Disclaimer: This article conatins mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
Renee Pagel‘s murder and the case against her killer, Michael Pagel, will air on Oxygen’s Dateline: Unforgettable. The upcoming episode, titled “Window of Opportunity,” premieres on the network this Thursday, August 8, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET. The official synopsis states, “A bombshell more than a decade after the crime reignites the investigation into the death of Sarah Pagel’s mother; Andrea Canning looks back at her emotional interview with Sarah, whose mom touched so many lives.”
Detectives took over 13 years to bring Renee Pagel’s killer to justice after her violent murder in 2006. Michael Pagel, now serving a lengthy sentence in prison, stabbed Renee more than 50 times weeks after losing a custody battle. The latter’s family found her in a grisly crime scene on August 5 in the bedroom of her Michigan home. At the time, the single mother-of-three was on bedrest after undergoing major surgery.
Michael Pagel was a suspect in Renee’s murder from the start, but no arrests were made due to a lack of evidence. However, in 2019, Michael’s brother made a shocking confession about the crime he had committed. Michael pleaded guilty the following year.
Where is Renee Pagel’s killer Michael Pagel now?
Renee Pagel’s killer, Michael Pagel, is now serving his sentence in the Saginaw Correctional Facility, per the Michigan Department of Corrections. He received a prison sentence of 25 to 50 years prison sentence after accepting a second-degree murder plea deal. According to the prison records, his term began in 2020, and his earliest possible release date is February 5, 2045. The convict’s maximum discharge date is February 5, 2070.
Oxygen reported that in 2006, seven weeks before Renee Pagel’s murder, she went up against Michael in a contentious custody battle. He sought the custody of their children, property, and alimony of $2000 every month from Renee. But, a judge sided with the latter and asked the ex-husband to pay alimony instead. Then, five days before the murder, Renee underwent surgery to donate a kidney to someone in need.
At first, authorities deduced from the grisly crime scene that Renee Pagel’s killer murdered her in a crime of passion. They soon learned about Renee and her ex-husband Michael Pagel’s divorce and bitter legal battles. However, Michael refused to talk to law enforcement. Despite their suspicions, detectives started looking at other possible angles. They discovered that Michael’s brother Charles also had a strained relationship with the victim. Charles had a solid alibi, and his family corroborated his claims.
Slowly, Renee Pagel’s murder case went cold due to a lack of evidence, and 13 years later, Michael surfaced as the killer. In November 2019, Michael Pagel’s brother Charles made a shocking confession, admitting that he witnessed his brother dispose of the murder weapon. Per Charles’ story, he and Michael were drinking near a river in 2011 when he took out a knife from a bag that was wrapped in a cloth. Showing the murder weapon, Michael told Charles, “This is how I finalized my divorce.”
Charles claimed he responded angrily after Michael allegedly opened up to him about Renee Pagel’s murder. Seeing his reaction, Michael threw the knife into the river, where authorities later found it. They believed the weapon was similar to the kind that forensic experts had claimed Renee’s killer used. The investigation finally ended with Michael’s arrest nearly fourteen years later.
WOODTV reported that in May 2020, Michael Pagel pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Renee’s killing. Nonetheless, he alleged in court that he had hired his brother Charles to commit the crime. Detectives further looked into his claims but did not find any evidence that could link his brother to the crime.
Dateline: Unforgettable’s episode on Renee Pagel’s murder case airs on Oxygen this Thursday.
