Teens accused in murder-for-hire plot that killed father

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas -- (KXAN) -- The son of a prominent Austin jeweler has been arrested and charged with hiring someone to murder his parents. The man's girlfriend was also arrested and faces the same charge.

Nicolas Patrick Shaughnessy, 19, and Jaclyn Alexa Edison, 19, were each booked Tuesday evening into the Travis County Jail on one charge of soliciting to commit capital murder. They are accused of hiring someone to kill Theodore Shaughnessy, the longtime owner of Gallerie Jewelers in central Austin.

Shaughnessy, 55, was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds in his southwest Travis County home on March 2.

His wife -- the suspect's mother -- called 911 around 4:45 a.m. that morning to report a home intruder and that shots had been fired inside her home off Oliver Drive, near US 290 and Circle Drive. Investigators said one or more intruders forced their way into the home, and evidence at the scene led them to believe an intruder might have been injured.

The Travis County Sheriff's Office reported that Nicolas Shaughnessy and Jaclyn Edison were still at large Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. but that they were following new leads. Both were booked into the Travis County Jail less than 90 minutes later around 7:20 p.m.

Shaughnessy is being held on a $3 million cash bond. Edison is being held on a $1 million cash bond.

Video taken by KXAN at the crime scene in March showed Nicolas Shaughnessy's hands being photographed by investigators.

Family friends who did not want to speak on camera told KXAN's Brittany Glas they were shocked to hear of Tuesday's developments, with one saying he "never saw anything but love in that family."

In an April 27 post on the Gallerie Jewelers Facebook page, it was announced that the store would return to its normal hours starting May 1. "We are happy to announce that Nicolas, Ted's son, will be carrying on his legacy here at Gallerie," the post says.