‘Blood & Money’ Returns to the Menendez Murders: Are Lyle and Erik Guilty? Exclusive Clip

Menendez family friend John Burnett remembers hearing these haunting words: “Erik’s parents are dead.” John grew up with Erik, had dinners at the Menendez home, and is now part of a new true crime exploratory docuseries on Oxygen’s Blood & Money that will re-examine the grisly murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez.  

Jose and Kitty were brutally murdered in their Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. After an investigation, Jose and Kitty’s sons, Erik (18) and Lyle (21) were tried and convicted of their murders. The Menendez brothers remain in prison, but questions still surround their culpability and possible innocence.

Menendez family friend ‘couldn’t process’ the murders

John was interviewed for the Blood & Money docuseries, recalling the chilling news. “I’d come home and my mom and dad had this look on their face,” he recalled in an exclusive clip shared with Showbiz Cheat Sheet. “And they were just like, ‘John … Erik’s parents are dead.'”

Fighting back tears and finding the words, John continued. “I couldn’t process it,” he said, shaking his head. “I could not wrap my mind around what could have happened.”

At the time, John and his family had already moved, but he kept in touch with Erik. As kids, Erik and John were both highly focused on sports. Erik played tennis and John was into track and field. They used to jokingly give each other autographs and aspired to compete and win gold medals in the 1992 Olympics.

Investigators thought the Menendez murder was ‘strictly a hit’

John is still in disbelief. Growing up, he witnessed the Menendez family dynamic and found Jose Menendez to be typical in that he immigrated to the U.S. to be successful and do the best for his family. After the murders, but before Erik and Lyle were arrested, Erik stopped by John’s family’s house to say hello. 

According to investigators interviewed for Blood & Money, no bloody clothes, shotgun rounds, or bloody footprints were found in the home after the murders. “The detectives conducted a search, looking for a shotgun. And we didn’t find what we were looking for.”

“We had policemen all over the place trying to find witnesses,” according to an investigator. “They found a girl down the street that said she saw a car pull up and two individuals get out and go to the trunk. And then go in the house. There was no evidence it was a residential robbery. So it was strictly a hit. Kill Jose. Kill Kitty.”

Why were Lyle and Erik finally arrested?

Investigators originally thought Jose and Kitty’s murders were mob-related. But detectives became especially suspicious when the brothers went on a massive spree. “The brothers were out there spending money like it was water,” Beverly Hills Police Detective Les Zoeller told NBC (via CNBC).

Psychologist Karen Weisgerber, who was not involved in the Menendez trial said that she often sees a connection between money and a relationship. “Money becomes a substitute for having a relationship,” she explained. “There is a lot put on being able to create wealth. They tend to measure performance and success by concrete measures.”

Blood & Money will take a deep dive into the Menendez murders. Each installment of the 10-episode series goes in-depth into crimes motivated by money and greed. Drawing inspiration from Executive Producer Dick Wolf’s hit series Law & Order, the program features riveting first-hand accounts from law enforcement and prosecutors who worked tirelessly to solve and try the cases, as well as insight from the victims’ loved ones and friends.

Blood & Money episode “The Case of the Menendez Brothers Today” airs Saturday, April 22 at 9 pm ET/PT on Oxygen.