Behind The Scenes: What The Camera Missed

In 2016, an episode of 20/20 titled What the Camera Didn't See examined the 2011 murder of Nique Leili, a 44-year-old woman from Georgia. Nique's husband, Matt Leili, worked in the security system business and had installed an extensive system of cameras and audio recorders in their home. Despite this, footage from the night of Nique's disappearance was found to be missing, and authorities built a case against Matt, eventually convicting him of murder. The episode delves into the details of the case, including the couple's troubled relationship, the investigation, and the role of technology in uncovering the truth.

Nique Leili's disappearance and murder

Nique Leili, also known as Dominique Leili, was a 44-year-old woman from Lawrenceville, Georgia, who disappeared from her home in July 2011. Nique was last seen on the night of July 8, 2011, on her family's surveillance cameras going out for a smoke before bed. The next day, she was gone.

Nique's husband, Matt Leili, reported her missing two days later on July 11, claiming that she had intentionally left their home and their two young daughters. However, when Nique's nude body was found in the woods near her home on July 16, suspicion turned to Matt.

Matt worked in the security system business and had installed an elaborate system of 21 surveillance cameras and audio recorders in his own home. He claimed that he did this because he was worried about Nique's mental health and wanted to keep an eye on her. However, Nique's family and her daughter from a previous marriage, Alex Peters, believed that Matt was obsessed with controlling and tracking Nique's every move. They also alleged that he was verbally and physically abusive towards her, which was later confirmed by the numerous recordings found by investigators.

On the night of Nique's disappearance, Matt claimed that they had gone to dinner and a movie but got into an argument on the way home. He said he slept in his office and that when he woke up, Nique was gone, taking only her toothbrush. However, investigators discovered that the surveillance footage from the hours Nique went missing had been mysteriously deleted.

Despite the missing footage, authorities built a case against Matt, and he was eventually convicted of Nique's murder in February 2016. A jury found him guilty of malice murder and felony murder, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

While Nique's family believes that justice was served, the exact cause of her death remains a mystery, as the medical examiner was unable to determine the manner of death. Although there were high levels of GHB, the date rape drug, in her system, there were no marks or signs of injury on her body.

Matt Leili's suspicious behaviour

Leili worked in the security system business and had installed an extensive system of 21 cameras and audio recording devices in his family home. He used these devices to monitor his wife's every move, and the couple's frequent arguments were captured on over 500,000 audio recordings. On the night of Nique's disappearance, Leili claimed that the surveillance footage was mysteriously deleted. However, investigators later discovered that the footage had been deliberately deleted, and this, along with other suspicious behaviour, led to Leili being convicted of his wife's murder.

Leili's suspicious behaviour included his lack of concern and action after his wife's disappearance. He waited two days before reporting her missing and initially refused to call the police, saying he didn't want the attention. Despite claiming that his wife had mental health issues and had left their home voluntarily, Leili quickly filed for divorce and moved to Vermont with his two daughters, cutting off all communication with Nique's family.

Leili's obsession with monitoring his wife's movements and their frequent arguments over sex, money, and his controlling behaviour also raised suspicions. Additionally, Nique had called 911 in June 2011, saying that her husband wouldn't let her leave the house. When Nique's body was found, it was discovered that she had high levels of GHB, the date rape drug, in her system, further increasing suspicions about Leili's involvement in her death.

The deleted surveillance footage

Matt Leili, the husband of Nique Leili, worked in the security system business and had installed 21 surveillance cameras and audio recorders throughout their house. On the night of July 8, 2011, Nique Leili was last seen on the family's surveillance cameras going out for a smoke before bed. The next day, she was gone.

Matt Leili reported his wife missing two days later, on July 11, 2011. He told police that they had gone to dinner and a movie the night before she went missing, but they got into an argument on the way home. He claimed that his wife had been mentally unstable and suggested that she might have just walked away from her life. This statement was rejected by Nique's family.

Authorities later discovered that the surveillance footage from the hours that Nique went missing had been mysteriously deleted. Matt Leili told police he believed Nique may have pulled the plug for the cameras on her way out. However, Gwinnett Police forensics detective Chris Ford found evidence that the security camera did record video from the hours when Nique Leili had left or been taken from the house, but someone had deleted it.

Using this as evidence, the police finally arrested Matt Leili on March 5, 2015, and charged him with the murder of his wife. The prosecution claimed that Matt Leili used his tech expertise to deliberately delete the footage of the day his wife went missing.

At the trial, prosecutor Lisa Jones presented evidence that videos from the surveillance cameras were deliberately and methodically deleted, beginning the very morning Nique Leili went missing. The prosecution alleged that Matt Leili had drugged his wife with GHB and then asphyxiated her after sexual intercourse. The jury found Matt Leili guilty of malice murder and felony murder, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Nique Leili's family's suspicions

Nique Leili's family has always suspected her husband, Matt Leili, of being responsible for her death. Their suspicions were confirmed when a jury found him guilty of her murder in 2016, four years after her disappearance.

Nique's sister, Amy Robinson, told "20/20" that she had " [no] idea what she saw in him". Nique's daughter from a previous marriage, Alex Peters, also expressed her suspicions of Matt, stating that she moved out of the family home at 16 because she "didn't like Matt and the cameras made her uneasy".

Matt's behaviour after Nique's disappearance further fuelled the family's suspicions. He waited two days to file a missing person's report and refused to call the police, saying he didn't want to be on the news. Just two days after reporting her missing, he filed for divorce, claiming that Nique had "deserted" her family. He also skipped her memorial and funeral and stopped talking to the police.

The family's suspicions were confirmed when it was discovered that Matt had deliberately deleted surveillance footage from the night of Nique's disappearance. He was later arrested and charged with her murder.

The investigation and conviction

On July 9, 2011, Nique Leili, 44, vanished without a trace from her home in Gwinnett County, Georgia. Her husband, Matt Leili, reported her missing two days later. On July 16, 2011, Nique's body was found in the woods near her home. An autopsy revealed that she had died around the time Matt said she went missing, and that there were high levels of GHB, the date rape drug, in her system. The cause of her death was never determined, and her body showed no signs of injury.

Matt Leili worked in the security system business and had installed 21 surveillance cameras and audio recording devices in the family home. He claimed this was because he was worried about his wife's mental health and wanted to capture their fights. However, Nique's family said that Matt was obsessed with tracking her every move, and that their marriage was crumbling. In the hours that Nique went missing, none of the 21 cameras captured any footage, and it was later discovered that the footage had been deleted.

Despite suspicions falling on Matt, the police initially determined that there was not enough evidence to charge him. However, Gwinnett County sergeant John Richer remained devoted to the case and in 2015, he ordered a review of Matt's computer files using new technology. This review revealed that the security camera had recorded video during the hours of Nique's disappearance, but that the footage had been deleted.

On March 5, 2015, Matt Leili was arrested and charged with his wife's murder. At the trial, prosecutor Lisa Jones presented evidence that the surveillance camera footage had been deliberately and methodically deleted, beginning the morning Nique went missing. The prosecution's theory was that Matt had drugged his wife with GHB, had sex with her, and then asphyxiated her by sitting on her or strangling her.

The jury found Matt Leili guilty of malice murder and felony murder, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

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