Podcast Summary

Podcast: What It Was Like
Host: Julian Morgans
Episode: I Was Kidnapped By My Stalker and Locked in a Bunker
Date: December 5, 2025
Guest: Samantha Stietz

Episode Overview

This episode features an intense, firsthand account from Samantha Stietz, a social worker who survived being stalked, abducted, and imprisoned by a man named Christopher Thomas. Over thirteen harrowing years, Christopher’s obsession escalated until he kidnapped Samantha and held her in a bunker he’d constructed. The conversation explores how pop culture tropes around crime and obsession bled into horrifying reality, and how Samantha used her skills and resilience to survive and eventually escape. The episode delves into the psychological, legal, and emotional aftermath, as well as Samantha's ongoing advocacy.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction & Pop Culture Influence

• Julian draws parallels: between pop culture depictions of crime and actual criminal behavior, specifically referencing "You" on Netflix, which Christopher cited as inspiration.
  • "It’s just this tragic blend of pop culture fantasy and good old fashioned narcissism with a bit of, like, garden variety misogyny just sprinkled all over it." [05:00]

2. Samantha's Background and Early Encounters with Christopher

• Upbringing: Samantha grew up an only child in Michigan, mainly raised by her mom [06:42].
• Meeting her stalker: She met Christopher through a Christian student group in college; he was older, socially awkward, and persistent but unremarkable to her [08:10].
• Unsettling escalation: Christopher began to leave anonymous roses and letters at her car and home. When confronted, he confessed—revealing he'd followed her to her internship [13:20].
  • "He’s been putting out feelers. And I’ve been like, nope... he’s not getting the picture." [13:20]

3. Stalking Worsens & The Struggle for Protection

• Denial of threat: Initially, Samantha didn't feel afraid, just annoyed [18:26].
• Boundary crossing: After graduation, Christopher followed her to her small hometown and tried to join her out-of-state internship [19:44].
• Realization: With help from a mentor, Samantha recognized the pattern as stalking and successfully obtained a six-year Personal Protection Order (PPO), which forced his removal from the internship [22:08].
• Life moves on: Years pass, the PPO expires, and Samantha, now in her hometown post-pandemic, sees Christopher again—he integrates himself into her life via her local soccer league [25:19].
  • "It’s not like I can just renew [the PPO] because I see him. So I was like, what do I do?" [25:56]

4. The Kidnapping

• The break-in: One morning, after Samantha’s roommate leaves the back door unlocked, Christopher sneaks into the house, attacks, and abducts her [29:37–33:50].
  • "I heard a squeak in my floorboard outside my room that I knew wasn’t a pet… as I looked outside the door, I could see, like, a shadow that wasn’t normally there." [30:07]
• Describing the bunker: Christopher takes her to a soundproof 7x7 bunker built in a storage unit—complete with rings in the wall, food, a makeshift toilet, and heavy insulation [34:59–36:48].
  • "He reveals to me that he took two weeks off work and that we’re going to be spending two weeks together in this soundproof 7x7 bunker." [35:45]
• Dialoguing with her captor: Samantha realizes her best chance is to convince him to let her go, leveraging her knowledge as a social worker [35:10]. She keeps him talking, tries to understand his motives, and learns he fears prison more than anything [41:54].

5. Psychological Manipulation and Survival

• Negotiating for her life: Samantha feigns friendship, offering assurances and even negotiating terms for her release—though Christopher insists she must sleep with him to earn his trust [44:15–45:46].
• Calculated compliance: Facing the prospect of sexual assault or escalation, Samantha weighs her options and, in her words, chooses the “least-worst option” to ensure survival [47:43].
  • "How do I get out of this? Am I gonna die?... I am between a rock and a hard place. And there’s no other way I can get out of this." [48:16 & 48:53]
• Aftermath of abuse: Once she complies, Christopher delays, but eventually drives her to her car and releases her [54:46].
  • "I see the stars. Like, I thought I was going to die." [55:51]
• Escape and help: Samantha rushes home, calls a neighbor, gets to the hospital for a SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) exam, and contacts the police [55:55–57:33].

6. Law Enforcement Response and Christopher’s Arrest

• Police apprehension: Relying on her information and tips about his car, police quickly identify and arrest Christopher, initiating a SWAT-style traffic stop, due to his statements about preferring death to prison [58:19].

7. Trauma, Healing & Reflection

• Immediate aftermath: In the weeks following, Samantha experiences shock, hypervigilance, sleep issues, and memory gaps [59:25].
• Support system: Reactions from friends and family vary; many were supportive, while some said unhelpful things or withdrew [60:26].
  • "Some of them literally were, like, never responded." [60:42]
• Therapy and recovery: Samantha undertakes exposure therapy for PTSD, gradually regaining comfort with sleep and privacy [62:06].
  • "I did exposure therapy for PTSD... to the point where I could sleep with my door closed but not locked and so on." [62:09]

8. Advocacy and Advice

• On reporting: Samantha wishes she had gone to police sooner:
  • "Making the report is safer than not making the report. Sure, most of the time." [65:54]
• Community awareness: Recommend alerting local contacts and treating any stalker as a genuine threat [66:01].
• Beekeepers Advocacy: She launches an initiative providing advocacy, awareness, and education about stalking and sexual assault, with a focus on supporting survivors and engaging law enforcement and the public [66:25–66:56].

9. The Impact & Importance of Storytelling

• Motivation for sharing:
  • "I have this really unique experience of living through something like this and having my attacker behind bars for life that not many people get the luxury of... To honor their stories and their families, I think is important." [64:19–64:47]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On stalker denial:
  "I never would have guessed that he would follow me off the college campus. And maybe that's naive, but I was 21." [22:08, Samantha]
• On pop culture’s influence:
  "My guest today... was kidnapped and he admitted he'd drawn inspiration from the Netflix series 'You'." [04:50, Julian]
• On assessing danger:
  "If someone's outside my door, they want me... If they're robbing me, they would be robbing me. They wouldn't be standing outside my bedroom door." [30:07, Samantha]
• On psychological survival:
  "I’m a social worker... If this is my only way out, I can deal with this person." [35:10, Samantha]
• On trauma in the aftermath:
  "Anytime I heard, like, a creak of a floorboard or anything... I was very tense. I couldn't sleep. It was bad." [60:18, Samantha]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Samantha's first encounter and escalation: 08:10–14:28
• Protective orders and college/KPO: 21:03–23:12
• Stalker returns after years: 25:19–26:44
• Abduction & description of bunker: 29:37–36:48
• Hostage negotiation & psychological tactics: 41:13–49:09
• Decision point & abuse: 47:43–51:26
• Escape & hospital: 54:49–57:33
• Police intervention & arrest: 58:19–59:17
• Aftermath & therapy process: 59:25–62:48
• Advocacy and Beekeepers organization: 66:25–67:20

Final Thoughts

Samantha’s story is a harrowing testament to resilience and the power of calculated survival. She provides invaluable insights into the warning signs, the often-underestimated risks posed by stalkers, and the vital importance of both community support and institutional protection. Her journey sparked an advocacy movement intended to bring more attention to the realities and dangers of stalking, as well as to push for systemic change.

Resources:

• Beekeepers Advocacy Website