SAN ANTONIO — Day three of the Andre McDonald murder trial revealed surveillance video of the defendant, cell phone logs and photos of Andreen's skeletal remains.
The prosecution presented evidence of Andre and Andreen McDonald’s text message chains and how the conversations aligned with the location of their devices from Feb. 28 to March 1, 2019.
The jury also viewed surveillance footage of the defendant pulling up to a gas station at 7:41 p.m.
WhatsApp text messages revealed tension between the couple stemming from disagreements about a business deal initiated by Andreen.
One text from Andre stated: “Well, I’m done arguing. Point is, there is zero chance that I’m letting you purchase the building under that company. I’m not going to insult you or yell at you. I’m just going to live by my own principles and protect myself from you under all circumstances.”
The cell phone data indicated Andreen’s phone turned off at and lost signal at 12:02 a.m. on March 1. She was reported missing later that day.
The prosecution then introduced surveillance footage of the defendant entering Nagel’s Gun Shop on March 2. Robert Bochmann, who worked in sales at the gun store, testified that McDonald bought the gun but left the store without the pistol and his ID. The jury was shown the purchased gun.
Authorities performed two searches of the McDonald’s residence on March 1 and 2. The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office had teams tracking Andre McDonald’s movements, including at the gun shop before he was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence.
A geolocation analysis affirmed crime scene photos of the area where Andreen’s remains were found in July matched the same spot displayed on a Google Street View image.
The defendant looked up at the screen Wednesday afternoon as the prosecution presented photos of Andreen's remains, which were found off the road in a grassy area in north Bexar County.
Additional evidence shown to the jury included a shovel, hammer and flashlights, which were among the items listed in a torn up receipt from Lowe's.
Tuesday, the prosecution showed the jury text chains between Andre and Andreen, which illustrated another disagreement.
The previous day, shocking testimony from Andreen's sister and mother detailed a phone call Friday from McDonald to the two women, in which he confessed to killing his wife after a business-related argument.
“I think he took off her clothes and burn it and then put her body in the car,” Johnson said. “He said that it was because he found out what she was doing about the business."
The women testified that they believed he made the confession because he wanted them to know what happened.
Last week, McDonald's defense team worked to get certain evidence thrown out, saying law enforcement violated McDonald’s fourth amendment rights when they searched his home on March 1 and 2.
There have been some questions about if McDonald still holds his rank as major. We're told he does, partly because it's the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office that filed charges against him and not military officials.
The U.S. Air Force Reserve hasn’t taken disciplinary action against him so far. The ongoing trial is expected to last at least a few weeks.