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

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."

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.

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.”

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."

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.

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.

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.