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- [00:00]
Hunter
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:04]
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Hunter
Appointed seats are optional features.
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Nissan Advertiser
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- [01:09]
Chamberlain University Advertiser
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- [01:46]
Hunter
Answers is a production of the Black Effect podcast network and iHeartradio. Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a true crime podcast. I'm your host Hunter, and in this episode we're discussing a case out of Monroe, North Carolina. A small community shaken to its core when a 16 year old girl vanished without warning. Her disappearance would ignite a desperate search, stretch across multiple states and expose a chilling truth about the dangers lurking amongst the Internet. We spoke with her father, who walked us through the terrifying weeks of the investigation, the emotional reunion with his daughter and their path towards healing in the aftermath. This is the story of Lauren Heat. October 13, 2023 began like any other day, but for the Heath family, it quickly turned into every parent's worst nightmare.
- [02:56]
Derek Heath
I would say. You know Like a month or two prior, my wife and I had noticed, you know, a change in her. She seemed to be a little bit more withdrawn, so to speak, not talking a lot because she was playing volleyball at her previous high school and she was a cheerleader. But I remember receiving a phone call from her. She leaving head coach there at a camp, saying how much my daughter was so withdrawn from the team, not interacting, you know, with their teammates, not talking, want to be by herself. I even asked her that night when she called me, like, hey, do you want me to come get you? If you're not comfortable being there? She's like, no, I'm gonna stick it out. Because, you know, as parents, we always tell our kids, hey, if you start something, finish it. But it was several conversations that my daughter and I would have. Like, when I would take her to school, she always would make the comment like she feels like she's somebody else's friend, but they're not her, so to speak. Like, she's trying too hard, and they're not reciprocating what's needed in a good, solid friendship. And I say, hey, you know, don't take it personal. You know, just as parents, we tell our kids, you know, it's life. It's part of growing up, especially being a teenager, especially being young females that go through a lot of changes. And, you know, they pick and choose friends from week to week and be day to day.
- [04:17]
Hunter
Ring camera footage showed Lauren leaving her home in Indian Trail, North Carolina. There were no warning signs, no goodbye, just a quiet exit into the unknown. Her father, Derek Heath, recalls noticing changes in Lauren in the weeks prior. Prior. Like many teens, she began struggling, but he now sees the signs they missed.
- [04:43]
Derek Heath
But it's one thing my wife and I, you know, regret doing is not. I mean, we heard her daughter, heard our daughter, but we didn't, like, fully listen. You know, when you're like, your kids are crying out constantly, it's easy for us as parents to say, hey, go to school. Wear that crown strongly ahead, be strong, be yourself. But when you gotta live in that world five days a week for seven and a half hours a day, it's different. And, you know, that's my wife and I, looking back on that, we wish we would have really delved deeply more into that. You know, what she was expressing about her being withdrawn and everything like that. But, you know, you know, I think that was part of it. You know, the. The friendships weren't as solid as she might have wanted. She was telling us things like kids were Saying certain things to her that make her feel down or depressed and she lost her self esteem, so to speak. So I think that's what led up to her disappearance. I felt like she just wanted to just drop it all and just go away.
- [05:53]
Hunter
Despite her challenges, Lauren was excited about her school's upcoming, upcoming homecoming dance. She had a nail appointment scheduled and was looking forward to the event. Hardly the actions of someone planning to leave. That's what made her disappearance all the more alarming. This wasn't like Lauren. Her behavior didn't match someone who wanted to just disappear. As hours turned into days, panic settled in. The seconds dragged like hours. And the longer she was gone, the worse the fear became. But the heath family wasn't alone. The Monroe community rallied together. Candlelight vigils were held. Flyers blanketed neighborhoods. Billboards appeared in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and Virginia. Lauren's face became impossible to miss. But despite the overwhelming support, the silence was deafening. Lauren's parents spoke out to her in every public message. Come home, we love you. There's no obstacle too big to bring you back. Still, one thing was unmistakable. The police response in those critical early days was dismissive. Like many cases involving missing black girls, Lauren's disappearance didn't trigger the kind of urgency it deserved.
- [07:38]
Derek Heath
Initially, when she went missing on the 13th, of course, um, we made a police report and the police were so nonchalant about it. It was just like, oh, here we go again, another missing child. So, you know, we write it down. And he was kind of nonchalant about it with, you know, kind of got under my skin with my wife and I. And he just kind of took it and just left and like, hey, we really need to hear something, you know, about this case. Like, so that was on a Friday. We, my wife and I, had to literally go down to the police station first thing Monday morning and help get a detective assigned to the case. So two whole days had gone by with nothing. And I even called the dispatch to see about follow up because they was asking me about her cell phone, what cell service did we use, and everything like that.
- [08:30]
Chamberlain University Advertiser
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- [09:37]
Hunter
Her father told us plainly if it weren't for the community stepping up, there's no telling where the case would stand.
- [09:49]
Derek Heath
The community response was awesome. You know, my neighbors in my neighborhood went out looking. My neighbor across the street, she was awesome because she said she knew this house where a lot of teenagers would go and just hang out and just drink, blah, blah, blah. She went there. So the community response was. Was awesome. Those first two days, she went missing, up until the time my wife and I had to go to the police station and luckily it worked out. The chief of police, I used to coach his son in football. So when he saw me, he told his detective, like, hey, anything he wants, you make sure he gets it. So it pays to know people. Like I tell people, don't burn your bridges because you never know, you might need somebody. So once I got to him, it was a lot better. The detective was very responsive to us about, you know, any type of leads or anything. We had people down the street. This lady, she has a big farm down the street. She even offered like, her ATVs to like go out and look, you know, out, you know, in the community or whatever. So the community response was awesome. You know, we made flyers. People would come by and get flyers and put them up for us. There's this little biker house down the street. They had cameras, but they might have thought she might have, you know, left from. They let us go down and look at their cameras. But it was overwhelming. The response that we received from the community.
- [11:21]
Hunter
Even with tips pouring in, time kept slipping away. No breakthroughs, no confirmed sightings, no real leads. Just a growing sense that Lauren might be getting further and further away. Then, nearly two weeks later, hope arrived in Kirkwood, Missouri. Police officers investigating a suspicious vehicle park parked outside a Lowe's made a discovery that would bring this nightmare to a shocking turning point. Inside the car was a 30 year old convicted sex offender. And in the passenger seat, 16 year old Lauren Heath. Authorities learned that the man had been communicating with Lauren through an anonymous messaging app. He exploited her emotional vulnerability, manipulated her with false promises, and drove all the way from Oklahoma to North Carolina to pick her up. She was carrying her birth certificate and had even memorized her mother's phone number. Details that ultimately helped police confirm her identity and notify her parents.
- [12:38]
Derek Heath
Having those conversations with your child or children about social media because like I said, it's a beast. It's like I said, it's a gift and a curse. And you, you know, you have these apps that have been created where it looks like one thing but it's something else. Where they lure children. I know it's one app. I know the FBI was showing us it looks like a calculator, but behind it, it's a way that these predators talk to children. Wow. Yeah. So it was the particular app. I don't think they even have it anymore. It's called Whisper. That was the main culprit in this case. It's almost like the dark web, so to speak, behind these apps because these predators have ways of getting to children, whether it be online. I know in speaking with people I know a police officer showed me down the street how these, they will change their voice online to sound like a child and you think you're playing with another 12 year old and it comes out, it's somebody 40 or 50 years old. They use this, you know, this voice altering, like headset and that's like. So I would tell my kids, you know, you have to be careful, you know who you're online with less. It's just your close friends from school or somebody you know personally. Don't talk to them.
- [13:57]
Hunter
The moment the call came in, Lauren's parents dropped to their knees. Relief overwhelmed them.
- [14:04]
Derek Heath
Them.
- [14:04]
Hunter
They didn't even put on the proper shoes before rushing to the airport to catch the first flight to Missouri. When they were reunited with their daughter, it felt, Mr. Heath said, like holding a newborn for the second time. And though joy filled the reunion, the trauma lingered and the road to healing would be next.
- [14:32]
Derek Heath
The first, I would say she came on October 25th. I would say probably until maybe four or five months after that. It was still a struggle trying to get her to focus and open up. Of course, we did immediately get her into therapy where she's still in now. That has helped out tremendously. I will say she's come a long way since then. She's in a new high school, she's cheering, she loves it. She's making new friends. So I believe this new high school has done her leaps and bounds of getting her self esteem back, making new friends. Because like I said, her previous high school, for whatever reason, just was not the place for her.
- [15:21]
Hunter
Lauren came home on October 25, 2023. But in the days and months that followed, her family would face a new set of challenges. Therapy became a part of the healing process. A new high school brought a fresh start. But emotionally, her father described it as life altering. It changes you as a person, he said. We used to beat ourselves up, but we know we're good parents. One thing they are absolutely certain of, Lauren was not to blame. She was coerced and groomed by a sick individual, Mr. Heat said. She's the victim and she needs to know this isn't her fault. According to investigators, predators like this prey on children expressing vulnerability online. They scare, scan for keywords, emotional distress, and then pose as saviors, only to lead their victims into unimaginable danger.
- [16:28]
Derek Heath
In fact, I just spoke to the federal prosecutor yesterday because with him having federal charges and also state charges, with him crossing state lines with our daughter, there's so much they have to get worked out far as the charges and get what to plead to for him. So it's kind of like in the holding pattern, he's what I do know he would never see the light of day.
- [16:53]
Hunter
Thankfully, Lauren's story ends with a reunion with her family. But for far too many other families, that call never comes and that moment of relief never arrives.
- [17:08]
Derek Heath
My wife and I, you know, talk about all the time like we were truly blessed to get our daughter back. But I know when I look at I still part of black and missing and all these mission children sites always repost and share every kid that comes across my timeline because I know exactly how those parents feel. So I can only imagine if your child's been missing for months or years, you know, what type of, you know, mental state those parents are in. The best advice I can give parents with children that are missing is to stay relentless and get closure to your situation. Because I told my wife, I said, regardless of what, what happens with our daughter, I just want to know that I never quit. To parents, like I said, there's, you know, there's no handbook to this, to being a parent. You can be the best parent in the world and something tragic like this does happen. You can't ever doubt yourself as a parent. If you'd have told me this would have happened to my family, I'm like, you're crazy. That'll never happen to my daughter. But like I said, nobody's immune to this. Nobody. This thing for me as a father is to be more of a listener to her rather than try to tell her how to feel, you know, because she has the right to feel the way she wants to, like anybody else, regardless of them being your children. So I think that's the biggest thing for me is to really let her be herself and her feelings and try to work it out through her, through her lens and not mine.
- [18:42]
Hunter
As we close out this episode, don't forget to hit the Follow button to stay updated on this case and others like it. Subscribe to Hunting for answers on YouTube to watch the visuals to this episode and follow us us on Instagram and TikTok for more true crime updates. And if you enjoyed this story, leave us a five star rating. Thank you so much for joining us on another episode. Until next time, Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect Podcast Network. For more podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast network, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
- [19:41]
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- [20:42]
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- [21:12]
Derek Heath
Almond Joy Factory, where tropical vibes abound, we saw fresh tasting coconut, the crunchiest.
- [21:19]
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Almonds, and delicious chocolate candy.
- [21:22]
Derek Heath
Ah, but do you know what our most important ingredient is? Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't. Almond Joy's got nuts and something even way better. Better than that? Yes. Almond Joy is made with almonds. And.
- [21:40]
Hunter
This is an I Heart podcast.