233: Slenderman Stabber Release, 25 Year Old Goes Missing on Ring Camera, TikTok Ban, & BF Charged With GF Murder

Today’s episode dives into everything happening this week in true crime. From new cases to updates on existing ones and more. Slenderman Deep Dive: https://youtu.be/6h5RA6lObAMSeed Head to https://www.seed.com/serialously and use code 25SERIALOUSLY to get 25% off your first month. Robody Head to https://www.ro.co/ae to see if you qualify. Shop the Merch:www.annieelise.com Follow the podcast on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@serialouslypodcast Follow the podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/serialouslypod/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/annieelise All Social Media Links: https://www.flowcode.com/page/annieelise_ SERIALously FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/SERIALouslyAnnieElise/ About Me: https://annieelise.com/ For Business Inquiries: [email protected] Sources: CNN BBC NY Post USA Today LA Times People

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

• 0:00Annie Elise?

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• 0:42Annie Elise?

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• 1:39Annie Elise?

  Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all-new episode of Serial Sleep.

• 2:02Annie Elise?

  Hey everybody, welcome back to an all new episode of Serialistically with me, Annie Elise. Today is headline highlights, which means we're going through all the breaking cases, all the news, everything happening in the true crime world. But really quickly, before I get into all of the cases that we're going to be talking about today, I just want to talk about the fires that are happening right now in California. Because one of the biggest and the most prominent headlines in the news right now are of course, the wildfires and these fires have caused so much destruction, so much heartbreak, really all across the LA area. I personally live in California. Luckily, I am a little bit further south from where these fires have, you know,

• 2:45Annie Elise?

  broken out and just taken so much. But I have friends who have lost their homes, who have lost their family members' homes, tons of friends who have been evacuated and have had to flee. And it's just, it's really devastating and it's insane when you really think about the amount of destruction. And I could be here all day long and going on a rant about the fact that we didn't have water in the hydrants, the fact that certain people are evading questions and everything into it. But I just feel like there's so much I could say, but if you're one of my listeners who has been affected by these fires, I just want you to know, my heart is with you. I am so sorry for everything that you're going through.

• 3:28Annie Elise?

  This has been incredibly devastating. I know not just for people in California, but really for everybody who is watching this as it's unfolding because they're still not fully contained yet. Yes, some of them have been, but not the major ones. So what I want to do today, before I get into the headlines, is kind of just give you like top side information about these fires. I'm not going to go into all of the nitty gritty, but I just want to like level set a little bit of what's been going on because social media, of course, always portrays something as one thing, right? And one of the biggest things I'm seeing right now is, you know, who cares? It's the celebrities, it's millionaires, they can rebuild. And I just kind of want to remind people that that's not really true.

• 4:10Annie Elise?

  I mean, the land is valued at one thing, but these homes and what those are valued at, that's a whole other thing. Not to mention like, and again, this is like, you know, not applicable to everybody, but some of these homes aren't going to even have the opportunity to be built again because of the different permitting issues and zoning and all sorts of different like, uh, I can't even think the word I'm looking for. Different like requirements and problems, but like, that's a whole separate thing in and of itself. It's the fact that so many people are displaced. Some, yes, are fortunate enough to have family homes or maybe even a second home or afford a hotel, but so many are not. And I've been able to witness that, like, being here and seeing the devastation.

• 4:55Annie Elise?

  Now, like I said, let me talk to you just again, very, very quickly and give you kind of a breakdown of what's happening right now, where things are at and, you know, what's going on. So the first fires we know broke out on Tuesday, January 7th in the Pacific Palisades. So far, it's estimated that over 23,000 acres have been burned in the Palisades alone. And it's still, like I said, isn't contained. I think when I checked this morning, it was a little under 20%. Now, the Eaton fire has also devastated the northern part of Los Angeles, and it has burned a little over 14,000 acres, making it the second biggest fire in the area. So each of these fires grew and they spread at just such an alarming rate because of our Santa Ana winds, which we get every single year.

• 5:39Annie Elise?

  That we always know they're coming, we're prepared for them. Why we were not prepared for them, I don't know. But take a listen to just this quick little snip from some of the residents.

• 5:49Speaker 02

  The fire was coming down, ball of fire. It had made it to my house. But then I, uh, I woke up and I seen it coming, so I had to start evacuating. I grabbed my dogs, uh... You know, and I didn't have enough water, wasn't water, uh, and my house burned out to the ground, so.

• 6:08Speaker 03

  I smelt smoke, I was sleeping, of course, and my dog alerted me that, that there was trouble, and when I looked outside, there's embers flowing across my yard. My whole neighborhood is gone. It was a beautiful, unique place.

• 6:24Speaker 04

  You're smiling. How are you smiling through this door?

• 6:28Speaker 03

  Because there's tomorrow, you know?

• 6:30Annie Elise?

  Now, although the number is just increasing with every single minute that these fires continue raging, the devastation and the economic impact has been estimated to potentially be one that is anywhere from one hundred and thirty-five to one hundred and fifty billion. I mean, a lot of money. Also, aside from just the financial aspect of this, the confirmed deaths are currently at twenty-four, though with the amount of people still missing and unaccounted for, that number is unfortunately only expected to rise. And I want to talk to you about a couple of these victims, because one victim that's been confirmed was thirty-two-year-old Rory Sykes.

• 7:10Annie Elise?

  Rory was born blind, also with cerebral palsy, and he was widely known for his speeches and really just talking about overcoming his disability. Now, due to his cerebral palsy, his ability to walk was greatly hindered. So when his mother, Shelley Sykes, first saw these, you know, cinders and embers from the wildfire nearing their property and then eventually landing on Rory's, you know, part of his estate, he shared like the cottage on their estate, she did everything that she could do to put them out with their gardening hose, trying to put it out, trying to save things, but as we know, with so many other people as well, it sadly wasn't enough. So she ran into Rory's home, hoping that she could drag him to safety, but with a recently broken arm, she was unable to move him.

• 7:53Annie Elise?

  Now Rory knew that if Shelley didn't get out right then, that they would both be killed. So he did what would be such an incredibly difficult decision and thing to vocalize, but he told his mom to leave him and save herself, which I cannot even begin to imagine the pain and the survivor's Guilt that Shelley is probably feeling right now. So I hope someday she's able to have some semblance of peace. But like, that is just so incredibly heartbreaking. Other victims that we've learned about so far were Anthony and Justin Mitchell. And Anthony was an amputee who used a wheelchair and took care of his disabled son, Justin. He also was born with cerebral palsy. The two of them lived together where near the Eaton Fire.

• 8:36Annie Elise?

  And when Anthony's daughter last spoke to him, he had told her, you know, don't worry, we're planning on evacuating. There's nothing to fear, but sadly, they were never able to evacuate. And Anthony's body was found by the bed next to his son. Another victim was eighty five year old Annette Rosalie. And she insisted on staying in her Pacific Palisades home with her dog, Greetly, her little canary pepper. Also with her two parrots and her turtle. But she was later found deceased inside the car on her property, which leads me to believe, and this is just me thinking and brainstorming. But I think she was trying to evacuate, but it was too late at that point. And the list, it really just goes on and on. Like I said, there are now twenty four victims in total at the time of recording this who have been confirmed.

• 9:20Annie Elise?

  And those stories that I just mentioned are just a few of the heartbreaking stories we've learned so far. It's easy to see on Instagram and on TikTok and even YouTube. The images and the videos of the fires taking these homes, seeing all of the celebrities who have lost their property, such as Mel Gibson, Spencer Pratt, Paris Hilton, all of these things. But there's also other people aside from celebrities, real people who not only have lost their home, their memories, any sort of financial security that they had. But as I just mentioned, many of them have lost their lives because they were faced with such a difficult decision of, if we both can't get out, one of us should get out. The fact that it still is only twenty percent contained, it is just, I haven't seen anything like it.

• 10:05Annie Elise?

  And it is incredibly heartbreaking. So to any of you listeners who have been impacted in any way, shape or form, please know you're in my thoughts and prayers. I'm with you. I'm thinking about you. I'm hoping to get there this Saturday to, you know, do some boots on the ground volunteering as well. I've made some financial donations, but I really want to just like get out there and get my hands on things and help people. So if I see you out there, please come up to me. I just, I, we gotta all pull together and help in any way that we can. Now, moving over into more true crime news. While there was an element of true crime because of the arson with the fires, let's go into more of like the true crime news because there was a headline that broke last week that literally had my jaw on the ground. And it's about the Slenderman stabbing. I don't know if you are

• 10:50Annie Elise?

  familiar with this case. I don't know if you know much about it, but I'm going to give you a little breakdown in a moment. I did do a deep dive on this case a couple of years ago, so I will link it in the show notes for you. It's from YouTube. But I am unsettled. Like, to put it mildly, I am unsettled. So on January 9th, 2025, a judge ordered the now 22-year-old girl Morgan Geiser, otherwise known as the Slenderman Stabber, you know, in the true crime world, the judge granted a conditional release from her treatment at the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. Now, for some of you, the nickname Slenderman Stabber probably did ring a bell, right? But for those of you who aren't familiar, let me give you a very brief overview of that

• 11:30Annie Elise?

  case. So in 2014, Morgan Geiser and Anisa Wire concocted this truly diabolical horrific plan to lure their classmate Peyton into the woods for what she thought was going to be a harmless game of hide and seek. The game, however, ended in Morgan stabbing Peyton 19 times, all while Anisa just stood by, watching and cheering her on, encouraging her to continue going. Now, what is so unsettling about this is that all three girls were just 12 years old. They were in the sixth grade when this disgusting attack happened. Now, after this attack happened, which again, I did the deep dive, you can listen to it, it's very unsettling, like when they realize who was responsible and when they uncover all of the details. But

• 12:15Annie Elise?

  it was later learned that the motive behind this attack was for Morgan and Anisa to kill someone, sacrifice someone, also that they could earn the right to be this fictional horror character Slenderman's servants. They were worried and feared that he would harm them And their families if they didn't go through with it. So again, it was almost like some sacrifice to this fictional character. And again, that description is just putting it all lightly. So if you're unfamiliar with this case, I highly recommend doing more research into it. I also will link the deep dive because the overall story, as well as the police interviews with Morgan and Anisa in the aftermath of this brutal attack. I mean, it's wild to say the least.

• 12:56Annie Elise?

  Now, when I say that those two girls genuinely believed in Slenderman, I mean it. He was definitely real to them. I mean, as real to them as you and me.

• 13:06Speaker 05

  If you feel bad, then just stab one of your best friends.

• 13:12Speaker 06

  I thought about it, but then I decided that remorse will get me nowhere. It's easier to live without regrets. She was my only friend for a long time.

• 13:20Speaker 05

  Why were you her only friend?

• 13:22Speaker 06

  It was necessary. It was weird. I felt no remorse. I thought I would.

• 13:29Speaker 05

  It was weird that you felt remorse?

• 13:30Speaker 06

  Mm-hmm. I actually felt nothing.

• 13:34Annie Elise?

  Now thankfully, Peyton made it out alive. But after the attacks, Morgan and Anisa then just instructed her to lie down while they went and supposedly were going to go get her help. However, she knew after some time had passed that what they promised her was just like a complete and total lie. They weren't getting her help. So she was somehow able to crawl to a nearby bike path nearly five hours after the attack. And when she did that, someone luckily found her and was able to get her help. But the fact that she was even able to make it out of this attack alive is honestly a miracle because of the 19 stab wounds that were across her arms, her legs, her torso, her liver and her stomach were two of the major organs that were hit. She was stabbed also with a five inch long blade.

• 14:18Annie Elise?

  Miraculously, I mean intervention by God or whoever you believe in, one of the stab wounds missed a major artery by less than a millimeter. It took surgeons over six hours in surgery to repair the damage, but they did and she's still alive today because of it. So when all of this was first going down, Morgan initially pleaded guilty to attempted first degree intentional homicide, but she was Later found not guilty by reason of mental defect. So she was sentenced to up to 40 years in a psychiatric facility and she was sent in 2018 to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute. Shortly after the stabbings, Morgan was then diagnosed with schizophrenia. Now, her doctors for right now, of the current day, stated that she quote, "Continues to

• 15:03Annie Elise?

  exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, also anxiety and autism." But they clarified that she has shown no signs of any suicidal ideation since her 2021 attempt because she had attempted to take her own life a couple of years into her stay and sentence. Now, Anisa, on the other hand, also pleaded guilty to attempted second-degree intentional homicide, but she was later found not guilty also by reason of mental defect. She was sentenced to up to 25 years in a psychiatric institution. But she was later granted release in 2021 and she was ordered to live with her father and wear a GPS ankle monitor. Now, since June of 2022, Morgan and her legal team have filed four petitions for her release.

• 15:46Annie Elise?

  The first two were withdrawn after the doctors' reports essentially showed, you know, that she was not ready, and the third in April of 2024 was also denied, stating that she still potentially presented a threat to the public. And then, of course, now this fourth petition, it was actually granted. Three different psychologists who worked closely with Morgan at the treatment facility all spoke in favor of her release, stating she had made immense progress. Take a listen.

• 16:12Speaker 07

  Correct. And again, that risk management part is a prediction of what she's likely to face, but her institutional stability, her acceptance of rules, her willingness to accept feedback, that all bodes well for her compliance with conditional release. To be clear, your ultimate conclusion is that you are in support- Part of her petition for conditional release. Yes.

• 16:38Annie Elise?

  One doctor informed the court that Morgan had been taken off of her antipsychotic medications in early 2023, and since then had not had any symptoms. Another argued that if she remained contained and began to lose all hope of ever becoming a functioning part of society again, she, quote, "may become more dangerous." Now, my first thought when hearing that was, how can they say she isn't a danger to society, but also say that if she reaches a low point, she could become even more dangerous? I mean, it sounds kind of contradictory, right? I don't know. It just worries me. And I think, too, after three petitions, where they say over and over again, "You're not ready," can you then learn how to fake being ready so that the fourth petition goes through?

• 17:23Annie Elise?

  Something about this just does not sit right with me. So, the county circuit judge, Michael Boren, stated that her crime was, quote, "a brutal, terrible offense." But ultimately felt like she has since grown up. He also stated that in order for her to be truly rehabilitated, she needs to exist as a part of society. So, the judge's final order was for the State Department of Health Services to set up a plan for her to be in a group home, as well as supervise her for his consideration at a hearing within 60 days. Now, Payton's family, as you can imagine, was not hoping for this outcome. Prior to the hearing, her family even released a statement saying, "Morgan Geiser has withdrawn her request to be released twice.

• 18:06Annie Elise?

  More recently, her request was denied. We are confident that the judicial system will make a decision that will ensure the community and my daughter remains safe." So far, there has been no public statement made from either Payton or her family on the outcome of Morgan's hearing, so we'll just see what comes from that. But just imagine how Payton must feel. I mean, having to deal with so much by just 22 years old at this point, and now knowing both her attackers are going to be essentially free. That is a terrifying thought. And I'm curious to know what you guys think. If you think this is the right move, or if you think, like, no, she should remain in there for a little while longer. I personally, obviously, have my own opinions. So, let me know what you guys think.

• 18:51Annie Elise?

  I'm gonna just go grab a quick drink of water. I'll be right back, and let's hear from today's sponsors. And as always, thank you for understanding that sponsors are essential to keeping this podcast free.

• 19:05Annie Elise?

  Whoever says saving money is hard doesn't know that new customers who bundle and save with Progressive save hundreds because switching your home and auto insurance is way better than cutting down on the things you love like those iced lattes that help you get ready to face the day. So switch your home and auto to Progressive and see if you could save and keep sipping away. Get your quote today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and other insurers not available in all states. All right, guys. So now we're back and I want to just talk to you really quickly about the TikTok ban updates because there has been some breaking news as of this morning. Now, as I'm sure you've heard and you've known for a while, the app TikTok has been facing a potential expiration date of January 19th, 2025. And I think a lot of people who love

• 19:50Annie Elise?

  the app and even small businesses on TikTok and even content creators whose income streams come directly from TikTok have kind of been on the edge of their siege, just hoping that something will magically, you know, reverse the ban and not completely like affect their income. And recently, there have been some updates on the potential ban. So let me just say, it's not looking the greatest, guys, but we might have a glimmer of hope. So the ban was all set to go through, like the Supreme Court ruled in favor of it. But then, just this week, Senator Markey introduced a bill to extend the deadline for the TikTok ban, and they took it to the Senate floor. In an excerpt from this, it says, "As the January 19th deadline approaches, TikTok creators and users across the nation are understandably alarmed.

• 20:33Annie Elise?

  They are uncertain about the future of the platform, their accounts, and the vibrant online communities that they have cultivated. These communities cannot be replicated on another app. A ban would dismantle a one-of-a-kind informational and cultural ecosystem, silencing millions in the process. The stakes here are high. That's why I will soon introduce the Extend the TikTok Deadline Act to extend the deadline by which ByteDance must sell TikTok or face a ban by an additional 270 days. Let me be clear, TikTok has its problems, like every social media platform. TikTok poses a serious risk to the privacy and mental health of our young people. So I will continue to hold TikTok accountable for such behavior." But a TikTok ban would impose serious consequences on millions of Americans who

• 21:17Annie Elise?

  depend on the app for social connections and for their economic livelihood. We cannot allow that to happen. And just in on Tuesday Congressman Ro Khanna also signed on to this bill. So we don't know what that means. We don't know if it's going to go through, but as the clock ticks closer towards the 19th, most users want to know two things. What to expect and if there's any hope that after this most recent information and hearing that maybe there will be an extension. Now, first I want to just mention what to expect because if the law does go into effect, you're not going to wake up on the 19th and the app is just no longer on your phone and it's completely like wiped off the face of the earth. That's not how it works. However, there wouldn't be any more updates to the app and newer users who want to download the app will no longer be able to access it in the App Store.

• 22:02Annie Elise?

  And then as time goes on, if your app isn't updating, it basically will become, you know, not usable. So it's going to be a slow process, but you'll still have it for a period of time. Now, apparently a group called Project Liberty, which was formed by billionaire entrepreneur and former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, has made an offer to ByteDance, the owners of TikTok, to buy TikTok. And although I don't know the exact numbers of what the bid was, I also know that Shark Tank investor Kevin O'Leary, who has been backing the group, stated that he would be willing to pay up to 20 billion for TikTok, calling it a legacy opportunity, which I can't even begin to comprehend that kind of money alone, let alone it being spent on an app, but you do you. It sounds like a good deal, apparently.

• 22:45Annie Elise?

  So on top of that, Kevin also added, "We don't need the algorithm. We don't want the algorithm." So clearly there's some kind of working plan going on behind the scenes if ByteDance does decide to sell to a bidder. And even if ByteDance would decide to sell when it's cutting close to the deadline, the law also allows the president to grant a single 90-day extension if the sale is underway. So really, there seems to be a lot of possibility and possible leeway here in terms of options. It's just whether or not it'll sell if they extend it. I mean, only time will tell and the clock is definitely ticking. But what I did find so funny this week is that there was this Chinese app called Red Note. And it's basically the Chinese version of TikTok, which I thought I had no idea that like China didn't have access to TikTok,

• 23:29Annie Elise?

  especially if we're saying that that's the whole threat. I don't know. It goes over my head. But anyway, I was seeing on my TikTok feed that this new, that not this new, but this existing Chinese app called Red Note is similar to TikTok and it's where everybody's going. And when I tell you TikTok users from the US flocked to this app, guys, it has been hysterical. The comment section alone has been like enough to just like bring me so much joy throughout the day because they're all going over there. They're posting their TikToks with like Mandarin subtitles. The people over there are posting their own TikToks saying, "Welcome TikTok refugees. We welcome all Americans." They're posting things from their homework, asking for the Americans to help them. I mean,

• 24:13Annie Elise?

  it is so funny, but also kind of like heartwarming in a weird way because you're seeing just like this new community kind of blossom together where these two people, like these two countries are coming together and like they're accepting each other and they're being so nice to each other. And I mean, I know it's all because of the satire of it all, but it actually is kind of like nice to see. Um, I even saw a TikTok this morning on regular TikTok where it talked about how the congressman signed on for that bill and somebody in the comments, it made me laugh so hard. They're like, "Sorry, can you please put Mandarin subtitles on this? That's my primary language now." Like it's just, it's really, really funny, but I don't know. Sometimes you gotta find humor in the little things, right?

• 24:55Annie Elise?

  Now, I know I kind of just derailed and went on something that's not true crime related. Sorry about that, but I feel like I just needed to talk about the ban because so many people are talking about it and because a lot of you found me on TikTok. So if it goes away, you can find me on Instagram or on YouTube. Now let's talk about this new mysterious case coming out of North Carolina. Because the family of 25-year-old Heather Williams are begging the public to come forward with any potential information in regards to her mysterious death. So Heather was last seen on a ring camera footage on January 4th, 2025 at around 10:00 PM. She was leaving her family's house and getting into a light colored four-door sedan. With a sunroof, but the car was not familiar to any of her friends or family.

• 25:38Annie Elise?

  She was also last seen wearing gray sweatpants and a dark color t-shirt. She hadn't taken any bags with her or anything like she was planning on staying away from home for a while. So they really were upset by seeing this footage. And it also was the last footage of the last time Heather was seen alive. Because nearly six days went by and Heather was still missing. Now with every day that Heather still hadn't come back home, her family, of course, grew more and more worried. And even though Heather had gotten into that car willingly, her friends and family knew that there was no way that she would ever not come home willingly. So they began fearing and of course imagining all of the worst case scenarios, just hoping and praying that by some miracle she would return home and be unharmed. And that it would all just be one big misunderstanding.

• 26:21Annie Elise?

  Her family also stated that Heather was struck by a car in 2015 and that the incident left her with significant cognitive impairment, also a limited vocabulary and limited use of her right leg and arm, causing kind of this pronounced limp, which made her unfortunately a much easier target than most. And it was a big part of the reason of why there was such a sense of urgency to find her. Now, a missing woman in general is terrifying, but a missing woman with disabilities, that creates a whole other level of fear and worry. There were multiple medications that she needed to take daily and it would affect her ability to function properly if she didn't take them almost immediately. This was also why when the statewide missing persons alert was sent out,

• 27:03Annie Elise?

  she was considered to be a missing and endangered person, not just a missing person. Despite her struggles after the accident though, her family says that she worked tirelessly to regain as much health as possible and to overall just live a normal life. Her sister Mary Williams even described her by saying, "Over the years, she's worked really hard, just having a normal life and doing normal things that 25-year-olds do. But she was loving and she loved her family and she loved Jesus." Her family also warned the public that the car that she was seen getting into may have belonged to somebody that she met online, although they couldn't know for sure. The exact reasoning for why they might believe that, I'm not so sure. But I would imagine that being 25- And trying to live a normal life, Heather probably was interested in online dating and

• 27:47Annie Elise?

  meeting new people, which her close family and friends would have probably all known about. But again, I'm not exactly sure. We all know, especially online, people have their secrets. So on January 10th, the local newspaper, The Observer, reported that police had located the car that was seen on the Ring camera footage and that the driver had also been identified. I don't know if that information has been given to her family yet. I would imagine it has. I also don't know if it's like strictly confidential for law enforcement only. Who knows? But the same day that that car was found and that driver was identified, the body of a woman was found by the local police and it was found in a heavily wooded area. The body was later identified as being Heather. Her sister made a statement through Facebook after finding out about this tragic news

• 28:30Annie Elise?

  saying, "I pray whoever is responsible for this is held accountable and that there is justice for Heather. Our family finds comfort in the love that Heather had for God and through all of her trials and tribulations, she has never lost faith and I know we won't lose ours either. I thank God for the years that we had with her. Thank you everyone who has prayed, reached out and helped us try to find her. Please continue to pray for my parents." Now, other than the area that her body was found in, not a whole lot is like known at the moment about how Heather's body was found. Her cause of death, as well as the time of death, is also still yet to be discovered pending her autopsy. The police did, however, immediately begin investigating her death as a homicide. So following the identification

• 29:13Annie Elise?

  of the driver, the police also announced that they did have a person of interest, yet the driver's name still hasn't been released to the public. And so far, no arrests have been made either.

• 29:23Speaker 06

  We were really just thinking, you know, that she would come home or she was with somebody. What happened to Heather is awful and I wouldn't want it to happen to anybody else. And so with that person still out there, um, still able to harm other people, it's horrific to think about. I hope people remember Heather as somebody who...

• 29:44Speaker 06

  Has, you know, persevered and somebody who always wore a smile and can make people laugh.

• 29:51Annie Elise?

  One of the few things we do know about the current investigation is that the police announced that they were able to trace a three-minute phone call made by Heather in the days leading up to her disappearance. The update didn't specifically say if it was to the unidentified driver or why this phone call was significant to her case, but reading between the lines, I kind of feel like A points to B, points to C, it kind of makes sense. We also learned that the last activity on her phone was at 12:10 a.m. and it was a text message that was sent to her phone. So it was a little after two hours after Heather was seen getting into that car. It hasn't been shared with the public who that text was from, who wrote it, or what was said. Now, I would imagine that since this case is still so fresh, a

• 30:32Annie Elise?

  lot of like, really key bits of information probably won't be shared with the public until an official arrest has been made, so that they can, you know, really protect the integrity of the case. But despite having a person of interest, Heather's case is still far from being closed. And right now, the police, as well as her family, are urging the public to come forward with any potential information surrounding the case. They said, "I just ask that the people out there, if they hear anything, or if they see anything, you know, somebody knows something. Somebody has talked to somebody. Somebody has slipped up along the way. So somebody's got to know something. And I just pray that whoever does know anything comes forward and that we're able to get justice for Heather." So I'm going

• 31:13Annie Elise?

  to keep tabs on this case and I will definitely let you know as we hear more. But my initial inkling, and I could be completely wrong, but I would imagine that maybe she was talking to somebody online. They offered to pick her up. They were going to go for a date. Maybe she was embarrassed, wanted to keep it a secret. And I would imagine there is some sort of connection with this driver, because if not, why not announce that they've ruled them out as a suspect? Why not announce who they were or what the connection was? I mean, something just isn't making sense. I would imagine they have the driver, but they probably don't have enough to tie them to Heather's death. Maybe they're still waiting on evidence. They're waiting on like, extra CCTV footage. And that's why they're... Trying to crowdsource, I'm not really sure, but I will keep you updated.

• 31:57Annie Elise?

  Now, this next case is about a man who has been arrested for murdering his 29-year-old girlfriend. So let me talk to you a little bit about this case. 29-year-old Shannon Anderson was reported missing by her 40-year-old boyfriend Jonathan Link back on July 30th, 2001. Now, when she went missing, there were no signs of forced entry and no signs of a struggle at Shannon's house. So without much information, the police just started investigating. And for weeks, police in this area, which was Kettering, Ohio, they were searching for her. They were hoping for answers. They were trying to find any information possible. But ultimately, their worst fears were confirmed when her decomposed body was discovered on August 16th, a little over two weeks after she was reported missing.

• 32:42Annie Elise?

  She was found in a rural area of Ross County, which was over an hour away from where she was last seen. Her body also indicated that there was severe trauma. Shannon was the mother of two daughters, then ages seven and nine. She was also estranged from her husband. Her cause of death ended up being ruled multiple blunt force trauma to the head. This was according to the prosecutor's office. And strangely, her car was later found abandoned in a parking lot at the Atlanta Airport, but it wasn't found until October of that year. So months later, which kind of just added a really eerie twist to the case. So without much evidence but the boyfriend who had reported her missing, that's really who became the prime suspect.

• 33:23Annie Elise?

  Now, back in 2002, the Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office tried to bring the case to a grand jury, but they just didn't have enough evidence at the time to move forward. And although extensive investigative efforts were made at the time of the murder, including evidence collection and even witness interviews, the case went unsolved. So for decades, Shannon's family and friends and her children were left without justice or closure. But the investigators didn't give up. And over the years, law enforcement worked tirelessly to reexamine the evidence, to interview new witnesses and just really build a stronger case. And their persistence, it paid off. Through the investigation, more witnesses were located. And interviewed and new digital forensic evidence was also found and tested.

• 34:08Annie Elise?

  So on January 13th, 2025, the Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office announced that Jonathan Link has now been indicted on two counts of murder. That was her boyfriend who had reported her missing. This is literally 20 years later. It is crazy. So he's sent to be arraigned on January 28th, marking a huge step forward in the pursuit of justice for Shannon. And in a statement about the indictment, the prosecuting attorney praised the dedication of the Kettering Police Department and all of the other agencies that were involved, saying, "Finally, after nearly a quarter century, this defendant will be held responsible for the murder of Shannon Anderson." And the reason I wanted to talk about that is because not only is it great that somebody

• 34:51Annie Elise?

  is finally arrested and justice can be had, but it's a heartbreaking reminder of how long the road to justice really can be. But it's also proof of what can happen when investigators and family and friends refuse to give up. So now her children, her family, her friends hopefully will get the answers that they have desperately been waiting for, for literally decades. So I like stories like that because it has a happy ending. Okay, guys, that is it for this week's episode of Headline Highlights. Thank you so much for tuning in with me. I am going to be back on the mic with you first thing Monday morning with an all-new deep dive into a case. It's a wild one. I mean, you have got catfishing, you've got love triangles, love, what's the, what's a square, quadrants, quadruple, I don't even know what it is.

• 35:37Annie Elise?

  It is so, so insane. So we're diving into all the nitty-gritty bits and pieces of it on Monday. And as a reminder, if you feel like you still need more content to binge, you're not quite done with your true crime fix for the week, or your podcasters, your favorite ones aren't putting out new episodes, we put out ad-free bonus episodes every single Friday. So you can get access to that either through Patreon, which is patreon.com/annieleese, or directly on the Apple Podcast app. And when you go there now, you'll unlock about 70 bonus episodes. So you will have a library of content to binge. All right, guys, thank you so much for tuning in. Be safe, be nice, don't kill anybody, just get a divorce, don't join any cults, and just try to be a good human. We're all doing our best, right?

• 36:21Annie Elise?

  All right, I will be back on the mic with you very soon. Until then, stay safe. Bye.

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