On the evening of November 20, 2022, Rebekah Poe, a 46-year-old Caucasian woman, was killed outside her home in Pell City, Alabama. Poe, a wife and mother, and her husband discovered that several of their family’s vehicles on Skyline Trail had been broken into. Her husband drove around the neighborhood to investigate and came upon an unfamiliar black Dodge Charger. Poe then drove over in her own vehicle, got out, and saw some of her stolen property inside the suspects' car. She told her husband to call 911. At that moment, the suspects’ vehicle struck her, throwing her onto the hood before she fell and was trapped underneath as the car sped away. She died from her injuries.
The Pell City Police Department launched an investigation, which would ultimately last 15 months. Investigators found stolen items, including cash and cards, discarded in a grassy area near the scene, and learned that a gun had also been taken. Evidence from doorbell cameras and other surveillance video in the area proved helpful. As the search for the people responsible continued, a reward for information that could lead to an arrest grew to $25,000.
A breakthrough came more than a year later when forensics and fingerprint evidence identified Christopher Cody Masters and Shawna Alyssa Masten as the suspects. Investigators learned the pair had fled Alabama shortly after Poe’s death, traveling up the East Coast before being located in Colorado. Both had extensive criminal histories. They were arrested in Colorado, extradited back to Alabama, and faced with an 18-count indictment that included felony murder.
In May 2024, a judge denied bond for Christopher Masters, and he remained in the St. Clair County Jail. A major development occurred in August 2024 when Shawna Masten pleaded guilty to felony murder, first-degree robbery, breaking and entering a motor vehicle, first-degree theft of property, and leaving the scene of an accident, among other charges. Masten was sentenced to life in prison for the felony murder and theft charges, with additional sentences for the other convictions ranging from 10 years to life.
