Craiglist, Cyberstalking & Catfishing: The Story Of Michelle Hadley

In 2016, Michelle Hadley was arrested and accused of staging a bizarre kidnapping plot and framing her ex’s new fiancée through a series of disturbing online messages. Investigators believed the threats, which described a violent abduction fantasy, were part of an elaborate hoax created by Michelle herself. She was jailed and faced serious charges… until the case began to unravel. As detectives dug deeper, they uncovered evidence pointing to a far more complex scheme than anyone initially believed. This episode is sponsored by: Aura Frames: get $25 off their best-selling Carver Mat frame with code TCKR at auraframes.com http://auraframes.com. Merit Beauty: right now Merit Beauty is offering our listeners their Signature Makeup Bag with your first order at meritbeauty.com http://meritbeauty.com. Rocket Money: let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Try for $0 at RocketMoney.com/KENDALLRAE http://RocketMoney.com/KENDALLRAE Earnin: download EarnIn on the App Store or Google Play. Type in TrueCrimewithKendallRae under PODCAST when you sign up. Check out my foundation: Higher Hope Foundation: https://www.higherhope.org/ Watch my documentaries: 530 Days: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjUWkmOjNLk Apartment 801: https://bit.ly/2RJ9XXr True Crime with Kendall Rae podcast: Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3rks84o Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3jC66pr Shop my Merch! https://kendallrae.shop https://kendallrae.shop/ Check out my other podcasts: Mile Higher (True Crime) @milehigherpod YouTube: https://bit.ly/2ROzJcw Instagram: http://instagram.com/milehigherpod The Sesh (Current events, a little true crime, pop culture, and commentary) https://bit.ly/3Mtoz4X @the_seshpodcast Instagram: https://bit.ly/3a9t6Xr *Follow My Social!* @KendallRaeOnyt Instagram: http://instagram.com/kendallraeonyt Facebook: https://bit.ly/3kar4NK True Crime TikTok: https://bit.ly/3VDbc77 Personal TikTok: https://bit.ly/41hmRKg REQUESTS: General case suggestion form: https://zfrmz.com/yg9cuiWjUe2QY3hSC2V0 Form for people directly related/close to the victim: https://zfrmz.com/HGu2hZso42aHxARt1i67 Join my discord to chat with other viewers about this video, it’s free! https://discord.com/invite/an4stY9BCN C O N T A C T: For Business Inquiries - [email protected] Send me mail: Kendall Rae 8547 E Arapahoe Rd Ste J #233 Greenwood Village, CO 80112

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

• 0:00Kendall Rae?

  Ready to upgrade your PC? The Dell Top Tech Event is here. And you can skip the research because independent tech experts already did it. Dell has laptops, desktops, and monitors that have been tested, reviewed, and named a winner by the publishers you trust. So instead of spending hours researching, you get a shortlist that's already proven. Take the Dell XPS 13 Laptop. Built for those who want better. Whether you're studying, working, or just getting things done. Its thin and light design makes it easy to take anywhere. It has a touchscreen you'll love using, a battery built to last through your busiest days, and impressive performance powered by Intel Core processors. That's the thing about the Dell Top Tech Event. The experts already found the winners. All that's left is finding yours.

• 0:44Kendall Rae?

  While shopping, you'll also find great perks like Dell Rewards, fast free shipping, premium support, and financing with flexible payment options. Shop the winners now at dell.com/deals. That's dell.com/deals.

• 1:01Speaker 01

  Ready to feel energized and in control again? At Orderly Meds, we have helped thousands just like you take charge of their health with a GLP-1. If you've tried dieting, exercising, and relying on willpower and nothing seems to stick, then it might be time to talk to a licensed provider about your options. That's what Orderly Meds is for. This fall, choose healthier habits for yourself with a visit to orderlymeds.com. You don't need to visit with a physician in person to become eligible. Orderly Meds has a simple virtual process. Connect with licensed medical professionals who can determine whether a GLP-1 treatment may be appropriate for you wherever you are. Get started from the comfort of home online. Change your habits and consider a new approach to feeling your best.

• 1:44Speaker 01

  Visit orderlymeds.com to learn more. That's orderlymeds.com. Orderlymeds.com. Gain confidence and choose better habits this fall. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved. Eligibility required and determined by a licensed provider. Individual results may vary. See website for details.

• 2:01Kendall Rae?

  Hi, everyone. I just wanted to let you all know that we have dropped several new merch items to our spring collection. We have multiple new designs in t-shirts, baby tees, hats, and totes. And as a reminder, 100% of the profit from any merch from any of the Mile Higher Media shows goes directly to the Higher Hope Foundation to support victims of violent crime as well as other like-minded nonprofits. We really appreciate your support.

• 2:33Kendall Rae?

  Why hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of True Crime with Kendall Ray. Thank you so much for joining me today. And if you're new to the show, then welcome. I'm so happy to have you here. And make sure to click subscribe so you never miss an upload from me. Now, guys, today, wow, I have a case for you that is very different from what I normally cover. In fact, I don't know if I've covered one quite like this, but as soon as I heard this story, I knew I wanted to talk about it because I was just blown away. I'm going to be telling you guys a story of someone who was harassed and stalked. And it is absolutely bizarre how this all played out. And I was just floored to see

• 3:14Kendall Rae?

  the lengths someone would go to absolutely destroy another person's life just for their own petty game. And I think by the end of this, you're going to be just as shocked as I was when I learned everything I did about this case. Now, like I said, the story is different from the cases that I normally cover. It's pretty unique. And so I'm going to be going about telling you in a completely different format than I normally do. So it's going to feel like we're just kind of dropping right in. And that's exactly how we're going to do it. So let's begin. In January of 2016, Angela Marie Connell was in her early 30s and she was living in Southern California when she met Ian Diaz, who was a US marshal.

• 3:57Kendall Rae?

  And the two of them connected over a dating app and really hit it off right away. Both of them had just gotten out of relationships and seemed to be looking for something more serious. And so they quickly found that in each other. And when I say their relationship moved fast, I mean, it moved fast because the two of them ended up getting married just a month after meeting. And then Angela moved into Ian's condo in Anaheim. Now, Ian had previously lived there with his ex-girlfriend, Michelle, about six months earlier, and they were currently in a legal dispute over ownership. But that did not stop him and Angela from laying down the groundwork to make this space their home. And they needed their own space because turns out in May of 2016, Angela announced that she was pregnant with twins.

• 4:42Kendall Rae?

  And as you can imagine, they were over the moon about this pregnancy. But this exciting time didn't last very long. At least they didn't get to enjoy it because it was overshadowed by an insane Harassment campaign. Now, when I tell you someone was harassing the two of them, I bet you're already thinking it's gotta be one of their exes. And you would be right. That same month that the two of them found out they were pregnant, Ian began to get these very bizarre creepy emails addressed from his ex, Michelle. He got one on May 22nd that said, "You told me I was your first love, but you did not treat me like the precious, perfect treasure that I am. You have sinned against God,

• 5:23Kendall Rae?

  and I want my power back because it belongs to us, the daughters of God." Pretty weird, right? And then just a few days later, Angela starts getting terrifying messages as well. And they were coming from different names, but they sounded very similar. And so they figured Michelle had to be behind all of them. Like on May 26th, for example, Angela received messages from someone under the name Jason Ray, which just so happened to be very close to the name of her ex-boyfriend, Jason Rayburn. But it definitely wasn't him. And all of these messages they were getting were filled with these weird biblical threats. For example, there are legends that Adam had a wife before Eve, who was named Lilith, but was not found in the Bible.

• 6:06Kendall Rae?

  "You are not perfect, but you are the Eve to him. Michelle was the truth, his Lilith." Another said, "You have not heeded my warnings and will have to be hurt in order to see the truth about him. You need to watch your back. Do we have to hurt you to make you see this? Ian is a snake, Satan, and is a sinner. You are disposable, and I hope to God on high you are put in your place. I will prove to you the truth, no matter the cost." And obviously Angela is bothered by these messages, but she doesn't want to stoop to Michelle's level, so she responds and very simply says, "Michelle Hadley, I want you to stop emailing me." But spoiler alert, she doesn't stop. In fact, the messages get a lot worse.

• 6:51Kendall Rae?

  Like on May 29th, one email to Angela said, "I hope you are scared of death tomorrow. Be prepared. Don't sleep. Be watchful of the daughters of God. We will steal your child and we will watch as it dies. You are a piece of shit, and I hope to God you burn for what you have done to us." Now Angela didn't have any children, yet, as I said earlier, she was pregnant, so... It seemed like Michelle was threatening her unborn twins, which is just terrifying. And she was just getting bombarded with these emails. Another one came in just a few days later and it said, "He is using you for everything. Don't you see this? He is obsessed with me. I am his treasure princess.

• 7:35Kendall Rae?

  You are nothing. Watch your back tomorrow." And then another said, "You might be beautiful. You might be the one he married, but you are still a sinner and must be punished. I will make sure you are reminded of your place by force." And then some of these emails even had just horrific, disturbing images attached to them. And I don't even want to go into detail about what they were, but I'll just say they were very violent, showing violence against women and children. And of course, when you're getting these messages paired with photos like that, you're going to take this seriously. And Angela did. She took these as a serious threat. And Ian took it seriously too, so much so that on June 1st, the two of them decided

• 8:20Kendall Rae?

  to go ahead and file a restraining order. And due to his connections in law enforcement, they took this seriously right away, which I wish everyone would get that treatment. But anyway, one of his good friends and fellow marshals actually took it upon themselves to hand-serve Michelle the restraining order. And when he did, Michelle acted like she didn't even know who Angela was and said that, "I haven't been sending her any messages. I have no idea what you're talking about." But the police thought there was enough compelling evidence to say otherwise, so the order was put in place and the judge ordered her to stop all contact with Angela and Ian. But that did not do much because on June 6th, another email came in and it read, "You

• 9:04Kendall Rae?

  will pay for this. I hope to God you are ready for the pain I will show you. Burn in the fiery pits of hell tonight, as by God's law. You will be hurt." And then you guys, the harassment evolved into something even more sick and twisted. Angela discovered that someone posing as her was responding to Craigslist ads from men who were looking for women to fulfill...

• 9:32Kendall Rae?

  ...fantasies with. And whoever this person was even answered these ads by sending photos from Angela's social media and gave personal details like her address, the time that she was normally home, a description of her dog, and even when she could be found walking them. And this is disturbing, but they also said to not stop even if Angela started screaming or resisted because it was all just part of the fantasy. So on June 13th, police responded to a call from Ian saying that this random man responded to that Craigslist ad and showed up at their condo. But luckily, they said they were able to get him to leave. And at this point, Ian has had enough. They are both so freaked out, so disturbed, and feel unsafe in their own home.

• 10:16Kendall Rae?

  So Ian pleaded with officers to arrest Michelle for this, but they didn't take any action. And then the following week, the police were called again. And this time, it was because Angela said that she was attacked by another random man. She told them that she was in the garage of the building when out of nowhere, she was jumped. But luckily, she was able to fight him off before he fled the scene. And by the time officers got to her, she had abrasions on her neck, red marks on her chest, a torn shirt, and two black eyes. So, as you can imagine, the police are now taking this way more seriously. And that same night, they confront Michelle and serve her a search warrant for her devices. And not only that, they also arrest her for violating the restraining order.

• 11:00Kendall Rae?

  She spent the night in jail, so Angela and Ian were able to sleep a little better that night, but her parents ended up paying her bail the following day. And wouldn't you know it, no emails were sent the entire time she was in there, but they started up again an hour after she was released.

• 11:22Kendall Rae?

  Ready to upgrade your PC? The Dell Top Tech Event is here. And you can skip the research because independent tech experts already did it. Dell has laptops, desktops, and monitors that have been tested, reviewed, and named a winner by the publishers you trust. So instead of spending hours researching, you get a shortlist that's already proven. Take the Dell XPS 13 laptop, built for those who want better. Whether you're studying, working, or just getting things done. Its thin and light design makes it easy to take anywhere. It has a touchscreen you'll love using, a battery built to last through your busiest days, and impressive performance powered by Intel Core processors. That's the thing about the Dell Top Tech Event. The experts already found the winners. All that's left is finding yours.

• 12:06Kendall Rae?

  While shopping, you'll also find great perks like Dell Rewards, fast free shipping, premium support, and financing with flexible payment options. Shop the winners now at dell.com/deals. That's dell.com/deals.

• 12:24Speaker 02

  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.

• 12:38Speaker 03

  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.

• 12:49Speaker 02

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

• 12:54Speaker 04

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

• 13:00Speaker 02

  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.

• 13:20Speaker 05

  Ready to feel energized and in control again? At Orderly Meds, we have helped thousands just like you take charge of their health with a GLP-1. If you've tried dieting, exercising, and relying on willpower, and nothing seems to stick, then it might be time to talk to a licensed provider about your options. That's what Orderly Meds is for. This fall, choose healthier habits for yourself with a visit to orderlymeds.com. You don't need to visit with a physician in person to become eligible. Orderly Meds has a simple virtual process. Connect with licensed medical professionals who can Determine whether a GLP-1 treatment may be appropriate for you wherever you are. Getting started from the comfort of home online. Change your habits and consider a new approach to feeling your best. Visit orderlymeds.com to learn more.

• 14:05Speaker 05

  That's orderlymeds.com. Orderlymeds.com. Gain confidence and choose better habits this fall. Compounded medications are not FDA approved. Eligibility required and determined by a licensed provider. Individual results may vary. See website for details.

• 14:27Kendall Rae?

  So then, about two weeks later, Angela says someone using her identity responded to another sexual assault fantasy ad on Craigslist. And two days after that, police were called again because more men were coming by the condo to act out this violence. And when they arrived, a 17-year-old boy was found hiding in the bushes, waiting for Angela to come out. And I'm a bit confused about this teenage boy that was in the bushes. I couldn't actually find any more details about what happened to him, or if he was punished, or officers just let him go. I don't know, I can't imagine they did nothing about that. But either way, all of this was just too much at this point. The police knew they had to get even more serious. And you know, last time they locked up Michelle, everything stopped, even though it was a short period of time.

• 15:12Kendall Rae?

  So it felt like the only way that this would end is if Michelle was locked up. So they charged her with everything they could get her on in order to get her locked up. She was indicted on 10 felonies, including six counts of felony attempted forcible, one count of felony stalking with a restraining order, stalking, criminal threats, assault with the intent to commit a sexual offense during the commission of a first-degree burglary, and one misdemeanor count of violation of a protective order. And all of this carried the maximum sentence of life in prison. So they ended up putting her in the high-security jail section, and her bail was set at $1 million,

• 15:52Kendall Rae?

  which is such a high and rare penalty seen with stalking. I mean, in some cases, police don't even take much action at all for stalking, and... Here, the Anaheim PD are going hard with it. And by this point, the story was so unbelievable that local and national media started reporting on it. And she even made it onto a local publication's annual list of Orange County's scariest people of the year. People saw Michelle as an unhinged vindictive ex-girlfriend who was very jealous and just couldn't let Ian move on and be happy. And now she was facing a slew of consequences for what she had done.

• 16:33Kendall Rae?

  But you guys, what if I told you that Michelle was actually the real victim here? Yeah, yeah, that's right. And I'm sure you probably have a bunch of questions. And it's a real mind fuck, so let me tell you what was really happening. And first, I need to rewind a bit here and tell you who Michelle Hadley actually is. So Michelle grew up in Ontario, California, with a younger sister and two loving parents. She described her younger self as a goody-two-shoes who was always focused on academics, which didn't really change much as she got older. And while she was in high school, she met and dated the man that would end up being her future husband. And the two of them got married in their early twenties while she was attending Dickinson University. But unfortunately, the two of them didn't work out.

• 17:18Kendall Rae?

  They ended up getting divorced after four years of marriage. And then shortly after that, she put herself back on the dating market. And that's when she met Ian Diaz. In August of 2013, they met for coffee on their first date. And by the second one, this weirdo was saying, "I love you" already, which of course is a red flag to you and me, but at the time, Michelle wasn't freaked out by it. She would later say that she was raised on the happily ever after fantasy. So she just thought she connected quickly to her prince charming and that it was, you know, love at first sight. And then a few months later, they had a real fairy tale moment when the two of them took a trip to New York. And while they were ice skating at Rockefeller Plaza, Ian got down on one knee and proposed. And of course, thinking she had met her prince charming finally,

• 18:03Kendall Rae?

  she said yes. And then after returning to California, the two of them started mapping out their future together. But it did not take long at all for his manipulative true colors to really start to show. And he became very abusive and controlling of her. First of all, he convinced her to quit her marketing job that she really liked, actually, and instead, take one at Disneyland for far less money. And you might be asking, why would he do that? What's the point of that? What's in it for him? Well, homeboy was a huge Disney adult, and he had previously worked there himself. So he wanted to have access to all the employee perks. You know, get the Disney hookup, if you will. But most importantly, that way, he could also have his previous coworkers

• 18:48Kendall Rae?

  keep an eye on her. Now, during this time, Michelle was also pursuing an MBA at Chapman University, and he tried to convince her to let him sit in on her classes. Or if she wouldn't do that, just stop going altogether. And this probably won't shock you, but as the absolutely controlling freak that Ian was, he also tried to control her appearance. And he always made her have acrylic nails on and dress sexier. He specifically wanted her to wear more crop tops. Oh, and he told her to get a belly button ring and even floated the idea of her getting a boob job. And let me be clear, there isn't anything wrong with these things if that's what you want for yourself. But these things just didn't align with who Michelle was or who she wanted to present herself as.

• 19:32Kendall Rae?

  But Michelle was serious about this relationship. And, you know, she saw these problems and wasn't thrilled about them, but also wanted to try and make things work. She really wanted her fairy tale ending. And so they took the next step and went ahead and moved in together. So then, in June of 2015, they purchased the condo that I mentioned earlier. And while Michelle had to be the one to pay the entire $14,000 down payment, both of their names, of course, were listed on the mortgage. But sadly, the toxicity in their marriage did not go away. In fact, it got worse. And after they moved in, Ian began physically and emotionally and sexually abusing Michelle. And Ian, dude, he is such a freak. I mean...

• 20:17Kendall Rae?

  I get people do things like this and it's their personal kink and if it's consensual, you know, do what you want, but this was not consensual at all. At one point, he started asking her to have sex with strangers while he watched. And when she refused because she wasn't interested in doing this at all, he did not respect her boundaries and he just kept pushing it. And after a while, she finally just caved. So Ian ends up finding some random guy off of Craigslist who was willing to do it, which is absolutely terrifying. But at this point, she still didn't want to, so she mentally prepared for it. And poor Michelle, this is heartbreaking. But she prepared for it by taking cold medicine and drinking a bunch of alcohol that night to sort of numb herself.

• 21:00Kendall Rae?

  And I hate to say this, but all of this actually did end up occurring. That stranger came over that night and Ian recorded it and watched from another room. And afterwards, Michelle was just horrified. She was understandably completely traumatized and felt violated. And that's when she started to realize that what happened was sexual assault. And when she tried to talk to Ian's ugly ass about it, he would just brush it off, telling her that no one forced her and she should just get over it. But clearly someone did force her and that was her piece of shit, loser ass, monstrous fiance, Ian. Now, by this point in time, after all of this has happened, Michelle is really fearing for her life.

• 21:45Kendall Rae?

  So she starts trying to figure out a plan to leave. And as I've talked about before, this is always one of the most terrifying times for survivors of domestic violence. And that was absolutely the case for Michelle because he had multiple guns in the home. And one time she even tried to leave, but he pushed her down on the bed and physically restrained her. Then one day in August of 2015, she was able to escape when one of Ian's friends was at the condo. And she thought maybe he wouldn't do anything to her in front of that friend. So she took the risk and Quietly packed up some belongings, slipped out and just drove away. And thankfully, she found safety living with her parents. But unfortunately, she couldn't be fully done with Ian because he still had contact with her

• 22:28Kendall Rae?

  and would sometimes harass her, of course. And other times, he would even ask her to get back together with him. And one time, he randomly texted her that he abruptly canceled her car insurance plan, so she needs to be careful on the roads. Now, Michelle took this as a threat, rightfully so. And she was worried that he was gonna have one of his friends in law enforcement pull her over or something. And then she kept seeing this same SUV without a license plate that was similar to Ian's car that was following her. And she believed it was Ian following her, stalking her. And it got so bad that she even told campus security at Chapman what was going on. And they barred Ian from entering the school. But Ian wasn't just harassing her and stalking her.

• 23:11Kendall Rae?

  He was also trying to ruin her reputation. He even told everyone he knew that he broke up with her because she cheated on him with multiple men that she met on Tinder, which could not be farther from the truth. And he was also telling people that he was trying to get her name off of the condo, but she was refusing to let it go, when in reality, that wasn't the case at all. The truth was, his sorry ass wouldn't move out. And she obviously didn't want to live there with him. So because her name was on it, she still had to pay half of the mortgage, which was understandably really upsetting and frustrating.

• 23:54Kendall Rae?

  Ready to upgrade your PC? The Dell Top Tech Event is here. And you can skip the research because independent tech experts already did it. Dell has laptops, desktops, and monitors that have been tested, reviewed, and named a winner by the publishers you trust. So instead of spending hours researching, you get a shortlist that's already proven. Take the Dell XPS 13 laptop, built for those who want better. Whether you're studying, working, or just getting things done. Its thin and light design makes it easy to take anywhere. It has a touchscreen you'll love using. Battery built to last through your busiest days and impressive performance powered by Intel Core processors. That's the thing about the Dell Top Tech Event. The experts already found the winners.

• 24:36Kendall Rae?

  All that's left is finding yours. While shopping, you'll also find great perks like Dell Rewards, fast free shipping, premium support, and financing with flexible payment options. Shop the winners now at dell.com/deals. That's dell.com/deals.

• 24:55Speaker 02

  Hi, I'm Jen Ashkowitz. 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.

• 25:10Speaker 03

  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.

• 25:21Speaker 02

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

• 25:26Speaker 04

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

• 25:32Speaker 02

  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.

• 25:52Speaker 06

  Ready to feel more energized and in control of your health? If you've tried diet and exercise but still aren't seeing the results you're looking for, it may be time to explore a different approach. At orderlymeds.com, you can connect with licensed medical providers through a simple virtual process, all from the comfort of home, and find out if a GLP-1 treatment may be right for you. Learn more at orderlymeds.com. That's orderlymeds.com. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved. Eligibility determined by a licensed provider. Individual results may vary. See website for details.

• 26:29Kendall Rae?

  So in September of 2015, Michelle sent him an email saying, "Please explain to your real estate attorney that God's law is above all laws, including the law of man. Lilith, you may try to hide behind the law of man, but it is a weak shield that will bend and crack against the sword of God." And after hearing that, I'm sure you're thinking, "What the hell? That sounds just like one of those emails that Michelle was writing earlier." Well, this time it actually was Michelle, and she would later state that this was very out of character for her and that she just wasn't thinking clearly because of all of the trauma she had recently been through in her relationship with Ian, which is very understandable. But still, after Michelle sends this email, Ian is so bothered by it that he goes ahead and tries to file a restraining order against her,

• 27:14Kendall Rae?

  which ends up being denied. And by this point in time, it was obvious that they weren't going to be able to come to an agreement on their own regarding the condo, so they had to get the court involved. So in November of 2015, a judge decided that Ian had six months to either get a new mortgage on his own or sell the condo and just split the profits with Michelle, which did mean that she could potentially lose out on most of the money that she had put into the condo. But by this point, she just wanted to get the hell out of this situation and move on with her life. And she thought that maybe he was moving on too, because after the agreement, she didn't hear from him at all. But unfortunately, Ian, of course, was not going away quietly. He had applied for multiple mortgages, and each one was denied.

• 27:59Kendall Rae?

  So as time went on, it seemed like he was going to just have to sell. But he really didn't want to, especially now that Angela was living there. Yeah, remember Angela from earlier, Ian's pregnant girlfriend? Well, this is the part of the story when the two of them devised a vicious plan. And they seemed to draw inspiration from that email that Michelle had sent him. Together, they created fake email addresses and then concocted these bizarre messages and sent themselves some of the most diabolical shit I have ever read or seen. And all of this just to set Michelle up to go to prison so that she couldn't fight anymore and he could keep the fucking condo. Yeah. This is what it was all about.

• 28:43Kendall Rae?

  This property close to Disneyland. That is what he was willing to do all of this for. Mind you, they started sending these emails just after the six months was up. So in retrospect, it's pretty obvious what they were doing and why. So going back in time here, Michelle wasn't lying when she told that police officer who was getting her the restraining order that she didn't know who Angela was and that she never sent her any messages. But for some reason, the police didn't believe her and didn't even bother to look further into it. Instead, they took Ian and Angela's word as gospel. But why? Hmm, maybe it had something to do with the fact that Ian was a US marshal. I don't know.

• 29:27Kendall Rae?

  I'm not an expert, but it doesn't really make sense to me any other way. Now, during all of this, Michelle was still fighting for Ian to sell the condo. And since things weren't going their way yet, they had to take it further. So that's when the Craigslist ads were posted. But when police didn't arrest her for them, Angela faked that she was physically attacked by a man. She even tore her own damn shirt and gave herself the bruises and scratches to really sell it. Yet even after Michelle's first arrest, she was still going strong. In fact, she filed a breach of contract lawsuit on July 12th because Ian was still refusing to sell well after the six-month time limit. And Ian and Angela, being the absolute lunatics that they are, could not deal with that.

• 30:11Kendall Rae?

  So the next day, they called the police about the second sexual assault fantasy ad on Craigslist, which is what led to Michelle being arrested and facing the possibility of life in prison. Now, in retrospect, it does seem pretty damn obvious what was happening here, but police and detectives weren't looking past the bogus emails. And instead, Michelle was wrongfully imprisoned.

• 30:34Kendall Rae?

  And treated like a complete menace to society. And luckily, her friends and family never believed that she would do something like this because they actually knew who she was. And right away, her parents, Michael and Suzanne, got to work trying to prove her innocence. And this must have been so difficult as parents, but they had to tell her that they couldn't afford to hire a good lawyer and pay her $1 million bond. So they left the choice up to her, and she picked the lawyer. She decided that she would try to just tough it out in jail until the evidence showed the truth, but she had an extremely hard time in there. It was absolutely brutal. She was pretty meek, and everyone knew that she was in there for unhinged harassment, which made her an easy target for other inmates.

• 31:18Kendall Rae?

  Her cellmate even tried to help her by saying her walk was too weak and taught her how to, you know, toughen up a little bit, but that just didn't make her time any easier. But even though this had to be the worst time in her life and she really, really struggled in there, I mean, it was bad. She felt like all the other prisoners were just eating her alive. She did feel like it was worth it in the long run because her parents hired this amazing attorney named Michael Gusty. And he was incredibly passionate about helping them because he immediately knew that Michelle was innocent and later said this type of injustice is the reason to become a lawyer. But her parents didn't stop there. They went through all of the emails that were included in the court documents. Michael would put each one through a software that would trace the IP address.

• 32:00Kendall Rae?

  And then Suzanne took those and cross-referenced them to Michelle's locations, which of course wouldn't match. And they were even able to find that some of those emails were sent while she was taking exams at Chapman, where she definitely wouldn't be able to use the computer or phone. And while this was very significant information for her defense attorney, it wouldn't be enough to get her out right away because a judge wouldn't release her based off of something that her parents found. So they would have to hold on to it for a potential trial and hope that the charges would be dropped once investigators uncovered this themselves. And this is not totally shocking. Disappointing, yes. Shocking, no. Her parents were much quicker at getting to the bottom of this whole thing than detectives were, whose job it was to actually do that.

• 32:45Kendall Rae?

  But You know, your own parents are gonna go much harder in these circumstances, unfortunately. So in July, detectives obtained a search warrant for the IP address, but it was a slow process and the results didn't come until late September. And during all this time, Michelle is just suffering in jail, and she shouldn't have ever been there a single day. But when the results finally came in, they showed that Angela used eight different emails with private networks and third-party servers that were tied to the condo, to Angela's phone, and even to her dad's home in Arizona. But that wasn't the only bombshell that investigators got, because on September 30th, Ian came to speak with them to flip on Angela.

• 33:27Kendall Rae?

  Now, Ian vowed to Angela to be with her in sickness and health, but that doesn't apply in his case when police have figured out that the two of you have schemed to try to put someone in prison falsely for life. So anyway, he tells the police that there are two reasons that he has decided to rat her out. The first was that he claimed that he became suspicious of her when he received an email from an account that he supposedly created. And the second was that she recently told him that she was, mm, surprised, never actually pregnant. That's right, there were no babies, no twins. Mm-mm, didn't exist. And he told the police that he was a victim of her, that she had tricked him by using a fake sonogram that she just bought off Etsy.

• 34:10Kendall Rae?

  Now, obviously, Ian is a lying freak, so I have no idea if this is actually true, if it's true that she lied to him. I don't know if he was in on that lie with her, if they came up with that together, or if he actually even saw a sonogram, I don't know. He probably just made it all up to heighten the drama of the fake harassment. And when I say "made it up", I mean, made up the fact that she lied to him and purchased the sonogram off Etsy. I'm like, starting to confuse myself, but you know what I mean? I don't know exactly how that shook out. And another thing I don't know, and I really wish I knew... Is if his law enforcement buddies had tipped him off about the IP address before he started talking.

• 34:52Kendall Rae?

  And I say that because he was pretty protective of them, but more on that later. So of course, after all of this was discovered, poor Michelle was released from prison on October 7th after spending 88 days in there, dude. But this ordeal was far from over. Even with all of this evidence pointing to her innocence, the charges were not dropped, but she was released on the condition of wearing an ankle monitor while the investigation continued. So she wasn't fully free from all of this and wouldn't be until January 2017, when Angela was finally charged. Now, at this point, Angela had moved in with her dad, a doctor in Arizona, probably because

• 35:34Kendall Rae?

  she didn't want to live with her accomplice husband anymore after he flipped on her. But still, she was arrested on January 6th, eee, in Phoenix. Then she was extradited back to California, where she faced the following felony charges: two counts of kidnapping, two counts of false imprisonment by menace, fraud, or deceit, perjury, two counts of forgery, possession of a forged check over $950, grand theft, one misdemeanor of falsely reporting a crime to a police agency, and 21 counts of falsely reporting a crime to a police officer. Now, those last few charges actually came from her trying to alter paychecks from her employer to add an additional $2,000. Just genius.

• 36:15Kendall Rae?

  And so with all of that, she was now facing up to 23 years in prison, which is obviously far less than the life in prison that Michelle was facing for a crime that she didn't even commit. I mean, seriously, how does any of this make sense? I mean, Michelle was the victim here, and it was bad. She spent 88 days in prison for zero reason, and her reputation was ruined, yet the justice system treated her worse than her unhinged tormentor? Hopefully, that makes you just as mad as it made me when I first learned about this case. And just wait, because Angela's deranged behavior gets even deeper.

• 36:58Kendall Rae?

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• 37:43Kendall Rae?

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• 38:30Speaker 02

  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.

• 38:44Speaker 03

  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.

• 38:55Speaker 02

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

• 39:01Speaker 04

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

• 39:06Speaker 02

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• 39:34Kendall Rae?

  It was also uncovered that she had previously faked cervical cancer, lied about multiple pregnancies, forged doctor's notes, posed as an attorney, and made fake email accounts pretending to be two other ex-girlfriends of Ian's. And allegedly, in one of those cases, she had recently sent an email to a news publication under the name Lacy, claiming that Ian was having affairs with other women and that Angela was the true victim in all of this. One line read, "Angela is a really pretty, nice girl and has been a victim of not only Michelle, but her cheating hubby." Now, this reporter asked Lacy to verify her identity, but then Lacy refused and ghosted them. Interesting. So they passed the emails to Anaheim PD,

• 40:18Kendall Rae?

  who were able to verify that Lacy was a real person, but definitely didn't send those. And just when you thought that this woman couldn't get any more insufferable, she does. Listen to this. Investigators also found two documents on her computer that were titled, "A Darkness Within: The Angela Diaz Story" and "Daughters of God: The Angela Diaz Story." You guys, these were movie pitches about the case that she planned to send to, who else? Lifetime. Yep, so it seems like after terrorizing and destroying Michelle, she was going to hustle for some money and fame. Now, I will say, she did get that fame, but probably not in the way that she had hoped. Because on January 9th, the Orange County DA held a press conference

• 41:02Kendall Rae?

  and told the public about their findings.

• 41:04Speaker 08

  It's often said that true life is stranger than fiction. The facts of this case make that statement spot on. When a person who's committed a crime gets arrested and charged, that's a bad day. But when someone who's innocent gets arrested and charged with a crime, that's not just a bad day. It's a nightmare. This is a tale of a woman who faced such a nightmare. But with the help of her attorney and law enforcement who continue to seek the truth, she'll be able to be exonerated. I'm here to announce the filing of a felony complaint against Angela Marie Diaz by the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

• 41:45Speaker 08

  The charges include numerous felony charges, including two counts of kidnapping, two counts of false imprisonment, perjury, two counts of forgery, two counts of possession of a forged instrument, grand theft, one misdemeanor count of filing a false report with an agency, and 21 misdemeanor counts of filing false police reports. As important as the filing of charges against Ms. Diaz is, the dismissal of the previous complaint and the exoneration of Michelle Suzanne Hadley is every bit as important.

• 42:25Speaker 08

  The complaint number 16NF2004 previously charged Ms. Hadley with several felony counts that carried a maximum sentence of life in prison. This is a complex and detailed case, and I won't be able to share all of the details now. I wanted to make sure, however, that Ms. Hadley is cleared in every possible way, in the courtroom and in the court of public opinion.

• 42:48Kendall Rae?

  Now, if you haven't already picked up on this, I just wanted to point out that Angela and Ian met in January of 2016, and now we're in January of 2017, meaning all of this happened in just a year. The devil works hard, but Angela and Ian work harder, am I right? And I'm sure you're getting a little bit annoyed here that Angela was outed as a criminal, but Ian's reputation initially went unscathed. What is going on? Well, his identity wasn't revealed at the press conference. They just called him John Doe. And the situation was painted as if it were a toxic love triangle, with Angela being hateful towards her husband's ex when, in reality, they both wanted to take her down to get that condo. And of course, Michelle and her family too had...

• 43:30Kendall Rae?

  Issues with this because they knew that Ian was involved. I mean, he just had to be, but they felt like he was being protected because he was a US marshal. And I'm sure there will be people who try to explain this some other way, but I don't think it makes sense any other way. He clearly used that to his advantage. And let's not forget that his friend literally served the search warrant and begged the police to arrest her. I just can't help but wonder how different all of this would have been if they were just regular civilians. But anyway, at least Michelle did have something worth celebrating because later that day, she was fully exonerated on all charges. And I cannot imagine how good that must have felt. And while she was coming out of the courthouse, she spoke to the press,

• 44:13Kendall Rae?

  which was the first time Michelle was ever able to take back the narrative. And in her own words, share what really happened to her.

• 44:21Speaker 09

  I have a lot of friends and a lot of family who know me very well. And when they saw this in the media, they already knew I didn't do it. And they believed it even before the truth came out. Um, so I think as far as my close circle, it's not going to be hard to rebuild my reputation. Um, and I'm hoping that that kind of, it just grows from there.

• 44:40Kendall Rae?

  Now, Michelle could finally start to pick up the pieces and try to move on, but for Angela, the ramifications were just getting started. In October of 2017, she pled guilty and was sentenced to five years. And the judge said that he worked in the justice system for 30 years, but had never seen a case like this. Now, Michelle actually chose to not even read a victim impact statement at her sentencing because she felt like it was a sham since Ian was the real mastermind behind all of this and wasn't getting punished at all. She actually didn't even go, and I'm glad she didn't because apparently Angela didn't even show any sign of remorse or empathy while appearing in court. Her attorney stated that there were other suspects involved, and I think it's pretty obvious who she was talking about.

• 45:23Kendall Rae?

  She said that Angela was being singled out because she was an easier target for prosecutors. And in my opinion, she was. And yes, of course, she needs to be punished for what she did. I mean, her crimes were just unbelievable, ruthless and evil. But the evidence against her was pretty obvious. And had they done deeper investigating, they would have been able to find everything pointing to Ian as well. But it took them sadly years to do that. Now, before I continue, I do want to point out that I haven't really talked that much about Ian and who he was. And that's because. There isn't that much information out there about the dude. Outside of what Michelle has said, I could really only pin down that he lived in California

• 46:06Kendall Rae?

  and started working for the Marshals around 2010 and that he was in his late 30s when all of this started. But honestly, I don't think we really need to know much more about him beyond the fact that he is a lying, heartless, pig monster of a person who I am very happy to say did end up facing consequences for what he did. So, a federal probe was actually first launched in 2017 and prosecutors didn't comment, of course, on why it took so many years to finally bring charges. But during the investigation, they were able to uncover that some of the emails were sent from a DOJ-issued IP address and his work phone, which he never gave anyone else the password to. So it was immediately obvious that this idiot actually used his government phones to do all of this.

• 46:50Kendall Rae?

  And he also originally told investigators that he never used Craigslist, but it was found that he communicated with people about the rape fantasy on there and even used two-step authentication with his phone number to approve an ad. And Ian, he thought he was real sly because he ended up getting a new phone number the next day, probably realizing what a massive mistake he just made. Now, as you probably guessed, shortly after the indictment, he was relieved of all duties as a criminal investigator in Los Angeles. But I do want to point out how crazy it is that he was even able to continue working as an investigator for years after a federal probe into him started. I mean, am I confused on something here? That seems really weird.

• 47:35Kendall Rae?

  Maybe they just don't care until you're found guilty, even if it takes years, which is really dangerous to society. But anyway, in the end, Ian was found guilty after a week-long trial in March of 2023. Now, Michelle didn't even go, and I don't know if she would have if there were different circumstances, but the reason that she didn't go is because she actually gave birth to her first daughter on the day that he was convicted, which I think is really beautiful to symbolize the next chapter of her life, starting in two different ways. But she did send a statement to the court and it read, "This man did not just want the condo. He wanted to ruin my entire life. He wanted a felony and sex offender registration on my record so I could never lead a normal life after he was done with me.

• 48:19Kendall Rae?

  Never work with kids again, which he knew I had done in the past and loved." He wanted to make my worst nightmare come true. Every unexpected knock or ring at the door caused me to break down in panic, my whole body shaking uncontrollably. He set me up for another decade of abuse. I have had to give up on some of my dreams for my life. Now, his lawyer tried to argue for just five years in prison because she said, "His life has, quote, 'changed significantly for the better since the offense conduct took place over seven years ago.'" And guess what she meant by that? Ian now had a wife and a child. That's right. Somehow, after all of this, he was able to find a woman who wanted to be with him and procreate with him.

• 49:00Kendall Rae?

  Now, I don't know if his wife knew everything that he had done or anything about him, but I just feel bad for that child and for her, too. Unless she knew everything, I don't know. You know what I mean. But in the end, Ian was ultimately sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release. So he will be in his 50s when he gets out, around 2033, which I don't think is enough. And unfortunately, he will still be able to continue terrorizing women in his lifetime if he proceeds that way. And if you ask me, and I'm sure you guys are gonna agree with me, I don't think he or Angela had tough enough consequences for what they did. What's crazy is Angela's now a free woman. I mean, she was released from prison just a few years ago, and I couldn't find any information about where she is now,

• 49:44Kendall Rae?

  but I really hope she learned her lesson because clearly she has a massive lying problem, even outside of this case. The shit that the two of them pulled has long-lasting repercussions, and it very much did for Michelle. Not only was she falsely imprisoned for quite a long time, but also the media portrayed her as this evil monster. Let's not forget that the county that she lived in literally put her on the list of the scariest people there. Oh, which, by the way, Angela made that list the following year. And other major news organizations were reporting on it before she was exonerated. So because of all of this, poor Michelle was diagnosed with PTSD, had to quit her job, had to drop out of her MBA program at Chapman.

• 50:29Kendall Rae?

  And she also says that she sometimes fears meeting new people. I can see why and going to job interviews is difficult for her just because they might find out that she was in prison before she actually has a chance to explain it to them. So in late 2018, she ended up filing a federal civil lawsuit against Angela and the city of Anaheim and the police department, which was settled in 2021 for 1.8 million dollars. And honestly, good for her. And in my opinion, that is not enough. The way that law enforcement treated her and then acted with this in-prison-first and question-later mentality is just disgusting and unacceptable. But I just want to say to Michelle, if she ever sees this, that the way that you handled it

• 51:13Kendall Rae?

  is just so, so impressive. There aren't even words. You are seriously one of the strongest women I have ever seen. And she has gone on to do amazing things. She has used her story to help spread awareness about domestic violence and abuse. She says that she wants to be a beacon of hope for other survivors and remind them that they are not alone. And she put those words into action when she was able to open her own retail store and give money to a domestic violence shelter. And she has also used her voice to draw attention to glaring issues in the justice system. In 2020, she wrote an article for The Marshall Project where she detailed the differences in treatment between her and the women of color that she was incarcerated with,

• 51:53Kendall Rae?

  which is such a powerful way to use her voice. And I just have to say, she's really good at doing that. I just think the way that she was able to turn this horrible situation into something that helps others is truly amazing. And I mean, she was seriously just put through the wringer in ways that most of us can't even fathom. And she came out the other end seemingly tougher than she was before. Now, before I go, I want to leave you with some words from Michelle. In an interview, she said, "I don't want people remembering me as the girl who suffered for this. I want to be remembered as the girl who fought back." And damn, that's exactly how I'm always going to remember Michelle, and I hope you do too. And that is going to be it for me today, guys. I am still on maternity leave,

• 52:37Kendall Rae?

  so I'm hoping to have another episode for you next week. I don't know how many I'm going to end up being able to pre-record. Um, but we'll see. So if there is no episode, then hang with me. If there is, then yay me, or yay my team, or whatever we do. But um, yeah, you can check in with me on social media if you want. Uh, I will have my Instagram on the screen. If I'm even posting, I don't know, I'm probably in newborn bliss, or newborn exhaustion, however you want to describe it. But that is it for me today, you guys. I will see you next time, or whenever I see you. I don't know, this is getting confusing and weird. Thanks for tuning in, and that's it for me. I'll see you next time. Bye.

• 53:40Speaker 10

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