Podcast Summary: Crime House Daily – "True Crime This Week: Halloween Horrors"

Host: Vanessa Richardson
Date: October 26, 2025
Episode Theme: Halloween Horrors – Two Fatal Cases, Two Controversial Investigations

Overview

This week's True Crime This Week episode, hosted by Vanessa Richardson, traces two chilling Halloween murders—both occurring on October 31, decades apart. The first victim, Arpana Janaga, was a promising young engineer whose unsolved Seattle murder in 2008 led to questions around police bias and investigative missteps. The second case goes back to 1981, when Sister Tadea Benz, an elderly nun, was killed at her Texas convent, in a case mired in coerced confessions and possible wrongful conviction. Through these cases, Vanessa exposes the real horror lurking beneath Halloween: a flawed criminal justice system.

Case 1: The Murder of Arpana Janaga (Redmond, WA, 2008)

The Night of the Crime

• [03:52]
  • Halloween night, 2008: Arpana Janaga, just shy of 24, held a themed party in her apartment complex.
  • The atmosphere: rooms decorated lavishly, guests coming and going all evening; Arpana herself donned a Little Red Riding Hood costume.
  • The party winds down around 3am. Arpana walks to her car with a friend, Rachel, and later returns upstairs—the last confirmed sighting.

Discovery and Crime Scene

• [07:00]
  • Arpana’s family becomes worried after she misses several days of communication, particularly her birthday.
  • A friend and neighbor enter her apartment to check; find Arpana deceased—naked, mouth taped, body covered in black motor oil, hands stained blue, clear attempts made to destroy evidence.

"Her mouth was sealed shut with duct tape... the lower half of her body was coated in a thick black substance which smelled like motor oil. Inexplicably, the skin of her hands was stained blue." – Vanessa Richardson [08:24]

The Investigation: Suspect Focus and Police Bias

• [12:13]
  • Police timeline: death likely between 3:30–8:00am after the party.
  • Neighbor, Kyle Rose, reports hearing "moaning" and then a "horrible growling sound" from Arpana’s apartment around 8am.

"...heard what he described as a quote, horrible growling sound followed by a thud on the floor." – Vanessa Richardson [12:44]

• Physical evidence: missing phone/camera, costume and bathrobe found in dumpsters, attempts made to clean bedding and destroy DNA.

Emmanuel Fair: Racial Profiling and Flawed Casework

• [13:55]
  • Suspicion falls on Emmanuel Fair, the only Black guest, largely due to his criminal history.
  • Previous sexual assault conviction (plea deal), though partygoers recall him being friendly.
  • His DNA, along with several unidentified male profiles, was found in the apartment—though the samples were degraded and not definitive.

"If you do it once, you'll do it again." – Det. Brian Coates on focusing on Fair [14:24]

• Emmanuel spends nearly nine years in jail due to inability to post $5M bail, ultimately acquitted in 2019 after a hung jury and then full acquittal. He files suit against Redmond PD for racial profiling.

Overlooked Suspects and Unanswered Questions

• [18:41]
  • Multiple other suspects or questionable behaviors disregarded:
    • Arpana’s neighbor, Cameron, had conflicting alibis, late-night phone calls to Arpana, and suspicious post-crime actions (attempted border crossing, searching pawn shops).
    • His DNA was found on key crime items, but police did not pursue him as a major suspect.
    • DNA from unidentified males and a suicide of another resident also went uninvestigated.

"Detectives ignored numerous suspicious people in Arpana's life... But the biggest suspect they overlooked was... her next door neighbor, Cameron..." – Vanessa Richardson [19:45]

The Lasting Mystery

• [21:45]
  • No one has been convicted.
  • The case emblematic of how racial bias and tunnel vision can hinder investigations.

"Justice for this ambitious, talented and outgoing young woman has been delayed and possibly denied because of an investigation that may have been tainted by racial prejudice." – Vanessa Richardson [21:59]

Case 2: The Murder of Sister Tadea Benz (Amarillo, TX, 1981)

Morning Discovery and Mistaken Assumptions

• [23:25]
  • Halloween morning, nuns find 76-year-old Sister Tadea Benz missing during mass.
  • Her body is found soon after; initially believed to be a tragic accident.
  • The nuns clean the room—a mistake, as it destroys crucial evidence.

Crime Scene and Pattern of Attacks

• [25:15]
  • Autopsy reveals strangulation, sexual assault, and stabbing.
  • Similar local crimes: multiple attacks and murders of elderly women in Amarillo, with curly black hairs found at crime scenes.
  • First suspect, Fernando Flores, is cleared when hair evidence excludes him.

The Psychic Tip and the Arrest

• [27:50]
  • Police receive a tip from a local psychic, "Bubbles" Inez Patterson, who describes a "teenage boy with dark hair, an Abe Lincoln face." (She also claims to identify the suspect’s house.)
  • Police visit the home and arrest 17-year-old Johnny Frank Garrett, whose fingerprints are found at the scene.

"According to Bubbles, the killer was a teenage boy who lived close to the convent…with large ears and a prominent nose." – Vanessa Richardson [28:33]

The Confession, Recantation, and Flawed Defense

• [33:17]
  • Johnny allegedly confesses, then swiftly recants, claiming police refused him an attorney and coerced the statement.
  • His home life is revealed to be extremely abusive, with serious mental health impacts.
  • Key exculpatory evidence is omitted at trial: unidentified prints, hair evidence mismatch, and mismatched shoeprints.
  • A jailhouse informant is incentivized to testify against him; defense does not challenge this effectively, nor raise an insanity defense.

Conviction, Execution, and Lingering Doubt

• [36:31]
  • Found guilty and sentenced to death; appeals for clemency ignored despite worldwide advocacy (including by the Pope).
  • Executed February 11, 1992.

"His last words were, 'I'd like to thank my family for loving me and taking care of me. The rest of the world can kiss me my ass.'" – Vanessa Richardson [41:20]

• In 2005, DNA evidence ties another man, Leonio Perez Rueda, to a similar murder in the same area; Rueda confesses to killing an Amarillo nun.
• Texas refuses to overturn Johnny’s conviction posthumously.

"Looking back…we can see that these murders aren't the only frightening thing about Halloween. A broken criminal justice system is just as horrifying." – Vanessa Richardson [41:55]

Key Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "All we know for sure is this was the last time anybody saw Arpana Janaga alive." – Vanessa Richardson [05:50]
• "Emanuel Fair was the only black person at the Halloween party. In interviews, other guests almost exclusively referred to him as the black guy." – Vanessa Richardson [13:41]
• "Sixteen Catholic bishops, the other nuns from Sister Taddea's convent, Sister Taddea's family, and even Pope John Paul II all issued statements asking Texas Governor Ann Richards to grant Johnny clemency." – Vanessa Richardson [39:13]
• "Justice…has been delayed and possibly denied because of an investigation that may have been tainted by racial prejudice." – Vanessa Richardson [21:59]
• "A broken criminal justice system is just as horrifying." – Vanessa Richardson [41:55]

Notable Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:52] – Setting the scene: Arpana Janaga's Halloween party and disappearance
• [08:24] – Discovery of Arpana's body and details of the crime scene
• [12:44] – Neighbor’s eyewitness testimony and establishing timeline
• [13:55] – Focus on Emmanuel Fair and examination of police bias
• [19:45] – Overlooked suspects and evidence in Arpana’s case
• [21:45] – Summary/reflection on the unsolved status and possible injustice
• [23:25] – Introduction to the Benz case: discovery of the murder
• [28:33] – Psychic's vision leads to Johnny Frank Garrett's arrest
• [33:17] – Johnny’s confession, recantation, and critique of legal process
• [39:13] – Clemency pleas and global advocacy before Garrett's execution
• [41:55] – Vanessa’s final reflection on justice and horror

Conclusion

By weaving together the cases of Arpana Janaga and Sister Tadea Benz, Vanessa Richardson reveals how justice can be derailed by conscious or unconscious bias, investigative shortcuts, and systemic failures. "Halloween Horrors" reminds listeners that beneath the costume and candy, true horror often lurks in the failure to protect the innocent and pursue the truth.

Host's parting words:
"Looking back on this week in Crime history, we can see that these murders aren't the only frightening thing about Halloween. A broken criminal justice system is just as horrifying." – Vanessa Richardson [41:55]