'She deserves justice': Retired cold case detective speaks out on Jennifer Servo case

Diana Groom, Abilene Reporter-News

March 16, 2024 at 5:46 PM·6 min read

This is the final installment of a two-part series on "The Jennifer Servo case: A dogged pursuit of justice." The first part on www.reporternews.com features an interview with the initial lead investigator for the murder case, Jeff Bell.

Detective David Atkins opened up in a recent interview with the Reporter-News about the one case left unsolved when he retired from the Abilene Police Department: the murder of television news reporter Jennifer Servo in 2002.

Servo was found murdered in her Abilene apartment Sept. 18, 2002, after moving to Abilene about two months before.

Retired Abilene police Detective David Atkins sits at his desk in the Taylor County Sheriff's Office where he is continuing his law-enforcement career as a lieutenant.

At the time, detectives looked into her ex-boyfriend, Ralph Sepulveda, and her coworker, Brian Travers, as possible persons of interest. No arrests have been made, however, in this nearly 22-year-old murder.

'A bigger burden'

Atkins, now serving as a lieutenant in the Taylor County Sheriff's Office, sadly recalled meeting Servo for the first and only time back in early September 2002. He held a press conference on the steps of Jones County Courthouse, and Servo was there to cover it as a segment for the TV news station KRBC.

Atkins recalled her enthusiasm and excitement for covering stories here in Abilene. He remembered her being "really energetic" as she had wanted to become the next Katie Couric. Atkins recalled Servo "was that kind of person."

While Atkins originally started with APD in 1985, he didn't begin working homicides until 1998. Atkins was then assigned to work the Servo case with lead Detective Jeff Bell in 2002.

Atkins took on the unsolved murder as a cold case years later. But according to him, it will always be Bell's case because, "He carries a bigger burden than the rest of us."

Scene of the crime

Atkins recalled that when he responded Sept. 18, 2002, the scene of the crime was very unusual.

Jennifer Servo had been found brutally murdered in her apartment with no apparent murder weapon.

"There was no forced entry. So either she let somebody in, or somebody had a key," Atkins said.

Atkins said some things were changed, like the blinds, which "were always up so her cat could see outside." He also revealed that Servo's front room was where she was likely murdered.

Servo had actually converted her apartment's front room into her bedroom. Atkins said that at the time, her friends told him she did that because she was afraid to sleep alone and wanted to hear if an intruder tried to enter her apartment.

Atkins recalled the scene with a questioning look on his face.

He said he "always thought that the bad guy's intentions were to remove the body from the apartment, and for some reason, he didn't follow through with it."

'Ralph's the guy'

Atkins echoed Bell's earlier statements about Sepulveda, Servo's ex-boyfriend, when asked about potential suspects in the case.

"He never had the appropriate response," Atkins said with a stern look on his face.

Servo "had confided some concerns she had about him to friends," Atkins said. What those concerns were caused some questions in the minds of detectives.

After going by the murder scene, Atkins had been assigned to speak with Sepulveda. He had apparently been working in Winters when Servo's body was found, so Atkins waited outside his Abilene apartment.

Sepulveda got home, and Atkins approached him.

"This is where it got really strange," Atkins said.

Jennifer Servo's apartment complex on a rainy day, still standing and very similar to what it looked like in 2002.

When Atkins asked to speak with Sepulveda down at the office, the ex-boyfriend did not hesitate, Atkins said. Sepulveda never asked, "What's this about?" He never had questions for detectives that day.

In fact, Atkins said he found it odd Sepulveda didn't ask anything and simply went to the station for questioning.

During the initial interview with Bell, Atkins recalled Sepulveda had overheard a detective talking to the medical examiner's office.

Atkins said Sepulveda "interjected, 'Is Jennifer dead?'"

To which Bell said, "Yes." Then Sepulveda had no further questions.

Later, Sepulveda gave detectives consent to search his home, and they went through everything from "top to bottom," Atkins said. They found nothing. But Sepulveda was extremely organized to the point of being compulsive.

While detectives had looked into Travers, the local weatherman, Atkins "never had questions about his involvement," Atkins said. Travers was "never evasive with any answers. He was very forthcoming."

Atkins said he believes Travers had feelings for Servo but was not capable of murder.

"I'll tell you like I tell everybody else. Ralph's the guy," Atkins said.

Atkins did say, however, that Sepulveda never changed his story and always said he had nothing to do with it.

When the Reporter-News reached out to Sepulveda for a comment earlier this month, the messages went unanswered.

Anyone suspected of a crime is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

'We did everything imaginable on this case'

While Atkins had worked the initial case under Bell, APD later decided to go back to the start. Atkins was assigned to restart the case — not changing anything but starting from day one to do everything again.

Atkins and his team combed through the evidence, statements and all of the case files to see if anything had been missed.

"We did everything imaginable on this case," Atkins said.

But the case still remained cold. Atkins recalled even flying to Washington, D.C., to film an episode of "America's Most Wanted" related to the case. The team hoped to uncover new tips, but nothing new came from that show.

It was easy to see how much this case weighed on Atkins when he spoke about it, recalling his time with APD.

"We solved like 99% of all the bad cases," he said.

It's rough to talk "about the one you didn't solve," he said, adding sadly, "It's still with me."

'This case went crazy'

As the case went cold, news outlets continued to keep it at the forefront of the media.

"This case went crazy," Atkins said.

In the background, he and Bell never lost hope. They interviewed Sepulveda two more times in the following years, once near his Army base in San Antonio and once in Washington state.

Atkins said through the years, Sepulveda's story never changed with him saying he "100% percent had nothing to do with it."

Atkins said, however, that Sepulveda was a "very flat person" who never got emotional with the detectives.

Atkins recalled detectives were never able to get Sepulveda to agree to a polygraph. During his last meeting with him, Atkins asked him to take a polygraph.

Sepulveda calmly unzipped his military jacket pocket, handed him a card and said, "This is my JAG attorney. You will talk to him. I have already set it up. I am not talking to you, and I am not taking a polygraph."

At this point in the interview with the Reporter-News, Atkins said, "Sometimes I hate talking about the guy."

It was easy to see the tiredness in Atkins' face and how much this case has stuck with him over the years.