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Kepner Stepbrother Locked Up, Teen Kills Family With Adult Boyfriend & Alabama House of Horrors — Transcript

by Annie Elise · 8,499 words · 1,310 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00The 16-year-old's mother was one of the
0:02three victims. [music]
0:03Both suspects could now face the death
0:05penalty.
0:07>> A woman has been charged in connection
0:08[music] to her 16-year-old daughter's
0:10death. They say she fueled the girl's
0:12alcoholism.
0:13>> Authorities say the gruesome details are
0:15centered around an underground bunker in
0:17Bibb County.
0:20>> Police in Limpopo are investigating the
0:22death of Caroline van [music] Rensburg
0:24and a family financial manager. But all
0:26of this changed in a major way tonight
0:29because Timothy Watson is now reportedly
0:31in the Citrus County Jail in Florida.
0:42>> Hey true crime besties, welcome back to
0:44an all new episode of Serialously.
1:05Hello, hello, hello, and welcome back to
1:08an all new episode of Serialously with
1:10me, your host, Annie Elise, also your
1:13true crime bestie. And today is
1:15Thursday, which means headline
1:17highlights. And we have a lot to talk
1:20about today. Not only new cases, but a
1:22very happy update that I am excited to
1:25share with you.
1:26You know the drill though, before we get
1:28into everything, I have to let you know
1:30what we do here. Mondays are our deep
1:32dives where we go into one singular
1:34case, go down the rabbit hole, explain
1:37everything, the thoughts, the theories,
1:39the facts, the speculation. And this
1:41week, in case you missed it, we did a
1:43mega deep dive into the Reagan Hancock
1:45and Taylor Parker case. Now, if those
1:48names aren't familiar, let me just say
1:50you probably
1:51saw the documentary Maternal Instinct on
1:54your Netflix feed this weekend.
1:55Everybody's been talking about it on
1:57social media as well, but there was so
1:59much more that was not able to be
2:01included, which we've talked about that
2:03before, right? In 90 minutes, how can
2:05you possibly include everything? So, I
2:07put out a 2 and 1/2 hour episode that
2:09included not only all the details, but a
2:11lot of the footage, the interviews, the
2:13interrogation, things that we were able
2:15to source through a workaround
2:17internally that Netflix wasn't able to
2:19get, other creators haven't been able to
2:21get. And so, if you want like the full
2:23comprehensive deep dive like you know we
2:26like to do, go listen to it now. Uh so,
2:29let's get into headline highlights and
2:30I'm really really excited because
2:32today's guest is super special to me.
2:36She is royal, she's an heiress, and her
2:39name is Amy Kolehmainen.
2:41>> Wow. If only those things were true, but
2:44>> I know. [laughter]
2:44>> I as you were going, I'm like, who who
2:46did we have on today?
2:47>> I was trying to figure out the tee up
2:49and like I'm running out of things since
2:50it's happening every week, but I need to
2:51like start jotting down ideas. Which if
2:53any of you guys have ideas,
2:55>> I would like your heartfelt sentiments
2:56towards me.
2:57>> I think you're an heiress. I think
2:59you're royal.
3:01>> Yeah. Yeah. All those things.
3:04>> Younger.
3:04>> Okay, not that. Obviously not that. But
3:06my So, please welcome to the show my
3:08older sister, Amy Kolehmainen.
3:11>> [laughter]
3:12>> And wiser.
3:13At times.
3:14>> At times. We I want to start with this
3:15update which I think is going to make
3:17you incredibly happy
3:19>> as well as so many of you listeners
3:22because we have a very significant
3:23update in the case of Anna Kempner. Now,
3:26you know this whole story. We have been
3:28following it very closely for months
3:30now.
3:31Actually, almost it will be Will it be a
3:32year this fall?
3:33>> It's been a long time.
3:34>> Wow. So, if you are forgetting, Anna
3:37Kempner was an 18-year-old girl who
3:39unfortunately was not only
3:42by her 16-year-old stepbrother, but also
3:44murdered while on a family cruise. And
3:47then he stuffed her body under the bed,
3:49covered her with life jackets, and
3:51pretended as though nothing happened.
3:54So, early on it was apparent that he was
3:56the one who did this, allegedly I'll
3:59say,
4:00but he wasn't kept in custody and nobody
4:03understood why. And one of the big
4:05arguments I guess that I've had and I
4:07know you have felt this as well is that
4:09he clearly is a danger to society. She
4:12had outcried to her boyfriend before. He
4:14had seen things on FaceTime where he had
4:15tried to creep into her room and so
4:17clearly this guy is a danger to society
4:20being out there. He's a sexual predator.
4:22He's a deviant. Like why is he not being
4:23held in custody? But now we have can
4:27happily announce that not only is
4:30Timothy currently facing charges for the
4:31murder and aggravated
4:34in relation to Anna's death, but he is
4:36now officially in custody.
4:38>> Finally.
4:39>> Finally. Can I get a little honestly
4:41amen?
4:42>> The group chat was happy last night.
4:44>> I know. Now, up until this point he had
4:46been living with a relative. He was also
4:48being monitored electronically and had
4:50to follow a list of court-ordered
4:52conditions while everything made its way
4:54through the court system because
4:55remember this is also a federal case
4:57because this happened on the water, but
4:59that arrangement is officially over. So,
5:02a federal judge has now ordered that
5:03Timothy be detained ahead of his trial
5:05which is not scheduled to begin until
5:07September 8th. So, he will be in custody
5:10for the next few months. Now,
5:12prosecutors have been asking for this
5:14arguing that Timothy shouldn't be out on
5:16release while facing these charges being
5:18that they are so serious. However, his
5:20defense team had pushed back saying that
5:22he's been cooperative throughout the
5:23investigation and that he hasn't caused
5:25any issues or hurt anyone while he was
5:28out. But here's what is interesting and
5:31I'll be curious to know what you think
5:33about this because I have my own kind of
5:34interpretation of this.
5:36We still don't know exactly what led the
5:38judge to make this decision. The order
5:40explaining why Timothy's release was
5:42revoked is currently sealed so those
5:45details have not been made public, but I
5:47do think that this is really telling
5:49because the judge said, quote, "The
5:51government has established by clear and
5:53convincing evidence that no condition or
5:56combination of conditions of release
5:58will reasonably assure the safety of the
6:00community going forward." He also stated
6:03that he presents a danger to himself and
6:06to others, which I mean, no surprise, a
6:08danger to to others, he's a sexual
6:10predator in my opinion, but I thought
6:12the danger to himself is interesting
6:14because one of the things we talked
6:16about a few weeks ago when we were
6:17covering this is like he has the
6:18potential to not only flee, to do
6:20whatever, but like to pull a Brian
6:22Laundrie and take the cowardly way out
6:24knowing that he's facing adult charges
6:26and serious,
6:28you know, time in jail.
6:30>> Well, we know he had a big psychotic
6:32episode shortly after the incident on
6:34the cruise ship and that was reported
6:36and so as all of these consequences are
6:38coming down on him and now this reality
6:40is setting in, perhaps he's been showing
6:43some sort of behavior that has led them
6:45to this or there's been more accounts
6:46from family.
6:47>> Well, let me tell you this next little
6:49statement. The judge also stated that
6:52because of the allegations, it suggests,
6:54quote, "a level of psychopathy and lack
6:56of remorse that by itself raises a
6:58serious concern that the defendant can
7:00snap at any time despite the
7:02well-meaning and serious efforts of his
7:04caretakers to make sure that it doesn't
7:06happen." Basically saying like this guy
7:08has shown no remorse, he's a clear
7:09psychopath, caretakers have been trying
7:12to like manage things and he still is
7:14not I guess like exhibiting the
7:16behaviors that they wish that they were
7:18seeing.
7:19>> think about how this whole thing
7:20started. They're on a family vacation
7:22with their entire family present and you
7:26we still don't know exactly what
7:27happened, but something some catalyst
7:30created the situation where he attacked
7:32her. We don't know what that is, so
7:34maybe there's more light on that.
7:36>> to do it while his family's on the
7:37cruise ship and like they're going to
7:39discover this. that
7:40>> of says like despite the efforts of his
7:42caretakers and however much support he
7:44has around him, he's still a menace to
7:46society.
7:47>> Yeah. That You know what? Dennis the
7:48Menace. Amen. Uh 100%
7:51because think about it, too. And again,
7:53to your point, we don't know the
7:54catalyst, but we do now know that she
7:56did have sexual interactions with
7:57somebody else on that cruise ship. So,
7:59was that what pushed him over because he
8:01felt like she belonged to him or that he
8:04was entitled somehow. I mean, we'll find
8:06out.
8:07>> from anybody from the family or I guess
8:10we haven't heard from anybody about on
8:11the cruise that leading up to the night
8:13there had been any sort of arguments or
8:15any kind of weird behavior. So, again,
8:17there was some sort of incident or
8:20emotion that struck him to then attack
8:22her, which is
8:24He's definitely someone that you can't
8:26I mean, he's
8:28>> sick.
8:28>> card.
8:29>> Yeah, which you guys know we're going to
8:30this trial. So, we will be keeping you
8:32updated. Like I said, most of it is
8:34still under seal because it involves a
8:36minor and because it's federal case,
8:38everything that rolls in with that. But,
8:40what we do know is that good old Timothy
8:42was ordered to report to the federal
8:44courthouse in Tampa where he was then
8:45taken into custody by US Marshal
8:47Service. So, he is officially locked up
8:50until September.
8:51>> I would imagine his family is very
8:54>> relieved.
8:54>> relieved and like can sleep well now.
8:56>> know, though. He was staying with
8:57relatives. I feel like some people were
8:59kind of like not covering for him, but
9:01like And I get it. It's difficult when
9:02it's family, but yeah, sayonara.
9:05>> Yeah.
9:05>> All right.
9:06>> Well, this next case is extremely
9:08heartbreaking. It's one of the more sad
9:11cases we've covered in a while. This one
9:13took place back on March 9th when police
9:15were called to a home in Colorado after
9:17a 16-year-old girl named Grace Ryan was
9:20found unresponsive in a bathroom. And
9:23tragically, she was pronounced dead at
9:25the scene. As investigators began
9:27looking into what happened, they said
9:29they uncovered months of text messages
9:32that painted a really troubling picture
9:34of what her life was inside the home
9:36that she lived in with both of her
9:37parents. According to court documents,
9:39preliminary autopsy findings showed that
9:41Grace had what medical professionals
9:43said was an abnormally fatty liver for
9:45someone her age, and her cause of death
9:47was ultimately determined to be
9:49aspiration pneumonia related to chronic
9:52alcohol use at just 16 years old. So,
9:55let me just walk that back real quickly.
9:57The doctors found that her liver was
9:59abnormally fatty due to alcohol abuse at
10:03a very young age, 16 years old.
10:05>> So, when detectives started searching
10:07through the phones belonging to Grace
10:08and her mother, 55-year-old Gretchen
10:11Ryan, they say they found evidence that
10:13the two had been drinking alcohol and
10:15smoking marijuana together almost every
10:17single day dating back to September
10:202025.
10:21>> I'm sorry. What mom is just smoking weed
10:25and drinking with their 16-year-old
10:26daughter? I'll tell you who.
10:27>> I would the Sheryl
10:28>> [laughter]
10:29>> that I mean, immediately I'm like,
10:31what's going on?
10:32>> 100% What Yeah, like how you're a
10:33parent, you're not a friend.
10:35>> No.
10:35>> Yeah.
10:36>> And police also alleged that Gretchen
10:39regularly had alcohol delivered to the
10:41home and even took steps to hide it from
10:44the daughter's father who lived in the
10:46basement, which I have other questions
10:48about that as well.
10:48>> of questions. Why was the father living
10:50in the basement? Was she DoorDashing the
10:53alcohol? I guess so. So, okay, sorry.
10:55I'm I have so many thoughts and you'll
10:56probably answer them. Keep going.
10:58>> Well, and I'm like, DoorDash like they
10:59still come to the door. You're living in
11:01the basement. Like, are you just
11:03>> But also like did she really feel like
11:05the daughter was her friend? Was she
11:06lonely? I don't
11:07Continue.
11:08>> Well,
11:09the investigators made another shocking
11:11discovery because they found 173
11:15empty bottles hidden underneath Grace's
11:17bed and inside her closet, including
11:19multiple bottles of vodka and other hard
11:22liquor.
11:23>> Like full-size bottles or mini bottles?
11:24Not that it makes a huge difference, but
11:26>> 173 empty alcohol bottles, which is a
11:29lot of alcohol. And now,
11:30>> I mean, no offense, but if you're trying
11:32to hide it, throw it away.
11:33>> Well, throw it away, but also, I'm
11:35that's I'm thinking like a 16-year-old
11:37girl, how do you hide 173
11:40lb? I mean, just this space alone that
11:42it takes up, the smell.
11:43>> Oh, God, ew.
11:45>> And what makes this case even more
11:47heartbreaking is that according to
11:49investigators, Grace told her mom over
11:52and over again that she was seriously
11:54sick and that something was wrong.
11:56>> And in the months leading up to her
11:57death,
11:58>> she said that she had been vomiting up
12:00blood, having difficulty eating, trouble
12:02walking, and at one point was even
12:04wearing an adult diaper. She had also
12:07told her mom repeatedly that she felt
12:09like she was afraid she might die. So,
12:11obviously, this girl is very, very sick
12:14and suffering from alcohol abuse
12:16>> Yeah.
12:17>> at a very extreme rate. I mean, you're
12:20saying thinking this they're saying this
12:22dates back to September. Who knows if it
12:23went back earlier, but that's not that
12:26long ago to have these extreme
12:28>> That's a lot of alcohol to
12:30>> be wearing an adult diaper, confiding in
12:32her mom she thinks she's going to die,
12:33and her mom not doing any What the
12:35>> Okay.
12:36>> So, the messages included in the
12:38affidavit are extremely difficult to
12:40read, and here's why. Just days before
12:43her death, she had texted her mom
12:45saying, "If you're going to do this to
12:47me, you need to take me to a hospital."
12:49Then on March 4th, she sent another
12:51message that said, "I'm going to die."
12:53And according to the affidavit, Gretchen
12:55just replied with, "No, you aren't."
12:57>> Mhm.
12:58>> Can you imagine your mom saying that our
12:59mom
13:00>> used to freak out if she heard us like
13:01sniffling on the phone. She wouldn't let
13:03us eat a breath mint.
13:04Or a Jolly Rancher.
13:05>> Yeah.
13:06>> But investigators say that at one point,
13:08Gretchen had realized how serious the
13:10situation had actually become. And in
13:13one text that she sent to her daughter
13:14Grace in January, she wrote, "I'm
13:16committing child and murder. I will go
13:18to prison. So, we have to do something.
13:21It's really bad." And in another
13:23message, she told her daughter, "If you
13:24can't get up to pee, get food or drink,
13:27and puke blood, we aren't going to make
13:29it. We need help. This isn't working.
13:31I'm going to lose you.
13:33>> My mind is blown.
13:35>> I know.
13:35>> Like there was an admission right there,
13:37but so was this like not not
13:39Munchausen's, but you like was this
13:40something where she felt like she
13:41couldn't control herself?
13:43>> Well, investigators say that there was
13:45absolutely no indication of her ever
13:48trying to get help for her daughter, and
13:50Grace herself even started to realize
13:52that she wasn't going to get the help
13:53she needed. On March 3rd, just days
13:55before her death, she texted a friend,
13:57"I don't think she wants to get me the
13:59help, which really scares me. I'm going
14:01to die." So, this is where I felt a
14:04little bit confused cuz I'm thinking she
14:05obviously has access to a phone.
14:07>> Mhm.
14:08>> And she is scared, so why wouldn't you
14:10call 911?
14:12>> Maybe she's just so dependent on her mom
14:13that she felt like her mom really was
14:15going to help her, and maybe she didn't
14:16want to get her mom in trouble. I don't
14:18know.
14:18>> And I also was wondering like is there
14:20an element cuz for me it would be out of
14:22fear. I mean, not fear of getting
14:24caught, but obviously the mom knows
14:25what's going on, but is there an element
14:27of the dad in the basement? That's why
14:30the mom's hiding it. Is that what's
14:31driving them to drink? I'm not sure. And
14:34she also told a friend, "Me and her have
14:36been fighting really badly, and it gets
14:38physical. She could go to prison for 15
14:40years." In regards to her and her mom.
14:43That came just the night before she
14:45died. And according to investigators,
14:47Grace texted her mom from the bathroom
14:50saying she wasn't feeling well at 10:07
14:52p.m. on March 8th. Records show that
14:55Gretchen replied and continued sending
14:56text messages to her daughter afterward,
14:59but none of them were answered. It
15:01wasn't until the next morning around
15:038:15 a.m. that the 911 call was made.
15:06And when detectives interviewed
15:07Gretchen, she tried to say that she
15:09didn't know what happened, and that
15:11Grace must have been getting into her
15:12stuff. But she eventually admitted that
15:15she gave Grace the alcohol, and that she
15:17also drank heavily herself. And
15:19according to the affidavit, she became
15:21emotional and told investigators, "I
15:23can't do this. I'm so upset. I feel like
15:25I killed her."
15:26>> Uh you did.
15:27>> I know. She also reportedly said that
15:30she quote deserved to go to jail.
15:32>> Amen.
15:33>> Gretchen told detectives that Grace had
15:34suffered a seizure the night before she
15:36was found dead and later woke up
15:38vomiting, but Gretchen believed that she
15:40was okay. And when she asked why she
15:42didn't check on her after she stopped
15:44responding to those texts, Gretchen
15:46reportedly said, "I was scared I was
15:47going to find her really sick. And so I
15:50kind of buried my head in the sand and I
15:52went back to bed, which was stupid." As
15:54investigators continued looking into
15:56Grace's home life to find out how all of
15:58this went unnoticed, which was obviously
16:00a lot of our questions, too, they
16:02learned that she had been withdrawn from
16:04public school in the fall of 2025 and
16:06was supposed to be attending classes
16:08online. According to court documents, at
16:10the time she died, she'd only completed
16:12one online semester of ninth grade and
16:14hadn't participated in any of the
16:16activities outside of the home since
16:18then, which obviously is part part of
16:21why probably some of the community
16:22didn't know what was going on, but still
16:24your friend isn't in school anymore,
16:26they're not coming to the activities
16:27that they're supposed to participate in.
16:29You'd hope that somebody would have
16:30taken that a little bit more seriously.
16:32>> Well, that also aligns with if the
16:34drinking started in September 2025,
16:36that's when she was withdrawn from
16:37school. Yeah.
16:38>> So, after a 2-month-long investigation,
16:40authorities arrested Gretchen on May
16:4315th and charged her with one count of
16:46second-degree murder in connection with
16:47her daughter's death. She is currently
16:50being held on a $500,000 cash-only bond.
16:53So, honestly, this whole case is
16:55devastating, and I hope that we'll get a
16:57little bit more answers. Grace was
16:59obviously asking for help over and over
17:02again. Her mom was also worried. So,
17:04again, that just begs the question,
17:07what drove her to start drinking in in
17:09the fall? Like, what was that catalyst
17:12that caused
17:13them to both start doing drugs and
17:16drinking together,
17:18hiding it from their dad, and then
17:19obviously now it got to the point where
17:22she she kind of knew what had happened
17:24and then was in denial about it.
17:26>> if there was like some sort of like
17:27compulsion on her mother's end or like
17:30she's being homeschooled and so she's
17:32like, "Oh yeah, have a drink. You're at
17:33home." And like there there has to be
17:35something mentally deeper here, I would
17:37imagine.
17:38>> So, I had a very very close friend
17:41um
17:42in high school and and when and at the
17:44end of high school
17:45her parents went through a very bad
17:47divorce and her mom became very good
17:50friends with her and they drank a lot.
17:53>> Oh.
17:53>> And it was not the family you would
17:55expect to see that from and it was
17:57actually shocking. And and it reminds me
17:59a lot of this because a lot of us were
18:01kind of saying like, "Hey, what's going
18:02on?" Like they're drinking a lot and
18:04there was noticeably behavior going on
18:06that was not something that would
18:08happen. And I think in that situation it
18:11was that the mother was just going
18:12through something so painful and it was
18:15nice to have a friend there and you're
18:17the cool mom and the kids are coming
18:20around and you feel cool and
18:22>> wants to be have your house be the party
18:24house.
18:25>> And I mean that didn't last long and
18:27thank God nothing tragic happened, but
18:29>> I know.
18:30>> Okay, [clears throat] well this one is a
18:32rough one and this next case is coming
18:34from North Carolina and I have to say it
18:36is really shocking. When I first heard
18:38about it, I knew I needed to research it
18:39because I couldn't make sense of it and
18:42it makes me feel so bad for the girl
18:45involved even though I'm kind of torn
18:47because I think she I mean she is the
18:49one to blame, but I also feel for her a
18:51little bit. So, back on May 7th,
18:53deputies were called to a home in
18:54Fairview, North Carolina for a welfare
18:57check. This was after 41-year-old Travis
18:59Grant hadn't shown up for work for
19:01several days. However, this wasn't the
19:03first time that the authorities had been
19:04asked to check in on the family. In
19:06fact, deputies had already responded to
19:08that same house twice in 2 days before
19:11that. Now, according to the sheriff's
19:13office, welfare checks were requested on
19:15May 5th and again on May 6th. So,
19:17deputies had responded both times, but
19:19they said that they didn't have enough
19:21information or reason to legally force
19:23their way into the home. Then, during
19:25that third welfare check on May 7th,
19:28deputies finally entered the home and
19:30when they did, they made a horrifying
19:31discovery. Inside, they found three
19:34people dead from gunshot wounds. And
19:36investigators believed that these three
19:38people had been deceased for several
19:40days before they were found. The victims
19:42were identified as 41-year-old Travis
19:44Grant, his wife Kimberly, and Travis's
19:4766-year-old mother Sharon. So, as
19:50investigators began piecing together
19:52what had happened, they realized that
19:54someone else was missing from the home
19:56in all of this. Travis and Kimberly's
19:5816-year-old daughter Star. So, they
20:01started searching for Star and it really
20:04didn't take long to find her. Around
20:054:00 a.m. the next morning, officers
20:07located her vehicle in Gatlinburg,
20:10Tennessee and it was parked outside a
20:11Motel 6. Then, later that morning,
20:14authorities entered a hotel room and
20:16they found Star with a 28-year-old man
20:19named Devon Loving. So, investigators
20:22said that they believed that the two of
20:24them had been in Tennessee for quote
20:26more than a few days. Both Star at
20:2816-years-old and 28-year-old Devon were
20:31taken into custody and they were
20:32questioned. And those interviews led to
20:34both of them then being charged in
20:36connection with the murders. During a
20:38press conference later that evening,
20:40authorities announced that Star and
20:42Devon had each been charged with three
20:44counts of first-degree murder and one
20:46count of conspiracy to commit murder.
20:48Devon was also charged with abduction of
20:51a child because, remember, he's 28 and
20:54she is 16. And even though she's only
20:5616, Star is actually being charged as an
20:59adult and both her and Devon were denied
21:02bond. So, as news of the discovery and
21:04the arrest starts spreading, people who
21:06knew this family really struggled to
21:08make sense of what had happened. One of
21:10Star's friends who lived across the
21:12street said that she grew up around the
21:13family, that she spent a lot of time at
21:15their home. She said, quote, she would
21:17take care of me at school. If like
21:19someone was bullying me or something,
21:21she would stand up for me. It's so weird
21:23to expect my neighbor to do all of that.
21:25And it's the one that I grew up with. I
21:27was at their house constantly. She also
21:29described Star's family as kind and
21:31welcoming saying, quote, her family was
21:34great to me. They treated me well. She
21:36was an amazing person to me. And
21:37honestly, that's kind of what makes this
21:39case so difficult to wrap your head
21:40around because the people who knew this
21:42family say that they seemed very normal,
21:45very close, very well-liked. Nothing
21:47about their dynamic seemed like it would
21:49ever lead to something this tragic and
21:52this horrific, especially at the hand of
21:54their own daughter. Now, while the
21:55authorities haven't publicly announced
21:58or established the nature of the
21:59relationship between Star and Devin, and
22:02investigators haven't announced a
22:03motive, I think it is pretty clear what
22:06happened here given little bits and
22:09pieces that we've learned. Because a
22:10relative since these murders has come
22:12forward claiming that Star's parents,
22:14Travis and Kimberly, knew about her
22:1628-year-old, I'm going to just say
22:18boyfriend, Devin, and that they had
22:20concerns about the possible relationship
22:23between the two of them before the
22:24murders. According to Travis and
22:26Kimberly's niece, family members had
22:28learned that Star had allegedly been
22:30communicating with Devin through a
22:31burner phone. He had purchased her this
22:33so that she wouldn't get caught be under
22:35the family plan, they could talk in
22:37secret, and the parents learned about
22:39this.
22:40>> I think we're all still in shock.
22:43>> Brittany Tussy is the Grants' niece.
22:45>> So, as soon as her parents found out
22:47about it, they were like, "No, this is
22:49not happening, and we're putting a
22:51restraining order on him." And before
22:53they were even able to do that, they
22:54killed him.
22:55>> Tussy's convinced the family was angry.
22:57Devin Loving, 28, had become involved
23:00with their 16-year-old daughter.
23:02>> It was a situation where he was
23:04constantly going to her work and and
23:06seeing her. So, the last day that Travis
23:08was at work, he told his boss and
23:09several co-workers that he was going to
23:11put a restraining order out and then he
23:13never showed back up at work. They most
23:15definitely told Star that that's what
23:18they were doing. They ended up taking
23:19the phone from her and then they they
23:21told her that that more than likely that
23:23that's what they were doing and then
23:25that this is how the horrible tragedy
23:28played out.
23:29>> So, as you just heard, he buys her this
23:30burner phone. He's constantly going to
23:33Star's work so that he can see her. This
23:3528-year-old predator who has no business
23:37being with a 16-year-old girl. And when
23:39the parents found out about it, Travis
23:41told Star like, "Hey, you better stop
23:43this relationship, otherwise I'm going
23:45to put a restraining order out on
23:46Devin." And what I found so interesting
23:49about this, and I wonder if your mind is
23:51going there, when I was 17, I was dating
23:54a 26-year-old, which in hindsight
23:56>> That's exactly what I was thinking.
23:58>> life. It was awful. I've shared that
24:00before on here, but like worst mistake I
24:02ever made and like looking back, I'm
24:03like, "What was this sick freak doing?"
24:04But Dad said when he found out about the
24:07relationship that he was going to arrest
24:08him and call the police.
24:10>> me and he said
24:13he was freaking
24:13>> Don't say his name. I know.
24:14>> he was freaking out and he said, "Amy,
24:17I'm going to call the cops and get this
24:19guy arrested." And I said, "Absolutely
24:20not." Which now in hindsight
24:22>> if it were Emmy, immediately.
24:25Like, you don't even need to call the
24:26cops on there. But I said, "You cannot
24:29do that. That is so embarrassing to
24:31Annie and like
24:32>> Yeah.
24:33>> I think I might have even lightly
24:35defended the guy and said like, "I You
24:38don't want to ruin his life. Like, it's
24:40consensual. Like, they both like each
24:42other." Which
24:44obviously I wasn't that old either at
24:46the time. So, it's like
24:47>> Right.
24:48You are the older sister. No, I'm just
24:49kidding.
24:50>> No, I [laughter] know. It's crazy. I
24:51mean, I wasn't making the best
24:52decisions.
24:53Why why Dad came to me for advice, I
24:55have no idea.
24:56>> No, but it totally reminds me of that
24:57because it's not a I mean 17 is older
25:00than 16, but still you're a minor and
25:02like I look back on that all of the time
25:03and like that was a pivotal relationship
25:06in my life in a lot of negative ways.
25:08And so I thought about that and like how
25:10this guy is just like praying on her
25:12probably she's probably like, "Oh my
25:13god, this older guy is so into me. My
25:15parents are the ones who are getting in
25:16the way of this. We're in love." And
25:17like you can't rationalize what the
25:20reality truly is and how awful and
25:22dangerous it it really is. So anyway
25:25>> But like what did he say to convince her
25:27that this was the right plan?
25:29>> Like probably like we're they're going
25:31to keep us apart. Let's get rid of them
25:32and we'll be together and like I think
25:34too I think I've said this in the past.
25:37I think when with the TV shows that are
25:39out there right now, the movies that are
25:41out there
25:42these kinds of relationships and even
25:45crime itself has been glamorized to an
25:47extent. So I could see where an
25:49impressionable 16-year-old girl if he's
25:51being like, "It's romantic. We're going
25:52to be together. We're going to get rid
25:54of your family and live together and run
25:55away together." where she's not quite
25:57thinking. Her frontal lobe isn't
25:58developed. She's like thinking this is
26:00the man of her dreams and it's a fairy
26:01tale ending and like she gets swept up.
26:03That's why at the beginning I was like,
26:04"I feel for her. She obviously made the
26:06complete wrong decisions here even
26:07though they're only allegations right
26:09now and they haven't been proven in
26:10court." But I mean I think he groomed
26:13her obviously.
26:13>> But let me ask you in your situation.
26:16Like what would it have taken
26:18for that person to convince you to kill
26:20your
26:22>> Oh, that would never have happened.
26:23>> That's what I mean. So it's like did she
26:25have a good relationship and not that
26:27that matters, but I'm just like how do
26:29you get to from A to B? That feels like
26:31a big
26:32>> And I'm so sick of burner phones and
26:34like these older ass guys buying burner
26:36phones for kids. David bought one for
26:37Celeste. He like bribed the kid in
26:39junior high to give her the burner
26:40phone. Like stop praying on minor
26:43children.
26:44>> where that's an incentive cuz when I got
26:45my first phone it was like, "You're
26:46allowed to call me and no one else."
26:48Like mom was like, "You're you're
26:50allowed to talk." So if someone was
26:51like, "Here's a free phone."
26:52>> Well, of course. And then we had like
26:53the pagers and we were like calling from
26:55the payphones because all this crap,
26:57okay. [laughter]
26:58So, obviously right now there are still
27:00a lot of questions, but with a
27:0216-year-old girl and a 28-year-old man
27:05both facing triple murder charges, this
27:07is definitely a case that I think the
27:09writing's on the wall, but we also are
27:11going to keep a very close eye on.
27:13>> All right, this next case is a total
27:15mystery that has people all over the
27:17world asking the same question, which is
27:20what the heck is going on here? Because
27:22a 26-year-old woman who is the heiress
27:25of a German shipping company was found
27:27dead at her family's luxury wildlife
27:29estate in South Africa on June 1st. And
27:32if that wasn't shocking enough, it
27:35happened just 1 day after another person
27:37connected to the estate was also found
27:39dead on the same property. Caroline von
27:42Rantzau was the heiress to DAL, a
27:45multi-million-dollar German shipping
27:46company, and she spent a lot of time at
27:49her family's estate in South Africa. The
27:52property is located on what is known as
27:54the South Africa's premier safari region
27:57and serves as both a wildlife reserve
28:00and destination for trophy hunting. But
28:02on June 1st, Caroline was found dead in
28:05her room in the estate from a gunshot
28:07wound. Investigators believe that
28:08Caroline was shot with a .357 caliber
28:11hunting rifle and reports say that it
28:14was the same type of gun that her father
28:15had in his gun cabinet. Authorities are
28:18still working to determine exactly what
28:20happened and autopsy results have not
28:22yet been released, but it's obviously
28:24still an under investigation. But here's
28:27where the case really takes a very
28:29strange turn. It's just 1 day before
28:31Caroline was found dead, the estate's
28:33financial manager, 44-year-old Arno
28:36Kuhn, was also found dead on the
28:38property after being shot with a 9-mm
28:40pistol. And Arno wasn't just some
28:42employee, people close to the family
28:44described him as a confidant, mentor,
28:47and even a father figure to Caroline. He
28:50handled bookings and finances for the
28:52estate and was reportedly someone very,
28:54very close to the family. So, naturally
28:56people immediately started wondering
28:58whether the two deaths could somehow be
29:00connected. And at this point,
29:03authorities have not publicly confirmed
29:04any connection between the shootings,
29:06but the timing of all of it has fueled
29:09huge speculation online. And then
29:11another detail raised some serious red
29:14flags because some of the early reports,
29:16including from the company DAL itself,
29:19claimed that Caroline had died in a car
29:22accident. That information was obviously
29:24proven false once the authorities
29:26confirmed she had actually died from a
29:28gunshot wound, but by then the rumor
29:30mill was in full swing and the
29:32conflicting reports just added to that
29:34speculation from the public. Online,
29:36people have gone down every single
29:39rabbit hole imaginable. Some believe the
29:41initial accident reports were just
29:43misinformation spread before the facts
29:45came out, but then others have come up
29:47with other theories, even suggesting
29:49that there may be some sort of larger
29:51cover-up that happened. But to be clear,
29:53there's absolutely no evidence publicly
29:55supporting any of these theories or
29:57speculation at the time. They're just
29:59theories, but they do point out some
30:01very major red flags. And as of right
30:04now, authorities haven't identified any
30:06suspects, announced any arrests, or
30:08publicly named any person of interest.
30:11And they're just left answering trying
30:13to answer some really big questions
30:14here. And so for now, they're just
30:16trying to uncover some answers to these
30:19very big questions. How did two people
30:21connected to the same estate end up shot
30:24to death just one day apart? Was it this
30:27tragic coincidence, or was something
30:29related? Is there something bigger going
30:31on here? Was there actually a cover-up?
30:34My question is were both of those guns
30:36from the same cabinet? That would be
30:38very fishy to me. So, hopefully we'll
30:40have some more information soon, but
30:43something sounds a little off there.
30:45>> It's giving succession, and I want to
30:47see who was in line to inherit what, and
30:50was the financial manager stealing money
30:52for him, and Caroline, was there
30:53something more to that relationship
30:55since they were so close?
30:57I don't like it.
30:58>> Did she
30:59find or did he find out something? Did
31:01she find out something? And then they're
31:02both
31:03>> Something smells a foot here, O'Brien.
31:06We got to get to the bottom of this. I
31:07don't like it either. And you know what
31:09I really don't like? This next case.
31:11>> you'd say that.
31:11>> It is sick AF. It is enraging me, and
31:15it's probably going to get me flagged
31:16all over YouTube. So, for all of my
31:17YouTube viewers, you may need to pop
31:19over to podcast now to listen to the
31:21uncensored version, but it was too
31:23important not to talk about. But, I want
31:26to tell you, it is incredibly difficult
31:28to hear. So, authorities in Alabama have
31:30called this one of the worst cases that
31:32they have ever investigated. And like I
31:34said, the details are absolutely
31:36horrifying. So, big trigger warning.
31:39Investigators in Bibb County, Alabama,
31:41say that they uncovered what they
31:42believe was a child trafficking ring in
31:45an underground bunker. According to
31:47court documents, children as young as 2
31:50years old were allegedly brought into
31:52this bunker, drugged, restrained, and
31:55then abused by paying adults.
31:57Authorities now believe that there are
31:59more than 10 victims, but they've also
32:01said several times that even today,
32:04they still don't know the full scope of
32:05what may have happened. And when I first
32:07heard about this case, it's because I
32:09saw video footage of all of these
32:11predators being escorted out of the van
32:13and taken into custody. So, many of you
32:15also DM'd it to me and were like, have
32:16you heard about this? And this is a
32:19pretty big investigation. It first began
32:21back in February of 2025 when two
32:24children who had recently been taken
32:26into state custody started showing signs
32:29of what the state called concerning
32:31behaviors. When child welfare workers
32:33asked where they had learned these
32:35behaviors that they were exhibiting,
32:36which
32:37I'm not going to go into a lot of
32:39detail. You can imagine, you know,
32:41certain be things that they were doing
32:43that only adults do.
32:45The children allegedly said that they
32:46learned it from a man named William, and
32:48that they learned it in what they called
32:50a secret bunker. So, pretty quickly
32:53investigators located this bunker, and
32:55they started looking further into what
32:56was going on. The bunker was originally
32:58built as an underground storm shelter,
33:01and when investigators searched for it
33:03for the first time on February 5th,
33:052025, they found a bed, a few chairs, a
33:08small dresser, a toilet, and a sink.
33:11But, investigators soon learned that it
33:13had been used for something much darker
33:16than a traditional storm shelter. So,
33:18for months authorities worked the case
33:20behind the scenes, and then on July
33:2219th, they announced the investigation
33:24and the first arrest. 21-year-old
33:27William McElroy, 21-year-old Dalton
33:29Terrell, and 29-year-old Andres Trejo.
33:33They were all taken into custody on a
33:35long list of charges related to child
33:38and child essay. I'm just going to
33:41abbreviate it because I know I'm going
33:42to get flagged. Now, at the time
33:44investigators say that they had
33:45identified six victims between the ages
33:48of 3 and 10 years old. They also
33:50believed that this ring had been
33:52operating for at least a year, starting
33:54all the way back in 2024. And as more
33:57court records became public, the
33:58allegations became even more disturbing,
34:01if you can believe that. Investigators
34:03alleged that children were being brought
34:05to this bunker, drugged, restrained, and
34:08then exploited by these adults, and it
34:10also alleged that some of these adults
34:12were making what they called
34:13appointments and with these kids. Making
34:16appointments to come and to hurt these
34:18children physically, sexually,
34:21emotionally, and paying to do so.
34:23According to authorities, some of these
34:25adults paid as much as a thousand
34:27dollars, which I'm sorry, it doesn't
34:29matter that's they They as much, which
34:30like that is not enough.
34:32>> I was like a thousand dollars?
34:34>> Exactly. Exactly. So then just a few
34:36days after those first arrests, the case
34:38started to expand. On July 22nd,
34:4023-year-old Timothy St. John was
34:42indicted on multiple charges connected
34:44to the investigation, including
34:46sodomy, trafficking, kidnapping,
34:49bestiality, and aggravated cruelty to
34:52animals. Which, sick warning right now,
34:54if you don't know the term bestiality,
34:56first of all, do not Google it.
34:58>> Okay, I
35:00like two years ago I didn't know what
35:01that was when I started working with you
35:03and I did Google it and I did not even
35:05know that that was a real thing. I can't
35:07even wrap my head around that.
35:10>> who have sex with animals. It's
35:12disgusting. It is disgusting.
35:15Now at the time the Bibb County Sheriff
35:16said, quote, "Such behavior will not be
35:18tolerated in Bibb County and the
35:20offenders will face prosecution to the
35:22fullest extent of the law." He also
35:24stated that investigators expected more
35:26arrests to happen, which he was not
35:29kidding when he said that. Because the
35:31very next day authorities announced
35:33three more arrests. 29-year-old Rebecca
35:36Brewer, a female, 41-year-old Sarah
35:39Terrell, a female, and 44-year-old Ricky
35:43Terrell. So you've also heard the same
35:45last name going in here. It's a family
35:47situation going on. It's disgusting. Men
35:50involved,
35:50>> had chills this entire time because I'm
35:53so disgusted.
35:54>> So by that point seven people had been
35:56charged in connection with this
35:57investigation. Investigators said at the
35:59time that the scope of this case had
36:01grown significantly. The age range of
36:03the victims had expanded from three to
36:0510 years old to three to 15 years old.
36:08It was also said that some of the
36:10defendants were actually parents of the
36:13victims involved in this case.
36:15>> I had a feeling cuz I'm like, where did
36:17are these children coming from? They've
36:18got to be related in some way.
36:20>> This is one I'd be really curious
36:21actually for us to tap into Greg at
36:23Child Rescue Coalition and see if this
36:25is on their radar because we've been
36:28talking unfortunately lately about a lot
36:30of cases involving CSAM material and
36:32children and parents being the ones who
36:35are facilitating the transactions and
36:37the behavior and
36:38>> And selling the material.
36:40>> Yes, exactly. So, the sheriff said that
36:42the investigators had reason to believe
36:43that this abuse may have started as
36:45early as 2022, 2 years earlier than
36:48initially believed. He described the
36:50bunker as a place that was a built for a
36:52good thing, but used for a horrible
36:54thing. Then, on August 6th, an eighth
36:57person was indicted. 26-year-old Olivia
37:00Elam was charged with multiple offenses,
37:03including kidnapping and trafficking of
37:05a minor for sexual servitude. By that
37:08point, the eight suspects were facing
37:09well over 100 criminal charges combined.
37:12And somehow, the allegations in all of
37:14this, as if it weren't disturbing and
37:16bad enough, they only became more
37:18horrifying as investigators continued
37:20digging into this case. Court documents
37:22alleged that everyone had a very
37:24specific role in this entire operation.
37:27Specifically, they said that Andreas
37:29would put, quote, a white powder into
37:31drinks that was then given to the
37:33victims before they were brought into
37:35the bunker. They also alleged that Sarah
37:37Terrell placed an animal shock collar on
37:40some of the victims and used these
37:42collars as a form of punishment and also
37:45for her own sexual gratification.
37:48Sick freak. Authorities now believe that
37:50there are more than 10 victims connected
37:52to this case, but they have said several
37:54times that they still don't know the
37:56full scope of what had happened. And
37:58they also say additional victims could
37:59still be identified as the investigation
38:02continues. Now, since the arrests, this
38:04case has moved very slowly through the
38:06court system as prosecutors continue
38:08reviewing evidence. But the last week,
38:10and the reason why we're talking about
38:12it this week in headline highlights,
38:13even though this all went down in 2025,
38:16is because there was a major
38:17development. Rebecca Brewer became the
38:20first defendant to take a plea deal.
38:23>> Olivia Elam, Andress Trejo, William
38:25Chase McElroy, Dalton Terrell, Ricky
38:27Terrell, Sarah Terrell, and Timothy St.
38:30John all appeared in court Thursday
38:31morning for six charges. The eighth
38:34suspect, Rebecca Brewer, pleaded guilty
38:36to kidnapping and an amended charge of
38:39sexual
38:40Her case is under gag order.
38:41>> On June 11th, she pleaded guilty to nine
38:44counts of first-degree kidnapping and
38:46one count of sexual torture. She had
38:48originally been facing dozens of felony
38:51charges, but those charges were, of
38:53course, reduced because of the deal that
38:55she took. But, the details of that plea
38:57deal are sealed under a gag order
38:59because the case against the other seven
39:00defendants is still ongoing. They don't
39:02want to jeopardize any of that. She most
39:04likely, I would, you know, 99.9% say
39:08that she exchanged a lot of how the
39:09operation worked, information on the
39:11other people who have been arrested, and
39:13that was all in exchange for this deal,
39:15which is why it's now on a gag order and
39:17sealed. Her sentencing has also been
39:18delayed until those cases are finished.
39:21But, the charges that she pleaded guilty
39:22to still carry penalties ranging from at
39:24least 10 years in prison to life in
39:26prison. Now, on the same day that
39:28Rebecca pleaded guilty, the upcoming
39:30trials for the other seven defendants
39:31were pushed back because attorneys are
39:34still reviewing that evidence. The court
39:35has also brought in a second judge to
39:38assist with the proceedings, though they
39:40haven't explained exactly why that
39:42happened. It might just be too much for
39:43one judge to handle, conflict of
39:45interest with too many people who are
39:47going to be on trial, who are Latinos.
39:50But, honestly, every single part of this
39:52case is not only incredibly disturbing
39:54and difficult to hear, but enraging to
39:57hear, especially when it's family
39:58members involved. Like, for what? A few
40:00thousand dollars? You're selling your
40:02children, you're selling other children,
40:03you're kidnapping other children. I
40:05mean, and the fact that the
40:06investigators still don't know how many
40:08children have been victims in this case,
40:10it just makes it even more
40:12heartbreaking. And unfortunately, it
40:14sounds like there is still a a long road
40:15ahead before all of the facts come to
40:17light.
40:18>> I mean, beyond infuriating is
40:20>> Yeah.
40:21>> how I'm feeling, but also just so many
40:23questions cuz like you hear this stuff
40:25that happens to kids, which you know I
40:27get very emotional about, and
40:30I don't understand how people
40:33can disassociate to a level that
40:36extreme. I get it. People are motivated
40:39motivated by money. You hear about hit
40:41men, drugs, all these things where it's
40:43like you'd really do that for a thousand
40:44bucks, but people are desperate. People
40:46need money and to a lot of people a
40:47thousand dollars is a lot of money. It
40:49is a lot of money, but when it comes to
40:51kids, the level you have to stoop and
40:54disassociate yourself to do anything to
40:57a child, let alone to this extreme, I
41:00can't it's hard to even imagine that
41:03that's possible and that there are that
41:04many people
41:05>> involved.
41:06>> And then you're thinking it's family. So
41:08then when you go deeper, you're thinking
41:10these poor children, what happened to
41:13them? But now they're watching their
41:14parents
41:15allegedly go through this process of
41:19getting in trouble for it. So now
41:20they're having to make sense of what
41:22happened to them, and they don't have
41:24family. It's just like it's too much.
41:26>> It's too much. Burn them all. That's
41:28what I have to say.
41:29>> Oh, beyond.
41:30>> Yeah. All right, so before we wrap up,
41:32you guys know we are starting a new
41:34little outgoing segment on here from
41:37Crime Con. We had our anonymous phone in
41:40the booth where people could either ask
41:42for advice or leave their confession. So
41:44we're going to go ahead and play one for
41:46you now, and then we can discuss.
41:49>> Okay, hey Eddie. Um, I'm actually here
41:51for some advice. I don't think I've
41:54I don't think I've done any crazy
41:55crimes, but if you were dealing with a
41:57situation where you found out that
41:59somebody was committing a crime and
42:00you're in a position like there's
42:02somebody that's close to you, how do you
42:03go about doing that without I don't
42:06know, putting yourself into like immense
42:09danger. Yeah. Well, thank you Eddie so
42:11much. We love you. We love you so much
42:13and we'll catch you later on the next
42:15big vlog. You know, we're going to make
42:17sure you like, comment, and subscribe
42:18and as always pound eight, noggin. See
42:22you.
42:23>> All right, so my advice for that would
42:25be you definitely If you think they're
42:26doing a crime, you need to tell the
42:28police or whoever you think they are
42:30going to commit a crime against.
42:32>> Well, yeah, that's what I was going to
42:33say. So, is he saying like someone close
42:36to you committed the crime and they're
42:37confessing to you?
42:38>> I think he's saying that he thinks
42:40they're going to commit a crime.
42:41>> going to commit a crime. 100% report it.
42:44>> Yeah, and if you think that you could be
42:45in danger, get away from that person.
42:47>> And if they did So, my question to you,
42:49Annie, if they did commit the crime and
42:51confess to you and you want to do
42:54something without getting in trouble or
42:56you're scared to tell on them, what
42:57would you do?
42:58>> I would still go to the police, but I
42:59would also distance myself from that
43:01person as much as humanly possible and
43:03tell somebody else I'm basically narking
43:06on this person. If anything happens to
43:08me, look at this person.
43:10>> I think that's good advice.
43:11>> So, stop doing committing crimes,
43:13people.
43:14>> Or hanging out with people who commit
43:16them.
43:16>> out with people. All right, guys. Well,
43:17unfortunately, that's a very somber note
43:19to end on, but that's what we have this
43:21week for headline highlights. So, thank
43:23you so much for sticking with us,
43:25listening to all of these cases. We
43:27appreciate it. As a reminder, you can go
43:29listen to that mega deep dive that
43:30released Monday. Also, on my second true
43:33crime podcast feed, 10 to Life, new
43:35episodes there every Tuesday, so you
43:37have plenty in between both of those
43:39feeds to binge. And I will be back with
43:41you very soon, on Monday actually, with
43:43an all new case.
43:45Until then, be nice. Don't kill people.
43:49Don't be a freak parent and like be a
43:51parent, not a friend for that one and
43:54just watch your back. All right. Bye.

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