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Dsw, countless shoes at bragworthy prices. Imagine the possibilities. Hello, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of True Primary Kennel. Ray, thank you so much for joining me today. I appreciate. Appreciate you being here. And if you're new to the show, welcome. Happy to have you here as well. Well, guys, today, the case I'm gonna be telling you about is pretty difficult to put into words. We're gonna be talking about the murder of Ebi Stepik. And let me just say now that this case is just as sad as it is frustrating and just perplexing in every way. And it's also very, very complicated. The road that you and I are about to go down has a lot of twists and turns and some side roads that we got to stop at as well. So I suggest you buckle up for this one, because it's just a lot. I want to start this episode a little different than I normally do, and that's by sharing some of the victim's own words with you. Her mom once came across one of her old diaries, and when I saw the entry that was in there, I just. I don't know, it felt really right to cover her story. And it said, I want people to know my story even after I die. Which just gives me the chills in hindsight, knowing what we know now. And I'd really like for you to sort of keep that quote in the back of your mind as we're going through the events of this case, because just by listening to this episode, you are making her goal a reality. We are talking about her story, even though I'm sure it's not the story she imagined it would be. I just hate that I'm sitting here today telling her story under these circumstances. But I do feel honored that I get to tell Ebby's story, and I hope it is helpful to her loved ones as they are still trying to get answers and to get justice for Ebby. Now, Ebby Jane Stepik was born on March 31, 1997 in Little Rock, Arkansas to her parents, Lori and Peter Stepik. And she grew up in the Chanel Valley area of West Little Rock with an older brother Trevor, and a younger sister named Harris. Now, Ebby has a very unique name. I don't know if I've ever met another Ebby, and I just love the name. So I wanted to know, you know, where her mom came up with this name or her parents. And it was her mom. Her mom Lori said that she got her unique name from a friend at church who named her daughter Evie. And she liked it so much that she decided to put her own spin on it and landed on the name Abby. And her family also used the nicknames Ebster and Eb Jane, which I think are just so cute. Now, when Abby was in first grade, her parents did end up getting a divorce, which, you know, sucks most of the time. However, in her case, her parents luckily did remain very committed parents who continued to both be a strong influence on her. For example, they were both hairdressers, which inspired Ebby to be interested in cosmetology from a very young age. So. So throughout life, she constantly experimented with different hairstyles and different makeup techniques, and she dreamed of going to cosmetology school to work in that field one day. She also did have some interest in possibly getting into real estate one day, and I think her bubbly and friendly personality would have made her very successful at that as well. But going back to her family for a moment, Lori, her mother, did end up getting remarried to a man named Michael Jernigan. Now, what's great about Michael is him and Abby seem to get along very well, which, you know, sometimes having a new step parent can be very difficult. And I'm not sure how old Abby was when they got married, but by all accounts, it seems like things between them were great. And honestly, from what I've learned about Abby, it seems like she just got along with everybody. She was very easygoing. People describe her as sweet, kind, empathetic, very, very loyal. And here's a good example of that. I love this story, but growing up, she attended the Lisa Academy. And during her junior year, this classmate of hers, Caleb Boyd, was falsely accused of bringing a gun to school, and he actually went to prison over it. And while many people were quick to just write Caleb off, Abby put in the effort to clear his name. She ended up rallying her fellow students to really get behind him and actually organize this letter writing campaign to advocate for Him. And he was eventually released. And he later said that she had a massive hand in this and that everyone sort of looked over him and, you know, discounted him, dismissed him, except for her, his mom. I'm sure she was just blown away by Ebby's kindness. And she said that, you know, it really showed what a big heart Abby had and that Caleb's whole family just thought really highly of her. But beyond just being kind and having such an amazing personality, Abby also seemed very smart too. She was interested in language, languages, and actually studied Spanish, Turkish. And her grandmother on her dad's side taught her a little bit of Hebrew as well. And Abby loved her grandparents. She had a good relationship with her grandparents on both sides. I read that whenever her family would take trips to the beach, she would spend hours pacing the sand to find seashells that she would give to her grandparents as gifts. She seemed like such a sweet kid who really grew up to be a pretty cool person. And not to mention, Abby was also very funny. I learned that she really rarely left a room without making somebody laugh. And I also learned that she loved the color Purple. But anyway, that takes us to the summer of 2015, when Ebby's personality began to change a little bit and she was gaining some more independence. At this time she had gotten a job at Playtime Pizza and then at Foot locker in the McCain Mall in North Little Rock. And her mom has said that her co workers at Foot Locker were a bad influence and she just, you know, didn't approve of Ebby spending time with them. She had also just gotten a 2003 Volkswagen Pacific. Saw it with the help of her dad. And of course she was thrilled about that. Like every young person, when you get your first car or you get your license, you know that feeling driving around, you feel so grown up, so independent, blasting your music. And one of her favorite songs to blast was Toxic by Britney Spears. She's a girl after my own heart. But yeah, you know, she felt like this car really gave her a whole new sense of freedom because now she could go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted. And after discovering this new freedom, like a typical teenager, she did not want to listen to her parents rules. And her parents said that this is when her behavior and attitude really started to shift. Around the time that she got her car, she started fighting with them more. Staying out late at night, lying about where she was, and spending time with a new group of friends that her family just didn't trust. She was also experimenting with drugs and alcohol and overall had A pretty significant change in her identity, you could say. And it was during this time that Ebby informed them that she would be transferring schools and attending Little Rock Central High School for the rest of her senior year. Which side note, if that school sounds familiar, it's because that's the same school where the Little Rock Nine students integrated during the civil rights movement. But anyway, that's where Abby told Lori and Michael that she would attend. And since she's 18 at this point, there wasn't much that they could do about it. But one thing they could try to do was try to change her behavior. And to do that, Lori gave her a firm ultimatum. And I think this is a pretty common ultimatum that you probably either heard of before or you yourself experienced or you know, someone has done this with their kids. I mean, it gets to a point where parents don't know what else to do. And so they basically told her, while Lori told her that she either follows the rules and lives with them or don't follow them and leave. And she chose to leave. And so after that, she spent her time bouncing around to different places, staying with her dad a bit, her friends, her grandparents, and her older brother Trevor. But I do want to be clear here. During this time, she didn't, like, entirely cut off contact with Lori and Michael. I mean, there's no other way to say it. Their relationship was definitely rocky, especially with Lori. But she trusted Michael. And as you'll hear me explain more later, she knew at the end of the day she could turn to him if she needed anything. So eventually, they start receiving calls from the school about Abby being frequently absent. But since she was a legitimate adult at this point, again, there wasn't that much that they could do about it. And it does seem like she was starting to feel the strain of this lifestyle, like, didn't know if it was worth continuing this way. Laurie says that Abby just straight out told her brother that she was tired of living that way and expressed interest in getting her GED and attending cosmetology school like she originally wanted to do. So Trevor and Michael started to formulate a plan for the two of them to have a conversation with her about how to get her life back on track. But unfortunately, they never got the chance to do that. Which brings us to the week of October 25, 2015, when Ebby disappeared. During that week, Abby stayed at the family home of one of her good friends named Danielle. And she often stayed there and really considered her house a safe place for her. And she first Snapchatted her on the 20th, asking if she could spend the night. And like usual, Danielle said, of course, that's fine. On Wednesday, October 21, Danielle had a doctor's appointment in the morning. And so Ebby offered to give her a ride to the Lisa Academy, where Danielle still attended before she got herself to class at Central High. But the appointment was actually running late, so she texted Ebby to just go ahead and go to school, but she responded saying that she didn't feel like going because of all the drama that was going on. Now, to this day, Danielle has no idea what Abby meant when she said drama. And yeah, there's been no explanation of that. I'm sure if she could go back in time and press a little more, she definitely would have. But she had no idea what was about to happen and she has no idea if that drama has any role in what was about to happen. And there are other things that are unclear at this point. Like we know that she skipped school on Tuesday and Wednesday, but we don't know if she went to school on Thursday and Friday. And you would think we would have more information about that, that that would be cleared up by now. But it doesn't seem that it ever was cleared up to me. There is no better feeling than getting into bed at night with freshly shaved legs and the feeling of them being moisturized and just rubbing together in my clean sheets. I just live for it, especially in the summer when I'm constantly wearing shorts, I'm constantly at the pool with my daughter, and I just feel more confident if I have shaved smooth legs. And so today I wanted to tell you about Flamingo. From the bath to the beach, Flamingo keeps you smooth no matter the season. They offer shaving, hair removal and body care products built with your body in mind. 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And some of that conflicts with what Abby has told people. So it's all a little bit confusing. But before I do go any further, I definitely need to issue a trigger warning here for sexual assault. This is very disturbing, but some reports I've seen have claimed that it was a pretty big party and that at some point Ebby was gang raped by four boys who taped it. And we have a lot more to talk about when it comes to that. But I wanted to explain that there are text messages that she had sent after the party which give us a little bit more clarity of what happened. And first off, it seems like it may have been a very small house party. Like I'm talking just her and four other male students. So I don't even know if you could call that a party. And she later ended up texting a friend that one of those boys sexually assaulted her and that he may have recorded the act. And as for the three other guys, she says they watched it happen. Now, to be very clear, and I'm sure I don't even need to say this, I know my audience. I know you guys already are with me on this, but even if they didn't take place in the physical act, and if this is really how it went down, they are very much so responsible and guilty of assaults, in my opinion, guilty of rape. And again, a lot of this is really confusing. We don't have the specifics ironed out. We don't know exactly what happened, but it seemed like Ebby. Of course, whatever happened, she was very impacted by it. And after the assault happened, she went over to her boyfriend Eric's house. And I haven't introduced him. Yes, Abby did have a boyfriend, but the two of them were in a rough patch at the time, or I guess, sort of on a break. But he still very much loved and cared about her, always wanted to be there for her. So it makes sense that she would turn to him right after this very traumatic event. And while she was there, she told him that she was assaulted at the party and also told him that she just didn't want to talk about it, which he totally respected her boundaries. He didn't push for information. He just wanted to be there for her, comfort her, and that's it. Now, I think most people understand that if someone says, I don't, I just went through this horrific event. I don't want to talk about it right now. Anyone that's actually supportive would respect that and give you space. And I'm sure he was hoping she would open up about it and he could be there for her more later on. So before you judge him for that, keep in mind that he had no idea this was going to be the last time he would ever see Abby. I'm sure he thought that she would open up about everything when she was ready, and he would learn more information and figure out if there was anything else he needed to do to help her, but he was never given that opportunity. And I also want to explain that Lori has stated that she totally trusts Eric, that she believes he truly did love her daughter. And of course, I don't know Eric myself, but from the interviews I've seen with him, specifically on the Dr. Phil show, which Dr. Phil, obviously I don't like him, but the interview was really interesting, and I really got a sense that he truly cared for her, really wants to help, and has been devastated by everything that has happened. I just wanted to clear that up because obviously we've talked about how Abby was spending time with people that her parents didn't approve of that they thought were sketchy, and he is not one of those people. But anyway, that night that he spent with her was just focused on making sure she was okay, comforting her and giving her a safe place to be. She slept in his sister's bed that night, and when she woke up, she still didn't want to talk about it. So she left and went to her brother Trevor's house and asked if she could stay there. But he was actually attending a wedding that day and didn't want Abby to be home alone. So he called their mom, Lori, and asked if she could stay there for the night, but Lori refused. Then after that she went to the home of her maternal grandparents, Bill and Peggy Holman, where she spent the day relaxing in their spare bedroom and actually watching spongebob squarepants, which was one of her favorite shows. It's also one of my favorite shows, I'm sure for many of you as well. But while she's there, she's obviously trying to process what happened to her. And she ends up texting one of her good friends, Gage, about what had happened the night before. And according to Gage, she texted him to say, I was hanging with some dudes last night and we smoked and I had sex with one of them and he fucking recorded me, dude, like when I wasn't looking. Then after that she ended up texting him saying that she was going to take her own life, which we don't know if she genuinely meant that or if she was being hyperbolic, but either way, she was clearly in distress, as anyone, anyone would after going through what she did the night before. And listen to this. It was later discovered that at 5:52pm she searched I was recorded without my consent. And at 5:55pm, so just a couple minutes later, she searched how to file a police report. So between the messages that she's sending to Gage and those Google searches, it's telling us quite a bit, isn't it? And then that evening she texts her stepdad Michael, about what happened at the party. And she asked him if he would go to the police department with her to file a report. And of course he agreed. But he was out to dinner with Lori and Abby begged him not to tell her what was happening. So the plan was that he would just drop off Lori after they were done and then head over to the grandparents house. And he specifically told her just to stay there, that he would meet her over there and then they would go file the report. But she didn't end up doing that. Instead, Abby and her grandparents had dinner that night and then they went out for froyo at a local TCBY. And after that they returned to their home around 8pm and Abby told them that she was leaving to meet with Michael. But before she left, she told them that she would return later that night and ask them to keep their door unlocked so that she could get in and to this day we don't know if Abby was lying to them about where she was going or if she was really trying to find Michael. And something else happened and the truth is, we don't even know where she was that entire night. Michael tried calling her, leaving her voicemails and texting, telling her that he was heading over there, but he didn't get any response, which he thought was really strange. And he even called the grandparents home and they informed him that she had left to go look for him. So he thought maybe she just already went to the police station without me and I'll meet her there. But he went there to check and she wasn't there. Now, like I said earlier, Ebby was constantly bouncing from place to place. She was crashing wherever she could. So not seeing her that night didn't really seem to concern anyone too too much. But their worries definitely started to grow the next day when no one had heard from her. She actually had plans that day to go to this church event with Danielle, but she never showed up or even told Danielle that she wasn't going, which was very unlike her. Trevor and Harris kept trying to contact her throughout the day but didn't get a response. Not to mention she always had her phone on her, so it was really abnormal for her to just be ignoring everyone for this long. And finally around 5:30pm, they did hear from her, but it was unsettling to say the least. Trevor had tried calling her again, but there was no answer. However, shortly after that, Eddie called him back, but right away she wasn't making any sense. She told him that she was in her car outside of his house. So when they hung up, he went outside, but he didn't see her anywhere. So he ends up calling her back and asked her where she was, but she said she didn't know. And he said that she sounded panicked, she sounded confused and disoriented, but it was beyond how someone would act if they were just high off of weed or drunk. She told him that she was in her car, but she didn't know where she was or who she was with. And she just kept repeating, I'm fucked up, I'm fucked up. So Trevor is immediately in distress. He knows something is very, very wrong here, something is wrong with Abby and this whole situation. So he tells her to hang up and turn on her phone's location sharing so that her family could track her down. And she seemed to understand what he was telling her to do. So he got off the phone with her and he immediately called 91 1. But they told him there was nothing they could do. And let me tell you, that is just setting the tone for the police right off the bat for the rest of this case. I choose Function because it's the only health platform that gives you access to the kind of data that most people never get to see and insights that actually take action inside function. You can test over 160 biomarkers, you guys, everything from heart to hormones to toxins, inflammation and stress. You can also access multi region MRI and CT scans, all tracked in one secure place. Over time, it's a near 360 view to see what's happening inside your body. 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Learn more and join using my link the first 1000 get $100 credit towards their membership. Just visit functionhealth.com TCKR or use code TCKR100 at signup to own your health. But anyway, poor Trevor is freaking out. He runs over to Lori and Michael's for help. And Lori said he came in panicking and told Michael to track Ebby's phone. But unfortunately it seemed that she never actually turned on her location so of course they couldn't track her. So then Lori placed another 911 call and when she told them what was happening, they dismissed it and told her that they had to wait 12 hours to report her missing. And I know we have this conversation all the time we see happen all the time. Although I will say it's gotten a lot better. This was 2015, but I'm just baffled that police stations ever told families this. I mean, in the early early days, 60s, 70s, it was a different world. I understand that. But by 2015, that they were still telling families this just straight up lie. It is a lie. And you know what? I still hear of people that are told this to this day, that you have to wait a certain amount of time to report your loved one missing. That is not true. Remember that. Tell everyone you know that is bullshit. And if any law enforcement officer tries to tell you that they're, they're lying. And I can't imagine what that would feel like, especially if you didn't know that that was, you know, you're worried about the well being of your loved one. And the police basically tells you just wait a little longer, we'll see what happens. But yeah, always keep that in mind. Spread that to everyone. You know, that is not a law. You can file a missing person's report the moment that you need to, no questions asked. And in this case, it especially doesn't make sense because even if they had just assumed that Abby was a runaway based on her phone call with Trevor, she clearly, based on that phone call, needed some assistance at the very least. Now, apparently they did tell Lori that they would put out an all points bulletin on her 2003 Volkswagen Passat, but I'm not entirely sure that they did based on what would happen later. However, the police, being extremely unhelpful, did not stop her family from taking this seriously. So Trevor ends up calling Eric, her boyfriend, or you know, the one that she was in sort of a break, rough spot with. But he wanted to see if Eric knew anything. I mean, he had just spent time with her, but he didn't. And so he immediately called Abby and she actually did answer. And he would later say that she didn't seem okay and that she sounded scared. But the call didn't last long because she ended up hanging up on him, making this the last time that she, anyone would hear from her. Her family kept checking in with her friends, and while no one had heard of them, so her family continued on doing whatever they could, calling friends, checking in with them, seeing if anyone had heard from her. But no one had. And many of them ended up joining in on their search. If you remember, Daniel had that church event going on and she was there. And when Abby's sister called her, she immediately left and started driving around looking for her. And remember Kayla Boyd, the one who was falsely accused of having the gun at school and went to prison? Abby helped him get released. His family learned that she was missing and they immediately dropped everything and went out and searched. She clearly had made such a huge impact on people that so many of her friends and community members Immediately went out looking for any trace of Abby when they heard that she could potentially be in danger. Her family also printed out pictures of her and passed out flyers. But none of this led to finding anything. And keep in mind, everything that I just talked about Happened in the first 12 hours. And the minute that 12 hour mark passed, because Lori thought she had to wait that long, because that's what the police told her, they, you know, went ahead and called the police department back. So Ebby was officially reported as missing on Monday, October 26, 2015. But unfortunately, that did not mean the little rock police department took this seriously. On Tuesday, law enforcement released her license plate number and a photo taken on a surveillance camera of Ebby's car driving near Cantrell road and chanel parkway in west little rock. And they asked the public to be on the look out for Eddie driving it. But then the following day, they announced that there was no immediate threat to the public and that she was most likely missing because she wanted to be. Yes, you heard that right, you guys. And they were literally calling her a, quote, likely runaway. And we have no idea what this theory was based on. And saying something like this to the public is so unprofessional, so irresponsible, and could possibly cause some people to not take her family's search efforts that seriously or the situation as a whole seriously. And so, by this point, Abby's family and friends took matters into their own hands by continuing to pass out flyers, Contacting anyone that they could think of, driving around, and looking for anything that might point them in the right direction. And of course, they were scouring her social media accounts since she was super, super active online. And her last instagram post was on October 24, and it was a photo of her in her car with a caption that read, I know what you did. But of course, they had no idea what she meant by that, and they just continued to search. And even with all of this searching, there was still no sign of Ebby or her car until Friday, October 30th. That day, police responded to reports of an abandoned vehicle at Shalomont park. Now, this park is a small private park that's in a cul de sac on Shalomont drive, which is a nice neighborhood, and it's only about three miles from Lori's home and just about a half a mile from the parkway where Abby's car was caught on surveillance. It turns out they had received multiple calls throughout the week from the park's security guard, and his name is Guy Hooper. But they didn't come out until a local neighbor called them about it later in the week. And even when they ran the VIN number, they didn't make the connection at first. So they called her dad, Peter, to tell him that he needed to retrieve his car. And so he was the one who informed them him that his daughter was missing, and that was the car that she drove. And for some reason, when the patrol officer looked up the car, it wasn't linked to a missing person. Which of course makes zero sense, especially because Lori was told by Little Rock PD that they put out an all points bulletin. And not only that, you guys, they never even told Lori directly about the car being found. She ended up finding that out from a neighbor. But anyway, the state that the car was found in was very unsettling. It was unlocked, the keys were left in the ignition, the gas was empty, the battery was completely dead, which obviously suggests that it had been running for a very long time. And it was found towards the back of the parking lot, and it was backed into a spot, which. That alone is odd. Not that it's odd to back a car into a spot, of course. That's very, very typical. But given the state of mind that she was clearly in when she talked to Trevor and Eric, it's hard to believe that she would be able to operate a car at all, let alone back it into a parking spot. Now, since Abby didn't have a full time living space, she stored almost all of her stuff in her car and nothing appeared to be missing. Her phone, her purse, her wallet, even her contact lenses were all found in the car. And her friends and family have said that she just wouldn't have left without them. Some of her eyeshadow, palettes and lipsticks were broken and scattered throughout the car, which Lori said was bizarre because Abby really liked buying, you know, more expensive products and really always took good care of them. So to her, this immediately pointed to Ebby being in danger. And even with all of this, Little Rock PD said they didn't suspect any foul play, and they still believed that Abby was missing because she wanted to be. And God, that must have been so, so infuriating for her parents, for all of her loved ones. I cannot imagine being in that situation. I would just. Oh, my God, I would lose my. And how could you possibly think that after seeing the car like that? It. This. Something is not right here. Anyone could make that assumption right off the Bat. And even if the police want to be dead set on the idea that she wants to be missing, couldn't you at least make sure that that theory is correct? Couldn't you make sure that she's safe now? I am just so beyond sick, you guys. After years and years of covering these cases, seeing stories where missing people aren't taken seriously, even when there are so many suspicious things around their disappearance to point to foul play potentially. And I just, I don't understand how police departments at this stage in things can still be saying something like that. I mean, even from the beginning, it's offensive. But at this point, with what they have, really. Summer is here, folks. That means more sun, more light, more time to do all the things that make summer special. I actually, during our company lunch just now had to step outside and just have a moment of zen in the sun. Enjoy it, soak it in. 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And factor can power your whole day, you guys. I don't think a lot of people know this, but they offer nutritious breakfast on the go lunches, which I love. Premium dinners, guilt free snacks and desserts. Factor has your whole dang day covered. So enjoy more this summer. Get factor if you want all the flavor and none that fuss, baby. Get started at factor meals.com tckr50off and use code TCKR50OFF to get 50% off plus free shipping on your first box. That's code TCKR50OFF@ Factor meals.com tckr50OFF for 50% off plus free shipping. Factor meals.com TCKR50OFF. Now, Little Rock PD did initially search the park. So, okay, that's great that they did that at the very least. But when they didn't find anything, it seems like they just stopped trying. But of course, her family was not about to give up on her though. So on November 18, her family offered a $3,000 reward for any information leading to her return. But sadly, nothing came from this. And obviously, very early on in this investigation, Lori felt that the police were not doing enough. I'm sure everyone in Abby's life felt that way. It's just, in my opinion, facts. But she started to apply more pressure on them. Now, Roy Williams was initially the lead detective on the case. And a lot of tension grew between Lori and Roy. Lori would frequently call, email and request meetings, but she felt like they were just brushing her off. So their family just kept doing what they could, kept doing their own investigating. For instance, Lori and Michael were able to look into Abby's text and call history, something that the police should be doing. But this is when they found something interesting. On Saturday evening, the day before she disappeared, her phone made two calls to Little Rock pd, each about a minute long. And of course, we know that Ebby wanted to report her assault. So is it possible that this was an attempt to do that? Or is it possible that she needed immediate assistance with something else going on? On? Well, unfortunately, we don't know and we'll never know because the officers told Lori that they have no record of these phone calls. And not only were the police just dismissive of everything, but when they did do their job, they made many mistakes. It took Little Rock PD two to three weeks to subpoena records. And when they finally got them, they informed the family that the phone last pinged in the middle of a field 45 minutes outside of town. So Lori and Michael went there to search, but found absolutely nothing. And that's because the police accidentally subpoenaed records for the wrong phone. Yes, you heard that right. You would think it would have been obvious to them immediately considering the fact that her phone was found in her car. But I guess it didn't occur to them until after the family had gone on this wild goose chase looking for Ebby. So after that whole show, they finally looked at the data for the correct phone. But they didn't realize that AT T's data was in a different time zone. So they built a timeline based on phone records that weren't accurate. Super, super helpful. And because of this, they even accused Lori and Michael of having something to do with it because they thought they were lying about when Abby disappeared. Isn't that just infuriating? It was their mistake. They messed up the timeline, and then that leads them to start accusing her parents of being involved in her disappearance somehow. Like, it is so offensive, I can't even believe it. And it was all just because they were working off incorrect information. Nice, nice guys. And all those mistakes were bad enough and wasted so much time, but still, even after this, Little Rock PD just could not get their together. Man, it's truly some of the worst police work I think I've seen in a case. And of course, that's saying a lot, because I cover a lot of bad police work. And I just wanted to say again, I feel like I have to. To resay this every month or two because people just think I hate all police. And I don't. I fully recognize that there are some amazing police out there, amazing departments. It just really varies based on state and county and everything like that, obviously. But oftentimes the cases that I cover that need the attention are where the worst police work is. So I just have to make that clear. I do cover cases every once in a while where police do an amazing job, and I always give them credit for that, but this is not that case. But moving forward with more terrible police work from Little Rock pd, Lori claims that they told her not to go to the media, which is something we see a lot. And it's really frustrating because media is so crucial in these cases, especially with missing people. So initially she listened to them, and luckily that didn't last long. Since she's a hairdresser, she had a few clients who actually worked in local news. So she reached out to them, hoping that they would help her to spread the word. And she happened to have a friend who actually used to work work for the FBI and offered to help. But when she introduced him to detectives, they straight up refused his assistance, which you would think with how bad they had done at this point, that they would be like someone from the FBI, great, come help us. But no, no. They just want to continue sucking alone. And she also felt like they just weren't doing enough with Ebby's social media accounts. And claims that they told her they didn't know how to access them. And she even said that at one point she sent them the instructions directly from Facebook on how law enforcement can request access to a profile, yet they still didn't even try. And poor Lori. I mean, she doesn't understand the Internet or social media. How any of that works, but at least she did everything she could to try and understand it, since the police weren't willing to do that. And she even said the detectives didn't have an IT person to assist them, so she actually offered to find and pay for one for them. But According to her, Sergeant J.C. white strongly refused the help at first. But eventually, he did allow her to hire someone. And soon after starting his analysis, Lori's IT Guy believed that someone was accessing Abby's account. Now, I don't know what exactly caused him to think this, but he wanted to change the profile password to see if anyone would attempt to log in, because, you know, you get that little notification situation to your email or phone number or whatever. And when Lori informed Little Rock PD about this, they were furious with her, actually, according to Lori, they told her to stop looking into the accounts, that they wouldn't use any of the IT guys information, and that she would no longer be allowed to attend meetings with them about the investigation. Like this poor mother. It's beyond disrespectful and gross to everyone in Little Rock that pays taxes. And get this, you guys, it gets even worse. They even threatened to charge her with interfering with an investigation if she didn't stop, which is just. I don't even have words for that one. To be a mother in that situation, trying to do everything you can to help find your daughter, because the police don't seem to want to do much at all. And here, this IT guy that she hired for them found something, probably found something huge. And instead of pursuing this lead, the police got mad at her for it. And, of course, I'm not stupid. I understand that they can't have someone interfering with their investigation, but that's not what she's doing. And they're treating her like a problem, not like a worried mother looking for her daughter who's only trying to help because they aren't doing the things that they're supposed to do. Oh, and then get this. When Lori and Michael finally got her car back, a lot of Ebby's belongings that were in there had water damage. Because while the car was in their custody, Little Rock PD left the trunk open. And, of course, a rainstorm came through the city. I think it goes without saying that there could have been evidence in that trunk that was potentially washed away by that storm. And, you know, when you think about it and how reckless they were with her vehicle, you have to wonder if they even did the most basic processing, like dusting for fingerprints. Did they do anything with the car if they're willing to just leave the trunk open in a rainstorm. To me, it just feels like the police were quick to assume that she just ran away and they wanted to stick to that theory. They wanted that to be the reality they wanted to be right from the beginning. So they just didn't bother handling any of this with care. And Lori has talked publicly about her frustrations with law enforcement and of course she thinks more should have been done in the early stages and how could someone in that position not feel that way? And everyone in her family is really going through it. Trevor is spending his lunch break searching areas around town and even traveled to other states to follow up on tips. Her little sister Harris scoured Abby's social media posts for any clues, and they just continue to try to get the word out any way that they could. Digital billboards were put up across the state, thousands of flyers were distributed, her case was covered on the local news, and the official Find Ebby Stepic Facebook page was created and eventually had over 19,000 followers across the United States. But even with all of that, nothing was coming up.