Grosse Pointe Murder: 'No Way' Father is Guilty, Daughter Says

Victim's daughter says that she believes their father is completely innocent.

ByABC News
February 9, 2012, 4:12 AM

Feb. 9, 2012— -- Jessie Bashara, the daughter of the Michigan man who is a person of interest in the death of his wife, believes her father is innocent, she told "Good Morning America" today.

The father and daughter spoke with "GMA" about their theories in the case.

"I just know how my mom felt about him, and the way they looked at each other … all of their disagreements were worked out by talking, communicating. And they were each other's equals," Jessie Bashara said in the exclusive interview. "There was never any even hint towards violence, or anything like that. It was completely a loving relationship.

"Without a doubt in my mind, I know that he did not do it," she added. "There's no way. No fight ever. Just -- absolutely not."

Investigators were in and out of the home of Bob Bashara, 54, Wednesday in the affluent community of Grosse Pointe, Mich., looking for evidence in connection with the murder of his wife Jane Bashara, a Detroit marketing executive who was found strangled in the back of her car two weeks ago.

In his first network interview, Bob Bashara, who held hands with his daughter while speaking with "Good Morning America," said that he had no reason to kill his wife of 26 years.

"We had a very good, open relationship," he told "GMA." "I'm frightened about this. To know that I could spend the rest of my life in jail for a crime I didn't commit is a very scary thing."

An unusual twist in the investigation into Jane Bashara's murder came on the day of the woman's memorial service last week, when Joe Gentz, a 48-year-old man who had done work for Bashara, walked into the Grosse Pointe Park police station and confessed to being Bashara's accomplice in the woman's murder.

Sources said that Gentz's story was reportedly at times shifting and inconsistent as he told police that he was confessing because he feared that the blame for the murder would fall entirely on him.

Gentz lived in an apartment in the St. Clair Shores suburb of Detroit for several months, a home which Bashara says he helped that man, who he says he met in October, rent out.

Bashara has admitted that he and Gentz had a dispute over a $600 bill, with Gentz claiming he was owed money, but Bashara maintains that he had no involvement with the man in the death of his wife.

One story Gentz is reportedly telling police is that Bashara forced him to kill Jane Bashara at gunpoint, saying he would kill Gentz if he didn't kill her.

On Wednesday reporters chased after Gentz, who sources tell ABC News has the I.Q. of a third grader, as he appeared in court in the morning for an unrelated custody hearing involving his own young daughter.

Bashara maintains that he does not own a firearm and that the allegations are "a sick assessment" that "shows how deranged he is." He told "GMA" that he thinks Gentz is guilty of killing his wife.

"I do believe he's the one that did it. He wanted more money from me. He badgered me. And yes, I do believe he's capable of it," Bashara said.

Bashara's attorney believes Gentz possibly showed up at the Bashara home demanding to be paid for money he believed he was owed, but when Jane answered the door, the situation became violent. Police sources told WXYZ that Jane Bashara, whose body was found wearing her house slippers, was murdered in her home, not in her car.