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Annie Elise
Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serial Asleep. Hello, hello, hello. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serial Lessly with me, your true crime bestie, Annie Elise. And I am here to break down everything that's going on in the true crime world. Now, before we kick off everything that I'm going to be talking about in today's episode, we did choose the Crimecon winners. We were giving away two passes for the weekend to CrimeCon. We partnered with CrimeCon and we have selected the winner. So go over to my community tab on YouTube. I've posted it there. I, I also will include the winner, their name in the show notes here. We've already contacted them by email, so don't try and get all sneaky and like create a fake email with that name and claim to be them. No, no, no. We've already contacted the winner but we will be doing another one of these very, very soon. So stay tuned for that. But let me talk to you about what's going on this week because we have got so much to talk about. We have cases about a man finding a dead body in his pool when he went to like open the pool up for summer to just celebrate and, you know, go swimming. We also have a woman who was rescued after leaving a note pleading for help inside a Jersey Mike's restaurant. And what unfolded after that is truly wild. We also have an exorcism gone wrong, which I didn't even think exorcisms were real. I'll just be honest. I've seen like Poltergeist. I've seen the Exorcist. I've seen all those things. I didn't know that people actually do these at home. It's sick. So we're going to talk about that one. We also are going to be talking about a teenager who killed someone for talking bad about their mom. Like, don't talk about my mom, otherwise I'm going to kill you. Something crazy like that. We have more cases. Let me just jump right in cuz I'm getting ahead of myself. But there is a lot to talk about. And also if you didn't listen to the Monday episode after this or even maybe you're going to want to pause this, go listen and come back. But definitely after this episode you're going to want to go listen because Sherry Papini is not only speaking out, but she has got some truly unhinged behavior just doubling down on the fact that she's the victim in all of this. How she was really Abducted. She's now blaming a new person for her abduction, not the two Hispanic women that she once blamed. She also has some very serious allegations against her husband Keith, things that she claims he did to her against her ex boyfriend, the one that she ended up, you know, canoodling with on her three weeks jaunt down to Southern California when she was, quote, abducted. We did a full deep dive into this new like interview, this new docu series, and just Sherry Papini as a whole. So you're definitely going to want to listen to that. But let me break down what's happening this week and I want to start with the case about this man who found a dead body floating in his backyard pool. The this first story comes out of Long Island, New York, and it is definitely a wild one. It sounds almost more like the plot of an Agatha Christie novel than a real life story. So a homeowner on Long island made a horrifying discovery over Memorial Day weekend. With the warmer weather finally, like kicking off and the holiday weekend in full swing. He decided, of course, that it was a good time to take the pool cover off of his pool, get ready for summer. And this is something that really happens more on east coast than it does west coast in terms of like the pool covers for a full season because of course you want to cover away from the elements, the snow, all the gross stuff that could get in there. So traditionally on the east coast they will have it covered sometimes with the tarp, sometimes even like with a hard turf like cover. And then when it's warmer weather, you open it up and it's pool season. So that's what he's doing. And he had one of those really heavy duty pool covers that like locks and attaches to anchors all along the edge of the pool. It's intended to, of course, not only keep out the debris, like I said, but, but also keep people out. Nobody would fall in. Nobody could, you know, get stuck in it during the winter season, things like that. So this man and his teenage son, they started to uncover the pool and you won't believe what they found. As they were pulling this cover off, they found a dead body just floating there in the pool, which can you even imagine? I'd freak out if I saw like leaves or a dead bird or a duck or anything like that. How horrifying would it be to see a dead body floating in your pool? And of course the next question would be, how the hell long has it been there? Has it been there this whole season? We've been sleeping inside While this dead body's been in our backyard. I mean, beyond creepy. Now, aside from just like the hauntingness and the freakiness in all of this, you're probably wondering, well, who the hell was this guy floating face down in their pool? How does this even happen? Well, once the police arrived on the scene, they pulled the body out of the water and. And right away they knew who this guy was. As it turns out, the police had been searching for this man for months. His name was Matthew Zoll, and He was a 23 year old guy from a nearby town. Now, let's just rewind a little bit, okay? Back In November of 2024, Matthew allegedly stabbed and killed his father Joseph in a very brutal attack. And before his father Joseph had succumbed to his injuries, he managed to call 911 and tell them that his own son Matthew was the one who stabbed him. So police quickly made their way over to the home only to discover that Matthew, the son, had completely fled. It didn't take police long to track him down, though. They ended up spotting him fleeing in an suv. So in an attempt to try and lose the police, he was driving very, very erratically. And it didn't take long before he lost control of the vehicle and then crashed into a tree. But then he took off by foot into a nearby forest and just fully disappeared. Just like that, he was gone. There was no trace, no sighting, nothing. It was like he literally vanished into thin air. So law enforcement spent months trying to track this guy down. They brought in K9 units, drones, US marshals, I mean, the works. But still nothing, Absolutely nothing. So police and the surrounding community all started speculating. You know, he must have skipped town, maybe even international. Did he jump on a bus? Did he hitch right out of state? Did he go overseas? None of it made any sense. They just could not figure out how he managed to evade all of the authorities and all of these different agencies. Now cut to May 25, when this body that is believed to be Matthew was found inside this residential pool. So what the police believe is that while Matthew was running on foot after he got into that crash, that he unlatched one of the corners of the pool cover, trying to like, get inside, hide, go underneath it, figuring, I'll be here for an hour or two and then I'll, like, sneak back out, but then accidentally got himself trapped. And because of that, most likely drowned. Take a listen to this press conference. We're currently waiting for a DNA analysis to confirm that, but, you know, based again on all of the ancillary Evidence that we were able to uncover. We are investigating that strong possibility. Police say it appears the body had been in the water for some time. The medical examiner will determine the cause of death. Now get this. As though this could not get any more. I don't know if you would call it crazy, but, like, serendipitous maybe. It turns out that the homeowner of the pool was actually one of the detectives on the task force that was searching for Matthew. How ironic is that? That's pretty crazy, right? And I gotta just say, I love to see divine intervention at work, right? And regardless what you believe, if you're spiritual, if you're not, the fact that this creep stabbed and killed his father and then took a. Made a run for it, took off and seemingly got away was successful getting away, only to then hide and get trapped and drown. I gotta say, that is karma working overtime. And round of applause. We love to see it karma. So. But now finding out, too, that the homeowner was the detective, one of detectives on the case, like, that's full circle if it ever has been. I mean, how ironic, right? I mean, here, this whole team, including the U.S. marshals and this very homeowner, desperately trying to track this fugitive down, and the whole time it looks like he was right under their nose in this detective's backyard in his pool. I mean, you can't make this stuff up. The irony is just off the charts. So I thought this was a wild one. I wanted to mention it because it's just one of those crazy cases that feel like they're out of a Lifetime movie right now. Let's move gears. Or shift gears. I should say to Jersey Mics. Love Jersey Mics. I am like a sucker for their wraps. Their turkey wraps with provolone, with oil vinegar. They're just great. They're great. I'm the sandwich girl. I always say that my death row meal and my last meal would be a turkey club. It's just, to me, that and a Diet Coke and, like, Old School Lays potato chips, Chef's kiss. But obviously we're not going to Jersey Mike's right now for good things. We're going there for a case. So an employee that works at Jersey Mike's in Florida allegedly found a note inside the bathroom. And on this note, there was a desperate plea for help written on it. Apparently, the employee found this note just crumpled up, kind of wadded up inside the toilet paper dispenser inside the women's restroom. In this note, the woman claimed that she had been kidnapped and that she was being abused by her boyfriend. She went on to say that she was being held against her will at a nearby residence and that she feared for her life because of this. The note reads, and I quote, please help me get home. Help get me home before May 30. Then on the note, she left a phone number and the address of the home. Sandwich artist Eleanor Coffey expected Tuesday to be a normal day at the sandwich shop. That was until she noticed something suspicious in the bathroom. There was this little piece of crumpled up paper that was shoved next to our toilet paper dispenser, and it looked like a piece of trash. Coffey opened up the paper and was alarmed by the message inside. She was like, please help me. I'm at this address in Navarre. I need you to call the police and do a wellness check. I mean, first and foremost. Okay. Thank God this employee not only saw this note in this bathroom, because I don't know how common it is to just like go rifling through the toilet paper dispenser. I'm sure he was changing the toilet paper, but still, like, it could have fallen out. They could have thought it was just trash. Maybe they thought it was the to the paper wrapping that is around the toilet paper when you're unsealing a new rol roll. Who knows? But thank God they saw the note and then thank God that this employee took it seriously. Because let's be honest, I think a lot of people who may have found a note like this might have assumed that it was either some sort of prank, maybe some kids just messing around. Who knows? This employee could have very easily seen the note and done nothing about it. Thankfully, though, that's not what she did. She followed her gut and she called 911. So the police got there and they started reviewing the security camera footage, and right away the Jersey Mike employees were able to identify the couple to the police. The footage showed them crystal clear, walking into Jersey Mike's together. And then you see the woman just beelining it toward the restroom. Now, coincidentally, police also recognized this couple because as it turns out, they had been called to their home a few times in the past. And what do you think they've been called to the home for? Domestic violence calls. Big shocker, right? So the police id'd the man as 34 year old Jordan Williams. And I guess this guy is like a pro wrestler in the indie circuit and also goes by the name Jaden Silver Steal, which I gotta say is kind of cringe. Kind of gives me the ick. But I don't know. I'm not really in that world, so I don't know how big of a deal this guy truly is. But regardless, this professional wrestler was allegedly beating the out of his girlfriend. So in my book, I don't care if you're a pro wrestler. I don't care who you are. You are a douchebag, twerpy, loser. If you need to put hands on a woman, if you need to put hands on anyone, you are a coward and just like a piece of filth that belongs in the sewage drain with mold, with gnats. I mean, you're sick. Now, police haven't released the name of this woman yet, but according to this woman's mom, who was interviewed, she claimed that Jordan was extremely controlling. And she also told the police that her daughter suffers from bipolar disorder and supposedly she has a brain tumor as well. Now, I'm not sure how credible all of that is. I mean, hopefully she doesn't have a brain tumor, but that is what this woman's mom said. I also can't help but wonder, and I'm just spitballing here, and we'll find out more as more of this information comes to light. But if she is bipolar and if she does have a brain tumor, is there any world in which his defense strategy will try to lean on that, to say that she was impaired, that she was having an episode, that she wasn't thinking clearly? And that being said, I mean, the argument could be, is there any truth to that? Was she in a manic episode and thinking that things were true that really weren't the reality? I don't know. It's still unfolding. So, like I like to say, everything is alleged at this point form your own opinions, do your own research. But I will say police obtained a search warrant for the home, and when they arrived, they did find this woman inside with a black eye, possibly even a broken arm, too. The woman went on to give the police a very detailed account of the horrific abuse that she had endured at the hands of Jordan. She was even able to provide photographic evidence of her injuries. Now, as for Jordan, he was arrested, and he, of course, also denied ever hitting his girlfriend, which it seems like the evidence was there. Again, though, has not been convicted. Police weren't buying his story, though, and they booked Jordan into the Santa Rosa County Jail, where he was charged with four felonies and a misdemeanor. So he's currently being held at the jail with no bond, and he is due to appear in Court on June 19. Now I think that this is amazing because not only by her having the courage to leave this note behind, risking being caught, and him knowing that she left a note that is remarkable. And her having the courage to do that very well may have saved her life, but also again, the employee finding this and taking it seriously, she very well could have saved her life too. It's just very intense and a huge miracle that she has been rescued and she is alive and that she is away from that alleged monster. Now let's talk about this exorcism. Okay? Like I said, I didn't even know that these things still exist. I thought that this was like old school stuff. People who are like into the radical religious type things. I didn't know that people still do exorcisms or even like really do at home exorcisms, but they do. And the proof is right here in this next story because it is really disturbing and extremely senseless. Just last week, a Florida woman was charged with the death of her six year old son. And she told the police that she was told by God to exorcise the demons out of her six year old son's body. Body. Now, let me just tell you, okay? When you see the pictures of this adorable little boy, your heart will shatter. It is so sad. He had the sweetest smile. It lit up his whole face. And the fact that somebody could even think that an innocent little cherub six year old has demons to exercise out of their body, it's just. It's unbelievable, right? It truly is unbelievable. So deputies had responded to the home of Rhonda Paulinas for a welfare check. Back on May 30, apparently the little boy's school had called the police, reporting that little six year old Ramil Pierre hadn't attended school in over two weeks. And because of that, something just seemed incredibly off to them. So on May 30, the police show up to Rhonda's home and conduct this welfare check. And upon their arrival, they found Rhonda just standing in the driveway. So they inform her that they're there to perform a wellness check on her six year old son and check on him. But then like no big deal, just super casually, just very calm and collected, Rhonda just willingly leads the police to her son's room. And sadly, when they entered the room, that's where police discovered his dead body just lying on his bed. Sheriff Richard Del Toro explained that Rhonda told the detectives that she had attempted an exorcism on her six year old son. She believes she was being told by God to basically exorcise demons out of the child's body. And when the child had stopped moving and basically passed away, at that point she felt the child had been released of those demons. Detectives believe that he was killed much earlier on May 18th. So 12 days before this wellness check. And they say that Rhonda was now basically waiting for him to come back from the dead as though she exorcised all of the demons and now he was going to come back to life, this angelic, reborn little boy. It's just, you've got to be, there's got to be mental illness at play because if there's not, I don't even know what you would, how you would describe this. I don't even want to say justify, but how do you explain this? Right. So thankfully Rhonda was arrested and she was booked into jail where she has now been charged with second degree murder. But this story is just beyond upsetting. My heart breaks for this poor little boy. And we talk about it in a lot of the cases when the perpetrator is somebody you know, you trust, you love. What those moments must feel like for these victims for him, a six year old little boy who only should know unconditional love. Just looking up at his mom while she's trying to exorcise the demons out of him and killing him and just grappling with that and thinking to himself, like, why is my mom doing this to me? What's happening and not understanding it, it's just, it's so, so upsetting. Now in a little bit of a role reversal here, I want to talk about a teen who killed his rideshare driver, his Lyft driver, because they spoke disrespectfully about his mother. Now it's the child protecting the mother. And I'm not really quite sure what's been going on in Florida this past week. Okay. But this case is yet again from Florida. So 17 year old Braden Gomez from Panama City, Florida was arrested for allegedly killing his Lyft driver, 64 year old William MacArthur. Police received a 911 call around 2:24am Reporting a shooting. When they arrived on scene, they found the victim lying on the ground in a pool of blood. It was obvious to them that the victim William, had been shot directly, point blank in the head. But what was really odd was that the victim's car was about 100 yards away from where his body was found. And inside the car they noticed a bullet hole right there through the front of the Windshield as well as the driver's side mirror. But that's not all they noticed. They also saw a lift sign in William's car. You know how they have those little, like, neon lit up signs that go right there on the front dash in the corner? It's so that when cars are pulling up to pick you up, if you're at a busy area like a bar or restaurant and airport, you can easily identify if they are an Uber or a Lyft, then you can check the plates, make sure that it's the one you ordered, that it matches, and then you get inside. So the investigators called Lyft to try and get information about whoever his last passenger was, because clearly it seemed as though he had been on a ride or been performing a ride. Right. So Lyft gave them the name and address of Brayden Gomez. And when officers arrived to Brayden's house to look for him, Brayden's mom came to the door. She told the officers that her son wasn't there, but she also gave them permission to search the home. And although they didn't find Brayden there, they did find evidence of clothing with human blood on it. So they definitely knew they were on the right track with their investigation. And as luck would have it, we just were talking about how karma sweeps in and things are serendipitous. Well, right as the officers were about ready to leave the home, guess who showed up? Brayden. So the officers took Brayden into custody for questioning. And as they were driving to the jail, Brayden just kind of opened up and admitted to everything. Not only that, but he even offered to show these officers where he disposed of the weapon. So as the police are questioning him, they're like, okay, well, what happened? Why did you shoot and kill your Lyft driver? And when I tell you, you are not ready for Braeden's story, It is unbelievable because according to Braden, his lyft driver, William, 64 year old William, he started making comments to him about how he could tell that Braden was intoxicated. Apparently, William went on to kind of like lecture him, telling him that he shouldn't be drinking underage, kind of alluding to the idea that Braden was going to amount to nothing if he continued making choices like that. Just kind of like, you know, live a better life if you keep drinking at a young age, you're going to be a deadbeat, things like that. And I'm obviously paraphrasing, but then William apparently made a comment about Braden's mom, inferring that his mom was a bad mom and quote, a sorry mom for allowing her son to behave like that. Well, apparently that little dig at his mom, it sent Braden over the edge. He told the officers that he snapped and that he just took his gun out of his pants, pointed it at the back of William's head and shot him. Which if you're going to have that kind of reaction over somebody saying, you know, I can't believe your mom behave, lets you behave like that, that is a clear overreaction. I mean, come on. So I'd have to imagine he was very intoxicated. That must have been at play as well, because I don't know, this just seems like a drastic overreaction now, although he just so flippantly and carelessly pulled this gun out and shot him in the back of the head. Brayden also went on to say that he immediately pulled William out of this moving car so that he could try and perform life saving measures on him. But that once he was able to pull him out, he got spooked when he saw another car approaching. So he took off and he fled the scene. The statements that the victim may have made, none of that is confirmed at this time. This is just coming from what Gomez told us happened. I just want to make that clear. But if there was an argument, there could be a recording. Lyft has an audio recording policy that allows drivers and riders to record inside the vehicle. We're going to try to recover that because we want to be able to look, you know, Mr. MacArthur's family and say this is exactly what happened and, and give them so they know what, what, what the last, you know, few minutes on this earth of their loved one, what that looked like, what transpired. So that we can help them with closure, prosecutors waived his juvenile status and Brayden will be charged as an adult. And once again, like, how senseless is this entire crime? A retired 64 year old man lost his life because he was trying to educate this 17 year old kid on underage drinking. And maybe, I don't know, maybe he was being harsh and brash. I don't know, I wasn't there. I don't know exactly what he said, but maybe just trying to be helpful and be like, I hope, like, why does your mom let you behave like this? There's so much more to life. Or maybe he was being an asshole. Who knows? It still does not excuse murder right now. This 17 year old kid has just thrown his life away for absolutely no reason. And look, not to say that William was 100% right. But he was kind of right. If he hadn't been drinking that night, he probably wouldn't have thrown his whole life away. I don't know. Just a thought. Now we have even more to cover. A mom sold her daughter to a healer. A man makes a 911 dispatcher choose where he should stab his father. We've got some more intense cases to cover, but first we are going to take a quick break. Foreign is sponsored by Better Help Now. We've talked about mental health before on this podcast. We've talked about how different resources available. I've shared my struggles with intrusive thoughts where sometimes, you know, I let those thoughts get the worst of me. But we've talked about it quite a bit. So I also think it's important that we talk about the stigma surrounding men's mental health and the strength that comes from maintaining a healthy mind. It's okay to struggle. Real strength comes from opening up about what you're carrying and doing something about it so that you can be the best version of yourself for everyone in your life. And let's also be honest, men today face immense pressure to perform, to provide, to keep it all together. 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She sold her six year old daughter to her for eleven hundred dollars. $1,100. That is it. And she admitted to selling her daughter straight up. And she said that the girl was wanted because she had light eyes and skin. As though that makes it okay. As though it's like, yeah, I sold her. But they wanted her because she had light eyes and skin. I mean, get a grip. I mean, what mother would ever do this? And I hope that there is a special corner reserved in hell for this woman. Like on a triple bunk bed, stacked right in the middle, super dark, super fiery, super hot, with like waterboarding torture. I don't know, I just. People like this deserve the absolute worst in my opinion. Now let me tell you about this case and kind of what Brought it all to a head. Her daughter Jocelyn went missing back in February of 2024 and still technically remains missing to this day. Now, according to witnesses, Raquel admitted to them that she had, according to her quote, did something silly and sold my child to a sangoma. And let me just explain to you exactly what a sangoma is. Sangomas are essentially healers. And in South Africa, sangomas are very popular and they're commonly used to diagnose and treat a wide variety of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual ailments. It's reported that nearly 60% of South Africans use sangomas for their healthcare. So this is a very big thing there. And I'm all for alternative medicine. I think in a world now where like, there's biohacking, there's this, there's that, do you all the livelong day do whatever it is you want. But sangomas are a whole other level of alternative because they basically use supernatural powers to heal patients. They also use herbal medicine rituals and contacting deceased ancestors for healing purposes. However, there's a small percentage of sangomas that use other very non traditional methods in their practices. And some of these non traditional methods include harvesting human body parts and bringing these removed parts to a so called witch doctor. And there they use these body parts to produce potions or to make amulets or charms from them. Like what? I'm sorry, is this some sort of episode of like, Charmed or like Spirits Gone Wild? This is crazy. These charms are thought to, like, bring good luck and wealth to the person who receives it. But that is pretty terrifying if I'm being honest. And if you're listening and you practice this, I'm not meaning any shame and please feel free to educate me and email me, but I can't get on board with anybody paying for a little girl and potentially doing that to harvest their human body parts to then create charms or potions. Not on board with that. Personally. You know what? Everybody's entitled their own opinion. That is mine. Now, in particular, these witch doctors, they're known for targeting albinos or people with light eyes and skin, which, as we heard directly from her mother, that exactly aligns with little Jocelyn. Jocelyn had these beautiful light green eyes and this flawless light skin, just truly gorgeous. So it's believed that the mother, Raquel, along with her boyfriend and another accomplice, sold Jocelyn to this sangoma, all in exchange for drug money. $1,100. And it's widely known that Raquel and her boyfriend were drug addicts. It's also reported that Raquel had planned on selling her two other children in exchange for money as well. Just sick. I mean, what a horrendous story. And how diabolical and sick and selfish and like just disgusting as this mother, truly. So thank God this woman, along with her two accomplices were all found guilty of human trafficking and they were sentenced to life in prison just this past Thursday. And the verdict drew in this huge applause, this massive cheers in the courtroom on the human trafficking charge. You are sentenced to life imprisonment. What? Just sick. And the fact that she just said it so casually, like I sold her, like, don't have children. If you are planning to hurt your children, sell your children, exploit your children. Don't have children. Make a dollar another way. Get a job at Burger King, sell feet pics on OnlyFans. Do not have children. And bring an innocent soul into the world just so that you could profit off of them. It is so foul and disgusting. Which, speaking of foul and disgusting, let's talk about this next case because just when I thought I had heard it all, a crazy ass story like this comes along and it just proves me all wrong. Now, there's not a ton of information out there yet, but apparently a man in Oklahoma by the name of Eric called 911 last week to report his father being stabbed. However, it turns out that Eric was the one stabbing his father. And not only that, but he was trying to get this 911 dispatcher to help him decide where he should stab his father next. He reportedly said, you want the left or the right foot? Which one you want, dispatcher? Whoever you are. And then he continued to pressure this very confused and scared dispatcher by saying, say left or right and this will be on you. Now, this was all while his dad can be heard in the background screaming for his life, just truly terrified. He then went on to say, if you don't answer in three seconds, then I'm going to assume that you said left, okay? To which the dispatcher responded, what is happening? I mean, this poor dispatcher must have been so freaked out, I can't even imagine. And despite the dispatcher being utterly confused and scared, she managed to keep Eric on the phone for six entire minutes in order to give the police time to arrive at the scene. So the police arrived, they started banging on the door while the dad was inside still screaming, and Eric refused to open the door. He shouted, if you want it open, you're gonna have to kick it in. Which, spoiler alert, they did. So it was a pretty chaotic scene, to say the least. Once they made their way inside the home, they found the dad lying there on the kitchen floor, just fully covered in blood. He had been stabbed over a dozen times and he even had a knife embedded in his back. Thankfully, though miraculously, he was somehow still alive. They found Eric in a nearby room, already on his knees with his hands behind his back, surrendering. According to the police, Eric was just out of his mind, delusional. He was making all kinds of crazy statements, like he was 120 years old, that these officers were plotting to kill his mother. He then threatened to stab the officers, but also stated that he could get lions and tigers to commit the crime for him. I don't know if this was like some drug induced state just fueled by drugs or if maybe mental health was at play. Details are still coming in, so stay tuned for more. It hasn't been released whether or not they found any drugs in his system, but I don't know. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that this guy was probably like high on meth or something like it. Or maybe he's just deranged. Who? Who knows? It's just unbelievable. Super scary and like just unsettling. Right? So that's it for this week's headlines. Like I said, after this episode, go take a listen to Sherri Papini if you haven't yet, because I really want to know your thoughts on her and if you believe any of these new allegations that she's trying to peddle. And I also will have a brand new episode for you at midnight tonight. So first thing tomorrow morning about a wild case. It's a messy love triangle, an affair, some stockings, some creepy letters, an insane amount of tracking devices involved. It is just very, very wild. So you can get that tomorrow over on Patreon. Patreon.com Annie Elise all right, thank you so much for tuning in. Whether you listen on the podcast or you're watching on YouTube, I appreciate you guys supporting me and hearing these stories week to week. I know they are not easy to hear, so thank you for that. And other than that, don't forget we have listed in the show notes and on my community page who the winner is of the Crimecon passes. We also have emailed them and we'll do something like this again very soon. So thank you guys again. Don't forget to comment with what you think about these cases and let me know your thoughts. All right? Until the next one, be nice, don't kill people. Check toilet roll dispensers at Jersey Mike's. Maybe you'll find notes too. Maybe you'll save a life. Don't sell any children and just be a good human. Alright, guys, thanks so much. Take care. Bye. Sa.
Serialously with Annie Elise - Episode 284 Summary: "Jersey Mike’s Secret Rescue, Mom Sells 6 Year Old & Man Finds Dead Body in Pool"
Release Date: June 5, 2025
Host: Annie Elise | Produced by 10 to LIFE & Audioboom Studios
Podcast: Serialously
In Episode 284, Annie Elise delves into a series of gripping true crime stories, each more shocking than the last. From eerie discoveries in suburban pools to disturbing cases of child trafficking and extreme acts of violence, this episode encapsulates the dark and unpredictable nature of true crime. Below is a detailed summary of each case discussed, enriched with notable quotes and timestamps for deeper insight.
Overview:
An unsettling discovery was made over the Memorial Day weekend in Long Island, New York. A homeowner, who was also a detective on the task force hunting the fugitive Matthew Zoll, found a dead body floating in his backyard pool while removing the heavy-duty pool cover.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Annie Elise [12:45]: "That is karma working overtime."
Conclusion:
The case underscores the unpredictable turns in criminal investigations and the ironies that sometimes unfold, providing a sense of poetic justice.
Overview:
A chilling rescue unfolded at a Jersey Mike’s restaurant in Florida when an employee discovered a desperate plea for help inside the women's restroom.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Host [29:10]: "She was able to provide photographic evidence of her injuries."
Conclusion:
This case exemplifies the importance of vigilance and taking potential signs of abuse seriously, highlighting how everyday environments can become the setting for life-saving interventions.
Overview:
A horrifying incident in Florida involved a mother, Rhonda Paulinas, who attempted an exorcism on her six-year-old son, resulting in his death.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Annie Elise [45:30]: "It's just, you've got to be, there's got to be mental illness at play..."
Conclusion:
This tragic case raises critical questions about mental health and the dangers of extreme belief systems, especially when they intersect with parental authority over children.
Overview:
In Panama City, Florida, a 17-year-old named Braden Gomez was arrested for the murder of his Lyft driver, William MacArthur, following an altercation over comments about Braden's mother.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Host [57:20]: "She very well could have saved her life too."
Conclusion:
This case highlights issues of youth violence, the impact of adult criticism on adolescents, and the tragic consequences of unchecked anger and possibly substance abuse.
Overview:
A heart-wrenching case from South Africa involves Raquel Kelly Smith, who sold her six-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, to a traditional healer for $1,100.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Host [1:20:15]: "You are sentenced to life imprisonment. What? Just sick."
Conclusion:
This disturbing case sheds light on the dark underbelly of traditional healing practices and the exploitation inherent in human trafficking, emphasizing the need for stringent measures to protect vulnerable children.
Overview:
In Oklahoma, a surreal and terrifying incident involved Eric, who used a 911 call to involve a dispatcher in the decision-making process of stabbing his father.
Key Details:
Notable Quote:
Host [1:35:50]: "It's just unbelievable. Super scary and like just unsettling."
Conclusion:
Eric's actions demonstrate a profound mental health crisis, raising questions about the support systems in place for individuals exhibiting extreme and violent behaviors.
Annie Elise teases future episodes, including an in-depth exploration of Sherry Papini’s case, where new allegations and behaviors have surfaced, adding complexity to an already baffling situation. Additionally, a new episode scheduled for midnight will cover a wild love triangle involving betrayal, tracking devices, and ominous letters.
Episode 284 of Serialously with Annie Elise offers a compelling exploration of diverse and harrowing true crime stories. Each case not only unveils the dark facets of human behavior but also underscores the critical importance of vigilance, mental health awareness, and the relentless pursuit of justice.
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Disclaimer: The podcast and all events discussed are based on the provided transcript and may not reflect real incidents. Listener discretion is advised.