Inclinations within the disappearance of Jennifer Hillier-Penney – The Fifth Estate

We're in Newfoundlandinvestigating a mystery that has haunteda community here for more than seven years. And it may be one stepcloser to being solved after the RCMPmade an arrest in the disappearanceof Jennifer Hillier-Penney. But that arrest doesn't answerthe key questions in this case. Namely,what happened to Jennifer, and why did it takethe police so long to act?.

I'm Mark Kelley.This is The Fifth Estate. [ominous music playing] It was an arrest no one saw coming, yet so many had been waiting for. Dean Penney, led into court, feet shackled, head bowed. Charged with first-degree murder just days before Christmas. And there, in the front row, sat Marina Goodyear..

His daughter. Determined. Defiant. It's a lot.It's heavy, obviously. But it's– today is–today is freeing. [reporter] How so? The man that killed my momis going to jail. I'm confident in that. This is the start. This is whatI've fought for, for years. That fight began in 2018,.

when Marina's family contacted The Fifth Estate, urging us to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Marina's mom, Jennifer Hillier-Penney. Jennifer was 38. Married to Dean Penney, a local fisherman. On November 30th, 2016, she disappeared without a trace, shattering the tranquility of the picturesque community of St. Anthony,.

on the tip of the northern peninsula of Newfoundland and Labrador. Joanne, why doesyour family want us to– to pay attentionto this story, and come here,and learn more about this story? We want to knowwhat happened to Jennifer. We want answers,we want answers to… where is Jennifer?What happened to her? What happened the nightthat Jennifer went missing?.

We want to know. Here's what little we knew as we began our investigation. Around eight o'clock on the night she disappeared, Jennifer dropped off her sister, Vonnie, at an appointment, then said goodnight. She would never be seen again. She was going hometo lie down, she had a headache, and she wasgoing to stay with Deana,.

Then she was gonna get upthe next morning, and go to work. And she said,”I'll see you tomorrow,” she said,”I'll be down tomorrow evening.” I said, “Okay.” Jennifer's world revolved around her two girls, Deana, and Marina. I'm really struck,looking at you, how much you looklike your mom.

Yeah. We're like twins. A lot of people, like,who didn't know us, would probably thinkwe were sisters. Like, I mean,we were best friends, like, she justtalked to me, like, anytime there wasanything going on, like, we'd just calleach other. The girls' dad, Dean, was away at his cabin, duck hunting..

Jennifer drew a bath and texted Deana, telling her she had a headache, and was going to bed. Deana missed her 9:30 curfew, so she didn't check in with her mom when she got home. The next morning, Jennifer's alarm went off. It woke Deana. She looked frantically for her mother. There was no note. No sign of a struggle..

And no Jennifer. It wasn't just the factthat Jennifer was gone that was so alarming, it was also allthe things she'd left behind. Her phone, her purse,her coat, her car. Even the bathtubwas still full, just as she'd left it. Everything was stillinside that house. Everything but her.

St. Anthony is named after the patron saint of the lost. And it's easy to see how someone could go missing here. But with the water, the waves and the wind, it's hard to imagine how they could ever be found. More than a year after she disappeared, Jennifer's haunted image was still watching over St. Anthony. She was everywhere and nowhere. One here.One here, is it?.

You want to replacethe old ones? And when the wind and the rain faded those posters, Jennifer's friend, Gina Elliott, hammered up new ones. Again, and again. Gina, do you thinkthere are people in town who think you're crazy, because you're stillputting up these posters? Oh, yeah, absolutely.

You know what,I think a lot of it is hard for people to see,and be reminded that, you know,we live in a place that's so beautiful,and yet, this has happened. Some peoplewould rather forget, I guess it helps themsleep at night. -Mm-hmm.-This helps me sleep at night. [seagulls squawking] Each poster carried an ominous message,.

“Someone knows something!” St. Anthony now seemed to be the patron saint of suspicion. ♪ And yet, the RCMP didn't immediately treat her disappearance as suspicious. They suspected she just left town. I knew the difference, that she didn't just walk off,and need a break. That was also said to me.

“Maybe she just needed a break,”I'm like– [sniffles] Jennifer didn't need a break,and, you know… she would've texted methis morning to tell me that she wasn't cominginto work if she– You know, that's justthe way it was. -I would've known.-Mm-hmm. There's no waythat I wouldn't have known if Jennifer didn't need– you know,if she wanted a break.

So, yeah. I knew it. I– I knew. Because Jennifer would not,under any circumstances, get up and leave. Not a chance. She was taken. Taken? But why Jennifer? After days of searching for clues on land and sea turned up nothing,.

the RCMP shifted focus. The house she disappeared from was finally locked down. A forensics team was brought in. Like, I mean,she went missing from the house. And forensicsdidn't even get down there, until about a weekafter she went missing and there was, I'm going to say,up to maybe 100 different people in and outthrough the house,.

Between cops,and friends, and family. So, I mean, how're you goingto sort through fingerprints in a housewith so many fingerprints? ♪ It would take the RCMPa full seven days before they wouldofficially declare Jennifer's disappearancewas suspicious. Now, police often treatmissing persons cases as runaways or suicides,.

Unless they have reasonsto believe otherwise. But in this case,it seems they had plenty of reasonsto believe otherwise. Jennifer's friends would tell us there were all kinds of warning signs. I feared for her lifeleading up to this. She feared for her life.I feared for her life. Her fears were centered on her husband, Dean. Jennifer was up front about her intentions..

She was leaving him. She moved in with her dad, and made plans to leave St. Anthony. Then she was like, “I don't want to bemiserable anymore.” And she madea decision, like, she was gettingstuff lined up, she wanted a divorce,she wanted to leave. And she wanteda new start from everything.

Like, she wanted to be awayfrom St. Anthony. She wanted to putsome distance between herself,and that place. ♪ I knowthat she spoke to a lawyer to start the separation, and then divorce. Like, this was–this was the first steps. Did Dean know about that?.

As far as I know,he wasn't very happy. But that's as fareverybody knows. That's a fact. He wanted Jennifer. He didn't want herto leave. And he wasn't happy. ♪ Jennifer's turmoil and her fears are felt in these texts we obtained from her friend..

“I'm going through a bad split with Dean,” writes Jennifer. “But he's freaking out now promising to make it better. But it's over,” she concludes. In a later text, Jennifer writes, “Dean is accusing me of fooling around. All hell will break loose.” She adds, “I don't trust him.” [seagulls squawking] Despite her fear, Jennifer made a decision.

that would change everything. She agreed to return to Dean's house for a few days to watch their teenage daughter, Deana, while he was away hunting. I know my mom didn'twant to stay in that house, so, and like, I feel likewhat makes me… feel the absolute worst, is knowingthat my mom was afraid. She was afraid.

And she didn't want to stayin that house that week. She went backto the house for a week, because Dean was hunting,apparently. Deana, her youngest,wanted to stay in the house. It's right next to her school. Jennifer didn't wantto go there. She didn't wantto be alone. But she did not want to bein that house. Jennifer was frightenedto death of him.

Jennifer was scared of him. Saying, “Vonnie,I'm scared, I'm scared.” I said,”What are you scared of, Jen?” “I'm just afraid,” she said, “Dean's gonna come backin the middle of the night.” I said,”Yeah, but, Jennifer, Dean wouldn't donothing to you, you know?” “You don't know,Vonnie, you don't know.” But when she was afraidabout going back to the house,.

Was that becauseshe was afraid about being close to your dad? I think it was. That's definitelywhat she meant. I mean… who else would it have been? In 2018, Dean Penney's lawyer told him not to talk publiclyabout Jennifer's disappearance. But, at the time it seemed crucial to hear from him,.

so we approached him togive him a voice in this story. This is it? [man] Yep, that's him. Without his knowledge, we recorded our conversation as I asked for an interview. Dean, how are ya? I'm Mark Kelleyfrom CBC Television. How are ya?.

Sorry about… Jennifer. We've come up heretrying to find some answers. Just as I'm sureyou are, too. How do you feelwhen people suspect you had somethingto do with it? Yeah. Well, people often suspect… -Yes.-…the husband, the partner.

I know. But how do you explainhow somebody can disappear? -I don't know.-From your own house. I know. And that's oneof the reasons we're here. Mm-hmm. [tense music playing] Strange, and getting stranger. I mean, you know,the land is…

She could be anywhere. The Fifth Estate made a second trip to St. Anthony. It was the summer of 2018, almost 18 months to the day of her disappearance. And Jennifer's friends and family set out with a psychic, and shovels, looking for her body. It had come to that. Okay, it should beright up on this cove.

Through bogs and thick brush, abandoning any hope the police could help. I don't know. Hey. If we find Jennifer, I don't think it's gonna bebecause of the police. It's going to be becausesomebody came across her. Or, you know, oneof our searches that we'll have. Jennifer's family felt.

the RCMP had failed from the beginning to properly investigate what they were convinced was her murder. As far as I'm concerned, theydidn't take it serious enough. They just took itas she ran away or she committedsuicide, right? And no, not a chance. Not for me, no, sir.I don't think she ever did. Did you tell thatto the police officer there?.

-Yes, yes. A several times.- What did you say? I said exactly what I told you. Jennifer didn't make awaywith herself. Jennifer didn't run away.You don't know Jennifer. If you knew Jennifer, and how much she thoughtof her family, and her kids, her mom, her dad… us, you'd say,”No, she never ran away.” Why wasn't the houseblocked off?.

Why were peopleallowed to come and go? Why were people allowedto go through her things? That was her lastknown whereabouts. It was months later, they were asking mefor Jennifer's password to her laptop. Months later. Jennifer told me… that he saidthat he would…

Make away with her. And, uh… they would never find her. Like, she knew that. [sniffles] So, yeah, that's whywe had a safety plan. So, she had that fear, whether it was real or not,but it was real to her. -And she shared that with you?-Oh, yeah.

So, like, when I saydaily safety plans, me and Vicki,we piggybacked, so she wasn't talkingto her today, or, you know,this afternoon, I was. So Vicky texted and,”You talking to Jennifer?” “No. No.” “I haven't, either.”So, then I'd text. “Where you at?Where you going? You okay?””Yes, yes, I'm going home. I'm going rightto Dad's after work.”.

You know, that's the wayit was all the time. Founded or unfounded, Jennifer's fear was palpable in texts sent to her friend, suggesting Dean was watching her when she left work each day. And then, a breakthrough in our investigation. Dean Penney told police and The Fifth Estate he was duck hunting at his cabin, 45 minutes out of town,.

the night Jennifer disappeared. He said he'd been there all week. But then we learneda critical detail in his alibi. It'll come outlater down the line, when you guyslook into this story. He came backto the house that night to get somethingout of the garage. He said he had to come backfor his decoys. And Deana saw him?.

Yeah. She said– Well, he–my sister told me that, like, he called herwhen he was coming back into St. Anthony that night, just to be like,”Hey, what's up? I'm going to bestopping into the garage and grabbing my decoys,”and stuff like that. And when she heard himout there, she just went outin the door hole of the garage.

And said,”Bye, goodnight.” [tense music playing] He was out there,and didn't have decoys, duck hunting? That doesn't make sense to you? No. Not really. You'd think you'd have 'emthe whole time you were hunting,wouldn't you?.

Hmm. You would think. -For an experienced hunter.-Yeah. You'd think you'd take 'em,even if you didn't need 'em. That's suspicious, too, right? There's a lot of thingsthat don't add up. So, in the summer of 2018, we approached Dean a second time to clear up what happened that night,.

and ask him the questions Jennifer's family wanted answered. Yeah,I can't say much, b'y. You have to get a hold of my lawyerand stuff for that, eh. Yeah. I can't saynothing because– Ah, no filming me there, buddy. No, I understand,I just want to know.

You say you wantto clear your name, we're tryingto give you an opportunity. The night she disappeared, were you back hereto get your decoys? I came back here, but my daughter was herein the house at that time. Yeah, I know. But did you–you did come back here to get your decoysthat night.

Yes,I told the police that. So you were hereat the scene of her disappearancethat night. There wasa lot of people here, but nobody knows for surethat she disappeared from here. That's just hearsay. But just let me ask youthe key question, Dean, that's the people–what everyone wants to know is, did you do it?.

No. -Definitely not.-Okay. Anyway, I can't sayno more than that, 'cause, like I said, my lawyer'staking care of that stuff, and I can't say anything, eh. Five years after that interview, the RCMP held a surprise news conference. [Tracy Edwards]On December 15, 2023, investigators with the RCMPNewfoundland Major Crime Unit.

Arrested 50-year-oldDean Penney, the estranged husbandof Jennifer Hillier-Penney. The RCMP acknowledged the agonizingly long wait for an arrest in what the Mounties called, “a complex case.” We acknowledgethat seven years is a very long time to gowithout answers. The anguish feltby Jennifer's family and loved ones in the communitywas always top of mind,.

As we worked our way througha complex investigation. [somber music playing] I reached Marina Goodyear in the weeks after Dean Penney's arrest. She hadn't seen her estranged father in years, and says she barely recognised the man led into the courtroom last December. I actually took a picturefrom The Fifth Estate that was on Google.

To compare 2018 to 2023, and he's halfthe man he was. He was grey. His skin was pulledacross his face different. And, like, not just gray hair,like, his complexion. Like, he looked grey.Like, he looked like a sick man. The shackles,on the other hand, was likeChristmas bells to me. Dean Penney's lawyer hasn't entered a plea,.

and won't comment on the case. The murder trial is slated for the fall, and Marina says she'll be in court every day, for her mom. Absolutely.Absolutely. I just think of–any time I'm ever in a situation where I'm nervousor I'm afraid, I think about how afraidmy mom was that night when she heard himcoming in that house.

And I think about that fear,and I'm just like… “Nothing can scare me.” My mom went through the scariest thingthere is to go through. And how could I be afraid? Because I don't havehalf the battle that she had. How does this battle end? -How is this battle gonna end?-Mm-hmm. I hope…

That he getshis life sentence. When that chapter's closed,when he goes to jail… then I'm finallygoing to move on, in terms of my mom. I always said that I was neverputting a headstone down until she had justice. I just want to make surethat he's convicted and gone awayfor a long time. And I want the worldto know the answers.

Because we did fightfor her story to be heard. I want everybodyto know the details. And then I want totry to lay her to rest. ♪

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