A (2:04)

Yeah. Which everyone knew. Like I saw that on TikTok.

B (2:08)

I don't know much about it.

A (2:09)

Everyone knew that he had done it so they were wondering why it was taking so long and like it's just like not what you see on tv. It takes a long time for a prosecution to be like, yeah, we're ready to move forward.

B (2:22)

Kind of crazy.

A (2:23)

And I do think it varies state to state about like who's willing to, like, make the arrest and hold him.

B (2:27)

Yeah.

A (2:28)

Until trial. And who's. Who wants to get trial ready and then charge?

B (2:33)

Yeah. I don't know much about it. I just know. I think the only things that I saw was that the body was in the trunk or something along those lines.

A (2:43)

He's like an artist, musical artist.

B (2:46)

I need to say something skipping right into my 10 seconds here, because I have a lisp on the podcast. I would like to say I don't really have a lisp in real life. Our editor every week says we need. I need to fix something on our mics, and I don't do it. I promise I'm not knocking lisp. If anyone else has a lisp out there. Power to you, brothers, homies, hugs, kisses, xoxo. But I just feel like sometimes I listen to one of the episodes.

A (3:16)

Mm. There's no way, dude, my mic does that with my vowels. It mixes up my ee.

B (3:24)

No, that's not your mic. Sorry to tell you. Not your mic, baby.

A (3:28)

Okay. That's an accent. It's an accent.

B (3:30)

I'm telling you. For my. For me, it. I. It's something in here.

A (3:35)

Yeah. It does get significantly worse because it

B (3:38)

takes it from like a 5% to like a 60%.

A (3:41)

I think you have like a very small hint of it. And anytime it's in the mic, it's 10 times worse.

B (3:46)

It makes it like, I do have a little lisp on certain words sometimes.

A (3:49)

Yeah.

B (3:50)

When I say my S's. But.

A (3:52)

Yeah.

B (3:53)

And in person, I feel like you can't really. No, you don't really notice it.

A (3:56)

You know how. No, it's the mics. Okay, Jordan.

B (3:59)

Okay.

A (4:00)

You know how I know it's the mics? Is that when we went and recorded with Mile Higher?

B (4:05)

Yes.

A (4:06)

It was so bad on their mics.

B (4:08)

Yeah, I do remember that. It's just different mic settings, certain mixers and certain mics. Yeah, it just brings it from. Like I said, like, I'm not getting defensive here. I'm just saying it gets pretty crazy. Anyways, I just wanted to say that because I felt like I had to say it.

A (4:24)

Oh, okay. Well, I like you list 5%, 1%.

B (4:29)

Not that I'm self conscious about it or anything. Anyways, that's my 10 seconds. That's what I got. I think that's all I got. Yeah. We are recording at night. We don't usually do this. Get into it after we record. Yeah, we can get right into it. But after we record, I'm going to go upstairs. I'M going to take a shower and I'm going to go to bed just in case anyone's curious what I'm doing with the rest of the night. So on that note, let's get into this week's episode.

A (4:54)

Our sources for this episode are East ValleyTribune.com CBS News.com Paramount Express.com 12News.com APNews.com CNN.com KTAR.com AZCentral.com Phoenix NewTimes.com ABC15.com Tucson.com and the help find Jamie Laity Facebook page.

B (5:16)

Sorry. Before we get into it is Aquafor. If anyone from Aquaphor is watching, I use this daily.

A (5:24)

That was put that back up in the mic. It was very ASMR on headphone.

B (5:28)

It sounded better the first time. Anyways, if you want to send me like 2000 of these, I'll take them.

A (5:33)

Okay. My favorite thing is whenever we have an episode that Garrett's like, oh, tired, can we get through? Then you have to interject just to talk about your Aquaphor.

B (5:43)

Yeah. Because lots of going through my mind. What's going on?

A (5:47)

I know. Okay, now getting into the episode. Most of us have someone in our life that we talk to on a daily basis. Parent, a friend, a partner, even a child. Someone who would notice immediately if things were out of place. That's how a lot of these cases even start, right? A co worker doesn't show up to the office. A daughter misses her daily call to her mom. A wife doesn't come home from the grocery store. The people around us are the ones who look out for us, who can tell when something is wrong, who can call the police and say, hey, this is out of character. You need to look into this. But not everyone in this world has someone like that. And those are probably some of the most heartbreaking cases to cover. Because the more time that passes, the harder an investigation becomes. Not only does time erase evidence and memories, it can erase a person, too. Which is why today's case will prove it is actually way better to keep your friends closer than your enemies. I want to introduce you to 32 year old Jamie Laity. Now, Jamie grew up in Pasadena, California. She always felt a bit different than a lot of her friends. Unlike the laid back, relaxed parents a lot of the kids had in California around her, Jamie's upbringing was tougher. It was more rigid. Her parents, Jimmy and Vonnie, were immigrants from Thailand. They had come to the US Hoping for a better life with more opportunity, searching for that American dream, if you will. And because of that, Jamie and her older sister felt a lot of pressure to succeed. Growing up, she understood her parents struggles to get here to give her a better life, and she didn't want to let them down. But it also shaped the person Jamie would become and her relationship with her parents down the line. While Jamie was confident and bubbly, she could also be quiet and reserved. And it wasn't until college when she found other like minded people that she really started to grow into her own. So Jamie grows up. She attended the University of Michigan, and for the first time she, there was some real distance between her and her parents, which Jamie does seem grateful for. She could only take so much pressure from them about going to medical school. And at times she might have felt like her life and her choices weren't really her own. But now Jamie was on her own for the first time in her life, able to make her own decisions, which she really embraced and loved. And that distance between her and her family, when she left for college, it grew. Friends said Jamie didn't really talk much about her family. She would change the subject whenever they were brought up in conversation. Eventually her friends just got the vibe that she probably wasn't on good terms with most of them.

B (9:04)

Okay.

A (9:05)

But some of Jamie's friends at the University of Mission could relate with this, this whole like going to college and kind of creating that space between you and your parents. A lot of the people in her friend group were also children of immigrants. They knew kind of what that pressure felt like to succeed. And Jamie found a lot of comfort in knowing that she wasn't alone in this. And she also found comfort in something else during that time, and it happened to be college football. She and her group of girlfriends were obsessed with their college team. They would watch the games every single weekend. For Jamie, it almost becomes like a part of her identity with her friend group. But then years go by, graduation day came and it was time for all of them to move on with their lives. And Jamie and her close group of friends all went their separate ways. And life took Jamie out to Phoenix, Arizona after she got a great high paying job selling medical supplies. Soon Jamie had made enough money to actually buy her own home in the trendy neighborhood of Chandler, Arizona. But life outside of work had become a bit lonely for Jamie. Like she kept in touch with some of her college friends, mostly just sending an email or a phone call. She's making great money, she has a great job. But she had had this amazing life in college and then moved to, at this point, just looking for people in Phoenix she could connect with because she wasn't communicating with her friends on a daily basis.

B (10:42)

Okay.

A (10:42)

And eventually she actually found a University of Michigan alumni group out in Phoenix. So they would get together to watch the football games every weekend. And while it was nice to have a new community and some new acquaintances, it obviously still wasn't the friend group she had back in college. Though eventually it did seem worth it. Because that's how 29 year old Jamie met 30 year old Brian Stewart in 2007. Now, Brian was a personal trainer living in Scottsdale at the time. Again, 2007, about a 25 minute drive from Phoenix. And during one of their alumni events, Ian Jamie caught each other's eye. The two bonded over their shared alma mater. She also loved how funny he was and that he really seemed to care about her a lot. And soon they become a full blown couple. About a year later in 2008, they decided they were ready to take the next step. And Brian moved into Jamie's house in Phoenix. And she didn't seem to mind being the breadwinner for the couple. While Brian was still doing his personal training, Jamie was making over six figures. And she was happy to share it with the man that she was, you know, thinking she was going to spend forever with. Okay, she helped him pay most of his bills, she got him a new car.

B (12:06)

Dang.

A (12:07)

But over the time, the two started to only spend time with each other again. Jamie had always been a pretty private person, but now even she had stopped going to the University of Michigan alumni events. So she was no longer really keeping in touch with her college friends. None of the new friends she had made. Many of Jamie's friends said she stopped making an effort. So things sort of fell off. She only talked to her parents every few months or so. They said they were just kind of giving her space while she was off living her own life. But by the summer of 2009, it seemed like Jamie and Brian had basically cut off the outside world entirely. Seemed like the two of them were just in their little love bubble. And Jamie seemed satisfied with simply just going to work and then coming home to her life with Brian and Brian only. But that August, Jamie received some tough news. She was actually being laid off from her high paying job. Something she did not see coming. Jamie spent the next several months looking for work. And she wasn't even being picky. She was searching all over the country, willing to move to Florida, New Jersey, wherever it took to find something comparable. Now meanwhile, the housing economy was in a steep decline. And the value of Jamie's home that she had bought started to plunge, which worried her even more. She wondered if she would even see any profits from that investment. So basically, Jamie is entering a difficult period in her adult life and is started to take a toll on her relationship with Brian too. Eventually, according to him, it got to the point where he went back to Scottsdale and rented an apartment there. So he moves out, and it kind of looks like things weren't going to work out long term after all. In fact, on the night of March 17, 2010, Brian said he was planning to have a conversation with Jamie. He was going to tell her about the new apartment, and he was going to let her know he was moving out, that he had got this new apartment and he was officially going. But Jamie had other plans that day. That afternoon she went to get an oil change, and then she stopped at a Wells Fargo bank. Afterwards, she went home, and just as Brian was about to break the news to her, he says she dropped a bomb on the conversation. Instead, he says, hey, I've gotten a job in Denver, Colorado, and I want you to move there with me.

B (14:45)

Oof.

A (14:46)

So he's coming to be like, I'm moving out. I'm done. And she's like, look, good news. I got a job and I want you to move.

B (14:52)

Okay?

A (14:53)

As we know, Brian wasn't interested. He told Jamie, I'm going to stay here in Arizona. I just don't see a future with you.

B (15:01)

Okay?

A (15:02)

And the two get into an argument about it that night. Eventually, Brian said things calmed down and they went to bed. The following morning, March 18, he got up for work super early in the morning, around 3:15am Jamie was still sleeping. He gave her a kiss goodbye, told her he loved her, and got into his truck to go to work. So when he got back to her house later that day, Jamie was already gone. And that same afternoon, Brian emailed one of their mutual friends from the Alumni club, a woman named Marlene, and he told her that Jamie dumped him and moved to Colorado.

B (15:44)

Which he said that in the email.

A (15:45)

Yes, this day, which, as we know,

B (15:48)

it was the opposite, basically.

A (15:50)

And she hasn't moved yet. Okay, like.

B (15:52)

But it was the opposite. Like he dumped her.

A (15:55)

In a sense, yes. So Marlene said Brian sounded a little upset about it, but she didn't find it all that surprising that Jamie would decide to move for a job and just leave a boyfriend behind like that. But after this 10 weeks go by, no one hears or sees Jamie. Laity, remember, she's fired, so she's not reporting to work. She's supposed to be moving to get a new job. So ten weeks go by.

B (16:26)

Why would he?

A (16:29)

No one hears.

B (16:30)

I'm not convinced that he's the killer yet. So let's keep going.

A (16:34)

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B (17:42)

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A (18:21)

I've said it before and I will say it again. Skims is amazing and they keep reinventing intimates. Every drop feels like their best. From ultra stretchy underwear to the cutest push up bras to and now their new cotton fabric has honestly changed the game for me. I have bought so many products in their new cotton fabric. I love it. It is soft. It feels good on my skin. Just sits well. I mean low key. Even Garrett gets the cotton underwear so I know he likes the cotton. I just I Love everything. And also Skims is a company that I am constantly shopping on, like suggesting our own show all the time. So I really do use their products and swear by them. I only wear a cotton underwear but rarely find good cotton bras. And Skims has just come out with another one. Shop everyday cotton and all of my favorite bras and underwear@skims.com and after you place your order, be sure to let them know that we sent you select podcast in the survey. Be sure to select our show in the drop down menu that follows. Again, that's after checkout. It's just a little review. Just let them know that our podcast sent you. It's a great way to support the show. So not only this, 10 weeks have gone by, no one has seen or heard from her. And no one really is that worried. Until finally in May, Brian calls that friend Marlene that he had talked to basically the day after they broke up to say he's a bit concerned because he hasn't seen or heard from Jamie since they broke up and he knows that no one else has heard from her. Now hearing this, Marlene, a normal human, starts to worry. She figures, okay, we all know Jamie is a private person. Maybe she just wants space. But Brian, the one person she spoke to daily, also hasn't heard from her. That's not a good sign. So Marlene calls another mutual friend of theirs from the Alumni club and they know a private investigator who can just help look into it, do a wellness check. And he finds Jamie's credit card activity and sees that there's been no activity on it for a while now. These two girls, when they see this, like they, they come to, they go to this private investigator, they're like, we're not really sure anything's wrong, but you're like, you're a friend of ours. Can you look into this? The private investigator looks into it and is like, yeah, there's been no activity on her card. These two girls immediately are like, we're suspicious of Brian, her ex boyfriend, who brought this all to attention. So they're like a private investigator friend. Can you run a background check on Brian? Keep in mind police are not involved yet because they're still not even like they, they're not super great friends with Jamie. So they're just, they're just your average worried person. Nothing comes up on this background check against Brian that surprises them. The only thing interesting is they find that he lived at two Michigan addresses. one point was someone named Rick Wayne Valentini, probably a roommate or relative. Nothing worth noting. But they're like, oh, he lived with this person. So after this, Marlene asks Brian, hey, like, okay, you haven't seen her. Have you spoken to her parents at all? And he's like, no, I haven't. So she's like, you should call them. Which he does. And on May 28, he finally calls Jamie's dad, Jimmy, to tell him, hey, no one has seen or heard from your daughter since St. Patrick's Day. And that's when Jimmy Laity calls the Chandler police to report his daughter missing.

B (22:05)

I'm just trying to figure out the long time.

A (22:07)

Ten weeks.

B (22:08)

And no one realized.

A (22:09)

She just didn't. I mean, she didn't. It was just. She wasn't going to work anymore. She didn't really talk to her family. The only person she talked to was him. And he didn't alert anyone that he wasn't talking to her until 10 weeks later.

B (22:22)

Yeah, I get that. No, I. I understand. It's possible, but 10 weeks is just pretty wild.

A (22:27)

So when police get this report and they're like, 10 weeks, the first person they're gonna suspect is the last person to see her, which everyone knows is her boyfriend, Brian Stewart.

B (22:38)

Yeah.

A (22:38)

And they want to bring him in for questioning. So they call Brian to see if he'll come down to the station. But after trying him a few times, there's no answer, which to them is a red flag. If you know your girlfriend is missing, you called her parents to alert them. You want to find her, why are you now dodging the police's phone calls? So they look into Brian's background and find he actually has an outstanding warrant for driving on a suspended license. This is something they can use to their advantage. So they get the plates for Brian's car, the one Jamie bought him, and on June 3rd, they track him down to that apartment that he got in.

B (23:18)

This one just seems obvious. Gone for 10 weeks. Last person to see was the ex, or boyfriend, whatever you want to call

A (23:25)

him, who told someone the next day that she made.

B (23:28)

Come on. So open and shut. Solved. Everyone have a good night.

A (23:33)

They find him at the apartment, and they use that warrant to take him into custody and ask him some questions about his missing ex girlfriend. And in that interrogation room, Brian tells police that he and Jamie were dating for about three years when she disappeared. He'd never cheated on her. Things were really good between them. But Jamie hated living in Arizona. And after losing her job, she wanted nothing more than just to move out, find a new job, get us, you know, fresh start. But Brian didn't he said the last time he saw her was the morning of March 18, when he kissed her goodbye as she was still sleeping, remember, like 3am and then headed off to work. And when he went back to her house later, he was gone. He says he wasn't worried about her because she took $100,000 of her parents money and left Arizona to start a new life for herself.

B (24:27)

What?

A (24:28)

Which maybe makes sense except for one big problem. The police had already looked into Jamie's finances, and there was nothing that showed she was spending money living a new life somewhere, let alone in Colorado, where Brian claims she went. So meanwhile, as detectives are questioning Brian, there's another team executing a search warrant at Jamie's home. And they find all of her stuff is still there, including suitcases, which they're like, if she really moved to Colorado, moved out of state, start a new life, maybe took this money from her parents. I'm sure there's like more to the story there that hasn't been reported. Maybe her parents had money or Brian was just trying to point it on someone else. But they're thinking, okay, even if she did do this, wouldn't she at least pack a bag? And her passport is still at her home 10 weeks later. What is missing is her wallet and her driver's license, though there's no sign of any foul play having happened in the home. No blood stains, no signs of a struggle. Keep in mind, nearly 10 weeks have passed though, since Jamie was last seen. That is a lot of time for someone to go back and clean up evidence. Which is why police are still keeping a close eye on Brian, even if he is sticking with his no, she just ran away story. And they quickly learn he was not the Prince Charming he'd kind of made himself out. Surprise, surprise, I'm just an innocent boyfriend that didn't want to pick up and leave. In 2007, three years before Jamie disappeared, Brian was arrested for burglary. Jamie and I don't know why any of this didn't come up on the background check. I'm sure there's a reason why, or maybe there's levels of it. But just to clear that up, I'm not sure why, but police find out three years earlier, he had been arrested for burglary. Jamie was the one who came to his rescue, paying for a good attorney who got his charges reduced to trespassing. But after that, Jamie became a little bit more suspicious of Brian, this boyfriend she had just helped get out of burglary. Was he really who he said he was? This just felt so out of character. What was he doing? So she had hired a private investigator, not the last one, who did a background check on Brian, and apparently found nothing that stood out, because afterwards, Jamie still stayed with him. There were also a few friends who believed Brian was emotionally and maybe even physically abusive towards Jamie. And apparently the day before she disappeared on March 17, she told a friend that she was afraid of Brian. She didn't want to go to the police because she didn't think they would do anything because he. I mean, like, she doesn't go into detail that he hasn't done anything. But something else the police find that feels a little sketchy is Jamie's credit cards had been used a few times since she vanished, but it was only for Internet purchases and dating websites. And who was the person using her cards after she vanished? Of course, her ex boyfriend, Brian, which he was using to meet other women online. Like he's using her credit cards after she moved to Colorado to meet other women online. So the day after they get Brian into custody, they get another search warrant, and this time, it's for the apartment that he got 25 minutes away in Scottsdale. And as they start going through his things, their police discover a name that just kind of keeps appearing, like on these background checks when they're looking into him. This. This guy. Rick Wayne Valentini. This is the same name that came up when Jamie's friends hired the PI to do a search into Brian. Though that PI was pretty sure this guy was just a roommate, someone Brian had lived with. But after executing that warrant, the police realized Brian Stewart was Rick Wayne Valentini.

B (28:23)

Okay.

A (28:24)

And he had been living a double life.

B (28:27)

That's insane.

A (28:29)

So Rick had been going by this Brian Persona for the last eight years or so.

B (28:37)

Eight years? Oh, my gosh.

A (28:39)

And he was actually eight years older than he had told everyone in this new life he was.

B (28:45)

But even his.

A (28:47)

Yes, everyone at the alumni. Everyone.

B (28:50)

Oh, that's freaky.

A (28:52)

But Rick or Brian said he wasn't doing this to run from the law. He was just escaping what he claimed was a traumatic past. Rick's aunt Donna vouched for him, saying his mother had had him when she was 18. His father wasn't present in his life. Over the years, Rick was physically and emotionally abused. Remember, Rick is Brian, which was when his aunt Donna actually took him in. Donna also told the press he likely created this other Persona because he just didn't want to be Rick anymore. He wanted to move somewhere and have a fresh start. And in October of 2001. Rick finally left his hometown in Michigan and set off for Phoenix as Brian Stewart. But rather than legally change his name, Rick just forged himself a new birth certificate. So now he's creating another person. And he also forged another big document. His diploma from the University of Michigan. He never actually attended the school. He'd only taken a few classes at a community college in California before transferring to the University of Utah. So his whole past, like, has nothing to do with this new life. He lived in Arizona, where he's like, no, I joined this alumni club of this school. I never even attended. Shockingly, though, this was just the tip of the iceberg. Rick had lied to everyone about pretty much his entire past. He told Jamie his parents had been killed by a drunk driver. This was not true. And that he had served in the military and was in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Again, not true. The reality was he had been enlisted, but was dishonorably discharged after going awol.

B (30:33)

Gosh, that's a. That's a ginormous difference.

A (30:36)

Well, get this.

B (30:37)

It's crazy.

A (30:38)

He stabbed two military officers in the hands and legs. What.

B (30:43)

What is happening right now?

A (30:44)

He served two years in military prison, but then got out and said, oh, yeah, I'm a vet. I served here and here.

B (30:52)

They need to have an app where every time you meet somebody or date someone, everyone has to scan it, and it brings up their entire record right on your phone. You can see who that person is if they're lying, if it's true, and it's, like, tied to you somehow.

A (31:06)

So this is obviously something he didn't share with Jamie. But even more surprising, when police are figuring out who Rick is, this. Who's Brian, they find that Rick had not one, but three ex wives.

B (31:23)

Oh, my gosh. This is getting just outlandish at this point.

A (31:27)

Two daughters from those marriages. Oh, his oldest daughter Amy, was an infant when Rick left her family. She said he never once reached out. Oh, tried to make contact with her.

B (31:41)

What a.

A (31:42)

Then he just goes here, shaves eight years off his age, changes his name to Brian, and says, hey, can you buy me a car?

B (31:50)

Oh, yeah. He's just. He was just dating her for the money.

A (31:53)

So obviously, this is a massive reveal that police find after searching Rick slash Brian's apartment. But this false identity is not the only thing they discover at Brian's apartment. They also find a bunch of different guns, Jamie's missing wallet, her personal cell phone she had been using before she disappeared, and a small white envelope that detectives think might be hiding another clue. But they will need a different warrant to open it because it's not in plain view. So they collect it as evidence along with the rest of the suspicious items found in Rick's place. And they go back to question Rick now that they're like, brian, you're Rick. Rick, you're Brian. What's going on? Now police confront him about his alternate identities, but Brian uses it to double down. He insists, okay, yes, I am Rick, but I did nothing to Jamie. But he did teach her how to create a new identity and run away because he had done it.

B (32:55)

Oh, gosh.

A (32:56)

But the police guy, man, still aren't buying it. And In June of 2010, just a week or so after arresting Rick for driving on that suspended license, they get some news. They've received the warrant. I'm just going to call him Rick from now on. Okay, guys? They've received the warrant to open that envelope that they found in Rick's apartment. And inside, they discover a bunch of cut up cards that belonged to Jamie. Her driver's license, her Michigan University alumni card, her credit cards. Now, Rick insists, no. Jamie was the one who did that. Remember? I helped her. I helped her run away. I helped her find a new identity. She cut up all her IDs, gave them to me for safety so she could go start a new life. But police see an opportunity to prove whether he's telling the truth or not. They're like, well, let's test the envelope just to use DNA on it. Like, if she cut these up and sealed this envelope, it's her DNA emoji moment from Mark, who writes, I just want to thank you for making GLP1s affordable. What would have been over $1,000 a month is just $99 a month with Mochi. Money shouldn't be a barrier to healthy weight. Three months in and I have smaller jeans and a bigger wallet. You're the best. Thanks, Mark. I'm Mayra Amit, founder of Mochi Health. To find your mochi moment, visit joinmochi.com Mark is a Mochi member, compensated for his story, Right? We're getting into an ad and it is Shopify and I'm gonna let Garrett take it away because he is probably Shopify's number one fan.

B (34:30)

I have been using Shopify before I was born. No, honestly, I've been using Shopify for seven years now. I want to say I've been using it for a long time. I feel like I'd consider myself a Shopify expert at this point. But we love Shopify. We still use Shopify. The amount of tools and features they have are amazing. For me, it's that it's super easy to use. If you want to sell anything online at all, Shopify is going to be the place to do this. You really need to check out Shopify. Shopify is your commerce expert with world class expertise and everything from managing inventory to international shipping to processing returns and beyond. See less carts go abandoned and more sales go with Shopify and their shop pay button. Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at shopify.com husband or go to shopify.com husband that's shopify.com husband sure

A (35:27)

enough, the DNA on the envelope is a match for Rick. He has sealed the envelope, not Jamie. However, police are like, this still isn't enough to charge him with murder.

B (35:36)

Actually, I cut it up, she cut

A (35:39)

it, gave to me, I sealed it. Correct.

B (35:40)

Yeah.

A (35:42)

What they can charge him with at this point is fraud and forgery, which they do in June of 2010. And in the meantime they keep searching for more evidence that Jim Jamie Laity didn't just disappear, but she was murdered. Remember, they don't have a body. So her friends and her family obviously at this point are also suspecting this as well. That August 2010, five months after Jamie was last seen, they hold a vigil for Jamie there. They pass out flyers and encourage anyone with information to come forward. They also launched the Help flight Find Jamie lady Facebook page. And at the same time, police are trying desperately to build a case. But with no body, they know it's going to be hard to press charges. And with absolutely zero concrete evidence to show foul play had been involved, it's looks like Rick just might get away with being like, I helped her run away. Yeah, there's just, I mean, yeah, you, it like feels obvious, but is it enough to really put him in prison for murder so he could get away with this forever? If he can keep his mouth shut. Because while he's being held on those fraud charges, Rick says something to an inmate that okay. He says, ah, yeah, I'm in here because I killed Jamie with a sawed off shotgun, fed her to pigs and chopped up her body before putting her into plastic bags.

B (37:06)

What's up?

A (37:06)

Later he asks the inmate, what's up? Do you think that they will charge me if they can't find her body? And so this guy becomes a jailhouse informant, which we all know how I feel.

B (37:18)

I'm not a big fan of jailhouse informants.

A (37:20)

We all know how I feel. But this is going to be used in this case. They're going to use this informant to be like, this is why we don't have a body. He fed her to pigs. The answer is yes. This confession is all police need to indict him on charges of second degree murder in March of 2011.

B (37:37)

Second degree.

A (37:38)

It's just like they're trying so hard without any evidence, basically. So in October of that year, Rick Valentini, AKA Brian Stewart, goes on trial. And one of the first witnesses to take the stand for the prosecution is, interestingly, one of Rick's clients. Remember, he's a personal trainer, a woman named Andrea Ardsma. Now, Andrea said back in 2010, before Jamie disappeared, she and her husband, who was a pitcher for the Seattle Mariners, were living in Scottsdale for the off season. And during that time they were training with Rick, AKA Brian, at their local Gold's Gym. But Andrea said all she could hear about from Brian while they were training with him was how terrible his girlfriend is. She was, quote, a whiny naggy and a sugar mama. Andrea said there was one thing Brian did, though, that really stuck out with her. He would always grab his stomach and call her Jamie the Gut, referring to her physical appearance.

B (38:42)

This is, this is insane because whatever, anyways, keep going.

A (38:47)

So Andrea says on stand that she asked Brian a few times why he didn't just break up with her if he hated her this bad. But it seems she never really got a straight answer. The jury also heard that Jamie actually had gotten a new job recently, but it wasn't in Colorado, like Brian had told everyone. It was in Phoenix, Arizona. There was no leaving states, there was no moving. She was supposed to start the day she disappeared. March 18, her new employer took the stand to say Jamie seemed really excited about the position expressed. She was looking forward to working with him. And then she just never showed up. And even stranger was what her lawyer slash good friend David told the court. He said he was helping Jamie negotiate her contract for that job and actually saw her two days before she disappeared to go over the details before signing the contract. He claimed during that meeting Jamie had bruises on her, and he said she seemed like an emotionally and physically battered woman. Also taking the stand for the prosecution was the jailhouse informant who did receive a deal. His two year sentence for fraud had been reduced to one for his cooperation, which is not the worst deal we've seen for a jailhouse informed informant. Like, yeah, usually it's like life in prison lowered. This is just a two year sentence lowered to a one year sentence.

B (40:08)

And if he Was there for two years anyways. Yeah.

A (40:11)

Despite the defense's better judgment, Rick insisted on taking the stand in his own defense. And after telling the jury he was given permission by Jamie to use her credit cards almost since their very first date, he drops a major bomb. And he tells the jury he knows Jamie is still alive because she had visited their home, his apartment, on a few occasions since her disappearance in March 2010.

B (40:35)

I sometimes wonder if people convince themselves of what they're saying or. The delusion to me, is wild. Like, the amount of delusion people have is just kind of funny.

A (40:49)

So his whole thing on the stand was like, I'm here because you say I murdered Jamie, But I'm telling you right now, this was our plan. She wanted to run away. I'm the only one who knows who she is now, who her new identity is. I have seen her. I have talked to her. She's come back and visited me. Neither of us thought it was going to get this far, but I am not going to turn her over to police just to stop me from getting this. This murder sentence.

B (41:13)

Just, what a night in Shining Arm.

A (41:15)

Like, she. She could just appear. She could just show up to the police station and say, I'm good. Bye.

B (41:20)

Okay. Okay.

A (41:21)

And none of this would happen. But no, no. He's protecting.

B (41:25)

What a guy, man.

A (41:26)

This girlfriend he hated.

B (41:28)

I know. He's a good guy.

A (41:30)

So Rick is found guilty of second degree murder. He was sentenced to 22 years for the murder and 32 years for other crimes related to the murder, like fraud and weapons charges. A grand total of 54 years behind bars, which will put him in his 90s when released. But since Rick continued denying any wrongdoing, that meant that justice is not really served for Jamie or her family.

B (41:57)

And I hate when that happens.

A (41:59)

No one has no idea what actually happened to Jamie or where she is.

B (42:03)

It could very well be what the informant said. Yeah. Because there'd be nothing left.

A (42:08)

But this all changed.

B (42:10)

Oh. Oh, my gosh. Why'd you do that?

A (42:13)

I just had to just.

B (42:14)

Okay.

A (42:15)

Because it did take a while. Seven years later.

B (42:17)

Okay.

A (42:18)

Seven years is a long time to be like, he's in jail. But we have no idea what happened on June 21, 2018. They found something that day. A construction crew was working at a vacant lot in the Chandler area of Phoenix, right near Jamie's old home. And they discovered a set of decomposed human remains under a pile of dirt.

B (42:37)

Wow.

A (42:38)

A week later, the Maricopa county medical Examiner's office identified the body as none other than missing and murdered 32 year old Jamie Laity. The autopsy details remain undisclosed, but chances are the remains were probably too decomposed to even tell how he killed her is how he said he killed her. But either way, we now know she was murdered right near her home.

B (43:03)

Well, also, does the. Does the inmate. Because, like, did he lie? Did he tell the truth? Does he still get that sentence knocked down? No, not that. That's the point of the story, but just curious.

A (43:13)

He's not backing what he's saying. He's just informing the jury what he was told.

B (43:18)

Yeah.

A (43:18)

So he doesn't have to be right or wrong. He. All he has to do is say, this is what I heard.

B (43:23)

Like, what if he made it up and then he happened to just get lucky that he actually did kill someone? You know what I'm saying?

A (43:28)

Yeah, totally possible. I mean, there was a lot of circumstantial. Yeah, like finger pointing of like. Okay, it's obvious. So. So we don't know if how he said he killed her was true or not. He obviously didn't feed her to the pigs part because they found her body. Yeah, but she. She could have been cut up. She could have been shot.

B (43:48)

Oh, gosh.

A (43:49)

So afterwards, Jamie's family posted on her Facebook page that the search for Jamie was officially over. The post read, quote, our hearts are still broken, but at least now we can honor Jamie's glorious memory properly, which is just such a. Like, yeah, yes, there's a win in the case.

B (44:12)

Silver lining, I guess, but it's not a win. It's horrible.

A (44:16)

Since Jamie's passing, a Chinese peony tree has been planted in her honor at the University of Michigan, which is so amazing because it feels like this was a really big, major part of the short life that she got to live. And I'm happy that, you know, this place where Jamie felt free, happy, able to express herself fully, had a ton of friends. A place where she had hope and promise for the future, where her spirit grew. There is now a tree there that represents her that grows as well. And I. I do think that that is a really great way to honor that part of her life. So I wanted to include it. But that was the devastating. Just absolutely. What. Why murder of Jamie Laity. Also, like, she just.

B (45:09)

I don't understand.

A (45:09)

Nice and kind, took care of him.

B (45:12)

Don't understand.

A (45:13)

Did not deserve this. What are like, you meet this psycho crazy who's a huge liar, who you don't even know, has had three wives, two daughters, is eight years older than he says, not even using his real name, and then he just kills you. Like, it's just gross.

B (45:28)

It's frustrating that he was able to go that long under that identity. Nuts.

A (45:35)

It's disturbing. All right, you guys, that was our episode for today, and we will see you next week with another one. I love it and I hate it. Goodbye.