Episode 770: Haunted Getaways - West Virginia Edition! | Forensic Files

Hey weirdo. Hey weirdos. I'm Elena. >> I'm Ash. And this is Morbid. >> I wasn't expecting you to say the the
first part. And >> I feel like I haven't started it in a while. >> I know. We used to switch off every
episode, but now it's like impossible to figure out who did the last one. But I was looking down and I went to say it
and then it felt like your voice came out of my mouth. I was like, "Hello." Like, "What's happening?"
>> I was like, "Am I in a am I in the sixth dimension?" >> Yeah, you are. Just so you know.
>> No, this is not the sixth dimension. This is >> I think this is like the first one or
some [ __ ] This is a dimension that I would like to >> This is a hellcape. >> Yeah. I don't I don't want to visit it
again. >> Yeah. Our lives are are cool. >> Yeah. Like personally, >> I like my life like pretty rad. I just
hate the things happening around us. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. That's not great.
>> No, it's really bad. >> But >> but let's not bring you all the way down. >> Let's tell you about a cool opportunity
for you. >> Yeah, >> right. >> What is that cool opportunity? >> They can buy your book in the UK.
>> I was like, "Mama, we just talked about this." >> I was like, "Wait, they have an
opportunity? What is it?" We literally were like, "Okay, like what do we have at the top of the show?"
She's like, "Okay, my UK." I'm like, "A cool opportunity for you guys." >> Uh, this is a cool opportunity. I don't
know why I didn't think of it that way. >> It's the morning. >> It is. It's the morning. I haven't had
enough coffee. But, uh, UK wonderful baby face mooches. >> Period. >> You can buy You can pre-order the
Butcher Legacy. What? What? >> And the Butcher Game. And you can buy the butcher game now.
>> Hell yeah. That's cool. Haven't been able to. >> Now you can. So, you can get both of the
Now you can get all three. You can pre-order >> the Butcher game. You can pre-order the
Butcher Legacy. Um, it's going to be awesome. I'm going to try my very hardest to get some something signed
over to you. >> Um, I'm trust me, that's top top top of the morning on my mind today is getting
making sure I get something signed. >> Things are happening in group text messages. Yeah, I'm looking at [ __ ]
stickers, all kinds of [ __ ] just to make it happen. So, I pro I'm trying. >> Um, and yeah, so that's really rad.
>> Uh, I love you guys. >> She loves you guys. >> Yeah. >> For me, my business is just that I
figured out how to use Tik Tok appropriately, >> which is a big deal. >> I figured out how to edit like
legitimate videos and make them funny. >> Yeah. >> So, it's over. It's over for you people.
>> It is. It's over for every [ __ ] >> I feel like I every single [ __ ] I feel
like I unlocked a new skill. And I also feel like, you know, like when your grandma figures out Facebook and she
just like won't stop posting. Yep. >> That's me now. >> I'm really excited about that.
>> Yeah, I'm excited, too. >> I'm excited that you're just going to keep going. >> I'm now your grandma.
>> Yeah. Hell yeah, you are. >> Party as you should be. >> I'm just going to insert my queen big
into every video that I can. >> My green velvet glasses. >> She already did. >> Got to have them.
>> Yeah. >> You got to see. >> You got to see. I love her >> because uh yeah, I got the I was super
super fortunate to get a PR box for the new Scarpetta show because my entire life I've loved K Scarpetta and Patricia
Cornwell and what a [ __ ] dream. That was one of the coolest PR boxes that I've ever seen. I always see people get
PR boxes for cool TV shows and like movies and I'm always like, I want one of those.
>> And then like usually I don't get them. >> No. But like a lot of them I'm like
that's so cool. I think that's when I saw it and I was like I will die if I don't get that.
>> Yeah. And honestly uh Patricia Cornwell's team is so nice. They like went out of their way to send one.
>> Yeah. They are the best. >> But I think now that we posted one, maybe we'll get more PR boxes.
>> I hope so because I'll I'll post them. >> We'll post videos, you guys. I can edit
them now. >> Yeah, I Exactly. rip them open the boxes >> and and I almost called you your aunt
name and Ash will edit them. >> I incredible. >> And Titi will edit them. Like and Titi
is going to edit them. The amount of times that happens or you'll just call me love.
>> Yeah, I call you love a lot cuz she calls her kids that. So it's just like a vocal stim. I think
>> I do that. It's I might call one of you love. Who knows? >> What love? >> It might happen. John did that the other
day. I think he did. I was like, "What?" You're like, "What?" I was like, "Sorry."
>> He's like, "I can do that, love." >> Yeah. It's okay. I can do that, love. >> So funny.
>> And also, if you haven't already, um, get yourself some tickets to our Radio City Music Hall show. Please do. Uh,
there's still tickets available. It's a one night show. We're not doing another one. So,
>> come and do it. Spend spend a little little weekend in New York. New York. Spend a day in New York. Who the [ __ ]
cares? >> Spend some time in the Big Apple. Do whatever you want. But come to our show.
>> Yeah. Do whatever you want. And even if you don't want to come to our show, just
do one thing that you don't want to do and come. >> Exactly. Okay. Please do that thing.
>> Maybe we'll do a kickline. >> No, it'll be fun. >> I'm excited for this one. We're figuring
out like themeies right now. >> Some merch. >> Merchies. I have to send an email that
just reminded me about that. Um, and I think it like it's going to be fun. We're going to be in costume.
>> Yeah, it's going to be really fun. We have a whole theme where it trust me. You want to be there.
>> Yeah. >> We got We got surprises. We got fun. We got >> We have an opener. We got an opener.
>> Yeah. >> So, >> maybe we'll like I don't know. I'm not I don't know. >> Yeah.
>> I don't know. >> I don't know. I'm not making any promises. It's going to be great.
>> You got to see. You got to come and see. >> You got to come and see. So, get your
tickets. But just know >> uh that we Yeah. Ticket Master is the only ones that we like know what and
approved the prices. So, outside of that, we have not approved prices. Sometimes bots they go and they buy the
tickets. >> If they're out there being poop them up. >> If they're out there being crazy,
>> we have not approved that. >> Not us. >> So, so [ __ ] them. Big Red and Tit would
never. >> No way. Never. >> Okay. We wanted to do something spooky today. >> We did. We were craving a spooky
episode. And also >> what? >> This one has a legitimate true crime. >> Oh, you do?
>> Part of it. Like most of mine is true crime. Oh. >> So, so it's definitely got spookiness.
>> True crime. But I have a true crime. We have a true crime episode. >> Yeah. >> That has weight for us.
>> It does. And the person who knows who they are. >> Yeah. You know who you are.
>> They're not listening though. >> Um anyway, mine is just purely haunted. Um but it involves Aaron Burr. So
>> sir. Yes, sir. I love that. >> Yeah. >> I feel like you should go first though
because Maida. >> Yeah. I think ending on like purely haunting I think is the way to go.
>> Yeah. >> This is gonna be a West Virginia. >> Yeah. Yeah. West Virginia. >> Is that what our theme is?
>> Yeah. I saw that you were doing something from West Virginia, so I said I saw Elena Arhar researching things
about West Virginia, so I started researching haunted things in West Virginia. >> I love that a lot. And it just makes me
think of um Hannah Blector saying to Clarice Starling, "And your accent, which you've tried so hard to shed, is
pure West Virginia." Oh, a read. >> Makes me think of it. I haven't seen Silence of the Lambs in so long. I feel
like I might have said that on every episode for the last three [ __ ] months, but I need to watch that movie
again. >> It's one of my favorite movies. >> It's such a good movie. >> It is. It's [ __ ] genius.
>> It is. >> The way it's shot is unbelievable. >> It's chilling. the the performances. Oh
my god. >> Me and Drew went to this museum in um LA when we were there and they had like a
whole recreation of the cell area. It was sick. If we can ever get your ass on a plane, we got to bring you there.
>> Yeah. If you can ever get your ass right now, I'm not trying to go on a plane
right now. I can't believe when we went to Disney, like me and Drew, and we came
back that we were able to get back in a timely fashion. >> I think you slipped through that right
before. No, we literally did like and I'm talking right before because we turned around and I was like like as we
got through security I was like, "Oh, [ __ ] We got here just in time." >> Literally slipped through, I think.
Yeah. >> I'm not trying to trying to test the fates like that. >> Yeah. I'll just be road tripping for a
while. >> Yeah. I'm just going to stay on ground for a while. >> Yeah. We'll see how it shakes out.
>> Stay grounded, brothers. Stay grounded from an earth sign. Uh, so today I'm going to be talking about cabin 13 in
Babcock State Park in West Virginia. >> See, that's the thing. 13 is a spooky number.
>> The I think it's almost I always think of 13 as like a fake spooky number. That's like I don't look at it as like a
thing. >> That's crazy because you're Irish. >> I know. Like in Irish culture, we see it
as bad luck. Ma will not see 13 people at a table. >> And she instilled that [ __ ] into me.
>> Yeah. I don't know. Maybe it's because it got instilled into me that I like rebelled against it.
>> Like I always just think of it as cuz like I don't know 13 doesn't really bother me. So I think I look whenever it
it showing up in a place like this where something really bad actually did happen. I'm like
>> you're like I cuz I always look at it as like fiction a little bit. So when it
when it translates into reality it's like oh it really is cabin 13. >> Yeah it is.
So, Cabin 13 in Babcock State Park in West Virginia is said to be wildly haunted.
>> You want to go? >> And yeah, cuz you can stay there. You can stay there, my friends. There's lots
of There's people who have done a lot of investigations in this place. >> So, I've alreadyve I've already uh
thought about it. >> We've already we've already uh contacted a couple of friends.
>> We've already reached out to some friends to say, >> "Do you want to go to West?"
>> West Virginia isn't that far away. Do you want to go to that? >> We can stay grounded and go there.
>> We can stay grounded and go there. And this cabin in particular, I'll mention
it again at the end, but it's the last one in the series of cabins. >> Oh, that makes it even spookier.
>> Yeah. It's on the end of a very at the end of the road. It's very isolated, very secluded. It's in particular the
staff is like this cabin is the most secluded from all of them. >> Freaky. So, there was a real very
confirmed murder that happened there in 1996 in that cabin. >> 1996? >> Yeah. For some reason, I thought you
were taking me way back. >> Nope. >> I'm just taking you back to your birth. >> 29 years ago.
>> Yeah. That year, in the middle of the night on April 30th, Cheryl Flippo, a 46-year-old wife and mother who was
devoted to her family and her church, was killed in cabin 13 brutally. Now, Cheryl was a beautiful, loving, and
again, by all accounts, dedicated member of her church. She was married to the Reverend James Michael Flippo, and they
were happy from the outside. It looked like like >> evidently nothing to be shocked about.
Like, but I'm just from the outside, you're like, "Okay, nothing that I can see."
>> Okay. >> In the 1980s though, something started happening to them. They found themselves
being stalked. >> Oh, [ __ ] They were getting letters and they were sent in that like classic
magazine letter cutout like ransom note kind of like ransom note kind of vibe and they would say [ __ ] like you're next
and I'm going to get you and like just like scary [ __ ] and it freaked them out
especially Cheryl who obviously was like who the [ __ ] is doing this but they just
kind of went on with their life because they couldn't figure out who sent them and they also couldn't figure out when
they were coming or why they were coming like they would just reason >> yeah it was very willy-nilly so they
were like we don't even have like a pattern here. I'm not even sure why they're coming.
>> Okay. >> Very strange. >> Now, she and her husband, Reverend James Michael Flippo, decided to take a
spontaneous trip to the park to Babcock State Park in 1996. This was after Reverend Flippo had taken a man named
Joel Bojis to the park to baptize him in the water. He like performed a baptism in the in the creek.
>> In the creek, a cryism >> in a cryism. He was doing a cryism. Okay. And that he was doing that on uh
April 27th, 1996. >> Okay. >> So, he apparently loved the place when he was there cuz he made reservations
that day for him and his wife to go stay. >> He said, "This place is the tits and I
would like to stay." >> He said, "Let's go." >> So, the reservation was for April 29th
and they arrived a bit later than expected that day according to uh Michael James Michael Flippo. So, they
didn't pick up a key at the office. They just went to the cabin anyways and the cabin was unlocked. So, they were like,
"Cool." >> Everything was chill. Although, James Flippo did use a pay phone at some point
during the evening to make a phone call. >> Okay. >> Um, at 2:11 a.m. that night, that night,
that morning, excuse me, that morning, I was I as soon as I set it out, I was like, "That night,
>> it still feels like the night cuz it's so late." So, I'll give you that. >> So, at 2:11 that morning, a 911 call
came from the pay phone. >> Okay. >> It was James Flippo. He was absolutely panicked. and he said that he and his
wife Cheryl had been attacked in the middle of the night by a home invader and they were both hurt. He didn't know
if Cheryl was okay. Like he was frantic. >> Okay. >> Uh they sent police out immediately and
so the Fetville County Sheriff's Department arrived very quickly. Deputy C. Bryant was the first one on scene and
he noted that James Slippo appeared to be bleeding only a little bit though and he was only wearing underwear just in
tidy whies. Um he had to drive there he said because uh when he came out of his house like out of the cabin his car was
gone. >> So he's like someone stole my car. Like the person who came in must have stole
my car. So he had to like run to the pay phone. That's why he was like just in his underwear like blah.
>> Okay. >> So he the the police officer was like I'll drive us back to the cabin and we
can figure out what happened. So he gets there and there's a red Camaro parked in
front of the cabin. And so >> as his protocol, Deputy Bryant was like, "Is that car yours?" He, "Dude, is that
your car?" >> And James Slippo was like, "No, that's not my car." He was like, "I don't know
whose car that is." And he said he had driven his wife and him to the cabin in a green Cadillac and this was a red
Camaro. >> Who the [ __ ] is just leaving a Camaro? >> So he was like, "What?" And he was like,
"I I think like this person stole my car. I don't know who that car is." And he was like, "So did he like so this
person stole your car and left his?" Like why would he just trade out your cars?
>> Trade >> like what? And so he was like, "What the fuck?" So James Flippo said that his
wife was still in the cabin very badly hurt. Again, didn't know if she was alive. Like any when asked if she had if
he had like actually done anything to see if she was alive, he was like, "No, I I didn't."
>> That's weird. >> I just ran out of there. Which is like, okay. >> Uh what? So leaving James Lippo in the
car, Deputy Bryant made his way into the cabin and immediately he took notes that
there was no signs of force entry in this cabin. >> Okay. >> He was like, I don't know if the like
the door was unlocked or what, but there did not seem like somebody >> broke in here.
>> And it had recently rained and so the ground was very squishy and muddy. And he said there was absolutely no
footprints anywhere around the cabin besides theirs. And he said when he went into the cabin, he was like there was no
mud, there was no water on the floor, like somebody had come in like >> Mr. Flippo.
>> So he was like, which obviously is not like smoking gun, but it it made his radar go up a little bit because he was
like, >> it's a pretty big deal. >> He's like, I guess if I'm if you're thinking like an investigator, you're
going to go, okay, maybe they cleaned up. Maybe they wiped up their their muddy footprints and I just don't see
them right now. >> But like somehow there are no tracks in the mud as well. >> Well, that's the thing. He's like, "But
how did that happen?" So, making his way into the cabin, he found Cheryl Flippo after a lot of searching cuz he couldn't
find her at first. She was in fact very deceased and was laying between the wall
and the bed with a roll of duct tape near her that appeared to have been used or attempted to be used on her.
>> Okay. >> There was a ton of blood everywhere and her skull had been completely crushed.
>> Oh, wow. >> He even noted, and it's noted in court documents, that there was brain matter
exposed. And there was brain matter on the wall. >> Oh my god. >> That's how brutally she had been beaten.
Later, it was discovered that she had been horrifically beaten with firewood and fire like like basically fire
pokers. Like, >> holy [ __ ] >> That's really brutal. So, paramedics declared Cheryl dead as soon as they
arrived and they brought James to the hospital where he was treated for literally a bruise on his head and
scratches on his legs. >> Uhhuh. That's it. So he was taken to the police station to give a statement to
Detective S. Kesler. His statement said that he had arrived at the cabin with Cheryl, gone to the pay phone to call a
sick friend who was in the hospital just to check on them. >> Random. >> And they made a fire, they ate some ice
cream, they played cards. Like sounds like a nice night together. >> Yeah. >> And he said after they went to sleep,
nothing out of the ordinary. No fights or anything like that. And he said at some point in the middle of the night,
he heard a noise and he woke up to see Cheryl on the ground next to the bed and a person with something over his face
and a rope. And when he described what was over his face, I have to say this because I felt like a dingus. He said a
toboggan over his face. >> A toboggan is a sled. >> Okay, I'm really glad that you thought
that as well. Apparently a tobogen is also like a hat of some sort. I pictured somebody with a toboggan strapped to
their face and I said I said that's horrifying. >> Not not a tobogan. Like I'm laughing at this part of this
because I need you to picture somebody with a tobogen like the sled >> strapped to their face.
>> A sled face. >> Yeah. I need you to picture that. I don't understand. >> I'm trying to look at the hat.
>> A toboggan is basically like a ski hat I think. So, I didn't know it was called
that. >> Kind of just like a beanie. >> And when I saw it in the court documents, I was like, "What the fuck?"
And I looked it up and I was like, "Oh, that's a hat." >> Oh, that's funny. Oh, it's because
that's the hat that you wear to go >> to toboggon. >> Tobogening. >> See, that makes sense. Okay. See, it all
makes sense. And later he would say like he would change his story with this. It
was like a hat, a hat with eyes cut out, a hat with the mouth cut out, how it like, you know, like he would change it
up a lot. Um, so he said, "I think you killed your wife." >> He wakes up, he sees this person. He
said before he could do anything, he was walloped with a piece of firewood. And when he woke up, cuz he knocked out, the
stranger was sitting on him, cutting his legs with a knife. >> That's ridiculous.
>> Just cutting his legs with a knife. >> That's ridiculous. >> He said he was knocked out again. And
when he woke up, the stranger, the killer, was gone. He checked Cheryl. And this is when he said, "I checked Cheryl
and I laid my head on her chest and she had a heartbeat. So, I ran to the pay phone.
>> Previously, he said, "I thought you said you had done anything." Yeah. >> So, meanwhile, a detective, and they're
noting all of these things, >> and meanwhile, a detective at the scene has called now and said that there was
clearly no sourced entry. And also that this was a very sloppily staged scene in
his opinion. >> Yeah, I would say so. >> No forced entry, no evidence of anyone else being there, and things that were
even put in strange places like they were trying to make it look like a scene. furniture was just like weirdly
overturned. Like things that wouldn't make sense. Yeah. >> This along with the brutality of
Cheryl's injuries and his surface level scratches that he's claiming he got from
a knife, >> it was clear something was off. >> Okay. >> So, James Slippo was immediately told he
was a suspect and soon after he was indicted on first-degree murder for his wife.
>> Okay. During his trial, some of the evidence that came out was it was discovered that um 30 days prior to
that, within 30 days before this, he had taken out a $100,000 life insurance policy.
>> She was aware of this. >> Okay. >> Probably because she just thought like >> that he wasn't going to murder her for
that money, right? >> Like a lot of married couples take these out. >> Yeah. >> But yeah, he had done it less than 30
days before that. Um he was also an overspender. Oh, >> she had complete control of the finances
because he couldn't handle having control of the finances. >> Yikes. >> Um, she would also like she took his
credit cards away because he had maxed them all out and she like cut them up and was like, "You can't have credit
cards." >> Oh my god. >> Yeah. Like he was like ruining their finances. So she was like she was trying
to take control of it. >> Yeah. >> But also Cheryl had recently accused Flippo of having an affair with a man
who attended the church. >> Oh [ __ ] >> So that had caused some tension in the marriage as well. So, there was things
going on bubbling under the surface, obviously. >> Big time. >> Further investigation showed that Flippo
wasn't just bad with money. He was a thief. >> Oh, no. >> He had stolen $12,000 from a fund that
the church had set up to help a sick child. >> Oh, this guy is scum. >> So, he's just a piece of [ __ ]
>> He's scum. >> Yeah, literally scum. So, Dr. Irvin M. Sofur, a former chief medical examiner,
testified that James Flippo's injuries were not enough to even render him unconscious. I like that he said that
the killer was just cutting his legs, which like what? >> Well, they discovered they were
scratches. >> They discovered that they were self-inflicted obviously. Like it was
very obvious to see. >> Why would a killer just sit on top of you and cut your legs?
>> Cuz you can also see the direction where the scratches start and stop. And if
he's doing it from his angle, it's clearly he's scratching his own legs. It's like people are not dumb. People go
to medical school for this. Like get a grip. And in the 911 call, like I said before, there was the discrepancy
between him saying he didn't check to see if she was alive and then later saying he put his head on her chest to
see to hear a heartbeat. >> Yeah, that's you would remember that. That's a big deal.
>> He later said that he had to use the pay phone because his cellular phone was
actually missing. That's why he was using the pay phone that day. And he said he arrived at the
>> at the uh cabin and he didn't know where his phone was. That's why he had to use
it right away to make that phone call to the sick friend. sick friend. They found
his phone, his cellular phone in the fireplace, >> brother. The roll of duct tape next to
throw in the water. >> No, in the fireplace. >> Like, I'm glad you're dumb, but glad
you're dumb. >> The roll of duct tape found next to Cheryl's body, only James' fingerprints
were on it. >> Investigators, >> this man is a [ __ ] idiot. >> Investigators also found that the blood
that they had found on the bed was not there because of the attack. Someone had soaked up the blood on the floor and
plopped it onto the bed to make it look like the attack had happened there. >> That's actually crazy that they could
figure that out. Cool. Yeah. But a weird thing to do. >> Yeah. And that call he had said was to a
sick friend was actually to Joel Bojis who he baptized in the park a couple of days earlier.
>> Okay. >> And that car outside the cabin. >> Yeah. >> That was also Joel's. He claimed he
didn't recognize it. That was Joel's. Joel had Joel had let uh James borrow his car to go to the park that day
>> and he to just like he planned to say my car was stolen and a random man left his
car here and I also just happened to baptize him two days ago. >> Well, that's he's a friend. He's a
literal friend and Joel was like I let him borrow my car because it's a convertible and I think he was like
going to be getting rid of it or selling it. So, he had asked like, "Oh, can I take the red convertible up to the park
with Cheryl cuz I want it to be like a romantic weekend." And he was like, "Yeah,
>> that's sad to think that she probably thought this was like a nice romantic, >> but they were going to like try to like
rekindle, >> especially after they were going through what they were going through."
>> Yeah. >> James had also claimed that he had never been in the park, but we know that's not
true, >> dude. >> And staff confirmed that he was there only 2 days earlier. They also spoke
with witnesses who said that James claimed that this was a spur-ofthe- moment romantic getaway, not planned at
all. >> Two days before, >> he had not only made reservations 2 days before when he was baptizing Joel, but
Joel said he pointed out specifically cabin 13. This cabin again is the last in the row, very secluded, and he was
like, I want to stay there. >> Right. >> Like he I wonder why. >> Now, also that stalker we talked about
>> was him. >> That was James. >> Yeah. I had as soon as you started I was like, "Oh, that was him."
>> He sent them to scare Cheryl whenever she would get close to like catching him
and all his [ __ ] >> or probably leaving >> stealing money or claiming like anything
to keep her on her toes >> and like needing support. >> Exactly. Now, there were some appeals of
course and they tried to argue the police procedures, searching the crime scene for too long without a warrant
kind of thing. >> Um, they did argue this. Well, you can look up the court case and they go like
really obviously thoroughly into like each of the appeals and how they argued them and it's pretty interesting
actually. >> Okay. >> Um, his conviction, which was a life sentence without possibility of parole,
was upheld. But >> out of this, there was a Supreme Court ruling that came out um that did limit
the amount of time investigators can search a scene without a warrant. So, something did come out of this.
Now, the clearly cursed energy that is probably pretty prevalent in cabin 13 at Babcock State
Park is definitely it's definitely been experienced by people. >> Okay. >> People say they see a woman standing in
the window when the cabin is vacant. She just stares outside and sometimes she's
wearing a night gown like just looking outside and they see her sometimes walking through the woods and they all
report that she just has like a very sad grieving kind of look on her face. >> That's awful. I hope that it's not
Cheryl. I hope she's not stuck there. >> I really don't want her to be stuck in that cabin.
>> Now, in the silence of the middle of the night, people will hear sobbing or moaning coming from the cabin and it'll
be vacant. >> Yeah. Some visitors hear a residual struggle inside the cabin. Like almost
like they hear thuds and crashing and thrashing. Like someone is in a fight in the cabin, but it's empty.
>> Oh [ __ ] >> Which feels like a residual like just reliving it, which >> I really hope that's not it.
>> Yeah. >> Now, investigators have noted that when they came towards This is interesting.
When they come towards cabin 30 uh 13, the whole hollow around cabin 13 feels it just falls silent like they've
entered a void. Ooh, >> they said all insects stop making noises. Animals don't make noise. Like
it's like it reminds me of Oki Gajara, the suicide forest. >> Yep. >> And it's like how it just like is like
this womb of silence in there >> and it feels very unnatural. It can feel very threatening and it can that kind of
silence cuz it happens in Akahara a lot. It can [ __ ] with you psych psychologically like we're just not
meant to be that. I think like >> you know devoid of any kind of uh sensory. >> Yeah.
>> You know, but people who stay in the cabin report that they wake and this is a report that happens a lot that they
wake up to see a shadow looming over them at the foot of the bed. >> Oh >> yeah.
>> Sometimes >> Oh, that gave me such a big chill. >> Just like a shadow. And sometimes they
see the shadow lurking in the corners of the bedroom. >> I don't like that. just like hanging out
over there. >> No. >> And others said that they've been shook awake by something and when they open
their eyes, they hear a woman talking to them, but they can't understand what she's saying or she'll like ask for help
or be crying. Oh, I have non-stop chills right now. >> Yeah. They will also hear knocking at
the door and no one is there when they go check. >> Oh, I hate this so much. >> And they hear someone creeping around
outside and they'll look and no one's around. I saw one report where a family stayed there and they woke up a few
times to someone banging on the door hard and hard enough that their father opened the door several times to like
scream out there, go away, but no one was there. Several times, brother, pack up your family and get the [ __ ] out of
there. >> That's what I'm saying. >> Several times they on the door. >> Like that's that's some strangers type
[ __ ] >> Yeah. >> So that's Yeah. >> I don't like the banging on the cabin door.
>> I hate the banging. What are you doing staying in cabins, folks? I have to ask.
>> Don't stay in cabins like this. >> Nay, >> unless you're going to investigate, cuz
I would like to. Now, >> I'm not staying there, though. We can stay awake. >> Yeah, stay awake. Keep those eyes open.
>> Red Bull, >> let's go. >> Hello. Hello. >> Okay. Well, mine is significantly less
sad and horrifying to be honest. >> I mean, that's good. And some of my haunts are kind of funny, but some are
scary. >> Oh, I love it. So, there's haunts. We get a mix of everything. So, mine's a
hotel and it's the Blender Has It Hotel in Parkerburg, West Virginia. >> West Virginia.
>> West Virginia. Cuz like I said, I saw you research in West Virginia and then I
said I would like to research West Virginia. >> West Virginia. >> So, the Blender Hasset Hotel is one of
the oldest hotels and it opened on May 6th, 1889. Damn, that's like as old as me.
>> No, it's older. >> Not quite. >> No, it's a little bit older. The hotel took 6 years to build and the whole
entire project was managed by Colonel William Nelson Chancellor. Uh the goal was to make this like the most opulent
hotel in West Virginia. >> I love when they have that goal. >> They were like, "Listen, if anybody is
traveling through this area," which there was a lot of travel at this time cuz it was like an oil boom and like a
gas boom. It's [ __ ] was just booming. >> Appalachia. >> Appalachia. Uh but they were like, "If
anybody is going to come and stay here, they need to stay at this hotel and no other hotel.
I mean, I think that's a a a pretty cool goal to be like, I'm going to be it. >> Yeah,
>> that's it. >> Like the hotel. >> And I love when they they have it's always the guy who says, "This is going
to be the most luxurious, opulent hotel." >> [ __ ] yeah. >> I don't I I want to say like go into it
that way, but now I'm like, should you? >> I think you should. >> Like sometimes it ends up poorly.
>> This is This is good. I think this is fine. There's like fun haunts. >> Yeah. He said, "I'm not building a
hotel. I'm building the hotel." And I respect that. >> So, this isn't like, you know, uh,
tragic hauntings. These are like >> I mean, some of them are like a little bit sad, but like nothing crazy.
>> I like that. >> So, it was built in the Queen Anne style, which was all the rage in the
Victorian era. Picture ornate trims, towers, large stained glass windows, all the above.
>> Get it? Upon opening the hotel, uh, it had the finest luxuries that anybody could have enjoyed at the time. Electric
and gas lighting. >> Get the [ __ ] out of here. >> It was like this thing where like
electric and gas were like working together to to make electricity or some [ __ ]
>> They they were collabing >> and they were they were working on a collab. Um, and this was literally just
one year after the city had like started transitioning over to using electricity.
So, this was a really big deal. >> Yeah. >> It also had steam heating. >> Wo. both service and passenger uh
elevators, which like that was huge at the time. Not having to carry all your suitcases up to your room was a big
deal. >> Hell yeah. >> And my favorite, state-of-the-art plumbing. >> Oh, >> I love good plumbing.
>> We love it when you can [ __ ] in peace. >> Yeah, you know. >> Yeah, I do. Now, according to the
hotel's website, guests could enjoy leisurely strolls through double parlors on the second level, one graced with an
upright piano. A grand mirror stood in the lobby, shielded by a wire cage to deter any potential damage stemming from
the lively streets below. A majestic central staircase spiraled through all five stories, overlooked by public
restrooms on each floor and offering privacy in all 50 guest rooms. >> I feel like we we just don't make them
like that anymore. >> We don't we don't we >> like that description. We don't see that
anymore. >> Dare I say we make the ugliest [ __ ] now. our buildings over here. I'm I'm not
speaking for any of you in any other place in the world other than you know states, but our but our buildings I'm
like >> they're ugly. >> Can we and everything is just condos now. >> I just want I want it to be back to like
ornate intricate carvings. >> Victorian era [ __ ] >> Yeah. Like you look at some some like
cathedrals and [ __ ] in like Germany and [ __ ] >> Oh my god. There is one German cathedral
in particular that every time I see it, I'm like Elena has to go there. >> Yeah, it's Is it the Cologne?
>> Yeah, I think it is actually. >> I believe it is. It's the most gorgeous thing I have ever laid eyes on.
>> It's stunting. >> Like it's stupid. >> It always goes on TikTok to that sound
that's like and then they're like >> it's like the Ramstein or Ramstein. Uh >> yeah, that's an easier way to say it.
That's an easier way to present the song. >> Cologne Cathedral, I think, is one of
the most gorgeous pieces of architecture I've ever seen in my entire existence. >> Gorgeous. Also, look up a picture of
this hotel because it's also very beautiful. >> So, the hotel was named after Irish
aristocrats Harmon and Margaret Blennerhasset. >> Oh, I love that. >> And they lived on this gorgeous island
on the Ohio River, which is also now named Blenerasset uh island after them. Uh, now Harmon and Margaret came to
America from England for a couple of reasons. This was in 1796 and they had stirred up some trouble in England.
Oops. One, because they were uncle and niece and also husband and wife. Oh. >> And two, because Harmon was advocating
for Irish independence and his political homies were not trying to get arrested alongside him for that.
>> Oh, period. >> I'm just really focused on the uncle and niece of it all. >> Yeah. Number two is not so bad. Number
one. Number two is not bad at all. Number one bad, but number one is really shaken me. Yeah, I was shook. But
apparently Harmon was kind of always embroiled in in some kind of scandal. He actually had to flee the island after it
was discovered that he was involved with the Aaron Burr treason conspiracy. >> Oh no.
>> Aaron Burr apparently traveled to the island quite frequently to work on his military plans, which were like [ __ ]
up. Uh Harmon was arrested twice in the US and financially ruined before he just
eventually returned to England. But I mean he still has a hotel and an island named after him. So I guess it all
worked out. >> Now they weren't the only famous people involved in the hotel's history. JFK
campaigned there in 1960 and he stayed on two separate occasions in May of that year. Uh apparently he stayed in room
216 both times. Uh at that time 216 was the biggest suite that the Blender Hasset had to offer. Now it was
officially added to the US National Register of Historic Places in 1982 and it has survived many feats. Fires,
floods, renovation, and most importantly what we're here for today, hauntings. >> Yeah. Yeah.
>> So let's start with what is said to be the most haunted room in the entire hotel. This is the I think it's called
the Coltnecker suite or room 409. The Blender Houseet website alleges that this room is not just the most haunted
hotel room that they have to offer, but they say it is considered the most haunted hotel room in the entire state
of West Virginia. >> Damn. Right now, originally this part of the hotel, the hotel was actually a
separate building, which was the Coltnecker building built in 1889 by John Colnecker.
>> Of course. >> Of course. The first floor back then was used as a saloon originally.
>> Oh, yeah. It was. And then it became a popular restaurant years later. It wasn't until
>> a saloon. >> I [ __ ] love a saloon. >> Oh, who doesn't love a saloon? >> Swinging door. Let's go.
>> Let's go. >> Now, it wasn't until the 1985 1986 major renovation that the buildings ended up
merging. >> Now, the suite is the only twostory suite in the entire hotel, and it it's
marketed as being able to sleep 10 guests. >> Ooh. >> So, like paranormal investigation.
>> I mean, looks pretty good to me. >> You want to? >> Yeah. If you did investigate this hotel,
this suite is one of the places that you would be most likely to come face to face with the man in the bowler hat. Oh,
let's go. People describe seeing him as a completely solid figure. They will wake up in the middle of the night and
see this man standing in their room. Completely solid figure, nicely dressed in early 20th century attire and of
course a bowler hat, >> of course. Uh, he mostly appears to people in the upstairs bedroom of the
suite and then he just vanishes like he was never there in the first place. >> I kind of love that.
>> He's just like, "Hello, goodbye." >> He's like, "Hello, do you like my outfit? Bye."
>> "Do you like my hat or not?" >> Now, most people say he's pretty harmless and like they they just see him
and then he's gone. >> Cool. But one woman, not so cool, did report that she woke up in the middle of
the night, saw the man, and that he held her down by her neck in bed, and she was
unable to move. >> That's rude. >> Uh, some would say >> that is not as cool as do you like my
outfit. >> Some people would say that's paranormal assault. >> Yeah, I would say so.
>> I don't know what you do about it, but [ __ ] up. Now, no one's quite sure who
exactly this man is, but because the hotel attracted businessmen during the oil boom in the late 1800s, people are
like, he's probably just some kind of businessman like stuck there. >> But some people also think he could be
Colonel William Chancellor, who's the hotel's builder. >> Uh but he the uh William Chancellor is
more often accompanied by the smell or the sight of cigar smoke. Oh, >> people will just smell it and not see
anything. But people have seen like little cigar smoke >> like plumes. Oh my god, that's cool.
>> And he's more often seen on the third floor mezzanine. So like while he could
be the man in the bowler hat, >> I'm not so sure. >> Yeah. >> Uh employees and guests have seen legit
smoke rings coming out of his portrait which hangs in the lobby. >> Oh my god, I love that so much.
>> Like imagine just sitting in the lobby and then you're just like you just see a
man blown up but he's a portrait. Now, during renovations, that portrait was apparently moved. And when the hotel
reopened to guests, one man had a crazy interaction. He was getting ready to climb into bed,
and as he sat down, he felt an impression on the other side of the bed, but he was by himself, he thought. And
he looked over and he said he saw an older man sitting next to him who just looked at him and said, "I was here
first." >> I love that a lot. >> What? And he thought that it was William Chancellor. I love that. Now, once the
portrait was returned to the lobby, things seem to settle down a bit, but people checking out will recognize like
they'll walk by the portrait and they'll be like, "I saw that guy smoking a cigar
in the hallway." >> You're like, "Yeah, you did." >> And they're like, "Yeah, you did.
>> Yeah, you did." >> But he's dead. And they most often report seeing him in a three-piece gray
suit. >> Ooh, I like that. Snazzy. >> Yeah. If you go to the Blender Hasset and you see a man walking down the
hallway in a nice suit smoking a cigar, he's a ghost. >> He's a ghost. And he was there first.
>> And he was there first. That's important to remember. >> Something else that happens in uh Sweet
409, just going back there for a second, >> is that guests will wake up in the middle of the night and hear furniture
being moved around the room. >> Oh [ __ ] >> And they also will wake up to the sounds
of a massive party. Like it sounds like there's a party either in the room or like right next door.
>> Like Great Gatsby style party. >> Yes. Like 20's party. Now, one guest told uh WBO News that he stayed in the
room right next door, 407, which apparently you can book 409 and 407 together and like you can open up a door
and connect them. >> He was just in 407 and he actually booked it cuz he wanted like a quieter
stay. >> Uh but he woke up in the middle of the night and it sounded like people were
having a huge party. So he was checking out the next morning and he told the front desk like, "What the hell was
going on?" >> He's like, "I booked that room." >> Yeah, I booked that room for quiet. And
they were like, "Uh, you were the only guest on that floor." So, >> oh [ __ ] >> Yeah.
>> [ __ ] >> Yeah, that would [ __ ] me up. >> Yeah, that would especially here I'm the
only guest on that whole floor. I'd be like, "What?" >> Yeah, I would hate that.
>> That would stress me out anyways. I'd be like, "Oh my god, >> I would hate that a lot." I mean, good
to tell somebody upon checking out, not checking in. >> Yeah, definitely. >> Uh, the elevators, which were a huge
deal in the beginning, they never seem to open to the correct floor, though. >> [ __ ] A lot of times they open to the
second floor, which is where guests most often report seeing what any good location has that is haunted.
>> Oh, a bride. >> A woman in white. >> They were so close. >> Guests report seeing her dressed in all
white clothing from the 20s or maybe the 30s. And they say she also wears a white
cap pulled down to almost cover her eyes. >> Ooh, mysterious. >> Yeah, she is. And she's a beauty. A man
once saw her and he thought that she was like alive and he asked her to hold the
elevator door for him and she did but then when he stepped on the elevator there was nobody there.
>> Oh damn. >> He was like no that woman literally just held the door for me. >> That would [ __ ] me right up.
>> But what he did experience was a like overwhelming smell of lavender perfume as soon as he got into the elevator.
>> And a lot of people associate lavender perfume with sightings of her. >> Oh [ __ ] I like that. Right. What a
soothing scent. >> Yeah, I love lavender. >> Yeah. >> Uh employees who work in the kitchen are
said to be visited by a little newspaper boy. >> Oh my god. >> He used to work at the old newspaper
stand in the back and he will pull on their clothing and when they turn around they literally see an apparition of him
with his like little news cap and his messenger bag. >> Oh my god. >> I was like that's an experience that I'd
like to have. >> Yeah. >> Um now there's a little bit of debate about who this next ghost is. Some
people think that he's a sea captain. Oh. >> And others claim that he looks exactly
like Harmon Bler Hasset. >> Oh, damn. >> Either way, the ghost is most often seen
in the mirrors of the bar and the restaurant on the main lobby. >> He's just living,
>> but always in the mirror. >> Okay. >> According to Haunted Parkersburg tours,
uh, this is weird because the mirrors were fashioned from windows and doors from an old apartment building that was
torn down in New York City. >> Oh, interesting. >> So, it'd be weird if it was Blender has
it. >> Yeah. Like maybe it's more likely to be a sea captain. >> A salty sea captain
>> from New York City. >> Yeah. >> Now, one place in the hotel that you would assume would be quite peaceful but
is actually the complete opposite is the library. >> I would assume that. >> Which I love that they have a library.
>> Oh, hell yeah. >> I don't know that I've been to a hotel with one. >> I know.
>> Apparently, guests will just be chilling in the library and they will suddenly
hear the appalling sound of a woman screaming bloody murder. Wo! >> Out of nowhere. Now, interestingly,
there is a window in the corner of the library that used to be the door to the first National Bank of Parkersburg. And
years and years and years ago, there was a terrible accident where a tractor trailer lost control and crashed into
that doorway. >> Oh [ __ ] >> And killed a woman. >> Oh wow. >> So, people think that it's like some
kind of residual haunting from her being struck. >> Yeah. Also in the library, people report
seeing books being thrown from the shelves, chairs being knocked over out of nowhere. Lots of people get touched
in the library. A lot of people feel like tapping on their shoulder. And then this one is just [ __ ] weird. People
will be sitting there just like chatting or reading and all of a sudden they'll look at an ottoman like near them and
they'll see the fabric getting pulled up on the ottoman, but nobody's pulling it
up. >> What? >> Isn't that [ __ ] weird? >> That's so weird and niche. It is super.
I don't think I've ever heard that in a haunted. >> I've never heard that. >> No. And I like I would just be st like
how do you explain that [ __ ] >> is going on? >> Yeah. Now, if you want to stop at the
Starbucks nearby to get a jolt of caffeine after that horrifying interaction, >> just know that ghosts might be lurking
in line. >> Oh [ __ ] >> They're pretty chill during the daytime hours, but at exactly 4 a.m. staff have
heard a series of three knocks on the door beside the Starbucks. And when they open it up, no one is there. Why are
they knocking on the door so early? They're like, "Are you opening?" >> They're like, "Do you have the coffee
bird? >> Please, I need espresso." >> I mean, I get it. >> But then maybe they're just like, "Oh,
sorry. It's too early." >> Yeah. >> Um, now also, what would a haunted hotel be without ghostly children?
>> Oh, yeah. >> Guests hear giggling children all over this place. Damn. >> But the maids tidying up the hotel room
seem to be the most familiar. They will be trying to put the toilet paper back on the holder, but the dispensers will
just be spinning non-stop and they like can't get the toilet paper off. Oh my god.
>> And they'll hear kids laughing while it happens. >> I was going to say that's such a little
kid thing to do. >> Yeah. They've also seen children's footprints walking across comforters.
[ __ ] >> Yep. Um during the holidays, it apparently sounds like the kids were singing along with jingle bells as it
played over the hotel speakers. Okay, that literally just gave me all the chills. I don't like that. Here's the
thing. This is a terrible fact about me, but it is a fact nonetheless. I [ __ ] hate the sound of children singing. Yes,
you do. >> I just hate it. >> It's spooky as hell. >> That what? Jingle bells. >> Disembodied children's voices singing
jingle bells. >> [ __ ] a whole bunch of that voice. I would >> That is honestly the scariest one to me.
>> I'd be like, can I get an early checkout face? >> Yeah, that would [ __ ] me up. Now, here's
the other weird thing with the kids. >> Women in particular will just like have this great night's sleep and then they
will wake up to the feeling of being kissed on their faces and they say it feels like a child's kiss.
>> Don't kiss me. >> That's really cute though. >> Don't kiss me. >> What if it's like a little kid though
and they think you're his their mom? >> I'm not your mom. >> Cuz that's really sad. Just the case.
Like just like giving your mom a kiss. >> A mama a kiss. I don't want a mom a kiss. I don't want a ghost child mama
kiss. >> I just want to wake up to my alarm. >> I Okay, the children thing is is a
little unsettling. Children thing is the most unsettling. >> Here I am like this man in a bowler hat
is just like materializing in your room sometimes choking you and I'm like the kids thing is a little unsettling.
>> Hate that the kids are singing holiday music. Like where's the bowler guy? >> The kids are giving me a kiss and
singing holiday music. Hate that. Please get out of here. Now, finally, to end on
my personal favorite paranormal report here, the ballrooms are said to be the most haunted rooms at Bler Hasset
outside of room 409. >> Good. >> Uh there are weddings obviously and like different events held in the ballroom
all the time. And setting up for these events is always wild because like the staff will be setting like place
settings and stuff and if they turn around for a second, everything is completely rearranged.
>> Oh [ __ ] >> Yeah. and they'll like misplace things and look for them in a certain spot over
and over and then look back in that spot after checking several others and it will be in the first place they looked.
>> But this is my favorite thing on the planet. According to haunted Parkersburg
doors, once when the employees were readying a room, a microphone was set up. That's when a cracking woman's voice
came across the microphone saying, "HOWDY, FELLAS." SHE JUST SAID, "I'M READY FOR A GOOD
TIME." >> I love that woman. >> I love her a lot. >> That's what you should do with your
afterlife. You should jump onto microphones and be like, "How >> fellas?" >> People think that she might be um a
local madam, like just like messing around with people. >> I was obsessed with that one.
>> That's hilarious. >> But this is like a fully functioning like gorgeous hotel. They have a spa and
[ __ ] >> I want to go. >> I want to go, too. This is the thing. We'll go and check out your
>> spa, Cabin 13. >> Horrific spa. >> Yeah. We'll do a haunted investigation there. And then we'll stay at the hotel
where things are chiller and funnier. And we'll just hope that children don't kiss us.
>> Yeah. >> And I could I could do without the man in the bowler hat. >> I'd be fine to see him as long as he
didn't choke me. >> Yeah. I don't want him to come anywhere near to me. >> Yeah. Please don't touch me.
>> Please don't. >> But like you can show yourself. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. Yeah. So, that is the Blender
Hasset Hotel. And >> that was a good one. Your scary ass case. >> Yeah, mine is real scary, but that's
that is haunted as hell. >> It is haunted as hell. And I love it. >> I love that Aaron Burr, sir made an
appearance. Aaron Burs, sir. He's always He's always showing up. >> He is. People are going to be like, you
know, his name is Aaron Burr, right? Not Burer. >> We know it's >> Aaron Burr, sir.
>> Sir, >> you know, watch channels and of course that's what you got to do. >> All right. Well, thank you so much for
listening to our haunted tales. We've been wanting to do one for a while. >> I know it scratched the itch partially,
but I think I'd like to do more. >> Yeah, let's do another haunted episode soon. We got to do one soon.
>> Party. >> And in the meantime, we hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird.
But not so that you don't paranormally investigate these places because you would be missing out big time. And not
so weird that in your afterlife you don't just yell, "Howdy, fellas. I love it so much.
>> I love it. >> I love it. >> I love it.

Weirdos! Pack your getaway bag and get ready to hit the road for a haunted roadtrip in West Virginia! Alaina starts a trend by telling us about a chilling crime at Cabin 13 in Babcock State Forrest in Babson, WV. Not only is this place's history haunted, what people have seen will give you goosebumps! Ash gives us the pallet cleanser about the Blennerhassett Hotel in Parkersburg where the haunting is a bit more whimsical and includes a spirit who may be our new spirit guide!

Want to Book? Head to THIS SITE to book a Cabin at Babcock State Park, or THIS SITE to book a stay at the gorgeous Blennerhassett Hotel in Parkersburg!

Come to see MORBID Live at Radio City Music Hall on June 27th! Tickets are available for purchase by visiting this site!

Preorder THE BUTCHER LEGACY and THE BUTCHER GAME In England! Audio and digital versions of THE BUTCHER GAME are available NOW!

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

Elena and Ash discuss the murder of Cheryl Flippo and the hauntings at the Blender Hasset Hotel in West Virginia.

Key points

A Cool Opportunity for You. Elena and Ash discuss a chance for listeners to buy their books in the UK.
Spooky True Crime Episode. The hosts tease a spooky episode with a true crime element.
Cabin 13's Dark History. Elena introduces a haunted cabin linked to a brutal murder.
The Toboggan Confusion. A humorous mix-up leads to a bizarre image of a toboggan as a hat.
James Flippo's Dark Secrets. Evidence reveals Flippo's financial troubles and a suspicious life insurance policy.
Haunting at Cabin 13. Visitors report eerie experiences at a cabin linked to a tragic murder.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It's over for you people.

Ash jokingly declares their TikTok skills a threat.

2:39WatchMar 30, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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