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[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
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time you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support
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and for a more detailed list of content warnings please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our
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website 37-year-old Jeff shockling was watching television at his mother's house shortly after 700 p.m. on Sunday
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November 6th 2011 when he heard the doorbell ring it was an unexpected sound to hear
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at that time of day Jeff's mother lived in a rural area in Coldwell Ohio strange visitors to the home were
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rare and known ones would just let themselves in rather than knock or ring the doorbell
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first Jeff also thought it was odd that he hadn't heard a car pull up meaning that whoever was at the door had arrived
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on foot suspecting that another member of the family was playing a prank on him Jeff asked his 9-year-old nephew to go
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and see who was there the boy got up and went to the door while Jeff continued watching the
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game show Jeopardy a moment later Jeff's nephew came running back and told Jeff there's
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a guy at the door he's been shot and he's bleeding right through still believing this was part of
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a prank his younger relatives had come up with Jeff and nevertheless went to the front
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door standing in the doorway was a man Jeff had never seen before he looked looked to be in his late 40s with a
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solid build a short salt and pepper beard and a shoulder length gray straight hair the man's face was pale and he
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fidgeted anxiously while holding his right arm across his body his right shirt sleeve was soaked in Blood and so
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was his pant leg below [Music] [Music] David py was ready for a fresh start for many years he had been a man of
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consistency the 51-year-old from norfol Virginia had married his high school sweetheart Susan after the two had
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parted ways for a Time David adopted Susan's son Wade and became a stable influence in the boy's
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life David modeled to Wade what a regular routine looked like eating the same breakfast every day and then going
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to work his 9 to-5 job as a warehouse manager and truck driver for a building materials
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distributor but after almost 20 years of working for the same company David was suddenly left a drift after they had to
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downside he struggled to find another long-term position instead working various jobs
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here and there this became even harder after the financial crisis of 2007 to 2008 which was the most severe global
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economic crisis since the Great Depression almost a century earlier the subsequent recession led to
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companies going out of business and a shortage of jobs for bluecollar workers like
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David David's personal Rel relationships also began to suffer eventually in 2009
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David and Susan divorced David moved in with his older brother Richard and his sister-in-law
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sleeping in their spare bedroom the trio got along well but David was looking for something more
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permanent he was eager to get back on his feet and find a place of his own so he could properly begin the next chapter
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of his life instead of feeling like a guest in someone else's home home while working short-term temp rols
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and occasionally having to borrow money from friends and family David kept his hopes up for something
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better at the men's bible study sessions he attended regularly he prayed to find
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a steady job he also searched actively turning to the internet to look for his next possible
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career on Sunday October 9 2011 David was trolling job listings on the website Craigslist when one in particular caught
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his eye wanted caretaker for Farm simply watch over a 688 acre patch of hilly farmland and feed a few
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cows you get 300 a week and a nice two-bedroom trailer someone older and single preferred but will consider all
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relocation a must you must have a clean record and be trustworthy this is a permanent
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position the farm is used mainly as a Hunting Preserve is overrun with game has a stocked 3 Acre Pond but some beef
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cattle will be kept nearest neighbor is a mile away the place is secluded and beautiful it will be a real getaway for
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the right person job of a lifetime if you are ready to relocate please contact ASAP Position will not stay open
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[Music] the job ad immediately appealed to David py it would provide accommodation and
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enough income to live off plus David loved the outdoors and a quiet life although he had close friends and
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family members he loved he was content with being left to his own devices the ranch was situated in the
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foothills of the Appalachian Mountains a Scenic location where David could enjoy
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the natural world David also had a slightly hippie-ish look with wavy shoulder length hair and a bushy mustache and he
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wasn't keen on changing his style for a more straight laced position if he was living alone on a ranch then it wouldn't
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matter how he looked the only catch was that the ranch was in the southern part of Ohio two
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states away from where David currently resided in Virginia but this didn't deter David at all his lifelong best
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friend Chris Maul had moved to Ohio a couple of years earlier after his own divorce and was happy there David and
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Chris had been friends since high school and always remained in contact despite life taking them in different
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directions the men were so close that they talked up to 50 times a day they spoke so frequently that they even
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purchased walkie-talkies for the sole purpose of chatting with each other if David moved to Ohio he'd be able to see
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his friend more [Music] often David replied to the job listing writing I'm 51 years young single male I
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love the outdoors I currently live in Virginia have visited Ohio and I really love the state being out there by myself
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would not bother me as I like to be alone I own my own pickup truck so hauling would not be a problem I can fix
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most anything have my own carpentry tools if chosen I will work hard to take care of your place and treat it like my
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own a few days later David received a reply from the ranch owner a man named Jack who was also a
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preacher Jack said that he'd received more than a 100 applications for the job and had narrowed his list down to three
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candidates David was one of them Jack had a few more questions for David including whether he'd ever been
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arrested for a felony David assured him that he had a clean record Jack warned that the ranch didn't
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have cell coverage and asked if David was okay living in relative Solitude David confirmed that he
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was Jack said that he'd let David know if he'd gotten the job by 2 p.m. that Friday making it clear that if David was
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hired he'd need to start right away way David's excitement at learning he'd made the short list was visible to those
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around him his brother Richard noticed how David looked happier and more animated than he had in a long
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time when Friday came David sat waiting by the phone it didn't ring David resigned himself to the fact
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that Jack must have chosen someone else then hours after the deadline had passed A call came
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through it was Jack David had the job David was ecstatic wasting no time he packed all of his clothes and most
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treasured possessions into a U-Haul trailer that his church had lent him the money to
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rent then on Saturday October 22 he hopped into his blue Dodge pickup truck and started the Drive North to Ohio
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David spent the night at a hotel in the neighboring state of West Virginia the plan was to meet Jack for breakfast the
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following morning at a chain restaurant in the Ohio town of Marietta from there Jack would take
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David to the ranch and show him around before going to sleep that night David called his friend Chris Maul for a
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chat Chris wished a David good luck for his first meeting with his new employer and asked him to get in touch after
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after he was settled in he also told David to forward on his address as soon as he had
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it David still didn't know exactly where the ranch was located just the general area and Chris wanted to drive down to
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visit the following weekend but the next day Chris didn't hear anything from David he tried
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reaching out to him via his walkie-talkie and was met with silence for two friends who spoke a
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dozens of times every single day this was a sudden and unexpected change when David found out he'd gotten
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the job Chris was the first person he called saying it was the best thing to ever happen to
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him the fact that he wasn't reaching out to let Chris know how the job was going
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raised immediate alarm Bells Chris called David's brother and got a contact number for David's new
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boss Jack he then called Jack to ask how David was doing jack reassured him that David was
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settling in well and he just left him with a list of chores to take care of he said he'd let David know that Chris had
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called when he saw him the next day despite this reassurance several more days went by with no word from
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David Chris called Jack again and this time he had some unexpected news Jack said that when he'd arrived at the
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ranch that day David had repacked all of his belongings into his pickup truck David told Jack that he'd met a
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guy in town who was going to work on a drilling rig in Pennsylvania and David had decided he'd do the
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same Chris didn't believe this for a second he knew there was no way David would have left Ohio without letting him
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know by the time two weeks had passed with no word from David Chris phoned David's
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twin sister Deborah the two siblings had always been close after Deborah married her second
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husband she relocated into state but always stayed in touch with David she was one of the first people he
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called after receiving his new job David had told her his new boss was a preacher and it felt like he was being
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spiritually directed towards finding peace Deborah was happy for David but she'd made him promise to visit her for
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Christmas in 2 months time and she didn't like the idea of him spending the holiday
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alone when Deborah received Chris's call it underscored her own growing [Music] concern David had stayed in touch with
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Deborah during his journey to Ohio and she'd asked him to phone her after he was settled in at the ranch she hadn't
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heard from him since Deborah tried calling David herself but all of her calls went through the
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voicemail she left several messages which became increasingly panicked and desperate as time went
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on Deborah promised to David she would find him saying I'm going to bring you home no
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matter what it is the stress of the situation caused Deborah to lose her appetite and she
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struggled to sleep she spent several days trying to track her brother down by calling the
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hotel he'd stayed at on his way to Ohio and the business he'd hired the uall trailer from neither were able to shed
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any light on David's whereabouts without a location for the ranch Deborah was unable to progress
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further in her search then about a week after receiving Chris's call Deborah suddenly recalled
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something David had told her that Ranch was in a town called Cambridge Deborah went to her laptop
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computer and typed Cambridge Ohio into Google a website for the town's local newspaper popped up and Deborah clicked
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on it then started scrolling through recent articles one that was published 3 days
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earlier on Tuesday November 8th caught her eye the headline read man says he was lured here for work
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work then shot on Sunday October 9 2011 48-year-old Scott Davis was scrolling through Craigslist when he came across
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the same job ad that had caught David's eye for the past 15 years Scott had been
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living in South Carolina but he'd grown up in Ohio and his mother still lived there her house was run down and in
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desperate need of repairs Scott and his fiance both agreed that he should move back to Ohio to
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assist his mother for a while Scott ran a landscaping business and as it was getting close to Winter
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there would be little Landscaping work in South Carolina anyway when Scott spotted the Craigslist
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ad seeking a living caretaker at a 688 acre cattle ranch in Ohio it sounded perfect the work sounded easy enough
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that he'd still have time to help out his mother Scott typed a reply to the app just over a week later on Monday
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October 17 he received a response from the ranch owner Jack Jack liked the sound of Scott and
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said it would be fine if he spent the weekends at his mother's he asked Scott whether he owned
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a truck or any farm tools and also requested a photocopy of his driver's license for a background
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check Scott provided the copy and assured Jack that he had everything required after a few more emails back
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and forth Jack offered Scott the job Scott packed a trailer with his belongings including clothes stereo
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equipment tools and his beloved Harley Davidson Jack had encouraged him to bring the Harley telling Scott the area
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around the ranch was gorgeous and perfect for motorcycling in early November Scott hitched the
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trailer to the back of his pickup truck and headed for Ohio on the morning of Sunday November 6
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Scott pulled up at a diner called shony in the town of maretta he'd made plans to meet Jack
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there for a breakfast meeting before heading to the ranch where he'd be living and
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working when Scott entered the diner Jack was already waiting with a tall young man who looked to be in his mid to
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late teens Jack introduced the boy as his nephew Jack was tall too with a solid build he was middle-aged perhaps around
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51 or 52 with wispy salt and pepper hair that was longer at the back he had a mustache and it looked like he'd
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recently shaved his beard he'd missed a couple of spots where patches of facial hair
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remained Jack was chatty over breakfast asking Scott what belongings he'd packed
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for his new life his nephew didn't say much instead focusing on his food after they finished eating they
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prepared to go to the ranch Jack explained that the small Road leading to the ranch was damaged and
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needed to be repaired before Scott could drive his truck on it Scott was to leave his vehicle in a
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parking lot in the town of cordwell for the time being while Jack showed him the
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ropes Scott got in the back seat of Jack's white Buick laber while Jack took the passenger seat and his nephew
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drove Jack chattered while his nephew kept his eyes on the road telling Scott about Foods he liked the church he
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preached at and his ex-wife the surrounding landscape became increasingly rural soon enough they were driving on a
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dirt road and scottt had no signal on his cell phone after driving for about 15 minutes
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they reached a heavily wooded area and Jack asked his nephew to pull over saying quot drop us off where we got
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that deer at last time Jack told Scott he'd left some equipment they needed to repair the road
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down a hill near a creek and he needed Scott's help to get it the two men hopped out of the car
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while the teenager did a you turn then head it off again Scott followed Jack down the hill
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into the woods soon they reached to the creek but Scott didn't see any equipment Jack appeared to be lost and
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soon gave up telling Scott forget this let's turn around and take the roadway Scott turned and began to
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retrace his steps this time walking in front of Jack then then he heard a click behind
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him followed by the word [ __ ] Scott thought the click sounded like a gun misfiring he spun around and saw Jack
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his eyes cold aiming a revolver directly at him Jack pulled the trigger again right
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as Scott impulsively reached out and tried to grab the weapon the bullet hit Scott in his right
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elbow he began to run the black leather baseball cap he was wearing falling off as he did so he raced deeper into the
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woods with the jack in Hot Pursuit firing at Scott again and again Scott heard four gunshots but none
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of them hit him he ran until he couldn't go on anymore it appeared that he'd lost to
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Jack Scott found a Ravine and decided to hide there as he sat low in the Ravine he heard a
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car passing back and forth on the nearby Road he had no doubt it was Jack looking
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for him Scott was bleeding heavily but he continued to hide as the day Drew on Scott grew cold
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and hungry yet was too scared to emerge in case his attacker was waiting for him finally after about 7 hours had
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passed he knew knew he needed to move if he wanted to live night had fallen and Scott walked
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several miles in the dark before coming across a farmhouse he approached the house
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terrified that it might belong to Jack knowing he had no other option he knocked on the
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door it was answered by a young boy who was there visiting his grandmother he alerted his uncle
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37-year-old Jeff shockling who came to the door and called 911 as they waited for the police to
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arrive Scott told Jeff that he'd been attacked by a man who'd offered him a job Scott believed that the man intended
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to Rob him after all he'd known that all of his most prized possessions including
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his harleydavidson were piled up in a trailer attached to Scott's truck the County's Sheriff Steven Hanam
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arrived about 15 minutes later and Scott repeated his story but Sheriff Hanam was
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doubtful of Scott's claims for starters Scott said he'd been hired to work on a 688 acre cattle ranch but there were no
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ranches even remotely close to that size in Noble County there were plenty of large rural stretches of land but they
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mostly belonged to mining companies the sheriff was also slightly suspicious of Scott Davis himself his long hair
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scruffy beard and denim jacket combined with references to his harleydavidson all pointed to him being a
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biker maybe he'd gotten caught up in a drug deal that had gone a while Scott was taken to hospital in
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an ambulance investigators began following up on his claim they called some local informants
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to if they knew anything about the case they didn't investigators then went out to
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the cordwell parking lot where Scott said he'd left his truck and trailer both were still there exactly as
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he'd described on the dashboard of the truck were printouts of the emails Scott had
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exchanged with his prospective employer Jack all the details were pointing to his story being true
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[Music] based on the detailed descriptions of Jack and his nephew that Scott had
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provided Sheriff Hanam wondered if the culprits could be a father and son who were known as country and
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county country whose real name was Jerry Hood senior lived on a farmhouse with his wife in the rural area Scott had
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detailed the sheriff head it out to Country Hood's property about half a mile from his
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residence there was some heavy equipment by the road that Scott had described seeing Sheriff Hanam decided to visit
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Hood's wife Lois at the tavern where she worked to see if she could shed any further light on the
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matter Lois explained that her husband had been in hospital for the past 2 months after he slipped and HIIT his
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head the sheriff also spoke with Hood's son County Scott had described Jack as having a mustache with a recently shaved
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beard yet Cy Hood had a full beard it was clear that the two men who first come to the Sheriff's mind were
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both innocent investigators contacted the shony diner where Scott Davis had met Jack and his nephew and obtained
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security footage from inside the venue it showed the two men who had met up with Scott standing and waiting for a
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table their faces visible the older man wore a dark jacket and a black baseball cap with a logo on the
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front the teenager wore a light colored button-down shirt and stood with his arms
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crossed on Tuesday November 8th 2 days after Scott was attacked investigators located the baseball cap that Scott had
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lost while fleeing from Jack it was lying in the shallows of a creek that intersected the dirt road
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Scott and Jack had walked along the Land There wasn't part of a ranch but was owned by a Coal Company
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and sometimes least to Hunters investigators had identified the crime scene the investigation was progressing
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well but without urgency that suddenly changed on the evening of Friday November 11 when the
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Sheriff's Office received a call from a woman named Deborah Bruce Deborah had been trolling the website of
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noble County's local newspaper looking for clues about her missing twin brother David Poley when she came across an
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article detailing Scott Davis's ordeal the article explained how Scott had been lured in with the promise of a
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job on a 688 acre cattle ranch exactly like the job David had set out for 3 weeks earlier before disappearing
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completely really realizing this couldn't be a coincidence Deborah immediately called The Noble County
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Sheriff's Office to tell them about her brother and how he'd replied to the same
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Craigslist ad as Scott Davis the team immediately fast-tracked the investigation it looked as though they
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might have an actual murder to solve as well as an attempted one on Monday November 14 a search team
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composed of local law enforcement and FBI agents went back to the s in the woods where Scott's baseball cap was
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found they spanned out from the creek bed and carefully scoured the area about 100 to 150 ft from the spot
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where the Hat was recovered Searchers discovered an empty hole that appeared to have been dug by
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hand it was a couple of feet deep and approximately 80 Ines long the first impression of the
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investigators present was that the hole was actually an intended grave the next day kadava dogs were
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dispatched to the same location it was pouring rain and coyotes could be heard howling in the
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distance several hours before nightfall one of the dogs alerted at a patch of disturbed soil about 80 ft from the
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empty grave the patch was at the bottom of a Hillside and and had several tree branches lying on
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top investigators began digging at the wet soil with their hands the heavy downpour of rain had led
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to puddles dotting the ground as they clawed at the dirt blood began bubbling up from the ground into
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the muddy water then a foot wearing a sock emerged investigators formly excavated
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the area and 2 ft beneath the the surface they uncovered the body of a man lying face
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down he had been shot in the back of the head with either a 32 or 38 caliber firearm the man was almost completely
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naked but tied around one of his wrists was a black leather bracelet with a silver
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clasp a detective called Deborah Bruce and described the bracelet to her she began to shake she knew that the
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bracelet belonged to her twin brother the man lying in the muddy grave was David
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pley in a bid to track down the mysterious Jack investigators requested assistance from an FBI cyber crimes
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expert using Jack's job ad they were able to obtain information from Craig's List that led to the user's IP
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address in turn this led to a physical address of a house in the Ohio city of akan detectives obtained a search
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warrant and made the 100 mile Journey North to visit the home when they knocked on the front door
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it was answered by the homeowner a man named Joe Bas Joe said he lived at the house with
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his wife and a young child he insisted that he hadn't posted anything on Craig's List and he didn't
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know anyone named Jack however when detectives showed Joe a photo of the man they were looking for
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taken from the CCTV footage at shon's Diner Joe recognized him right away Joe identified the man as Ralph
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guer who went by the nickname Dutch Joe had turned his basement into an apartment which Dutch had started
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renting in either August or September for 100 a month however he'd moved out at the end
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of October just two weeks prior Joe described Dutch as a real nice guy and a good housemate he was a
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churchgoer and hadn't been prone to drinking smoking or swearing during his time at the house he
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was given access to Joe's computer and internet connection the detectives asked Joe if
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there was anything in the house that had belonged to Dutch Joe said yes he traded his
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computer with the Dutch in exchange for some boxes of miscellaneous items he gave the boxes to
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detectives amongst the contents were personal items belonging to David py detectives searched the basement
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apartment and found a few possessions Dutch had left behind including prescription pill bottles with the name
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Ralph Gyer printed on them [Music] investigators were just as eager to track down the teenager that had
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accompanied their Prime Suspect Jack had told Scott Davis that the boy's name was
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brogen investigators were able to identify the teen as 16-year-old Broan rafid who was a student at Stow Monroe
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Falls High School just outside of akan on Wednesday November 16 the day after the discovery of David Paul's body
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an FBI agent and a detective went to Brogan's high school and spoke with him in the principal's
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office Broan appeared completely calm he admitted to having met with Scott Davis
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at Shy's Diner but denied any knowledge of Scott being shot he also denied knowing anything
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about what had happened to David poly broen said he didn't want to speak further without an attorney
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and he was permitted to leave however a sheriff's deputy monitored him at the school for the
00:33:04
remainder of the day to ensure he didn't attempt to flee meanwhile a group of investigators
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headed to the rafid residence to conduct the search of the home in Brogan's bedroom they uncovered a briefcase
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containing a sword off shotgun a 22 gauge semi-automatic pistol a knife bullets and a several shotgun shs on
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Brogan's computer was a Word document dated Tuesday August 16 2011 several months before David py and
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Scott Davis had been attacked the document appeared to be a poem that Brogan had written it read in
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part we took him out to the woods on a humid Summer's night I walked in front of them they were going back to the car
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I didn't turn around the loud crack echoed and I didn't hear the thud the two of us went back to the car
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for the shovels I dug the hole we put him in with difficulty they called them stiffs for a
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reason when I got home took a shower hotter than hell itself prayed like hell that night
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later that evening police returned to Brogan's home and placed him under [Music]
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arrest after being taken into custody broen rafid initially said little but a week after his arrest he was persuaded
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to talk broen's childhood hadn't been easy his mother struggled with the drug addiction and had lost custody of broen
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and her three other children Broan lived with his father Michael who worked an early shift at a
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machine shop Michael did his best but broken had to be somewhat self-sufficient from a very young age
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getting ready for school alone at just 5 years old and walking to the bus stop by
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himself every day when Broan was 8 years old he told his father he wanted to attend a church
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on Sundays Michael wasn't ke to wake up so early on the weekend but he gave broen
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permission to attend church with a good friend of his named Richard Beasley Beasley was a bit of a rough
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character and Michael knew him to be something of a quote scam artist but Michael had never seen him be angry or
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aggressive and thought he was a safe person for his son to spend time with Broan began attending church with
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Beasley every week and came to enjoy spending time with the older man unlike his own father who could be impatient
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and quick-tempered Beasley was calm with a hearty laugh sometimes Brogan felt certain that
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Richard Beasley was actually Santa Claus he physically resembled the legendary figure and carried lollies in
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his pocket that he would share with Brogan sometimes Brogan's half-sister would join the parrot Church along with
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Beasley's own daughter after the sermons ended Beasley would take them out to McDonald's saw
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get them donuts and offer advice on how important it was to stay in school and avoid
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drugs Beasley had his own checkered past that gave these lessons credibility he'd been a bright child
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with a charismatic personality but he'd grown up in an abusive household eager to leave his Ohio
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Hometown once he was an adult he relocated to Texas where he began committing crimes specifically Burg
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y he wound up in prison in the 1980s and moved back to akan after he was released
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in 1990 a motorcycle Enthusiast he met his future wife at a biker event and the couple soon had a
00:37:13
daughter while he kept up a respectable front he was burglarizing homes behind his family's back while also illegally
00:37:21
dealing weapons in 1996 Beasley was arrested again and sentenced to 7 years his wife divorced him but Beasley
00:37:33
maintained a relationship with his daughter it was during this incarceration that Beasley found God and
00:37:41
became a born-again again Christian after his release he began spending lots of time at an akan Church
00:37:48
known as the chapel his new found Faith prompted him to attend Bible study classes and
00:37:55
volunteer at a soup kitchen Beasley was an example of how religion could reform a
00:38:02
person when he gifted broen rafid a Bible he wrote a message inside that read the Bible is the key to peace of
00:38:11
mind and a road map to [Music] Salvation over the course of almost a decade Richard Beasley became like an
00:38:24
uncle to Brogan but there was another side to him beneath the clean living churchgoing
00:38:31
exterior in the mid 2000s he was in a car accident that left him with several injuries he began taking opiates for
00:38:40
neck and back pain stopped working consistently and withdrew from his family at the same time his relationship
00:38:48
with brogen rafid remained strong using money he'd received from a settlement relating to his car accident
00:38:57
beas founded a halfway house it was ostensibly a place where those overcoming substance addiction or
00:39:04
reintegrating with Society after serving time could get back on their feet Beasley told people he wanted to
00:39:12
help drug users sex workers and teenage runaways at night he drove around akan his eyes peeled for people who needed
00:39:22
assistance he preached the Bible to his halfway house residents and helped those
00:39:27
with court appearances by vouching on their behalf these Good Deeds led to him being
00:39:33
nicknamed chaplain rich in reality Beasley took advantage of the people who moved into his halfway
00:39:43
house at one stage there were five or six sex workers living there and Beasley began acting as their pimp he purchased
00:39:52
cell phones for them drove them to meet clients and posted ads for them online while he was never physically violent
00:40:00
towards these women he exerted a lot of control over them if any ever spoke of wanting to leave Beasley fought to keep
00:40:08
them there by giving them drugs he also dealt drugs as a way to make cash in February of 2011 Beasley was
00:40:18
arrested on drug charges as this was in violation of his parole he was held on remand in the county
00:40:26
jail it turned out that some of the women Beasley had abused had gone to the police and for the past 2 years
00:40:34
prosecutors had been building a case against him for pimping sex workers at his halfway house if convicted he faced
00:40:41
spending the rest of his life in prison 5 months later in July 2011 he was released on bail but subsequently
00:40:50
failed to check in with authorities which led to a warrant being issued for his arrest Richard Beasley was officially
00:40:58
fleeing from the law by this point he'd isolated broken rafid from other loved ones and made him
00:41:07
entirely dependent on Beasley's affection and approval Beasley had gone from being a
00:41:13
mentor to the teenager to a father figure who broen's life revolved around meeting up with Beasley and
00:41:21
helping him out with whatever he asked was broen's primary focus the pair spoke every other day and spent
00:41:30
time together several times a week in early August 2011 Beasley confided in Brogan that he was on the
00:41:39
run from the law there was a warrant out for his arrest and he was being framed for a
00:41:45
crime he didn't commit Beasley didn't want to go back to prison and said he needed Brogan's help
00:41:52
to survive Brogan was upset to hear that his me was being unfairly persecuted by
00:41:59
law enforcement and agreed to help where he could Beasley decided he needed a whole
00:42:06
new identity and he planned to obtain one by any means necessary he began lurking around a
00:42:13
homeless shelter keeping an eye out for middle-aged Men Who Bore a resemblance to
00:42:19
him soon he honed in on one particular individual who seemed to fit the bill a man named Ralph for
00:42:33
gyar at 56 years old Ralph Gyer was doing it tough he once had a successful construction business but he'd been hit
00:42:43
hard by the recession and by August 2011 he was unhoused and staying at a shelter
00:42:49
in akan eager to get back on his feet Ralph felt a sense of renewed hope when he met
00:42:57
Beasley and was offered a caretaker position on his large cattle ranch Ralph had grown up on a farm and
00:43:05
would been his element in such a role he told staff at the shelter about his new job as well as a close friend
00:43:13
named summer rally although Ralph and summer spoke daily he warned her that he wouldn't
00:43:20
have cell phone reception on the ranch and therefore wouldn't be in contact as much on the night night of Monday August
00:43:28
8th 2011 Ralph checked into a Best Western motel in Coldwell the town Beasley said was near his
00:43:37
Ranch no one ever heard from him again according to Brogan rafy he and Beasley had met up with Ralph Geer on
00:43:47
Tuesday August 9 with Broan acting as Beasley's driver they took him out to the same wooded
00:43:54
area where they later took David paulley and Scott Davis they all got out of the car and
00:44:01
Beasley used a pistol to shoot Ralph in the back of the head broen then helped him bury the body
00:44:09
nearby he later said that he felt like he had ice in his veins and was in a State of
00:44:16
Shock afterwards Beasley dyed his white hair dark so it looked like Ralphs and applied for multiple jobs under Ralph's
00:44:25
name he also moved into Joe bis's house giving him Ralph's name instead of his own on Monday September 19 Beasley
00:44:36
opened a bank account as Ralph guer the following day he used Ralph's name to visit a doctor and obtain
00:44:43
prescription painkillers while Beasley got on with his new life broen said that he was
00:44:52
terrified knowing that the man he'd built his life around was a killer he was scared that he or someone he loved
00:44:59
might be next broen claimed that Beasley had warned him I know where your mother lives I
00:45:08
know where your sister lives in September 2011 Richard Beasley was hired to be a Quality Inspector at a
00:45:21
manufacturing plant but due to his chronic back pain he found the work difficult
00:45:27
as his first attempt at killing someone for personal gain had gone off without a
00:45:31
hitch he decided to do it again this time instead of just stealing his victim's identity he would also Rob
00:45:40
them for financial gain Richard Beasley had learned about Craigslist from his daughter who had
00:45:47
helped him catch up on all things technology after his release from prison she'd helped him set up an
00:45:54
account so he could sell some old furn armed with this knowledge Beasley used the site to craft a job ad offering an
00:46:03
idilic lifestyle for someone down on their luck he specified that older and single candidates were preferred because
00:46:12
he was hoping for victims with few personal ties Beasley wanted people who could
00:46:19
disappear without raising suspicion it was also crucial that they have no criminal record so was to avoid
00:46:27
any trouble with the police over 100 applications quickly flooded in including responses from
00:46:35
David pley and Scott Davis who both emailed Beasley on the same day Beasley weeded through them to find
00:46:44
the right quote candidates any applications from women or from men with Partners were ignored
00:46:51
and deleted after his initial screening process Beasley called his potential victims for a telephone interview
00:47:00
claiming his name was Jack he used these calls to clarify further details such as the applicant's
00:47:08
marital status and any possible criminal background he also sused out what personal belongings they intended to
00:47:15
bring with them if hired not all of those interviewed made it through to the next
00:47:22
round in October Beasley met with a candidate named Daniel to discuss the job in
00:47:29
person Daniel was offered the position and began preparing for the move Daniel mentioned that he'd be
00:47:37
bringing a pistol with him Beasley initially said that was fine but later changed his mind telling
00:47:45
Daniel I'm the only one with a gun Daniel found this suspicious he tried to find the ranch's
00:47:54
details on the Noble County auditor website but but nothing came up concerned Daniel told Beasley quote this
00:48:03
ain't adding up the final straw came when Beasley offered to buy Daniel's SUV and pickup
00:48:11
truck he said he'd pick them up and then give Daniel the money once he arrived at
00:48:16
the ranch Daniel disliked this plan saying to Beasley what if somebody is trying to
00:48:24
get my vehicles before I come down there and then when I get down there they shoot me and take my
00:48:32
stuff Beasley responded you shouldn't have said that he then sent Daniel an email
00:48:40
formally resending the job offer around the same time Beasley was also talking to another man named
00:48:49
George semi retired and seeking an easy job to supplement his income George thought Beasley's D sounded
00:48:58
ideal the two met at a food court to talk specifics the interview was going well
00:49:05
until George mentioned that he'd been involved with martial arts for almost his entire
00:49:10
life Beasley suddenly sat back in his chair when George added that he'd previously worked as a security guard
00:49:20
beasy put George's application away and abruptly ended the interview George never heard from him
00:49:31
again David py was the first successful candidate early on the morning of Sunday
00:49:39
October 23 mere hours before David was set to meet them in Ohio Richard Beasley enlisted broen rafi's help once
00:49:48
again they bought some shovels and drove out to the general area where Ralph Gyer
00:49:54
was buried while beas supervised Broan dug a grave later that morning Beasley and
00:50:03
Broan headed to the chain restaurant where they'd arranged to meet David afterwards the duo embarked on
00:50:11
what would become a pattern Beasley explained that the road to the ranch was damaged so they'd have
00:50:18
to repair it before coming back for David's things Broan then drove Beasley and David out to the location of the the
00:50:26
pre-dug grave after Broan pulled over the three got out of the car and Beasley asked
00:50:34
Broan and David to follow him up a hill Brogan stopped to urinate and as he was finishing he heard a cracking sound
00:50:44
he turned around and saw David py lying face down on the ground having been shot
00:50:50
in the back of the head after Brogan buried David he and Beasley returned to the parking lot
00:50:57
where David's blue Dodge pickup truck and trailer were parked Beasley told acquaintances that
00:51:04
he'd acquired the items by bidding on a storage unit and winning its contents he gave some of David's less
00:51:12
valuable possessions away and sold others to neighbors and at flea markets none of them were particularly
00:51:21
high value David had packed some model trains fishing tackle boxes a laptop and a bit
00:51:28
of Nascar memorabilia Beasley also sold David's truck for $1,000 and made sure to return David's
00:51:36
rented trailer to a U-Haul facility 2 weeks later Broan accompanied Beasley to a breakfast meeting with
00:51:46
48-year-old Scott Davis Beasley was particularly excited about this candidate given that he owned
00:51:54
a harleydavidson which Beasley had told him to bring to Ohio the plan proceeded much like the
00:52:01
previous one had until Beasley went to shoot Scott and his revolver jammed hearing the weapon misfire gave
00:52:09
Scott a heads up and time to run away Beasley raced back to the road where Brogan was waiting in his car and
00:52:18
told the teen that if they saw Scott they had to run him down the pair drove back and forth
00:52:24
looking for Scott but eventually gave up as they headed back home Beasley threw some of the car's contents out the
00:52:33
window so that his vehicle would be less recognizable if Scott described its contents to
00:52:41
investigators Beasley was devastated that his plan had gone a right as well as the Harley Scott had
00:52:49
packed some high-end electronics and Beasley had estimated he'd make about $30,000 from selling it all
00:52:57
despite the likelihood that police would soon be investigating the attempted murder he decided he needed to make up
00:53:04
for his unexpected loss Richard Beasley went looking for another [Music] victim 47-year-old Timothy Kern was
00:53:18
going through a rough period the divorced father of three from akan had once been a successful Club DJ but had
00:53:26
been let go in 2001 in the years that followed he'd struggled to find consistent
00:53:33
work he eventually found a job as a street cleaner but by November 2011 he was unemployed again and had no fixed
00:53:43
address he alternated between staying with friends and living out of his car while searching for a new
00:53:50
job when he came across Richard basley's Craigslist ad he described it as a good
00:53:55
offer but strange and wasn't as immediately enthusiastic as some of the other applicants the job would mean relocating
00:54:04
to an area with limited Soul service and a significant distance from his sons although Timothy hadn't lived with
00:54:13
his son since his divorce 14 years prior he remained a huge presence in their lives he called and texted them almost
00:54:22
every hour of every day and did his best to see them every single day even if their visits were sometimes
00:54:30
fleeting on Wednesday November 9 2011 3 days after the attack on Scott Davis Timothy Kar met Richard Beasley
00:54:39
for a job interview he got the job and on Sunday November 13 he set off to start his new
00:54:48
[Music] position Beasley and Brogan picked Timothy up in a parking lot in Canton
00:54:54
Ohio early the next morning Beasley began asking Timothy about the items he'd brought with him
00:55:02
having previously established that Timothy owned a laptop and a flat screen TV Timothy said he just had an old
00:55:10
television and some garbage bags filled with clothes and cassette tapes he explained that he'd given the laptop and
00:55:17
more expensive television to his sons Beasley asked Timothy how much cash he had on him to get by until his first
00:55:27
paycheck somewhat sheepishly Timothy said he only had $5 Broan later told investigators that
00:55:37
he felt a pit in his stomach at this point realizing that they were about to murder Timothy Kar for absolutely
00:55:45
nothing but they still went ahead with the plan it was still dark when the trio headed off in Beasley's vehicle at
00:55:55
around 6:00 a.m. this time Brogan drove them to a wooded area behind a disused mall in akan which
00:56:03
had gone out of business during the recession the previous killing site was too dangerous given there had been
00:56:10
several news articles published about the attempt on Scott Davis's life Beasley explained to Timothy that
00:56:17
they'd been squirrel hunting behind the mall earlier and he'd lost his watch he wanted to find it as it had sentimental
00:56:25
value Timothy followed Beasley into the woods and not long after Broan heard a gunshot he looked over and saw Timothy
00:56:36
on his knees a hand clutching one side of his head are you okay Beasley asked in a
00:56:43
concerned sounding voice he then fired four more times hitting Timothy in the head and killing
00:56:51
him they buried his body in a shallow grave Beasley had Broan dig the night before Brogan described to investigators
00:57:04
where the bodies of Timothy Kern and Ralph gerer were buried officers recovered them both and found that their
00:57:11
injuries matched to Brogan's version of events Ralph had sustained one gunshot wound to his head while Timothy had
00:57:19
sustained five by the time this information came to light Richard Ley was already in
00:57:27
custody having been arrested on his outstanding warrants on November 16 the same day that broen rafid was arrested
00:57:35
and just 2 days after Timothy Kern was killed investigators were able to track him down after he left a note for his
00:57:45
former landlord Joe Bas in it Beasley said he' heard that police had been sniffing around and
00:57:52
wanted to know what Joe knew he he asked Joe to call him and provided his cell phone
00:58:00
number detectives had Joe phone Beasley for a chat while they hurridly traced the call to a house in
00:58:07
akan it turned out Beasley had been renting a room he'd found by placing a room wanted ad on Craig's
00:58:16
List Beasley wasn't talking but a search of his new residents uncovered a number
00:58:22
of items belonging to David pley as well as male addressed to Ralph Gyer and prescription bottles with Ralph's name
00:58:29
on them while Beasley was held on remand he sent a letter to a woman he was friends
00:58:36
with he asked her to go to his former Residence at nighttime where he'd hidden two laptops under some leaves in the
00:58:43
corner of the yard Beasley wanted her to destroy both computers as well as a wallet he'd
00:58:50
hidden in another area of the yard he included a handdrawn map of where to find these
00:58:58
items Beasley asked his friend not to tell anyone about his letter and even concocted a secret code she could use to
00:59:05
communicate whether her Mission had been successful or not instead of doing as requested
00:59:12
Beasley's friend handed the information over to the police they retrieved the items which
00:59:19
turned out to be Ralph geer's wallet and David Paul's laptop as well as Beasley's
00:59:24
own laptop with a record of his Craigslist activity Richard Beasley maintained his
00:59:35
innocence a claim which was publicly supported by his mother she told the Associated Press that her son had a very
00:59:43
caring heart and was a mentor to broen rafy as far as she knew the two spent their time together going to church
00:59:51
fishing playing video games and delivering food to people in need at Richard Beasley's trial in late
00:59:59
February 2013 prosecutors presented an abundance of evidence they' gleaned from electronic
01:00:06
devices they also had the victim's belongings that were found in Beasley's possession as well as numerous Witnesses
01:00:14
who could link Beasley to the crimes several candidates who' interviewed with Bley for his phony job
01:00:21
also testified against him as did friends and acquaintances who knew him as Ralph
01:00:28
Gyer a former landlord and an ex-housemate testified that Beasley had been talking about Scott Davis's
01:00:35
possessions including his harleydavidson before Scott had even left for Ohio Beasley had told them he'd bid on a
01:00:44
storage unit that contained the items and he was hoping to win them investigators had learned that
01:00:53
Beasley used at least seven prepaid cellon bones to conduct his crimes but they were unable to recover most of
01:01:00
these nor were they able to conclusively find the murder weapon one of the guns found in broen
01:01:06
rafi's bedroom could have been used to kill Timothy Kern but that couldn't be determined for
01:01:13
certain at least two other guns were used to shoot the other three victims but these were never
01:01:21
found Richard Beasley took the stand in his own defense he claimed that he'd known Ralph Geer from a biker Clubhouse
01:01:30
and had told Ralph about his desire to change his identity Ralph had supposedly offered up
01:01:36
his own identity in assistance Beasley claimed he didn't know what happened to Ralph Gyer after
01:01:43
that but hinted he may have been killed by a motorcycle gang that included broken rafi's father and a local Father
01:01:51
and Son known as country and County Hood this was the same Duo that police had initially suspected in the very
01:01:59
early stages of the investigation into Scott Davis's attempted murder Beasley claimed that after
01:02:08
country Hood was hospitalized due to an accident his son County decided to hire a caretaker to look after the family
01:02:16
farm he borrowed Beasley's computer to post an ad on Craig's List and asked Beasley to interview candidates on his
01:02:23
behalf because he thought Beasley would make a better impression Beasley claimed he used the
01:02:30
name Jack in Communications with the job applicants because he didn't want to risk his newly acquired Ralph guer
01:02:38
identity Beasley insisted the only candidate he'd met with was Scott Davis he claimed that Scott was actually
01:02:47
the one who pulled the gun and that the two had begun to struggle when the weapon went off hitting Scott in the arm
01:02:56
the jurors didn't buy Richard Beasley's story they found him guilty on 27 counts
01:03:02
including three counts of aggravated murder with prior calculation and design and one count of attempted
01:03:10
murder the jury recommended that Beasley receive the death penalty which still exists in
01:03:17
Ohio as the family members of the victims embraced and wept Beasley sat in a wheelchair he used due to his back
01:03:25
pain with his head facing down and his chin pressed against his chest the judge upheld the jury's
01:03:33
recommendation sentencing Richard Beasley to three death sentences for the murders of Ralph Gyer David paulley and
01:03:40
Timothy Kern Beasley unsuccessfully appealed his sentence all the way up to the US
01:03:47
Supreme Court as of the release of this episode Richard Beasley remains in prison on
01:03:54
death row with his sentence yet to be carried out one week after brogen rafid was
01:04:03
arrested he agreed to turn State's witness against Richard Beasley and give a full and detailed confession to law
01:04:10
enforcement in exchange for receiving reduced charges instead of being charged for
01:04:17
crimes against each of the four victims he agreed to plead guilty to one count of complicity to murder for David Poley
01:04:24
and one count of ATT attempted murder for Scott Davis however Brogan later changed his
01:04:30
mind about the deal and decided to go to trial instead the judge allowed a recording of
01:04:38
Brogan's confession to be played at his trial those close to Broan had wondered whether Richard Beasley had achieved
01:04:46
influence over the teenager by grooming and sexually abusing him in court his lawyers hinted at this
01:04:54
possibility but it was claim Broan adamantly denied any grooming had only been about
01:05:01
presenting Brogan with the father figure he'd always wanted the jury found broen rafy guilty
01:05:09
on 24 counts including one count of attempted murder and three counts of murder as broen had only been 16 at the
01:05:19
time of the crimes he was too young to receive the death penalty instead he was sentenced to to
01:05:25
life in prison without the possibility of parole the judge stated that while broen
01:05:33
was dealt a lousy hand in life he had chosen to quote embrace the devil broen rafy appealed his sentence
01:05:44
in 2015 arguing that his confession had been coerced and he was denied a chance to argue that he'd acted under
01:05:54
jurass his appeal bill was rejected in September 2013 the Atlantic published a feature article about the
01:06:02
case written by journalist Hannah Rosen Rosen interviewed broen rafy at length via a series of
01:06:10
letters a transcript of their conversation was also published by the Atlantic in it Brogan explained how he
01:06:19
came to be so manipulated by Richard Beasley and of the great remorse he had for the victims
01:06:26
he spoke of how he had always felt things very deeply but his difficult upbringing made it hard for him to
01:06:32
express emotions the interview concluded with brogen reflecting quote someday I'll have to sit down and
01:06:42
make sense of these murders for what they were as of now it is beyond me someday I'll be able to put the
01:06:51
pieces together in my own mind and understand the meaning behind such horror such evil such unnecessary
01:06:59
pain someday I will do this and it shall kill [Music] me multiple journalists who covered the
01:07:11
murders of David py Ralph Geer and Timothy Kern have reflected on how the men were all part of a vulnerable
01:07:18
group they were middle-aged and somewhat on the margins of society the global financial crisis had
01:07:26
left them with few resources or prospects making them susceptible to an opportunity that sounded too good to be
01:07:35
true while Richard Beasley had correctly identified some of their vulnerabilities
01:07:40
he had also underestimated his victims by believing no one would care when they disappeared as journalist Hana Rosen
01:07:49
pointed out in her 2013 feature about the case quote Richard Beasley had believed that
01:07:57
no one would come looking for the divorced unsettled middle-aged men he was targeting but he should have known
01:08:05
better like his victims Beasley was himself divorced and lived apart from his child and was only sporadically
01:08:13
employed and like them he too had created an intense surrogate family relationship with broken
01:08:22
rafid all of Beasley's murder victims had people who loved them missed them and definitely noticed when they stopped
01:08:30
making contact David py had been planning to visit his twin sister Deborah for Christmas and spoke to his best friend
01:08:38
Chris 50 times a day when he disappeared from their lives both were quick to make
01:08:45
inquiries and start investigating Deborah addressed Richard Beasley directly in court telling him
01:08:54
you took my best friend Confidant and my twin Ralph guer had a sister named Kathy
01:09:02
whom he always made contact with on birthdays and holidays when her birthday passed with no call from Ralph Kathy
01:09:10
phoned Ralph to check on him the call went straight to voicemail Kathy followed up with other
01:09:17
family members and Ralph's friends to see if anyone had been in touch with him someone told her about Ralph's new
01:09:25
job and how he didn't have soul service there when police later called Kathy to inform her that Ralph had been murdered
01:09:33
it was the worst phone call of Cathy's life Ralph also had a close relationship with a friend named summer rally who was
01:09:43
like a daughter to him summer was 30 years younger than Ralph and had met him when she was a rebellious
01:09:50
teenager Ralph had taken summer under his wing teaching her how to cook nutritious meals for herself and do
01:09:57
minor construction work soon she'd started working alongside him by the time summer was 25
01:10:06
she had gotten engaged and had a baby girl to whom Ralph was like a grandfather summer still keeps a photo
01:10:14
of Ralph and her daughter on a mantle in her home Timothy Kern's disappearance was
01:10:21
immediately noticed by his children who started calling and texting him frantically Timothy had an incredibly
01:10:29
close bond with his sons even though they were almost grown up he still referred to them as my
01:10:36
babies making the decision to move far away from them had been painful and he repeatedly told them that he didn't want
01:10:43
to leave them he was so proud of his children that he bragged about them to everyone he
01:10:51
met after he left for his new job one of Timothy's Sons sent him a text that read
01:10:57
I love you I miss you I'm proud of you good luck the next morning Timothy messaged
01:11:06
back text me when you wake up love you leaving soon Richard Beasley's sole surviving
01:11:15
victim Scott Davis has been left with chronic pain and a plate in his arm from the injury sustained when Beasley tried
01:11:22
to kill him he faced would be killer twice in court testifying as a witness and later
01:11:30
delivering a victim impact statement Scott said that the families of Beasley's murdered victims had become
01:11:37
like family to him in a reference to Beasley's supposed Faith Scott stated I'm sure you know the Ten
01:11:48
Commandments you've broken all of them but three come to mind you're a liar a thief and a
01:11:57
murderer you say you know God not yet I am The One That Got Away by the grace of God that will haunt
01:12:07
you the rest of your life in your 4x8 so [Music] [Music] [Music] for