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Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.

February 05, 2026 /

This episode covers the abduction of Nancy Guthrie, the trial of Brendan Banfield for a double murder plot, and the story of former Olympian Ryan Wedding's criminal activities.

Andrea Canning discusses the ongoing search for Nancy Guthrie, who was reported missing from her Tucson, Arizona home. The Pima County Sheriff confirmed she was taken against her will, and her family is actively seeking information about her whereabouts.

The episode then transitions to the trial of Brendan Banfield, accused of masterminding a double murder involving his wife and a stranger. Testimony reveals a complex web of infidelity, catfishing, and murder, with Banfield's defense hinging on his own narrative of the events leading to the crime.

Following this, the story of Ryan Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin, is highlighted. Wedding is accused of leading a drug trafficking organization and ordering murders, including that of a federal witness. His arrest in Mexico and subsequent extradition to the U.S. is discussed.

The episode concludes with a roundup of legal updates, including rulings in the cases of Luigi Mangione and Charlie Adelson, as well as a segment on catfishing featuring cybersecurity expert Cody Brunig.

TLDR

Nancy Guthrie's abduction, Brendan Banfield's trial, Ryan Wedding's criminal past are discussed.

Episode

35:00
00:00:00
Welcome to Dateline True Crime Weekly. I'm Andrea Canning. It's February 5th, 2026.
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Before we get to this week's show, we wanted to talk about Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of our dear friend and colleague Savannah Guthrie.
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Nancy was reported missing on Sunday, and according to the Pima County Sheriff, she was abducted from her Tucson, Arizona home.
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We do believe that Nancy was taken from her home against her will, and that's where we're at.
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Nancy, who lives alone, was last seen by family on Saturday night around 945 when she was dropped off at her house after dinner.
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When she didn't show up for church the next morning, her family went to check on her.
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She was nowhere to be found. According to the sheriff, Nancy's phone and wallet were left behind at the home, along with critical medicine she takes on a daily basis.
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He said his detectives and FBI agents are doing everything they can to move the case forward, sending DNA samples off to the crime lab, pouring over cell phone data and trying to access footage from security cameras at the house.
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He acknowledged that all of this will take time. Late Wednesday, Savannah, her sister Annie and brother Cameron released the following statement on Instagram.
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On behalf of our family, we want to thank all of you for the prayers for our beloved mom, Nancy.
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We feel them, and we continue to believe that she feels them too. Our mom is a kind, faithful, loyal, fiercely loving woman of goodness and light.
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She is funny, spunky, and clever. She has grandchildren that adore her and crowd around her and cover her with kisses.
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She loves fun and adventure. She is a devoted friend. She is full of kindness and knowledge.
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Talk to her and you'll see. Savannah also had this to say to whoever might have taken her mom.
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We are ready to talk. However, we live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated.
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We need to know, without a doubt, that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you, and we are ready to listen.
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Please, reach out to us. Mommy, if you are hearing this, you are a strong woman.
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You are God's precious daughter, Nancy. We believe and know that even in this valley, he is with you.
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Everyone is looking for you, Mommy, everywhere. We will not rest. your children will not rest until we are together again if you have any information to pass on to
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authorities the tip line number is 1-800-CALL-FBI that's 1-800-225-5324 and we'll put that number on
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the description for this episode as well our thoughts and prayers are with Savannah during
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this incredibly difficult time. And here's what's coming up on today's episode of Dateline True
00:03:43
Crime Weekly. With the Winter Olympics just around the corner, we've got the story of a former
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Olympian behind bars in Southern California. Federal prosecutors say the one-time snowboarder
00:03:53
is a drug kingpin responsible for several murders. According to prosecutors, Wedding put out a hit on
00:04:01
him. He put out a bounty on him. In Dateline Roundup, a big ruling in the case of Luigi Mangione
00:04:06
and a crucial court hearing for Charlie Adelson, the Florida dentist convicted of conspiring to
00:04:12
murder his former brother-in-law, FSU law professor Dan Markell. His lawyer made arguments in front of
00:04:18
a panel of appellate judges about why his conviction should be overturned. Plus, this week, we'll talk
00:04:24
to a cybersecurity detective about catfishing. What is it and how to avoid it? Every site nowadays
00:04:31
or any interaction you have on a digital front, you can be catfished. But before all that, we've got a verdict in the trial of the Virginia man accused of masterminding a double murder plot to start life over with the family au pair.
00:04:47
For the past three weeks, the jury at the trial of Brendan Banfield has listened to testimony about infidelity, catfishing and murder.
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Banfield is the former IRS agent accused of plotting to kill his wife, Christine, and a complete stranger by the name of Joe Ryan.
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According to prosecutors, Brendan and his lover, Juliana, the family's Brazilian au pair,
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used a fetish website to lure Ryan to the Banfield's home on the morning of February 24, 2023, with the promise of a sexual encounter with Christine.
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After Ryan arrived at the house, prosecutors say Brendan and Juliana both shot Ryan and Brendan stabbed Christine.
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It was all part of their elaborate plan, prosecutors say, to frame a stranger for Christine's murder so the lovers could be together.
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There was no plan. That is absolutely crazy. When we last checked in on the trial, Brendan Banfield was on the witness stand about to share his version of that morning.
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Here to walk us through what he said is Dateline producer Brad Davis. Brad, welcome back.
00:05:52
Great to be here. So Brad Brendan testimony was always going to be the cornerstone of his defense The jury you know when there a story like this they want to hear it from the person involved And
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this is the first time that Brendan has ever talked about all of this publicly, right?
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Exactly. He never spoke to the cops about this. He never really gave his version of events.
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So let's dive into Brendan Banfield's testimony. He said he remembered that morning in great detail
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because of something very specific on his calendar. That's right. He said that morning that he had an important meeting at his IRS offices with his supervisor that he thought was potentially going to lead to a promotion for him.
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So he left the house early to get ready for that meeting, and then he stopped by McDonald's to get some breakfast on the way.
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OK, so he's at McDonald's and he says that's where he gets a call from Juliana, the au pair, about a stranger going into the house.
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And was she alarmed at the time? she appeared to be she sounded that she was very stressed what does he say happened from there
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he says that he turned around and just drove home and he said that's where he met up with
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juliana who was there with his daughter at the house they left the daughter valerie in the
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basement and then he headed up towards the bedroom so brendan banfield goes on to say
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that he could hear noises coming from the bedroom. I heard the sounds of, I would say, moaning, as well as sound of skin-on-skin contact.
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What did you think was going on at that point? Sex. Why didn't you call 911 at that point?
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Well, I believe that it was an affair that was going on at that point. So Brendan testified, Brad, that at some point the sounds from the bedroom became something different.
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He said it sounded like Christine was in pain. Yeah, so he says he rushed into the bedroom, and that's when he saw Ryan, this other man, over his wife on the bedroom floor.
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Christine said, Brendan, he has a knife. What were you thinking in terms of Joe Ryan with a knife to Christine's neck?
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I was extremely terrified. I don't know that I've ever been more panicked in my life.
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Brendan was an armed agent for the IRS and told the jury that he took his gun out of his holster but didn't fire it right away.
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Why not if his wife is in danger? Yeah, he said it was a very tight space, and he didn't want to fire and hit Christine.
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He also said he hadn't fired his gun very much in an uncontrolled situation before.
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He said that when he saw Ryan stabbing Christine, he did fire his gun. Then he kicked the knife away and rushed to his wife's aid.
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And at the same time all this was going on, he described Juliana rushing to get a gun
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and a gun safe that he kept in the home. And she shot at Joe Ryan as well. Okay, so we should remind people that Juliana has pleaded guilty to manslaughter for her
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role in Ryan's death. And Brendan's attorney pointed out to the jury that she got a lighter sentence in exchange
00:09:08
for testifying against Brendan. That's right. So Brendan Banfield continues painting a very dramatic picture, and it gets very graphic.
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Yeah, he said that Christine was able to speak even though she had been stabbed in her neck.
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Christine told me that she was bleeding out and that she was sorry and that she loved me.
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But even when he was describing all this, he didn't really show a lot of grief or sadness.
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I mean, there were no tears when he was testifying. He was very matter-of-fact about it all, which I think the jury probably picked up on.
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So when it was the prosecution's turn to cross-examine Brendan, they zeroed in on the way he characterized his relationship with the au pair.
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Yeah, Brendan really tried to minimize his relationship with Giuliana. He said it really was not a big deal to him that he'd had other affairs, and this was just another affair to him.
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But the prosecution pressed him on this, and he started to get pretty defensive.
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You indicated earlier in your testimony that this affair with Juliana was really a nothing,
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right? This was not a relationship, correct? I would say that it was a relationship,
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but it is an affair, but I wouldn't categorize it as serious. Not serious. Okay. Did you love her? There was points that I told her that I loved her.
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You told her that you loved her, but you didn't actually love her. I would say that I had feelings for her, but they weren't nearly as strong as feelings for my wife.
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Another big moment, Brad, from the prosecution came when they asked Brendan about a relationship he'd pursued on a fetish website.
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Yes. Brendan admitted that he'd been looking for a woman to be his, quote, sugar baby.
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But what matters here is that Brendan was admitting that he'd actually gone to fetish websites.
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Remember, prosecutors say the way he lured Joe Ryan to the house was by posing as his wife on a fetish website.
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Brendan denied all of that, but it does show that it wasn't a world that he was unfamiliar with.
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Brad, was there any proof that Christine had ever been on any fetish websites at any point in her life that would make this make sense?
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No, neither side presented any sort of evidence about that at all. So the prosecutor also pushed back on some of the details Brendan had given about the morning of the murders.
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They question whether Christine would have been able to even speak following those stab wounds to
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her neck. And all of this talking is happening with what at that point in time has to be all
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seven of the wounds in her neck correct Yes And then one more blow the prosecution landed on Brendan credibility was remember he had a clear recollection about leaving home early for his big meeting Well the prosecution called his supervisor and the
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supervisor testified that that meeting didn't happen and was not supposed to happen.
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Were you scheduled to meet with Mr. Banfield? I was not. Oh, wow. That is really catching Brendan Banfield in what appears to be a lie.
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All right. So it was time for closing arguments, and the state went first. Yeah, the prosecution really leaned into the motive here. They said that
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Brendan had concocted this elaborate plan. He really wanted to be with Juliana and that the
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relationship with Juliana was far more serious than he led jurors to believe in his testimony.
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What was the defense's main argument in closings? The defense lawyer basically said, you can't trust Juliana's story. She's not reliable as a
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witness, nor can you trust the state's catfishing theory, that it was only a theory.
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The jury got the case on Friday. The verdict came back Monday night after nine hours of
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deliberation. Brad, what did they decide? Guilty on all the charges against him. The two aggravated
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murder charges carry mandatory life sentences, so he'll spend the rest of his life behind bars.
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He's going to be sentenced in May, and there will be victim impact statements then. Juliana's
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sentencing, the au pair sentencing should be at some point before that, so we'll be waiting for
00:13:13
that. Okay, Brad, thank you. So many lives ruined over this bizarre case. Just really sad. Thank you
00:13:20
for breaking it down for us. Sure, been glad to talk to you. Coming up, the snowboarder
00:13:28
who ended up on the FBI's 10 most wanted list. For our next story, we're taking you to the ski slopes
00:13:43
at the Winter Olympics, but we're not talking about Milan Cortina 2026. We are talking about Salt Lake City, Utah, and the year is 2002.
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That's when a 20-year-old snowboarder by the name of Ryan Wedding represented Canada in the Parallel Giant Slalom.
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Welcome, everyone, to Park City, Utah and the continuation of snowboarding. Today, it is Parallel Giant Slalom men's qualification.
00:14:07
Two decades later, Ryan Wedding is making headlines again, but not for the reasons you might expect.
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In 2025, the one-time Olympian ended up on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list, accused of heading up an international drug trafficking organization and for ordering a string of killings, including the murder of a federal witness.
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This is what FBI Director Cash Patel had to say about Wedding at a recent press conference.
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He is a modern-day El Chapo. He is a modern-day Pablo Escobar. Two weeks ago, after an international manhunt, Ryan Wedding was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the United States to face charges.
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He has pleaded not guilty. NBC News producer Michael Kosner, who covers the Justice Department, has been following the case closely and is here to tell us what he has found out about Ryan Wedding's surprising journey from Olympian to alleged kingpin.
00:15:01
Michael, thanks for coming on the show. Absolutely. Glad to be here. You know, it seems like Ryan was sort of a hero at one point in Canada going to the Olympics and in a sport that was, you know, really up and coming at that time, snowboarding.
00:15:15
It was. And it was a pretty meteoric rise. By the time he could walk, his family had him on skis. By the time he was 15 years old, he was winning junior titles. And that all culminated in this amazing run where at 20 years old, he was named to the Olympic team for the giant slalom.
00:15:31
How did he do at the Olympics? He did not fare well. He came in 24th in the first round in his heat, and he did not even make it to the next round.
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That really ended his competitive career at that Olympics. So what does he do then for the next few years if snowboarding competitively is not in his future?
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He moves to Vancouver and he goes to university there. He gets way into bodybuilding.
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So he begins lifting weights. He gets work as a bouncer in a bunch of clubs and drops out of the university.
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And allegedly, he starts a marijuana growing operation in the area, a gigantic farm that
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is very lucrative. Fast forward six years after the Olympics and Ryan Wedding was arrested in San Diego.
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Yeah, he got into a cocaine ring and he set up a cocaine deal in San Diego. Turned out it was an FBI sting and he was arrested in 2008.
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He was convicted at trial in 2009. He got quite a break. I think he got 48 months in prison.
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By 2011, he's out. But one of the key things is he spent a lot of time in a jail in San Diego waiting trial.
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And law enforcement say that that was the beginning of him making associates to get into the trade in Mexico and Colombia.
00:16:53
Yeah, sounds like a recipe for disaster. So he moves to Montreal and allegedly forms this new relationship with the Sinaloa cartel.
00:17:02
Exactly. Prosecutors tell us he's got these associates and now he's really working on transnational drug trafficking.
00:17:11
He's moving drugs from Colombia through Mexico into Southern California to Canada.
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By 2015, law enforcement sources tell us there was a huge operation to finally take him down
00:17:24
in Canada. But he got away. He'd already made it to Mexico. And that's when he really went into hiding, was really under the protection of the Sinaloa
00:17:34
cartel. So federal prosecutors say over the next decade, he's building a criminal enterprise, banning
00:17:42
multiple countries, raking in hundreds of millions of dollars. I mean, this just feels like it's going to be a movie, doesn't it?
00:17:49
Absolutely 100 I mean they talk about him showing up for meetings in fancy clothes and fancy jewelry and high watches and things like that Like he lived the part So U federal prosecutors filed an indictment against Ryan in June 2024
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hitting him with 12 federal drug charges and murder charges. And one of the allegations
00:18:13
against Wedding is that he took down a witness, a federal witness. Yes. In 2024, that's when prosecutors and agents in the U.S., they were able to flip one of his associates. And according to prosecutors, Wedding put out a hit on him. And then law enforcement say, while this individual was in a restaurant in Medellin, a gunman came up to him and fired five bullets into him.
00:18:39
Man. So it's after that that Wedding is put on the most wanted list, the FBI most wanted list.
00:18:46
Yeah, and when you get on the top 10 most wanted list, that gives the FBI more resources to do publicity.
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And they hit it hard. They flooded the zone, for lack of a better phrase. The FBI did social media.
00:19:00
They posted on Facebook. They did all kinds of stuff down in Mexico for two reasons.
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One, maybe they get the extra tip they need. But two, they know darn well that he's watching, that he's seeing all this.
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And he's starting to run out of options. They put pressure on his family, and then they start taking the assets out as well.
00:19:21
They got $40 million worth of motorcycles. They take out a $13 million. I didn't know there was such thing as a $13 million Mercedes, but apparently there is.
00:19:30
Wow. So just two months after that raid where they got the Mercedes and the motorbikes,
00:19:35
they arrested him. That was January 22nd. Olympic snowboarder turned alleged cocaine trafficker,
00:19:41
Ryan Wedding was let off a plane in California in handcuffs. FBI Director Cash Patel announced that he was captured in Mexico and extradited here to face trial.
00:19:52
He stepped out of that plane. It was kind of dramatic, actually. I mean, they describe him as 6'3", 240.
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He was all of that. Not the pictures that you see of the snowboarding sort of baby-faced athlete.
00:20:08
All right. So he was extradited to California. What happens to him now? Is he in jail?
00:20:15
Yeah, he is. He's in federal detention. He's got another appearance in the next few weeks. He's got
00:20:21
a pretty noted defense attorney. He's already spoken out a little bit. So we have to see how
00:20:26
this plays out from here. Michael, thank you so much. This is really fascinating. My pleasure.
00:20:32
Up next, it's time for Dateline Roundup. The Florida dentist, convicted of conspiring to murder his former brother-in-law,
00:20:41
FSU law professor Dan Markell, wants a new trial. And we've got some news in the case of Luigi Mangione.
00:20:49
Plus, we're doing a deep dive on catfishing. What you need to know. Joining me for this week's Roundup is Dateline producer Sue Simpson.
00:21:08
Hey, Sue, welcome back. Hey, Andrea. So, Sue, up first, we're off to the federal courthouse in Manhattan,
00:21:14
where a judge has issued two big rulings in the case of Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson back in December 2024.
00:21:25
Sue, what is the latest with these rulings? Sure. So a judge ruled that two of the four federal charges Mangione was facing should be dropped,
00:21:34
a federal firearms charge and the murder charge that would have allowed prosecutors to seek
00:21:38
the death penalty. So this was a big deal, Andrea. Mangione will no longer face the death penalty.
00:21:45
He will still stand trial in federal court on two counts of stalking. He's pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.
00:21:53
Sue, how did the judge reach this decision to drop the murder charge, which was a little
00:21:57
surprising? I mean, isn't he behind bars because he's been accused of fatally shooting someone and planning it?
00:22:05
Well, yes, exactly, Andrea. But remember, murders are usually tried in state court and not federal court unless there are specific circumstances that make the murder a federal crime.
00:22:16
Examples might be that someone commits murder during an act of terrorism or someone kills a federal employee.
00:22:22
So in her ruling, the judge said she realized some people might find the decision strange,
00:22:28
but she had to follow the law. She said prosecutors had not met the legal standard to prove Mangione was technically guilty of a federal murder.
00:22:38
Obviously, this ruling has nothing to do with what happens to Mangione in state court.
00:22:42
He's facing multiple charges there, including second-degree murder. And again, he's pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.
00:22:50
The judge did hand the prosecution a big win in this hearing, allowing evidence recovered from Mangione's backpack to be admissible at trial.
00:22:58
That's right, Andrea. This is a backpack that police recovered when Mangione was arrested at that McDonald's, remember, in Pennsylvania.
00:23:06
So they found a notebook inside the backpack with his writings, a gun and a silencer.
00:23:12
And the defense said this evidence should not be admissible because the authorities didn't have a warrant to search his bag.
00:23:18
But the judge said the police were justified in their search. OK, so Mangione is scheduled to go on trial in both his state and federal cases later this year.
00:23:28
We'll keep an eye on that. Up next, we're off to a Florida courthouse to talk about Charlie Adelson.
00:23:35
He is the man convicted of conspiring to murder his former brother-in-law, FSU law professor Dan Markell.
00:23:41
Charlie is fighting for a new trial. Sue, Charlie Adelson is one of five people convicted in this complicated case.
00:23:50
Remind listeners about this one and break it down for us as best you can. It is so complicated.
00:23:55
Absolutely. So after Dan Markell was gunned down in his driveway in 2014, Investigators uncovered a sprawling murder-for-hire plot involving Charlie and Charlie's mom, Donna Adelson.
00:24:07
Prosecutors argued that Charlie and his mother plotted to murder Dan Markell because Dan was caught up in a contentious custody dispute with Wendy Adelson,
00:24:16
who was Charlie's sister and Donna's daughter. Okay, so now he's trying to get a new trial?
00:24:21
He is. He was sentenced to life in prison after his conviction in 2023, and at a hearing this week in Tallahassee, his lawyer made arguments in front of a panel of appellate judges
00:24:32
about why his conviction should be overturned. One of Charlie's lawyers argued that his trial should have been moved
00:24:38
because the case had been so highly publicized in the media. This case has been permeating Tallahassee media sources for almost a decade at the time of this trial.
00:24:49
Charlie's attorney went on to argue that at the time of jury selection, 40% of potential jurors told the court that they'd already made a determination about Charlie's guilt.
00:24:59
That argument didn't seem to sit well with the judges, who pointed out that all those jurors were dismissed.
00:25:04
What did the prosecution have to say about all this? Well, Andrea, the assistant attorney general representing the state said Charlie and his lawyer had the chance to challenge the composition of the jury at his trial, but they didn't.
00:25:17
And that he'd also waived his change of venue argument. In other words, it's too late now to bring up these arguments.
00:25:24
Okay, we'll bring you that decision when we get it down the road. Sue, Salt Lake City, we have an update about a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of Gabby Petito.
00:25:35
She is, of course, the 22-year-old woman strangled to death while on a cross-country road trip with her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, back in 2021.
00:25:44
It, of course, captured the nation's attention. So interesting that Gabby is back in the news.
00:25:51
What is this wrongful death suit about? Well, back in 2022, Petito's family filed a $50 million lawsuit against the Moab Police Department.
00:26:01
They claimed police negligence led to Petito's death. And the family cited an incident from August 2021 when Moab police officers pulled over the couple's van,
00:26:12
responding to a 911 call about a physical altercation. After interviewing Gabby and Brian, the police classified the incident as a mental health issue rather than a domestic violence assault.
00:26:24
And they separated the couple for the night. It was a little over a month later that Gabby was found dead.
00:26:30
Let's take a listen to some of that police body cam footage. We want to know the truth if he actually hit you.
00:26:36
I guess, yeah, but I hit him first. Where did he hit you Don worry We be like grab my teeth So Gabby family is essentially using that police body cam footage to show that these officers were not trained properly to respond or identify a domestic violence situation and that ultimately failed to protect her
00:26:59
In response to the wrongful death lawsuit, the city released a statement saying that the Moab Police Department was not responsible for Petito's eventual murder.
00:27:08
As we said, the family filed this suit back in 2022. In 2024, their lawsuit was dismissed in a district court.
00:27:17
What happened there? Well, a judge dismissed the case, saying that Utah's Government Immunity Act protected the
00:27:23
officers from liability. Petito's family's fight for justice didn't end there. They appealed the court's dismissal of their wrongful death lawsuit.
00:27:32
And this week, they got big news from the Utah Supreme Court. Right, big news. That's right.
00:27:37
Oral arguments have been scheduled for March 4th. The Petito family put out a statement saying they remain steadfast in their pursuit of justice for Gabby.
00:27:46
Okay, thank you. We'll wait to hear what happens with this appeal. Sue, thank you so much for being here.
00:27:52
Thanks for having me. For our final story this week, we wanted to take a closer look at catfishing,
00:28:01
something we've been talking about a lot in the past three weeks in connection to the Brendan Banfield double murder trial.
00:28:06
As we talked about earlier in this episode, Brendan made contact with Joseph Ryan, posing as his wife Christine on a fetish website.
00:28:14
Listen to how prosecutors described their communication. Joe engaged in friendly conversation with who he thought was an attractive woman due to kink.
00:28:22
Brendan, posting as Christine, spent a month creating this relationship with Joe that would eventually lead to Joe's murder.
00:28:29
What happened to Joseph Ryan is an extreme form of catfishing, but it made us wonder what exactly is catfishing and what are some red flags to watch out for.
00:28:38
Here to help us get up to speed is cybersecurity expert Cody Brunig of Black Dog Forensics.
00:28:44
Hey, Cody. Hey, how are you? Thank you for being here. So before we talk about the Banfield case, break down for us what exactly catfishing is.
00:28:54
You know, we've all heard the term. We know there's a reality show out there about catfishing, but there's so many tentacles to catfishing and the way people use it and how they use it.
00:29:05
Yeah, there really is. Just to give you a simple understanding, catfishing is when someone uses a fake online identity.
00:29:12
Now, that's either created by a person or a lot of times nowadays is actually created by a bot.
00:29:18
And oftentimes it's used to deceive, manipulate or scam others. So Joseph Ryan authorities say he was catfished on this fetish website which is one of the reasons you know that this case got a lot of attention But you know that people can be vulnerable on any site at any time Absolutely Every site nowadays or any interaction you have on a digital front
00:29:40
you can be catfished. That could be just a scammer on the phone. It can be social media accounts,
00:29:46
of course, all the common ones, Facebook, dating profiles, dating websites out there.
00:29:51
anywhere where somebody can create a fake identity is all open for catfishing. Oh, this is so hard to hear that people are falling prey to this. And you're a parent,
00:30:02
I'm a parent. How do you worry about teenagers specifically with catfishing? What is there?
00:30:09
Are there differences between teens and adults? Or is it the same? There are, especially with teenagers or people who are younger, don't have the life experience
00:30:17
that say you and I would have. You and I can pause and say, wait a minute, there's some red flags,
00:30:23
but teenagers can often be hormone driven and act spontaneously. And so if they believe they're
00:30:29
talking to somebody, pictures might start flying, at which case they share intimate details or
00:30:35
intimate photographs that are then used against them quickly. And what are some red flags that
00:30:41
you can look for if you think you might be talking to a scammer? So the biggest thing I tell people
00:30:47
is nowadays, listen to your instincts because our bodies are going to tell us right away.
00:30:52
But outside of that, other red flags we want to look for is account creation. When was that
00:30:57
account created? Chances are it's probably a new account with low number of followers,
00:31:01
low activity. It's going to have photographs that are easily identifiable online, not just
00:31:06
private photographs. So if they're showing these photographs to be private and you can reverse
00:31:11
search them and find that they're out online, those are all red flags. Outside of that though,
00:31:16
you're going to typically have behavior or communication red flags, right? Something in
00:31:21
the sense that's trying to push you to hurry, wants you to act quickly, wants to appeal to your
00:31:26
emotions to do something. Oh, you don't have to do this. Come on, we know each other. It's some of
00:31:32
those red flags. And then, of course, if they start asking for money and you've never met this
00:31:37
person or know this person, which is a large number of cases, those are all red flags that
00:31:42
should immediately make you pause. So Cody, what can you do if you fall victim to catfishing? What
00:31:48
are the number one pieces of advice that you have? Yeah, the number one thing, you want to understand
00:31:53
what the end game to the degree that you can. Is it monetary driven, right? Is there some ulterior
00:32:00
motive? Were they just trying to scrape information about you that could be used in a fraudulent scan?
00:32:06
Was it potentially sexual related where they were trying to get these photographs of you Each one of these changes what you should and should not do If it something that going to result in either a financial harm or harm to somebody through reputation bring it to law
00:32:22
enforcement's attention, but at very least, bring it to other people's attention. Don't ever feel
00:32:26
like that's a burden you have to carry on your own, especially with children. Andrea, you have
00:32:31
children. I have children. I tell my kids all the time, I want you to be safe to come talk to me.
00:32:36
if something's going on, if you messed up, it's okay. We all make mistakes. We can fix it. We can
00:32:42
work through it, but you're not alone. And that's the big thing I want to tell people is you're not
00:32:46
alone. And in fact, you're part of a much bigger group because a lot of people are catfished.
00:32:52
Probably at some point we are all catfished in our lives. Yeah, I totally agree with you. And I'm totally serious when I say it's time for a catfishing
00:33:00
talk with my kids, because I think that kids are afraid that they're going to get in trouble or
00:33:04
they're embarrassed. And we really have to hammer that home that no, it's much better to talk about
00:33:09
it than to not. It is never, never have to carry that burden alone as parents, but as people,
00:33:15
we're here for each other. This is, as I predicted, Cody, amazing advice. Thank you so much for all of this. Absolutely. Thank you for having me.
00:33:27
That's it for this episode of Dateline True Crime Weekly. To get ad-free listening for all
00:33:31
our podcasts, subscribe to Dateline Premium. You won't be able to watch Dateline on Fridays
00:33:36
on NBC for the next three weeks. It's the Winter Olympics, but you can still find us
00:33:42
streaming on Peacock. And look out for something special in our podcast feed on Monday. We'll
00:33:48
be dropping all six episodes of Keith's original series, The Thing About Helen and Olga. It's
00:33:54
a twisted tale about two elderly women in Los Angeles who offered to help the homeless
00:33:59
but left a trail of horror and homicide in their wake. Two little old ladies. Angels, perhaps?
00:34:07
In a city named for angels? But, as you might expect from a Dateline podcast, this is also a story about murder of a very gruesome kind.
00:34:18
And you can catch Keith talking to Lester about Helen and Olga's story in a special edition of Talking Dateline on Wednesday.
00:34:26
Thanks for listening. Dateline True Crime Weekly is produced by Carson Cummins, Caroline Casey, and Kiani Reed.
00:34:33
Our associate producers are Ellery Gladstone-Grath and Aria Young. Our senior producer is Liz Brown-Kurloff.
00:34:39
Production and fact-checking help by Audrey Abrahams. Veronica Mazzica is our digital producer.
00:34:44
Rick Kwan is our sound designer. Original music by Jesse McGinty. Paul Ryan is executive producer.
00:34:49
And Liz Cole is senior executive producer of Dateline. Thank you.

Badges

This episode stands out for the following:

  • 85
    Most shocking
  • 80
    Most dramatic
  • 80
    Most intense
  • 80
    Most surprising

Episode Highlights

  • Nancy Guthrie Missing
    Nancy Guthrie, mother of Savannah Guthrie, was reported missing after being abducted from her home.
    “We do believe that Nancy was taken from her home against her will.”
    @ 00m 23s
    February 05, 2026
  • Brendan Banfield's Testimony
    Brendan Banfield testifies about the morning of the murders, revealing shocking details.
    “I was extremely terrified.”
    @ 08m 09s
    February 05, 2026
  • Verdict in Banfield Case
    Brendan Banfield found guilty of all charges in a shocking double murder plot.
    “Guilty on all the charges against him.”
    @ 12m 57s
    February 05, 2026
  • Ryan Wedding's Arrest
    Former Olympian Ryan Wedding is arrested and accused of leading a drug trafficking organization.
    “He is a modern-day El Chapo.”
    @ 14m 38s
    February 05, 2026
  • Charlie Adelson Seeks New Trial
    Charlie Adelson, convicted of conspiring to murder his brother-in-law, fights for a new trial.
    “He was sentenced to life in prison after his conviction in 2023.”
    @ 24m 21s
    February 05, 2026
  • Charlie's New Trial Attempts
    Charlie's lawyer argues for a new trial due to jury bias from media coverage.
    “It's too late now to bring up these arguments.”
    @ 25m 20s
    February 05, 2026
  • Gabby Petito's Wrongful Death Lawsuit
    Gabby Petito's family files a $50 million lawsuit against the Moab Police Department.
    “Gabby is back in the news.”
    @ 25m 48s
    February 05, 2026
  • Understanding Catfishing
    Cybersecurity expert explains catfishing and how to recognize red flags.
    “You're not alone. A lot of people are catfished.”
    @ 32m 46s
    February 05, 2026
  • Upcoming Podcast Series
    A new series about two elderly women involved in a shocking crime will be released.
    “This is also a story about murder of a very gruesome kind.”
    @ 34m 12s
    February 05, 2026

Episode Quotes

  • We will not rest until we are together again.
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.
  • I was extremely terrified.
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.
  • Oh, wow. That is really catching Brendan Banfield in what appears to be a lie.
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.
  • This just feels like it's going to be a movie, doesn't it?
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.
  • Gabby is back in the news.
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.
  • You're not alone. A lot of people are catfished.
    Verdict in double murder trial. Olympian accused of being drug kingpin. Plus, catfishing.

Key Moments

  • Nancy Missing00:23
  • Brendan's Testimony08:09
  • Banfield Verdict12:57
  • Ryan Wedding Arrested14:38
  • Charlie's trial arguments24:19
  • Adelson New Trial24:21
  • Catfishing discussion28:01
  • Podcast teaser33:48

Tension Over Time

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