PELICANBAY - The wife of a man found buried in the yard of their Pelican Bay home told police she stabbed and sprayed her husband with a chemical during a fight and woke up the next morning to find him dead, read an affidavit.
According to the affidavit, Neola Gardner Robinson confessed to burying Pleasant Ervin Robinson, known as "Shorty," after a cold case detective confronted the widow with new evidence on July 13, more than three years after his disappearance.
In her alleged confession, Mrs. Robinson told the detective she sprayed her husband's eyes with an unknown chemical and then stabbed him in the hand with a paring knife after he grabbed her arm during a fight on May 31, 2010. She said the cut ended the fight and Mr. Robinson went to sit on a chair in their living room while she retired to the bedroom.
The following morning, Mrs. Robinson found her husband dead on the chair, the affidavit read. She told the detective she left his body on the chair until late into the night on June 1 and then buried him on an air mattress in a hole that was originally dug during a water line repair.
However, a man told police Mrs. Robinson told him a different story. According to the affidavit, Mrs. Robinson told the man she waited for her husband to fall asleep before cutting his throat on their bed.
Another witness told police she saw the Robinsons arguing more than a week before his death at an Azle bar.
"During this altercation, Neola Robinson told [her husband] he needed to stay away from her and if he returned home 'he would be missing some parts,'" the affidavit read.
Police found the victim's body on July 15. Authorities said they believe the burial spot was the same area she originally told police she buried a dog.
Mr. Robinson's employer first reported him missing to the Azle Police Department on June 16, 2010.
When originally questioned, Mrs. Robinson told police she last saw her husband leaving their home in a white pickup truck with an unidentified woman. According to authorities, she indicated he likely fled to avoid paying child support and refused to file a missing person's report. Mr. Robinson's sister later filed the report with Azle police.
