A cyberstalking campaign leads to real-world tragedy | Forensic Files

[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
time you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support
and for a more detailed list of content warnings please the show notes for this episode on your app or on our
[Music] website Craigslist is an American website offering a wide range of classified
advertisements there are categories dedicated to everything from jobs to services for hire and everything in
between formerly launched in 1996 the site has expanded to over 70 countries and is considered the leading classified
service in any medium with an estimated value of more than a billion dollar each month 200 million postings
are made to Craigslist which draw over 20 billion page views making it one of the most popular websites in the world
more than 90% of its traffic comes from the United States where individual states and cities are given their own
dedicated portals to allow users to narrow their interactions to specific areas towards the middle of 2016 an
advertisement was placed on the Californian Craigslist site targeting individuals in Orange County a region 35
Mi southeast of Metropolitan Los Angeles it appeared under the personals section within a subcategory titled
casual encounters a space for individuals seeking no strings attached hookups the ad featured the heading rape
fantasy and was accompanied by an image of a partially clothed woman being violently restrained by a
man it's text read I am looking for women who have fantasies about being raped SL forced to perform I've done
this before with a couple of ex-girlfriends and found it very intense and exciting we would agree on the
limits before meeting and we could meet at a safe location like a hotel The Advertiser assured potential
partners that he was quote a sane cleancut professional on Monday June 133 2016 he
received a response from a female user who wrote I have been dying to have a rape fantasy occur watched while walking
my dog following me to the door and forcing me into my condo I am 30 tall gorgeous and
ready I have a walkie I walk every night say 8:00 p.m. if you are free tonight come find me force me into my house and
take me down the responder provided her address a condominium on South Anaheim Boulevard
in the city of [Music] Anaheim [Music] Ian Diaz took his work as a United States Deputy Marshal seriously often
wearing his uniform even when he wasn't on duty his identity revolved around his
job with the majority of his friends also working in law enforcement but despite his dedication
to his career he was eager to find fulfillment outside of work as well when he found himself newly single at the age
of 38 he did what so many singles do in the 21st century he turned to the internet while browsing an online dating
site Ian connected with a 30-year-old woman named Angela Connell after chatting for a little bit
the pair decided to meet in person they had their first date on Saturday January 2
2016 the beginning of a new year seemed like an auspicious time to embark on a new
relationship Ian found Angela to be sweet charming and caring she had a wide smile dark brown hair and a chocolate
brown eyes Ian's attraction to Angela was reciprocated and the pair began a whirlwind
romance within the same month of meeting Ian proposed marriage on Friday January
29 and Angela accepted 2 weeks after they became engaged the couple traveled to Boise
Idaho to visit Angela's parents during the trip Angela announced to her fiance and her family that she was
pregnant with the couple now expecting a child together they decided to FasTrack
their relationship even further when they got back to California Angela would move into Ian's condo
on the afternoon of Friday February 19 Ian returned home to discover that Angela had moved herself in while he was
at work the pair chattered about the pregnancy and Angela's lack of health insurance deciding they should marry as
soon as possible so Angela could access Ian's government health benefits 3 days later they tied the knot
in a quiet Courthouse ceremony everything appeared to be on track for their new life together
weeks later in April tragedy struck when Angela suffered a miscarriage the couple decided to try
for another baby straight away and by the following month Angela was pregnant again this time with
twins what should have been a happy and exciting time was Disturbed in late May when the newly wedded Angela Diaz began
receiving some troubling emails the messages were sent from from a number of different email addresses
attributed to the name Lilith a figure associated with the Jewish mythology Lilith is considered to
be a dangerous and immoral temptress who steals babies in the night one of the emails to Angela
read There are legends that Adam had a wife before Eve who was named Lilith but this is not found in the Bible the
Legends vary significantly but they all essentially agree that Lilith left Adam because she did not want to submit to
him according to the Legends Lilith was an evil Wicked woman who committed adultery with Satan and produced a race
of evil creatures 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 he is using you for everything don't you see this he is obsessed with me I am his treasure princess you are
nothing watch your back tomorrow another email sent from Lilith's truth outlook.com
read you will lose your baby and it will be done by the will of God God's Vengeance will rise
up Angela also received messages via her LinkedIn profile an employment orientated website used for for
professional networking the messages were from someone named Jason Ray who wrote In all
capital letters Michelle was his one true and honored first love you are nothing to
him when Ian saw the messages he immediately recognized the language used in them and knew who the Michelle
referred to was Ian hadn't told Angela this when they first met but he was embroiled in
an ongoing legal dispute with his ex partner a woman named Michelle Hadley the pair had met 2 and 1/2 years
earlier in October 2013 and had gotten engaged one year later in May 2015 they purchased a
two-bedroom dual story condo in a brand new development on South Anaheim Boulevard this was less than a mile from
Anaheim City Center and close to Disneyland where where Michelle worked the condo cost
$468,500 and Michelle paid a $14,400 deposit up front Ian planned to gradually reimburse
her when he could and the couple would share the mortgage repayments by the time the couple moved
into the condo 1 month later their relationship was in sharp decline fights were common place and escalated at an
alarming rate Ian recalled how at one stage Michelle had yelled at him I hate you I hate this house and if it were up
to me I'd burn this down after living with Michelle for a little over a month Ian told his friends
that he could no longer deal with her emotional instability he reclaimed the engagement
ring he'd given her and in August 2015 she moved out as Michelle was still obliged to to pay her share of the
mortgage while Ian remained in their condo the property became a source of contention within days of leaving
Michelle began bombarding Ian with emails wanting to know what was going to happen with the condo and requesting he
pay her back her messages weren't always hostile sometimes her demands for resolution were interspersed with words
of gratitude such as when she thanked Ian for sorting out her car insurance but soon the emails took a turn Michelle
started referencing the Bible and using Grim religious imagery to threaten aan in one she wrote your sins are many
including defiling me and my family with your wicked and evil sexual acts your financial coercion and irresponsibility
your gluttony your greed Your Lust your sloth your wrath your envy and most of all your
pride I will bring the full force of the law and the word of God against you to judge
you to this Ian replied I am not sure how God or the Bible has any relevance to the condo and
Mortgage in an email with the subject line gong girl Michelle wrote you know exactly how God the word
of God the spirit of God are involved with the condo we both do your end will come and you will relinquish the keys to
the Earth Earth is mine and the title deed to Earth belongs to me there will be no resolution outside
of Court unless you are willing to Bow before the Lord your God if you are not then prepare yourself Satan so let it be
written so let it be done in another email she stated please explain to to your real
estate attorney that God's law is above all laws prepare yourself and prepare your
armies in the weeks that followed Michelle's emails continued to intensify as a precaution Ian shared
them with his friends and colleagues in law enforcement he then emailed Michelle
with a warning quote the Anaheim Police Department in conjunction with the United States
Marshall service are fully aware of you your issues with me and have copies of every email we have exchanged since you
left Michelle kept contacting Ian regardless in September 2015 he began the process of taking out a restraining
order against her in his petition Ian wrote I work as a US Marshal and after showing my supervisor the threatening
emails he recommended that I seek a domestic violence restraining order Michelle has told me that I must comply
with her demands or be prepared for God's Vengeance and referred to me as Satan and the
Antichrist because of her emotional instability history of fits of rage and self-medication with alcohol I fear for
my safety Ian included examples of Michelle's behavior that had made him feel unsafe one was a February 2014 incident
in which an ir8 Michelle had screamed at him I wish you could be a better man sexually Ian said he told her to go
online to find someone else a week later Michelle revealed she had been unfaithful and blamed Ian for making her
cheat another time she allegedly grabbed their puppy by the neck and yelled Don't
Make Me Hurt You Ian admitted to sometimes being so afraid of Michelle that he had his
mother stay with him at the condo 3 weeks after it was filed the petition was dismissed but tensions between the
two seemed to have settled both Ian and Michelle retained property attorneys instead of trying to
sort out the condo themselves and were able to find a compromise on November 24 2015 Ian
agreed to pay Michelle $3,000 in exchange for remaining in the condo for 6 months while he sorted out his
finances his goal was to take over the mortgage entirely by June 5 2016 if he failed to do so in that time
frame he would sell the condo and split any profits with Michelle just over a month after
reaching this agreement Ian met Angela Connell and initially neglected to tell her about the
situation while the two threw themselves into their new life together the deadline for Ian to take over the
mortgage grew closer but Ian was having trouble finalizing arrangements with his
bank by May 2016 Angela was pregnant with twins and there was only one month until Ian was
due to assume the mortgage in fool that's when Michelle began contacting him again Ian informed Michelle that he was
married with two children on the way she threatened to sue if he was unable to uphold his end of the agreement
on May 22 Michelle wrote you told me I was your first love but you did not treat me like the precious perfect
treasure I am you have sinned against God and I want my power back because it belongs to the daughters of
God a few days later Angela began receiving messages with similar biblical references and a grim religious
tone given that Michelle seemed like the the obvious sender on May 26 2016 Angela
responded to the LinkedIn message she'd received from Jason Ray writing Michelle
Hadley I want you to please stop emailing me the emails continued and became increasingly violent over the next few
days Angela received messages that said I hope you are scared to death tomorrow be prepared don't sleep
we will steal your child and we will watch as it dies you deserve nothing but a life of
lonely torture you are a piece of and I hope to God you burned for what you have done to
us on June 1 2016 when Angela received an email that read 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 following this Angela and Ian went to the Anaheim Police Department to apply for a restraining order against
Michelle Hadley in her petition Angela included a collection of the threatening messages
and wrote Miss hudley has been emailing me for over one week repeatedly threatening my life my marriage my
safety and slandering my husband m has used over six different email addresses to contact me despite a request to cease
communication I am now fearful of leaving my home have had to delete my online presence and am incredibly
emotionally distressed I am fearful of being raped attacked killed I have had to completely uproot my life including
missing work at a new job to quash this issue the tone and tenor of these emails
escalates and there seems no sign of stopping a court hearing was scheduled and Angela was granted a temporary
restraining order against Michelle the next day she received an email in which the sender claimed to
have been watching her leave her workplace let's play a game they exclaimed another message dated June 6
warned you 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 Angela made another report to the police who filed official reports
against Michelle Hadley for stalking criminal threats and violating a protective
order meanwhile Ian's application to assume the mortgage for the Anaheim condo was denied as per the terms of
their agreement this man he' have to sell the property and split the proceeds with
Michelle a week later a stranger arrived at Ian's condo claiming he was there to
have consensual rough sex with Angela he explained that he'd posted an advertisement on Craigslist seeking a
rape fantasy partner and someone named Lilith Hadley had replied with this address the man left without incident
after which Ian and Angela filed a report with the Anaheim Police Department detective Michael kuna took
the lead on the case and filed an attempted forcable rape complaint against Michelle
Hadley over the following week several other men contacted Angela all believing that they were going to take part in a
consensual rape fantasy one individual had even planned to travel by plane to meet up with
Angela only to be intercepted by detective kuna another contacted and as directly
to apologize for the misunderstanding adding that the person who had responded to his Craigslist ad had also sent him
photos of Angela when the Diaz's saw the photographs Angela recognized them as having come from her Instagram
account Ian was Furious while he was responsible for investigating threats against judges and prosecutors as part
of his role as a deputy United States Marshal he told detectives that he'd never seen anything like
this he complained about the lack of action taken against Michelle Hadley adding she needs to be in cuffs
and in a padded room Ian told investigators his ex was hiding out at her parents' home and
urged them to arrest her immediately on Friday June 24 2016 police were dispatched to the Dez's
condominium after receiving a 911 call in an alley that provided access to the building's garage they found Angela Diaz
in hysterics her shirt was torn and she had bruises to her right Temple as well as
red marks on the left side of her neck and above her left breast she told the officers that she'd
been in the garage when a man jumped out and dragged her to the ground he attempted to rape her but fled when she
screamed for help in Angela had a little doubt the attack was related to the fraudulent
Craigslist advertisements she told the officers the name of the person she believed was
behind the ads Michelle Hadley that evening detective Michael kuner and two plain clothes officers
arrived at Michelle's parents house and presented Michelle with a search warrant
for her electronic devices she handed over her mobile phone laptop and iPad along with the passcodes
to access them detective kuna checked Michelle's phone and saw she had an email from
Craigslist it asked her to confirm an advertisement she delisted in the casual encounters section titled rape
fantasy Michelle Hadley was taken into custody she was charged with violating her restraining order with bail set at
$100,000 her parents who owned a small manufacturing business scraped together enough money to secure her release for
the following morning of Saturday June 25 an hour later Angela Diaz started receiving emails
again some included disturbing images of women being beaten strangled groped by masked men or
murdered one featured pictures of aborted fetuses and warned Angela not to expect her babies to be born in another
the the sender demanded that Angela contact them the phone number and email address they provided belonged to
Michelle Hadley's parents over on Craig's List the rape fantasy advertisements also
resumed in an effort to confirm who was making the posts detective kuna started responding to them he contacted users
who were soliciting partners for such acts and warned them to ignore anyone who responded with the Diaz's
address in an effort to help aan Diaz also replied to the ads but detective kuna felt this was an unwanted
interference that could do more harm than good on Monday July 11 2016 2 weeks after Michelle's release from custody
another rape fantasy ad was posted responders were once again directed to the Diaz's
condo 2 days later Angela contacted the police to report a man lurking outside her home responding officers found a
17-year-old male in the condo's Courtyard he claimed he was there regarding a Craigslist ad for a no
strings attached hookup at midday the following day four police officers arrived at Michelle
Hadley's parents' place of business detective coer announced that he had electronic evidence that
Michelle's verified email account was being being used to send harassing emails he then arrested Michelle for
attempted rape she was charged with stalking assault with intent to rape in commission of a burglary six counts of
attempted rape and criminal threats with intent to terrorize if convicted she faced a
maximum sentence of life in prison this time her bail was set at $1 million unable to secure the funds
Michelle would remain in custody pending trial the Orange County district attorney issued a press release
detailing the circumstances surrounding the bizarre case which quickly attracted
media attention journalists started camping outside of Michelle's parents' home they
depicted the crime as a cat fight and Deadly Love Triangle in which an obsessed stalker campaigned to destroy
the lives of her former fiance and his pregnant wife Michelle Hadley's crimes were called
depraved and earned her the number nine spot on the OC Weekly newspapers list of
Orange County's 31 scariest people of 2016 notably the stalking and harassment of Angela Diaz stopped the moment
Michelle was taken into custody an Orange County Deputy district attorney described the crime as an example of the
dangers of social media and expressed expressed his confidence in the case against Michelle Hadley
quote the police did a thorough investigation with what was presented to us we have enough evidence to prove this
case to a jury Beyond A Reasonable [Music] Doubt Michael and Suzanne Hadley visited
their daughter on her first day behind bars unable to believe the predicament she was in
this was not the Michelle they knew as self-confessed the goody two shoes Michelle Hadley had grown up in the
californi city of Ontario with her parents and younger sister she had been a good student participating in her High
School's cross country running team and earning a scholarship to Dickinson College she graduated from the
University a few years later with a bachelor's degree in medieval studies at age 22
Michelle married her high school sweetheart and worked a various jobs before securing a position as a
marketing executive for an insurance management company her marriage was shortlived and
following her divorce 26-year-old Michelle signed up for online dating in 2013 she connected with
35-year-old Ian Diaz and the pair met in person for the first time at a Starbucks
coffee shop in August of that year the relationship moved quickly on their second date Ian professed his love and
gifted Michelle a down payment for an annual pass to his favorite place on Earth Disneyland
California at Ian suggestion Michelle later quit her marketing job and accepted a position at the fame Resort
working as an associate program manager in December 2014 just over a year into their relationship Ian
surprised Michelle with a romantic trip to New York for her 28th birthday as the couples stood at top of
the famous Rockefeller Center Ian proposed with a large diamond ring Michelle said yes and the pair planned
to tie the knot in February 2016 in the months that followed Michelle and Ian bought a Yorkshire
Terrier puppy they named Chewy and began looking for their first home together in May 2015 they purchased the condo
that would later be the cause of so much angst after their relationship broke down and the legal battle over the
property began Michelle began emailing Ian constantly in an attempt to resolve the
matter but although she admitted to sending her ex some angry emails peppered with religious imagery she was
adamant that she had never reached out to his new partner Michelle's parents believed her they
were certain that Michelle was being framed and were willing to do anything within their means to prove her
innocence as they couldn't afford to pay both her bail and the legal fees required to hire an attorney Michelle
opted to remain in prison so her family could pull all their funds towards finding her the best lawyer
possible they eventually settled on Orange County criminal defense attorney Michael Jun
juy Michael juy prided himself on thinking objectively on his client's behalf taking the time to understand
where they came from and giving them the fair chance they deserved he often told his
clients you should not give up on yourself because we will not give up on you and we will stand right by your side
until we get you off your trouble let's work it out the Hadley reached out to Michael
Dusty and he agreed to meet with Michelle to discuss her case she told him her version of events and he was
surprised to find the woman portrayed as crazed and vengeful in the Press was in
fact a gentle and private person juy described Michelle as a wide-eyed and bubbly young woman with a
Lust For Life a self-confessed super nerd she had a straightforward personality that reflected her
conservative and modest upbringing prior to this arrest she had never been in trouble with the
law Michelle said that when she had reached out to Ian in May 2016 to notify him of her intention to sue if he failed
to assume their mortgage by the arranged deadline she had been in a state of high
stress in the wake of their breakup her mental health deteriorated to the point that she began self-medicating with
alcohol two days after she sent this email to Ian she began receiving some online messages encouraging her to reach
out to Ian's new wife Michelle had never met Angela Diaz but she' noticed her name on some of
Ian's financial paperwork prompting her to realize he'd moved on Michelle also received several
notifications from Google informing her that various Gmail accounts were attempting to forward their emails to
her account when Michelle emailed these Gmail accounts asking who they belonged to she
received an automated response saying they'd been shut down scared by these developments
Michelle moved back in with her parents gave up her job to work for the family business and a dropped out of the
Masters of Business Administration course she was taking on Wednesday June 1 2016 m
Michelle was shocked when officers visited her parents' home to announce that Angela Diaz had filed a restraining
order against her Michelle had no idea what was happening she'd only recently learned of
Angela's existence and had never seen her nor had any contact with her shortly after Michelle learned that
Ian's application to assume the mortgage on the condo was denied under the agreement this should
have triggered the sale of the with any proceeds being split between the two of them 3 Days Later Michelle was served
with a physical copy of a temporary restraining order against Angela Diaz there was no evidence or
allegations attached so she had no idea what the order was in relation to later that day she received an email from an
unfamiliar address purporting to be from Ian urging Michelle to visit their condo suspecting it was a trap to make
her violate the restraining order Michelle didn't respond that evening a detective phoned
Michelle to inform her that Ian's new wife was receiving threatening messages from an email address that allegedly
belonged to Michelle in turn Michelle reported the suspicious emails and baseless
restraining order suspecting she was being framed she requested that the email IP
addresses be traced in the hopes it could identify the computer they'd been sent
from she was told another detective would be assigned to investigate the matter after repeatedly calling the
Anaheim Police Department Michelle was eventually told that her case had been passed on to a detective named Michael
Lee over the following week she left Detective Lee three detailed voicemails expressing her fear that she was being
set up to violate her restraining order and that the situation would escalate she continued to receive
notifications that various email addresses were being fraudulently linked to her personal account and reported six
of them to software company Microsoft on Wednesday June 15 having received no assistance from the local
police Michelle filed a complaint referral form with the FBI in it she wrote while I don't know exactly who is
doing it I have a reason to believe that my ex fiance Ian Diaz also a deputy US Marshall is using
gmail.com outlook.com and hotmail.com to impersonate me online and send threatening emails to his current
wife to scare me into letting him keep the property we co-own I would like IP address research
conducted to identify where the email are coming from and if possible who is creating
them when she didn't hear back from the FBI Michelle emailed the Department of Justice asking how she could file a
formal complaint against Ian the next day she sent a follow-up email in which she added quote I cannot
repeat enough how urgent and serious this matter is she received an automated response
thanking her for her message but nothing more on Friday June 17 Michelle attended
court for her restraining order hearing Ian was there along with a supportive crowd of friends and family who heckled
Michelle as she waited for proceedings to begin Angela Diaz was also present leading to Michelle's first ever meeting
with her Angela approached Michelle and thrust a stack of papers at her while saying here you
go the papers contained excerpts of emails that featured violent threats and disturbing
imagery after the hearing Michelle sent a follow-up email to Microsoft urging them to trace the IP addresses of
whoever was trying to link their accounts to hers she described the matter as a somewhat urgent
situation a few days later she received a notification from Craigslist asking her to verify an advertisement
attributed to her email account titled gang rape fantasy Craigslist didn't have a
telephone number she could call so Michelle reported the fake ad to abuse at craigslist.org at 11:45 p.m. on Friday
June 24 2016 Michelle was returning to her parents house after a date when an unmarked car pulled up three men in
plain clothes emerged they identified themselves as police officers among them was detective
Michael Lee who was overseeing her case as well as detective Michael kuna who was assisting Ian and Angela
Diaz they asked to see her electronic devices Michelle handed over her mobile phone laptop and iPad thinking they were
following up on her reports she also showed the detectives the spoofed emails linked to her
account the detectives informed Michelle that someone had broken into the Dez's condo with the intention of raping
Angela as the detectives looked through her emails and fired questions at her it
slowly dawned on Michelle that she was being treated as a suspect detective kuna focused on emails
from Ian r as gmail.com and one from Craigslist verifying the gang rape fantasy advertisement Michelle insisted she had
no idea what the Craigslist ad related to and explained that she hadn't sent but received the emails from ianr DS
gmail.com in an attempt to prove that she too was a victim Michelle told them about the emails she had sent to the FBI
the Department of Justice Microsoft and Craigslist she also mentioned the three voicemails she had left Detective Lee
over the last week none of which he'd responded to detective kuna asked Michelle what
detective Lee's phone extension was to prove she'd been contacting him when she gave the correct number Detective Lee
assumed a sheepish expression and said well looks like I'm in trouble again tonight
Michelle was arrested and charged with fire felonies and a misdemeanor she was released the next morning after her
parents secured her bail over the next few weeks Michelle rarely left her parents' house except to
work at their business she didn't want to be left alone and ceased going online as all her electronic devices were still
in the possession of the Anaheim Police Department then on Thursday July 14 2016 several
police cars pulled up outside the Hadley's business and four detectives entered detective kuna told Michelle he
had evidence that emails were still being sent from her Gmail account her father said that it was impossible as
Michelle didn't have any of her personal electronics in her possession if she wanted to log into her
emails from a completely new device Gmail's two-factor authentication required her to have access to her cell
phone undeterred the detectives arrested Michelle for attempted rape and she was
held in custody at Orange County Central women's jail pending trial jail was a terrifying experience
for Michelle she underwent invasive cavity searches her eyesight was compromised when her contact lens
solution was confiscated and her requests for feminine hygiene products went ignored as she was accused of sex crimes
Michelle was assigned to the Jail's high security unit and labeled an R3 offender
informly known as a Romeo many Romeos were accused of child sexual abuse and were known to be the
most dangerous inmates in the system several prisoners had read articles about Michelle's alleged crimes
and harassed her for masterminding such a desperate scheme one night someone slipped a note
with a death threat scrolled on it under her cell door Michelle's fellow inmates accused
her of being an informant slamming her cell wall and calling her a snitch she lived in fear of being
attacked and tried to Fain confidence to mask her Meek nature Romeo's were only allowed out of
their cell for an hour a day plus another for weekend visitors during her daily hour of free time
Michelle was subjected to constant mistreatment and abuse the other inmates ensured she was the last to take a
shower and use the phones she was stuck with the least desirable chores such as cleaning the
toilet Michelle retreated into isolation unable to eat or sleep the number of her jail cell was
leaked to the neighboring Men's prison most likely by a guard this prompted an influx of harassing threatening and
sexually graphic letters from male prisoners feeling hopeless Michelle took Comfort writing to her family in each
letter home she tried to list one positive thing about her life and one thing she was looking forward to upon
her release including having a good cup of coffee meanwhile Michelle's parents worked tirelessly with her attorney to
prove she was being framed they hoped that the IP addresses attached to the key emails would help
exonerate their daughter by identifying the locations where the messages were sent
from obtaining this information from Google and Microsoft was a long drawn out process further Complicated by the
fact that some emails had been sent using a virtual private Network or VPN vpns are able to disguise the user's
address and location making them nearly impossible to trace undeterred Michelle's parents
gathered the emails that had been entered into evidence and painstakingly Drew up a spreadsheet of the times and
dates that each one was sent they made a breakthrough when they were able to determine without a doubt
that their daughter was sitting in a university class without a phone or computer when one was sent
armed with this new information defense attorney Michael juy presented Michelle's case to the district
attorney's office who determined there were enough inconsistencies for the detectives to revisit their
investigation soon the defense team uncovered more and more evidence that seemed to point towards Michelle's
innocence for example on the date Michelle was released on bail following her initial arrest for violating her
restraining order a threatening email was sent to Angela Diaz at 11:28 a.m. at this exact time Michelle was
sitting on the steps of the police station waiting for her parents to pick her up she had no electronic devices on
her at the time as they had all been confiscated by the police the IP addresses of the devices
used to send threatening emails to Angela were eventually obtained some had been s from inside the
Diaz's condo others had come from Angela Diaz's cell phone and a device located at her
father's home in Phoenix Arizona Michelle had been convinced that Ian was using his new wife in an attempt
to frame her but now it appeared as though the person behind the scheme the entire time was
Angela investigat reviewed CCTV footage taken from the alley behind the Diaz's condo on the day Angela claimed the
alleged rape had occurred no suspicious activity was captured Angela's injuries were also
considered relatively minor leading the defense team to believe they could have been self-inflicted or caused by an
accomplice but before they were able to present this latest evidence to the court something entirely unexpected
happened on Saturday September 24 Ian Diaz approached the Anaheim Police and informed them that he now believed his
wife had framed Michelle Ian said he'd started to suspect Angelo in August after he
received an email from one of the threatening Accounts at a time Michelle was in
jail Ian further revealed that he was seeking to have his marriage aned claiming that in Angela had been quote
lying at the pathological level among other things she'd told him her car was at the Mechanics for repairs
when in reality it had been repossessed Angela had also told and she worked at a courthouse he discovered
she'd made this up too even going so far as to fabricate PPS and invent colleagues to maintain her
deception Angela had a credit cards and bank statements issued in the name of Daniel
Clark she told Ian that Daniel Clark not his real name was a friend whom she sometimes received a mail
for earlier that month Ian had discovered a Facebook message in a filtered spam folder that was sent 7
months earlier in February around the same time Angela moved into his condo it was from Daniel's sister
claiming that Angela was in a long-term ter relationship with Daniel and they had just found out she was cheating on
him with Ian given the dates Ian realized that Daniel could have been the real father
of Angela's first pregnancy that resulted in a miscarriage as for her second pregnancy
in which Angela had supposedly been carrying twins Ian told police he'd recently found some sonogram photographs
on Google that were identical to Angela scans these pictures were available to purchase for $7.50 on the e-commerce
website Etsy such photos were typically sold as a prank with Buyers able to customize
them with names dates and the hospital where the fraudulent scan took place Ian had confronted Angela with the
images which he now believed to be fake but she'd insisted hers were real the following morning Ian looked
under the bathroom sink and found a box containing some used pregnancy tests as well as some
pens he examined the tests closely and realized they'd been visibly marked with the pens to indicate a positive
result if Angela was capable of Faking a pregnancy it seemed highly likely to Ian
that she could also stage being the victim of cyberstalking to prove he wasn't involved in Angela's scheme against
Michelle Ian provided detail time sheets of his work hours which showed he wasn't
at home when the threatening emails were sent from his condo faced with this evidence
investigators realized that Angela Diaz had in fact framed Michelle Hadley by masterminding her own ordeal including
the attempted rape by Thursday October 6th 2016 Michelle Hadley had been in custody for
88 8 Days the deputy prosecutor assigned to her case visited her prison cell shook
her hand and said I'm very sorry she was free to go though she still had to wear an ankle monitor as
she hadn't technically been cleared of any charges Michelle returned to her parents' home and was confronted with a
new series of difficulties while she was in jail she'd defaulted on bills and student loans as
a result her credit had been destroyed she'd accured substantial debts and she lost the scholarship money she'd been
receiving for her studies the media were not yet aware that Angela Diaz was the prime suspect
in her own assault meaning a simple Google search of Michelle's name continued to label her a crazy and
diabolical stalk car she therefore couldn't return to University or apply for jobs or housing
with her reputation ruined Michelle's post-traumatic stress disorder returned fed up Michelle gave
prosecutors an ultimatum publicly clear her name or she would tell the media about the way law
enforcement had mishandled her case following the breakdown of her relationship with Ian Angela Diaz had
returned to Phoenix Arizona on Friday January 6th 200 17 police there placed the 31-year-old
under arrest Angela was charged with kidnapping false imprisonment perjury bourgery Grant Theft and falsely
reporting crimes according to One Source Angela seemed unconcerned she apparently laughed when
the district attorney read aloud from one of her previous statements in which she said that Michelle Hadley ruined her
life and should have to register as a sex offender 3 Days Later Michelle Hadley was fully
exonerated after a judge concluded the hearing by telling Michelle she was free to go Michelle wept smiled and embraced
her family outside court she told the media this has been a huge nightmare for me I'm glad it's finally over and I can
move on Orange County's district attorney told the press this is a complex and detailed case and I won't be able to
share all of the details now I want to make sure however that Miss Hadley is cleared in every possible way in the
courtroom and the court of public opinion it needs to be made clear in the media and in cyberspace M Hadley is the
innocent victim of a diabolical scheme the da ad aded that they still weren't sure what motivated Angela Diaz
but guessed that it might have been Revenge quote you have a love triangle maybe a desire to put the dagger into
the older relationship but all that's just speculation at this time the District Attorney's Office
accepted that they had been duped claiming that Angela Diaz had given the appearance of an upper middle class
professional when in reality She Was a Serial con artist a spokesperson for the city of
Anaheim said our heart goes out to Michelle this was an incredibly cruel and complex scheme the extent of which
required us to act in accordance with our duty under the law the work of our detectives is what
ultimately went on to unravel this Unthinkable plot and prove that Michelle was actually the innocent true victim in
this case Angela Diaz's preliminary hearing commenced in August 2017 if the case proceeded to trial she
was looking at 12 years and 8 months in a state prison plus 11 years in a County
Jail less time than the life sentence Michelle Hadley had faced for her charges Angela entered the court wearing
her dark blue prison uniform and appeared composed as she entered a plea of not guilty
her relaxed demeanor remained throughout the hearing with Angela even breaking into a cheerful smile on
occasion her upbeat mood seemed at odds with the prosecution's claims that Angela had an extensive history of lies
and fraud there were the fake pregnancies her embellished work history infidelities and
forgeries additionally some of the threatening LinkedIn messages that Angela had sent to herself were from an
account in the the name of Jason Ray some digging had uncovered that prior to meeting Ian Diaz Angela had
dated a state highway patrol officer named Jason Rayburn it was suspected that she was
adopting his identity to send these messages as reported in The Daily Beast Angela and Jason had met at a
pub Angela falsely told Jason that she was an attorney and they connected over their link careers in law
enforcement they started dating and shortly after Angela told Jason that she'd just been diagnosed with cervical
cancer he invited her to move in with him and rearranged his house to be more accommodating for someone exhausted and
sick from chemotherapy treatments this was no easy task Jason had a son with special needs and the
upending of the household was disruptive to him while Angela underwent treatment she
lost her hair and sent Jason photos from the hospital but her hair grew back quickly
and she never exhibited any of the extreme side effects that are common for individuals undergoing
chemotherapy Angela also began drinking heavily which struck Jason as odd for someone trying to beat
cancer he began to suspect that she wasn't sick at all one day he asked a friend to watch
the house to see if Angela left for her Hospital appointment she never emerged Jason and his friends began
Googling phrases such as cervical cancer and chemotherapy among the images that came
up were the same photos Angela had sent of her treatments it was obvious that she'd
simply saved them from the internet Jason and some friends staged an intervention to confront Angela with
what they knew it turned out that while presenting one front to Jason Angela had been
telling others that he was abusive towards her their 8-month relationship came to
an abrupt end and she left his life as quickly as she'd entered it the intervention had been filmed and
a video of it was shown to the court as part of the Michelle Hadley case to establish Angela's history of scamming
the prosecution also presented forged doctor's notes and employment checks as well as evidence that Angela had
impersonated two of Ian Diaz's ex-girlfriends over email additionally her computer was
found to contain a document titled A Darkness within d'angela Diaz story it was a pitch about the Michelle
hudley case which she'd hoped to send to the Lifetime TV network another document revealed a second Pitch
with a similar name Daughters of God the Angela Diaz story it appeared Angela had planned to
capitalize on the publicity generated following Michelle's arrest the preliminary hearing lasted
more than 2 months and on Tuesday October 17 2017 Angela's attorneys cut a deal in
the face of the overwhelming evidence against her in exchange for a 5-year prison sentence Angela pleaded guilty to
10 felony and 22 misdemeanor charges including kidnapping false imprisonment forgery perjury and falsely reporting a
crime Orange County's DA stated if not for the hard work of law enforcement continuing to investigate
and seek the truth in this case Miss Hadley could have continued to face life in prison it is unfathomable why Ms Diaz
would concoct such a diabolical scheme to hurt an innocent person even while pleading guilty Diaz
showed no remorse Compassion or empathy for the victim we hope the resolution of
this case brings some closure to M Hadley so she can move forward in her life but Michelle Hadley hadn't yet
received the closure she truly desired there was one more person who she wanted to be held accountable for
their crimes when Michelle Hadley had first started dating ends she was swept off
her feet by his romantic gestures and the fast pace of his courtship he'd showered her with gifts compliments and
early Declarations of love Michelle was shy and the only other person she'd ever been in a relationship
with was her high school sweetheart so she was flattered by Ian's attention protectiveness and the way he proudly
paraded her around his friends but over time he became controlling he began dictating her
appearance instructing her to wear crop tops have long acrylic nails and get her
Naval pierced he didn't like her friends yet expected her to spend time with his Ian started to monitor Michelle's
movements and Communications going so far as to install security cameras in their condo and watch the feed remotely
he programmed the settings on her mobile devices so that he could access their information and downloaded the contents
of her computer onto a portable data storage device Ian determined how much Michelle
drank and the hours she slept he often woke her up in the middle of the night to tend to his needs or to keep him
company while he watched television the disruptive sleep patterns impacted Michelle's work she was
constantly sick tired or unable to concentrate and was often interrupted by Ian visiting her office
unannounced although Michelle loved her job Ian pushed her to quit and work at Disneyland
instead the move resulted in a substantial pay cut and Michelle suspected that it was yet another way
for Ian to control her life he had previously worked at the resort and she believed he was keeping tabs on her
through his former colleagues Ian also kept at least four Firearms at home and was often armed
which she found intimidating when the couple were apart Ian bombarded Michelle with text
messages including explicit images of himself Ian had very specific sexual desire
from the beginning of their relationship he had tried to convince Michelle to indulge his fantasy of watching her have
sex with other men whenever she traveled for work he texted her incessantly pleading with her
to have sex with a stranger and record it for him Michelle had no interest in the
proposition and grew increasingly upset by his constant handing she threatened to leave if he didn't
stop but Ian eventually wore her down on Friday February 14 2014 Michelle was taking medication for a cold when
she reluctantly agreed to indulge Ian's FY as a Valentine's Day gift Ian used Craigs List to arrange for
a stranger to come to their house he then dressed Michelle in a provocative outfit gave her three shots of Fireball
whiskey and set up cameras in their bedroom when the man arrived Ian hid in the bathroom and watched as the stranger
had sex with Michelle this experience traumatized Michelle and she requested Ian destroy
the footage he assured her that he had only to later admit that he hadn't instead he used its existence to
taunt and Bully Michelle while continuing to pressure her to have sex with More Strangers
she steadfastly refused saying it felt like rape this made aan Furious in an effort to assert her
independence and regain control over her life Michelle enrolled in a part-time masters of Business Administration
course Ian responded by becoming even more controlling he manufactured arguments so
Michelle had to cut class and insisted on accompanying her to the events she did attend B when she made breakfast
plans with three new friends Ian demanded to join them and then sulked in Silence the entire
time Michelle also suspected that he had fixed a tracking device to her vehicle because anytime she drove outside the
narrow triangle of home school and work Ian would call her immediately Michelle told BuzzFeed news
that when Ian proposed in December 2014 she accepted Ed because she felt somewhat addicted to him she described
his influence as intensifying after the couple moved into their new condo in June
2015 Michelle said that Ian's Behavior escalated he often cornered Michelle and subjected her to angry tirades and rants
that lasted hours one night the couple were out driving when a heated argument broke out
Ian allegedly stopped at the vehicle in the middle of a busy freeway and ordered
Michelle to get out she almost did did but ultimately refused when she tried to leave the
relationship Ian allegedly threw her onto their bed and held her down screaming at her as she tried to escape
his grasp Ian's ongoing demands for Michelle to have sex with strangers caused her
severe emotional distress during the only joint therapy session the couple ever attended
Michelle brought up the Valentine's Day incident as they headed home afterwards a furious Ian drove dangerously while
screaming at her incessantly at one stage Michelle emailed her sister requesting advice
about Ian she told BuzzFeed news that she thought she was the quote crazy one in their relationship but came to
realize there was something seriously wrong with Ian in August 2015 2 years after they met Michelle
packed as many belongings as she could fit into her car and left in response Ian destroyed most of
the things she'd Left Behind he continued making her life Difficult by canceling her car insurance and warning
Michelle that he had people at Disneyland checking up on her when she reported her concerns to the park
security officers some of whom had previously worked with Ian they didn't appear
surprised after leaving aan Michelle was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD and suffered a trauma
induced episode she quit her job at Disneyland and found a new one at a lending company
she also moved into an apartment near her University and informed campus staff that she was afraid of her former
fiance Ian was subsequently banned from setting foot on University grounds but on several occasions Michelle thought
she spotted his car following her the condo they'd bought together made it impossible for Michelle to have
a clean break she felt Ian was using his position in law enforcement to intimidate her into giving him full
ownership of the property the financial and emotional stress of having to continue repaying
its mortgage led to Michelle feeling helpless she self-medicated with alcohol which
further impacted her mental health and symptoms of her post-traumatic stress disorder
manifested it was the effects of her PTSD that led to her sending Ian belligerent emails citing the Bible and
God in one email she confronted Ian over the Valentine's Day incident writing you do not get any woman let
alone the woman you purport to Love Drunk drunk and find a random man for her to have sex with while you make a
pornographic video of her that is rape which is against the law luckily there are plenty of text messages and a video
to prove that you and the man you found coerced me sexually aan informed Michelle that he'd
shown her message to his colleagues in the US Marshall service and the Anaheim Police Department and warned that they
were quote fully aware of of you and your issues with me when the former couple eventually
entered into a mutual settlement agreement on the condo Michelle was relieved even though it meant she stood
to lose most of her down payment when it looked as though Ian didn't intend to adhere to the agreement's deadline
Michelle sent Ian an email stating that she intended to sue him 2 Days Later Michelle began receiving strange emails
and Linkedin messages from unknown Sanders they urged her to warn Ian's new wife
about his behavior and to save her from the life that Michelle had endured Michelle suspected that Ian was
Behind These Anonymous requests as well as the attempts to forward emails from other accounts to her personal
Gmail she feared that this was part of a plot he'd concocted to get out of their
condo agreement too scared to continue living alone she sold all her furniture gave up
her lease resigned from her job dropped out of University and moved back in with
her parents in the weeks that followed Michelle's World fell apart she was summoned to court after
Angela Diaz filed a restraining order against her she was accused of sending threatening emails and then arrested for
attempted rape after an apparent attack against Angela Michelle did everything she could
think of to figure out who was was behind the emails and Craigslist advertisements but the Anaheim Police
Department didn't appear interested in investigating her claims Michelle believed that this was
due to Ian Diaz's status as a US Marshal it gave him an influence and a credibility with his fellow law
enforcement officers that she didn't have even after evidence emerged that Angela Diaz was the one behind the
scheme Michelle remained convinced that Ian was involved too for starters how could Angela have mimicked the biblical
themed emails that were purportedly from Michelle unless Ian had shown her the similar ones Michelle had written to
him secondly Angela had no reason to want to harm Michelle whereas gaining full access to the condo could be a
motive for Ian his deadline to take over the mortgage just happened to coincide with
the supposed cyber stalking and Michelle's second arrest came just days after she'd filed a breach of contract
to notice against him even Angela's defense team had highlighted this motive during Angela's
preliminary hearing They too had argued that Ian was involved while calling into question the
time sheets Ian had provided to prove that he was at work when the bogus emails were sent from his
condo it emerged that Ian was responsible for filling the time sheets out himself they hadn't been approved by a
supervisor and no one could confirm he'd actually been working at the relevant times Michelle Hadley decided to file a
civil lawsuit against aan and Angela Diaz as well as the city of Anaheim alleging she was falsely imprisoned and
traumatized as a result of the couple's actions more than a year after Angela pleaded guilty Michelle expanded the
suit to include several specific police officers including detectives Michael kuna and Michael
Lee she told BuzzFeed news there's absolutely no doubt in my head about who did this there never has
[Music] been Michelle's suit detailed her history with aan including allegations
of the abuse she had endured the Civil complaint claimed that detectives from the Anaheim Police
Department quote willfully turned a blind eye to Ian Diaz's obviously false reports because he was a fellow law
enforcement officer dodged common sense and ignored voluminous early evidence showing M Hadley's
innocence they failed to apply rudimentary Norms of verifying collecting and reviewing digital
evidence instead they bent over backwards to believe their fellow law enforcement officer despite the
overwhelming evidence incriminating him it continued at its heart this is a case
about the blue wall of Silence law enforcement officers and officials enabling fellow officers to violate
civilians rights the Anaheim Police Department and its officers abdicated their duties to
adhere to investigative Norms instead conspiring to do the bidding of a corrupt Federal
Marshall they appear to have willingly become Ian Diaz's weapon in his torous campaign to ruin the life of his
ex-girlfriend it took several years for the suit to reach its resolution but on April 30 2021 it was announced that
Michelle Hadley had settled with the city of Anaheim and four of its police officers for
when investigators finally looked into end as's potential involvement they discovered that he had downloaded a
smartphone application called Hotspot Shield which could be used to obscure an IP
address email accounts used in the conspiracy had been created on devices belonging to
wian he'd even used his work cell and computer which belonged to the United States Marshall service throughout the
scheme investigators discovered that aan had responded to Craiglist users who'd posted ads seeking rape fantasy
participants this was a clear attempt to lure them to his property to prove to law enforcement that Michelle Hadley
posed a genuine safety risk to him and Angela Ian had also used his personal cell phone to authenticate and approve a
rape fantasy ad of his own throughout the scheme Ian and Angela used encrypted messaging apps in order
to communicate with each other secretly and securely yet it appeared that Ian knew
his time was running out by August 2016 he tried to cover his tracks by changing his phone numbers and
canceling the email accounts by September Anaheim detectives had obtained search warrants for the IP
addresses behind the threatening emails that same month Ian told the detectives he suspected it was really
Angela and not Michelle who was behind the cyber stalking campaign this attempt to throw his wife
under the bus worked for a time but eventually the truth came out one month after Michelle Hadley
civil suit was settled with the city of Anaheim Ian Diaz was arrested and charged with cyberstalking conspiracy to
commit cyberstalking and perjury Federal prosecutors alleged that Ian had conspired with Anga to frame Michelle in
order to gain total control over the condo that she still co-owned the pair had created numerous
fake online profiles and email accounts in order to do this and collectively staged the fake sexual assaults against
Angela I and Diaz's trial began in a Los Angeles Federal Court almost 2 years later in mid-march
2023 prosecutors provided abundant evidence that he had been involved in the conspiracy from its
Inception on Thursday March 23 2023 the jury delivered their verdict a andaz was
guilty on all counts the verdict was praised by a spokesperson from the US Office of the
inspector General's cyber investigations office who stated Ian Diaz's agre I actions and
lies to law enforcement stripped a woman of her freedom and liberty this kind of
stalking harassment and obstruction is unconscionable and the jury held Diaz accountable for his
crimes Ian Diaz faced a maximum possible sentence of 20 years but prosecutors only requested that he receive 12 to
15 in her Victim Impact statement Michelle Hadley said 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 he wanted to make my worst nightmare come
true Ian's defense team asked that he Reed just 5 years plus 3 years of supervised
release he had since remarried and became a father which his attorney pointed to as evidence that his life had
quote changed significantly for the better since the offense conduct took place over 7 years
ago ultimately I andaz was sentenced to 10 years and one month in prison it is unclear why it took so long
for him to finally be charged with these crimes in a comment provided to The Daily Beast the attorneys who had
represented Michelle Hadley her civil suit was scathing about the delay stating almost 5 years ago our client
reported that her ex-boyfriend was stalking and impersonating her online instead it was our client who was
arrested after her ex and his wife framed her in an elaborate but shoddily executed
plot the most basic competence with digital evidence and intimate partner violence would have revealed to Anaheim
police officers that she was being framed it was our client's bravery and diligence in bringing her civil suit
that exposed the holes in anaheim's investigation and the cover up of the cover up let this be a lesson to all abusers
the law will catch up to you even if you are a law enforcer over the years Michelle Hadley
had continued to Grapple with the impact of what her ex partner had done to her she'd suffered emotional and mental
distress to the point that even a knock at the door could cause her to break down in
panic Michelle had also lost faith in law enforcement she couldn't believe that detectives had been so quick to
take Ian side when there was so little evidence implicating her in an interview with The Daily Beast Michelle pointed to
the absurdity of the threatening messages which Ian and Angela claimed she had written a number of them contained
compliments about Angela's Beauty and other traits as Michelle pointed out quote it's really weird if the cops read
this at all they should have thought why would Michelle be complimenting Angela Michelle's experience in jail had
been eye opening and it led to her speaking out against injustices she saw within the prison system
in 2020 she wrote an essay in support of the black lives matter movement for nonprofit news organization The Marshall
Project in it Michelle described the double standards between how prison officials treated her a young white
woman and the disdain with which they treated her elderly black soulmate Michelle eventually moved to
the east coast to be close to her sister and gradually began to put the pieces of
her life back together she started her own retail business and helped raise money for a women's shelter
a course close to her heart as a survivor of domestic abuse Michelle hoped her story could provide some hope
for other Survivors by demonstrating that they weren't alone and there would always be other people willing to help
them some of Michelle's faith in the justice system was finally restored when Ian Diaz was
convicted this had come at a particularly significant time the date of the jury's verdict happened to be the
same day that Michelle gave birth to her first child she addressed this strange twist
of fate in an interview with NBC News stating my life has been filled by strange often symbolic and sometimes
beautiful coincidences like this my daughter represents my rainbow after a very long storm and my heart has never
felt so [Music] [Music] full

Case 275: Michelle Hadley

*** Content warnings: Sexual assault, domestic violence, stalking ***

When Angela Connell met Ian Diaz, the pair began a whirlwind romance that quickly led to marriage and a growing family. But their newfound happiness was soon disturbed by a cyberstalking campaign with real world consequences.

Angela and Ian told detectives from the Anaheim Police Department that they knew exactly who was behind the scheme: Ian’s ex-girlfriend, Michelle Hadley. But all was not as it seemed…

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research & writing – Erin Munro & Eileen Ormsby Creative direction – Milly Raso Production and music – Mike Migas Music – Andrew D.B. Joslyn

SOCIAL LINKS

Website https://www.casefilepodcast.com Facebook https://www.facebook.com/casefile Twitter https://twitter.com/case_file Instagram https://www.instagram.com/casefilepodcast Patreon https://www.patreon.com/casefile Casefile Presents https://casefilepresents.com

RESOURCES

For all credits and sources, please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-275-michelle-hadley

Brief Summary

Michelle Hadley was wrongfully accused and imprisoned due to a conspiracy by her ex-fiance Ian Diaz and his wife Angela, involving Craigslist ads and stalking.

Key points

Craigslist Ad Gone Wrong. An ad seeking partners for a 'rape fantasy' leads to a disturbing series of events.
Angela's Disturbing Emails. Angela receives a series of threatening emails from someone claiming to be Lilith.
Attempted Rape Incident. Angela is attacked in her garage, leading to police involvement.
Michelle's Arrest. Michelle Hadley is arrested for stalking and attempted rape after a series of threats.
Michelle's Arrest. Michelle Hadley is arrested and charged with felonies, leading to a tumultuous legal battle.
Ian's Revelation. Ian Diaz approaches police, believing his wife Angela framed Michelle.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

You will lose your baby and it will be done by the will of God.

Another menacing email received by Angela.

7:46WatchMar 9, 2024

Tension

85/ 100High tension

More from Casefile

Solve the Crime

Read a real case one clue at a time, then see how your call held up against the investigators.