritz-Carlton.

After the wedding, the couple settled in Denver, Colorado, and started a family. 10 years later, the couple had two wonderful children. 44-year-old Stacy was a devoted mother who was deeply involved in her children’s lives. She was also an active member of her community and had a large circle of close friends.

You could tell a lot about the kind of person she was just by looking at the people she surrounded herself with, warm, welcoming, and incredibly fun. On Saturday morning, March 1st, Stacy Feldman wasn’t feeling well and decided to go back to bed. According to the Feldman children, the older child was only 8 years old at the time, and otherwise, the morning had begun like any ordinary day for the family.

At 8:30 in the morning, Bob drove the children to a new religious school at Temple Sinai, the synagogue the family attended. Their mother was supposed to pick them up at noon, after which they planned to spend a few hours at a carnival with a friend. The first sign that something was wrong that day came shortly after noon, when a teacher from the temple began calling the Feldman family.

No one had come to pick up the children from school. At first, they tried calling Stacy, but she didn’t When they eventually managed to reach Bob, he picked up the children and they went to the carnival. When they returned home a little after 3:00 in the afternoon, no one had heard anything from Stacy since early that morning.

Bob recalled hearing water running upstairs. The sound was coming from the shower in the second floor bathroom, which was adjacent to the master bedroom. When he entered the bathroom to check what had happened to his wife, Bob panicked and shouted down to the children, “Go to the neighbors right now. There’s an emergency here.

” After that, Bob called 911. Friends, let me interrupt you for just a moment. I’m really curious where my audience is watching from, so I’d love for you to tell me what city you’re watching this video from and what time it is there. Thanks for your attention and let me know in the comments. Now, let’s continue.

>> [clears throat] >> Bob found Stacy in the bathtub. She was lying motionless and unresponsive. The water was still running, but by then it had already turned cold. As Bob tried to lift or pull his wife out of the tub and onto the floor, he followed the instructions of the 911 operator, who was explaining how to perform CPR.

Bob pleaded for help while the operator assured him that paramedics were already on their way and continued directing his actions. When paramedics arrived at the scene, Stacy was moved away from the bathroom to the adjoining bedroom, where rescuers continued their attempts to revive her, but it was already too late.

Stacy was beyond the point where emergency medical intervention could save her, and at 3:56 p.m., she was pronounced dead at the scene. A few minutes later, detectives from the Denver Homicide Unit arrived at the house, although at that point it was far from clear whether a homicide had even occurred. Detective Randall Denison first examined the master bedroom in the bathroom.

A towel was neatly hanging on a rack beside the bathtub. Neither the detective nor the first responders who arrived at the scene saw any water on the bathroom floor. They found this strange and unlikely because according to Bob, he had pulled Stacy out of the bathtub while the water was still running, all while speaking with the emergency dispatcher.

At the bottom of the bathtub was a wet washcloth, while bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and other personal care products were scattered nearby. It looked as though the shelf had accidentally been knocked over and its contents had fallen. Otherwise, the room appeared neat. There were no signs of a struggle or fight.

The detective also found no evidence of forced entry into either the house or the master bedroom. On the balcony outside the room, the snow was untouched with no footprints anywhere on it. Various bruises and injuries were visible on Stacy’s body, but at first glance, none appeared serious enough to have caused her death.

Overall, the house did not look like the scene of a homicide. It was possible that a tragic accident had occurred, but there were no obvious signs of a crime. Bob Feldman told investigators that he and his wife had attended a party the previous evening. According to him, throughout the night, Stacy had consumed marijuana edibles several times, a substance that was legal in the state, and had also been drinking alcohol.

Bob claimed that this was why she felt tired and unwell that morning. He also told investigators about his wife’s medical problems and listed the medications she was taking. Stacy had an enlarged heart and cardiovascular disease, suffered from nerve-related pain, and had arthritis. At the time of her death, she was wearing not one but two fentanyl patches.

This raised an important question. Could she have died from an accidental overdose? The exact cause of death would have to be determined by an autopsy. But even before it was performed, certain details at the scene made first responders and investigators wonder whether something much more serious had happened.

In particular, Stacy was wearing a watch on her wrist, a silver and gold dress watch that someone would be unlikely to intentionally leave on before taking a shower. Bob’s behavior also raised questions. The firefighters who arrived first tried several times to get Stacy’s medical history from him. This information was extremely important for the rescue effort, especially if there was still a chance to save her.

But Bob, appearing to be in a state of extreme emotional distress, did not answer their questions and repeatedly walked away. The firefighters later described his behavior as overly dramatic and deliberately uncooperative. Paramedics also recalled that Bob interfered with their work. He acted as though he were in shock or disoriented, screaming and wailing and getting so close to his wife that he interfered with the medics as they performed their duties.

Because of this, the rescuers eventually had to call the police for assistance. By the time Stacy was officially pronounced dead, relatives and friends were already in the house supporting Bob. Yet he continued avoiding direct answers to the detectives questions and claimed that he could not remember many details, including the exact position in which he had found his wife.

Detective Dennison noted that when they tried to question Bob in greater detail, he simply walked away again. Bob Feldman also stated that he did not want his wife to undergo an autopsy. He even called the coroner’s office to make this request. Despite this, an autopsy was performed the following day. Dr.

Kelly Kolansky found no internal injuries that could explain Stacy’s death and concluded that additional testing was necessary. She documented her existing medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, as well as numerous injuries, including hemorrhaging and abrasions. However, some of these injuries could have occurred during the resuscitation attempts.

She also concluded that drowning could not be completely ruled out. Some of the bruises and abrasions could have been consistent with injuries sustained while Stacy was being pulled from the bathtub as the available accounts suggested had happened. Ultimately, the doctor concluded that it was impossible to determine exactly how and why Stacy had died.

Blood tests found several prescription medications in her system, but no THC, the active component of marijuana. If Stacy had actually consumed marijuana edibles the night before her death as Bob told police, THC would have been expected to be present in her system. The story about Stacy supposedly consuming marijuana edibles the night before her death was not the only inconsistency Denver police found in Bob Feldman’s account.

After speaking with the children’s religious school teacher, detectives learned that Bob had told her something entirely different. Supposedly, it was not Stacy, but a friend who was supposed to pick up the children at noon. Bob gave this explanation after numerous calls and a delay in picking up the children when classes ended at noon and Stacy could not be reached.

However, the friend who had planned to meet Stacy and the children at the carnival said Bob’s account was false. There had been no arrangement for her to pick up the children. This raised an important question. Why would Bob invent such a story unless he knew that Stacy would not be able to pick up the children and was deliberately trying to buy himself time.

When Bob Feldman finally arrived at the synagogue at 1:05 p.m., the teacher noticed his strange behavior. Despite the snowy weather, he was wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and he looked disheveled and irritated. Police also listened carefully to the recording of Bob’s 911 call. Investigators were looking for possible signs of guilt, suspicious statements, or behavior that could be heard on the recording.

And in their view, they found several troubling moments. Detectives said that the sound of a toilet flushing could be heard in the background. They suspected that this could have been an attempt to destroy evidence. In addition, although the 911 operator gave Bob clear instructions on how to perform CPR, detectives noted that the recording contained no audible changes in his breathing or other signs of physical exertion that would indicate he was actually performing CPR.

Shortly after Stacy’s death, police also discovered that Bob was the sole beneficiary of his wife’s life insurance policy. The payout was approximately $750,000. Detective Dennison repeatedly tried to contact Bob to discuss the autopsy results. Investigators were particularly interested in his claim that Stacy had consumed marijuana edibles the night before because the tests did not support that account.

The numerous marks and injuries on Stacy’s body also raised questions. Without a clear explanation of the position in which she had been found and exactly how she had been moved, it was impossible to determine which of those injuries might have occurred after she was discovered. Eventually, Bob returned Detective Dennison’s call.

Their conversation was recorded. >> Bob, do you know whether she was face up or face down in the tub? >> I don’t know what happened. I just know I grabbed her and I I couldn’t get a hold of her. >> Now, were you able to get her out of the tub before the firefighters arrived? >> I did. I kept grabbing her and I kept slipping and then I I knew I had to get her out of there.

I pulled as hard as I could. >> Mhm. >> She was very heavy tonight. You know, sometimes when she’s in the sleep, but you know, you just >> Mhm. >> You nudge someone over, they kind of move. But she wasn’t moving. >> The detective once again asked Bob to give a detailed account of his movements on the day of his wife’s death.

In his initial statements, Bob claimed that after dropping the children off at 8:30 that morning, he did not return home until after the carnival around 3:00 in the afternoon. However, in the days that followed, he gave his relatives a somewhat different version. According to him, he had stopped by the house around noon that day to let the dog out.

This raised new questions for investigators. Exactly how much time had Bob spent inside the house that day? And most importantly, did he see Stacy when he returned home around noon? >> school and then I went to the service there. And then I stopped there for the new school. >> Mhm. >> Then I came back and I worked out and then went back to school.

>> But you worked out at home? >> At the park. >> Oh, okay. Were you Were you back at your house at all then during that time? >> To change. I came back to change. >> Yeah. And did you you didn’t see Stacy then? >> I didn’t. I was in the laundry room. That’s where I changed. >> Mhm. Wouldn’t you Wouldn’t you normally talk to her if you were home? >> Not normally.

>> Mhm. And was there water running at that time? >> No. >> How long do you think you were home for? >> I was home for about 10 minutes. I just changed and went to pick up the kids. >> Despite the inconclusive autopsy results, Detective Denison’s suspicions about Bob Feldman never faded. Nothing the widower said or did over the following months managed to ease the detective’s concerns.

During one conversation, Detective Denison decided to test Bob’s reaction to the autopsy findings and asked what he thought might have happened to Stacy. Bob said he didn’t know. He acknowledged that his wife had health problems, but he couldn’t say whether something else might have been involved. When the detective reminded him that the cause of death had remained undetermined, Bob mentioned that he had been told Stacy had kidney problems.

At the same time, the autopsy had found no fatal injuries. 4 months after Stacy Feldman’s death, Denver police received new information, a genuine bombshell that confirmed the detective’s suspicions and ultimately led to Bob Feldman’s arrest on murder charges. The information came from a completely unexpected source, a woman whose existence none of Stacy’s loved ones even knew about.

Her name was Susan McBride. In 2015, Susan met a man through Tinder whom she knew as Robert Wolf. He introduced himself as a wholesale meat seller from Denver and said that he had been living separately from his wife for some time. At first, Susan and Robert Wolf got along well. But when Robert canceled their weekend plans at the last minute, Susan began to suspect that he had lied about being divorced or separated.

Susan conducted her own online search and discovered that the man she knew as Robert Wolf was actually Bob Feldman. She also found his wife’s email address. At 6:20 in the morning on Saturday, March 1st, the very day Stacy died, Susan sent her an email. The women exchanged several messages and shortly before 9:00 in the morning, they had a brief phone conversation.

During that conversation, Susan told Stacy that Bob had described her as a mother who was barely involved in her children’s lives. Stacy was stunned. According to Susan, Stacy made it clear that as far as she was concerned, things were over with Bob. Stacy also said that she believed the issue of her husband’s infidelity had already been resolved long ago.

Susan was convinced that after this conversation, Stacy intended to demand a divorce from Bob. It was her last interaction with the Feldman family. More than 3 months passed. After another unsuccessful online dating experience, Susan remembered her conversation with Stacy Feldman and decided to check whether Stacy and Bob had divorced.

But instead of finding information about a divorce, she found Stacy’s obituary. Susan McBride’s next call was to Crime Stoppers and the Denver Homicide Unit. After speaking with her, police learned that on the very morning Stacy died, she had discovered her husband’s infidelity possibly just hours before her own death, the cause of which was still unknown.

To investigators, the coincidence seemed far too significant to ignore. However, the official forensic conclusion continued to list the cause of death as undetermined, leaving police with limited options. In October 2017, Denver police brought in an independent expert. He was not another pathologist, but a renowned specialist in strangulation cases, Dr.

William Smock. He did not have the authority to officially determine a cause of death in Colorado. In fact, it was reported that he had never personally performed an autopsy. However, after reviewing the autopsy findings and other case materials, the expert reached a firm conclusion. Stacy’s death was a homicide.

The prosecution’s theory was that Bob Feldman strangled Stacy or otherwise cut off her access to air sometime between 9:59 in the morning and noon after she confronted him about his affair and confronted him about it directly. Stacy sent her final text message at 9:59 that morning. After that, she never picked up the children from school.

According to investigators, Bob later went to the synagogue, picked up the children, took them to the carnival, and after returning home a little after 3:00 in the afternoon, staged the discovery of Stacy’s body in the bathroom. In February 2018, Bob Feldman was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He pleaded not guilty and was released to home confinement on $1 million bail.

But after that, the case did not move any faster. Instead, it began moving extraordinarily slowly. Bob’s arraignment hearings were postponed at least six times, while Stacy’s family was simultaneously fighting him in probate court. Bob spent $550,000 from Stacy’s life insurance payout on an expensive criminal defense attorney.

Eventually, the probate court in Denver sided with Stacy’s family and ruled that the insurance money could not be used for the benefit of someone accused of killing her. Without access to that money, Bob could no longer afford his legal team. The firm withdrew from the case and he had to switch to a public defender.

However, Bob appealed the decision to the state Supreme Court. In a ruling that sparked controversy and was especially painful for Stacy’s family, the court determined that Bob had legally received the insurance payout before the funds could be frozen. Therefore, the court no longer had the authority to take the money back.

Bob was free to use the insurance funds however he wanted. In the spring of 2020, he hired the prominent and expensive law firm Kaplan and began preparing for trial. The trial was scheduled for April 2020 and Bob was still under home confinement. The restrictions limited his movements.

He could leave the house only for necessary reasons, such as doctor’s appointments, meetings with his attorneys, or grocery shopping. But Bob increasingly began testing the limits of what he was allowed to do. He started riding his bicycle for thousands of miles as the trial date was postponed first because of the COVID-19 pandemic, then because certain witnesses were unavailable, and later again because of pre-trial hearings.

Throughout all this time, Bob continued moving around Denver with almost no restrictions. >> Why is he allowed out for this many hours? Why is that what Do you know how that makes the family feel? Like sitting here, waiting waiting for justice for Stacy, and he’s out enjoying Listen, I don’t know how much he’s enjoying, but optics are awful.

It’s It’s painful for those of us around to wit to hear about it, to witness it. >> During this period, Bob didn’t just continue riding his bicycle. He also maintained several profiles on social media and dating apps using different names and providing different personal information. Through these services, Bob met and dated at least five women.

Two of them later spoke publicly about him after realizing that the widower was nothing like the person he had claimed to be. So, who exactly was he? Robert Feldman? Or Robert Wolf, as he supposedly introduced himself to one of the women? Or Bob White, the name he used on Facebook? On one dating profile, he described himself as a conservative Jew in his early 50s.

While on another, he presented himself as a reform Jew in his early 40s. And it might seem like none of these fabricated identities really mattered. But they mattered a great deal, because the same man Robert Feldman was at the time facing a murder charge. According to one of the women, one of these encounters ended in a particularly disturbing way.

Bob allegedly convinced her to come to his home, where, she claimed, he attacked her. At first, he told her that his residential complex had a pool, and that after swimming, they would go out to dinner. But when she arrived, she discovered that the pool was actually located right in his backyard. Almost immediately, she felt that something was wrong, but she decided that maybe she was simply overreacting.

She did not file a report or pursue criminal charges. Several weeks later, the woman was shocked when she saw on the news that Bob had been arrested and charged with murdering his wife. She later regretted not trusting her instincts and leaving immediately when she realized the situation felt dangerous. It took nearly 3 years to bring Bob up on a first-degree murder charge.

The arraignment hearings were postponed six times, and the trial itself was delayed another five times. It wasn’t until April 2022, 7 years after Stacy’s death, that Bob Feldman’s trial finally began. Assistant District Attorney Maggie Convoy argued that the nature of Stacy’s injuries pointed to strangulation. Addressing the jury, she emphasized that Stacy Feldman could no longer tell them what had happened that day, but her body could speak for her.

According to the prosecution, the injuries indicated a prolonged and violent beating. Conboy insisted that the injuries could not have been caused by CPR or by Stacy being pulled from the bathtub. Bob’s defense attempted to challenge the medical expert’s testimony, particularly his experience in determining a cause of death based on autopsy materials.

Dr. Smock’s research had been conducted only on living people, and he had reached his conclusion in this case based on materials provided by others’ photographs and the autopsy report. The attorneys also went into detail about Stacy’s long history of health problems, including her enlarged heart. They argued that she could have suddenly died in the shower from natural medical causes, and that it simply happened by coincidence only a few hours after she learned about her husband’s affair.

At the same time, the body of circumstantial evidence against Bob was substantial. There was evidence of his previous affairs, which had already led the couple to spend periods living separately. There was no evidence that Stacy had directly confronted her husband that morning about his latest affair with Susan McBride, but no one disputed the fact that she had learned about the infidelity only shortly before her death.

The trial lasted 9 days. The jury needed less than 3 hours to reach a verdict. Bob Feldman was found guilty of first-degree murder. For Stacy’s family, the years of delays had been incredibly exhausting. Every time it seemed the case was finally approaching its end, they would feel a renewed sense of hope, only to have the next postponement crush it once again.

Robert Feldman received the mandatory sentence, life in prison without the possibility of parole.