← Serialously with Annie Elise
Serialously with Annie Elise
379: The Ultimate Sicko Predator | Jeffrey Willis & His “Toolbox of Torture”
01:15:03
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- [00:00]
Annie Elise
This episode of Serial Less Ly is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible financial geniuses, monetary magicians. These are all things that people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds. Because Progressive offers discounts for paying in full, owning a home and more. Plus you can count on their great customer service to help you when you need it. So your dollar goes a long way. Visit progressive.com to see if you could save on car insurance, Progressive Casualty Insurance company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations. The 25 year old mother was working here at this Exxon gas station when police say she was abducted last Friday night.
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Interviewer/Reporter
We don't have that. One person that knows what we need to know to step forward. Detectives are working off the thought Jessica Heringa knew her abductor.
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Annie Elise
Search for Jessica Herringa is now in its 10th day.
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Interviewer/Reporter
They asked if I took her somewhere to anybody that might know where she is and let her come home to her family.
- [01:06]
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 as li the true crime podcast with me, your host, Annie Elise. Today we have an all new case that we are doing a deep dive into and let me just tell you this, okay, first of all, you're going to be with me for a little bit because it's kind of Aaron on the side of like a little bit longer. So whether you're commuting, maybe you're cleaning, maybe you're working out, you're going to be with me just, you know, for a little bit here. And also I want to mention that this particular case is one that was requested from one of you listeners. You can always submit requests via the website annie elise.com. you can also submit them on Patreon. You can DM me all the different things. But yeah, this one came from one of you listeners and so thank you for submitting it. It is a very, very twisted one, but interesting and I kind of want to just jump right in. And let me start by saying this too actually. I don't know if you're like me, but anytime I hear about something that's happened Post the year 2000, it feels recent to me. I don't know if that's just because I'm a millennial and I feel like Even though it's 26 years ago, it feels recent but for some reason it's like a number thing that I'm stuck with in my head. So like seeing too. On my notes here that this case took place in 2013, I'm like, oh, that's not that long ago. When really it's like, no, you dumb idiot, it actually is 13 years ago. But for some reason I'm just like one of those people where I think anything after the year 2000 sounds recent. I don't know, don't, don't come for me. But anyway, so on the night of April 26, 2013, law enforcement officials in Norton Shores, Michigan were called to the scene of an Exxon gas station. Now this was for what the 911 caller had described as, quote, suspicious circumstances. Now it was pretty late, it was around 1107pm when they got this call. So I mean, suspicious circumstances, a gas station late at night, it could mean a number of things, right? But the 911 caller reported that apparently the gas station was still open. All the lights were on, there was music playing. They was is their usual open hours as well. Yet nobody seemed to be inside of this gas station working. It was like it was just empty, but business was still being conducted as usual. Somehow right now, I'm sure when the person called, they maybe second guessed it a little bit, like, hey, is it even worth calling in right now? Maybe, maybe the cashier is just taking a smoke break out back or is in the bathroom. Or since it's late at night, maybe they don't want to be caught on camera texting, so they're texting in the back room. Like, who really knows? However, the truth is that the circumstances made this caller feel like maybe that wasn't the case. Maybe there was more going on. And I think part of the reason why is because this wasn't one of those 24 hour gas stations. It wasn't one that stayed open all night. It actually closed at 11:30pm which at this point was literally just moments away. And even if it was about to close and this person just wandered off or quit mid shift or wanted to close up early, wouldn't they have closed the building up as well? Wouldn't they have shut down the music, turned off the lights, something? So my point is, something just gave this caller a very weird gut feeling. So they knew that it was better for the police to just come out, check it out, maybe say false alarm and ignore it all together. But like, at least, you know, like we all say, when you see something, say something and see hopefully you are erring on the side of caution and it's nothing. But what if it is something? So that's exactly what Happened the police coming to the scene. I mean, but the investigators upon arriving, knew immediately from the jump that this was not some weird false alarm. The person who was clocked in and supposed to be working at the gas station on shift was Jessica Lynn Haringa. And Jessica was a 25 year old mother to a 3 year old son. But just like this 911 caller said, Jessica was nowhere to be found. And the investigators knew pretty quickly that this was something much darker and much more nefarious than somebody just slacking on their job. Because there were a lot of signs that Jessica had not just left on her own. For example, her pack of cigarettes was still behind the counter, right next to the cash register. Her purse was also still inside, along with her wallet and everything else that's important to her, as a matter of fact. So this detail about her purse still being there is very important for two different reasons. Number one, I mean, there would have been no reason for her to leave it behind if she had just quit or if she had left early of her own volition. But number two, it shows that there probably was some sort of foul play involved. This wasn't a robbery gone wrong, because if they had robbed her, the purse would have been gone. So it gave the investigators enough to realize, okay, this scene does not look great. It doesn't look like she just left. We need to start investigating and see what the hell really happened here. Now, for whatever reason, Jessica also had about $400 in her wallet, and every single dollar bill was still there. Not to mention, the cash register also had been completely untouched. The shelves throughout the gas station also did. Didn't look ransacked or like somebody was looking for anything. Not like somebody who, you know, did a smash and grab an or robbery or anything like that. Everything was very tidy and like, you know, and accounted for. But that wasn't the only weird thing that the investigators found at the scene. The gas station also had a back door which was only supposed to be used by employees of the store. And the investigators noticed that this back door was unlocked. And right outside of this door were two things that immediately caught their attention. One, there were blood stains, and two, there were gun accessories. And they later determined that these gun accessories belonged to a Walther P22. So, I mean, with those last details, the investigators were able to determine that foul play was involved here. I mean, there was just no evidence that Jessica could have left on her own or that she did leave on her own. And of course, I mean, a person's character doesn't always Make a huge difference difference in true crime cases. But I do think that it is worth mentioning a couple of things about Jessica. Jess was described as being very funny, very outgoing, somebody who could just talk to anyone and was just so personable. Her friends and family even called her a, quote, little pixie girl because she was just really tiny. She had this big, bold energy about herself. She was always wearing tie, dye clothing, throwing up a peace sign. Just like a very happy person with a happy energy and spirit. Now, more importantly, Jessica's family said that she would never, ever in a million years leave her son behind willingly. The only way that she would never come back to him at home at the end of the night is if somebody was keeping her from coming home. So now you have this young woman who was missing, potentially kidnapped, and time was of the essence. So the investigators started working as hard as they could to start putting together a timeline. They also knew that they needed to interview potential witnesses. They needed to talk to people. They needed to get any sort of surveillance footage that they could find. I mean, they needed anything that would help. And here's the timeline that they were able to come up with. At 10:55pm Jessica checked someone out on the register. And this was the last recorded transaction at the store before she went missing. This transaction was also specifically for a cigarette lighter. Then five minutes later, at around 11pm A witness drove by. And this witness's account would actually be one of one of the biggest clues in the entire case revolving around Jessica, because the witness was actually one of the managers at this Exxon gas station store. Her name's Susan. See, Susan and her husband were driving past the store on a motorcycle. And I think you know how it is whenever you're driving past where you work, you kind of, like, look out the window, you see, oh, who's working? Who's still in there? What's going on? I mean, not like you're trying to be, like, intentionally nosy, as if somebody's doing something wrong, but, like, you know, you're curious. Even if you drive by a house that you know who lives there, you, like, sometimes look at it, right? But unless that's just me. But the thing here is this manager didn't just take a peek and then leave. She actually saw a silver van drive into the service driveway behind the gas station. And once they pulled in, they turned off their lights. So she was immediately weirded out for a few different reasons. For one, she knew that Jessica was working alone that night. And anyone being weird late at night when a Young woman is the sole worker inside a place of business. I mean, unfortunately, in the day and age that we live in, that is automatically a big red flag, and it is something to be concerned about. However, the behavior got even weirder. By the time that Susan and her husband had turned around and went back toward the gas station, this minivan had moved toward the front of the gas station. And at this point, the driver was out of the car and the tailgate to the minivan was open. Now, Susan saw this man slam the tailgate shut, then open it back up, adjust something that she couldn't see, but that was inside, and then slam down, shut again, before then hopping back quickly into the van and driving off. So Susan tells the police that she described him as being a white male, anywhere from 5, 10 to 6ft tall, and she described him as, quote, heavyset. But that was, unfortunately, all that she could really recall about this guy. And, I mean, when you hear it described, it might sound like it possibly unfolded over several minutes, but the reality was it probably was a matter of seconds that Susan saw this and was able to actually witness what was going on. So then, between 11.02pm and 11.05pm, surveillance cameras in the general vicinity of the gas station caught that exact same minivan that Susan had described. The minivan was driving past at least three other businesses. However, whoever was driving the minivan was driving incredibly fast, almost like they were speeding away from something. Now, there's some good news and some bad news about these surveillance cameras and what they caught. Thanks to those cameras, they were able to identify that the van was likely a Chrysler or a Dodge. But the bad news is, it's not like a Chrysler or a Dodge minivan is something that very few people own. I mean, a ton of people own those kinds of vans. The amount of people who owned minivans similar to what was seen on camera, in fact, was such a large number that the investigators immediately knew that they weren't going to be able to narrow down a suspect based on that information alone. And the truth was, the video footage itself was way too far away and way too grainy to really be able to tell anything other than the fact that it was a van. They couldn't see who was driving. They couldn't see the license plates. And one of the investigators pretty much said as much when they did an interview with the local news.
- [12:24]
Interviewer/Reporter
I wish I had the technology like you see on tv, where you could blow it up and I could see the driver inside, but that doesn't exist for me.
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Annie Elise
So Going back to the timeline, a couple of minutes after that, once that van was seen speeding on this footage, that's when the customer arrived at the gas station, found it empty, and called 911 everything that we already touched on. So all that being said, it seems like it's possible that Susan, the manager, who happened to drive by and saw this creep with the minivan acting all weird, that she may have also unknowingly seen Jessica in what could have been her final moments. And I say final moments because just as quickly as this case surfaced, it also went completely cold. There were no security cameras at Exxon, so all they knew was what the manager was able to recall, which really wasn't a whole lot in the grand scheme of things. And it had been at night, it was dark out. And even though there were lights at the gas station, it was difficult to for anybody to see anything really at all. And the manager, remember, had been on the back of a motorcycle. So again, it's not like she sat stationary and watched this guy for five minutes. It was a fleeting moment, a quick movement. So she did the best that she could. But in a case like this, it just wasn't enough. Now, even though there was a pretty solid timeline of when Jessica was possibly taken and also the general direction of where this minivan went, that was pretty much all that the investigators had to work with. However, there were some leads at different points throughout the investigation. For example, another witness came forward, somebody who was a regular customer at Exxon, and they were regular enough to actually know Jessica as an employee, not on a personal level, but, you know, as an employee. And when you get regulars and you're constantly going in, you start to recognize each other. Right? And this person noted that on the evening that Jessica went missing, while they were inside the gas station, they saw a man flirting with Jessica, and they could tell that Jessica was just being nice. She wasn't necessarily into it, but she was just, you know, customer service, trying to appease him, trying to be polite. But they described this man as being about 6ft tall and in his 30s. So now there was this little shred of hope, because this witness account of the man was very similar to the manager's account. Height, age, all of that. Unfortunately, the tip didn't really lead anywhere. Like I said, there weren't cameras in the store. So it's not like they could take a clip from around that time and then identify him. It was just another eyewitness lead. And the truth was, too, that these two witnesses recollection of this man was almost like the van situation. There were plenty of white men around 6ft tall and in their 30s in the area, so it didn't really make it easier to narrow in on one person. And they couldn't just go door to door all throughout Norton Shores until they ran through every single person with that description who also happened to own a van. However, despite that, not all hope was lost. The local police actually got a Homeland Security grant, and they were able to get their hands on a machine that they really did believe would help them. In Jennifer's case, we don't have that.
- [15:27]
Interviewer/Reporter
One person that knows what we need to know to step forward. Now that we have all those analysts in one room, they can work together and crunch data faster and give us some additional leads, if you will. The info is coming from the phones of possible persons of interest. Norton Shores police has this machine from a Homeland Security grant. The machine copies the phone's information, call history, texts, pictures, and emails, those visible and even those the phone's owner thought they deleted, and giving us more data, more. More places to look, more people to talk.
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Annie Elise
Now, they felt confident enough about this little machine that they were even talking about it on the local news, like in the clip I just played for you. So, understandably, a lot of people felt really optimistic and positive about Jessica's case, but for whatever reason, it turned out to not be as helpful as they thought that it would be. So they continued combing through the leads that they got from the public, hoping that there would be just one that would come in and really change things. But unfortunately, that lead never came. Jessica's friends and family came together as best as they could to get her name out there, her story out there. They made a Facebook account that really did start to gain some traction, too. They also handed out flyers all throughout the area. Someone even offered up a $500 reward for any information. Other people from the community also started to add to it, to try to stack it even higher, hoping, you know, maybe this will entice somebody to come forward with something useful. Jessica's family also had told the press that they would never stop fighting for Jessica and that one day they would bring her home. They truly had hope that they would find her. But the days turned into months, and then the months turned into a year.
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News Anchor
We're joined this morning by Diane Homrich. This morning, she's Jessica's grandmother. So thank you for joining us. What's very welcome, very latest on the case is anything new?
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Diane Homrich
Just as you spoke, there's nothing new as Far as we know, they don't know any more now than when it happened, which is almost 10 months ago.
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News Anchor
So that minivan is still really something that's out there that they're looking for.
- [17:33]
Diane Homrich
Yes.
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News Anchor
Okay.
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Diane Homrich
Yes, it is.
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News Anchor
Okay. What's been the biggest obstacle for you guys in getting new information? I understand the weather has been a problem this year as far as getting people together.
- [17:44]
Annie Elise
Tell us about that brutal weather.
- [17:46]
News Anchor
Yes.
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Diane Homrich
My daughter lives down by Nashville, Michigan. I live in Grand Rapids. One sister is in Pearson. Samantha was in Florida when this happened, and she has since moved back to Muskegon. So she is there. But just the distance and the brutal weather is unbelievable.
- [18:09]
News Anchor
Just even to get together to. To make any plans for any searches or any fundraisers or anything?
- [18:15]
Diane Homrich
Yes.
- [18:17]
News Anchor
As the year anniversary approaches, will there be any searches or fundraisers that we can look out for or help with?
- [18:27]
Diane Homrich
I don't think we're going to be doing any fundraisers. I'm thinking maybe a candlelight vigil out there. Because we have to keep her face in front of people. We ask that they be vigilant if they have seen anything, to call the Norton Shores Police Department or Silent Observer.
- [18:49]
News Anchor
And when we talk about anything, there will be, you know, so many times in missing people's cases, people think, oh, I saw something, but it doesn't mean anything. It might mean something to the police and their investigation.
- [19:00]
Diane Homrich
Yes, absolutely.
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News Anchor
So that's really. You want to get that word out there.
- [19:04]
Annie Elise
In April 2014, after almost a full year after Jessica first went missing, there ended up finally being some pretty major updates in her case after months of silence because the investigators revealed that they finally had a list of confirmed persons of interest. Now, this list ranged from a man who was the owner of the gas station to Jessica's fiance and father of her child, all the way to another man who was a former boyfriend of Jessica's, but allegedly somebody that Jessica was still secretly seeing on the side. If you've been wanting to refresh your space heading into spring, I cannot recommend enough going to Wayfair because Wayfair makes it so easy to actually bring your vision to life without, like, feeling overwhelmed by all of the choices. Choices. And they have something for everybody. I just recently redid the kids rooms and I got literally everything on Wayfair. Also, little secret, if you've ever seen the behind the scenes of my studio where I record, all pieces of furniture are pretty much from Wayfair, too. They just have literally everything. Whether you're updating your patio, you're reorganizing your closets, or you're just like, swapping out in a few different pieces to refresh and elevate your home. Wayfair literally has everything all in one place. And what I love, too, is just how intuitive it is, because you can filter by sty price point reviews, you know, measurements. So you're not just endlessly scrolling. You're actually finding exactly what fits your space. So for me, it's those pieces that are both functional and aesthetic that just make my everyday life easier. But, like, now I'm. They're making everything look really good, and they're like, tying the set together really well. I don't know. And the fact that they have fast shipping and assembly options, it's huge. So if you're ready to upgrade your home for spring, head to Wayfair.com right now. That's W A Y-F A Wayfair. Every style, every home. Let's talk about something that honestly does not get talked about enough, and that is vaginal health. Because the real truth about it is, is things like stress hormones, workouts, even just tight clothing, it can all throw off your vaginal ph. And when that happens, it can lead to discomfort, insecurities, just not feeling like yourself. And that's where Euro comes in. Urovaginal Probiotic is formulated with four clinically studied strains of probiotics and prebiotics that are designed to support a healthy vaginal pH, a balanced flora, and overall comfort. And what I appreciate about O Positive's bureau Vaginal Probiotic is that this isn't just a quick fix. It actually is supporting your body long term. They have so many great reviews of women saying that it's made them more confident, confident that their intimacy has improved because they feel more secure down there. And it's when taken daily, many women notice real improvements within just weeks, not just physically, but in overall confidence as well. So if you want to start being more proactive about your health, head to o positive.com ae or enter code ae at checkout for 25% off your first purchase. That's O P O S I t I v.com ae. Okay, so let's go over all of those people that I mentioned before, starting with the gas station owner. Now, when I was looking up why the owner was looked into, I couldn't find any official sources that documented the reasons. The only thing I was able to actually find was a blog post claiming that he did some pretty sketchy things. But, you know, take all this with a grain of salt, but apparently this guy Was very well known for being extremely flirty with all of the women who worked at the gas station. And according to this blog post, he also put up a job listing for Jessica's position within just 24 hours of her disappearing. And after Jessica went missing, her family had requested to hold a vigil for her at the gas station. But apparently this guy ran everyone off and he made them stop the vigil completely. Now, again, those are all things that I found on this blog post. So not exactly credible sources or court documents, but if those things are true, I mean, that is pretty shitty. It kind of just screams like, boss. And like, she, I get it. Work must go on. The company has to continue, but feels a little insensitive to just like, do a job posting 24 hours later. Right. I mean, it makes them feel a little scummy, but not necessarily a kidnapper or potential murderer. I mean, maybe there's more to it that I just couldn't find, but I get it. They were trying to find anyone who they possibly could look to as a possible suspect. Now, surprisingly, this guy was pretty quick to do any interviews with the press. And he talked about how the investigators made him take a lie detector test, how he wasn't worried about it at all because he knew he didn't do anything wrong, and he seemed very open.
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Interviewer/Reporter
You know, one of the things the detective asked me is, you know, does she seem like the kind of person that would just walk away? But she talked so much about her son and about her fiance.
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Jeffrey Thomas Willis
I had.
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Interviewer/Reporter
There's no way. That was probably when I was at the station that night that I figured out why I was there. They asked if I took her somewhere. They asked if I knew who did.
- [24:28]
Annie Elise
Now, the next person of interest was Jessica's fiance. And from what I can tell, there wasn't one thing that necessarily stuck out, other than the fact that, of course, you know, he was her fiance and the father of her child. And you always want to look to who the victims have close relationships with, Right?
- [24:44]
Interviewer/Reporter
I'm always going to be kind of the center of attention. Just that's the nature of the beast. But I cooperate with everything they ask. I jump through every hoop they ask.
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Annie Elise
Now, the last person of interest is honestly a little bit confusing. I had mentioned he was an ex boyfriend that Jessica was still in contact with all the way up leading up to that night. And not just, you know, in contact with a little bit, but it does sound more like they were in a full blown relationship with one another. From what's out there, apparently this guy had just recently rented a new apartment, and he also was planning on getting Jessica to leave her fiance and move in with him. But that isn't even the confusing part when I really got into all of it. The more confusing part is that this person of interest was the brother of one of Jessica's co workers. A co worker who, by the way, was described as being the main witness, one who even helped provide a sketch of the suspect. So my thought when I first read that was like, oh, okay, this main witness, that was Susan, the manager, right? But none of the sources that I found straight up called this witness by name. So in other words, I'm not sure if this person that we're talking about was Susan's brother or the brother of another co worker who came forward saying that they witnessed something. It's difficult to nail down exactly what the truth is. But regardless, we do have a co worker of Jessica's who came forward with a description that did end up matching very closely to their own brother, who coincidentally, was also Jessica's ex. And apparently investigators were looking into him for multiple reasons. I mean, number one, his relationship with Jessica. But then there was also the fact that his family owned a hunting cabin not too far from the Exxon station. I mean, what a perfect place to hide, right? A cabin in the woods. A hunting cabin at that. But even more than that, the family also owned a silver minivan. Now, this ex of Jessica's refused to talk to any media. However, for whatever reason, his dad was more than willing to talk. So here's his take on Jessica's disappearance and whether or not his son was involved. Take a listen.
- [26:55]
Jeffrey's Father
It's ended up becoming quite a mystery, hasn't it?
- [26:58]
Interviewer/Reporter
Uh huh. Your kind of family was stuck right
- [27:01]
Jeffrey's Father
in the middle of it.
- [27:02]
Interviewer/Reporter
Uh huh. Oh, they just kept calling him in. Calling him in? Yeah, at one time, I guess he was the number one suspect.
- [27:11]
Jeffrey's Father
Really? Well, that's a little creepy.
- [27:14]
Interviewer/Reporter
Yeah, that's stupid. He told, quit harassing me. If you're gonna charge me, charge me. Or if you keep harassing me,
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Jeffrey Thomas Willis
you
- [27:26]
Interviewer/Reporter
let you talk to my lawyer from now on. They said, well, that's what we wanted to hear. So they never bothered him again.
- [27:33]
Annie Elise
Now, when I first heard that information, I was kind of like, okay, case closed, it has to be him. But then you hear that the investigator did do a pretty thorough search into him. And it seems like it might not be that cut and dry of an answer, because it turns out he did have an alibi, and a good one at that. His Phone records confirmed that he was actually out fishing during the time that Jessica disappeared. They also searched that hunting cabin, and they saw no signs of Jessica or any signs that she was ever even there. Now, I will say fishing. I've never gone fishing. Okay? I'm not a fisherman or fisher woman. No shade to anybody who is. But I also, from what I've seen on TV or in movies, I don't know people who fish at 11:30 at night. I don't know if that's a thing. I guess maybe if you're, like, fishing sushi or like, food that you're then delivering to a restaurant the following morning. But, like, it was a good alibi. But for me, gave me a little pause, like, who's really fishing at midnight? You know? But anyway, even further than that, the minivan that connected him to the case wasn't even his. It was his parents. But the parents told the investigators that they were out of town on a gambling trip, and they had taken the minivan with them. And it turns out that the casino that they said they were at had security cameras. And these cameras actually verified that this van was, in fact, there out of town during the window, where it was seen on the other surveillance cameras in town. So, I mean, while it was good to hear that there were persons of interest, three different ones, none of them really stood out as being all that likely from the information that had been gathered. And Jessica still hadn't been found at this point, not even her remains. Her case became very well known throughout the community and just was known as this very sad tragedy. And since nobody really knew what had happened, it was a scary reminder of what could happen again. Because the truth was, whoever had taken Jessica hadn't been caught. They were still out there. And now it was as if it was only a matter of time until there was another Jessica. And like I said, over a year had passed at point this point since she had first disappeared. And it was now June 2014. Jessica's case was still actively being looked into, but everyone had started to finally cope with the fact that she might be gone. And right as everybody was coming to that sort of conclusion, a 911 call came in.
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911 Operator/Caller
901, where is your emergency? The corner of Riley Thompson and Automobile. It's on Automobile Road. We come up to this lady. She's laying in the road. I think she was hit by a car. Okay. Got a head injury. Okay. Some of Riley Thompson and Automobile. Yeah. Okay. Which way? 4300 automobile. 4300 automobile. Okay, stay on the Phone here with me, okay? I'm gonna get some help right out there for you. Did you see what happened to her? She has a pulse. I just came. We just came up on her. Is she unconscious? Yes, she is. Okay, you stay on the phone with me. Is she breathing? She is breathing. She has a pulse. Okay, did you see who hit her? Does she have obvious injuries? She has a head injury. Okay, she's got a head injury and her. She's laying face down. Okay, don't move her around. Okay? We're not moving her around. Okay? Is she by herself? You need to hurry. She's all by herself. Okay? It's really irregular. My wife is a nurse. Okay, Sir, I got help that's going to start on. Start helping, okay? Okay. She's got a really bad head injury. She's got. Okay, she's bleeding from her head. Yes, she's bleeding quite, quite a bit from her head. Okay, Is she breathing? Okay, Is CPR gonna help? I'm gonna open her airway. I'm doing a jaw thrust on her. Okay, you're doing a great job, Michelle. She's not breathing, though. Okay, I want you to start with cpr, okay? Do you remember how to do it? I got her. Okay, you guys are doing great. Grab her behind here. Hold both sides. Just hold both sides and hold her airway open and her head steady. I'm here for you if you need anything from me, all right? Stay there, Charlie. Michelle, make sure you get good, deep breaths in her. Yep. I can't. She's got blood. Okay, I don't have anything to. Okay, you can just do chest compressions. You don't have to put hair in her mouth. Just go with the chest compressions.
- [32:01]
Annie Elise
Now, what you just heard was a 911 call from a couple named Mark and Wendy. The couple were driving by when they saw a woman on the side of the road, all alone and in critical condition. And at first, just from listening to the call, it does sound like some kind of freak accident. Maybe this woman had a bad fall, maybe there was a hit and run, something like that. But either way, she had a very bad head wound. She was also unconscious and her breathing pattern was faint. So whatever it was and whatever the cause, it certainly was something pretty serious. The woman on the call mentioned that she was a nurse, so she was used to seeing some pretty bad things. She was no stranger to blood or doing CPR or any of those sorts of things. And she even said on the phone call, quote, who could do this? Who could hit a woman? And Just leave her.
- [32:51]
911 Operator/Caller
Oh my gosh. We could do this. You're doing great, Michelle. I know, but who can hit a woman and just leave her? Okay, okay, we're starting. I'm starting to hear some. Yeah, those are for you. I know this is hard. You're doing great.
- [33:13]
Annie Elise
She was convinced that this was a deadly hit and run. The first responders arrived and Mark and Wendy then got off the call. And they just sat and watched as these responders tried to help this woman. But unfortunately, her injuries were just too bad. She passed away right there on the scene. Now this woman was 36 year old Rebecca Bletch. That day, Rebecca had been out for a jog. A totally normal, innocent thing. This was something that she did all the time. She lived nearby, only about a mile away from the scene where she ultimately passed away. And she would always run along the same route that she always took. Now Rebecca had lived in the area for about 18 years. She worked at a local nursing home as an occupational therapist. And she also coached girls basketball at the local middle school. And she was described as kind of being like the life of the party anywhere she went. She was a role model for a lot of young people, a lot of people in general, but a lot of young people, of course. And she worked at the middle school. She was also a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister. And here's what's really shocking. When Mark and Wendy had called 911 for help, they thought that this was just some random woman that they had just stumbled across this. She was so covered in blood and she was injured so badly that they had no idea that this woman, this woman that they were trying to help was actually their daughter's basketball coach and one of their neighbors. They didn't even learn that information until later, which can you even imagine. And even more heartbreaking is the fact that their daughter was in the car with them when they pulled over to help. I'm sure she stayed in the car behind and she didn't see as much as her parents. But I mean, still, that is extremely traumatic. Now, like I said, Wendy thought that this was a hit and run. And that's what she told the 911 operator. And that's also what the first responders were expecting when they arrived at the scene. But pretty much as soon as they got to Rebecca's body, they knew that this was not a hit and run. It was something much, much worse. The first thing that tipped them off was how Rebecca's clothing looked. Her top was scrunched up, her pants Were folded down. Folded down. So much so that part of her rear end was actually showing. And I have never personally heard of a hit and run victim's pants being folded down in the process of being hit. Sure, sometimes clothing rips and moves, but this felt more intentional, More like it had been pulled down and folded down. And that was just one of the things. The major thing that the first responders noticed as they got closer to her body was when they were trying to figure out where all of this blood was coming from, they realized that the head injury was not from the blunt force trauma of being hit by a car, but it was actually from gunshot wounds. Now, these exact details weren't discovered until a later autopsy, But Rebecca had suffered four different gunshot wounds to her head from three different bullets. Now, aside from the gunshot wounds, there were also injuries on her body, which told the investigators that she had likely put up a fight. She had a lot of defensive wounds. There were bruises on the left side of her rib cage. There were bruises on her wrists. I mean, she fought like hell. The creepiest clue that was left at the scene were her belongings. Given that she had been out on a run, she had the typical things with her that you would take when you go for a jog. She had her headphones, her sunglasses. She had an armband that held her phone. And these items weren't just, you know, strung out near her body the way that they would be if she had gotten hit and somebody drove off. But they were neatly lined up on the side of the road, Almost as if whoever had done this to her wanted to leave their mark, Almost taunting the investigators that they had been there. So Rebecca's case had very quickly gone from this tragic hit and run to a very sinister homicide. Now, here's where it all ties together. Rebecca and Jessica both lived in Michigan. Rebecca lived in a rural county. But guess what else was part of that county? Norton Shores, where Jessica went missing a year prior. Now, I don't know the exact crime rates and the statistics of this exact county, but even the investigators started to wonder, is there any world in which these two women were victims of the same person? I mean, the area was similar. The fact that Rebecca was shot and that there was blood and gun accessories found at the Exxon station when Jessica had been abducted or whatever happened to her. I mean, that was a similarity. These women themselves weren't really all that alike, though. I mean, if you're assuming maybe that the perpetrator had a specific type of victim, they were different in ages, different hair color, different physical attributes, that sort of thing. One had gone missing from work late at night, the other was shot while out on a jog. So not entirely similar, but it definitely was something that the investigators were going to look into. There wasn't enough at this point to do a full on press conference saying that somebody was out there kidnapping or murdering women in the county in Michigan, but they certainly were going to start looking into everything. So the investigators started by looking more into Rebecca's case and they hoped that maybe somewhere along the way, something could potentially connect the two cases. The only real clue that was left behind were empty shell casings that were left near her body. And when I say that that was the only clue, I really do mean it, truly. There were no witnesses like there were in Jessica's case. Nobody noticed anything suspicious prior to Rebecca being found on the side of the road. So all they really had was the crime scene itself. Right away, a random robbery was crossed off the list of possibilities. The investigators believed that because of Rebecca's personal items that were lying nearby, it didn't really make any sense to consider somebody jumping her and trying to rob her and then ultimately shooting her, killing her, and leaving her belongings behind. They also had to consider though that maybe this was personal. So with that, they knew that they had to check out her husband and see if there was any possible way that he could be involved. But he ended up having a perfect alibi. He actually was out of town with their 11 year old daughter at the time of Rebecca's murder. So he was quickly crossed off the list of potential suspects. Now, it might sound like all of this happened in the week following her murder, but it was a months long investigation. They were looking into all possible options, but they were still somehow like just landing nowhere. And then just like with Jessica's case, Rebecca's case went cold. Now, that was in 2014, and for almost two years, there was still nothing. No leads, no clues, just silence. That is until April 2016, two years later, when everything was about to change. I think it's safe to say we have all gotten so used to constant notifications that it's very easy to ignore them. I know for me, if like I get something popping up on my phone, I just swipe it away. I'm like, get out of my face. I don't want to see it. But what happens when you ignore one that actually matters the most? Imagine getting an alert on your phone that someone is on your property while you're at work, while you're on a flight, or while you're out with your family. But then by the time you see it, it could very well already be too late. Well, that is exactly what I love about Simply Safe. Who I trust to protect not only my studio, but also my Simplisafe is a customizable home security system with 24, 7 professional monitoring. And what really sets it apart is that it can actually help stop break ins before they happen. They do this with their active guard outdoor protection. There also is no long term contract. They back, they completely back their system with anti theft guarantee. They've been trusted by over 4 million people, including yours truly and, and it's really just the best. I personally love too that everything not only is on my phone, I can arm, I can disarm, I can see all of my cameras at any point. I can see the history of anytime my motion sensors went off and what was captured on camera. It's just like, it's so convenient. And you know this isn't their tagline, but I'm just gonna say I feel like it is like security in your pocket or like peace of mind in your pocket. Maybe that's a peace of mind in your pocket and I don't know, it's peace of mind, but smarter. So right now you can get 50% off a new system@simplisafe.com seriously, that's simplisafe.com serial. There's no safe like Simplisafe. When people think about energy recovery and performance, they usually jump straight to workouts and supplements or even diet trends. But one of the most overlooked pieces of the entire equation is gut health. Because if your gut isn't functioning properly, your body can't absorb nutrients efficiently. And then everything from your energy to your, your focus to your recovery, it takes a hit. And I'm just going to be a little TMI with you. I have had digestion problems since I was literally a child. And I'm not going to like go into all the details of like how regular irregular I am, but I have had issues with my gut for as long as I can remember. So much so that like it's the norm for me now. But that is where Momentous Fiber plus really has come in and been kind of a game changer for me because it's not just another fiber supplement. It's a comprehensive three in one formula with soluble fiber and insoluble fiber and prebiotic resistant starch. And it's designed to support digestion, stabilize blood sugar and feed beneficial gut bacteria. It's built with a science first approach too, which I love because I trust that clean ingredients, it's independently tested so you know exactly what you're putting into your body. So if you are like me and if you are looking to actually improve your foundation and not just layer on more supplements, supplement after supplement, supplement, this really is a great place to start. And right now Momentous is offering my listeners up to 35% off. Your first order with code Annie. Just head to live momentous.com and use code Annie. That's live momentous.com code Annie. The exact date was April 1716, 2016, almost three years to the date from Jessica's disappearance. On this particular morning, 16 year old Madison Nygard was walking home by herself from a party. The party had started the night before. It had gone well into the early morning hours on the 16th, and at around 5:15am, Madison had started walking home thinking, you know, I'm not too far away, I'll just walk home, it'll be fine. However, she very quickly realized she wasn't as close as she had thought she was was and she didn't even really know where she was. At that point. She was mixed up and turned around. Madison ended up walking around town, not sure if she was walking in circles or going in the same or different direction and was walking around for about two hours. She also wasn't able to use her phone and I'm not sure if that's because she wasn't within range of service or if it was dead at this point, but for whatever reason she couldn't use her phone. Then at around 7.30am, a van pulled over. The person driving the van was a man, but Madison said he didn't seem weird and he didn't seem scary. Honestly, he was acting more like he was worried about her seeing this young girl walking by herself alone, seemingly confused or turned around. So Madison explained her situation to him and he very calmly just told her, you know, you can get into the van, I'll help you out by letting you use my phone and we can figure all this out. Now Madison said that at this point, after a very long night of partying and now walking for two hours with no end in sight, she didn't necessarily think that it was a bad idea. She was kind of out of options in her opinion. And really she thought that it would end up saving her time since this guy probably knew where he was at least. So she very clearly didn't. He would at least be able to say like, oh, we're at the cross streets of X and Y. Like, where do you live? How far away are we? And not to mention, he said he had a phone, so he could probably pull up a map. She could use his phone to call someone. Maybe she could call her mom, so she wasn't super reluctant or worried. However, Madison said that as soon as she got into the van and shut the door, the alarm bells inside of her immediately started going off. The guy that she had felt safe with just a few moments earlier had now rolled up the windows and locked the doors. So she started to get a really weird feeling that maybe she should not have gotten into this van after all. However, she was hoping in her gut that she was just being overly dramatic, that she was just being paranoid. But then things started to get even scarier. Madison, now, trying to distract her very worried mind, asked this guy if she could use his phone. However, he told her that she couldn't use his phone because his phone was also dead. Now, he had already offered up the phone. So it was at this moment that Madison knew. She knew that this guy had not pulled over with good intentions. So she started to panic. She started yelling at him, telling him over and over again to pull over. Let her out now. Screaming. But the guy acted as if he couldn't even hear her. He wasn't trying to calm her down. He wasn't telling her that she was safe. He wasn't trying to reassure her and say, you know, I'm not trying to scare you. It's okay. I'm just trying to help you. He just sat there, totally silent, staring at the road ahead. I cannot even imagine how terrifying that would be in those moments, to have reality setting in of the kind of danger that you're in. You're screaming, trying to plead with this person to get out. Let me out. Get me the fuck out of your car. And he's just acting as though he doesn't hear anything. Just driving straight ahead. Ugh. It's the worst. So then during all of this, this, the man reached over to his side and he pulled out a gun, pointing it right at Madison. He also started to drive faster, like he was in a hurry to get wherever he was going. Now, at this point, Madison said that her fight or flight mode really kicked in. The adrenaline was ramped up, and she knew that she had to make a very quick decision. So she unlocked the van door, and she literally rolled out of the van onto the pavement. Now, this guy was driving very, very fast, but Madison didn't care. She knew she needed to get the hell out of that van. And the truth is, I mean, could she have gotten hurt jumping out of a vehicle that was moving so fast? Of course. Absolutely. But she also knew that if she stayed in the van, she probably was not going to live. Whether this man was driving her somewhere to ultimately kill her, or if he was going to shoot her right then and there, she knew that there was no way to talk him into letting her go. And I want to just pause for a moment and say this, too. I've said this in some of my other case episodes where we have talked about abductions while people are out for a jog or running or really anything. The number one thing that I want all of you to please remember, never get in the car. Even if somebody is attacking you on the side of the road and they're like, just get in the car. And you think, okay, I'll fight once I get in there, I'll beg and plead or I'll fight them off. Once you are in the vehicle, the likelihood of ever getting out of that situation alive decreases tremendously. I forget what the exact statistic is, but I have talked to so many law enforcement people about this, and they say fight like hell even, because at that point, if you're fighting like hell before they can't even get you in the car, you'll at least hopefully collect some sort of DNA. Maybe you'll injure them them, Maybe you'll leave something on the side of the road because you'll spook them, but you have to fight like hell to never get in. And don't think that you can just rationalize with them later, because you can't. And so, although she was already in the van at this point, I'm so thankful that those instincts kept, you know, kicked in for her and that she knew, hell, I'd rather have road rash all over my body and maybe a couple broken limbs than whatever this creep is going to do to me, me. So, thankfully, when she jumped out of the van, she wasn't too badly hurt. And I'm sure her adrenaline was also probably just going into overdrive, making her not even feel the jump as much as it should have. But luckily, after falling, she was able to get up, and she started running as fast as she possibly could to a nearby house. Now, what's even more terrifying in this is that the guy in the van actually pulled over when she jumped out and shot his gun in her direction. Luckily, he didn't hit her, though, and Madison was able to get help from somebody who lived nearby. They immediately called 911 for help. This situation was no doubt traumatizing for Madison, but what she didn't realize was that in almost being abducted, she also would open up a years long mystery. You see, the investigators were able to pinpoint the specific location that Madison had been kidnapped. And it turns out that Madison had jumped from the van near West River Road and Green Creek Road. So for days, the investigators just canvassed the area, searching for any properties or any houses along that stretch of road that had cameras that might be of use and may give them some sort of insight into this man and his van. Then, about a half a mile from where Madison had jumped from the van, the investigators noticed that there was a blueberry farm that, that seemed to have cameras. So they went to the owner and they asked if they could look and see if his cameras had caught anything. And sure enough, the camera caught a silver minivan driving near the farm with its windows down. Now, the pictures that are out there aren't that great, but apparently the clips that the investigators looked at showed a pretty decent view of the driver's face. And I say decent view because they weren't able to identify this man right away. They actually gathered up a few different men and then they let Madison look at all of them in a photo lineup. But as scary as it was, Madison was up for the challenge. She claimed that growing up, she always had a photographic memory. So for her, this wasn't exactly a challenge. Not to mention, it wasn't like she had just seen this guy briefly as he drove by. She had stood outside of the van, talked with him, got into his vehicle, watched him as he pointed a gun directly at her. His face was forever ingrained into her memory. And she was going to put those terrifying moments to good use. At this point, the man that she ultimately identified was 46 year old Jeffrey Thomas Willis. On the morning of May 17, 2016, Jeffrey was arrested and charged with kidnapping Madison. And it was very nice to see that for once a terrible crime was actually getting justice.
- [51:58]
911 Operator/Caller
This.
- [51:58]
Annie Elise
But the story doesn't end here. Jeffrey's name wasn't one that was totally unfamiliar to the police. They just didn't even realize it yet. As it turns out, Jeffrey was actually someone who the police had interviewed years before, back when they were looking into Jessica's disappearance. Now, this is what they knew about Jeffrey. He was a furniture factory worker at the time of Jessica's disappearance, and he was a regular customer at the gas station. Which think back to Jessica's case, her co workers described her as being someone who was very friendly to her regulars. So even though they were customers, she saw many of the regulars almost, you know, as friends. They were also able to discover that Jeffrey owned a silver minivan just like the one that witnesses had described as being suspicious at the gas station around the time of her disappearance. So during that initial investigation, they had interviewed him. He claimed that, yes, he was a regular at the gas station, and, yes, yes, he knew who Jessica was. He even admitted that on the night that Jessica went missing, he was at the gas station, but he said that he just knew of her. He didn't actually know her on a personal level, only in a way where you come to recognize the workers at a place that you go to often. So the investigators asked if they could take a look at his van, and apparently he let them. But the van was clean, and not in a suspiciously clean and overly smells like bleach kind of way. It was just a regular van that looked well taken care of. They were able to find that he had just recently bought the van about a month prior. So when I do also say that it looked as good as new, it really wasn't an exaggeration, which the investigators felt was kind of the opposite of what would have been expected if Jeffrey had been the one to take Jessica. I mean, there was blood outside of the gas station near that back door. So clearly she was bleeding, and likely she would have bled in the van, but it was totally clean. And really, you could go back and forth all day long asking, well, what if he put a tarp down? What if he got rid of that tarp? What if this, what if that? But at the end of the day, those are just a bunch of what ifs. I mean, the point was, there wasn't anything suspicious about the van. And apparently Jeffrey also had an alibi, Though I wasn't able to find out exactly what his alibi was. Now, interestingly enough, enough, this whole connection with Jeffrey being someone the investigators had initially looked into with Jessica's disappearance, It wasn't even brought up by the investigators. It was Jeffrey himself who brought it up when they were interviewing him about Madison's case, which, by the way, he denied having any involvement in. But the investigators decided, like, all right, let's pivot. You want to talk about Jessica's case, let's talk about Jessica's case. So they asked him a bunch of questions. And keep in mind, it had been been three years since Jessica's disappearance. At this point, it wasn't an insanely long amount of time to recall events. If you're Telling the truth. But it was definitely long enough to forget your lies. So right away, the investigators noted a lot of inconsistencies with Jeffrey's story. The new 2016 version was not matching up with the 2013 version. And then Jeffree started getting really upset and really defensive, like, overly defensive. Especially when they told him that he wasn't being consistent and that they were going to get warrants for his van and his house. And that wasn't just a threat. They really were getting the warrants drafted up, and they very quickly were approved. So the first thing that they searched was his van. And it painted a very scary picture. Inside of the van, he had this little secret compartment that was supposed to be well hidden, but they found it. And inside of the compartment was a padded lockbox. Never a good sign. Right. And inside of this lockbox, there was bondage equipment, also syringes, multiple vials of insulin, and a laminated diagram of the human body. It was almost like he had made a literal how to guide of where to inject someone with obvious malicious intent. Right. Because too much insulin to a non diabetic, it can absolutely be deadly. But that's not all. He also had another lockbox under his driver's seat. And inside that lockbox was a gun. Now, right away you might be thinking, okay, perfect, that's probably the gun that he tried to use on Madison, and they're gonna track it, all of that. But the gun holds even more significance because that gun was very quickly identified as also being the same one with the exact same ammunition that was tied to Jessica and Rebecca's crime scenes. On top of that, gloves were found inside of the van with DNA blood evidence on them. Later, those gloves and the DNA came back as positive with Rebecca's DNA. So one sweeping search of Jeffrey's van had connected him to one disappearance, one murder, and one attempted kidnapping. And those were just the things that were found in the van. The search of his house, that is what sealed Jeffrey's fate. The first really crucial piece of evidence that investigators found in Jeffrey's house was a portable hard drive. And on this hard drive, they discovered that he was essentially documenting his victims. One of the file folders actually was literally titled Vicks v I C S as in short for victims, which, I mean, hello, could you be any more obvious? And that was just the main folder. The subfolders inside Vicks, they were titled JH and RB as in Jessica Heringa and Rebecca Blest. In each of these folders were different pictures of the victims. Even Flyers that their family members had been handing out over the years. Almost as if he wanted to keep tabs on the cases. The investigators also found a more than suspicious handwritten list that had been thrown in the trash. And this list was almost like a grocery list, I mean, if you can even call it that. But it had a lot of different items on it. So I'm just going to read you the list and you can make, you know, discern what it means for yourself. Vibrators, restraints, her panties, needles, cameras, ball gag, toolbox, handcuffs, hook, rope, condoms, gasoline and zip ties. Basically a murderer and sexual predator's grocery item. List of things to purchase. I mean, so gross and so unsettling and just devious. But that wasn't even all of it. Then there was also the most damning piece of evidence. And it's something that the victims families have understandably had a very difficult time coping with. On June 17, 2016, someone came forward to the police station claiming that they had information about Jeffrey that they needed to report. And this report, it would truly shock everyone. For the last couple of years there have been a lot of conversations around GLP1 medication, right? I mean, I'm sure you've heard about it. You'd be hard pressed not to hear about it. First started with celebrities, now it's going mainstream and just a lot of conversations, which for good reason, they are changing the landscape of weight loss and metabolic health. But what's really interesting is that it's no longer just injections. Roe now offers the first FDA approved GLP1 pill, making this option more accessible and for many people more convenient. It a lot of people are scared of the injections that, you know, they can't do needles. I'm somebody who like needles freak me out. So the fact that it now comes in pill form for people if they choose to take this journey, I think that is a great solution. It's the same active ingredient that's used in the shot. It's clinically shown to help patients lose an average of 14 of their body weight over a year. And it has the added benefit of being a once daily pill. And what I really appreciate about Roe, if you're looking to to explore this for yourself, is that it's not just about the medication. You also get access to licensed providers, ongoing support and guidance throughout the entire process. So if this is something that you've been curious about, exploring and seeing if you qualify for, go to RO Co AE and see if you're eligible. That's RO Co ae and for full Safety information. Visit RO CO Safety. Safety. Now, keep in mind, Jeffrey had already been arrested for a month around this time. It was still a fresh case, though, but still a little surprising to have somebody who wanted to talk to the police about somebody who had already been arrested and come in a month later. But this person who came forward, his name was Kevin Bloom. Kevin and Jeffrey were first cousins, and they had always been very, very close, and they had grown up together. And Kevin admitted that while he was not involved in the abduction of Jessica, he did know about it, which this was like a major mic drop moment. I mean, Jeffrey being the person who had taken Jessica was already known at this point, but the fact that someone else had known about it for years and just never came forward, it was disheartening, to say the least. Kevin claimed that in late April of 2013, he had gone over to Jeffrey's house just to see him and catch up. But instead, Jeffrey told him to stop over by their grandpa's house in Norton Shores. Their grandpa had already passed away at this point and had left the house to Jeffrey, so it was technically abandoned and nobody was living there. But Jeffrey was in charge of the upkeep and still spent a lot of time there. So Kevin claimed that Jeffrey told him that there would be women there and that it was going to be this, like, big party, that they were going to have a foursome, and it was going to be so fun. And look, I know that foursome isn't the big takeaway in this case, but I am a little bit, like, icked out and, like, grossed out that cousins are involved in a foursome with one another. I mean, gross. But anyway, so Kevin was like, heck, yeah, I'll be there. I'm coming over. And Kevin claims that the exact date was April 27, which, if you recall, that was the day after Jessica went missing. So Kevin said that on that night, he went over to the house, and when he went down into the basement, he saw a very different scene than what he was promised. It wasn't some foursome with tons of girls and they were going to get their freak on. At the bottom of the basement stairs was a woman lying face down. Her hands were stretched out from her body, and she was completely tied up. And the woman wasn't crying or panicking. In fact, her body was still. She was completely naked, but her face was facing the opposite direction of him. So all that he could see was her nude body and the back of her head. But then there Jeffrey was, standing there next to her body, just proudly Standing almost as if he was waiting for Kevin to come down the stairs and congratulate him, to be like, look, you know, let me show you what I've done. And he'd be like, good work. Great work, cousin. Like, just standing there bold and proud. And when Kevin asked him what was going on, Jeffrey's only response was, quote, and this is gonna make you sick. It makes me sick. I got some pussy. It is so fucking disgusting. Now, Kevin claimed that he knew that at that moment, this woman, who you can already guess was Jessica, wasn't just unconscious. He knew without Jeffrey even telling him that this woman was dead. He also noted that there was liquid coming from her head and that the color of her skin was very different than someone who was still alive. So this tells me that by the time that Kevin saw her, she had already probably been dead for quite some time. And this is just a guess, but the court documents really made it a huge point to note multiple times that her hands were straight out and away from her body. So maybe she was already in rigor mortis. I don't know. That's just a guess. It's not a fact. But now, seeing what Jeffrey had done, Kevin said he began to help hide the body. He claimed that they put Jessica's body on top of a sheet, and then they wrapped her up, quote, like a taco. He also noted again that when they were wrapping her up, he saw body fluid, as the court documents describe it, and he saw this fluid coming from both her head and her rear end. Now, the court documents only used the terminology liquid and body fluid. So in my head, that could really be up for interpretation, meaning quite a few different things, but you interpret it however you see fit. So they then put her body in the back of Jeffrey's van, which already had a tarp laid down to keep any evidence from getting into the back of the vehicle. Then Kevin says that they drove to an area where it was clear that Jeffrey had already been planning to bury the body. Kevin said that when they got to the location, a hole had already been dug. There were also two shovels there waiting for them, one for him and one for Jeffrey. Now, it seems like Jeffrey always knew that if he needed to hide a body, quite literally, his cousin Kevin would be the one to call, because he didn't put up a fight. He just went along with it. And he knew that when he told Kevin to come over for a party and for some fun, that they would end up burying Jessica's body together. So, I mean, that was a lot to process. Now, as for the actual lead up to Jessica's disappearance and the motive, Kevin claimed that Jeffrey told him a few very vague things. He told him that he had been watching her and following her, but he didn't give an exact time frame. Jeffrey also, I guess, told him that he hit her to make her go unconscious so that he could get her out to his van that night. Now, as for why he did this to Jessica, he apparently never told Kevin, but this was more than enough. So Kevin's confession, it was the final nail in the coffin for Jeffrey. But like I said, the families had really mixed opinions on it. I mean, was it good that he finally came forward with this information? Yeah. I mean, it could make a world of difference during a trial. But this guy had also helped get rid of Jessica's body, and he kept her death a secret for years. He only came forward after Jeffrey was arrested. So was he actually sorry for being an accessory and keeping this huge secret, or was he maybe just scared that Jeffrey was gonna rat him out, too, and that he would get in even more trouble for not being the one to come forward and confess everything himself? I don't know. I'm kind of leaning more toward the second of those two options, but that's just my thought. Now, the most ironic part of Kevin coming forward was that at the end of his interview, he tried to take everything back, like, literally. He told the investigators he made the whole thing up. None of it was true. I take it all back. Kevin would later, though, be held accountable for his involvement, and he pleaded guilty to two counts of lying to a police officer during a violent crime investigation. Now, given everything that we know, the investigators were able to confidently charge Jeffrey not only with Madison's attempted kidnapping, but with Jessica's disappearance and murder as well as Rebecca's murder. The trial for Rebecca's murder was in November of 2017, where he was found guilty of first degree murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felon. He was ultimately sentenced to life in prison without parole. I hear people say closure all the time, and then we lost our sister. There's no closure. That empty spot is always going to be there. The trial for Jessica's abduction and murder took place in May 2018, and it was a pretty quick trial. The jury only needed an hour and a half of deliberations before they found Jeffrey guilty of both her kidnapping and her murder. In June of 2018, he was again sentenced to life in prison without parole. The other notable charges against Jeffrey were attempted kidnapping for Madison's case and the production and possession of CSAM material, which is basically explicit child material if you don't know that acronym. Now, even though Jeffrey is spending the rest of his life in prison, investigators are looking into another case that he could possibly be connected to. This case is an unsolved murder of a 15 year old girl named Angela Thornburg. Angela was found murdered in 1996. She had been missing for about a month and in typical true crime fashion, the police weren't really looking into it and had just considered her a runaway until then. Her body was found. Now, even though Jeffrey is considered a suspect, I haven't been able to find recent sources about Angela's case. Maybe they believe that he's involved and they just can't find enough evidence. Or maybe they don't have much evidence that Jeffrey's involved and it's just a hunch of theirs. I'm not entirely sure. But I do know that in cases like this, there's no happy ending. Multiple lives were taken and Madison's life would have undoubtedly been taken if she had not fought back. Rebecca's family was at least able to lay her to rest. But to this day, Jessica's body still has not been found. And the frustrating thing about this case, I mean, there are so many frustrating things, but. But even after Jeffrey was sentenced to life in prison without parole, he still refused to admit that he killed Jessica. And he claims that he has no idea where her body is. And the reason why is because he's innocent. And we see this with a lot of offenders who do have the possibility of parole. I mean, as messed up as it is, it at least makes a little bit more sense. Not helping families or investigators is strategic for them because then they eventually want to land their parole by being cooperative. But with Jeffrey, that's never going to happen. Yet he still does not want to cooperate. It's just evil, it's selfish, and it is just the worst. But I mean, that's also to be expected from a creep like this.
- [69:55]
Interviewer/Reporter
I wanted to know like, what those files are and like what, you know, what's in them that would prove your innocence.
- [70:02]
Jeffrey Thomas Willis
Sure thing. I want to get to that. I just want to make sure because I had an innocent interview last week with Wood TV8. I came from a Ken Coker, I think, and him and I, that didn't go well. I almost hung up on him. So I don't want to be badgered. I. I've stated myself, I don't know, multiple times to multiple people that I Didn't do it. I'm innocent and I don't know where the body is. So if you're gonna hound me about that kind of stuff, I don't even want to. I don't even want to interview. The reason I asked you is, and the reason I okayed this is because I have things that I would like to talk to you about. And I want somebody to at least listen to me. So are you willing to listen to me?
- [70:42]
Annie Elise
Both Jessica and Rebecca's families have fought to introduce legislation that they hope would help people like their loved ones. Jessica's law was introduced in 2013 to the Michigan legislator. And the bill would require, quote, gas stations and convenience stores operating between 11pm and 5am to schedule at least two workers on that shift. Or require gas stations and convenience stores to install and maintain a security camera that would record attacks, robberies, or other crimes that threaten workers. However, from what I'm able to see, there was apparently a lot of pushback on it because business owners were worried about the extra costs of installing cameras or having two employees scheduled, which is honestly just insane to me. I mean, I mean, they're basically saying outright that they value their money over the safety of their workers. I mean, not shocking, I guess, in today's world, but still wild to hear. Now, I can't even begin to estimate how many cases we have covered that are still unsolved to this day. And the truth is, I can't even begin to estimate how many cases we've covered that are still unsolved to this day because the last place that someone was seen either didn't have cameras or had cameras that weren't operating. Unfortunately, from what I am able to find, I don't think that this ever became an official law. The most updated article I could find on it was from 2016, which obviously is not that recent. And the article noted that the bill was reintroduced, but no actions were taken. Now, as for Rebecca's family, they were very angry after Jeffrey's sentencing, which, if you're not new to my podcast or my YouTube channel, then you've probably seen many clips of victim impact statements that are given during sentencings. They're always really emotional. The cameras will pan over to the murderer showing their emotions, their reactions to the victim's loved ones sharing their deepest feelings and grief and sorrows. But what a lot of you may not realize, though, is that the person being sentenced can ask the judge for permission to not be present during that part of sentencing, meaning they wouldn't hear the family's statements. And frustratingly, Jeffrey's request for that was granted. Now, as if that wasn't awful enough, Jeffrey knew what he was doing and he knew what he was about to miss. So when he walked out of the courtroom, he looked directly at Rebecca's family and he blew them a kiss. One final fuck you and slap in the face like, yeah, I killed your loved one and I don't have to sit here and listen to you whine about it now. Understandably, her family was furious and they brought up a really good point. Why should the murderer have more rights than the victim? Why should they be able to get away with that? One of her family members also told the media, quote, a part of my grieving process was taken from me in a horrible way. What is the point of an impact statement if I can't speak to the person who has impacted me and destroyed my family? No other family should have to feel that their words and their heartache don't matter. Victims have a right to be heard and express their feelings to the individuals that caused it. And honestly, I could not have said it any better than myself. Thankfully, In May of 2018, Rebecca's Law was passed, making it so that convicted criminals had to listen to impact statements from victims or family members during sentencing hearings. So her family is at least comforted by the fact that other victims families will never have to go through what they did. I know that this case was a lot. I mean really, these cases, there were three of them. And I'm just so glad that the families of these victims at least received a sliver of justice even if some elements to it are not resolved. I mean, hopefully one day I can come back on here and give you a major update that Jessica's body had been found and that her family can finally lay her to rest. I'm hopeful that that happens and I think we can all just collectively prey on that. But what about this monster and what about his creepy ass cousin? It is just so sick. It breaks my heart that and I hate that people don't come forward when they know something. It's like you, you know something, you have information. Help these families, help them. Like it's just so evil to torment them this way. So it was a lot. I know we stacked a few different cases in this one, but it's because they were all linked together. So I appreciate you listening to all of that, their stories. Thank you so much for tuning into another episode. I will be back on the mic with you very soon. Don't forget, follow the podcast if you're not already. Subscribe right now on YouTube if you're watching so that you don't miss another episode. And until the next one, be nice, don't kill people, don't get into any vehicles, and be very careful. Late night at gas stations. Whether you're working or picking something up, just be careful, careful. All right, Bye. At Amica Insurance, we know it's not just about where you're going, but who you go with. That's why we work even harder to protect what matters most. And as a mutual insurance company, we're built for our customers and prioritize your needs. Ameca Empathy is our best policy. Visit amica.com and get a quote. Today. My uncontrollable movements called TD tardive dyskinesia felt embarrassing. I felt like disconnecting. I asked my doctor about treating my TD and learned about in Valbenazine capsules, a prescription medicine clinically proven for reducing TD in adults. That's always one capsule once daily and number one prescribed. People taking in can stay on most
- [76:30]
Jeffrey's Father
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- [77:00]
Annie Elise
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Jeffrey's Father
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Annie Elise
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