I Was a Pirate for Halloween Once | 4

Summary

Unicorn Girl – Episode 4: "I Was a Pirate for Halloween Once"

Podcast by Apple TV+ / Seven Hills
Host: Charlie Webster
Release Date: September 1, 2025
Duration: ~53 minutes

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Episode Overview

This gripping episode delves into Candace Rivera's most audacious—and ultimately disastrous—chapter: her claim to have orchestrated a daring rescue of Afghans during the 2021 Taliban takeover. What began as an ambitious social media-fueled humanitarian mission quickly blurred the lines between fantasy and reality. Through detailed storytelling and firsthand accounts from Candace's friends, coworkers, and black ops associates, journalist Charlie Webster exposes the chaos, deceptions, and haunting consequences of Candace's "Operation Captain Morgan."

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Afghanistan Mission Announcement (02:08 – 05:12)

• Following her rising fame as an anti-trafficking activist, Candace starts broadcasting updates and calls for prayers via Facebook Live to her devoted "besties" and book group.
• Candace Rivera (03:39): “Exodus has a really unique opportunity to help evacuate some Afghanistan individuals. And we've been working nonstop since Monday evening.”
• She claims to have been contacted by high-profile figures—alternately Hillary Clinton and the US government—to help save people on Taliban hit lists after the US troop withdrawal.

2. Assembling the Black Ops Team (06:41 – 12:06)

• Candace recruits an unlikely team: ten black ops specialists, including ex-Navy SEALs and special forces, coordinated by her assistant Aura.
• The house fills with military-grade weapons and gear, aided by her friends and family, creating a surreal, almost cinematic environment.
  • Lisa (08:50): "Afghanistan happened right on this couch… I'm not going to let this go. So, I'm in."
  • Matt (11:23): “The whole back wall of her garage was covered in armory things. … there was a million dollars’ worth for sure.”

3. Fundraising, Logistics, and Social Media Spin (12:14 – 15:36)

• Candace states she needs prayers and $500k, and then dramatically tells followers God promised her $2 million to save 400+ people.
  • Candace Rivera (14:42): “God had told me no. … I'm going to give you $2 million to save over 400 people.”
• Money is allegedly secured from retired Army pilot Dan Laguna and, dubiously, Hillary Clinton.
• The plan: fly a black ops team and arms to Afghanistan, extract refugees, and house them in South Africa—though permissions and arrangements are murky at best.

4. Chaos and Cracks in the Plan (16:11 – 21:43)

• Anna, a humanitarian worker, mobilizes Afghans in hiding to reach the airport on Candace’s promise that help is imminent.
• Candace, however, is found celebrating her birthday in Utah instead of being en route to Kabul.
  • Candace Rivera (17:23): “It's birthday week. I had to go to my birthday fundraiser tonight.”
• Communication with Afghans on the ground becomes silent; anxiety and suspicions build among participants and followers.

5. Fantastical Back-Up Plans (21:19 – 23:54)

• Face with logistics failures and denied permissions, Candace pivots to ever more implausible solutions—including illegally smuggling refugees and volunteering to be arrested as a "sacrificial lamb."
  • Candace Rivera (23:01): “I'm going to be charged with international smuggling. That’s actually, like, really cool. It's like a pirate, and I like pirates. I was a pirate for Halloween once…”

6. The Botched Attempt and the Dubai Detention (24:52 – 32:25)

• Ultimately, Candace’s group departs—not for Afghanistan, but for Dubai, with only a small, private plane (capacity: 14).
• Weapons, including an M4 rifle, are surreptitiously packed among supplies.
  • Lisa (29:46): "I recognized, I saw it...this is something that will haunt me till the day I die.”
• The team is detained at Dubai airport; Candace uses her charm and self-proclaimed “untouchable” status to secure their release after six hours.
  • Candace Rivera (32:00): “Currently being detained in Dubai. Hopefully we’ll talk out of it. Good news, free WiFi, bad news, detainment is possible. Love you all.”

7. Lies, Disillusionment, and Damage Control (33:05 – 41:27)

• Stuck in Dubai, the team realizes Candace never secured paperwork, permissions, or legitimate government support.
  • Lisa (34:07): "We had zero permission."
• Candace maintains her elaborate fiction for her followers, even as team members unravel—shocked by her spending, cavalier attitude, and outright deception.
• Aura is left with impossible life-or-death "assignments" and guilt over the fate of Afghans who risked their lives on Candace's assurances.

8. Storytelling Versus Reality (37:12 – 50:15)

• Candace continues to weave fantastical tales for supporters—cowboy belt buckle bribes, ISIS detainment, miraculous escapes. None of the team ever enters Afghanistan.
  • Book Group Bestie (39:00–40:58): Recalls Candace’s account of being interrogated by a masked man who tested her Christian faith before leading the team to safety.
• Photos, updates, and numbers are inflated on social media (claims of 1,000 rescued); no evidence matches.
  • Lisa (50:24): "Exodus never repatriated any US citizen or any Afghani national."

9. Fallout, Trauma, and New Schemes (50:36 – 52:28)

• Aura is traumatized and angry, doubting Candace, but drawn back in by new crises and real people in need.
• After the Newsweek article exposes their Dubai detention, team members return home, vowing silence and reeling from the psychological fallout.
  • Lisa (46:49): "We all went to my house, drank a lot. ... don't talk about this with anyone."
  • Aura (47:22): “Candace never talked to me about what happened in Dubai. ... She would say, we can’t talk about it because we all have PTSD.”

10. The Pattern Repeats (52:01 – End)

• As the Ukraine war breaks out, Candace shifts gears, claims fresh missions, and Aura is once again roped in, now with the Moldovan mafia and new dangerous situations.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On fantasy versus reality (Lisa, 07:10):
  “This was going on a humanitarian issue, but it’s a tactical mission…”

• On Candace’s self-mythologizing (Candace Rivera, 23:01):
  “I’m gonna be charged with international smuggling. That’s actually, like, really cool. It’s like a pirate, and I like pirates. I was a pirate for Halloween once…”

• On the team's disbelief and unraveling (Lisa, 41:27):
  “You just watched their soul deplete and you watch them drink so much. … We were just being lied to and gaslit … every day the stories were more ridiculous.”

• On the stark contrast in storytelling (Charlie Webster, 50:15):
  “One thing we know for certain, Candice never went to Afghanistan. And according to Lisa, Exodus never repatriated…”

• On unresolved trauma (Aura, 47:22):
  “Candace never talked to me about what happened in Dubai... She would say, we can’t talk about it because we all have PTSD.”

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Important Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:08 – 05:12]: Candace announces the Afghanistan mission to her social media following.
• [06:41 – 12:06]: Assembling the black ops team; weapons flood the house.
• [14:42 – 15:36]: Candace claims God has pledged her millions to save hundreds.
• [17:23 – 17:28]: The truth about Candace’s “birthday fundraiser” instead of rescue.
• [23:01 – 23:54]: The “pirate” Facebook Live—Candace’s bold backup plan to be arrested for human trafficking.
• [24:52 – 32:25]: The disastrous flight to Dubai, weapons hidden in bags, and their detention.
• [34:07 – 34:28]: The team realizes there were never official permissions.
• [39:00 – 40:58]: Rendition of Candace’s fictional accounts for her book group besties.
• [46:49 – 47:06]: Homecoming, trauma, silence.
• [50:52 – 52:28]: Aura’s breaking point and Candace’s pivot to new "missions."

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Episode Tone and Style

The tone is a mix of disbelief, tension, and dark humor, echoing Candace’s flamboyant, sometimes delusional storytelling and the exhausted, shell-shocked reactions of those around her. Host Charlie Webster keeps a sober, investigative eye on events, punctuating narrative and interviews with stark reminders of real-world consequences behind the drama and deception.

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Final Thoughts

This episode lays bare how easily charisma, social media, and a hunger for rescue-hero status can spiral into dangerous territory, with real lives—both those promised rescue and those swept up in the chaos—left in the balance. The psychological and emotional fallout for Candace’s circle is palpable, while Candace herself keeps spinning stories, ever onward to the next imagined frontier.

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Listen to Unicorn Girl on Apple Podcasts for the full experience, including original audio, firsthand confessions, and more unforgettable moments from this mind-bending true story.

Transcript

[Candace Rivera]

Afghanistan felt like really far out there to me. It's like, where's this coming from?

[Aura]

Candace literally thought she could talk her way into Afghanistan. When the Taliban was taking over, they.

[Candace Rivera]

Bought a lot of weapons. There was lots of guns and money.

[Lisa]

When I saw that duffel bag with that M4 in it, at that moment, we were in trouble. I've never been in a situation that my. My literal life flashed before my eyes. I didn't think I was ever gonna outlive that.

[Charlie Webster]

This is Unicorn Girl, an Apple original podcast produced by Seven Hills, hosted and executive produced by me, Charlie Webster. Candice Rivera was starting to get a name for herself. She won the 100 Women who Care Impact award in Utah Valley, partnered with local TV station kutv, and she even started to give keynote speeches about her work, including this one at Brigham Young University.

[Candace Rivera]

My name is Candice Rivera. One of the biggest things that I realized when I became an anti trafficking abolitionist is that it had nothing to do with carrying an AR15, wearing a cape, or knocking down a door somewhere in a Colombian jungle.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice may not have been working in the Colombian jungle, but her anti human trafficking nonprofit, Exodus, was now well established in Utah. Its logo was even flying high at the top of Mount Everest. It was 2021 and Exodus had been going for a year. Tagline.

[Candace Rivera]

At Exodus, our motto is, we see you, we hear you, and we're coming for you.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice's life was getting so busy that just writing in the for the love book group couldn't possibly cover everything that was going on. So she upped the ante. She started doing Facebook lives for her book group Besties.

[Candace Rivera]

I just was sitting here thinking about y'. All. They're just part of my heart. So I just. I'm gonna talk to anyone. I'm talking to you guys.

[Charlie Webster]

This one was 17 minutes long and covered everything from her recent award win to dating clogged toilets and imposter syndrome. The videos you hear throughout the episode are the actual videos Candace posted online.

[Candace Rivera]

I did just when the hundred women were in fact, still. Is it dating when you're in your 30s? It sounds so juvenile to me. My teenager called me on the phone. I was like, mom, you didn't flush the toilet. And it's really gross. And now it's clogged. I lost £12 last month. I'm just a hot mess with my Telemundo redneck ex husband. God's really been talking to me a lot about being worthy and how imposter syndrome is just a tactic by the Enemy.

[Charlie Webster]

With all the life updates out of the way, Candace had a big request for the women.

[Candace Rivera]

I need prayer. Like, we just. We need people to pray.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice then revealed the next big thing Exodus was going to be a part of. And yes, this was all in the same Facebook Live.

[Candace Rivera]

Exodus has a really unique opportunity to help evacuate some Afghanistan individuals. And we've been working nonstop since Monday evening.

[Charlie Webster]

Exodus was going international in a way that was a bit of a shock for everyone in Candice's life, including her assistant, Aura.

[Aura]

The first big operation that I was a part of was in August 2021, and Candice approached me and said that the government had reached out to her and wanted her to go in and save individuals. On the Taliban hit.

[Charlie Webster]

In August 2021, the US pulled their troops out of Afghanistan after 20 years of occupation. As they were withdrawing, the Taliban violently overthrew the government, shocking the world. They captured the capital, Kabul, and regained control of the country at a speed no one saw coming, causing widespread panic. There was a chaotic evacuation to get people out. The lives of countless Afghans who had worked alongside US and allied forces. Translators, security personnel, and government workers were now in danger under Taliban rule. In the midst of all this, Candice jumped into action. She said, where there's chaos, there's human trafficking.

[Candace Rivera]

It was this built up. I was asked by Hillary Clinton to get people out. Yeah, that one felt really left field.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice had told Aura that the US Government approached her to get people out of Afghanistan. But she told her MOPS bestie, Danielle, that it was Hillary Clinton who made the request. Either way, Candice was going to Afghanistan. She announced it on Exeter social media and was flooded with requests from those who were desperately trying to find a way to get out. Candice said she had the ability to rescue 300 people. One of the requests was from a woman called Anna. Her and Candice knew each other way back when, from high school. Anna's not her real name. We've changed it. Due to the sensitive nature of her work, Anna has spent years in the humanitarian field working with Afghans who are now hiding from the Taliban.

[Anna]

I made a deal. I will help you out to the best of my ability and do everything I can to help this be successful. Will you take extra people? I have people that need to get out. That was the start button of what became a almost 24 7. For the next three weeks of trying to work on this project Afghanistan, Candice made a promise.

[Charlie Webster]

She would rescue Anna's people that were in hiding in Afghanistan. Candice started to Put together a team that could pull this operation off. Her assistant, Aura was in charge of the logistics.

[Aura]

I bought flights for the team. I had them write down what weapons they brought with them and their qualifications to go into a war zone. And I was blown away.

[Charlie Webster]

It wasn't just any old team. It was 10 black ops agents who flew in from all over the country. This sounded pretty bizarre to me. I had so many questions. Why does Candice need a black ops team to go on a humanitarian mission? And were these people really highly trained killers? Well, I got access to the operation document and it was called Operation Captain Morgan. You know, like the spiced rum. There was an ex Navy seal, a trained sniper, tactical helicopter shooter, and former special forces officers. We checked every single person out and verified they were all real.

[Aura]

The team combined had a total of at least 145 years of military experience.

[Charlie Webster]

We wanted to to speak to one of these black ops specialists that Candice pulled together. But the nature of their work means that almost no one would talk on the record. But there was one person who would talk to us. Lisa. We can't tell you exactly what Lisa does for security reasons, but put it this way, when I sat in her office, there were knives on her desk and not kitchen knives. A rifle propped up against the wall and a life sized dummy wearing a bulletproof vest. Lisa has never spoken on the record about any operation she's been a part of before, but felt she couldn't stay quiet about this one with Candice. Lisa told me when I first spoke to her that what happened still haunts her. We sat in her office on the very couch where the entire thing started.

[Lisa]

Afghanistan happened right on this couch, literally sitting right here. Candace got a call from somebody that was very well funded, but going there under the banner of a humanitarian aid thing. But at the same time, let's get these guys who helped our men and women in Afghanistan that kept the landing strips safe and the interpreters and all those Afghans that we left there. So I'm like, yeah, I mean, most of my friends are dead and they were killed over there. I'm not going to let this go. So I'm in. Whatever. That's how we all felt.

[Charlie Webster]

The pullout from Afghanistan was so quick and emotions were heightened for so many veterans because the locals they'd fought with and become friends with were now trapped. There was a rush to do something, anything, to get these people out. Candice promised Lisa and the rest of the black ops team that they would rescue those that America had left behind as well, as all the people she told Anna she would save. So the black ops team set up base camp in Candace's living room. First order of business, buy a load of guns and other tactical gear.

[Aura]

They started spending money and they would just disappear during the day and start buying gear. They got helmets and radios and assault rifles and new electronics and just filled the house. I mean, one end to the next. This was Candace's house. There were probably five guns just by Candace's feet when she was talking to the point where I couldn't sit on the couch without scooting them aside to have a place to sit. You were walking on tiptoes around rifles.

[Charlie Webster]

Aura's 19 year old daughter Bailey had started volunteering with Exodus and had come around to Candice's house to help her mom.

[Candace Rivera]

I was just like walking around the living room, like looking around like, oh my, oh my gosh, what is going on here? And then I just kept walking and I walked into the kitchen and there's a bag on the counter and it just, yeah, full of cash. And I was told that they sold out almost like all the gun stores in Utah. I saw all of the ammunition.

[Charlie Webster]

Matt, Candace's bestie and Exeter's marketing guy.

[Candace Rivera]

In fact, I helped take tally of all of ammunition with one of the operators in the garage.

[Charlie Webster]

I saw all of it. Can you give us an idea of how much there was?

[Candace Rivera]

I can't. There's that many. We had an armory. The whole back wall of her garage was covered in armory things. Whether it be ammo, whether it be vests, guns. It was a sight that, I mean, I can't even describe how many guns. A lot of ARs. Most of them were ARs. There was a lot of glocks. All the gear total, like there was a million dollars worth for sure. Like there's no doubt in my mind.

[Charlie Webster]

I've seen pictures and videos of all the guns lined up throughout Candice's house. I asked Lisa why they would need guns. Why would there be a collection of guns if you're going on a humanitarian mission?

[Lisa]

This was going on a humanitarian issue, but it's a tactical mission to get the nationals who helped our military.

[Charlie Webster]

How were we gonna get the guns passed inside the house?

[Lisa]

We figured that there would be some setup where we'd be able to do all that.

[Charlie Webster]

The second order of business for the black ops team, find a way to make this work. Ora told us about how chaotic everything was.

[Aura]

It was terrifying because the more people came in, the more weapons that were in this house, the Closer she got to the operation, the more people we were talking to, the crazier she got and the more it seemed like she had no idea what she was doing. So I was trusting the team at this time more than I was trusting her. We would have a plan and then it would change, and we would have a plan and it would change. We had a volunteer attorney come in and help them figure out their wills. A lot of times I didn't understand what she was asking because this isn't my world. Like, how's a former housewife just gonna step into a military operation and know what they're saying? But she expected me to know, and she would introduce me as the person running the operation from Utah. Ora knows what to do or knows what to do. And so I'm frantically doing everything I can to figure out what's going on.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice said the U.S. state Department and CIA gave her permission to charter a plane to Afghanistan, but getting there was only half the battle. She also needed to figure out where the people were going to go once she got them out of Afghanistan. Candice seemed to know everyone, so through a contact of hers in the Utah nonprofit scene, she solved the problem. She managed to get access to an unused student housing compound in South Africa to use as temporary housing. All she needed was permission from the South African government and a couple million dollars to charter a plane. Thankfully, God was on Candice's side, or at least that's what she told her for the Love Book Group Besties. In another video she posted, here's what she said.

[Candace Rivera]

I asked God for $500,000 to save 25 people. As of 3am this morning. God had told me no. And he said, I'm not going to give you $500,000 to save 25 people. I'm going to give you $2 million to save over 400 people. And it's been confirmed just now. And I just have to come to people that always support me. You guys always support me. And I just have to say thank you.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice secured the money. It came from a guy called Dan Laguna, a retired Green Beret and Special Forces pilot who was part of the Black Hawk down rescue mission, Operation Desert Storm. He was in Utah hanging out with the black Ops team. Though Candice said there was someone else who also gave money. Hillary Clinton.

[Aura]

Candace said Hillary Clinton was one of the people that promised us a million dollars. And I was just floored. I'm like, well, I guess that makes sense. Hillary Clinton would know the right people.

[Charlie Webster]

With the plane secured, Candice told Anna to tell her people who were hiding out from the Taliban in Afghanistan that they needed to run, get to the airport in Kabul by any means necessary and quickly. Candace was on a plane and was coming to pick them up. Anna relayed Candace they would be in Kabul really shortly.

[Anna]

We're on our way. We are going to fly you to safety in South Africa. This area is now. You know, the Taliban are trying to take over this region and so our folks are trying to navigate active civil war taking place between this terrorist organization and the nationals in addition to trying to figure out what is the safe route out. And Taliban checkpoints were popping up left and right. You just didn't know from one second to the next. So you have people that are trying to determine how do I protect my family and get somewhere knowing that I have a target on my head. And then communication from Candace and her team.

[Aura]

Team went silent.

[Charlie Webster]

Anna's people in Afghanistan made it to the airport, anxiously waiting for Candice to arrive while battling through the thousands and thousands also trying to escape. But Candace wasn't there and she was unresponsive. Where was she?

[Candace Rivera]

It's birthday week. I had to go to my birthday fundraiser tonight.

[Charlie Webster]

Even though she told Anna she was on her way, Candice wasn't on a plane. She was actually at her favorite place in Utah, the trendy brunch spot. Sunday's best celebrating her birthday.

[Candace Rivera]

Donations are greatly needed. You can do that on the website. Let's make sure other people get to celebrate another birthday, too.

[Charlie Webster]

These are Candace's posts taken from her social media and they're read by Emmy Jory. While people in Afghanistan were fleeing the Taliban, Candice was in Utah, sitting under a giant neon sign that says brunch me hard. Celebrating her birthday with the black ops and Exeters teams and her besties. Anna had been frantically trying to get in contact with Candice. Now that her birthday party was out of the way, Candice finally answered the phone. She told Anna she hadn't even left Utah. Anna was furious. She had to break the news to her people who were waiting at Kabul airport that Candice was not on her way.

[Anna]

I am telling people, get to safety. We'll be in contact as soon as we figure out something. It was madness and it was so disgusting just to see what we were doing with these people.

[Charlie Webster]

It makes me think of those images that were all over the news. Mothers so desperate to save their children, they were lifting them in the air, handing them over to anyone who could get them to safety. These were real people. That thought Candace was coming to save them.

[Anna]

We started getting nervous about who really is this tactile team and are they truly qualified or is this just GI Joe Joe kids thinking that they can go be American warriors, you know, jumping into a country that don't know anything and go and get themselves and everybody else killed.

[Charlie Webster]

The tactile team was at Candice's house with Candice aura and the guns.

[Aura]

We sat down at a table as a team and two men on the team took off in the night because they're like, this woman is crazy. Her plan is crazy. And they disappeared. Candace is crying. I'm crying. And we hear her call people saying that they can't save them. And then the next day, Candice was happy again. She's like, you know what, we're going anyways. And so plan was back on. I didn't question it because I didn't understand it. And I just said, you know what, if you believe this will work, I'm trusting you. But I also thought she was acting crazy. Like I really felt Candice has her head in the clouds and she is so desperate to make this work that she doesn't see reality. So I was terrified.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice had told everyone that the South African government gave her permission to bring refugees into the country. And she really did manage to get a request to the desk of the president of South Africa. Crazy, right? When he read the request, he denied it. But when Candace found out, she didn't tell anyone. So the team just carried on preparing with no clue that there were no permissions in place. Candice had come up with a new way to make it work even without permissions. It was so bold and so risky, she just couldn't keep it to herself. So she told everyone it was just a backup plan.

[Aura]

She would be responsible or held accountable for trafficking.

[Charlie Webster]

Yeah, her so called backup plan was to just do it anyway. Candice was going to illegally smuggle the refugees into South Africa and then get herself arrested on human trafficking charges. Strange for the head of an anti human trafficking organization.

[Aura]

So she went in saying, what happens in South Africa if you're trafficking is 10 years in prison. So she says, I'm going to do this anyway, knowing I might go to jail for 10 years. And all of a sudden she became the hero. We were all like in awe, complete awe of her. But then also having the conflict in the back of my head of she's a mother. I was conflicted between the feelings of how is this more important than your kids? And then this is the most Heroic thing that she's putting all these people above her. Her family really conflicted between those two things, but we all thought she was the bravest person in the world.

[Charlie Webster]

Sound familiar? Remember back in episode one when Candace went to Ukraine to help rescue two orphans and missed her court date for custody of her own two boys? Just like back then, Candace explained all to her. For the love group, she went live on Facebook for the third time that week, Candice sat on her bed in Utah and spent another 17 minutes revealing her plan to be arrested on smuggling charges and saying goodbye to her friends, who she may not see for 10 years. This is the audio of Candace from that live.

[Candace Rivera]

I'm about to get on a plane. We leave at around noon in Utah time, and I will escort multiple individuals across a country border. I will be charged with international smuggling, and I will take the fall for that. To be Jesus to these people. It's just an amazing opportunity. I don't want to die. I don't want to spend 10 years in prison. And I know those are both very big risks. I definitely am seeing our mission statement firsthand. We saw them, we heard them and were coming. I'm gonna be charged with international smuggling. That's actually, like, really cool. It's like a pirate, and I like pirates. I was a pirate for Halloween once, and it was really cute. Gosh, my hair has never been more gross. I have a really cool scarf that I'm wearing the whole time. So, anyways, okay, well, I'm going. I may not see you for 10 years. I love you all dearly and just be praying for us. I'll update you when I can.

[Anna]

She was going to be the sacrificial lamb that was arrested for trafficking these refugees. So I'm sitting here going, you were going to do what? She's talking about her kids of this is one of the things that's delaying her as she has her kids this week. And I'm like, so you're going to fly around the world? You're going to get arrested? And what about your children? Your own very children? At which point she said, but it's worth saving the lives of all these people. And one day my children will be thankful that I did this.

[Charlie Webster]

This was now seven days after Candace originally said she was on a plane to rescue Anna's people in Afghanistan. Seven days they'd been hiding from the Taliban, waiting for Candace to come. Now Candice was finally getting on a plane, but it wasn't a plane that could fit 300 people. The amount she'd promised to rescue. It was a small private plane that could only fit 14 and it wasn't even going to Afghanistan. It was only going to Dubai, a three hour flight away from Afghanistan. Candice said they would figure it out from there. But going to Dubai meant the army of guns couldn't come with them.

[Aura]

Candice is like, guys, we can't be armed. And so they frantically started moving all the equipment out of the house.

[Charlie Webster]

All of the guns disappeared rapidly except for one that Aura saw inside a long army green rifle bag.

[Aura]

I remember seeing this bag on the floor. I think it was green, that had rifles in it. And thinking, I thought they couldn't go in armed. Candice is like, yeah, nobody will be armed. And everyone was terrified, of course, going in without their weapons. But everyone was still willing to do it. So morning comes. I go to the house early that morning to see, like, are we ready to go? No one's packed. No one has even packed their bags. So they frantically gathered their things and we got in Candice's Escalade and jam packed the team in there. Candice was going to probably 120 down the freeway. Nobody had their seatbelts on. I was like, this is how I'm gonna die. Because Candice is a really scary driver as it is. So she's getting ready in the mirror going like 120. But we made it to the Provo airport and we started unloading like the stuff on the plane. And I pick up this big backpack put on my back, walk it up in the plane and set it down. And Candice is like, do you know what was in there? And I was like, no. She's like, that was $50,000 in cash.

[Charlie Webster]

What was your reaction to that?

[Aura]

Just totally shocked. It kind of made me feel icky.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice's mops bestie Danielle also popped by to see Candace off.

[Candace Rivera]

I'm like, this little private airplane is so cool. So we're kind of like starstruck over this little private jet that they've got going. But yeah, then we're just. The pilot is really like, we gotta go, we gotta go. It's too hot. We're not supposed to be taking off when it's this hot. Like we've got like, your people need to get in this plane and go. So then it's just throwing bags into the plane. Like he opens up the hatch at the bottom. Bags in plane, bags in plane. You know, Candace is like, I want a picture.

[Anna]

We need one more pitcher.

[Candace Rivera]

So like, the pilot is just so irked. And finally we get the picture. And they get on the plane.

[Aura]

Candice had my face in her hands and started crying and I was crying and she's like, exodus is yours. She's like, I might not come back. This is now on you to take over. She took off and had no idea what to do. We're supposed to save all these lives and I'm going to ruin all of it cuz I don't know what I'm doing.

[Candace Rivera]

Or. And I hug as it flies away. And then Ora and I were like, gosh, I hope they make it back.

[Lisa]

I mean these people, no offense and I don't mean to condescend, or maybe I do, but obviously they'd never been on a private plane before. I've been on lots and lots and lots. That's not a big deal for me. I was embarrassed because Candace had all these fucking Walmart bags, plastic Walmart bags of feminine protection things, toilet, like all, just all these bags, like go get duffel bags at least, like have some class. I was just horrified by the whole thing.

[Charlie Webster]

Lisa from the black ops team was on the private plane heading to Dubai, surrounded by Walmart bags of donated supplies. But hidden amongst them was one more bag, a long army green one that truly horrified Lisa.

[Lisa]

And I recognized, I saw it and this is something that will haunt me till the day I die. When I went back there and used the lab and saw that, I was just sick.

[Charlie Webster]

That bag had a rifle in it, an M4 army rifle, as well as what Lisa calls a full operator's kit, thermals, night vision goggles and armor. Lisa found out it was riding with them at 30,000ft and I couldn't do anything about it.

[Lisa]

I was just sick the whole time because I can't, we can't open the door and pitch the thing. Like there's nothing we could do surrounded by all these Walmart bags. But I'm just staring at that duffel bag because I know what's in there.

[Charlie Webster]

Lisa just had to sit there and wait to see what would happen when they landed. After a 16 hour plane ride, the team landed in Dubai, which is notorious for its strict regulations and zero tolerance. There was a nervous wait to go through security.

[Lisa]

As that bag was going through the detector and then they opened it up. I've never been in a situation that my literal life flashed before my eyes because we're in Dubai and here we are representing America at a very bad time for America with a rifle and all its components. I've never felt that feeling again. And I never want to ever, ever, ever feel it again. And then we are all shuffled into a room. Candace is taken away. She used the phrase I am untouchable. I thought I would be. I mean, I thought we were going to prison.

[Charlie Webster]

The black ops team was detained in Dubai and Candace was taken away for questioning. But she still managed to squeak out an update date to the for the love book group.

[Candace Rivera]

Pray, pray, pray. Currently being detained in Dubai. Hopefully we'll talk out of it. Good news, free WI fi, bad news, detainment is possible. Love you all.

[Charlie Webster]

Somehow after six hours, Candice convinced the authorities to let everyone go.

[Candace Rivera]

Update. After six hours of interrogation, we are out.

[Charlie Webster]

She even secretly recorded the interrogation under the table. She showed the video to Lisa and the rest of the black ops team.

[Lisa]

She was very proud of herself.

[Charlie Webster]

They all checked into a five star hotel in Dubai. Candice had a room to herself, but everyone else had to share. Candace and her project manager, a guy called Dutch who was an ex Navy Seal, sat in the hotel lobby together. Candice in her long black cardigan and Javiana flip flops. Dutch in blue shorts and wearing a tactical vest. Lisa thought they were planning their next move, but they were actually on FaceTime.

[Lisa]

He's on the phone in the lobby of the hotel. We're gonna face timing these people that we're trying to get get out. We're coming to get you, don't worry. Yelling in a public in a Marriott lobby. FaceTiming these poor, these families that we've promised to save.

[Charlie Webster]

The black ops team sat in the hotel for days waiting for Candace to find a way into Afghanistan. They were getting agitated. Nothing Candice was promising was materializing. She finally had to come clean to them. She told them that the South African president had denied the refugee request. And in fact she didn't actually have any permissions in place. She never got permission from the U.S. state Department or the CIA. Neither the U.S. government nor Hillary Clinton asked her to help out. Hillary didn't pay any money. Candace never even spoke to to her.

[Lisa]

Those of us on that plane assumed that all these permissions and paperwork had been taken care of via the State Department. You can't just drop into whatever country you want and do what you want to do. It was clear that Candace and Dutch are fucked. We had zero permission.

[Charlie Webster]

With nothing in place, Candace went to the extreme of going on South African TV begging from a hotel room in Dubai for the South African government to let her list of refugees in.

[Candace Rivera]

A lot of these individuals are high priority individuals that have been allies to the uk America. And they really. They're individuals that are not safe. They will be killed.

[Aura]

Will you try and keep negotiations ongoing.

[Charlie Webster]

At a high level with the South African government to try and resolve the situation?

[Candace Rivera]

Absolutely. I'm asking right now for them to rethink their decision so that we can bring these people. They're waiting and we need to do everything we can to get these individuals to safety. All we need is a landing certificate for them to land in South Africa so we can take care of them and get them to where they need to go.

[Charlie Webster]

That was Candace on E. News, South Africa's most watched TV news channel. Although she told everyone it was the BBC, the TV plea didn't work. Candace would have to find a different way. And with no way to get to into Afghanistan, her backup plan to illegally smuggle people wasn't going to work either on her own. Back in Utah, Aura was scrambling to find a way to get the refugees waiting on Candice and the Exeters team out.

[Aura]

Every time I was tasked with something, it was do this by this time or everyone dies. And at one time Candace contacted me and said, we don't have this many green cards. It's 20 something green cards. And I was told, if you don't have these within like 24 hours, they will all die. Where do I go to find green cards? How do I find green cards for people I don't know exist? I don't have their names. It was just, hey, we need 20 green cards in a day or they will die. Get it done.

[Charlie Webster]

An impossible task for Aura. You can't get one US permanent residency green card in a day, let alone 20 of them.

[Aura]

I just felt the responsibility of these people's lives and there was nothing I could do about it. I also kept hearing stories about the people waiting for us because we told them we're coming. We said, be here by this time and run for your lives. And they left with their families and waited. Like literally sat in hiding waiting for us to come. And we didn't come.

[Charlie Webster]

As all this was happening, Candace was still in regular contact with her besties in the for the Love book group, although what she told them was going on was a little different. This is one of Candice's book group besties.

[Candace's Book Group Bestie]

She said they landed in Dubai and they were trying to get all of the paperwork ready and they were just waiting on the okay to get into Afghanistan. She said they needed to have enough money to bribe the officials at different checkpoints and they needed safety guaranteed when they got them out. And in order to guarantee that safety, she met with the former general in the Taliban that was no longer in Afghanistan. And in order to meet with him, they needed to give him a bribe. He is fascinated with Texas culture and with cowboys, and he said he's never had a belt buckle and really wanted a belt buckle.

[Charlie Webster]

Texas belt buckles are no ordinary belt buckles. They're big, usually made of precious metals, and are family heirlooms passed down from generation to generation.

[Candace's Book Group Bestie]

And so I and a group of my friends that have been praying every day that she was there, we left and went on search for a belt buckle and ended up finding one from a woman that really felt like she was supposed to give it to help the Afghan refugees. It was gold with red stones on it. It was beautiful. And it was the only heirloom she had of her grandfather's. And we had to overnight it to Candice, and we got it to her in Dubai, and she sent us a picture of it in the briefcase with a crown for the general's daughter, which was a princess. And all of that was going to be a gift in order to get safe passage for these refugees to come out of Afghanistan. Candace, for a few days, was in Afghanistan. She said they were stopped by isis. They were held and detained in Afghanistan. At one point, the group was all holed up in one apartment. They were all fighting about what they were going to do next. And she said they had a knock at the door and nobody wanted to open the door. So she went over and opened the door, and it was a man fully clothed in black to where only the eyes were showing. And he asked her if she believed in Jesus. And at that point, she felt like this was God telling her that she needed to either profess her belief in him and be prepared to die or lie. And so she professed her belief in Jesus, and he said, good, then follow me, and took them out and led them to freedom from that area. She said, said they all ended up getting out of Afghanistan without any of the Special Ops team dying or getting injured or hurt.

[Charlie Webster]

It was true none of the Special Ops team died or were injured or hurt, but that's because they were never in Afghanistan in the first place. While Candice was telling the for the love group she was in Afghanistan, she was actually sitting in Dubai in a comfy Marriott hotel with Lisa and the rest of the Black ops team. She was even sending pictures of her lobster and steak dinners to her new boyfriend back home every day.

[Lisa]

Got just. You just watched their soul deplete and you watch them drink so much. I didn't drink. I'm not judging them. But alcohol really doesn't help the mental capacity. And we were just being lied to and gaslit. And every single day the stories were more ridiculous. Candace and Dutchwood have this plan of what we're going to do next. And I said, you're out of your fucking minds. Why are we moving this goalpost? Every time something happens, we are lied to. We are presented with these ridiculous plans. I'm just watching everybody psychologically just start to lose it. And then the ranger was like, I've been in some really fucked up situations. I've never been in a situation like this before. Candice, Dutch, they went Rolex shopping and they were all wearing Rolexes. And I said, are you fucking kidding me? Like this was so beyond my scope of what's acceptable. One of the days we went shopping, I see Candace's door open and housekeeping is in there. I walk in, she has a lot of cash, 300 grand as far as my eyes could see. I open the closet that has the safe. The safe isn't even locked. This is her level of security. This is our leader who is supposedly dealing with the heads of all these countries and getting permissions.

[Charlie Webster]

I have a picture that Lisa took at the time of the safe in Katniss's hotel room. It looks like something out of a gangster movie. On top of piles and piles of $100 notes are three diamond encrusted Rolexes, plus the gold and ruby belt buckle and princess crown that Candice told the book group about. We know the crown ended up with Candace in Utah, not with a princess. As for the belt buckle, Candace told Lisa she had given a Taliban general a belt buckle, although she had said it was her own grandfather's. Meanwhile, Anna was desperate for updates on the people she was trying to get out of Afghanistan. It was relentless trying to communicate back and forth. Anna was starting to panic about Candice's ability to deliver. She had people's lives in her hands.

[Anna]

Candace was sitting forever in Dubai and anytime you asked her, we're working on it, we're doing this, we're doing that. We're going to be boots on the ground, we're going to go in and all this stuff and you're just in there. Stop already. Be real. What in the heck is going on? She says, you know, they all went out to the club last night because they needed to blow off steam. What the actual is going on there? Because are you kidding me right now? At one point she tells me she needed some retail therapy. So she goes shopping at Burberry and gets a cashmere wool scarf to wear in a desert, which just makes no sense. That was when I had had enough.

[Charlie Webster]

That was the breaking point for Anna. She cut off contact with Candace and got in touch with another organization who were on the ground in Afghanistan. They managed to get a family of seven across the border to Pakistan. But most of the people Anna was trying to save are unaccounted for.

[Anna]

And I will forever wonder, are these folks alive? Was any of this worth it?

[Lisa]

The final thing was that Newsweek article.

[Charlie Webster]

The black ops team had been in Dubai for a week now trying to figure out what to do. An article published by Newsweek popped up on their feeds. It was about them. I have the article right here. It says, seven armed United States civilians attempting to make their way to Afghanistan were arrested on August 31st. The FBI is aware of the matter, but has no further comment at this time. Vice chair of the committee on Homeland Security said the Department of Justice must investigate who these people are and what ties do these individuals have to extremism here at home. For Lisa, that was the final straw.

[Lisa]

And I said, okay, we're leaving tomorrow. I'm going to call the concierge and we're leaving. We all get on this plane to Qatar, Atlanta, and then Salt Lake. I called my attorney and I said, please meet me at the airport because I think I'm going to get arrested. I thought we were. I really thought we were done.

[Charlie Webster]

So we didn't.

[Lisa]

We all went to my house, drank a lot. I encouraged the rest of the group to just like, don't talk about this with anyone. Don't think about it. Just try to decompress.

[Charlie Webster]

That's exactly what happened. When the black ops team got back from Dubai, they never spoke to anyone about what happened there. In their minds, this was never to be spoken about again. Even Aura didn't know what actually went down.

[Aura]

Candace never talked to me about what happened in Dubai. I later asked her a lot of questions about what happened there. And then she would say, we can't talk about it because we all have ptsd. They all went skydiving after thinking that that would help their trauma. And I would bring it up here and there, but she would never gave me answers.

[Charlie Webster]

Candice made it seem like the Afghanistan mission was a huge success on social media. She posted a picture on Facebook of a group of young children in Afghanistan crammed together in a beat up truck.

[Candace Rivera]

And wrote, the last three months I have slept maybe six Hours total. I came home from the Afghanistan operation to be a mom. However, working in four time zones has been so hard. I am praising God that we have evacuated near 1000 people and now I may be able to sleep.

[Charlie Webster]

Yeah. Even though Candace only ever claimed to be rescuing 300 people, she said she actually evacuated near 1,000 from Afghanistan.

[Aura]

Candace would just say that we saved people. There's story after story after story that I heard that I have no idea is true. I have no idea if there's people still waiting that didn't hear from our contacts, that never heard from Candace. And to this day, I have no idea, no idea what happened to these people. I don't know if people died. I don't know how long they waited. And then Candice put on social media that we saved thousands of people.

[Charlie Webster]

Ora isn't the only one who to this day doesn't know what actually happened during the Afghanistan operation. Candice's beloved for the love book group who she was keeping updated the whole time were told many stories about her being on the ground in Afghanistan, actively working to help refugees escape.

[Candace's Book Group Bestie]

Came out of Afghanistan, sharing the news of rescuing Sometimes I hired 800 refugees. I think she posted at one point in time, 1,000 refugees, refugees. And everyone believed that that's how many got out.

[Candace Rivera]

She talked about how someone had broken their leg and they were having trouble moving through the mountains. They had to make deals with rebel fighters. They had to pay more money to the Taliban. Someone got a bullet wound to the jaw. 269 people across the border. 600 to go. Just so many dramatic details of live updates. This is what's happening today. This is what's happening five days later of this huge mission. It was incredible to know someone who is doing something of such massive scale.

[Charlie Webster]

One thing we know for certain, Candice never went to Afghanistan. And according to Lisa, Exodus never repatriated.

[Lisa]

Any US citizen or any Afghani national.

[Aura]

I don't know what happened. There's just so much to wrap my.

[Charlie Webster]

Head around because of the stress Aura was put under and the fact that she couldn't get any answers about Afghanistan. After Candace returned, she was questioning her entire friendship with Candice and on the verge of quitting Exodus, I was like.

[Aura]

At the point of hating Candace because I'm like, how can you be so irresponsible and so flaky and just have your head in the clouds? And she was bragging about how she heard rumors of getting the Nobel Peace Prize for this. And I was so mad that she was talking like that. When it was people's lives and just thinking, I cannot wait work for her any longer. Like, I did not feel the friendship at all anymore. I just wanted out. But then as soon as that was over, there was something else and more people that needed me. Real people in front of my face that I could see needing me and I couldn't walk away. Right after Afghanistan, the war in Ukraine broke out and once again Candace came up to me and said, the US Government has asked me to go in and save, save the orphans.

[Charlie Webster]

Candace is saying, hey, look, we pulled in some favors with the Moldovan mafia, right? This is this Moldovian mafia, a house that we're going to stay at.

[Aura]

As I scanned my id, all the sirens went off in the airport.

[Charlie Webster]

Then they started asking me questions about was I ever in Afghanistan or in the Middle east and had I ever had guns over in there? And I'm like, I don't know what you're talking about.

[Aura]

And security came and got me and took me to interrogate me. He wanted to know about Candace.

[Charlie Webster]

This has been Unicorn Girl, an Apple original podcast produced by Seven Hills and hosted and executive produced by me, Charlie Webster. Unicorn Girl is produced by me, Charlie Webster and Jackson McLennan. Original score and theme music by Ryan Sorenson, editing and sound design by Nico Polella, assistant producer and fact checking by Emmy Jory. Candice's social media posts are also read by Emmy Jory, mixed by Little Big Room, additional production support by Fun Meter. Follow and listen on Apple Podcasts.

[Candace Rivera]

SA.