Episode 358

When 25-year-old biomedical engineer Jonathan Amerault disappeared, it felt like another one of his hiking trips had gone horribly wrong. But the scene in the woods, and the female co-worker found beside his brutalized body, told a much more sinister story of love and blind rage. Get instant access to all episodes, including premium unreleased episodes, commercial-free at swordandscale.com

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Mike Boudet?

  Buy smart, drive for less and trade for more. That's Toyota Fortability. And it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer. Make a smart buy on the off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and long-lasting trucks. Built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventures, and the rugged style for everything in between. Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday. And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus available hybrid power

• 0:43Mike Boudet?

  on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way. And long after you leave a lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you can trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.

• 1:14Speaker 01

  ChatGPT for teens is designed to help teens learn, think critically, and grow their skills. ChatGPT for teens supports active learning by breaking concepts down. Rather than giving teens the answer, study mode helps teens work through problems, and interactive quizzes test their knowledge and provide immediate feedback. Safety protections are on by default, and parental controls offer families additional options, like setting study hours and quiet hours. Visit chatgpt.comPARENTS to learn more.

• 1:42Speaker 02

  Sword and Scale contains adult themes and violence, and is not intended for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.

• 1:54Speaker 03

  And then he gave me the night and even then he was concerned about me walking behind him. And I'm like, well, we both got trust issues now, don't we?

• 2:04Mike Boudet?

  There is no honor amongst thieves, or murderers, really. Sometimes people that listen to this show get things a little confused. They think I hate this race, or this sex, or this pansexual, binary, dogkin, or whatever the fuck you want to be. I really couldn't care less. Sure, you're unusual, but I think that's what you're going for. But this show is about murder, not your personal political causes. So if I make fun of some asshole that's pretending to be a victim and is instead a killer, well, too bad.

• 2:52Mike Boudet?

  We're gonna keep doing what we do. And if you don't like it, well, you know where the door is. You don't have to announce your exit.

• 3:09Mike Boudet?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability. And it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer. Make a smart buy on the off-road-ready Tacoma, or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and long-lasting trucks. Built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventures, and the rugged style for everything in between. Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic Forerunner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday. And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus available hybrid power on many models,

• 3:53Mike Boudet?

  you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way. And long after you leave a lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you can trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota.

• 4:22Mike Boudet?

  Let's go places.

• 4:34Mike Boudet?

  It's Monday, September 23rd, 2020. Keene, New Hampshire. That's the day 25-year-old Jonathan Amerault was reported missing. At first, nothing about it seemed urgent. John was a hiker, one of those obsessed types. The mountains of New Hampshire were his second home. Long, grueling day trips, sometimes stretching into the night, that was normal for him. He had already conquered 99 of the 100 highest peaks in New England, and nearly every 4,000 footer in the region. So when his mother didn't hear from him over the weekend, she wasn't that alarmed. Maybe he was just out of service. Maybe he was with friends.

• 5:19Mike Boudet?

  He had plenty of them. John had a full life. But then Monday came, and John didn't show up to work. That's when the unease set in. Because that just wasn't like him. John was dependable, focused. At just 25, he was already a biomedical engineer at Teleflex Medical, building devices that helped save lives. He showed up for work, he checked in, and he loved his career. So his mother made the call. She asked the police to check in on him. But when officers arrived at his quiet, Cape-style home, John was gone.

• 6:01Mike Boudet?

  And so was his Subaru Impreza, the one with the "Run Happy" bumper sticker.

• 6:06Speaker 04

  State police looking for a missing 25-year-old man from Keene. Police say that Jonathan Amerault was reported missing after he failed to show up for work in Jaffrey. His family hasn't heard from him since Saturday. He may be driving a gray Subaru Impreza with New Hampshire plates. Anyone with information, ask to contact state police.

• 6:27Mike Boudet?

  While John's friends rallied on social media to try to find their friend... The police pinged his phone and discovered its last known location was near a hiking trail in Jeffrey, New Hampshire. A desperate scramble started. Most of John's friends and family were concerned that something had happened to him out on the trail. Maybe he was just sitting there with a broken leg, waiting for help. But the police got to work, chasing down leads. When they spoke with Teleflex, they learned that not only had John mysteriously been absent from work, but another Teleflex employee, 31-year-old Brittany Barron, had also failed to show up on that same day.

• 7:07Mike Boudet?

  On Monday, September 21st, Brittany had called HR, not to call out sick or a personal day, but to quit, just like that. After six and a half steady years at Teleflex, she walked away without a warning. It didn't make sense. Brittany was a married mother of three young girls. Her husband did not work. She was the sole earner for the family, and she loved Teleflex. She too had been moving up in the ranks over the years. Brittany Barron lived in Jeffrey, New Hampshire with her husband Armando and their three kids. They lived modestly on one side of a duplex house, and Armando's parents lived on the

• 7:52Mike Boudet?

  other side. When the police arrived at the Barron house, they found Armando's mother, her hands full, watching her granddaughters because apparently Brittany and Armando were on a hiking trip. Brittany's mother-in-law told the police that she hadn't seen Brittany since Saturday, when the couple left for the mountains.

• 8:12Speaker 05

  I think it was Sunday, where she called my cellphone, but unfortunately, you know, so bad with listening to the messages that I, it's full, I don't bother to delete and delete. That was the point, you know, get some info. And then she just, she just texts me and she says, "Mama, please let the phone ring to get to the voicemail. I want to leave a voicemail to the girls."

• 8:40Mike Boudet?

  Brittany had called and asked her mother-in-law to let the phone go to voicemail so she could leave a special message for her daughters. But her mother-in-law couldn't figure out how to delete her old messages. So she just had to relay what Brittany said.

• 8:55Speaker 05

  And then she says, "But please tell my girls I love them with all of my heart." And then she mentioned all the names of the girls. And then she said,

• 9:06Speaker 05

  "Remember, girls, you're a team. Please pray, continuously pray to Yahweh, that we call God Yahweh." And then she goes, "Be good to your grandma, abuelita, a Spanish grandma, abuelita, and to your papa. And I'll be seeing you guys soon. I love you, my girls."

• 9:27Mike Boudet?

  Her message was less like an update from her mom on a hiking trip and more like a dark goodbye.

• 9:33Speaker 05

  She called back on Monday? Yeah, she called back on Monday, more earlier. And then she goes, she talked to them. She talked to all of them, all of them.

• 9:45Speaker 05

  And then she says that she loved them and she's taking time off, taking a little time because she wants to heal. She wants to get the marriage, you know, being a better mother.

• 10:00Mike Boudet?

  That's when Brittany's oldest daughter jumped on the phone.

• 10:03Speaker 05

  "Where are you at, Mom?" Then she goes, "I am in a safe place."

• 10:08Mike Boudet?

  Though Brittany had told Teleflex she was quitting, she also made sure to text a group chat with close friends and coworkers to let them know what was going on. She told her friends she had left Armando and that she was going home to New Mexico to stay with her family. She said she needed to get herself right again. When her friends asked about her daughters, she said she didn't want to bring them along on "mommy's mental breakdown." She claimed that Armando was being extremely patient and nice about the whole thing, which is interesting. She confessed she felt like a failure as a mother. But here's the thing, Armando and Brittany left on Saturday.

• 10:50Mike Boudet?

  That same day, people stopped hearing from John. By Monday, Brittany was communicating with people only by phone or text, but Armando had returned home without his wife.

• 11:02Speaker 06

  And Brittany was here as well yesterday with Armando?

• 11:05Speaker 05

  No.

• 11:06Speaker 06

  No, she wasn't?

• 11:07Speaker 05

  No, she wasn't.

• 11:08Speaker 06

  And when did, yesterday, when did you first see Armando? Was he here all day yesterday?

• 11:15Speaker 05

  Yeah, he got here Monday night.

• 11:19Speaker 06

  Monday night?

• 11:20Mike Boudet?

  Armando's mother didn't find it strange. She thought this whole trip was a spiritual way to bring the couple closer to God. Yeah, that's what she thought.

• 11:32Speaker 05

  It's because he told me that he needed also, he said that he needed some space, some time off, you know, because we pray and fast. I think that this, I was thinking that this is like a spiritual thing, right? That they want time to pray and be better.

• 11:48Speaker 06

  Right.

• 11:49Speaker 05

  Because we believe Jesus is coming so much.

• 11:50Speaker 06

  Okay.

• 11:51Speaker 05

  And we have been trying our best to be spiritual beings.

• 11:58Speaker 06

  Right. And was he here in the morning and then left and came back?

• 12:02Speaker 05

  When?

• 12:03Speaker 06

  Yesterday?

• 12:04Speaker 05

  Yesterday, he slept here. Monday, he slept here with, he's bed with the girls and me. I slept on the feet with the girls.

• 12:15Mike Boudet?

  Something about Armando's mother felt a little off. Maybe it was the language barrier. English wasn't her first language, but it didn't feel like confusion. What mattered was this: Armando came home without his wife. Behind him was a trail of strange phone calls and what sounded like a goodbye message from Brittany to her girls. Then after grabbing some food and supplies, Armando took off again, saying he too needed space. A little while later, he called his mother. This time, though, he didn't sound like himself.

• 12:51Speaker 05

  Then he called me.

• 12:53Speaker 07

  No, no, no, no.

• 12:54Speaker 05

  And then he says, "Mom, Brittany is not with me." And then he said, "I left her." I don't know what he says. "I left her and I'm just going, I'm just gonna be okay." And I said, "Okay." Then I said, "What happened?" And then he says, "It's because she says that she needs time, but she is not with me." And I said, "Okay." And then I said, "How are you doing?" And he was crying. He was crying and he says, "I don't feel good, Mom. I don't know," he says.

• 13:29Mike Boudet?

  In her text chain with her friends, Brittany also mentioned that Teleflex had sent a police officer to her house despite her having called in and quit. They knew her that well and were concerned that her impromptu exit felt wrong. Her friends let her know that John also hadn't shown up to work and that people were actively searching for him. Brittany never called her friends. She just texted. And her friends thought that the messages didn't sound like her. But was there a connection between Brittany and John beyond the fact that they both worked at Teleflex? It was a massive company. Brittany worked as a machine operator and John was a biomedical engineer. They weren't even in the same divisions.

• 14:15Mike Boudet?

  Brittany was six years older than John, with a husband and kids. In what world would they be friends? But something was pulling their stories together. Then, on Tuesday morning, just 24 hours after John's mother had reported him missing, New Hampshire Fish and Game found something in the woods of Jaffrey. It was a woman, all alone. Just her and her dog. She'd set up a makeshift camp in a place no one was supposed to be. She was shaking. Her face was destroyed. Both eyes were black, the bruises flooding down to her puffy cheeks.

• 14:59Mike Boudet?

  One eye was completely swollen shut, filled with blood. She couldn't even see out of it. The top of her head was split open, still bleeding. And she was crying as a bloody saw sat a few feet away on the dirt. This was Brittany Barron. A few feet behind her, Fish and Game found John's missing Subaru Impreza.

• 15:45Mike Boudet?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota Fortability. And it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer. Make a smart buy on the off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and long-lasting trucks. Built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventures, and the rugged style for everything in between. Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday. And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus available hybrid power

• 16:29Mike Boudet?

  on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way. And long after you leave a lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you can trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota. Let's go places.

• 17:00Speaker 07

  Hi, I'm Jenna Oshkowitz. You might know me from Glee. This is At the Table, the food allergy podcast, a show about food, connection, and what it really looks like to live with food allergies. Each episode, we hear stories from real people like Daniel.

• 17:15Mike Boudet?

  People would always think I was lactose intolerant, so I just kind of shortened my explanation to I'm deathly allergic in a big way that defined a lot of my childhood.

• 17:26Speaker 07

  And while there are challenges, there are moments that remind you you're not alone.

• 17:31Speaker 03

  One of the best guys that I dated, he made a point to memorize all my food allergies.

• 17:37Speaker 07

  So join us and hear their stories and more, because living with food allergies isn't just about what you can't eat. It's about still having your seat at the table. Brought to you by Genentech and Novartis. Listen to At the Table, the food allergy podcast, on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Follow At the Table and start listening on the free iHeart Radio app today.

• 17:57Speaker 01

  ChatGPT for teens is designed to help teens learn, think critically, and grow their skills. ChatGPT for teens supports active learning by breaking concepts down. Rather than giving teens the answer, study mode helps teens work through problems, and interactive quizzes test their knowledge and provide immediate feedback. Safety protections are on by default, and parental controls offer families additional options, like setting study hours and quiet hours. Visit chatgpt.com/parents to learn more.

• 18:32Mike Boudet?

  Twenty-five-year-old Jonathan Emerald had been reported missing in September of 2020. He was a biomedical engineer who worked at a company called Teleflex in Jaffrey, New Hampshire. Smart, driven, and aspirational, John had climbed the ladder at work, purchased his first home, and was living life to the fullest when he disappeared. But now, police had found his coworker, 31-year-old Brittany Baron, in a desolate area of the New Hampshire wilderness, beaten to a pulp, and camping out with John's car parked behind her. The police brought her into the station. They knew this woman was the key to finding John, and time was of the essence.

• 19:17Mike Boudet?

  But coaxing things out of a woman who had seemingly been battered and abandoned, wouldn't it be quite so simple? How you doing? Okay?

• 19:27Speaker 07

  Need an ambulance or anything for your?

• 19:29Speaker 03

  I'm okay.

• 19:29Speaker 07

  Are you sure? Okay.

• 19:31Mike Boudet?

  Brittany sat with her head down. Beside her was her dog, panting and lying at her feet. The officers offered her medical help, but she refused. She insisted she was fine.

• 19:44Speaker 07

  Brittany, what brings you, what brings you up, up here camping?

• 19:48Speaker 03

  I'm just trying to clear my head.

• 19:49Speaker 07

  Clean your head?

• 19:50Speaker 03

  Just clear my head, yeah.

• 19:51Speaker 07

  Okay. You have some stuff going on?

• 19:55Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 19:57Speaker 03

  Yeah, I just needed to get away. For a while.

• 20:00Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 20:01Speaker 03

  So I did.

• 20:05Speaker 03

  That's about it.

• 20:06Speaker 07

  Okay. Do you mind me asking what happened?

• 20:10Speaker 07

  To your eye and your?

• 20:12Speaker 03

  No, I won't answer it.

• 20:14Speaker 07

  Okay, and you don't have to. That's, that's, you did exactly the right thing. If, if, if I ask you a question that you don't feel comfortable, then just don't, you don't have to talk about it, okay? But I want to make sure that you get whatever help that you, that you need if you need it, okay?

• 20:27Speaker 03

  Yeah, I'm good.

• 20:27Speaker 07

  Okay. So you wanted to, to clear your head and that's why you would, you would come up? And where did you go?

• 20:35Speaker 03

  I went to, I don't know what it's called.

• 20:38Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 20:40Speaker 03

  I have Moose Buck.

• 20:42Speaker 07

  Moose Buck?

• 20:43Speaker 03

  Something like that, cabins, but you turn off on like a logging road.

• 20:47Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 20:48Speaker 03

  It's pretty far out.

• 20:49Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 20:49Speaker 03

  I knew nobody would really be there, so.

• 20:52Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 20:52Speaker 03

  It was kind of a.

• 20:53Speaker 07

  Then when did you come up?

• 20:54Speaker 03

  Sunday morning.

• 20:55Speaker 07

  Sunday morning?

• 20:58Speaker 07

  And who did you come up with?

• 21:00Mike Boudet?

  Her speech was slow and removed. The 31-year-old mother slowly tucked her brown hair behind her ear and closed her eyes. The white of her right eye wasn't even white anymore. It was a deep, blood-red. It was uncomfortable to look at.

• 21:16Speaker 07

  What kinds of, what kinds of things are you going through?

• 21:19Speaker 03

  I don't know.

• 21:21Speaker 07

  Okay. Is everybody, are your three kids okay?

• 21:26Speaker 03

  Yeah, they're with my mother.

• 21:28Mike Boudet?

  Brittany assured the officer that she was only taking some time alone to clear her head. There was too much going on, but her face told a different story.

• 21:39Speaker 03

  Nobody knows where I am.

• 21:41Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 21:43Speaker 07

  Well, part of the concern was people wanted to make sure that you were okay.

• 21:46Speaker 03

  They know that I'm safe and okay, but that I'm choosing to not come home for now.

• 21:51Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 21:53Speaker 03

  I wanted, like, I just didn't want my girls to see my face.

• 21:56Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 21:56Speaker 03

  Honestly. So, I was like, if I can spend at least a couple of weeks trying to get it down, then when I look at them, they're not going to be afraid of me.

• 22:03Speaker 07

  Sure.

• 22:04Mike Boudet?

  When Fish and Game found Brittany in the woods, they handed her over to New Hampshire deputies, who arrested her for illegal camping. Not so much for the crime, but as a cover. It was the only way to get this beaten, terrified woman somewhere safe, to find out what happened and why exactly she had John's car. Now she sat under fluorescent lights, shaking, insisting she'd only gone into the woods so her girls wouldn't have to see her face the way it was.

• 22:33Speaker 07

  You said that you'd come up here with someone, but you didn't want to get into who that person was. We know that there's a car that's where your camp was. Did you come up with that person that that car belongs to?

• 22:52Speaker 03

  I don't remember.

• 22:53Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 22:56Speaker 07

  Well, Brittany, the thing is, obviously you've been injured, you know? We know that the person who owns that car is missing.

• 23:10Speaker 07

  I know that you think that you might be in trouble. And what I don't know is kind of what the circumstances were that led up to that and why you feel that way. And my guess is that your eye, your eyes, something happened that led to that. And I think that that's important to explain that what happened to you. Did John cause those injuries to you? No?

• 23:43Speaker 03

  No.

• 23:44Speaker 07

  Did Armando?

• 23:48Mike Boudet?

  Brittany looked down and whispered, "I don't want to talk about it." That's when the cop knew what was happening. He knew he had to get through to this damaged battered woman to find out the truth about where John was and what exactly happened in those woods.

• 24:07Speaker 07

  Well, before you leave here today, and you're leaving here today, regardless of what we talk about, regardless of what you say, you're gonna leave today, okay? Regardless of what you say, you have my word, I'm telling you now, you're leaving here. As long as I have your word that you'll stay in contact with me if we need to, okay? Is that, is that fair?

• 24:28Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 24:29Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 24:31Speaker 07

  It's kind of a good faith thing. If you, if I can take your word and you can take my word, then...

• 24:37Speaker 03

  Do I get to go back home?

• 24:40Speaker 07

  Yes, as long as we can establish that it's safe.

• 24:45Speaker 07

  But we need to, we need to make sure that it's safe.

• 24:50Speaker 07

  But you understand why I'm kind of in a difficult position right now?

• 24:56Speaker 03

  I'm not crying because I'm scared. Because I can't see my girls.

• 25:06Mike Boudet?

  That's when Brittany broke. Everything she'd been holding inside slowly started coming out at the thought that if she told the truth, she'd get to go home and hug her children once again.

• 25:17Speaker 07

  All I want is the truth. I don't want any more or any less, I just want, I just want the truth, whatever that may be. And if that means that you were in fear, you were in danger, if it means that you were, you know, in a relationship with, you know, John from work, whatever it may be, whatever the truth is, is all I want. If that's not the truth, that's not what I want, you know? But I also don't want to be reliant on what other people tell us, you know?

• 25:46Speaker 03

  I mean, you're gonna find out that me and John were talking to each other.

• 25:55Speaker 03

  We only talked for like a week. And he was really serious.

• 26:00Speaker 07

  What do you mean by "he was really serious"?

• 26:02Speaker 03

  He just really liked me a lot.

• 26:04Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 26:04Speaker 03

  And I didn't realize that he liked me a lot like that. We worked together for a long time. But I didn't talk to him because I was attracted to him.

• 26:13Mike Boudet?

  John liked Brittany. He had made it known. And though she felt the same way, she avoided him. After all, she was a married woman who had been with her husband since she was eighteen. She grew up in faith. Adultery was out of the question. No matter what problems were brewing inside her marriage. Supposedly, that is.

• 26:38Speaker 03

  And then, like, beginning of the month, I made up a stupid nickname for him at work and I felt really bad. I called him Abercrombie because he looked like a model.

• 26:48Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 26:49Speaker 03

  He was really handsome, like, really, really handsome. I was sad, so I was so bad, okay? And, uh...

• 26:59Speaker 03

  He found out about the nickname because somebody called him that. And they were like, "Isn't that your last name?" It's because I called him Armani at first, and then I said, "He's way too young. He's an Abercrombie model."

• 27:12Speaker 03

  And we laughed and it stuck. But he didn't know because I was not going to tell him that I thought that.

• 27:17Mike Boudet?

  Is this normal behavior for women in the workplace? I wonder how many times former coworkers referred to me as Adonis back in the day. Makes you think. The Abercrombie nickname Brittany made up for John spread throughout the office as things do. And eventually, it got back to him. At first, he thought people were making fun of him, Brittany explained. Because as a kid, John was often made fun of for his outfits. You see, he was colorblind. So, he didn't really match very well. So, when Brittany found out about all of this, she felt bad and decided to talk to John. Big mistake.

• 27:58Speaker 03

  I always felt bad. And I told my friend to just tell him the truth, like, just tell him that it was because he's really hot. I mean, I don't want to be a jerk, you know? To make him think that people were saying mean things about him.

• 28:08Speaker 07

  Right.

• 28:10Speaker 03

  So she told him, but I never really apologized. Beginning of the month, I messaged him on Facebook and I apologized for the nickname.

• 28:17Mike Boudet?

  That first Facebook message opened everything. John had always had a crush on Brittany and now she responded. By early September, they were talking, online and then at work. They took breaks together, but this mutual attraction and communication had only been going on for about two weeks.

• 28:39Speaker 03

  So let's just, we were just talking anyways, you know what I mean? Like we weren't dating because we couldn't. But he really liked me and I really liked him.

• 28:50Speaker 07

  What did he say to you?

• 28:52Speaker 03

  What do you mean?

• 28:52Speaker 07

  Like what do you, how do you know that he really liked you?

• 28:56Speaker 03

  He wanted me to go with him, like be with him.

• 29:00Speaker 07

  Like leave your, leave your husband and be with him?

• 29:03Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 29:06Speaker 03

  Like basically my husband admitted to me like last year that he cheated on me like our whole marriage.

• 29:13Speaker 07

  Since coming to New Hampshire?

• 29:14Speaker 03

  Like, no, like the whole time, like.

• 29:16Speaker 07

  So back in?

• 29:17Speaker 03

  Yeah, like a year in, he messed with somebody else and then I knew that he was like hitting on my, like he would hit on my friends and stuff, but like.

• 29:27Speaker 03

  I didn't know that he was like having sex with other women and then he told me about like two other times and so we weren't like.

• 29:36Speaker 07

  When, when was the, when was the, you said a year into your marriage, when was the most recent? Since you've moved here?

• 29:43Speaker 03

  When I was pregnant with my last baby.

• 29:45Speaker 07

  Okay, sorry to hear that.

• 29:47Speaker 03

  Me too.

• 29:49Speaker 03

  So John knew that.

• 29:51Speaker 07

  You told him?

• 29:53Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 29:54Speaker 07

  He was kind of your, somebody that you trusted that you could confide in?

• 29:58Speaker 03

  He became in a really short time, like again, I hadn't really spoken to him until this month. Like I didn't say a word to him, I avoided him at all costs, acted really weird. He used to laugh at me because I acted really weird, but I just avoided him.

• 30:11Speaker 07

  You were just initially physically attracted to him and then once you got to know him over the last couple of weeks?

• 30:16Speaker 03

  Wow, you're actually really cool too, like genuinely, genuinely nice.

• 30:21Mike Boudet?

  Brittany found in John what she'd been missing, a partner who felt like a friend. At home, her marriage to Armando was unraveling. Years of cheating. No financial support from this lazy douchebag Armando. Unless his parents gave him some money, that is. There was no way out. She'd been with this adult toddler since she was very young. Their families living side by side. But Brittany had changed. She'd lost over 130 pounds in the last two years. She'd built up her confidence and started building a career. She was building a life, you know?

• 31:03Mike Boudet?

  And in John, she saw something potentially dangerous. A way out of her life with Armando. So Brittany told Armando that she wasn't in love with him anymore. He begged her for forgiveness about the cheating. He promised he would change, but she told him she was not interested in trying. She was just exhausted, which is understandable.

• 31:30Speaker 07

  So Saturday, you end up leaving. Did Armando go with you?

• 31:39Speaker 03

  I don't want to talk about it.

• 31:42Speaker 07

  I know that when the fishing game person came up to you today, you were digging, digging a hole today. And you told him that you felt like you were in a lot of trouble. That you were going to be in a lot of trouble. But there are clearly some, some answers that, that we need to give to, to John's family. You know, they're looking for, they're looking for their son right now.

• 32:13Speaker 03

  That man is dead.

• 32:16Speaker 07

  John is dead?

• 32:17Speaker 03

  I did not kill him.

• 32:20Speaker 07

  How do you know that he's dead?

• 32:22Mike Boudet?

  Brittany broke. Her tears were soft at first and then the truth slipped out. She said she'd be betraying him if she spoke. But the officer already knew she wasn't a killer. The bruises on her face, the blood tangled in her hair. The way they found her. Alone, in the woods, digging a hole and crying. This was not a choice.

• 32:54Speaker 03

  He found my phone on Saturday night, Armando did.

• 32:57Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 32:58Speaker 03

  And he opened my Snapchat and saw my messages.

• 33:03Speaker 03

  Pulled me to the bathroom, where he was when he found it.

• 33:08Speaker 03

  And he grabbed me by my neck and threw me down. And he showed me the phone.

• 33:14Speaker 03

  And he was choking me. And I was positive I was gonna die.

• 33:19Mike Boudet?

  Armando choked Brittany until she saw black specks and stars. She told the officers she was surprised that he let her live.

• 33:28Speaker 03

  My face was already pretty swollen. And he opened the middle door. We fought for a while, he struggled, struggled. He put the gun in my mouth. I was just praying. And I kept screaming, so he kept choking me so that I wouldn't scream so the girls would hear.

• 33:47Speaker 03

  They were upstairs.

• 33:50Speaker 03

  He told the girls to go into Grandma's house.

• 33:54Speaker 03

  And then he went and he told his mom.

• 33:58Speaker 03

  Like, we stood in the doorway and he's like, "Stay right there." He was holding me. And I saw my oldest daughter and I just, I was telling her, "Help me, help me." Like, without words, like, without saying it.

• 34:12Speaker 03

  And my poor baby, she just looked at me and her eyes rolled back in her head and she fainted.

• 34:18Speaker 03

  And I was like, "Fuck, I'm gonna die."

• 34:21Speaker 03

  He just told his mom, "Hey mom, I'm going out," and she didn't ask any questions. She was in the living room with the baby and she just thought we were having relationship problems. So she was like, "Of course, go out, have a date, you know, do whatever you guys need to do."

• 34:33Speaker 03

  I screamed so loud in the house and no one heard me. No one heard me at all.

• 34:39Mike Boudet?

  Armando walked Brittany outside to her car and started driving. He continued reading through her messages as they drove, administering blow after blow to her face with each flirty text he discovered. By the time they got to Annette State Park, her face was dripping with blood. After they parked, Armando started texting John from Brittany's phone.

• 35:04Speaker 03

  And he messages him, and I'm just like, "Please don't."

• 35:09Speaker 03

  And he messaged him, "Hey, can we meet?" And of course, John was super stoked because it was me. And he was like, "Finally, we're gonna hang out." It was probably 10 o'clock. Probably around 10 o'clock.

• 35:19Mike Boudet?

  John replied, "He'd be there in 30 minutes," he said. Brittany waited, praying for anything to stop him, but nothing did. Soon, John's car pulled into the lot.

• 35:34Speaker 07

  And he gets out of the car?

• 35:36Speaker 03

  He saw my face, like, he saw me sitting, because I was sitting in the driver's side. And Armando got out before he got there. And he stood behind the car so that John wouldn't see that he was there. But, oh, I could tell John knew something was wrong. And then when he saw my face, he definitely knew something was wrong.

• 35:58Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 35:59Speaker 03

  And then that's when Armando came around, like, and he pointed the gun at him.

• 36:03Mike Boudet?

  John threw his hands up, pleading for his life. Armando was in control. He had a loaded gun.

• 36:11Speaker 03

  Um, he punched him, John fell, and then he just started kicking him, and kicking him, and kicking him. He stomped on his face.

• 36:22Speaker 03

  At one point, this killed me because I've been thinking about it nonstop. At one point, Armando looked at me and said, "Yeah? So you're gonna fuck my wife, bro?" He's like, "Look at her now, do you still think she's pretty?"

• 36:38Speaker 03

  And John looked up at me and he goes, "Yeah, she's still pretty."

• 36:47Speaker 03

  Like even when your life was like,

• 36:52Speaker 03

  you were still so nice to me.

• 36:55Mike Boudet?

  But the memory of John standing up to Armando was too much for Brittany. She had never experienced a man being that chivalrous.

• 37:24Mike Boudet?

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• 38:09Mike Boudet?

  you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way. And long after you leave the lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you can trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.

• 38:39Speaker 03

  Hi, I'm Jenna Oshkowitz. You might know me from Glee. This is At the Table, the food allergy podcast, a show about food, connection, and what it really looks like to live with food. Food allergies. Each episode, we hear stories from real people like Daniel.

• 38:54Speaker 01

  People would always think I was lactose intolerant. So I just kind of shortened my explanation to I'm deathly allergic. In a big way that defined a lot of my childhood.

• 39:05Speaker 03

  And while there are challenges, there are moments that remind you you're not alone. One of the best guys that I dated, he made a point to memorize all my food allergies. So join us and hear their stories and more. Because living with food allergies isn't just about what you can't eat. It's about still having your seat at the table. Brought to you by Genentech and Novartis. Listen to At The Table, the food allergy podcast on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Follow At The Table and start listening on the free iHeart radio app today.

• 39:35Speaker 01

  ChatGPT for Teens is designed to help teens learn, think critically, and grow their skills. ChatGPT for Teens supports active learning by breaking concepts down rather than giving teens the answer. Study mode helps teens work through problems and interactive quizzes test their knowledge and provide immediate feedback. Safety protections are on by default and parental controls offer families additional options like setting study hours and quiet hours. Visit chatgpt.com/parents to learn more.

• 40:24Speaker 03

  I started asking him questions about us to see if the stories match. And I didn't tell him everything because I didn't want him to die.

• 40:33Speaker 07

  Hmm.

• 40:35Speaker 03

  And then John admitted stuff that he didn't know. He got even angrier. At one point, he handed me the gun and he told me to do it.

• 40:47Speaker 07

  Armando handed you the gun and told you to shoot John?

• 40:50Speaker 03

  But we were outside and I was like, like, I can't do it. He's like, no, no, you wanna, you wanna do this? And I was like, I don't. Like, he was trying to make me prove who I was loyal to. And then he said, fine, stand on his throat.

• 41:14Speaker 03

  He said, "Come on." Hurry up, he's not dying fast enough.

• 41:18Mike Boudet?

  Brittany was crying, begging Armando to stop. But he said he'd kill her too.

• 41:25Speaker 03

  But I wasn't heavy enough to do anything to him.

• 41:28Mike Boudet?

  Humble brag.

• 41:29Speaker 03

  I don't know, I guess. I don't know. He had me stand on there for a while. And then finally, John actually had the ability to move, like just jerked me off. And I was like, "Oh, thank you."

• 41:41Speaker 07

  When you had your foot on his throat, what was Armando doing?

• 41:46Speaker 03

  Standing there, watching.

• 41:49Speaker 07

  Where does he have the gun?

• 41:50Speaker 03

  Pointed at us.

• 41:51Speaker 07

  Okay, is it still in his hand?

• 41:53Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 41:53Speaker 07

  Okay. Is he pointing at you, pointing at him?

• 41:56Speaker 03

  I'm not exactly sure.

• 41:57Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 41:57Speaker 03

  I was trying.

• 41:59Speaker 07

  And that goes on for what feels like a long time to you?

• 42:02Speaker 03

  Yeah, but it wasn't long enough.

• 42:05Speaker 07

  And then what happens?

• 42:07Speaker 03

  He's like, "Fine, this is taking too long, get off."

• 42:10Mike Boudet?

  Armando was frustrated. He wanted Brittany's stump on John's throat to be the final pain that killed him. Shakespearean, this guy was. But John was still jerking and moaning, fighting for his life under her heel. That's when Armando picked John up like a sack and pushed him into the back of his own car. Then Armando handed a knife to Brittany and told her to slit John's wrists. Brittany refused. But then he threatened her again, so... Brittany here, who couldn't point a gun at a perpetrator that was threatening her life, gave her new boyfriend what she calls a shallow cut.

• 42:52Mike Boudet?

  Just deep enough to satisfy Armando, yet keep John alive.

• 42:57Speaker 07

  Which way did you cut?

• 42:59Speaker 03

  Like that.

• 43:00Speaker 07

  Down? Like down the forearm? Down both forearms?

• 43:03Speaker 03

  But I couldn't get, I couldn't. It was really hard to cut.

• 43:07Speaker 07

  Mm-hmm.

• 43:08Speaker 03

  Like, it was really hard to cut. It wouldn't just...

• 43:12Speaker 07

  How many times do you go down?

• 43:13Speaker 03

  Just once. As soon as it was open, I just once. I didn't...

• 43:16Speaker 07

  Both sides? Okay.

• 43:18Speaker 03

  I don't even think the second one, I even didn't... I don't even think I

• 43:23Speaker 07

  Cut him?

• 43:24Speaker 03

  Cut him deep enough to actually do any damage. He didn't.

• 43:27Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 43:27Speaker 03

  He didn't even.

• 43:28Speaker 07

  Did you cut anywhere else?

• 43:29Speaker 03

  No.

• 43:30Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 43:31Speaker 03

  No, that was the only thing. I stood on his throat and he made me slit his wrist.

• 43:34Speaker 07

  Was this inside the car or outside the car?

• 43:36Speaker 03

  The wrist was inside the car. I was standing on his throat. It was outside the car.

• 43:39Speaker 07

  Okay. Where is he inside the car?

• 43:42Speaker 03

  From the back.

• 43:44Mike Boudet?

  They say if you want to slit your wrists and have it actually be effective, you should cut down the forearm lengthwise, not across, as so many unsuccessful suicides do. Suicides? Suicides?

• 43:57Speaker 07

  Is John fighting at all?

• 44:00Speaker 03

  He knew I didn't have a choice. He was like, "Please, no, please," but he wasn't like struggling to like get his arms away from me or fight me. Just hear the words.

• 44:11Mike Boudet?

  Armando grabbed Brittany, forced the trunk shut, and the two of them got in the front of John's car with him stuck in the back.

• 44:19Speaker 03

  And we were both in the car and at one point, Armando got out of the passenger side to go get-

• 44:26Speaker 07

  So you closed the- who closes the back door?

• 44:28Speaker 03

  I don't remember. It might have been Armando or it might have been me. I don't remember.

• 44:32Speaker 07

  So the back hatch goes down?

• 44:34Speaker 03

  Yep, and then we go into the front of the car and then Armando puts the machete in the car, which I believe he hit him a couple of times with that too.

• 44:42Speaker 07

  Okay. With like the handle?

• 44:44Speaker 03

  No.

• 44:45Speaker 07

  The blade?

• 44:47Speaker 03

  Yeah, but it didn't do a crazy amount of like-

• 44:50Speaker 07

  Do you know where he hit him?

• 44:51Speaker 03

  I don't. I know his hands probably. He was like covering, so like whatever was covering got hit.

• 44:57Speaker 07

  Okay. And you guys go in the car?

• 44:59Speaker 03

  Yes, and then-

• 45:00Speaker 07

  Who goes in what seat?

• 45:01Speaker 03

  I went in the driver's side and Armando went in the passenger and he put the machete down on the floor and he was like, "Get some-" I don't know why he left me. I don't know why. And he looked at me too, like, I don't know if I should. And when he left, John said to me,

• 45:16Speaker 03

  "He's like, 'Just pick up the machete and kill him.'" "Just pick up the machete and kill him." And I'm like, "You don't understand, man. I'm not gonna kill him with that blow. And we're both gonna die in this car." And I just told him, "Just to be quiet, just stop. Don't just stop," because he hadn't killed him yet. And he told him that he wasn't going to. He was like, "I'm thinking," he's like, "I just might let you live." Like, he kept on playing with him.

• 45:42Speaker 03

  He even said something about the judge. He's like, "Do you know what this is?" Like, he was just so ridiculous. He came back to the car and he sat in it.

• 45:53Speaker 03

  And I don't remember what he said honestly after that. All I remember was hearing. He pointed the gun at him. And I heard the one gunshot.

• 46:05Speaker 07

  You're on the

• 46:06Speaker 03

  Driver's

• 46:07Speaker 07

  Driver's seat?

• 46:07Speaker 03

  I didn't look back to see

• 46:09Speaker 07

  Does he go back and open up the back?

• 46:11Speaker 03

  He did it from the passenger

• 46:12Speaker 07

  He did it from the passenger seat?

• 46:15Speaker 03

  He was turned back. He aimed.

• 46:18Speaker 07

  How do you know where he shot him?

• 46:20Speaker 03

  He told me afterwards.

• 46:21Speaker 07

  How many, how many shots did you hear?

• 46:23Speaker 03

  Three. Two in the body and one in the head.

• 46:27Mike Boudet?

  Brittany claims she kept her face forward as the shots rang out. She said she couldn't bear to turn around yet. Somehow she knew exactly where her boyfriend was shot. She told detectives she thought she'd be next, but then Armando told Brittany to start the car and take them home. Brittany's mind raced with all the possible scenarios, each one more graphic than the last. According to Brittany, as they pulled up to their house, Armando instructed her to go inside and pack up all their camping gear. He stood there and watched her, holding the gun down the hallway. The girls and Armando's parents were fast asleep.

• 47:09Speaker 03

  Every time we went outside, I could hear John.

• 47:12Speaker 07

  So John was still making noise? What was he, what was he doing or saying?

• 47:16Speaker 03

  He was just going, uh. Uh. Uh.

• 47:23Mike Boudet?

  Armando told Brittany they'd be going deep into the woods in Jaffrey. He had her follow him in the Jeep. And she drove John's car. Again, she's in a car. She has control of the car. She doesn't have to follow him. But she does. He handed her a phone back so he could stay on the line the entire time and it was one o'clock in the morning. The sky was black, the roads were vacant. Armando stopped at a store to get a shovel and buy some supplies. All the while, Brittany's in John's car with his body in the back. She thought she was next, she says.

• 48:05Mike Boudet?

  Armando kept talking on the phone, asking questions she had to answer, keeping her paralyzed with fear. When they finally got to the forest, at the end of the long, logging road, Armando guided them deeper into the thick, cold woods. This was a place only a hunter would venture.

• 48:23Speaker 03

  I was waiting for him to shoot me out there.

• 48:27Speaker 03

  Like I was waiting for it. I was afraid for him to walk behind me. And so, he told me to get rid of the body.

• 48:38Speaker 03

  And to hide the car. And that he would be back Friday.

• 48:42Mike Boudet?

  But before he left, Armando said something chilling.

• 48:46Speaker 03

  As soon as the sun comes up, I'm gonna forgive you. Like, I decided I forgive you. Like even after all this, I'm still in love with you.

• 48:54Mike Boudet?

  Isn't that sweet? And they say romance is dead. Brittany's phone had died, so he left it with her, knowing she couldn't get help. He took off in their car. He planned to go home and resume life as usual. Tell his mother some lies about Brittany needing some space and pass his kids off to her while he plans his next move. By now, though, it was Monday, and Brittany was expected at work. You know, the thing that Armando doesn't do? Armando had sent an email to her boss on Saturday night, saying she wouldn't be there. But what Armando didn't know was that Brittany's boss was aware of Armando's violence. This wasn't the first time he had beat Brittany.

• 49:39Mike Boudet?

  He had done it once before, and Brittany had confided in her manager. So when Brittany mysteriously didn't show up for work, her manager sent police to her house. As Armando drove away from the campsite, he hit a cell service area, and his mother started calling, freaking out that the police were at her door. So Armando backtracked to Brittany. He needed to get her to call HR and stop the police from sniffing around.

• 50:09Speaker 03

  So I called Jen, and again, he's sitting with me the whole time. So I'm like,

• 50:13Speaker 07

  You called Jen?

• 50:14Speaker 03

  Jen Bell from my work. She's the HR lady. And she was just like, are you okay? And I'm like, I am.

• 50:23Speaker 03

  She asked me when I had heard from John last, and I lied to her.

• 50:26Speaker 07

  What'd you say?

• 50:27Speaker 03

  I told her the last time I talked to him was on Saturday and that we met at Temple Mountain. Because that's what Armando was writing down for me to say.

• 50:35Mike Boudet?

  HR was actively looking for John at this point. And they knew something was going on between him and Brittany. She lied. She said she hadn't heard from him. Then Armando texted her friends a strange message from Brittany, saying she was leaving and going to New Mexico alone. He thought he had all his bases covered. Armando took her back to the campsite and left her with their dog and a 22 for protection. Yeah. He gave her the gun he used to kill John and told her what to do next. So once again, she's standing there, holding a gun and not pointing it at her aggressor.

• 51:18Mike Boudet?

  That's twice now for you keeping score at home.

• 51:22Speaker 07

  And what was the plan? For you to bury that?

• 51:26Speaker 03

  Yeah, he wanted.

• 51:31Speaker 03

  He made me cut off his head.

• 51:33Mike Boudet?

  Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on a second. You did what?

• 51:36Speaker 03

  Because he wanted the dental records to not be found.

• 51:38Speaker 07

  Okay. So where is John's head?

• 51:41Speaker 03

  It's in the woods.

• 51:42Speaker 07

  It's in the woods?

• 51:46Speaker 07

  What did you use to cut?

• 51:47Speaker 03

  A saw. They're gonna find it right next to the car.

• 51:50Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 51:50Speaker 03

  It's a saw. It was a saw.

• 51:54Speaker 03

  Now, when did you do that? Yesterday morning.

• 51:57Mike Boudet?

  Armando stood back and watched. After all, he wasn't big on things like working. He claimed he couldn't do it himself, so he made her do it. He put the saw in Brittany's hand and waited. And she obeyed. Now, people like to believe they'd fight, they'd refuse, they'd run. But in that moment, with death standing right in front of you, sometimes survival doesn't look like bravery. Sometimes it looks like doing something absolutely demonic just for the slim chance to see your children one more time. And anyone who thinks that they know what they would do in a situation like this is deluding themselves.

• 52:42Speaker 03

  So, you guys together, you and Armando, cut his head off? It was just me. It was just you, but you said Armando was still there? He was there. So, he made you do that? He watched me do it. Okay, that was, you said, I think, correct me if I'm wrong, that was part of your punishment? He said it wasn't the punishment. Oh, he said it wasn't the punishment? He said I hope you don't... But he made you do that? Yeah, he didn't have the stomach for it. He expected me to cut the whole thing up. What do you mean? Like, to chop him up. So, was that the plan? To bury him as well. He used to mention that, and then once I did that, I was like, "What? Like, I, ah, what?

• 53:22Speaker 03

  No, I'm not doing that. I'm not doing that anymore, never again. Like, ah, no, what? And then he said, "Okay, like, just bury him." Like, but you need, like, no later than tomorrow, it has to be done.

• 53:37Mike Boudet?

  Armando told Brittany what to do. She had the guns, her bloody saw, a shovel, and her dog to keep her company. She stared at John's decapitated body, raw and ragged, unable to process exactly what she'd done. Armando hugged her, told her it was hard for him to leave, but then he did anyway.

• 54:01Speaker 03

  I hate myself for this. It's not your fault. I should've just left the kid alone. He's 25. He was 25. He was so nice to me.

• 54:15Speaker 03

  But you didn't know this was gonna happen. I didn't, I didn't know. I didn't know that talking to him was gonna cost him his life, dude. The hell? Like, who does that? Who kills somebody like that? Oh, God, he's so stupid. He could've just left him alone. He could've just been like, "You're quitting your job. You're never going back." Yeah. That's all he had to do. "You're quitting your job. You're never going back. You can't talk to him anymore. Leave the guy alone. Leave him alone."

• 54:49Speaker 03

  He was such a gentleman. He was so nice, so sweet, was so good at his job.

• 54:57Speaker 03

  Like, he didn't deserve any of it. And I did it too. I did it too. I heard him do. I'm really shocked that I'm even still alive.

• 55:08Speaker 03

  And I was also thinking too, like, when he comes back. When he comes back after I dispose of everything and then he just loves me too.

• 55:16Mike Boudet?

  Without Armando hovering over her, putting her under pressure, she just sat at the campsite, trying to figure out what to do next. A million thoughts ran through her head about John, his family, her girls back home, Armando, all of it.

• 55:32Speaker 03

  Before Saturday, has Armando been physically abusive to you in the past? It was past, yeah. Early past, like, in teen past. So in the beginning of your relationship, he was abusive? It was just like a control thing, like, he wanted me to be a certain way, like,

• 55:52Speaker 03

  I wanted to smoke and party and drink. And he didn't want me to want that stuff. Mm-hmm.

• 55:59Speaker 03

  But he...

• 56:01Speaker 03

  He gave me a black eye once before, one time, when I was nineteen.

• 56:07Speaker 03

  And it was so out of nowhere. And that was the scary part about him is that he has emotion, but he doesn't show it. So when he blows up, it's like, you didn't even see it coming. Cause there was nothing there before. And he said something to me and I kinda pushed him, like, I like pushed him like that. Mm-hmm. And he got on top of me and he just started punching. And just slinging it at me? Aw, yeah. Yeah. This side too. He just kept slapping the hell out of me, basically just slapping me. And I was just like, staring at him like I had no idea what was going on. Like, no idea what was going on.

• 56:45Speaker 03

  And then he said sorry and he was super apologetic and then that was it. And then up until that Saturday that I said I wasn't in love with him anymore.

• 57:00Speaker 03

  Which was the Saturday before last when he slapped you. Before this past one, yeah, and he slapped me then and that was that was then and then Saturday night and Sunday morning he just. So from age nineteen till two Saturdays ago, there was no physical abuse? No, no.

• 57:19Mike Boudet?

  Here's the thing about a man like Armando, he's deeply insecure. But his insecurity doesn't show up as tears, it comes out in rushes of rage. Brittany said that until two Saturdays ago, he hadn't beaten her like that since the early days of their marriage. Maybe she had just learned how to stay in line, just enough to avoid punishment. Or maybe it was that his mother was living next door, always close, always watching for bruises. But then Brittany changed, she lost a hundred and thirty pounds, took control of her diet, started exercising, and started getting attention.

• 58:02Mike Boudet?

  And when Armando saw proof of that new life in her Snapchat messages with John, something in him snapped. Because in his world, there were rules. He could cheat, he could call prostitutes, he could not work for years. Basically be a complete deadbeat piece of shit. He could do whatever the fuck he wanted because he's the man. But Brittany was never supposed to become someone else. She was never supposed to have options besides him.

• 58:34Speaker 03

  Like, I don't know when that decision to not kill me happened. I don't know because he's like, honestly, he told me that, he's like, you were both gonna die that night, I hope you know. He told him that was his plan, to kill the both of you. Said, you were both gonna die that night, I hope you know. I really didn't expect you to slit his wrists, you're surely proof that you really cared about the family. He said the same thing about the head.

• 58:53Mike Boudet?

  In Armando's warped mind, Brittany had proven herself. Every order followed, every step obeyed. It all fed his delusion of loyalty. But none of this was loyalty. It was just pure survival. And that delusion, his inability to see the truth, may have been the only reason she lived.

• 59:18Speaker 07

  I do, I am gonna ask you for a couple of more things. Um, one being to bring us out to John's head and show us where, where that is. Um, and the other being, I would like to be able to document your injuries with some photographs.

• 59:39Mike Boudet?

  Brittany nodded and agreed. Now the police had the story. They knew what had happened. But knowing wasn't enough. They had to retrace every step, lock down every piece of evidence. They had to move fast because Armando Barron was still out there, still armed, still unstable and unraveling. And no one knew exactly what he might do next.

• 1:00:23Mike Boudet?

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• 1:01:08Mike Boudet?

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• 1:01:38Speaker 03

  Hi, I'm Jenna Ushkowitz. You might know me from Glee. This is At the Table, the food allergy podcast, a show about food, connection, and what it really looks like to live with food allergies. Each episode, we hear stories from real people like Daniel.

• 1:01:52Mike Boudet?

  People would always think I was lactose intolerant, so I just kind of shortened my explanation to I'm deathly allergic, in a big way that defined a lot of my childhood.

• 1:02:03Speaker 03

  And while there are challenges, there are moments that remind you you're not alone. One of the best guys that I dated, he made a point to memorize all my food allergies. So join us and hear their stories and more, because living with food allergies isn't just about what you can't eat. It's about still having your seat at the table. Brought to you by Genentech and Novartis. Listen to At the Table, the food allergy podcast, on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Follow At the Table and start listening on the free iHeart Radio app today.

• 1:02:34Speaker 01

  ChatGPT for teens is designed to help teens learn, think critically, and grow their skills. ChatGPT for teens supports active learning by breaking concepts down rather than giving teens the answer. Study mode helps teens work through problems, and interactive quizzes test their knowledge and provide immediate feedback. Safety protections are on by default, and parental controls offer families additional options, like setting study hours and quiet hours. Visit chatgpt.com/parents to learn more.

• 1:03:17Mike Boudet?

  When Jonathan Ameralt went missing in late September 2020, no one suspected foul play. The assumption was simple: he was lost. An avid outdoorsman and biomedical engineer, John spent as much time as he could on the trails. If anyone could vanish by accident, it was him. But then, something just didn't add up. Around the same time, his coworker Brittany Baron abruptly quit and disappeared. Inside the office, rumors had already started circulating. They had grown close in the weeks before he went missing. What felt like a coincidence started to feel connected. Then Fish and Game made a discovery deep in the woods.

• 1:04:01Mike Boudet?

  They found Brittany at a remote campsite, alone, beaten, and terrified. Nearby was John's Subaru, and not far from that, John. His body had been dismembered and decapitated. Brittany told investigators that her husband, Armando, had discovered the flirtation and snapped. Out in the woods, under constant threat, he forced her to cut off John's head herself. She obeyed only to survive. Before leaving the campsite for the final time, Armando told her he forgave her. In his mind, she had proven her loyalty to him, to their family.

• 1:04:41Mike Boudet?

  He believed in his dumb, underdeveloped mind that they could simply return home, resume their lives, and move forward as if none of this had ever happened. But nothing about this was forgettable. Armando had taken the life of Jonathan Emerald, who was deeply loved by his family, his friends, his colleagues, and everyone who ever met him. He wasn't someone who would fade into the background. He was someone whose absence would be felt forever. The police found Armando quickly. It was easy. He wasn't that smart.

• 1:05:17Speaker 07

  You're under arrest for domestic violence assault. So, a domestic assault. What's that? On who? On Brittany. On Brittany? Mm-hmm. Okay. Okay. So, that's what you're charged with. So, that's what we want to talk to you a little bit about. Okay? So, where is she? Brittany? Yeah. Brittany is at another police department right now. Okay. Okay.

• 1:05:44Mike Boudet?

  The officer started reading Armando his rights, informing him that they already had Brittany in custody and had her testimony. Then he interjected.

• 1:05:54Speaker 07

  So, when did I get the call? Well, like, so, do you understand these rights? All right. I'm gonna just ask you the initial next to...

• 1:06:03Mike Boudet?

  And then, understanding these rights, are you willing to answer questions?

• 1:06:09Speaker 07

  No, I thought of lawyer.

• 1:06:10Mike Boudet?

  No? Okay. Armando may be dumb, but asking for a lawyer was a surefire way to tell he knew the difference between right and wrong when it came to abuse, torture, and murder. He wasn't crazy, he was just evil. But still, Brittany told the officers she knew he would never hurt their children. Then again, I'm sure she would say she never thought any of this would happen either. Not exactly a great judge of character.

• 1:06:38Speaker 07

  You don't think he would do anything?

• 1:06:39Speaker 03

  Oh, no, no, no, no, no. I just, I'm like, I hope they're not there when they arrest him. I hope they're not there. I hope they don't see it.

• 1:06:52Speaker 03

  I feel so bad for him.

• 1:06:56Speaker 03

  Even, I know it's stupid, but even after all, like, I feel bad for him. Like, I feel bad for what's gonna happen.

• 1:07:03Mike Boudet?

  She felt bad for him. Let that sink in. We've covered so many domestic violence episodes on this show, and any expert worth their salt will tell you that most domestic violence homicides are preventable. If someone strangles you to the point of passing out and puts a gun in your mouth, death is the next step. But Armando had only given Brittany a taste of what he was capable of at age nineteen. Then, he hurt her in other ways by not being a provider, by cheating on her and harming her emotionally. But that violence never reared its head again, although it had clearly been brewing, seething inside Armando.

• 1:07:48Mike Boudet?

  And on the night he found the texts, he lost all control. Armando did a very good job at hiding who he really was. But we can only hide pure evil for so long. The police put Armando in a holding cell, and he requested his phone call. So, they let him call his mother, and of course, it went to voicemail. I'm sure she never got it.

• 1:08:12Speaker 07

  Mom, it's me. Um, they're taking me to King Cheshire. Cheshire, oh, House of Corrections, which is in Marlboro. Cheshire, House of Corrections in Marlboro.

• 1:08:28Speaker 07

  They're charging you with more things now.

• 1:08:32Speaker 06

  If I guess, just, I love you. Will you get a lawyer for me? Thank you.

• 1:08:41Mike Boudet?

  Jonathan's family was devastated. They avoided the media entirely as news of his brutal murder spread across local headlines and flooded the internet. His friends were grieving, trying to process the loss. At Teleflex, John and Brittany's coworkers were unable to comprehend how a rumored workplace flirtation could spiral into something so horrific. Even Brittany said it herself: Armando didn't have to do this. There were other options. He could have forced her to quit, made her find another job, put distance between them. But he didn't. Armando let something much darker take hold: jealousy, rage.

• 1:09:27Mike Boudet?

  It consumed him completely, spreading fast like a cancer. And in that spiral, he never stopped to think. Perhaps he was incapable of it. Armando was charged with capital murder and 12 additional charges. Brittany was charged with falsifying evidence. Armando faced life. Brittany was looking at three to seven years. They were both put in jail, leaving their kids in the care of Armando's broken, helpless mother, who didn't even know how to check her voicemail. But as clips of Brittany's bruised, battered face in that arraignment room spread across the internet, a question lingered: Did she really deserve to be locked away?

• 1:10:12Mike Boudet?

  I mean, this was a woman who had been brutally beaten, strangled, and had a gun forced into her mouth inside her own home. She was made to watch John die and forced to participate in his torture. She was dragged miles into the woods where the man she'd been married to for 12 years stood over her and forced her to cut off John's head. Just imagine that for a moment: the isolation, the fear. If Brittany had screamed, no one would have heard her. No one would have come. In fact, it's a miracle that Fish and Game even found her. Armando made the mistake of taking them to what he thought was a public hunting area, but it wasn't.

• 1:10:56Mike Boudet?

  The landowner saw them and contacted Fish and Game. And look, sure, she could have gotten away multiple times. Sure, she could have pointed the loaded gun she was given by Armando to Armando and ordered him to stop doing what he was doing, but that would have meant she would have had to have been capable of pulling the trigger, and she just wasn't. I mean, she could cut off a human head, but she couldn't squeeze a trigger. I still don't fully understand why. Maybe I never will. Maybe I am lucky to never have to know. I ask the audience, though, what do you think? Is Brittany a victim? Or does she hold some culpability here?

• 1:11:40Mike Boudet?

  Brittany's lawyer started working on a deal. In exchange for her testimony against Armando, who we all know is really the bad guy, she would be granted parole until his trial. Jonathan's family was adamant that this was unacceptable, and the prosecution fought hard for Brittany to remain locked up. Brittany was put before the parole board to make her case.

• 1:12:04Speaker 03

  Barron's parole was vehemently opposed by Emerald's parents. They wrote a letter that was read by the victim's advocate urging the parole board to keep Brittany in custody until after she has testified against her husband. So if you think chances are low that someone capable of doing all that wouldn't simply just run before testifying next month, or simply go back on her word at his trial, please think again. In granting parole, the board made it clear that Barron must fulfill her obligation to testify truthfully at her husband's trial. Brittany told the board she understands, and that her actions over those days continue to haunt her. Something that I continue to struggle with is forgiving yourself for the choices that you make and...

• 1:12:47Speaker 03

  Being able to own, like, just really accept that it happened.

• 1:12:52Mike Boudet?

  But should Brittany forgive herself? As a religious woman, is that even her place? Or is that something that only God can grant? Maybe self-forgiveness is necessary just to survive, just to get out of bed in the morning, to eat, to face the courtroom. Maybe it's just something she has to say out loud to keep going. But could you ever truly believe it? Could you ever forgive yourself for something like this? Because I don't think I could. I think I'd be begging God and the universe and everyone in it for forgiveness every single minute of every single day, until I didn't have a breath in me anymore.

• 1:13:38Mike Boudet?

  Brittany was a victim of Armando that night, but John was the victim. The only thing anyone could possibly fault him for was getting involved with a married woman. But John's presence lit something in Brittany. It gave her the confidence to finally tell her cheating, deadbeat husband that she was done trying to fix their marriage. And that shift is what set everything in motion. That push for her empowerment, her independence. It's what triggered Armando's suspicion and his need to start digging into his wife's phone. The plea deal allowed Brittany to skip straight to sentencing in exchange for her testimony.

• 1:14:23Mike Boudet?

  In 2021, she pleaded guilty to falsifying evidence, which included removing John's head and putting it into a hole that Armando dug. But she was granted parole in April of 2022. Armando's trial took place a month later. His team argued that Brittany was a liar. She had participated much more in Jonathan's murder than she let on. Armando slumped in and out of the courtroom every day with his scraggly prison beard, pot-belly and snarling face. He was vile. No one felt a drop of sympathy for him, except maybe his own mother. In the end, Armando was found guilty and the judge spared him no mercy.

• 1:15:07Speaker 07

  The depravity of your actions in single-handedly causing the immense suffering and the death of Jonathan Amaral show an extreme indifference to the value of human life. Your actions were brutal, they were absolutely horrific, they were selfish, and they were completely senseless. The abject cruelty, the pain and suffering, and all that you inflicted on Jonathan that night is unfathomable. As his parents just said, he did not deserve to die in that manner. One of the hardest parts of my job is often sentencing in cases and finding the appropriate balance to strike and imposing a fair sentence.

• 1:15:51Speaker 07

  However, I have absolutely no hesitation or reservation in imposing the sentences that I'm about to impose on you, given your actions and the crimes that you committed and that you were convicted for in this case.

• 1:16:04Mike Boudet?

  The judge gave Armando life with no possibility of parole for Jonathan's murder. She tossed on even more years for the kidnapping and domestic violence. But in essence, he was never leaving prison unless he was in a body bag. The judge also instructed that he receive counseling in prison. Maybe they could beat morality into him somehow. Not that it mattered anymore.

• 1:16:29Speaker 07

  So, that is the sentence. You will be spending a very long time at the state prison for these heinous crimes.

• 1:16:36Mike Boudet?

  Instead of taking the punishment he deserved, Armando spent the next three years filing appeal after appeal after appeal, all of which were denied. Now that he's exhausted all of them and spent all of our taxpayer money, he will sit quietly in prison waiting to die. No one will ever hear about him again. Jonathan, on the other hand, continues to be remembered for the incredible young man that he was. After the Barons were arrested, eighteen of his friends honored him in a way he would have wanted: by hiking. They took a six-and-a-half-mile climb up one of his favorite trails in New Hampshire,

• 1:17:20Mike Boudet?

  and built a small altar for his worn trail shoes. By the end, their legs were shot. Jelly, they told the local news reporters, but it was a release of grief and a path towards healing. Out there, surrounded by the elements John loved so much, they shared stories, they laughed, cried. They set their prayers out into the mountains, hoping somehow they'd reach him. And now, every time they return to those trails, they carry him with them. John loved life. He chased it into the unknown, down unmarked trails with nothing but a paper map and the

• 1:18:04Mike Boudet?

  confidence that he'd find his way. He was smart, driven, and unafraid of what might be ahead. Then he met Brittany Baran. What started as a flirtation, a few messages, and a couple of kisses in a parking lot, grew into something much more. John saw something in her, something worth caring about, and he couldn't quite pull himself away. John was a kind man. Brittany had never known that kind of kindness before. She'd spent her adult life with someone who cheated on her, who failed her, who just

• 1:18:43Mike Boudet?

  was one disappointment after another, and ultimately showed just how dangerous he truly was. John didn't see a situation to avoid. He saw a person in Brittany, and tragically, that was what put him in Armando's path.

• 1:19:25Mike Boudet?

  You know, we've got a lot of feedback on our new animated true crime history thing called Tales. Go check it out at swordandscale.com. You

• 1:21:31Speaker 01

  ChatGPT for Teens is designed to help teens learn, think critically, and grow their skills. ChatGPT for Teens supports active learning by breaking concepts down. Rather than giving teens the answer, study mode helps teens work through problems, and interactive quizzes test their knowledge and provide immediate feedback. Safety protections are on by default, and parental controls offer families additional options, like setting study hours and quiet hours. Visit chatgpt.com/parents to learn more.

• 1:21:59Speaker 02

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