“I’ll Kill for You”. The Story of Robert Schwartz’s Murder
Type of criminal activity: murder, conspiracy to commit murder
Who: Kyle Hulbert
Victims: 1
Today, we’re going to talk about the truly shocking murder of Robert Schwartz. He was known in the U.S. as a scientist in biometrics and DNA research. On top of that, he was a father of three and a law-abiding citizen.
On Monday, December 10, 2001, Schwartz didn’t show up for work, which was really unlike him. He lived alone after his wife passed away from cancer. So when his coworkers couldn’t reach him, they called his neighbors.
His body was found face down in a small log farmhouse. He had between 30 to 45 stab wounds (the number varies depending on the source). Detectives noticed that the wounds were made with something similar to a knife, but not exactly. They also found a symbol cut into the skin on the back of his head — it was an “X.”
A young man named Kyle Hulbert had gone to Robert’s house with two of his friends. He stabbed the scientist with a two-foot-long sword while his friends waited in the car. Sadly, Robert Schwartz knew his killer — Kyle was a friend of his daughter, Clara.
When Robert opened the door, Kyle asked if Clara was home and then went inside, pretending to use the bathroom. Clara wasn’t there. Kyle accused Robert of being too strict and harsh toward his daughter. Later, Kyle claimed that he saw guilt in Robert’s eyes, which he took as an admission. A fight broke out, during which Kyle stabbed Robert over 30 times with the sword.
In his confession to the police, Kyle insisted that he was saving Clara. He signed his confession as “The Demon” and apologized to the Schwartz family.
But this isn’t just a case of a guy going crazy and killing an old scientist for his own reasons. The story is much sadder. Robert’s daughter, Clara Schwartz, had been looking for someone to kill her dad for months. She told her friends how much she wanted him dead. Before meeting Kyle, she even asked another friend to kill her father, but that guy refused.
Many of Clara’s friends and acquaintances confirmed that she was obsessed with the idea and talked about it a lot. She met Kyle Hulbert at a Renaissance festival in Crownsville, Maryland, and managed to convince him to do this “noble deed” for a “damsel in distress.” They developed a close relationship, which made him feel like he was her protector, almost like a brother to a sister.
The night before the murder, Clara gave Kyle a $60 check, gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints, a hat to prevent any hair from falling at the crime scene, and rags to clean up other evidence.
Kyle’s trial was scheduled for March 17, 2003, at the Loudoun County Circuit Court. In his defense, he said, “I always told Clara I would protect her. I couldn’t kill Mr. Schwartz without a good reason. If I wasn’t defending myself or someone I loved, I wouldn’t have done it.”
On March 10, 2003, just a week before the trial, Kyle stood in court and confessed to the murder during a 15-minute hearing. He decided that it was right to confess instead of going through with the trial. Expressing regret for what he did and for ever meeting Clara Schwartz, he said that she had manipulated him into committing the murder. “I allowed myself to be poisoned,” The Washington Post quoted him as saying. “Not a day goes by that I don’t think about what I did.”
Kyle Hulbert was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Clara Schwartz was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to 48 years in prison. She is currently serving time at the Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women near Troy, Virginia, and has a projected release date of November 2, 2043.
Remember, I mentioned earlier that two friends waited for Kyle in the car? They couldn’t escape justice either. Michael Pfohl, the car owner, was sentenced to 18 years in prison. His friend, Katherine Inglis, took a plea deal, providing lots of information about the case, and ended up serving just 1 year for conspiracy to commit murder.
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