Steven Pieper's friends go undercover -- help detectives profile case

Steven Pieper, the alleged murder suspect in the Jenni-Lyn Watson case in Onondaga County had three friends who made it their mission to aid police in profiling the boyfriend who would eventually be arrested, according to an exclusive report from Syracuse.com and John O'Brien of The Post-Standard.

Jeff Mancuso, Alan Jones and Bryan Holleran had one advantage the police detectives in Onondaga County didn't have when it came to the Jenni-Lyn Watson murder case: access to the suspect on a regular--and more intimate--basis.

Onondaga County detective steps out of the LE box successfully

The Onondaga County detective who allowed the boys to feed him information about Steven Pieper in the days following Jenni-Lyn's disappearance is to be commended for his willingness to use what is sometimes considered a taboo procedure: non-mandated officers in an investigation.

Steven Pieper's friends don't say they were asked to keep their friend under watchful eye; they say that his behavior following her disappearance is what prompted their interest and suspicions. But they felt they should contact police and give them frequent updates once they did get suspicious. And the detective who interacted with them didn't attempt to tell them they shouldn't, thankfully.

Steven Pieper's friends suspicious

On the Sunday following Jenni-Lyn Watson's disappearance the Friday following the Thanksgiving holiday, the three friends felt they had heard enough to warrant putting Steven Pieper on the spot, Syracuse.com reported. Here's what followed:

Steven drove his three friends to Wegmans, a place they frequented which offered snacks through the later evening hours.

Bryan Hollerman took the lead, asking Pieper to retell the events on the day Jenni-Lyn Watson disappeared and what happened when Pieper met with her earlier that day, as he had already told investigators that he had.

"Why didn't you find out who this Jeff kid was, what he was doing, anything at all?" Hollerman said.

Steven Pieper had told his friends that upon going to or leaving Jenni's home he had seen a black truck with a man in it and the man was waiting to talk to Jenni, according to Syracuse.com.

Pieper wasn't known for being willing to suffer anyone else attempting to make a move on his girl and, in fact, had made it clear he would kill anyone who tried to interfere, Syracuse and the Post-Standard reported.

Syracuse reported that Jones and Mancuso told them Steven Pieper said he would "kill" the very next person who attempted to keep him and Jenni-Lyn separated.

So nonchalantly leaving his girlfriends home when an unknown man was lurking around in a black truck would have been the height of improbability for Steven M. Pieper. His friends knew it.

To top that off, Steven had told them that the day he met with Jenni-Lyn she was concerned about an alleged stalker named Jeff, who attended Mercyhurst.

Hollerman's question about why Pieper didn't deal with the alleged stalker parked near Jenni-Lyn's home was a result of that admission.

Jeff Mancuso lucky he wasn't the victim

Steven Pieper's friend Jeff Mancuso should count himself lucky he wasn't Steven's alleged victim instead, as he basically got the conflict rolling that would eventually see Steven allegedly murder Jenni-Lyn.

The news site Syracuse reported that Jeff Mancuso wrote Jenni-Lyn via Facebook, telling her Steven Pieper had cheated on her and she should stay away from him. That's when Pieper allegedly threatened to kill the next person who interfered in his relationship with Jenni-Lyn.

Syracuse reported that Steven told his friends he was going to take Friday following Thanksgiving off from work at Pep Boys and spend the day with Jenni-Lyn, and that he didn't want to be interrupted by anyone. He specifically told them "no calls."

But Steven and Jenni-Lyn has already talked about the "cheating" earlier in the week and Jenni-Lyn's response to friends--and Steven Pieper--made it clear she was through.

Jenni-Lyn began breaking it off a month earlier

Syracuse reported that Alan Jones knew Steven Pieper would get no where with Jenni-Lyn about his infidelity, since Jenni-Lyn has already told friends she had begun to end the relationship a month earlier.

Alan Jones was the Steven Pieper friend to introduce the alleged fact that Steven had begun taking anabolic steroids, too. Telling the Post-Standard, Syracuse reported, that he felt Pieper's explosion following talk about Jenni-Lyn might have been the result of "roid rage," a common occurrence with heavy steroid use.

Steven Pieper's friends didn't set out to trap or betray their friend after Jenni-Lyn's disappearance, but they did feel the need to aid the investigation once it became apparent that their friend was being deceitful and acting suspiciously.

That had to be a hard thing for three guys to do, since male friendships can be as "bonding" as female ones. But it is to their credit that they felt the greater importance was helping Jenni-Lyn be found and her family to gain some measure of closure, later.

Steven Pieper's friends Alan Jones, Bryan Holleran and Jeff Mancuso basically went undercover on the Jenni-Lyn Watson case, helping Onondaga County Sheriff's Office eventually gain the information they needed in order to make an arrest in the case. And the boys aren't even mandated, go figure.