00:00:00
in Bakersfield California in 1991 two
00:00:04
boys stumbled Upon A grisly Discovery
00:00:06
the murdered body of a young woman
00:00:09
in the shadows is the new podcast from
00:00:12
wondery plus and casefile presents which
00:00:15
follows the ensuing 32-year ordeal to
00:00:19
uncover those responsible for the crime
00:00:21
and to bring them to justice
00:00:23
during the investigation of in the
00:00:25
shadows several individuals revealed a
00:00:28
shocking information previously unknown
00:00:30
to authorities ultimately this new
00:00:33
insight turned everything on its head
00:00:37
the first episode of in the shadows is
00:00:39
available wherever you get your podcasts
00:00:41
you can listen to the rest of the series
00:00:44
ad free only on wondery Plus
00:00:47
join wondery Plus in the wondery app or
00:00:50
on Apple podcasts and take advantage of
00:00:52
their seven day free trial
00:00:55
stay tuned to hear the trailer at the
00:00:57
end of today's episode
00:01:09
[Music]
00:01:13
our episodes deal with serious and often
00:01:16
distressing incidents if you feel at any
00:01:18
time you need support please contact
00:01:20
your local crisis center
00:01:22
for suggested phone numbers for
00:01:23
confidential support please see the show
00:01:25
notes for this episode on your app or on
00:01:27
our website
00:01:29
[Music]
00:01:35
Teresa Marsden was incredibly close to
00:01:38
her firstborn daughter 20 year old Renee
00:01:41
the two were more like best friends and
00:01:43
they told each other everything
00:01:46
Teresa had separated from Renee's
00:01:48
biological father when Renee was just
00:01:50
two years old affording the mother and
00:01:52
daughter a close Bond
00:01:55
winter razor eventually remarried a man
00:01:57
named Mark and had three more children
00:01:59
Renee was delighted nurturing and
00:02:03
kind-hearted she loved being an older
00:02:05
sister and adored her family
00:02:08
she considered Mark to be her real
00:02:10
father as he raised her and was always
00:02:12
there for her
00:02:14
Renee's life motto was family comes
00:02:17
first and everything else comes after
00:02:21
one Mother's Day Renee presented Theresa
00:02:24
with an unexpected surprise a tattoo in
00:02:27
her honor
00:02:28
written down the side of Renee's rib
00:02:30
cage were the words Life is Beautiful
00:02:33
because of you
00:02:36
when Renee arrived home early from work
00:02:39
on the afternoon of Monday August 5
00:02:41
2013. Teresa could immediately sense
00:02:44
that something was wrong
00:02:47
Renee was typically happy and bubbly
00:02:49
with a bright infectious smile
00:02:52
but as she walked through the marsden's
00:02:54
living room at their home in Sydney's
00:02:56
Northwestern suburb of Glenhaven she was
00:02:58
visibly deflated
00:03:00
Theresa asked Renee if everything was
00:03:03
okay
00:03:04
Renee assured her mother that she was
00:03:06
fine before disappearing upstairs to her
00:03:09
bedroom
00:03:11
although Theresa instinctively knew that
00:03:14
something was going on she gave her
00:03:16
daughter space
00:03:17
she trusted that Renee would talk to her
00:03:19
when she was ready
00:03:22
then Teresa's phone beeped
00:03:25
it was a text message from Renee's
00:03:27
boyfriend Braden spiteri
00:03:30
it read
00:03:33
sort your daughter out
00:03:35
threatening to kill herself
00:03:36
[Music]
00:03:44
[Music]
00:03:54
[Music]
00:03:59
foreign
00:04:00
[Music]
00:04:03
Marsden was introduced to Braden spiteri
00:04:06
in late November 2011 through her close
00:04:09
friend Camilla zaidan
00:04:12
Camilla and Braden had dated in the past
00:04:14
but Camilla felt that Renee and de
00:04:16
Brayden were a more fitting match and
00:04:18
she was more than happy to set them up
00:04:21
Camilla gave Renee Braden's phone number
00:04:23
and the two began exchanging text
00:04:25
messages
00:04:27
Renee was immediately intrigued by
00:04:30
Braden the 24 year old came from a
00:04:33
wealthy family and had attended one of
00:04:35
Sydney's most prominent private schools
00:04:38
one of three children he was already in
00:04:40
the process of taking over his father's
00:04:42
successful construction business which
00:04:45
specialized in high-rise buildings
00:04:48
Braden took pride in his appearance
00:04:50
which was evident in his muscular
00:04:52
physique and clean-cut dark hair
00:04:56
a photo Camilla had of her and Braden
00:04:59
together captured his warm Smile as
00:05:01
Camilla rested her head on his shoulder
00:05:04
like Renee Braden also had clear goals
00:05:08
for his life that revolved around
00:05:09
marriage and starting a family
00:05:13
there was just one problem
00:05:16
not long before Braden and Renee began
00:05:19
texting Braden had been involved in a
00:05:21
motorcycle accident that resulted in the
00:05:23
death of his best friend
00:05:26
he'd been anxiously awaiting a court
00:05:28
date and when the day came he was
00:05:30
convicted of manslaughter and sentenced
00:05:32
to two years in goulburn prison located
00:05:35
two hours south of Sydney
00:05:38
Renee was devastated that the two didn't
00:05:41
get the chance to meet before Braden's
00:05:43
conviction but he reassured her that the
00:05:46
time would go fast
00:05:48
he'd be out before her 21st birthday and
00:05:51
they could see how things panned out
00:05:52
then
00:05:54
in the meantime their relationship
00:05:57
didn't have to come to a standstill
00:05:59
with his lawyer's help Braden managed to
00:06:02
sneak a mobile phone into his cell
00:06:04
[Music]
00:06:05
he couldn't risk speaking on it in case
00:06:08
anyone overheard him but he could
00:06:10
continue messaging Renee in secret via
00:06:12
text and on social media
00:06:15
as for their first real-life meeting
00:06:18
that would have to wait
00:06:20
Braden had broken a deal in which he
00:06:23
agreed to forgo visitation rights in
00:06:25
exchange for a reduced sentence
00:06:29
Renee and Braden kept in close contact
00:06:32
and their feelings towards one another
00:06:34
continue to grow
00:06:36
they messaged each other daily and it
00:06:38
wasn't long before their friendship
00:06:40
turned into a romance
00:06:43
when Renee told her mother about Braden
00:06:45
Theresa was taken aback
00:06:48
Renee had only recently come out of a
00:06:50
serious relationship with her boyfriend
00:06:52
Angus and Teresa wondered if it was too
00:06:55
soon to enter into something else
00:06:58
she was also concerned about Braden
00:07:00
being in jail but she kept those
00:07:02
opinions to herself
00:07:04
the last thing she wanted was to drive a
00:07:06
wedge between herself and her daughter
00:07:10
Renee could be a hopeless romantic but
00:07:13
she was also smart and Teresa trusted
00:07:15
her judgment
00:07:17
at the end of the day she just wanted
00:07:19
Renee to be happy
00:07:24
other friends and family members also
00:07:27
questioned whether the relationship was
00:07:28
a good idea but by December Renee was
00:07:32
completely smitten
00:07:34
while she understood the criticism it
00:07:37
was difficult for her not to take it to
00:07:39
heart
00:07:40
Braden reached out to Theresa directly
00:07:42
to reassure her of his good intentions
00:07:46
he wrote
00:07:48
Renee is upset because everyone keeps
00:07:50
telling her the obvious that I'm in jail
00:07:52
and it will never work
00:07:54
she is everything to me and the last
00:07:57
thing I want is to hold her down
00:07:59
she chose to go through this with me and
00:08:02
after everything that happened she
00:08:03
became my best friend
00:08:05
I have fallen for her and she tells me
00:08:08
she feels the same
00:08:10
Teresa I'm a good guy I would never
00:08:13
disrespect her cheat or lie to her
00:08:16
she is everything to me and I could make
00:08:19
her more than happy
00:08:20
[Music]
00:08:22
Renee and Braden began discussing their
00:08:25
life together on the outside
00:08:27
their feelings towards one another were
00:08:29
intense and they didn't hold back with
00:08:31
expressing how they felt
00:08:34
Bryden sent Renee flowers cards and
00:08:37
gifts and just three months after they
00:08:39
began texting Renee visited a tattoo
00:08:42
parlor with her friend Camilla
00:08:45
solidifying her love for Braden with a
00:08:47
permanent tribute she had the name b
00:08:50
spiteri Inked into the right side of her
00:08:52
chest
00:08:55
on New Year's Eve of 2011 Renee was
00:08:59
looking forward to a night out clubbing
00:09:01
she wore a red dress for the occasion
00:09:03
and snapped a quick photo to send to
00:09:06
Braden
00:09:07
rather than complimenting her he said
00:09:09
the dress was too revealing and warned
00:09:12
that she'd better not cheat on him
00:09:15
throughout the evening he bombarded
00:09:17
Renee with the jealous text messages
00:09:21
after this another side of Braden
00:09:24
started to emerge
00:09:26
in early April 2012 Renee's Mother
00:09:29
Teresa was scrolling through Facebook
00:09:31
when she came across a post made by
00:09:34
Renee's ex-boyfriend Angus
00:09:37
Teresa had always been fond of Angus so
00:09:40
she liked the post
00:09:42
Braden had access to Renee's Facebook
00:09:45
account and when he saw the engagement
00:09:47
from Theresa he was Furious
00:09:50
he hated that she was still
00:09:52
communicating with Renee's ex and
00:09:54
contacted Renee to express how much this
00:09:57
hurt him
00:09:58
he then sent to razor an abusive text
00:10:01
message accusing her of being an unfit
00:10:03
mother
00:10:06
Teresa was appalled not only by the
00:10:08
accusation but by the fact that Renee
00:10:11
had given Braden her Facebook password
00:10:15
shortly after Braden underwent surgery
00:10:18
which required several weeks of recovery
00:10:21
he was unable to use his phone during
00:10:23
that time but his lawyer contacted Renee
00:10:26
to let her know that the operation had
00:10:28
been a success
00:10:31
by May Theresa could no longer bite her
00:10:34
tongue
00:10:35
she told Renee she found Braden to be
00:10:37
rude and arrogant and didn't think
00:10:40
theirs was a healthy relationship
00:10:43
Renee valued her mother's opinion and
00:10:45
agreed to end the Romantic relationship
00:10:47
while still supporting Braden as a
00:10:50
friend
00:10:55
in August 2012 Braden applied for parole
00:10:59
and succeeded
00:11:01
Renee was relieved that the two would
00:11:03
finally be able to meet in person but
00:11:06
the feeling was short-lived
00:11:08
shortly after Braden's release he got
00:11:10
into an altercation with his father who
00:11:13
filed assault charges against him
00:11:15
Braden was back behind bars almost as
00:11:18
quickly as he'd been let out and Renee
00:11:21
was absolutely crushed
00:11:24
Teresa was becoming increasingly
00:11:26
concerned about the impact that Braden's
00:11:28
incarceration was having on her daughter
00:11:31
privately she thought Renee deserved
00:11:34
better
00:11:35
Teresa reached out to Braden and
00:11:37
requested that he sees contact with
00:11:39
Renee at least until he was a free man
00:11:43
Braden reluctantly agreed
00:11:46
he told Renee to move on for the time
00:11:49
being but reassured her that his
00:11:51
feelings hadn't changed and they could
00:11:53
start things up again when he was on the
00:11:55
outside
00:11:57
Renee tried to move on but the lack of
00:12:00
contact with Braden left a void in her
00:12:02
life
00:12:04
she was also going through a stressful
00:12:06
situation at work and it all became too
00:12:09
much
00:12:11
Renee took an overdose of medication and
00:12:14
while she didn't intend to harm herself
00:12:15
the dose made her sick
00:12:19
for several days she was nauseous and
00:12:21
couldn't keep any food down
00:12:23
she eventually went to the emergency
00:12:25
room where she told the attending doctor
00:12:27
that she regretted the overdose
00:12:30
she was happy to be alive and had no
00:12:33
lingering feelings of self-harm
00:12:36
with no damage done she was discharged
00:12:39
that same day
00:12:42
this signaled a turning point for Renee
00:12:45
she started dating a co-worker named Ian
00:12:48
who was 12 years her senior
00:12:50
despite the age Gap Renee's parents were
00:12:53
thrilled
00:12:54
Ian was a decent man who treated Renee
00:12:56
well and made her happy
00:12:59
but the pair's relationship wasn't
00:13:01
without complications
00:13:03
when Braden found out about Ian he raged
00:13:08
he managed to get Ian's contact details
00:13:10
and sent him a message that warned
00:13:13
stay the [ __ ] away from Renee
00:13:18
in October 2012 Renee attended an awards
00:13:21
ceremony for work
00:13:23
dolled up in a New Dress she took a
00:13:25
photo of herself in her hotel room and
00:13:27
posted it on social media
00:13:30
shortly after she received a message
00:13:33
from Braden
00:13:34
he had seen the post and made the astute
00:13:37
observation that Ian's shoes were
00:13:39
visible in the photo
00:13:41
this enraged Braden who began accusing
00:13:44
Renee of cheating on him
00:13:47
Renee's relationship with Ian continued
00:13:50
to progress but she resumed regular
00:13:53
contact with Braden
00:13:56
Ian knew that the two were still in
00:13:58
touch and although he wasn't happy about
00:14:00
it he seemingly accepted it
00:14:04
in December Renee and Ian were attending
00:14:07
a Christmas function for work after
00:14:09
which they intended to go to the casino
00:14:12
Ian's phone vibrated
00:14:15
it was a text message from Braden
00:14:18
you better be careful it read
00:14:20
I'll be at the casino tonight watching
00:14:23
you
00:14:26
by January 2013 Renee and Dan were
00:14:30
engaged but Renee still maintained
00:14:32
contact with Braden
00:14:34
it had become a big problem in her and
00:14:36
Ian's relationship with Braden
00:14:38
continuing to send threatening messages
00:14:40
to Anne warning him to stay away
00:14:44
Braden made it very clear to weigh-in
00:14:46
that he also intended to marry Renee
00:14:50
eventually Ian had enough
00:14:52
[Music]
00:14:54
in March he gave Renee an ultimatum it
00:14:57
was either him or Braden
00:15:00
Renee agonized over the decision but
00:15:03
eventually made up her mind
00:15:06
she chose Braden
00:15:07
[Music]
00:15:13
it was a rocky transition as the two
00:15:16
worked to rebuild their relationship and
00:15:18
serious cracks began to form
00:15:21
one day they were loving and supportive
00:15:23
of one another and the next they were
00:15:26
arguing
00:15:28
Brighton told Renee he wasn't sure if he
00:15:30
still wanted to take over his father's
00:15:32
construction business which she thought
00:15:34
was a mistake
00:15:36
in turn he accused her of being greedy
00:15:39
and only caring about money
00:15:42
he also pressed her about her
00:15:43
relationship with Ian which he viewed as
00:15:46
infidelity and to this deeply frustrated
00:15:48
Renee
00:15:50
whenever they fought it was usually
00:15:52
resolved by Renee apologizing and
00:15:54
pacifying Braden's concerns
00:15:59
but there was one thing that Renee
00:16:01
couldn't move past
00:16:03
[Music]
00:16:04
by mid-april 2013 the two had been in an
00:16:08
on and off relationship for one and a
00:16:10
half years and she still had no tangible
00:16:13
piece of Braden
00:16:16
there had been gifts and a small number
00:16:18
of cropped selfies showing Braden's
00:16:20
muscular torso but she wanted something
00:16:23
of his she could hold
00:16:25
Braden had previously told Renee that
00:16:28
all of his personal belongings were
00:16:30
locked up in a storage unit so she began
00:16:32
asking if she could get hold of the key
00:16:36
when Braden rejected the request Renee
00:16:39
was flawed
00:16:41
she reminded Braden of everything that
00:16:43
she'd done for him and asked that he
00:16:45
make the same effort
00:16:49
in a series of text messages Renee wrote
00:16:53
I asked you for one simple thing a key
00:16:56
not money not to escape jail nothing but
00:17:00
a key
00:17:01
Braden I have nothing of you absolutely
00:17:04
nothing I can't even get a photo of you
00:17:07
anymore
00:17:08
it's hard for me Braden okay it's
00:17:11
killing me
00:17:12
[Music]
00:17:14
in regards to visiting the storage unit
00:17:16
She Wrote
00:17:18
I don't need anyone with me
00:17:21
I want to go by myself just to touch
00:17:23
something you have or see
00:17:26
it would mean more than the world to me
00:17:29
just that once to go
00:17:33
still Braden said no
00:17:36
when Renee persisted he accused her of
00:17:39
being a quote materialistic [ __ ] and
00:17:42
threatened to sell everything in the
00:17:44
storage unit just so she would shut up
00:17:46
about it
00:17:48
adding to the tension was Renee's
00:17:50
ongoing request to visit Braden's lawyer
00:17:54
Braden had been having trouble with his
00:17:56
phone so Renee wanted to give him a new
00:17:59
one
00:18:00
given that she wasn't allowed to visit
00:18:02
him in jail she hoped Braden's lawyer
00:18:04
could bring it to him on her behalf
00:18:08
Renee was also considering studying
00:18:10
forensic science at Sydney University
00:18:12
but before she made any concrete plans
00:18:15
she wanted to know more about Braden's
00:18:17
possible release date
00:18:19
[Music]
00:18:21
Braden said this wasn't possible as he
00:18:23
didn't know where his lawyer worked from
00:18:26
Renee found this hard to believe
00:18:30
she knew that Braden had attended
00:18:32
multiple meetings with his lawyer so she
00:18:35
questioned it
00:18:36
Braden responded
00:18:39
who the [ __ ] are you to question what my
00:18:41
meetings are about and [ __ ] who with
00:18:45
this was the last straw for Renee she
00:18:48
told Braden she'd had enough
00:18:51
he quickly backtracked texting her an
00:18:53
apology that read
00:18:55
I love you Renee you changed my life
00:18:58
from day one
00:18:59
I know there has been hard times [ __ ]
00:19:02
times and mean times
00:19:04
I adore you and you're so beautiful in
00:19:06
every way
00:19:08
I miss you I love you so much Renee
00:19:11
without fail every day
00:19:15
Renee said she was done with the
00:19:17
relationship unless Brayden changed his
00:19:19
behavior and agreed to her simple
00:19:21
requests
00:19:23
Braden explained he just wasn't ready to
00:19:26
face what was in the storage unit
00:19:29
he pleaded for Renee to have faith in
00:19:31
him and to stop questioning him the same
00:19:34
way he'd agreed to stop questioning her
00:19:36
about Ian
00:19:38
they had to learn to believe in one
00:19:40
another
00:19:42
justifying his behavior Brayden texted
00:19:46
I [ __ ] love you more than you know
00:19:48
that's why I get so angry when you
00:19:51
question me
00:19:55
foreign
00:19:57
eventually softened and by late May 2013
00:20:00
their relationship reached a peak
00:20:03
they talked about marriage and their
00:20:05
plans for a honeymoon in Greece
00:20:08
Braden texted Renee
00:20:10
we will have the best wedding baby I'll
00:20:13
make you happy I'll do whatever you want
00:20:15
just for you I want you to be mine
00:20:18
forever and be mine for the rest of my
00:20:21
life
00:20:21
I want to be your husband and you be my
00:20:24
wife I adore you
00:20:28
but the higher was short-lived
00:20:31
Renee had recently started a new job as
00:20:34
a receptionist for a logistics company
00:20:36
and Braden was jealous about the time
00:20:38
she was spending with her new co-workers
00:20:42
a few days after discussing their
00:20:44
wedding plans Braden asked Renee what
00:20:47
she'd been up to and she said she hadn't
00:20:49
left the house
00:20:51
Braden knew this was a lie he admitted
00:20:55
he'd installed tracking software on
00:20:57
Renee's phone and could see that she'd
00:20:59
gone to the gym
00:21:01
he said he could no longer trust her the
00:21:04
relationship was over
00:21:06
the only way he'd consider forgiving
00:21:09
Renee was if she stopped socializing
00:21:11
with her work colleagues
00:21:15
Renee apologized profusely but the
00:21:18
argument continued for days until she
00:21:20
eventually told Braden she no longer
00:21:22
wanted to marry him
00:21:24
she'd only reconsider if he agreed to
00:21:26
make a list of eight changes she'd
00:21:28
identify it as problematic
00:21:31
Braden agreed as long as Renee promised
00:21:34
to remain loyal and agreed not to spend
00:21:37
time alone with her male colleagues
00:21:42
by mid-june their relationship was back
00:21:44
on track
00:21:45
Braden's parole date was looming and the
00:21:48
pair were optimistic about the future
00:21:51
Braden told Renee
00:21:54
you're the best thing that ever happened
00:21:55
to me
00:21:57
Renee responded no baby where the best
00:22:01
thing that has ever happened to each
00:22:03
other
00:22:04
we Define true love we haven't met we
00:22:07
haven't held each other we haven't done
00:22:09
anything together yet we love each other
00:22:12
more than anything
00:22:13
we have a family and we have our life
00:22:16
planned
00:22:19
in the lead up to Braden's parole he
00:22:22
informed Renee that he wouldn't have
00:22:23
access to his phone for a whole month
00:22:27
being out of contact was hard for Renee
00:22:30
but she used it as a period of
00:22:31
reflection
00:22:34
on July 22 she wrote a letter to Braden
00:22:37
she hoped to give to him later on
00:22:40
it read in part
00:22:43
this time away has made me realize we
00:22:45
argue over stupid things too often and
00:22:48
it's pointless I love you beyond words
00:22:51
and I'll never let you go
00:22:53
I can't be without you baby you're my
00:22:57
rock my hero my everything and our love
00:23:00
and cherish you all the days of our
00:23:02
lives together
00:23:04
I can't wait to be your wife and to give
00:23:07
you the happiness you deserve
00:23:11
[Music]
00:23:13
even though Renee wasn't sure when
00:23:16
Braden would have access to his phone
00:23:17
again she texted him every day in the
00:23:20
hopes of receiving a reply
00:23:23
by the morning of Monday August 5 2013
00:23:26
over a month had passed with no word
00:23:29
from him
00:23:31
the silence was starting to take a toll
00:23:33
on Renee
00:23:34
she told her work colleague Joseph what
00:23:37
was going on and the two arranged to
00:23:39
have lunch together later that day
00:23:43
and just before midday Renee finally
00:23:45
received a text from Braden
00:23:48
they began messaging back and forth but
00:23:50
they weren't the warm affectionate
00:23:52
messages Renee had been expecting
00:23:55
she emailed Joseph saying she was upset
00:23:58
because Braden was being blunt
00:24:02
the couple continued texting until
00:24:04
Renee's lunch break rolled around at 1pm
00:24:08
as she and Joseph began walking to a
00:24:10
nearby coffee shop Renee received
00:24:13
another message
00:24:15
her hands began to shake and she started
00:24:18
to cry
00:24:20
she showed the phone to Joseph
00:24:23
the message was from Braden and red
00:24:27
I think I need a break and so do you
00:24:33
Renee and Joseph continued on to the
00:24:36
coffee shop but Renee was beside herself
00:24:39
she sent Braden a bunch of messages but
00:24:42
he didn't reply
00:24:44
Renee was too upset to return to work
00:24:48
she went home where her Mother Teresa
00:24:51
instantly noticed that something was
00:24:53
wrong
00:24:54
Renee assured her mother she was fine
00:24:56
before retreating to her room
00:25:00
Teresa then received the text from
00:25:02
Braden saying that her daughter was
00:25:04
threatening suicide
00:25:06
Teresa responded
00:25:09
please explain to me why a young woman
00:25:11
would want to kill herself to which
00:25:13
Braden said
00:25:15
ask her yourself
00:25:17
maybe explain to me why you never got
00:25:19
her help last time
00:25:21
have you ever thought you have neglected
00:25:23
her when she clearly needs help
00:25:28
Teresa went straight up to Renee's
00:25:30
bedroom and showed her the messages from
00:25:32
Braden
00:25:33
she asked whether she should be
00:25:35
concerned
00:25:37
Renee responded
00:25:39
don't be stupid mum I finally found out
00:25:42
what he's all about
00:25:44
you don't have to worry about him
00:25:46
anymore mum it's over
00:26:00
case File will be back shortly thank you
00:26:03
for supporting us by listening to this
00:26:05
episode's sponsors
00:26:07
Trends and fads come and go especially
00:26:10
when it comes to health and wellness
00:26:11
things like intermittent fasting low
00:26:14
carb high fat and detox diets the list
00:26:18
goes on and on
00:26:19
while they may work in the beginning the
00:26:21
problem is these types of diets can be
00:26:24
hard to stick to
00:26:25
Noom is not a fad they use psychology
00:26:29
not trans to help you make sustainable
00:26:31
choices that are aligned with your
00:26:33
values and weight loss goals
00:26:36
whatever your health goals are the
00:26:38
flexible program focuses on progress
00:26:40
instead of perfection
00:26:43
team member Jess tells me it's this type
00:26:45
of mindset which has allowed her to
00:26:47
achieve her health and wellness goals
00:26:49
and stick to them she has also benefited
00:26:52
from having an online coach who
00:26:54
regularly checks in and keeps her on
00:26:56
track
00:26:57
she says it's invaluable to have someone
00:26:59
in your corner cheering you on and
00:27:01
helping out when times get tough
00:27:03
stop chasing health for Trans and build
00:27:06
sustainable healthy habits with nooms
00:27:09
psychology-based approach
00:27:11
sign up for your trial today at
00:27:15
n00m.com case File
00:27:18
that's n o o m.com slash case File to
00:27:23
sign up for your trial today
00:27:26
check out noom's first ever book the new
00:27:29
mindset a deep dive into the psychology
00:27:31
of behavior change
00:27:33
available to buy now wherever books are
00:27:36
sold
00:27:39
need fresh groceries for the week ahead
00:27:41
but don't have time to go to the store
00:27:44
try grocery delivery from doordash
00:27:46
you'll get everything you want delivered
00:27:49
when you need it right to your door
00:27:51
with thousands of grocery stores to
00:27:54
choose from you'll find the best in your
00:27:56
neighborhood and to boost your local
00:27:57
economy with each order
00:28:00
with easy substitutions right in the app
00:28:02
and to best-in-class customer support
00:28:05
doordash delivers groceries exactly how
00:28:08
you want it want even more value you can
00:28:11
save on all your grocery and restaurant
00:28:12
favorites with a zero dollar delivery
00:28:15
fee on all eligible orders with a dash
00:28:18
pass membership
00:28:19
the team at casefile loved doordash
00:28:22
because of how simple it is to use and
00:28:24
to the wide variety of items we can get
00:28:26
delivered straight to our doors it's
00:28:28
fantastic for some last minute grocery
00:28:30
shopping
00:28:32
get 50 off your first doordash order up
00:28:35
to a twenty dollar value when you use
00:28:38
code case File POD at checkout
00:28:41
limited time offer terms apply that's
00:28:44
fifty percent off up to twenty dollars
00:28:46
no minimum subtotal and zero delivery
00:28:49
fees on your first order when you
00:28:52
download the doordash app in the app
00:28:53
store and enter code case File pod
00:28:57
don't forget that's code case File pod
00:29:00
for fifty percent off your first order
00:29:03
with doordash
00:29:05
thank you for listening to this
00:29:07
episode's ads by supporting our sponsors
00:29:10
you support case File to continue to
00:29:12
deliver quality content
00:29:19
[Music]
00:29:25
Teresa left her daughter alone but went
00:29:28
back to check on her shortly after
00:29:31
Renee was getting changed into black
00:29:33
tires a black jumper and a black ballet
00:29:36
flat
00:29:37
she applied some fresh makeup and pulled
00:29:40
her long hair back into a bun
00:29:42
Renee said she was going out to dinner
00:29:44
with some work friends in the Eastern
00:29:46
suburbs but wouldn't be out long
00:29:50
reassured that Renee was feeling better
00:29:52
Teresa left home to take two of her
00:29:54
younger children to swimming lessons
00:29:56
while she was there her phone beeped at
00:29:59
5 49 pm
00:30:02
it was a message from Renee
00:30:06
I love you so much it's sad
00:30:09
I'm sorry for everything and the pain I
00:30:11
will now cause you but I'll be okay I'll
00:30:14
still be here
00:30:16
when you need to talk to me just call my
00:30:19
name and I'll be there
00:30:21
you're the most amazing person and
00:30:23
mother ever and my very best friend
00:30:27
I wasn't happy and I need you to
00:30:29
understand that it's okay
00:30:31
don't let this ruin everything else you
00:30:33
need to take care of I need you to be
00:30:36
strong for me
00:30:38
I love you Mama I always will and I'll
00:30:41
be waiting when you come
00:30:44
[Music]
00:30:46
Teresa wasn't entirely sure what to make
00:30:49
of her daughter's text message
00:30:51
it wasn't out of character for Renee to
00:30:53
send her affectionate texts but this one
00:30:55
was significantly different
00:30:59
Teresa called Renee's phone multiple
00:31:01
times but there was no answer
00:31:04
she went and showed the text to a friend
00:31:06
who suggested that she called the police
00:31:10
officers arrived at the marsden's house
00:31:13
at 7 50 p.m and were immediately
00:31:15
concerned for Renee's welfare
00:31:19
they put an alert out for Renee's car a
00:31:22
radar Mazda 2 and started patrolling the
00:31:24
streets on the lookout for the 20 year
00:31:26
old
00:31:28
meanwhile Teresa texted Renee's friend
00:31:31
Camilla zidane and asked if she'd heard
00:31:34
from Renee
00:31:36
the two friends had recently had a
00:31:38
falling out but Theresa knew they
00:31:40
usually patched things up
00:31:43
Camilla responded
00:31:45
she messaged me a while ago is
00:31:47
everything okay
00:31:51
Camilla later said she'd received a
00:31:53
message from Renee just minutes before
00:31:55
Teresa had
00:31:58
in it Renee said that she loved Camilla
00:32:00
and was sorry
00:32:02
given that they weren't speaking Camilla
00:32:05
assumed the text was in relation to
00:32:07
their falling out
00:32:10
she offered to come over and help to
00:32:12
raise her look for Renee
00:32:14
they drove around to various locations
00:32:16
where Camilla thought her friend might
00:32:18
be including a nearby McDonald's
00:32:22
it then occurred to Camilla that Renee
00:32:24
might have gone to Braden's sister's
00:32:26
house
00:32:28
Camilla directed them to a residence in
00:32:30
Glenhaven but when they drove by Renee's
00:32:33
car was nowhere to be seen
00:32:35
[Music]
00:32:37
the police contacted Renee's mobile
00:32:40
phone provider who informed them that
00:32:42
her phone had been switched off just
00:32:44
before 6 PM in the vicinity of vauclues
00:32:47
a Sydney suburb 40 kilometers east of
00:32:50
the marsden's home
00:32:53
this location raised immediate red flags
00:32:56
for police
00:32:57
Vore Clues was the gateway to the Gap a
00:33:01
high Ocean Cliff top on the south head
00:33:03
peninsula
00:33:04
due to its views over the Tasman Sea the
00:33:07
area was a popular tourist destination
00:33:09
but it was also a notorious suicide spot
00:33:13
[Music]
00:33:16
measures had been put in place to deter
00:33:18
those considering ending their own lives
00:33:20
including an inward leaning concave
00:33:23
barrier security cameras and phone
00:33:25
booths providing access to 24 7 crisis
00:33:28
counseling
00:33:31
regardless some reports estimated that
00:33:34
up to 50 people killed themselves at the
00:33:36
Gap each year by taking the 100 meter
00:33:39
leap into the sea and rocks below
00:33:46
police headed towards the area and at 8
00:33:49
45 PM they found Renee's car parked
00:33:52
roughly 150 meters from the steps at the
00:33:54
Gap
00:33:56
her wallet was inside along with an old
00:33:58
iPhone she'd stopped using two months
00:34:01
prior a Valentine's Day card from Braden
00:34:03
and a small collage made up of the very
00:34:06
few photos that Braden had sent Renee
00:34:10
written in the condensation on the car
00:34:12
windows were the words I love you Braden
00:34:18
Renee's parents were notified and they
00:34:20
rushed to the scene in a panic
00:34:23
Renee's car was usually filled with
00:34:25
personal items like clothes and makeup
00:34:28
but it struck them as odd that it was
00:34:30
now completely empty
00:34:33
as police conducted both land and air
00:34:36
searches Theresa and her husband Mark
00:34:38
walked the coastal Cliffs and
00:34:40
surrounding paths and Parklands shouting
00:34:42
Renee's name before the search was
00:34:44
called off due to Darkness
00:34:48
it resumed the following morning
00:34:52
sitting neatly near an old gun turret in
00:34:55
a reserve known as Jacob's Ladder Teresa
00:34:58
found Renee's black ballet flats
00:35:02
another air search was conducted while
00:35:04
the water police scoured the surrounding
00:35:06
sea and three police divers searched the
00:35:09
rocky sea floor
00:35:12
still there was no sign of Renee
00:35:16
police made the tragic conclusion that
00:35:19
Renee had taken her own life
00:35:23
the waters were clear with the
00:35:25
visibility of around 100 meters leading
00:35:28
them to determine that Renee's body
00:35:30
would be recovered within three days
00:35:35
Teresa refused to believe that her
00:35:37
daughter had suicided it simply didn't
00:35:40
make sense
00:35:42
just two days earlier Renee had a ball
00:35:45
celebrating her cousin's 21st birthday
00:35:47
and she was looking forward to her own
00:35:49
21st in a couple months time
00:35:52
she was excited about studying and was
00:35:55
making plans to move into the city
00:35:58
if she really had taken her own life
00:36:00
something must have happened to trigger
00:36:02
such an out of character decision
00:36:05
Teresa was convinced that Braden spiteri
00:36:08
held the answer but despite her efforts
00:36:11
she couldn't get in touch with him
00:36:15
two days after Renee's disappearance
00:36:17
Teresa sent Braden several texts asking
00:36:20
if he knew where Renee was and demanding
00:36:23
answers
00:36:24
there was no reply
00:36:28
Renee's friend Camilla zidane urged to
00:36:31
raise her not to blame Braden saying
00:36:34
that he was hurting as well
00:36:36
when Teresa asked how she could possibly
00:36:38
know this Camilla explained that on the
00:36:41
night Renee went missing Braden had
00:36:43
called her from a private number
00:36:46
he was worried about Renee but didn't
00:36:48
want to speak to anyone because he knew
00:36:50
he'd get the blame
00:36:53
according to Camilla Renee had expressed
00:36:56
Suicidal Thoughts in the past but had
00:36:58
promised she'd never act on them
00:37:01
Camilla told to raise her
00:37:05
it didn't have anything to do with
00:37:07
Braden I think Renee was just an upset
00:37:09
person
00:37:11
she always felt like everyone was
00:37:13
against her
00:37:18
police were interested in the role
00:37:20
Braden spiteri might have played in
00:37:22
Renee's disappearance
00:37:24
they gathered phone records and CCTV
00:37:27
footage to help piece together Renee's
00:37:29
last movements and her final
00:37:31
interactions with Braden
00:37:34
Renee's primary mobile phone was never
00:37:36
recovered therefore the content of the
00:37:39
messages couldn't be ascertained
00:37:42
police attempted to extract the messages
00:37:44
from the old iPhone found in Renee's car
00:37:47
but it was protected by a passcode which
00:37:50
they couldn't unlock
00:37:53
based on the available records it was
00:37:56
ascertained that on the day that Renee
00:37:58
died she and Braden had exchanged 91
00:38:01
text messages
00:38:03
after Renee assured her mother that
00:38:05
she'd ended things with Braden for good
00:38:07
she continued sending him messages
00:38:11
Braden didn't reply
00:38:14
Renee then drove towards the Gap
00:38:16
arriving at around 5 20 pm
00:38:20
there was still no response from Braden
00:38:24
she texted him again before walking
00:38:26
around the area and sitting on a brick
00:38:28
wall near the old gun turret
00:38:32
she sent Braden five more messages and
00:38:35
at 5 46 pm he finally replied
00:38:39
Renee sent Braden three more texts Each
00:38:42
of which was met with silence
00:38:45
she then sent a text to her friend
00:38:47
Camilla zaidan
00:38:50
it was followed by the goodbye message
00:38:52
to her mother before Renee removed her
00:38:55
shoes and climbed to the nearby fence
00:38:59
as she glanced over the rocky Cliff Edge
00:39:02
she received a text from Braden
00:39:05
Renee replied straight away
00:39:09
two minutes later she threw her phone
00:39:11
over the cliff before disappearing from
00:39:13
View
00:39:16
by the time Braden wrote back at 5 55 PM
00:39:20
Renee was already gone
00:39:22
[Music]
00:39:25
a phone call Renee had made at 2 44 PM
00:39:28
was also significant
00:39:31
it appeared that shortly after receiving
00:39:34
their text message from Braden saying
00:39:36
that they needed to take a break Renee
00:39:38
had called a goblin prison
00:39:42
what transpired on that 90-second phone
00:39:45
call was unknown but it was possible
00:39:48
she'd learned what the police had come
00:39:50
to know for themselves
00:39:52
that there was no inmate at Goblin
00:39:55
prison named to Braden spiteri
00:40:05
Renee Marsden and Camilla zidane had
00:40:08
been best friends since year nine of
00:40:10
high school
00:40:11
during the early stages of their
00:40:13
friendship the marsden's noticed
00:40:15
considerable changes in Renee's Behavior
00:40:19
Renee had always been outspoken and
00:40:22
outgoing but the more time she spent
00:40:24
with Camilla the more with the drawn she
00:40:27
became
00:40:29
Camilla didn't like Renee's boyfriend at
00:40:31
the time so Renee broke up with him
00:40:34
she started smoking cigarettes and
00:40:36
ditching school with her grades
00:40:38
suffering as a result
00:40:41
Renee had always been incredibly close
00:40:43
to her cousin Stephanie who felt that
00:40:45
Camilla tried to tear them apart
00:40:49
Renee once confided in Stephanie that
00:40:51
Camilla was being violent towards her
00:40:54
sometimes pushing her and punching her
00:40:56
hard enough to cause bruises
00:40:59
Stephanie had no reason to doubt this as
00:41:02
she'd noticed the controlling behavior
00:41:04
for herself
00:41:06
she'd once been with Renee when Camilla
00:41:08
had tried to call her 16 times in a
00:41:11
50-minute period
00:41:13
Stephanie advised Renee to stop seeing
00:41:15
Camilla but the Friendship continued
00:41:18
[Music]
00:41:20
in 2008 Renee made another confession to
00:41:23
Stephanie
00:41:24
Camilla had tried to kiss her several
00:41:26
times
00:41:28
she would alternate between trying to
00:41:30
seduce Renee and being violent towards
00:41:32
her
00:41:34
although Renee considered herself
00:41:36
heterosexual the two eventually
00:41:38
experimented physically
00:41:40
Renee made it clear that nothing would
00:41:42
ever eventuate given that she was
00:41:44
straight
00:41:46
but Camilla's feelings were
00:41:48
significantly stronger than Renee's
00:41:52
in one email to Renee Camilla wrote
00:41:56
I swear to God kid you're going nowhere
00:41:59
do you understand you abuse me I'll
00:42:02
laugh you kill me I'll be your ghost you
00:42:06
hate me I'll still love you run away
00:42:09
chase you
00:42:11
hide I'll hunt you down
00:42:14
only I'll own you
00:42:17
you got no way to escape babe because
00:42:19
only I'm in love with you only I'll own
00:42:22
you and only I'll have you forever
00:42:28
Daphne told Renee's mother what was
00:42:30
going on
00:42:31
Teresa went through Renee's room and
00:42:33
found several Love Letters From Camilla
00:42:36
she confronted Renee who admitted to
00:42:39
everything and said she was afraid of
00:42:41
Camilla
00:42:43
Renee's parents organized meetings with
00:42:46
the girls school and Camilla's parents
00:42:48
in a bid to end the Friendship but the
00:42:50
two girls continued seeing each other
00:42:52
regardless
00:42:54
Camilla Raven provided Renee with a
00:42:57
mobile phone she could use to contact
00:42:58
her on exclusively
00:43:03
in 2009 Renee was sick of the way
00:43:05
Camilla treated her
00:43:07
she attempted to distance herself by
00:43:10
leaving school to study hairdressing
00:43:12
shortly after Camilla enrolled in the
00:43:15
same course
00:43:17
Renee confided in Stephanie that one day
00:43:20
Camilla had chased her down the hall and
00:43:22
pulled her hair
00:43:24
she said she was scared but didn't know
00:43:26
what to do
00:43:30
it was in 2010 that Renee began a
00:43:32
relationship with a young man named
00:43:34
Angus and tried to put even more space
00:43:36
between herself and Camilla
00:43:39
however Camilla would show up at Renee's
00:43:42
workplace Uninvited and Teresa noticed
00:43:45
her lurking around outside of the
00:43:47
marsden's home
00:43:50
she had a habit of showing up at the
00:43:52
same place as Renee and calling it a
00:43:54
coincidence
00:43:56
one day Renee and Teresa were at the
00:43:59
library when Camilla appeared out of
00:44:01
nowhere and said
00:44:04
as long as you refuse to answer my phone
00:44:06
calls I will continue to follow you
00:44:11
Renee ultimately dropped out of her
00:44:13
hairdressing course to avoid Camilla
00:44:16
she organized a meeting with both of
00:44:18
their mothers to let Camilla know she
00:44:20
was done with their friendship for good
00:44:23
Camilla became so upset that she
00:44:25
physically tried to prevent Renee from
00:44:27
leaving forcing Teresa to intervene
00:44:31
after this Camilla continued to contact
00:44:34
Renee
00:44:36
Renee mostly ignored her until August
00:44:39
2011 when she eventually caved in and
00:44:42
the two resumed their friendship
00:44:46
things didn't improve
00:44:48
one night Renee received 54 missed calls
00:44:52
from Camilla
00:44:53
in a text Renee wrote
00:44:56
I'm sorry but that's possessive if you
00:44:59
can't see that then there is something
00:45:01
terribly wrong with you
00:45:05
undeterred Camilla continued to make
00:45:07
snide remarks about Angus and complained
00:45:10
that Renee always treated her second to
00:45:12
best
00:45:14
Renee constantly tried to appease
00:45:17
Camilla but it wasn't enough
00:45:19
at the start of September Camilla told
00:45:22
Renee to make a choice between her and
00:45:24
Angus
00:45:27
Renee responded that there would always
00:45:29
be another person if not Angus than
00:45:32
someone else
00:45:35
two months later Braden spiteri entered
00:45:38
the picture
00:45:39
[Music]
00:45:43
given that Camilla and Braden were close
00:45:45
friends Camilla was privileged to an
00:45:48
Insider's view of the couple's
00:45:49
relationship
00:45:51
when Bryden would display jealousy
00:45:53
Camilla would warn Renee not to cheat on
00:45:56
him
00:45:57
she was their biggest supporter and
00:45:59
always encouraged Renee to remain loyal
00:46:02
to Braden and to work through any of
00:46:04
their rough patches
00:46:07
as Renee and Braden's relationship
00:46:09
progressed the friendship between Renee
00:46:12
and Camilla continued on Rocky grounds
00:46:15
periods of closeness were followed by
00:46:18
weeks of arguing
00:46:20
Renee made multiple attempts to distance
00:46:22
herself but Camilla always found a way
00:46:25
back
00:46:27
in March 2013 Renee confided in Braden
00:46:31
that Camilla had hit her and pulled her
00:46:33
hair after a night out
00:46:36
she told him that she was done with
00:46:38
their friendship for good
00:46:41
whenever things went sour Braden
00:46:43
typically tried to smooth things over
00:46:45
often taking Camilla's side and telling
00:46:48
Renee to be more understanding
00:46:51
other times he told Renee to break away
00:46:54
from Camilla and find new friends
00:46:59
by June 2013 Renee and Camilla's
00:47:03
relationship had become particularly
00:47:05
volatile
00:47:06
Camilla was about to embark on a
00:47:09
month-long holiday to the United States
00:47:10
and Renee saw this as an opportunity to
00:47:13
put some distance between them once and
00:47:15
for all
00:47:17
she sat her mother down and told her
00:47:19
just how bad things had become
00:47:23
in addition to the punching and hair
00:47:25
pulling Renee said she'd recently been
00:47:27
driving when Camilla suddenly ripped the
00:47:30
steering wheel from her hands
00:47:33
Renee told Teresa she'd put up with
00:47:35
Camilla's abuse for too long and was
00:47:37
genuinely frightened of her
00:47:41
in Late July while Camilla was in the
00:47:44
USA Renee sent her a text message saying
00:47:47
she was done with their friendship for
00:47:48
good
00:47:50
she told Camilla not to contact her upon
00:47:53
her return home
00:47:57
Renee was relieved to have cut ties but
00:48:00
it was a lonely time for her given that
00:48:02
Braden also didn't have access to his
00:48:04
phone at this time due to his pending
00:48:07
parole hearing
00:48:09
she recorded her feelings in a letter to
00:48:11
give to Braden later
00:48:14
in it she said
00:48:16
I can tell you I have finally let
00:48:19
Camilla go for good and I feel so much
00:48:21
better about it now
00:48:27
after discovering there was no inmate by
00:48:30
the name of Braden spiteri at golban
00:48:32
prison police investigating Renee's
00:48:35
disappearance made further inquiries
00:48:37
with Correctional Services as well as
00:48:39
the high school Braden claimed to have
00:48:41
attended
00:48:43
there was no record of him anywhere
00:48:47
either Braden spiteri had been lying to
00:48:49
Renee all along or he didn't exist at
00:48:53
all
00:48:56
Renee's ex-boyfriend Angus had been
00:48:58
devastated when Renee abruptly entered
00:49:01
their relationship in late 2011.
00:49:04
curious to know more about her new
00:49:06
boyfriend he had looked up at Braden's
00:49:09
Facebook profile and noticed that he
00:49:11
listed many of the same hobbies and
00:49:13
interests as Camilla
00:49:16
Angus reached out to Braden and the two
00:49:18
started chatting back and forth
00:49:21
anytime Angus asked bradent questions
00:49:24
about himself his answers were vague
00:49:28
Angus also noticed that Braden's
00:49:30
messages shared the same distinct
00:49:32
spelling and grammatical errors as the
00:49:34
ones he'd seen Camilla send to Renee
00:49:37
foreign
00:49:38
that his ex was being duped he voiced
00:49:41
his suspicions to Renee that Braden and
00:49:44
Camilla were one in the same
00:49:47
Renee became extremely upset at the
00:49:49
allegation and strongly denied the
00:49:51
possibility
00:49:54
Angus wasn't the only one with doubts
00:49:58
from early on in Renee and Braden's
00:50:00
relationship Renee's cousin Stephanie
00:50:03
had expressed concerns that she didn't
00:50:05
think Braden was real
00:50:08
to prove Braden's existence Renee gave
00:50:10
him Stephanie's phone number and the two
00:50:12
began texting back and forth
00:50:16
Stephanie remained dubious
00:50:19
something about the whole situation
00:50:21
didn't feel right
00:50:24
Stephanie suspected that Renee was being
00:50:26
catfished by Camilla but she had no
00:50:29
evidence to prove it
00:50:31
the skepticism frustrated Renee she told
00:50:35
a work colleague
00:50:37
if I didn't think Braden was real I
00:50:39
wouldn't have left Ian
00:50:43
Renee's parents had ongoing concerns
00:50:46
about Camilla's feelings towards their
00:50:48
daughter but they never imagined she'd
00:50:51
stoop so low as to create a false online
00:50:53
Persona just to maintain control over
00:50:56
her
00:50:58
Camilla's strange behavior following
00:51:00
Renee's disappearance had them thinking
00:51:03
otherwise
00:51:05
she'd been unusually quick to jump to
00:51:07
Braden's defense and had no issues with
00:51:10
laying the blame for Renee's problems on
00:51:12
her family
00:51:15
when the marsden's asked Camilla to say
00:51:17
the last message Renee had sent her she
00:51:20
claimed she'd accidentally deleted it
00:51:23
when Teresa told Camilla she'd given
00:51:25
Braden's phone number to the police
00:51:27
Camilla panicked and demanded she asked
00:51:30
for her back
00:51:33
although this was odd it didn't prove
00:51:36
anything
00:51:38
the police continued trying to access
00:51:40
Renee's old iPhone but were unable to
00:51:43
bypass the security code
00:51:46
desperate for answers the Marstons
00:51:49
contacted Renee's mobile service
00:51:50
provider and requested a copy of all her
00:51:53
text records
00:51:55
however this data was only held by the
00:51:58
company for seven days
00:52:00
by the time they asked for it it was
00:52:02
already too late
00:52:07
on August 25 2013 three weeks after
00:52:11
Renee's disappearance Camilla zidane
00:52:14
arrived at the police station for a
00:52:16
pre-arranged interview
00:52:18
she had been asked to bring some notes
00:52:20
about her friendship with Renee the
00:52:22
pair's most recent Communications and
00:52:25
her knowledge of Braden spiteri
00:52:28
Camilla presented a two-page statement
00:52:31
as requested but it made no mention of
00:52:33
Braden
00:52:35
all it said about her and Renee's most
00:52:37
recent communication was that Renee's
00:52:40
final text had read
00:52:43
I'm sorry for everything you will always
00:52:45
be my best friend I hope one day you can
00:52:48
forgive me I love you
00:52:53
Camilla said that Shea and Bryden had
00:52:55
met at a nightclub called The Brewery
00:52:57
several years prior but she couldn't
00:52:59
recall the exact date
00:53:02
she gave the interviewing officer a
00:53:05
description of Braden but said that
00:53:07
Renee never told her anything about
00:53:09
their relationship
00:53:12
the officer asked Camilla for Braden's
00:53:14
phone number
00:53:16
she said she didn't have it as it was
00:53:18
saved on her phone which was broken and
00:53:20
currently being repaired
00:53:24
as the interview wound up the officer
00:53:27
looked at Camilla and said
00:53:30
I want you to be honest with me
00:53:33
the telephone call logs that I have here
00:53:35
in front of me suggest to me that you
00:53:38
are Braden
00:53:40
are you
00:53:41
[Music]
00:53:53
case File will be back shortly thank you
00:53:56
for supporting us by listening to this
00:53:58
episode's sponsors
00:54:00
relying on a single Source or wading
00:54:03
through the chaos of social media to
00:54:05
find accurate information can be
00:54:07
frustrating and dangerous
00:54:09
smart news new aggregator app offers the
00:54:12
solution to misinformation
00:54:14
trusted by over 50 million worldwide
00:54:17
readers smart news scanned stories
00:54:19
analyzes headlines and partners with
00:54:22
respected Publishers to deliver
00:54:24
information that helps you live smarter
00:54:27
smart news has big stories from Top
00:54:30
Publications to keep you in the know of
00:54:32
everything from breaking global
00:54:34
international news to real-time local
00:54:36
alerts and personalized feeds for sports
00:54:39
fans
00:54:40
case File team member Jess has
00:54:42
downloaded smart news on her phone and
00:54:44
loves how quick and easy it is to get
00:54:46
the news she's interested in without
00:54:48
having to troll through a whole lot of
00:54:50
news that isn't relevant to her
00:54:53
Jess also tells me that the heading Tabs
00:54:55
are really useful in organizing her news
00:54:57
feed so there's no endless scrolling to
00:55:00
get to the headlines
00:55:02
download Smart news for free today in
00:55:05
the app store to get the news that
00:55:07
matters most
00:55:08
search for it in the Apple App Store for
00:55:10
your iPhone or iPad or Google Play Store
00:55:13
for Android users
00:55:15
a news app made smarter discover the
00:55:19
all-in-one platform that delivers all
00:55:21
the information you need
00:55:25
to our friends in the northern
00:55:27
hemisphere this time of year means you
00:55:29
might be getting stuck into some spring
00:55:31
cleaning and if you're anything like me
00:55:34
you might be sorting through a whole
00:55:35
Trove of items that you have no storage
00:55:37
space for
00:55:39
luckily article has everything you need
00:55:41
to organize your bedroom living room and
00:55:44
dining room with the dresses nightstands
00:55:46
sideboards and more
00:55:49
their curated assortment of mid-century
00:55:51
modern Coastal industrial scandi and
00:55:54
boho designs makes Furniture shopping
00:55:56
simple and can give you a space that
00:55:59
truly reflects Who You Are
00:56:01
article offers fast affordable shipping
00:56:04
across the US and Canada you pick the
00:56:07
delivery time and they'll send you
00:56:08
updates every step of the way
00:56:11
case File composer Andrew ordered some
00:56:13
rugs and throws from article to brighten
00:56:15
up his home
00:56:16
he loved the quality of the materials
00:56:19
and also their eye-catching scandi
00:56:21
design but the thing Andrew loved most
00:56:23
was the great customer care he was
00:56:26
completely looked after from ordering to
00:56:28
delivery
00:56:30
article is offering our listeners fifty
00:56:32
dollars off your first purchase of one
00:56:34
hundred dollars or more
00:56:36
to claim visit article.com forward slash
00:56:40
case File and the discount will be
00:56:42
automatically applied at checkout
00:56:44
that's art
00:56:47
icle.com forward slash case file for
00:56:51
fifty dollars off your first purchase of
00:56:53
one hundred dollars or more
00:56:57
thank you for listening to this
00:56:58
episode's ads by supporting our sponsors
00:57:01
you support casefile to continue to
00:57:04
deliver quality content
00:57:14
when Camilla was confronted with the
00:57:16
suggestion that she was really bright
00:57:18
and spiteri she replied
00:57:21
no I know that a lot of people think I
00:57:23
am everyone is against me
00:57:26
I wish I was where Renee is now wherever
00:57:29
she is I just want to have the peace she
00:57:32
is feeling now
00:57:36
on September 23 almost one month after
00:57:39
her first interview police arrived at
00:57:41
Camilla's home armed with a search
00:57:43
warrant
00:57:44
They seized three phones but couldn't
00:57:47
find the SIM card associated with Braden
00:57:49
spiteri's phone number
00:57:52
in a rubbish bin they found a letter
00:57:54
written from Renee to Braden but it had
00:57:57
been torn to shreds
00:58:00
they also found a letter that Renee had
00:58:03
written to Camilla in March 2013 in
00:58:06
which she thanked Camila for introducing
00:58:08
her to Braden
00:58:10
Renee wrote
00:58:12
you don't understand babe how much it
00:58:15
truly means to me if it wasn't because
00:58:17
of you I wouldn't have met the one
00:58:19
person that means more than the world
00:58:21
itself to me
00:58:23
I'll do anything I can to make sure I
00:58:25
can give you what I found and make sure
00:58:28
that person is your all
00:58:30
it's my life mission to see you happy
00:58:32
and my life won't fully be complete
00:58:35
until I see the day you have everything
00:58:36
you have ever dreamed of
00:58:41
as the officers were leaving Camilla's
00:58:43
bedroom one of them turned to her and
00:58:46
asked if there was anything she'd like
00:58:47
to talk about
00:58:50
Camilla paused
00:58:52
she then admitted
00:58:55
I was sending the text messages to Renee
00:58:57
before I left for America
00:59:00
Renee asked me to
00:59:02
she wanted me to pretend that I was
00:59:04
Brayden
00:59:06
the officer asked why to which Camilla
00:59:09
responded
00:59:11
I don't know I just did it because she
00:59:13
wanted me to I didn't do anything else
00:59:18
she then asked
00:59:19
what's going to happen to me
00:59:23
the officer replied
00:59:26
at this stage Camilla we are just
00:59:28
interested in finding out what has
00:59:30
happened to Renee
00:59:33
[Music]
00:59:34
the police attempted to download the
00:59:36
contents of the three phones seized from
00:59:38
Camilla but they didn't reveal much
00:59:41
Camilla had already deleted a majority
00:59:43
of the communication between herself and
00:59:46
Renee including the final messages sent
00:59:48
between them on Monday August 5.
00:59:52
however she did have the photo of
00:59:54
herself and Brayden saved on one of the
00:59:57
devices
00:59:58
the sole photo that Renee had of
01:00:00
Braden's face
01:00:01
[Music]
01:00:03
Camilla eventually admitted that she
01:00:05
didn't know the man in the photo
01:00:07
it had just been taken at random in a
01:00:10
nightclub
01:00:13
after three months of unsuccessfully
01:00:15
trying to crack into Renee's old iPhone
01:00:18
the police returned it to the Marsden
01:00:20
family
01:00:22
as reported by Channel 9's Australian
01:00:24
crime stories Renee's 13 year old
01:00:27
brother Luke had a friend who thought
01:00:29
they could crack into the phone
01:00:32
all they needed to do was purchase an
01:00:34
app for one hundred dollars
01:00:38
the marsden's immediately handed over
01:00:40
their credit card details and within 10
01:00:43
minutes they were in
01:00:47
suddenly they had access to countless
01:00:49
messages
01:00:52
over the three-month period from April
01:00:54
to June 2013 alone 11 000 text messages
01:00:58
had been sent between Renee and Braden
01:01:01
and Renee and Camilla
01:01:04
however the texts were all scrambled
01:01:08
Renee's Father Mark began the long and
01:01:11
arduous task of slowly unscrambling each
01:01:13
and every one and then attempting to
01:01:16
piece them together
01:01:19
as Mark entered the dates and messages
01:01:21
into a computer document he noticed that
01:01:24
a pattern started to emerge
01:01:27
at no point did Camilla and Braden both
01:01:30
converse with Renee at the same time
01:01:33
Renee would engage with one of them
01:01:35
before texting with the other but the
01:01:38
conversations never overlapped
01:01:42
this was consistent with another detail
01:01:44
that had been raised
01:01:46
in early 2012 Braden had been out of
01:01:50
communication with Renee while he
01:01:52
underwent surgery
01:01:54
this just so happened to align with the
01:01:56
time while Camilla was away on holiday
01:01:59
[Music]
01:02:00
likewise Camilla's most recent trip to
01:02:03
the United States had coincided with the
01:02:05
month that Braden went off grid as he
01:02:07
told Renee he awaited his parole hearing
01:02:12
Theresa Marsden struggled to accept the
01:02:15
fact that her daughter was really gone
01:02:18
given that Renee's body was never
01:02:20
discovered Teresa continued to hold on
01:02:23
to hope that she hadn't really killed
01:02:25
herself but had moved away to escape the
01:02:27
threats from Camilla
01:02:30
Teresa distributed missing person
01:02:33
posters all the way up the New South
01:02:34
Wales Coastline and into Queensland
01:02:37
hoping that Renee would pick up the
01:02:39
phone or walk through the door
01:02:41
[Music]
01:02:43
even though the police began preparing a
01:02:45
report for the coroner Teresa still
01:02:47
couldn't comprehend it
01:02:49
she told the Daily Mail
01:02:51
[Music]
01:02:52
it's different if you see a body but
01:02:55
there's too much evidence to suggest
01:02:57
she's alive
01:02:59
there's no evidence to suspect she's not
01:03:01
here
01:03:06
in 2019 six years after Renee marsden's
01:03:09
disappearance advances in technology
01:03:12
finally made it possible for law
01:03:14
enforcement to have full access to the
01:03:16
contents of Renee and Braden's text
01:03:18
messages
01:03:20
with the full nature of their
01:03:22
relationship clear at last there was no
01:03:24
doubt that Camilla zidane had been
01:03:26
behind at the bradenton's pizzeri
01:03:28
Persona all along
01:03:31
at one point Braden had even encouraged
01:03:34
Renee to have sex with Camilla as a way
01:03:36
to get some of her anger out a
01:03:39
suggestion which Renee met with a firm
01:03:41
no
01:03:44
the act of assuming a fake online
01:03:46
identity in order to Target a specific
01:03:49
victim is known as catfishing
01:03:52
catfishing itself isn't considered a
01:03:55
criminal offense in Australia unless
01:03:57
it's done for the purpose of an illegal
01:03:59
act such as fraud financial gain
01:04:01
stalking or The Grooming of underage
01:04:04
persons
01:04:07
even though Camilla's idea was clearly
01:04:09
Braden spiteri she hadn't used the fake
01:04:12
account for any of these punishable
01:04:14
offenses
01:04:15
therefore there was nothing that New
01:04:18
South Wales police could charge her with
01:04:22
a criminal lawyer told a current affair
01:04:25
unfortunately catfishing in most
01:04:28
circumstances is probably best defined
01:04:31
as a crime of the heart
01:04:38
although Theresa eventually accepted
01:04:40
that Renee had passed away she needed
01:04:43
answers
01:04:44
Shea requested that a coronial inquest
01:04:47
be conducted to determine the true role
01:04:49
that Camilla's actions played in Renee's
01:04:52
suicide
01:04:54
the final messages sent between them
01:04:56
remained a mystery and the marsden's
01:04:59
wanted to know if Renee had found out
01:05:01
about Braden's true identity before
01:05:03
deciding to end her own life
01:05:07
it was a long drawn-out process but
01:05:10
Camilla's idean eventually struck a deal
01:05:13
that ensured she wouldn't face
01:05:14
prosecution if she appeared at an
01:05:16
inquest
01:05:18
this meant that anything she said in
01:05:20
court couldn't be used against her for
01:05:22
future charges
01:05:26
as the inquest commenced in February
01:05:28
2020 the Marsden family held high hopes
01:05:31
that they'd finally get answers to the
01:05:33
questions that had been plaguing them
01:05:35
for the past seven years
01:05:38
the now 27 year old Camilla zidane had
01:05:42
since moved on with her life getting
01:05:43
married and starting a family
01:05:47
given that she'd been granted immunity
01:05:49
the Muslims hoped that at the very least
01:05:51
she would tell the truth about the final
01:05:54
conversations between Renee and Braden
01:05:57
if nothing else they felt they deserved
01:06:00
that closure
01:06:04
giving evidence over two days Camilla
01:06:06
denied any of the obsessive Behavior
01:06:08
she'd been accused of
01:06:10
she denied ever following Renee lurking
01:06:13
outside of her house or calling her
01:06:15
excessively
01:06:18
when presented with some of the intense
01:06:20
texts and emails she had sent over the
01:06:22
course of their friendship Camilla
01:06:24
reasoned that she had simply loved and
01:06:27
cared about Renee
01:06:30
Camilla admitted to playing the role of
01:06:33
Braden spiteri but explained it was
01:06:35
because she and Renee were having a
01:06:37
romantic relationship
01:06:40
they thought their families wouldn't
01:06:41
approve so they created the character of
01:06:44
Braden as a cover-up
01:06:46
according to Camilla Renee had played an
01:06:49
equal part in the charade helping to set
01:06:52
up a Braden's phone and SIM card so the
01:06:54
two could communicate in secret
01:06:57
Renee had chosen the photo they used of
01:07:00
Braden cropping Camilla out of it and
01:07:02
then sending it to herself as part of
01:07:04
the ruse
01:07:07
the coroner presented Camilla with
01:07:10
numerous pieces of evidence retrieved
01:07:12
from Renee's old iPhone that challenged
01:07:14
her claims
01:07:16
if Renee was in on the ACT why had she
01:07:20
called goban prison and written to the
01:07:22
Greek consulate asking if a convicted
01:07:24
criminal could obtain a holiday Visa
01:07:28
why would she fight with Braden about
01:07:30
wanting to speak to his lawyer and to
01:07:32
visit the storage unit if she knew such
01:07:35
things didn't exist
01:07:38
why would she have booked an appointment
01:07:39
with a wedding photographer and sent
01:07:41
Braden photographs of brides and grooms
01:07:44
if she knew such a wedding could never
01:07:46
go ahead
01:07:50
Renee had sent Braden's sexual images of
01:07:52
herself and then gotten upset when he
01:07:55
refused to reciprocate
01:07:58
she had also written numerous messages
01:08:00
that contradicted Camilla's claims
01:08:04
one text read
01:08:06
do you ever wonder how strange it is
01:08:09
that we have never met but we have this
01:08:11
Inseparable love for each other
01:08:14
another said
01:08:16
Braden you will never get it because
01:08:19
you're a male but to a girl finding that
01:08:22
perfect someone is everything
01:08:26
Camilla's explanation for all of this
01:08:28
was that Renee had simply been in
01:08:31
character
01:08:33
the council assisting the coroner told
01:08:36
Camilla
01:08:37
you are saying that today but it does
01:08:40
not make sense
01:08:41
you wanted Renee to yourself and
01:08:44
creating Braden was the perfect
01:08:45
opportunity because it meant you could
01:08:47
have her all to yourself
01:08:52
back in August 2013 just days after
01:08:56
Camilla returned from the United States
01:08:58
she participated in a soccer match
01:09:01
Renee typically attended Camilla's
01:09:04
soccer games and Camilla would get upset
01:09:06
if she didn't pay attention
01:09:09
on this occasion Renee told her mother
01:09:11
she would never go to another game
01:09:13
because she didn't want to see Camilla
01:09:17
the coroner concluded that Camilla
01:09:19
likely interpreted Renee's absence as
01:09:21
proof that she was serious about ending
01:09:24
their friendship
01:09:26
with her Pride heard the next day she
01:09:29
quote
01:09:30
exacted her ultimate Revenge by having
01:09:33
braid and break Renee's heart
01:09:36
the Brayden Renee relationship ended as
01:09:39
it had started
01:09:41
at Camilla's will
01:09:46
Camilla appeared completely unaffected
01:09:48
as she told the court she had no
01:09:50
recollection of what was said in those
01:09:52
final text messages between Braden and
01:09:55
Renee
01:09:56
the only thing she remembered was that
01:09:58
Renee was talking about her lack of
01:10:00
purpose in life
01:10:03
Camilla claimed she had no idea that
01:10:05
Renee had driven to the gap on August 5
01:10:08
2013. nor that she was serious about
01:10:11
threatening to kill herself
01:10:18
the inquest ran for four days and it
01:10:21
took four months for the coroner to sift
01:10:23
through the abundance of evidence before
01:10:25
reaching their conclusion
01:10:28
the findings were handed down on May 20
01:10:30
2020
01:10:33
the coroner described Camilla's idean as
01:10:36
disingenuous at best and called her
01:10:39
evidence nothing but a pack of Lies
01:10:42
from the evidence it was clear to the
01:10:44
coroner that Camilla wanted Renee all to
01:10:47
herself
01:10:49
she created the Persona of Braden to
01:10:52
manipulate and control Renee and to free
01:10:54
herself of the jealousy she felt
01:10:56
whenever Renee was in a relationship
01:10:58
with a man
01:11:01
as for whether or not Renee discovered
01:11:04
that Braden was really Camilla the
01:11:07
coroner concluded
01:11:09
I am of the view that Renee likely did
01:11:12
not learn of this
01:11:13
Camilla did not tell her because she is
01:11:16
unable to admit to having engaged in
01:11:18
such appalling conduct involving such an
01:11:21
extreme betrayal of trust of her friend
01:11:25
his Communications indicate Renee was
01:11:27
very much of the view that Braden was
01:11:30
not only real but certainly not Camilla
01:11:36
in most Australian jurisdictions it is a
01:11:39
criminal offense to encourage someone to
01:11:41
take their own life
01:11:44
although Camilla knew that Renee would
01:11:46
be devastated by the breakup with Braden
01:11:48
the coroner concluded that by destroying
01:11:51
the evidence of what was said between
01:11:52
them that day there was no basis to
01:11:55
prove that Camilla had incited Renee
01:11:57
suicide
01:12:00
the coroner accepted it was likely true
01:12:02
that Camilla didn't know that Renee had
01:12:04
driven to the gap on the evening of
01:12:06
August 5 2013 or that she was serious
01:12:10
about the suicide threats
01:12:13
phone records confirmed that Camilla had
01:12:16
been casually texting back and forth
01:12:18
with other friends at the same time she
01:12:20
was interacting with Renee as Braden and
01:12:23
was therefore distracted and quote
01:12:26
Untouched by Renee's distress
01:12:29
[Music]
01:12:31
although the coroner stopped short of
01:12:33
blaming Camilla for inciting Renee's
01:12:35
suicide they did accept that Camilla had
01:12:38
quote
01:12:39
caused the herd and heartbreak that led
01:12:42
Renee to take her own life
01:12:46
the New South Wales domestic violence
01:12:49
death review team had recently released
01:12:51
a report that suggested widening the
01:12:54
scope of state laws to cover non-violent
01:12:56
types of domestic harm
01:12:59
the coroner recommended that the
01:13:01
domestic violence team consider Renee's
01:13:03
case in order to help progress their
01:13:05
report
01:13:05
[Music]
01:13:07
by doing so it was possible that new
01:13:09
coercive control laws could be
01:13:11
implemented that would apply to
01:13:13
individuals who engaged in similar
01:13:15
conduct to Camilla Zidane
01:13:18
this would essentially make catfishing a
01:13:21
punishable offense similar to
01:13:23
intimidation and stalking
01:13:27
the coroner noted that Camilla showed no
01:13:30
warmth or regard to the Marsden family
01:13:32
and that she wasn't concerned about
01:13:35
anything except furthering her own
01:13:37
fiction
01:13:39
quote
01:13:41
Camilla displayed a deplorable lack of
01:13:43
kindness to Renee's family by the lies
01:13:46
she told seeking to cast blame upon them
01:13:49
for Renee's unhappiness
01:13:52
I can only hope that this inquest has
01:13:54
given them some degree of comfort that
01:13:57
Renee's experience is documented and
01:13:59
understood
01:14:02
Renee had her entire life to look
01:14:04
forward to and it ended all too soon in
01:14:07
unnecessary emotional turmoil and Trauma
01:14:11
I offer Renee's family and friends my
01:14:14
sincere condolences
01:14:19
the Marsden family were crushed by
01:14:21
Camilla's ongoing lies
01:14:24
as Renee's cousin Stephanie who later
01:14:27
told Australian crime stories they
01:14:29
couldn't comprehend why Camilla couldn't
01:14:31
have at least met them halfway
01:14:34
quote
01:14:36
even if she didn't want to tell us
01:14:38
everything she could have at least told
01:14:39
us 50 or 60 percent of what really
01:14:42
happened in the end
01:14:45
outside Court Teresa Marsden told
01:14:48
reporters
01:14:50
to some extent going through the inquiry
01:14:52
and going through the findings today is
01:14:55
just as bad as when we first heard about
01:14:57
Renee going missing
01:14:59
Renee hasn't died in vain I'll make sure
01:15:02
of that
01:15:03
we can't allow this to happen to any
01:15:05
other kid
01:15:06
we have to protect other victims
01:15:09
[Music]
01:15:11
in 2017 a law was passed in Australia
01:15:15
that made it illegal for an adult to use
01:15:17
a carriage service to engage with minors
01:15:19
for the purpose of sexual activity
01:15:23
as covered in episode 91 of casefile it
01:15:27
was named Carly's law after Adelaide
01:15:29
teenager Carly Ryan was murdered by a 50
01:15:32
year old man who catfished her online
01:15:34
pretending to be an 18 year old
01:15:39
inspired by this the Marsden family
01:15:41
began campaigning to make catfishing a
01:15:44
criminal offense when it is done with
01:15:46
the intention of causing pain and
01:15:48
suffering
01:15:51
the coroner's report supported the
01:15:53
consideration of such a law noting
01:15:57
if Renee discovered that her
01:15:59
relationship with Braden was but a
01:16:01
fiction and she took her own life as a
01:16:03
consequence the community might consider
01:16:05
that catfishing is an act which should
01:16:07
be prohibited
01:16:10
even if Renee did not discover that
01:16:12
Camilla had committed the deception and
01:16:14
was simply heartbroken because Braden
01:16:16
had ended the relationship she has taken
01:16:19
her life about a person who does not
01:16:21
exist
01:16:23
that consequence is of such gravity that
01:16:26
the community would expect to be
01:16:28
sanctioned
01:16:32
dubbing the offense Renee's law Teresa
01:16:35
started an online petition on change.org
01:16:38
calling for catfishers to be held
01:16:40
legally accountable for their actions
01:16:43
the petition States
01:16:46
Renee had a beautiful heart that
01:16:48
radiated love to anyone who knew her
01:16:51
ultimately her amazing personal
01:16:53
qualities left her vulnerable to someone
01:16:55
with malicious intent
01:16:58
Renee was lured into a trap set by
01:17:01
someone who knew her best and she's not
01:17:04
alone
01:17:05
with social media dominating people's
01:17:08
lives today we find many others in
01:17:11
similar situations
01:17:13
we will not let Renee leave us in vain
01:17:16
innocent people need to know they are
01:17:19
protected by the law from the cruelty of
01:17:21
catfishes
01:17:27
in the lead-up to the inquest 31 year
01:17:30
old carpenter Cameron had been going
01:17:32
about his day when a friend sent him a
01:17:35
link to a new story about Renee's case
01:17:38
Cameron froze when he saw the image of
01:17:41
Camilla zidane with the man she told
01:17:43
Renee was Braden spiteri
01:17:46
the man in the image was Cameron
01:17:51
Cameron had never met Camilla or Renee
01:17:53
before and had no recollection of the
01:17:55
photo ever being taken
01:17:58
judging by how young he looked he
01:18:01
assumed it was a promotional image taken
01:18:03
at a nightclub when he was in his early
01:18:05
twenties
01:18:07
realizing His Image had been used to
01:18:09
help catfish a young woman Cameron felt
01:18:12
sick
01:18:14
he didn't want to leave their house
01:18:16
fearful that someone would recognize him
01:18:18
and wrongfully think he was involved
01:18:20
with Renee's death
01:18:23
the anxiety plagued him and he
01:18:26
eventually reached out to the Marstons
01:18:28
via Facebook
01:18:31
as Teresa told sbs's Insight she was
01:18:35
reluctant to meet with Cameron at first
01:18:38
although she felt sorry for him she just
01:18:40
couldn't separate his face from her
01:18:42
family's tragedy
01:18:45
after meeting however they formed a bond
01:18:50
Cameron is now close with the marsden's
01:18:52
and they continue to stay in touch
01:18:56
the photo taken at the nightclub is the
01:18:59
only photo of Cameron used in the
01:19:01
catfishing ruse
01:19:03
where the cropped selfies of Braden's
01:19:06
torso and muscles sent to Renee came
01:19:08
from is unknown
01:19:12
a secondary victim to Camilla's actions
01:19:15
Cameron supports the marsden's Endeavors
01:19:17
to make catfishing illegal
01:19:20
he told a current affair
01:19:22
it's daunting I'm shocked in a way
01:19:25
because I've now got an image put out
01:19:27
there that's an image no one wants to be
01:19:30
associated with
01:19:31
[Music]
01:19:33
as of 2023 the marsdens are still
01:19:37
fighting to have Renee's law considered
01:19:39
by politicians
01:19:41
a link to the petition can be found in
01:19:43
the show notes of this episode
01:19:48
following the inquest Renee's cousin
01:19:50
Stephanie voiced her opinion in a
01:19:52
Facebook post
01:19:54
she spoke of Renee's kindness generosity
01:19:57
and the ongoing support she provided to
01:19:59
those around her
01:20:01
beautiful inside and out Stephanie
01:20:04
believed it was these traits that made
01:20:06
Renee susceptible to such malicious
01:20:09
crimes
01:20:10
She Wrote
01:20:13
in today's society with the dominance of
01:20:16
social media we find many people in
01:20:18
similar situations as Renee
01:20:21
it's not a lack of intelligence or being
01:20:24
gullible that make you a victim of
01:20:26
catfishing particularly when you are as
01:20:28
accepting and loving as our dear Renee
01:20:32
unfortunately it's good people that get
01:20:35
taken advantage of
01:20:37
Renee was an individual who deserved to
01:20:40
live a full life and not be robbed of
01:20:43
such Simple Pleasures and freedom
01:20:46
her only guilt would be that she loved
01:20:49
too easily and lived a life with her
01:20:52
heart on her slave
01:21:03
foreign
01:21:14
[Music]
01:21:23
night in 1991 a group of teenagers
01:21:27
gathered in their usual hangout a Barren
01:21:29
stretch of desert next to a busy highway
01:21:31
near Bakersfield California a dismal
01:21:35
spot littered with trash and shell
01:21:37
casings by Nightfall it turned into a
01:21:39
sort of Lover's Lane where high school
01:21:41
kids drank and smoked
01:21:43
when two boys left their group and
01:21:46
headed into the darkness They Came Upon
01:21:48
a horrific scene the body of a young
01:21:51
woman murdered just hours before
01:21:53
she had no enemies besides girls at
01:21:56
school teenage stuff not any kind of
01:21:58
trouble that somebody would murder her
01:22:00
this 1991 murder made news headlines for
01:22:03
years as it shocked and divided a quiet
01:22:06
working class community
01:22:09
of course I knew about Maria's case
01:22:10
everyone in Bakersfield knows about
01:22:12
Maria's case people were just they were
01:22:14
glued to their TV sets and read the
01:22:17
paper every day there was a lot of
01:22:19
speculation in Alaska
01:22:20
that maybe he was not the all-around
01:22:24
athlete that people thought he might be
01:22:25
when he lied about being her boyfriend I
01:22:29
feel like he had something to do with it
01:22:30
justice took its course in a twisted and
01:22:33
controversial case that captivated many
01:22:36
but what if the real killer were yet to
01:22:38
be discovered because he warned me that
01:22:40
he told me that detective that he was
01:22:43
here when he wasn't really here if you
01:22:45
asked the sheriff's department and if
01:22:46
you asked the prosecutor's office they
01:22:48
would say yeah we solved it it's just
01:22:51
unfortunate how things ended up
01:22:53
in this series we will hear brand new
01:22:56
Clues interview people that have never
01:22:58
spoken publicly before and discover
01:23:00
family secrets that shed light on who
01:23:03
may have killed Maria Rodriguez and why
01:23:06
I kind of want all of our families
01:23:09
hidden secrets and all of the dark past
01:23:12
I want it to come out to light I'm
01:23:15
Octavia McHenry for casewell presents
01:23:17
and this is in the shadows the story of
01:23:20
Maria Rodriguez