Episode 759: Melissa Ann Shepard: The Internet Black Widow | Forensic Files

Hey weirdos, on top of your head. >> I am Elena >> and this is Morbid on top of your head.
>> We were just watching. If you're not following Marty Miller on Tik Tok, he made a grave mistake. Truly, I don't
know how to describe his content. It's indescribable in the best way, >> but I urge you to go listen to
>> I have been sending you those Tik Toks for years at this point. He will just be
like, "Shout out to you, girl." on top of your head. This is looking awesome today.
>> He's He's phenomenal. >> We were just watching the one that he did, Alina found it of the after the
America's Next Top Model doc, which we just watched and you know it's going to be a bonus app. Oh, guys, I have so much
to say and I won't say it here and now because we are we're getting ready to film the bonus episode or to record the
bonus episode. I I'm sorry I said film. I shouldn't have said that. >> We're not filming it.
>> We're not filming that one. Maybe in the future we'll film. >> Maybe we shouldn't. We should smise
through it. >> Oh my god. Just smise the entire time. I don't think I can smise.
>> Do try. >> I just She actually just smiled like like forcefully at me. >> I did. I said that's not No, that's not
it. Another red head. On top of your head. >> He always says on top of your head.
>> Uh, no. It was a trip. >> Yeah. >> In my opinion, uh, I think the only people that looked
came out good in that documentary were the contestants. >> Yeah. >> Personally. >> Yeah.
>> So, I can't wait to talk about it. >> Oh, I have so much to say. We can't even
get too far into it, but go follow Marty Miller on Tik Tok and watch that Tik Tok
on top of your head >> and listen to what he says about it. >> Hot ice cream. Ice cream. Darn.
I love them so much. >> Anything else you want to talk about? Big Red. >> Big Red.
>> Big Red on top of your head. You should buy The Butcher Legacy. You should pre-order it.
>> Duh. >> Um, yeah. Butcherle Legacy.com. You can get it anywhere. I signed 2,000 more
copies for Barnes & Noble, so go get those. >> Casual [ __ ] feet to address. >> 2,000 more, babes.
>> You have a wrist still? >> I have them in front of me. That's That's another thing.
>> Your wrists are there. >> I do. I have my wrists in front of me. I have a stack of tippins in front of me
that I'm signing as we do this. Um, some people have asked like, "Are they actually signed?" Yes. I I swear to you,
they're actually signed. >> I should just every now and again when you're doing it, just take videos of you
and then we can we can compile all. >> Yeah. These aren't one of those things where they get like ma like mass-
prodduced with like a signature on it. I have a giant I have six giant boxes of tippins. Uh, yeah. So, they're really
signed, just so you I've had a couple of those questions and I just wanted to clear that up.
>> I just want to clear the iris on something. >> Just want to clear that up. >> Clear it up.
>> Uh but go get it. Go pre-order it. It's great. >> I am going to start listening to because
Let me clear something up. I've read all the books except the third one. I haven't read that one yet, but I want to
redo them and I'm going to listen to the audio book because it's been highly suggested for um Butcher and the Ren and
The Butcher Game. >> They're pretty great. >> I heard Joe and Sophie. >> Joe and Sophie knock it out of the park.
>> So, I'm going to listen. >> Yeah. I highly suggest. >> Is Mikey whistling? Because I'll kill
him for that. He >> is. >> One thing about me. Do you ever do you get like rage about things that don't
make sense? >> Yeah, you do. >> I was going to say, have you met me? >> I hate I've probably addressed it
before. I hate whistling. >> I whistle all the time, so I can't. >> I feel like I've never even heard you
whistle. I do it all the time. >> Do you know that I hate it, so you don't do it in front of me?
>> Maybe deep in my soul. I know that. >> That's nice. drew whistles and I literally I'm like stop it.
>> That's so funny. Whistling does not have any effect on me. >> I just hate it.
>> That's that's that's a thing. >> It's a thing. I had a boss that used to whistle for me. So like not in a hot way
in a like I need you to come do this with >> a Is there a hot way to whistle at you?
>> No. Well, I was saying like like how people would be like >> oh >> like he wasn't he wasn't sexually
harassing me just to be clear, >> but it was more like come do this and I was like you were like [ __ ] you. I don't
want to work. >> Oh, you were you were better at it. >> You didn't say [ __ ] you, [ __ ]
>> No. >> No. >> No. >> No. All right. Um >> Yeah. I don't think there's I'm trying
to think. Oh, >> what? >> This is just another personal thing. What's up? Um, I I'm very late to the
party on this, but I have to say it. >> I finally got to sit down and watch Sinners. Me and John have been wanting
to watch it for [ __ ] months and months and months. >> And the girls had a sleepover with
Auntie Titi. >> Hey. >> And so we were like, "Oh my god, we can watch a 2-hour movie." And so we watched
it. I cannot stress it enough. If you have not seen Sinners or you didn't think you wanted to see it, you want to
see it. I knew that I wanted to see it and I just kept not seeing it and I still haven't seen it.
>> It is one of the most incredible movies I have ever seen. I am still thinking
about it. >> Is it like super scary? >> It's scary. >> Is it gory? >> It's gory, but like
>> I don't care about those things, but I have to know what I can watch with Drew
and what I can't. >> Yeah, it's it's scary in the best cuz they it's like they handle vampires in
one of those. >> Oh, I didn't know it was vampires. >> Yeah, there's vampires involved. There's
the music in it is [ __ ] phenomenal. Oh, it's a mix of all different It's >> There's one scene in particular, and I'm
sure you guys know what scene I'm talking about, where they just meld all these different
>> like music genres and music time periods all together. And it's we were like jaws
on the floor >> really. >> Like it's one of those movies that when it's over, you're just like, how how was
I allowed to watch that? Like that was so good. >> I'm like, what the [ __ ] I want them to
win all the Oscars. >> Damn. >> I think they should win all the Oscars. Michael B. Jordan was [ __ ] amazing.
>> Really? >> Um, Wii Musaku, I believe it's how you say her name. She plays Annie in the uh
in the movie. I was literally obsessed with her. >> Really? >> Like the >> I just keep saying really
>> really >> I'm like for real. >> Are you sure about that? And uh who is the guy who plays Remick? He plays one
of the vampires. And I he literally killed it. Jack Oonnell. >> They all I mean Buddy Guy is in it.
Jamie Lawson was amazing. Delroy Lindo. It's just like it's like Jack it's like >> chocker block full of these [ __ ]
phenomenal actors and musicians. And I'm just I I can't I now I get it. I get that. Like I knew cuz whenever there's
like that much hype you're always like is it can it be that good? You should >> I think it's underhyped.
>> Really? >> You should. Why can't I stop saying really? I need to pick a different one.
Really? Really? Really? You should pick it for Scream. >> I think I'm going to because I need to
watch it >> cuz it's very current. >> Yeah. And it's just everybody needs to watch it.
>> Yeah. If you're not listening to Scream, go listen to Scream and perhaps she'll
have that be her next. >> Maybe I'll pick that because Frankenstein and Sinners >> are right up top. Wow. Okay. So, you're
comparing it to Frankenstein in terms of like liking it? >> Yeah. Oh, two very different movies. So,
>> I can't compare them, but they're right there right now. >> So good. >> Yeah, I got to watch that.
>> Yeah, I'm highly highly highly recommend. >> Obsessed. Yeah, I'll watch. Oh, also, we
discovered just really quickly that I um can't ever see Chicago. >> Yeah. No, >> can't ever see Chicago. I think last
episode I was like, "Oh my god, I'm going to New York this weekend. I'm going to have so much fun. I can't wait
to see Chicago." Nope. Didn't get to see it. >> No. Something is cursed about Chicago
with Ash and Drew and they can never see it. So, don't ever invite them to Don't
ever invite us. We were supposed to have seen Chicago three times now. This is the third time we were supposed to have
seen it >> and feline acne struck again and we couldn't leave Franklin with his acne
>> cuz it can get infect feeling acne is nuts. It can get infected. So >> I believe it. It just sounds so funny
that like we can't leave Franklin with his acne. >> It's ridiculous. It's a ridiculous way
to live. But here we are. And here we are. >> He's good. Don't worry. We took him to
the vet. >> He's killing it. >> So, but we had to stay home and I was I was honestly so bummed. Like I wasn't
mad at Franklin, but I was so excited for New York >> because I feel like a part-time New
Yorker lately. >> I know. We've been there a lot lately. >> We've gone like every month
>> and I broke the streak. >> You did? How dare you? >> Really sad. >> But you know what? I lived. Franklin
lived. And >> I lived. I laughed. I loved. >> Yeah, I did. On top of my head. >> On top of my head.
>> So, I have a case for you. >> I That's great cuz that is why we're here. >> That is in fact why we're here. Um, I
did do my job, which is nobody had to whistle at me about it. >> I love that cuz I was going to.
>> You were going to do it. Don't I hate whistling. Were you just whistling out there?
>> No. >> Maybe it was John. >> Was it John whistling? >> Maybe. Damn. >> Yeah, >> it was a Jonty whistle. I thought it was
It had theater kid energy. >> Tell John that. >> I love that. >> All right. So, we are going to be
talking today about Melissa Anne Shepard, who is known as the internet black widow.
>> Whoa. >> Yeah. >> Okay. This is a interesting case. It's a really sad case because a lot of like
people were taken advantage of >> in the later years of their life, which is the worst time I think to be Well,
it's always a bad time to be taken advantage of, but >> but there's something like inherently
sad when like an elderly person or someone in like the later years of their life gets taken advantage of.
>> Yeah. >> Cuz like at that point, you're you're just supposed to be like living. You're
supposed to be like enjoying the fruits of your labor. >> Yeah. And just chilling
>> and not having an internet black widow take advantage of you. You don't you don't need that.
>> So, let's get into it. >> Let's do it. >> In the fall of 2012, so pretty recently,
actually, sort of. >> Doesn't that feel like it was like last week? >> That's still very recent to me.
>> It is. In the fall of 2012, Fred Weekes was still mourning the loss of his wife
of 54 years. >> But he decided it was time to move forward in his life. He wanted to start
dating again, or at least thinking about it. And it was then that he met Melissa
Anne Russell. >> Okay. She was a 78-year-old woman who moved in four doors down from him in a
retirement uh community. And this was in New Glasgow, nova Scotia. A few days later, Melissa knocked knocked on Fred's
door. >> And he told reporters she just wanted to know if I was lonesome, the same she
was. He was in fact lonesome and they hit it off and started a whirlwind romance.
>> It sounds like such a me cute. >> It would be. M. >> So, a few weeks into Fred and Melissa's
relationship, Fred called his longtime friend George to be like, "Yo, I have fallen in love."
>> That's like verbatim what he said. >> It's a quote. He said he and Millie wanted to get married as soon as
possible because this whirlwind romance was whirlwinding. >> That's cute. >> It is cute. George, the friend, later
told CBS News, they were kind of bubbly. >> Kind of bubbly. >> Kind of bubbly. Now, listen. George was
a justice of the peace. So, Fred was like, "Will you perform the ceremony?" And George said, "Hell yeah, brother.
Hell yeah." He recalled, "I congratulated them both and Fred thanked me profusely for the ceremony. They were
happy at the time." Or at least Fred was and Millie appeared to be. Oh, man. >> So, after the ceremony, they immediately
left for their honeymoon. And George was like, "Have the best time. So happy to have done this favor for you. I love
love. >> Hell yeah." >> But the next day, George got a call from somebody who had uh pretty alarming
news. George told reporters years later, "I got a call from a lady who asked me if I knew who Millie was, and I said,
"Yeah, I do. She's Millianne Russell, >> obviously." >> Then she asked me if I'd ever seen a
program on The Fifth Estate called Black Widow. Now, The Fifth Estate is like an
investigative news show over in Canada, and George was like, "Um, no, I haven't seen that, but I guess I should go check
it out." >> Oh, boy. So, he didn't know it at the time, but he had just sent his friend
off on a honeymoon with a notorious felon and convicted killer. >> That's not what you want to find out the
day after >> that you >> performing a ceremony. >> That's the thing. The day after you
performed this ceremony and said like, "Do you take you and I by the power vested in me? Live your best damn life."
>> Yeah, that's not great. >> Shout me out doing what? And soon. Just kidding. So, after familiarizing himself
with the Fifth Estate episode, George learned that Millie was in fact Melissa Anne Shepard, who was a notorious black
widow, and she was also known to have killed at least one of her husbands in addition to committing other crimes. So,
George tried to call up Fred and warn him, but they had already left for the boat for New Finland, so he called the
police instead and insisted that they needed to warn his friend somehow. >> He said, "I wanted Fred to know the
situation he might be in. you know, he could be in danger. But unfortunately, and I'm sure you're all thinking this,
the police explained since Melissa hadn't done anything or like committed any crimes against Fred and she had
already served her time for previous charges, they couldn't get involved. There's nothing they can do. They can't
just be like, "Knock knock, warning, you married the felon." >> So, 4 days later, Fred and Melissa were
on a boat headed uh on their honeymoon, and Fred started to feel dizzy. >> Oh, no.
>> Yeah. He was still unwell when they reached their hotel and went to lay down. But he woke up a few hours later
and he was still dizzy and soon after he collapsed and had to be rushed to the nearest hospital on their honeymoon.
Poor Fred. So the nurses ran blood tests and the results showed that Fred had a large amount of the tranquilizers
laurazzipam and tamazipam in his system uh despite having no memory of taking either of those drugs. H when medical
staff asked Melissa about Fred's medical history, she said that he had prostate problems, bowel surgery, and that he was
suffering from dementia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, >> COPD. >> Yeah, but I didn't even know that. Check
you out. But when those same providers tried to confirm this with Fred, he was like, I don't have any of those things.
>> Oh no. >> But also, they're just being told that he has dementia. So they're like, "Does
he not know that he has these things or does he sit >> have these things? What? >> What the fuck?"
>> 2 days later, Nova Scotia police arrested Melissa and charged her with attempted murder and administering a
noxious thing. >> Holy [ __ ] >> Meanwhile, Fred was just sent home to recover. >> And also, was that administering a
noxious thing? >> Yeah. Is that how is that >> Why does that sound so funny? >> It does, doesn't it?
>> I'm charging you with administering a noxious thing. Whenever I look at the word noxious and I say it, I always feel
like I'm saying it wrong. >> No, you're saying it just sounded so funny. Like a noxious thing.
>> Yeah, a noxious thing. >> I don't know why that was so funny. >> Don't do that. No. So, he's just sent
home to recover from all of that. >> But also, he's still married to this woman and is like, "What the [ __ ] just
happened?" >> who might have just tried to >> to do something >> to kill him. Yeah. Like allegedly.
Perhaps. >> Allegedly. So, while in custody, Melissa admitted to investigators that she had
quote dissolved both medications and coffee and then given them to Fred over a period of time in the days leading up
to his hospitalization. >> What the [ __ ] >> So, this this wasn't just a one-time
thing. She was doing this for days on end. >> And she's just like, "Yeah, >> yeah, I did that.
>> I did do that." >> Yeah. She said that she had done so without his knowledge.
>> Wow. >> So, she admitted that. >> She admitted that. >> She did. She did that. She did that. So
through their interviews with friends and people who had had contact with the couple in the previous two months,
investigators started to recognize a pattern. Fred did actually seem to be experiencing periodic dizziness and
brain fog in even like before they got married. But when he would go to a hospital for treatment and was away from
Melissa, he'd instantly get better. Wow. On the day of their wedding, Fred actually almost drove his car off the
road when he just inexplicably became confused and disoriented. >> The day of their wedding, he was
potentially drugged. >> Holy [ __ ] >> He later said, "I almost went over the bank because my foot wasn't doing what
my brain should be telling it to. Stay on the road." >> Oh, that must have been so scary.
>> Yeah. Now, for investigators, obviously, the pieces all started to come together
when they searched Melissa and Fred's hotel room and discovered on a notepad the words lawyer, power of attorney, and
will written down. >> What? >> Yeah. >> Could you be any more like you're writing of attorney?
>> Post-it notes about what's going on. >> Apparently, damn. So, she admitted to
drugging Fred, but Melissa stopped well short of confessing to attempted murder.
And the prosecutor didn't really have any evidence that that was her intention, per se.
>> Babe, what else would be? >> I know, but it's a you need a lot to take it to court. Yeah.
>> So, as a result, the crown agreed to withdraw the charge of attempted murder,
and they amended the second charge to, like we said, administering a noxious thing with intent to agrieve or annoy a
person. >> I like that. >> Doesn't that get even better? >> Agrieve >> or annoy a person. You That annoyed me.
>> I like that. That's a a charge. >> That's like an actual thing. It's like you annoyed someone.
>> Yeah. Not >> your intent was to annoy someone. >> It's rude. >> It's rude. >> So that was going to be the charge and
that would be in exchange for a guilty plea and a three and a halfyear sentence. Wow. So obviously Melissa
accepted that deal. Obviously. Now remarkably when he was asked how he felt about the arrest in the plea deal, Fred
appeared to actually have no ill will towards his now ex-wife. Eventually they did divorce. Guys, in the days leading
up to the sentencing, he told a reporter, "People want her hung up from a tree and cut to pieces. I'm just very
glad to have it all over with and have it come to an end. I'm not worried about what she gets. Whatever she gets is what
the judge will give her, and that's what she deserves." Fred is the chillest. Fred is big chilling.
>> Fred chills to the max. >> Poor Fred loses his wife. >> Yeah. >> Finally gets back out there and this is
the first woman he encounters. >> First woman. I'd be like, I will never get back out there.
>> Yeah, I'm hanging up my suspenders at that point. We're not We're not going out on the town anymore.
>> No, I would I would say we're going to go ahead and watch a lot of television.
>> We're getting a hobby. >> I was just going to say we're going to pick a hobby. Perhaps we'll crochet.
>> Yeah, maybe model trains. >> Sour sour dough. >> Yeah, sour dough. >> Sour dough, if you will,
>> perhaps. >> But yeah. >> Um, so under normal circumstances, an elderly woman attempting to poison her
husband would have garnered a pretty small amount of attention from the press. You know, unfortunately, those
things don't really get a lot of heat on them. It would have faded away. A larger
story would have come along. Lie doo. But in this case, it didn't take long for the press to learn that this wasn't
the first time Melissa had been suspected or convicted of attempted murder. >> Oops.
>> She actually had a criminal history in two countries that went back decades. >> Holy [ __ ]
>> Including a lot of crimes that were very similar to this one that she had just
perpetrated, only with a much worse outcome. >> Oh no. So, she reached a lot of notoriety through this whole internet
black widow thing, but weirdly there's not a lot known about her early life. What we do know is that she was born in
Burnt Church, New Brunswick on May 16th, 1935, and she moved to Prince Edward Island when she reached adulthood. And
that's where she met her first husband, Russell Shepard. Nobody really knows the
quality of that relationship, but after 25 years, Russell Shepard walked out on her and that left her with nothing.
Whoa. So obviously like it, even if it was good at one point, it it got real bad.
>> Something went arry. >> Something happened. Now, among the residents of Prince Edward Island who
remembered her from those days, few if any had nice things to say about Melissa. The general consensus on the
island was as far back as anybody could remember, Melissa thought that she was better than most everybody on the island
and thought that she was entitled to more. And she hadn't really earned any of that.
>> Oh, that's the problem there is when you think it needs to be just handed to you.
>> Exactly. Now, whether out of desperation or some other reason, after her divorce,
she turned to crime as a primary source of income. And between 1977 and 1991, she racked up more than 30 convictions
for fraud and other financial crimes under four different aliases. >> Holy [ __ ]
>> Yeah. There was Melissa. Truly. Also, I don't know when people have this many
aliases how they keep track. >> I That's the thing. Like, and the fraud of it all. fraud
>> always gets me because I'm like >> that's so much work. >> It's a lot of work.
>> So much admin. So much keeping up with [ __ ] >> Yeah. >> You could just get a job and it would
probably be less work than the fraud >> cuz then you could just bring your stuff
to Turboax and file. >> Yeah. Like the fraud is just too much work. >> Actually, the first thing we said when
we hired accountants was we don't want to go to federal prison. >> Yeah. They said what are your goals
here? And we said not to go to federal prison. I just would like to not commit fraud.
>> I would like to pay what I'm supposed to pay. >> Yeah. >> Fraud nobody and live a life out of
federal prison. >> Just please do that >> and not have an alias. >> Yeah. And I think they appreciated the
honesty. >> They said lol. >> They said we'll do that. >> Sounds good. >> I said great.
>> They said we'll file your taxes. >> Uh Melissa didn't talk to any of these people though. Instead, she did not have
those desires. Instead, she came up with all her different aliases. There was Melissa Anne Weekes, Melissa Anne F uh
Friedrich, I think. Melissa Anne Shepard and Melissa Anne Stewart. >> Oh, okay. So, she's she's always Melissa
Anne for the >> Yeah, she love she loves first name, middle name. Last name is where it gets
hairy. >> Yeah. >> So, she ended up serving a 5-year sentence in a Toronto prison for um some
of those scams. >> But in 1991, she saw an opportunity for a new scam when she met a man named
Gordon Stewart. He was a Prince Edward Island native whose circumstances would eventually sound very familiar in the
context of Melissa's life. So Gordon Stewart, like I said, there's a lot of sadness to this.
>> Gordon. >> Gordon, I know. He lost his wife in 1989, and since then, he had obviously
been struggling with grief. His sister Kate Reeves said, "I thought it would be so wonderful if he found someone. The
sooner the better." So when he met Melissa a few years later, they couldn't have been happier, his family. They were
like, "Awesome. Like he's been so lonely and he's been in the thick of it. This could take him out of it."
Unfortunately though, it didn't take long before Gordon's family started to question Melissa's intentions with their
brother or their loved one, and they got more and more concerned when they started to hear rumors around town about
Melissa. His sister Kate, again, she said, "We had heard that she had been in a lot of trouble with the law, and a
member of the police force told my husband, tell Gordy to get away from her. She's trouble."
>> Okay. So, you got to listen to that. >> Yeah. And the Reeves and Stuart families
were right to be concerned. Although she was technically still married to Shepherd in Canada, after just a few
weeks of dating, Melissa and Gordon eloped to Las Vegas and soon after Gordon's life took a turn for the worst.
>> Oh no. For reasons that are still pretty unclear. Um though almost certainly related to this relationship with
Melissa, Gordon started gambling and drinking heavily which quickly led to obviously financial problems.
>> And that doesn't sound like that was his >> that was not his typical character. Not
at all. On at least one occasion when he needed medical treatment following, you
know, kind of weeks and weeks of this behavior, doctors found drugs in his system that he couldn't explain. Gordon.
>> Oh [ __ ] >> He didn't know why these drugs were in his system, which sounds familiar.
>> It sure does. >> So, in mid 1991, the couple moved to Halifax, and Gordon hoped that the
change of environment maybe would get things back on track again. But things only got worse from there. His drinking
got worse. And while he never seemed like what we were just saying to have money problems before, he was
hemorrhaging money at this point at a rate that didn't seem to make sense at all. And the only explanation for all of
it was Melissa. >> Melissa, what are you doing? >> Well, in a letter written shortly before
his death, he detailed his life with Melissa, how she drained their bank account, lied, and cheated.
>> He said, "I took her back. I still loved her and kept hoping things would change.
But unfortunately, just a few months after moving to Halifax, tragedy struck. So one night while Gordon and Melissa
were out in a very rural area, he was struck and killed by his own car while Melissa was behind the wheel. No,
>> there are different and very conflicting reports about this. So I'm just going to
tell you what we have here. Melissa reported the death to the police claiming that, and this is just what she
claims, that Gordon had attacked her and raped her. So, she said she ran him over
with the car in order to flee the scene and that it was self-defense. >> Wow. >> The problem though, and this is the
investigator's problem, as soon as they started looking into the case, nothing Melissa said about the scene made a lot
of sense. For one thing, when an autopsy was performed on Gordon, test showed a quote unquote lethal dose of various
drugs in his system at the time of death, which meant that not only would he have been too sedated to pose a
threat to anyone, he almost certainly wouldn't have been able to drive a car either.
>> Huh. According to Jerry Swain, the RMC uh RCMP detective assigned to the case,
it aroused suspicion to hear that story. It just didn't seem to fit the scenario
of the situation. If you accidentally ran over your husband, why would you not remain and explain the circumstances to
whomever? Yeah. So, the more that Jerry Swain investigated, the less he believed
Melissa's story. Gordon Stewart didn't have any history of violence. He didn't have any criminal history, and there was
no evidence to support her claim that she had been raped. Uh, her claim that she had hit him with the car in order to
escape was also pretty suspicious. In Melissa's version of events, after Gordon assaulted her, he got out of the
car and walked around the back of the vehicle to use the bathroom. And that's when she jumped in the driver's seat and
put the car in reverse, hitting and killing her husband before fleeing, which like you didn't need to put the
car in reverse. >> Yeah, I was going to say, what was the reverse about? >> All she would have done to escape the
scene was put the car in drive and go forward. meaning the only way that she could have hit and killed him was if she
had done so intentionally and unnecessarily. And that's investigator's opinion on this case.
>> Yeah, that is not our opinion. >> No. So, it didn't take long for Swain to determine that Melissa had fabricated
her story and his belief and she was arrested and charged with manslaughter. >> He said, "As a result of the full
investigation, we determined that the motive was monetary. Gordon Stewart had a regular pension from the Department of
Defense and as his wife, she was entitled to his benefits." boy. So Melissa ended up going on trial for the
death of her husband or for the murder of her husband in 1992 and she ultimately was found guilty of
manslaughter but sentenced to 2 years in prison. What are we doing? >> 2 years in prison. What are we doing
here? >> Hello. 2 years for manslaughter. >> Yep. >> The [ __ ] >> So upon her release from prison in 1994,
which was literally just like a whoop blip in time. >> Yeah. She found a new scheme pretty
quickly and a viable means of making some money. While she was serving her sentence for manslaughter, she had come
into contact with several women's rights and domestic violence activists who saw
her as a perfect example of a woman who had been punished for what they argued was nothing more than protecting herself
from an abusive husband. So throughout the late 80s and uh early 90s in North America, there was this concept which
we've obviously heard of the battered wife syndrome. And it was also referred also called battered woman syndrome. And
it had been gaining a lot of traction in, you know, medical professionals, legal professionals, and they were using
it as a way to explain a range of behaviors and symptoms pretty similar to those of post-traumatic stress disorder,
especially in women who had been victims of violence. >> Yeah. >> So, in some cases, battered women
syndrome had also been used as a defense in court cases where a wife or an intimate partner was accused of
murdering or physically harming their supposed abuser. >> Okay. or their alleged abuser.
>> Having been convicted of killing a man that she claimed had been abusive and violently sexually assaulting her, she
seemed an ideal spokesperson for the movement at this point in time. >> Yeah. >> And she quickly became a popular speaker
on the lecture circuit. >> Wow. >> In 1994, she actually appeared in a documentary about domestic violence and
she described the night of the murder. This is her words. She said, "He had a knife in his hand. He told me he was
going to kill me, but first he was going to take me somewhere." Later on, early that evening, we went into this road. It
was like a logging road in the woods. This is triggering uh trigger warning for sexual assault. She said, "He raped
me at knife point and then he got out of the car and walked around behind the car. He had to urinate. So, I saw that
as my chance to get away." >> Wow. >> So, the description that she gave in the documentary was pretty much the same one
that she gave to police on the night of the murder. >> Yeah. It sounds like harrowing as an
actual story. and it does, but it doesn't account for any of the inconsistencies that resulted in her
conviction, >> but the producers didn't really raise any questions. So, it it got out there.
>> But after a few years on the lecture circuit, she moved to Florida in 2000 and she found a place to live in uh
Christian retreat. Among the community leaders was Robert Friedrich. He was an 81-year-old retired electrical engineer
who had lost his wife of 53 years, Mary earlier that same year. >> His son, Dennis, told a reporter in
2005, "Dad was the proud, stoic German type." And that he was referring to his father's tendency to keep his feelings
to himself. >> He said, "We didn't know how lost he really was," >> which is just heartbreaking. So to fill
his time and occupy his mind, Robert threw himself into volunteering with the church, which is where he met Melissa
Anne Shepard. >> Oh no. >> In 2012, Melissa told reporters, "The Holy Spirit told me this man would be my
next husband. He told me exactly who the person was. I could see him because he was up on the platform with the pastor.
I began speaking in tongues and I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit." >> Okay.
Quotes. >> Yikes. So, after struggling with the loss of his wife to cancer, by the way,
she passed of cancer. Robert was very excited to have met somebody new. And within a few days of meeting, Melissa
and Robert were engaged to be married. >> Wow. >> I think like the older you get, the
less, you know, like you don't have as much time. So, >> I was going to say you're not going to
have a long engagement. >> You're prone to adventure. >> Yeah. You're not going to have a ton of
uh, you know, courting time. >> Right. Exactly. If it feels right, maybe it's right.
>> Feels right. We're in our 80s. >> In this case, it was not right. >> Yeah. So when Robert told his children
about his plans to marry Melissa so soon after having met her, obviously they were pretty stunned and, you know,
nervous about this, Dennis told his father. At best, she's a kook. At worst, she's a gold digger.
>> But Robert just chuckled and he said, "I like to keep my options open." Which was
like, "You're an icon." >> Wow. >> So obviously they were apprehensive about their father's new girlfriend, but
Dennis himself tried to be respectful. He remembered he felt speaking about his dad that he was going to be taken care
of. He had a bride. He wasn't going to be alone anymore. >> Oh, >> and also you have to think like this is
a generation who has like always been with somebody romantically usually >> 54 years or something like that.
>> You're so used to connection >> for 54 years. 24/7 you're around them. >> So then to be all by yourself like
that's a lot to swallow. >> Yeah. So, a month later, in June of 2000, Robert and Melissa were married
and immediately set off on their cross-country honeymoon, which uh ended with a luxury cruise to the Caribbean,
all at Robert's expense. Once they returned, Melissa moved into Robert's home in uh Brandon, Florida. And not
long after, Robert's children started noticing troubles and changes to their father's health.
>> Oh, man. >> Yeah. This isn't coincidence. It feels >> It's not. Robert was 81 years old. Like
I said, when he married Melissa, and his health had already begun to decline at that point. It was natural for somebody
his age. But after the wedding, there were new health problems that Dennis and his siblings just hadn't seen before.
Now, and this will sound interesting to you, Robert was experiencing periods of dizziness without any apparent
explanation for like why he would be dizzy. And he started falling. So obviously the new symptoms were
concerning in and of themselves, but equally concerning was another pattern that the kids started to notice his
children. Whenever Robert was home, he seemed to be in poor health. But as soon as he went to the hospital for
treatment, he would get better. >> Huh. >> Which is to be expected obviously, like
you do get better when you get treatment, but it was a marked difference. >> Yeah. It's like kids with the croo.
>> Yes. They sound like they're dying and then you get them outside in the cold air and get them into the ER and you're
like, I swear they were sounding horrific, >> right? >> Which like that at least could be
accounted for. Like that makes sense. >> This didn't really make that much sense.
>> No. >> So Dennis and his wife noticed something similar whenever Robert would come to
visit them at their home in Boston. So this wasn't just like, oh, you're getting medical treatment and you're
responding. >> It was like whenever you're not home, you're thriving, but at home you're not
at all. Dennis said if he came up here and visited he'd be fine, but if we talked
to him on the telephone, he'd sound dopey. So, we became suspicious. >> Oh my god. Can you imagine being his
kids, too? >> No. Having to >> I can't imagine suspecting what they're suspecting right now.
>> Especially after You have to think too, they're grieving their mother. >> Yeah. and all and now having to face
this woman >> and their parents obviously had like a long happy marriage and they're all
grieving and then all of a sudden he's met someone and now all of a sudden he's sick whenever he's around her.
>> Yeah. Scary that I would lose my mind. I can't imagine it. >> Oo, I would get fired up.
>> Why I ought to indeed. So obviously they were worried that Melissa was abusing or
taking advantage of their father. So Dennis filed a complaint with the Florida Elder Abuse Commission.
>> Good for him. which was very smart. >> Dennis is like I got to say Dennis from
the beginning of the story is like the kid you want to have. >> Truly >> like he really is.
>> He really is. >> He was a little sus at first, but he said, "You know what? He tried to be
respect and I'm going to be I'm going to be into this for him, but now he's taking action." He said, "Listen, as
soon as I see something weird, I'm calling it out. Say something, I say something."
So, the Elder Abuse Commission opened an investigation and ultimately recommended
that Robert receive roundthe-clock inhome care from a qualified provider, but Melissa outright refused to allow
that. >> Okay, that's that's a crimson flag. >> That's crimson. >> That's the reddest of flags.
>> So, the agency pushed back and they said, "No, this would really be good for Robert. Like, we really highly recommend
>> him around." >> She threatened, Melissa threatened allegedly to file a lawsuit against
them. So, they backed off and they closed the case. >> Wow. >> A few days later, Robert's son, Bob,
received a vaguely quote unquote vaguely threatening message from Melissa. She said, "Hello, Bob. This is Melissa
calling. I have something to share with you this morning. Your father and I are going to see a lawyer. We've made an
appointment, and your father is going to change his will. He's going to leave all
the money to me and the portion he set aside for you and your two brothers, that portion is now going to the
Christian retreat and you are getting nothing. A big fat zero. So try that on for size and have a nice day.
I would have lost my mind. When I tell you she would catch these hands, I don't care how old she is. She would catch
>> these mother. >> It's very reminiscent of beat your grandpa's ass. >> It's very represent reply
ass if I were them. Like that is the black widow. The internet black widow's ass.
>> That is try that on for size. Okay. Meredith Blake wannabe. >> What the [ __ ] is that?
>> Okay. Mommy dearest. The [ __ ] God damn. >> Meanwhile, you've known this woman for
like months and you're like, "Where's my mom?" >> Literally, >> I would >> like Where's my mom? Like, what the I
>> I'm shook. And what do you do? >> I'm almost speechless here because like the rage that would flow within me, I
can't even tap into that rage right now. Not only try that on for size, but a big
fat fat zero. I'll tell you about a big fat. >> How are you still a [ __ ] mean girl in
your goddamn golden years? In your Twilight years, how are you still a mean girl? How do you still have mean girl
energy? >> Mean girl energy perseveres. Unfortunately, >> mean girl energy goes past high school
getting together. >> It does a lot of times. >> Does Oh, I know. Trust me. I I encounter
it almost daily. >> I get it. But it shouldn't like it's and it's it's much more a reflection on that
person. >> 78-year-old woman mean girl energy is heinous. >> Yeah. That's rancid.
>> But you know, I've I've encountered it. >> Oh, yeah. >> Not like this, though. I mean, this is
pretty intense. >> No, this is these poor these poor kids. >> Yeah. This poor family. Poor Robert. He
like obviously is not >> in his right mind making these decisions. He's being taken advantage
of. >> Exactly. By that time, Melissa had convinced Robert to change his will and
to make her the beneficiary of his nine insurance policies, among other things. >> More importantly, the tension between
Melissa and Robert's children caused a rift between him and his family. And now he was rarely speaking to them in these
final moments of his life. >> No. Dennis's wife, his son, Dennis's wife, Karen, said, "It became evident
that we did not like her and she did not like us. So, they all kept their distance." And unfortunately in 2002,
Robert died, having never really repaired the rift between himself and his kids.
>> That breaks my heart. >> Not long after their father's death, it was confirmed that Robert had indeed
left all of his money to Melissa and his church community. And they soon learned
that their father's estate had actually become far smaller than they remembered it being in the year since his marriage,
dropping from roughly $350,000 to just $100,000. which was left to Melissa. >> Wow.
>> Like, where did all that money go? >> Melissa disputes this claim. She said Robert had made many loans to his
children over the years, and that explains the smaller amount of the estate, but she has never offered any
evidence to support. >> Prove it. >> So, in their father's final days, Dennis and Bob communicated regularly with
Robert's doctors, who were usually confused by the symptoms he was experiencing.
>> Yeah, I bet. They thought it was possible that he had maybe developed some kind of uh degenerative disease,
but that wouldn't have accounted for a lot of his other symptoms. And given that he had been in reasonably good
health, like for somebody his age before meeting Melissa, Dennis and Bob were convinced that she was somehow
responsible for their father's death. >> Yeah. >> But there wasn't really any evidence to
back up that theory. So, there was nothing authorities could do to help. >> Wow. So they're just dealing with their
grief and like injustice at this point. >> So instead, Robert's children filed a
civil lawsuit alleging that Melissa had exploited Robert financially and that was settled out of court with Melissa
receiving $15,000 and the remaining money going to the children, Dennis and Bob. Not long after, Melissa sold
Robert's house and remaining valuables and just moved to Prince Edward Island. Moved back.
>> Wow. So they didn't even have like a house to go back to. >> Nothing to show for?
>> No. That's so sad. >> Nothing that like belonged to their dad or anything like that. It sounds like
it's >> that's just really sad. >> It's horrible. This woman is in my opinion horrible.
>> And you know like that's like I think like something like that happened like my my dad like his parents like that was
a similar kind of not with like you know alleged drugging and all that. No, no, no.
>> But like a a wife happening later in life and changes the whole situation and
they get left with not a lot and everything and it's so sad. It is sad because it also really affects the the
relationship that you thought you had with somebody and you do still have that relationship and obviously like you can
hold those memories tight but it makes you question certain things you know >> it just it taints the legacy of like
what you would like to leave behind you know even as just like a memory and it's
that's it's just really sad. It's awful. >> I just don't get being like that. I really don't. I don't so much work and
two >> so like you're putting all that time and energy just into being mean and like mucking up people's
lives. And also, what the [ __ ] is that doing for you? >> I That's the thing. I'm like, if I'm
even like, don't you feel like [ __ ] hot garbage inside? Because >> if I have to get mean with someone, I
feel like hot garbage inside. It doesn't do anything like good for myself. >> They [ __ ] deserve it and then I feel
great. But >> yeah, then it like sends her through the roof and I'm I'm clapping for her. But
like not even like having to be mean to somebody, even if I'm like, "Oh, [ __ ] Was I friendly enough? Like that tra I'm
literally the kind of person where I'm like, did I say thank you? Like >> did I was I polite enough?
>> You know what I mean? Like that trashes my soul. >> It just it's it really does. It trashes
your soul to like be >> yucky. Shitty. Yeah. >> And it's like that's I can't imagine
living that way. Don't be a [ __ ] >> No. Just be a hot [ __ ] >> Yeah. >> Don't be a [ __ ]
>> Be a bad [ __ ] Don't be like a [ __ ] >> Be a bad [ __ ] Be a be a bad [ __ ]
>> Exactly. >> Thank you. >> Our advice to you. >> That's our TED talk. So unfortunately,
uh, Melissa's still at it. So she arrived back in Prince Edward Island in 2004 and found herself in a difficult
situation. So settling the civil suit brought against her by Robert's children meant that she lost the remaining
estate, which she planned to live on. So she needed to come up with a new plan to
support herself. Also, in addition for that, the RCMP was investigating her for fraud, alleging that she'd been
collecting spousal social security benefits under two different names. >> Oh. So she knew consequences were a
coming down the pike. >> Mhm. >> So now she had to come up with a plan fast, not only to get some money, but
also to avoid prosecution. So she did what had always worked in her favor in the past. She started looking for a new
mans. >> Of course. >> Now, following his second divorce, 73-year-old Alex uh Strategos, I hope I
said that correctly, he decided that he was ready to try dating again, and he joined an online dating site. Getting
back out there. Unfortunately, he met Melissa on that site. >> He told a reporter later, though.
>> Oh, heard that. >> Okay. I I heard told a reporter later. >> He told a reporter later. He said,
>> "Nice to hear. >> I was just lonely and I thought this was a good chance to find somebody and get
together, start a different life." >> So, they sent some messages back and forth before Melissa suggested that, you
know, maybe they meet up in person for a date. >> Knowing that the RCMP was closing in
fast, she did need to get out of Canada pretty quickly. Yep. So, she was like, "Oh my god, I would love to drive down
from Prince Edward Island to Florida and meet you IRL." >> Oh my god. >> She said, "Let's I'm just so crazy and
cuckoo and like we'll do [ __ ] on a whim. Here I come." >> She said, "Brk." >> That reminds me of the girl just I
should pull her up after this, but the girl that I showed you the other day who at the drive-thru just goes, "Here I
come." >> Oh, yeah. >> I love her. >> That stresses me out. >> I'll pull her out. I'll pull her up at
the end. Here I come. So, that's what Melissa said. She said, "On my way." >> On my way.
>> Now, uh, the proposition seemed [ __ ] crazy to Alex, but he liked that Melissa
was quote full of life and prepared to do something crazy. >> He was like, "Oo, we got a spontaneous
girl up in here." >> Oh, man. >> So, she arrived in Florida and she said, "Ooh, I'm here, but I don't have any
money and I don't have a place to stay. So, you know, this date could go on forever. I could just live with you."
the Amy Polar and baby mama when she says, "Oh no, I don't have gas money." >> Yeah. Pat,
>> where's my wallet? >> So, that obviously um caught Alex offguard, but also he's he's young. He's
getting it. He's back on the horse. He's getting out here. >> He's like, maybe this is how things are
now. >> Yeah. He doesn't know. You know, it's been a while. >> He's like, I don't want to ruin this.
So, he's like, you can stay with me. Don't worry about it. Nice guy. >> He said later, she was a real classy
lady. I was lonely and she was a woman. >> She was a real classy lady. I was lonely, she was a woman. You know, we
love we love a he's he's got simple taste, you know. He's like, I don't need a whole lot more.
>> Lonely woman. Great. >> Classy. >> Let's go. Classy as well. So, from that move at that moment, she moved into his
condo and their whirlwind relationship began. >> Oh, boy. >> Uh just as in her other relationship,
she didn't waste any time getting to his money. Nope. And also like her previous
relationships, it didn't take long before Alex started to notice some new health problems. This is so crazy.
You're never going to guess what he started feeling. >> Dizzy. It was dizzy. He started feeling
dizzy throughout the day. He also felt weak and tired. And then he started falling over a lot.
>> Oh no. >> Now at 73 years old, he wasn't in the best of health. He had diabetes and he
had some other health issues. So he was like, "Oh fuck." Like, you know, consequences of aging. These must just
be new symptoms. Yeah. >> But within a few weeks, the problem started to get more and more serious,
and Alex actually ended up in the hospital. Just like in the other cases, doctors couldn't figure out what was
going on with him, though. But like Robert Friedrich, Alex's symptoms couldn't be explained by any of his
known ailments. Like these people obviously had things they were dealing with, like healthy,
>> they're elderly or older, >> but they're they're not aligning with aligning with the things that they do
have. So medical professionals were like this, what is this? like it doesn't indicate any specific illness or disease
and it doesn't have to it doesn't correlate with anything you're dealing with. So, the doctors weren't the only
ones baffled by Alex's new symptoms. His son Dean also thought it was pretty strange that his father was experiencing
such profound new symptoms out of nowhere with no explanation. >> Yeah, >> but good kids watching out for their I
know >> their aged parents. >> The real ones in this case are truly the kids. And here's the thing. Dean was
willing to go a step further and just say, "I suspect this is my dad's new girlfriend."
>> You know what? Good for Dean for >> I got suspicions and at least can we check into them? Good for him.
>> He said as soon as he got home, he would get real feeble and real sickly and was
back in the hospital. It was something that was happening to him that wasn't natural. Less than two months, think of
that short period of time, less than two months into his relationship with Melissa, his symptoms had become so
severe that Melissa convinced him he needed to move into a long-term care facility.
>> What the [ __ ] >> Meanwhile, this guy like was, you know, dealing with some issues. He had like
diabetes that he was managing, but he was managing his symptoms. He meets Melissa and now he has to sign up for a
long-term care facility. >> And honestly, he's like not that old by any means. >> So,
From the moment Alex arrived at the nursing home, the staff thought there was something very strange about his
relationship with Melissa. >> They knew that he had been divorced twice, but Melissa kept introducing
herself as Mr. Tigos. And at the same time, Dean was more or less convinced that his father's illness was somehow
being caused by Melissa. So, he started pressuring the medical staff to test his
father for drugs. >> Oh, damn. Alex Yeah, Dean is >> Dean and Dennis is getting it going.
>> Uh-huh. Dean and Dean and Dennis. >> Dean and Dennis. Alex said, "I was basically sprawled out flat in bed when
she got my power of attorney, but I can thank my son for saving my life because the rest home discovered drugs in my
system, and he and his girlfriend called the police." >> Dean. >> Dean and Dean's girlfriend.
>> Girlfriend. Hell yeah. >> So, police in Florida immediately arrested Melissa and she was charged
with multiple counts of endangerment and assault, as well as three counts of grand theft from a person 65 years of
age or older. Oh, and two counts of forgery. I just feel bad too like poor Alex. Like these poor guys who are
thinking they're like getting another shot. >> Yeah. >> At love in a and just companionship and
then they end up being like so not cool. >> Yeah. >> Like this like >> like the the woman they find.
>> Yeah. Like she's she's just not cool. >> Also in like most of these cases they
give her a place to stay. They're like, "Oh my gosh, like you're down on your luck. You're welcome to stay with me."
Like you said, opening up their home. It's like you just have to be really shitty if you're doing this to people.
>> Yeah. Know if if you are actively drugging people to try to whatever you're trying to do to them. I mean like
don't do that. Drugging people >> not good. >> Yeah. >> In fact, >> don't recommend it.
>> Blanket. No. >> That's fair. That's a fair statement. >> No. >> Uh-uh. >> If you are drugging people, not cool.
>> Stop. Cut it out. >> That's what I say. But I just really feel bad for them >> cuz I'm like cuz it's this isn't the
ultimate betrayal. Absolutely. >> And this is the ultimate like >> your whole world comes crashing down
like him getting tested in a first of all being put in a nursing home when he probably need to.
>> He said I was sprawled out. She got his power of attorney under. And then the
staff tells you hey you have drugs in your system that you haven't been dealing. Somebody is drugging you. And
then your son and their girlfriend is like, "We have to call the police on your new girlfriend cuz she might have
drugged you, >> right?" >> What? Like, how do you find yourself there? >> That would send you into orbit, but
never mind when you were in your [ __ ] Twilight years. You're supposed to be vibing, and this is not what's supposed
to be happening to you. >> You are supposed to be vibing. >> Let old people vibe, man.
>> 2026. Let old people vibe. >> What was my old one? Call them out 2020. Was it Call them out 2020?
>> Yeah. >> Oh, what a year. But you know what? Let >> old people vibe. >> Yeah, let old people.
>> Only old people. >> Just old people. >> And only the good ones. >> I was gonna say,
>> we're gonna workshop this. >> Let me Yeah, we got to workshop that cuz there's a lot of old people that should
never vibe again for the rest of their lives. >> Facts. >> Wait, let old people vibe 2026 asterk.
And then we'll work on the footnote. >> Yeah. And then we'll we'll make a footnote for that. Unless I need to show
them these [ __ ] hands, which you know who you are. >> That's part of the footnote.
>> Yeah, Mikey just added the the part of the footnote. It's perfect. >> We all We all workshopped that. That was
a brain trip. >> It was a live workshop. It was >> We'll probably add more. In fact,
>> thank you for coming to our live workshop. >> XOXO, >> the pot lab, >> the morbid pot. So, let's get back to
this. Once the drugs had left his system, Alex was able actually to insist assist in the investigation.
>> Good for Alex. >> And that's when the pieces started to come together. He said at night when I'd
go to bed, she'd bring me a little dish of ice cream, maybe a couple teaspoons or something like that, and she'd bring
it into the bedroom and she'd feed it to me. I guess that's where the drugs were.
Then I'd go up to the bathroom and fall flat on my face. >> To [ __ ] with ice cream.
>> I was going to say to use ice cream. >> Diabolical. >> Not to use ice cream, but to use my my
evening snack against me. >> [ __ ] How dare you? How dare you? >> How very dare you?
>> I am finding the rage now. >> You [ __ ] with my evening snack. >> Oh, she's getting red. Big red is red.
>> You [ __ ] with my evening snack. >> It's on site. >> How dare you? >> On site.
That's diabolical. He And not only that, she's feeding him like being like, >> "We can still be weirdly romantic and I
can feed you your ice cream." Like, if that's your thing. But >> she she was allegedly making it seem
like she was a caretaker. >> That's sad. >> It is. It's [ __ ] up. You don't mess
with ice cream like that. Now, so he she he just have some ice cream and then fall flat on his face. He says now in
the two months, remember this all happened over two months. Damn. >> And those two months that they dated.
>> Oh, that sounded so much longer. >> I know. That took me a second to like 60 days,
>> right? Yeah. 60 days, give or take. In 60 days, this man was being moved into a
long-term care facility. >> And within 60 days, Melissa had managed to steal nearly $20,000 from him.
>> Holy [ __ ] >> That was my annual salary at one point in my life. >> Insane. >> $20,000 in two months. Like, hello.
>> Wow. >> So, in March 2005, the prosecution offered Melissa a plea deal in which she
would plead guilty to the charges in exchange for a 5-year sentence. >> Wow. and she accepted. After learning of
her guilty plea, Alex told a reporter, "I think it's fair." >> Oh man. >> Which is really sweet. Everybody's just
like, "You know what? Whatever a judge wants to do, as long as she stays away from me, cool."
>> I think these dudes are literally just like, "As long as I don't have to see her again, like it's I don't care what
happens." >> I really hope that ice cream wasn't ruined for him. >> I know. >> That's really [ __ ] up.
>> Makes me sad. >> Here's the thing. Despite having pleaded guilty to the charges and taking the
police, uh Melissa did continue to maintain her innocence from her jail cell in Florida. She said she flatly
rejects the claims that she's a black widow and says the claims are unfounded. According to Melissa, she never tried to
defraud anyone and had only been looking for love. She told the Kingston Wig Standard, "I was only interested in a
serious relationship in marriage. I was very specific about that. I wasn't trying to lure people to me. I was more
or less looking for someone who had the same desires I had. And when a reporter from CBS asked Melissa in an interview,
can you change? She said, I can't say that from now on I'll be a perfect citizen, but I'm going to try day by day
to behave myself and do what I should have been doing all along, but I can't say that that is going to be the outcome
of how my life will end. She really said no promises. She's going to She's really out here just being like
>> She really said, "Don't ask a lot of me. >> I cannot tell a lie. One thing about me,
not lying." >> Yeah, she can't, you know, >> I'm not going to sit here. >> She said, "Here's the thing. Nobody's
perfect. You live and you learn it." >> She did. >> Yeah, >> she totally did. I like that she was
like, "Can't say that's how it's all going to end." >> She said, "Idk." >> She said, "Stay tuned. Peace." So
Melissa returned to Nova Scotia after completing her sentence in 2010. And soon after she met Fred Weekes, uh, that
started the cycle all over again. When asked about the case, uh, Eric Hickeyi, director for forensic studies at Alliant
International University, he described women like Melissa as an acute danger to society. He said, "They see these men as
simply objects, someone who can get them to where they need to go. They are black
widows. They are quite calculating and they are pretty good liars, and they've gotten more sophisticated. They used to
use formaldahhide and arsenic to poison their victims, which we have covered many of those cases.
>> And there's plenty of like awful men in the world. Pick them. >> Why are you picking these nice guys?
>> Don't go after nice guys. >> I mean, don't go after anyone. I'm kidding. You know I'm kidding. If you're
listening, don't take it seriously. Seriously. >> Don't take it seriously. >> Seriously. Seriously.
>> U But for real, like why are you picking these like very kind, sweet men who are
in these situations of like and just kind of like being lost, >> lonely. Like that's really like
diabolical. >> I know. >> Yucky. I know. So, on March 18th, 2016, Melissa was released from prison after
serving her sentence for poisoning Fred uh weeks there. Alex Stratagos told a reporter, "To tell you the truth, I was
surprised. I don't think she should be out at all. She did it before. She'll do it again."
>> He's like, "Trust me." >> He's like, "Hey, what's up?" So Melissa's release did come with a number
of conditions though, including adherence to a curfew, no use of the internet, and reporting any rom This is
crazy. Reporting any romantic relationships to the police. >> Imagine having to call up 911 and be
like, "Guess what? >> I met a boy. >> It's on." Like when you when the when the government is telling you like you
can't go on the internet, you're grounded off the internet and you better tell your mother and I when you have a
new boyfriend that things have gotten wild. >> It's not going to be a hot girl summer
if you have to report your romantic interest to 911. >> Uh here's the thing though.
>> One month later in April, the 80-year-old was arrested again in Halifax when she was discovered using
the internet in a local library. a direct violation. So, she was brought back to court on a
charge of violating the terms of her release, but the prosecutor did drop the charges. He said there wasn't a
reasonable prospect of convicting Shepherd. So, now in her late 80s, it seems unlikely, question mark, that
Melissa poses much of a risk to anyone, but not everybody agrees. According to her latest victim, Fred Weekes, he said,
"I think she's a wicked woman. She's not safe with any man, and she'll do it again." Damn. And we're here to say I
hope she doesn't. >> I hope she does not. >> I hope that you know she she she completes the terms of her release.
>> Chill out. Just get a hobby. >> Just chill out. >> That's literally all I can say. Chill
the [ __ ] out, Melissa. >> I know. I know. Allegedly. >> Chill out. Stop it. Stop it. Just like
have a have a moment. Just call the police. Take up a hobby. Like you said, crochet. Yeah. Needle point.
>> Sour dough. >> Sour dough. >> That'll take up a lot of your time. >> Minures.
>> Oo, miniatures. >> Booknooks. Make a booknook, girl. Make a book. >> Tough on the eyes.
>> It's going to work those eyes, though. Keep that that keep those going. >> Keep that mind going.
>> Yeah. Put on some glasses. >> Okay. >> This is all stuff that will take up your
time and keep you from from getting into any trouble. >> And it doesn't involve the internet,
which you can't be on, babe. Yeah. >> No internet. >> No internet for you. >> Nope. Stop it.
>> And you know what? That's good cuz the internet's gnarly. So like stay off it.
>> You should. >> Damn. >> So yeah, that is that's the story that I had for you today. What a wild ride, eh?
>> Holy. >> Oh, and it was from Canada. I didn't even do that on purpose. >> Hey.
>> Um, do you have a fun fact for us or is it my turn? >> I think it's your turn.
>> Okay. Fun fact that's also pretty [ __ ] morbid. >> Your brain is constantly eating itself.
>> Delicious. The process is called faggoytosis where cells envelop and consume smaller
cells or molecules to remove them from the system. But don't worry, says 121's facts that will blow your mind on
science forms. They say it's not harmful. It actually helps preserve your gray matter.
>> Oh, and you need that. >> So, >> that's an interesting fact. >> That's It's like when I think too much
about having a brain, now I'm thinking about my brain being hungry and snacking on itself. Now you can kind of feel your
brain. >> I think I do want No, stop. I hate it. >> Sloshing around. >> Not sloshing. Why do you say sloshing?
>> I mean, it is kind of slloshing. >> Is it a little bit? >> I feel like Is it moving? Is that why
you have a headache? >> It's around when you when you get concussion. It's cuz your brain slams
against the side of your skull. >> That I knew, but I I thought that was like why you got concussed because it's
like not supposed to move. Really? >> I need you to stop. I'm literally holding my skull together. Okay. Um, we
love you. We hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird. >> But not so weird that you become too
aware of your own [ __ ] brain sloshing quote unquote around in your head. >> Yeah. Don't
>> And don't say weird. >> Yeah. >> You didn't say weird. >> I didn't say weird.
>> No. >> Wait, what? Oh. >> Oh, we did. Wait, what? >> And we hope you keep it >> weird. Wait, I feel like we did.
>> You She said you didn't. >> Oh, that's funny. >> Crazy. Well, keep it in. >> I was too worried about my Keep all of
it in. I was too worried about my brain slashing around in my head. I mean, yeah. It's been a long day. All right.
Bye.

In the news cycle, an elderly woman attempting to poison her husband would have garnered a pretty small amount of attention from the press, then faded away when a larger story came along. But it didn’t take long for the press to learn that the poisoning of Melissa Ann Shepard's new husband wasn't the first time she had been suspected or convicted of attempted murder. In fact, Melissa Ann Shepard had a criminal history in two countries that went back decades, including many crimes that were very similar to the one she had just perpetrated only with a much worse outcome.

Recommendations

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References

As It Happens. 2016. Victim questions release of notorious Internet Black Widow. March 16. Accessed May 14, 2024. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-tuesday-edition-1.3492260/victim-questions-release-of-notorious-internet-black-widow-she-ll-never-change-1.3492579.

Associated Press. 2005. "'Black Widow' pleads guilty." Kingston Whig-Standard, March 15: 2005.

Canadian Press. 2013. "'Black Widow' pleads guilty to drugging husband's coffee days after wedding." Globe and Mail, June 11.

—. 2016. "Internet black widow off the hook." Hamilton Spectator, December 23: 10.

—. 2013. "'Black Widow' gets 3 1/2 years for drugging husband." Toronto Star, June 12.

—. 2013. "Alleged victim of 'Black Widow' holds no ill will as trial set to start." Windsor Star, June 7: 35.

2012. The Fifth Estate: The Widow's Web. Television. Directed by CBC News. Performed by CBC News.

Elash, Anita. 2012. Police were asked to warn husband of 'Internet Black Widow'. October 5. Accessed May 15, 2024. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/police-were-asked-to-warn-husband-of-internet-black-widow-1.1163836.

L'Heureux, Catie. 2016. "The real-life Gone Girl is 80, and terrifying." The Cut, April 13.

McMahon, Tamsin. 2005. "Robert Friedrich was alive and well, then he met this woman." Kingston Whig-Standard, April 9: 1.

O'Connor, Joe. 2012. "Romancing the 'Black Widow' ." National Post, October 3: 1.

Sherren, Reg. 2013. "Internet Black Widow 'will do it again,' says former husband." CBC News, September 16.

Starnes, Richard. 2005. "'Black widow' arrested in Florida." Ottawa Citizen, January 13: 7.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022) Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023) Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025) Listener Tale Theme Music licensed from https://www.purple-planet.com Main Theme: Matti Paalanen — Trick or Treat — Provided by Jamendo Ad Music: Title: Artist: BlueJay Studio — Spooky Waltz — Provided by Jamendo

Brief Summary

Melissa Anne Shepard, the internet black widow, exploits elderly men for financial gain, leading to serious legal consequences.

Key points

The Internet Black Widow. Melissa Anne Shepard, known as the internet black widow, had a dark past.
Whirlwind Romance. Fred and Melissa's romance blossomed quickly, but danger lurked beneath the surface.
A Disturbing Discovery. Fred's friend learns shocking news about Melissa after their wedding.
Fred's Plea Deal. Fred accepted a plea deal for a three and a half year sentence, showing remarkable calmness towards his ex-wife.
Gordon's Mysterious Death. Gordon Stewart died under suspicious circumstances while Melissa was driving, leading to conflicting reports.
Melissa's New Life. After prison, Melissa became a spokesperson for battered women, despite her past.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I just want to clear that up.

2:51WatchFeb 23, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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