Her World of Crime | World’s Most Evil Prisoners | Forensic Files

NARRATOR: In the United States of America, some of the world's deadliest criminals are behind bars.
Locked up in a Nebraska prison is notorious murderer Erica Jenkins. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica Jenkins is a cold-blooded killer,
whether it was setting up somebody to get murdered or actually pulling the trigger herself.
NARRATOR: As Erica and family members went on a killing spree, she used her charms to ensnare victims.
LINA HAJI: She lured them with promises of sex. PAUL LOPEZ: Erica removed her 0.357
Magnum revolver and shot Curtis in the back of the head. TEMPERANCE IVORY: What she's doing to people is not normal.
She's possessed. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: A 33-year-old mother of three shot to death in the street.
The brutality of these murders was just so beyond comprehension. NARRATOR: A killer on the outside, Erica
is just as dangerous in prison. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica Jenkins tackled and clawed
at a corrections officer. Chunks of her hair were pulled out. PAUL LOPEZ: With a broomstick, she
then assaulted one of the COs by striking him in the head. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica beat Bordeaux with a steel
padlock inside of a sock. They could hear Erica say, hey, they should have let me finish that bitch off.
PAUL LOPEZ: She thrives in chaos. LINA HAJI: She acts like an absolute rageful, psychopathic maniac.
There's nothing about Erica that says that she's a human being. [theme music] JAKE WASIKOWSKI: The Nebraska Correctional Center for Women
is the state's only security facility that houses adult women. It has about 275 beds and houses maximum, medium, and
minimum security prisoners. NARRATOR: Harriet Fox knows the brutal reality of life on the cell block, having
worked as a correctional officer for nearly 18 years in male and female jails. HARRIET FOX: Female inmates were actually harder to deal
with than male inmates. They are more about control and manipulation. The only one-on-one attack that I was involved with
was with a female inmate. She tried to strangle me. Female inmates can be as dangerous and violent as men.
NARRATOR: Held in the Nebraska Correctional Center, killer Erica Jenkins is a female inmate that's
as violent as they come. [stirring music] JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica is a danger to anybody
who crosses her, whether it's an inmate or a corrections officer. If anybody makes her mad, you don't know if you
could be next on her list. PAUL LOPEZ: Since she's been in jail, she's committed multiple assaults,
including on her own cousin. She enjoys violence. She will continue to hurt people if you put her
in a position where she can. TEMPERANCE IVORY: I believe that if they released her from prison, she would wreak havoc on the world.
[stirring music] NARRATOR: Erica Jenkins was born on February 7, 1990 into a notorious criminal family in the city of Omaha.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: My name is Jake Wasikowski. I was a reporter in Omaha, where I covered the Erica Jenkins cases, as well
as all of her family members. The Jenkins family and the community was perceived as a family that you didn't want to mess with.
Erica Jenkins grew up in North Omaha with her siblings, her brother, as well as her sisters.
Her mother, Lori, raised them there. Their father had died when they were younger.
They were raised in poverty. They did what they could to get by, and oftentimes it meant committing crimes to do that.
LINA HAJI: Erica Jenkins, being born into a notorious crime family in Nebraska, really sets the tone
for the rest of her life in the sense that she's not going to be disciplined, so to speak,
if she does something illegal. She's not going to be nurtured or guided in a pro-social manner because the entire family
is anti-social. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Her brother more or less spent most of his young adult life
in jail or in prison. This was really a difficult situation to be brought up in.
NARRATOR: In 2006, aged just 16, Erica followed firmly in the family's footsteps
when she was sentenced to five years in jail for attempted robbery and possession with intent
to deliver cocaine. LINA HAJI: I think it's interesting that the Jenkins family didn't really
discriminate between the boys and the girls within the family. The girls are expected to be just as criminally-minded, just
as manipulative, just as egomaniacal and self-serving as the boys are. But by the time she's 16, she's already displayed
criminal versatility. And she's got robbery, she's got drug dealing, she's already been violent.
So this is not somebody who's just, you know, doing petty theft to kind of meet their financial needs.
This is more than that. NARRATOR: In February 2011, Erica, now 21, was released from prison.
She appeared to stay out of trouble for the next few years, despite moving back to live with her criminal family
in Omaha. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Back in the early 2010s, Omaha is a vibrant city. It's always been a safe city to live in.
People know where the crime happens. It's pretty much in the poorer neighborhoods
of North Omaha, and sometimes South Omaha as well. The Jenkins family wasn't that well-known to the public
until the summer of 2013. [stirring music] NARRATOR: Erica's brother Nikko was released from prison,
having served nearly 10 years for carjacking, and then for assaults he committed while in prison.
Just two weeks later, his freedom would be the catalyst for a terrifying series of crimes.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Nikko Jenkins needs money, so he enlists the help of his sisters,
where they then go over to Christine Bordeaux's house, their cousin, to try to get her to help them go rob someone.
LINA HAJI: You don't want to stereotype people, but when you look at Nikko Jenkins,
he's exactly what you look like when you think of an intimidating criminal. He has the face tattoos, he has the muscles,
he has the posturing. And so I think Erica probably looked up to that and wanted to somehow get to that level.
She didn't have a father in her life, so Nikko was probably her only male role model.
PAUL LOPEZ: He, his sister Erica, along with Christine Bordeaux, devised this plan.
Their objective was to locate a victim that they could rob, and lure that victim into a location to allow
them to take their money. NARRATOR: Erica, Christine, and Nikko prepared to put their plan into action.
It was a hot summer's evening in Omaha, and two men, Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz and Juan Uribe-Pena
were on a night out. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Juan Uribe-Pena was a 26-year-old single man who was a church-goer.
And his friend, 29-year-old Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz was married with children. Juan and Jorge were out to have a good time
at one of the local clubs in South Omaha. NARRATOR: In the club, Juan and Jorge met
up with another male friend. While they were there, the three men met Erica Jenkins
and Christine Bordeaux. PAUL LOPEZ: A plan was developed to go back to one of their apartments with the girls
to continue to socialize. Here, the third subject had left to go buy additional alcoholic beverages.
At this point, Erica began to call Nikko. [phone ringing] NARRATOR: Rather than wait for Juan
and Jorge's friend to come back, Erica and Christine persuaded the two men to drive them to a liquor store to get more alcohol.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: And so they all left the apartment, heading to the store. Nikko Jenkins then follows in a car.
PAUL LOPEZ: They never made it to the store. Christine Bordeaux gave wrong directions to the driver.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: And then they're seen on surveillance video pulling into a Spring Lake park's entrance
where that's a dead end. Once there, in the Spring Lake parking lot, that's when Nikko signals Erica and Christine
to get out of the way. He goes in to rob the men, but he ends up shooting them both in the head.
[ominous music] PAUL LOPEZ: Shortly thereafter, on CCTV, you only see now one car exiting the park.
LINA HAJI: Erica has already been convicted of attempted robbery. But what's interesting about this,
it's not just that she's escalated to robbery. This is somebody who now is capable of planning and
calculating crimes in advance. NARRATOR: After the shooting, the group drove 6 miles across state lines.
They arrived at a motel in the neighboring city of Council Bluffs. They parked up, and Erica was spotted at 3:40 AM.
PAUL LOPEZ: She was in the parking lot attempting to fix one of the tail lights on her vehicle
when a patrol officer drove by and thought it to be somewhat suspicious. NARRATOR: The officer noted Erica's plate,
but carried on his way. A few hours later, the bodies of Jorge and Juan were discovered.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: I remember the morning that they were found vividly. Hearing the news of two men shot dead in Spring Lake park,
knowing that that's a place where kids play, people ride their bikes through there.
That's what was kind of the shocking value of it. How could these men be so brutally
shot and killed right in the parking lot of that park? It's in South Omaha, which is heavily Hispanic populated.
The South Omaha community reacted with shock. NARRATOR: As the police went to inform the victims' loved ones,
Erica Jenkins was already eyeing up her next victim. [ominous music] LINA HAJI: If your brother goes ahead
and murders two people in front of you, you would think that would absolutely traumatize you or
scare you, or have you screaming and running and looking for refuge or guidance, or
maybe even calling the police. On the contrary, what it ends up doing is giving Erica a taste, not just for witnessing murder,
but now she wants to commit murder. NARRATOR: Erica had set her sights on 22-year-old Curtis
Bradford, who came from the same neighborhood of North Omaha. TEMPERANCE IVORY: My name is Temperance,
and I am Curtis's foster sister. We grew up pretty rough. Both of our mothers were on drugs, which ultimately led
to us being in foster care. NARRATOR: When they were young, Temperance and her brother
were placed with the same foster family as Curtis Bradford. TEMPERANCE IVORY: We always were close because we only
had each other to lean on. We were the foster kids of somebody else's family, you know, so we really stuck out like a sore thumb.
We lived in a home where our foster mother idolized her biological kids. NARRATOR: The first time Temperance became aware
of Erica Jenkins was when they were kids. TEMPERANCE IVORY: We went to middle school together.
She was the type of girl that you just wanted to stay away from. Always bullying people.
She just seemed like the high school bully. She was the type of girl that I was glad I didn't have
any classes with, you know. She just screams drama. Her energy is just very demonic.
[ominous music] NARRATOR: Temperance and Curtis also face dramas in their local neighborhood.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: 24th and Camden was the street that we were from. It was also a gang territory.
And it was neighbors to multiple gang territories, so we grew up in a very rough neighborhood.
Curtis started to get into his adolescence. I think he started to position himself to be down the street
with the guys. Eventually, he joined the gang. And I think that Curtis wanted to belong somewhere.
He wanted to be a part of the crew. NARRATOR: In 2009, aged 18, Curtis was convicted of robbery
and given a sentence of five years. It was while he was in prison he met Nikko Jenkins, Erica's brother, for the first time.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: Him and Nikko became friends. From my understanding, Nikko gave
Curtis a certain protection. Nikko was allied to him while he was in jail. NARRATOR: When Curtis Bradford was released
from prison aged 22, he was determined to make a fresh start and enrolled in school.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Once Curtis was released from prison, he really wanted to better himself
and not end up back in that situation. TEMPERANCE IVORY: Curtis didn't smoke, he didn't do drugs,
and he didn't drink. NARRATOR: Now that Curtis was out of prison, Temperance wanted to make up for lost time.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: Honestly, we spent every day together, just about-- even when I moved all the way across town,
I would still come to the neighborhood every day. Curtis was the person that drew everybody to our neighborhood.
It was like a family. And Curtis was the glue. But where we're from, most of the time
when people try to make it out, that's when the devil comes and strikes. NARRATOR: Curtis had been out of prison for six months
when Nikko Jenkins was released. TEMPERANCE IVORY: Curtis was very excited about Nikko.
He really thought that he was his friend. NARRATOR: Curtis met up with Nikko Jenkins on his return.
But Nikko's sister, Erica, was far less welcoming of Curtis. She didn't really know him, but knew of his previous
gang affiliation. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica Jenkins did not like Curtis Bradford because he was
part of the Camden block gang. She had suspected somebody from Camden block had actually shot up her house previously.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: Something happened to where they shot up Erica's mom's house, and Curtis knew nothing about it because he was, of course,
incarcerated at the time. But he was guilty by association. PAUL LOPEZ: Erica was offended that her brother Nikko allowed
Curtis into their house. TEMPERANCE IVORY: Once Erica made it known that she was in disgust of Curtis
being around Nikko, I think that's when she used her influence to convince him that Curtis was a liability.
And it wasn't really about the beef, it was just about her wanting to make a name for herself.
She wanted to be what you consider a Nebraska hood legend. And she thought that she could achieve
that by taking Curtis out. I don't think Curtis had a clue that she was setting him up.
NARRATOR: With Nikko on the side, Erica set her plan in motion by getting her brother to ask Curtis to go on a job with him.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: On the night of August 18, 2013, Curtis Bradford agreed to go with Nikko Jenkins
to perform a lick, to go out and rob some people. When you're in the situation in North Omaha struggling
to make ends meet, he ultimately had to fall into that situation again to try to do anything he could to make
sure that he could get by. TEMPERANCE IVORY: This was his friend from jail, so he didn't want to disappoint.
I remember seeing him down the street with Nikko. They were dressed in black. I didn't question it at all.
I just thought he was just going out with his friends, spending time with his friends, you know.
NARRATOR: Nikko and Curtis were joined by Erica Jenkins. Curtis was likely unaware that the brother and
sister duo were involved in a double homicide just days earlier. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica, m and Curtis, just before midnight,
they jumped into a car and went to the area of 18th and Clark streets. Nikko told all of them to take batteries
out of their cell phones so they couldn't be tracked by police. After that, Erica, Nikko, and Curtis Bradford
hopped out of the vehicle. PAUL LOPEZ: Nikko was using a sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun.
Erica was carrying a 0.357 Magnum revolver, and Curtis chose a 9-millimeter rifle.
Once they were out of sight, Erica removed her 0.357 Magnum revolver and shot Curtis
in the back of the head. Almost instantly after that, Nikko also shot Curtis in the back of the head, except with a 12-gauge shotgun.
[ominous music] JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Nikko ran back to the car while Erica searched for Bradford's rifle
under the weight of his body. She grabbed the gun covered in brain matter and blood,
and jumped back into the front passenger seat of the vehicle. LINA HAJI: This is where there's a change in the family
dynamic because Nikko has this big, bad reputation, and Nikko is known as a horrible, violent killer.
But Erica is just as bad, if not worse. Erica is good at this. She's good at manipulating.
She's good at lying. She's good at having people do what she wants them to do. And so she sets up this fake robbery,
and then both her and her brother shoot Curtis in the head. And this is her first kill.
So now, who's in charge? Is it Nikko or is it Erica? Because Erica had her brother basically kill his own friend.
Curtis is disposable because Erica says so. What does friendship mean to the Jenkins?
[scoffs] Nothing. TEMPERANCE IVORY: That night when I went to sleep, I had the worst nightmare.
I had the worst nightmare. And I just remember waking up to my foster mom calling me
and telling me that he was gone. And I knew that that dream had something to do with his death.
We were devastated. PAUL LOPEZ: The next morning, Curtis's body was discovered in a seated position
with his head between his legs. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Investigators then found a spent shotgun shell, known as a deer slug,
in the soil next to the body. NARRATOR: Police took the shell away for examination.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: All we knew was that there was a murder in South Omaha with two
Hispanic males and a murder in North Omaha with an African-American male found shot dead.
Police hadn't put together or figured out that these murders were connected in any way,
so a lot of people in the other parts of Omaha where these murders were happening weren't too worried.
It wasn't until days later when another killing happened that everybody started to panic.
NARRATOR: It was approaching 2:00 AM at an intersection in Northwest Omaha. PAUL LOPEZ: Nikko Jenkins pulled a young lady out
of her SUV who was driving home from work and proceeded to shoot her four times before stealing
and speeding off in her SUV. NARRATOR: His victim was 33-year-old Andrea Kruger,
who was driving home from her job as a bartender in the early hours of the morning.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: This is where the panic really set in for the entire city. It wasn't just South Omaha or North Omaha.
This is a mother of three in a well-off part of Omaha, found just completely discarded, shot in the face,
and just left in the middle of the road. NARRATOR: As all of the victims were gunned down and
left for dead out in the open, police now believe the three recent shootings in the city
were linked. And it seemed anybody could be a target. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: The killing of this mother of three
is really what forced Omaha Police and investigators to track down whoever did this, because these killings
were now becoming random. They were crossing geographical, racial, and economic lines.
NARRATOR: Andrea Kruger's car was found abandoned 12 miles away. CCTV collected from the route the stolen vehicle took
from the murder site to where it ended up revealed the driver to be Nikko Jenkins.
The ballistics report had also come back on the shotgun shell found by Curtis Bradford's body.
PAUL LOPEZ: Further investigation revealed that that particular brand of shotgun shell
was only sold at one store in the area. Transaction records, as well as surveillance footage
pointed directly to Lori Jenkins, the mother of Nikko and Erica. NARRATOR: Lori Jenkins had bought the shotgun shells,
as well as the 9-millimeter ammunition used by her son and daughter in the killings of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz,
Juan Uribe-Pena, Curtis Bradford, and Andrea Kruger. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Bradford's family
told detectives that Curtis was with Nikko Jenkins the night he was murdered. There was even a photo posted online of Curtis and
Nikko throwing up gang signs. TEMPERANCE IVORY: The night that they set him up, his last picture that he ever took was with Nikko,
and they were celebrating. They looked like they were having a good time. And Nikko was in the clothes that he murdered him in.
NARRATOR: Police attention intensified on members of the Jenkins family. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: After the Northwest Omaha killing,
this is the first time we actually hear the Jenkins family name throughout the Omaha
metro area. First off, Erica's brother is brought in, Nikko Jenkins. He's the one that's plastered all over everybody's
television screen, with tattoos all over his face. But then, individually, the family members
are brought in on unrelated charges so investigators could put together their case.
NARRATOR: Erica Jenkins was arrested on August 29, 2013. Brought to Douglas County jail, she
proved to be a dangerous prisoner from the get go. PAUL LOPEZ: Allegedly, while in the booking area,
Erica assaulted an inmate, 28-year-old Jermaine Stuart. She did so by placing him in a headlock and punching him.
NARRATOR: Erica was restrained and put in a cell. HARRIET FOX: It is more common for attacks
to happen in the booking area of the facilities because lots of times, they come in under the influence
of drugs or alcohol. NARRATOR: The charges for the assault were dropped after contrasting testimonies,
and a judge said Erica had bigger fish to fry. Investigators were building evidence for her involvement
in the robbery that led to the murder of Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz and Juan Uribe-Pena. The third man who was at the apartment that night,
identified two women fitting the description of Erica and her cousin Christine Bordeaux as being there.
PAUL LOPEZ: After numerous search warrants, detectives were able to retrieve Erica's phone records.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica Jenkins made calls to her brother that was confirmed by pinging
cell phone towers in the area. PAUL LOPEZ: Placing Erica in the apartment just before the homicides.
NARRATOR: The most damning evidence of all came when one of the family broke under interrogation.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Nikko and Erica's cousin, Christine Bordeaux, was the one who started talking to police
and revealing all that had happened during their killing spree in the summer of 2013.
NARRATOR: Erica was charged first for her part in facilitating the initial robbery that
turned into the murder of Jorge and Juan in Spring Lake Park. She pleaded not guilty in her own style.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: So when Erica was arraigned and charged, she was belligerent, yelling at the judge.
She overturned the lectern right in front of the judge's bench. She also hit and kicked one of the officers that was escorting
her out of the courtroom. LINA HAJI: I think Erica truly believes that she does not have to face the consequences
of her actions. And because she's such an egomaniac, she believes that everything is everybody else's fault.
When Erica goes on to plead not guilty, she's probably doing this for a few reasons.
I think, number one, it will prolong the court process. She gets more attention, she gets to disrupt more people,
she gets more of the court's resources. This is making it all about Erica. She knows very well that she's guilty.
But why would she plead guilty? She gets to be the character in the drama, and that's all that she wants.
NARRATOR: The court case for Erica's robbery charges came in September 2014. Her cousin, Christine Bordeaux, testified against her.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Ultimately, Erica was found guilty of two felony counts of robbery in connection
to the deaths of Juan Uribe-Pena and Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz. [stirring music] NARRATOR: Awaiting sentencing for these convictions,
Erica was held in Douglas County jail. HARRIET FOX: Jail separated female and male.
When women are arrested and incarcerated, they go to an all-women's facility. They stay there while they're going to trial.
And if they get convicted of a crime where they get sentenced to a lot of time, then they get transferred to prison.
In my experience, the female jail was not as violent as the male facility, but women can be violent.
NARRATOR: Erica Jenkins continued to be a dangerous prisoner. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: In the Douglas County jail
where she was being held, Erica got permission to sweep out her cell with a broom.
PAUL LOPEZ: She swept near where two correctional officers were with her back to them.
Now completely unprovoked, she then assaulted one of the COs by striking him in the head, injuring his forehead area.
During the struggle, the second correctional officer also injured his knee. NARRATOR: The officers eventually
managed to restrain Jenkins. PAUL LOPEZ: The correctional officers were injured, however,
they didn't require medical attention after the incident. LINA HAJI: Most people who end up institutionalized, or end up
in jail or prison, have an awareness that they are now under the authority of the jail and the prison.
They might not like it, but generally, inmates will do what they're told to do because there
are consequences for that. Erica doesn't seem to fit into that category. It seems almost as if Erica is appalled
that she's incarcerated. That people are telling her what to do, that she has to clean her cell,
that she has to now adhere to rules and regulations. She's incapable or absolutely unwilling to take directives
from another human being. So for her to lash out and attack correctional officers with a broom
is completely in character for her. It's your fault that I'm incarcerated. My life is a living hell because I'm incarcerated.
So I'm going to make your life a living hell as well. NARRATOR: Two days after the attack,
Erica Jenkins was back in court to receive sentencing for her robbery convictions.
She was now also charged with two counts of assault of the correctional officers and use
of a deadly weapon. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica laughed when the judge arraigned her on these assault charges, saying,
a broom can be deadly? as she chuckled. HARRIET FOX: Erica's comment was mocking, but in my opinion,
anything can be considered a deadly weapon, including a hand. NARRATOR: For Erica's role in the robbery and
double homicide, the judge went heavy on the punishment, giving her 30 to 50 years imprisonment.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: When Erica Jenkins was sentenced for robbing Juan and Jorge, she said
that she felt like she was being targeted and she was made an example of because she
was the first of her family to be sentenced in court. Erica said it's a cover up, and that's what it is.
LINA HAJI: She's literally incapable, or unwilling rather, to look at herself and take accountability for her actions.
So when she has these outbursts in court and blames the judge for her sentence, it's because that's who she is as a person.
She's going to say, the judge is the messed up person for handing down the sentence.
She's incapable or unwilling to see beyond that, to look at her role in anything at all.
NARRATOR: Jenkins was sent back to Douglas County jail, where she continued to be a clear and
present danger to staff. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: In September of 2014, Erica Jenkins tackled and clawed
at a Douglas County corrections officer because the officer had told her that her recreation
time was over. The officer got various scratches on parts of her face and head, and even chunks of her hair
were pulled out. NARRATOR: This latest offense against a correctional officer was added to Erica Jenkins' already lengthy charge sheet.
On April 16, 2014, her brother Nikko pled no contest to the charges against him and was convicted of four murders,
including that of Curtis Bradford. He was sentenced to death. Erica's trial for her part in the murder of Curtis Bradford
came the year after. [ominous music] JAKE WASIKOWSKI: The trial and the murder of Curtis Bradford
was held here at the Douglas County District Court. And it began in the start of January 2015.
The feeling was very tense. I mean, you have Erica's family there, as well as Curtis Bradford's family, all
in the courtroom on each half. TEMPERANCE IVORY: It really hit home when Curtis got murdered because, like I said,
he was the one that kept everybody together. You could tell, like, the weeks after he died,
the neighborhood was so dry. Everybody was so sad. Curtis had a lot of friends. And just six months of being out of jail,
he made the biggest impact in everybody's life. NARRATOR: The trial did not start well for Erica
when her sisters, Lori Sayles and Melonie Jenkins, testified that Erica admitted shooting Curtis.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: I didn't really know the details. I didn't know that she was ahead of the operation,
you know. So, initially, my focus was on Nikko, until the details were spilled that she was the reason why he got killed
and she set it up. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: It was very difficult to sit with the family of the victims throughout any of these trials,
and especially with Curtis Bradford's mother in this one. Her son getting out of prison, trying to not go back
there, but finding himself in another bad situation. Ends up being killed execution style--
not only once shot, but twice shot. PAUL LOPEZ: It was learned in the investigation
that Erica bragged about killing Bradford. While she was bragging, Curtis was laying dead in a pool
of his own blood. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: The brutality of these crimes, seeing a person that had been shot
in the head with a sawed-off shotgun, is not pleasant at all. It is terrible that family members
are having to sit through this and see these crime scene photos. It was something I could never imagine as a father
that a mother could go through having to learn of somebody manipulating her son into thinking that they're going
to go commit a crime to help, you know, get some money, and then him having his head blown off almost.
And then leaving him there, pulling his hood over his head so nobody can see it.
And somebody's going to have to find him in this state that he was in, crouched behind a garage.
It's something no mother should have to go through. NARRATOR: In court, Erica Jenkins' behavior
only added to the pain for Curtis's family. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: The atmosphere was very tense
because you never knew what Erica Jenkins was going to do next. She's always very loud, very defiant.
One time during questioning, she was even arguing back and forth with a prosecutor
who wouldn't back down. It was very confrontational every time she was either sitting at the defense table
or on the witness stand. Erica tried to control court proceedings, which can't happen
when you're the defendant. The judge having to shout her down multiple times to get her to quiet so the court could proceed.
NARRATOR: Erica's antics certainly didn't convince the jury. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: It only took the jury four hours
to find Erica Jenkins guilty of first degree murder, use of a deadly weapon, and possession of a deadly weapon.
Erica Jenkins is sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Curtis Bradford, plus 40 to 50 years extra for each weapons charge.
She wasn't at her sentencing. She hung up the phone immediately after she found out her fate.
LINA HAJI: What's interesting is that during her sentencing, Erica denies having ever known Curtis Bradford.
She says, I don't know him. I've never killed him. And then she inserts in there, I'm a human being.
Which I find quite interesting because, is she trying to convince the court, or is she trying to convince herself?
Because there's nothing about Erica that says that she's a human being. She acts like an absolute rageful, psychopathic maniac.
I mean, she can shoot a man in the head and still completely believe that that's not her fault.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: As far as the conviction, I felt like justice was served when it came to Nikko.
Ultimately, the state of Nebraska brought back the death penalty, and Nikko got four
counts of the death penalty. I felt like justice was not served with Erica because I felt like she deserved
the same fate as Nikko. She had a major part in this. And she did just as much dirt as he did.
And, obviously, her being incarcerated hasn't stopped her from trying to hurt people and harm people.
NARRATOR: After her murder conviction, Jenkins was sent to the Nebraska Correctional Center
for Women. It's unlikely staff at Douglas County Jail were sorry to see her go with her three previous attacks
against officers there. On June 1, 2015, she was eventually handed another seven years in total
on her sentence for these assaults. In her new prison, Jenkins remained an intimidating presence.
HARRIET FOX: There are the hierarchy in female institutions, but it differs from male institutions.
Females tend to be on the hierarchy for the length of sentences and popularity. Male inmates are more involved with gang politics.
Female inmates are more attention-seeking and needy. LINA HAJI: This is definitely the case with Erica.
Because as soon as Erica is locked up, she decides, I'm going to face incarceration not in a "quiet,
put my head down and do my time" kind of way. She comes in there beating on her chest, letting everybody
know, I'm in charge, I'm in control, I'm dangerous, I'm violent, and you're going to respect me.
Erica was the bully back in high school, and now she's the bully in prison. Nothing's changed, you know, just the settings.
Nobody is off limits when it comes to Erica's rage and violence. NARRATOR: Jenkins' cousin, Christine Bordeaux,
was also at the Nebraska Correctional Center, serving 20 years for her role in the crimes.
There was an unexpected family reunion when construction at the prison meant inmates had to change cells.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Erica's cousin, Christine Bordeaux, who testified against Erica in trial years before,
was put in the same cell as Erica. HARRIET FOX: In my experience, this does not happen.
Typically, if somebody testifies against another person, they are not placed in the same cell.
NARRATOR: It only took three days to prove why this was a grave mistake. Erica Jenkins was not prepared to let bygones be bygones.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: Jenkins enlisted the help of another inmate on September 24 of 2016,
and they sat around and waited for Bordeaux. PAUL LOPEZ: Erica and the inmate helping her followed Christine into the shower
and made sure she was alone. At that point, Erica began violently assaulting Christine
with a padlock that had been placed in a sock, striking her several times. And the inmate who was assisting her
was kicking Christine. Erica made sure after the attack to tell Christine, if anybody asks or inquires as to how
she received the injuries, to tell them she simply fell. [ominous music] JAKE WASIKOWSKI: An inmate alerted a guard
to the condition of Bordeaux. The guards then found her in her bed with her face in a towel.
She was responding incoherently to the guard, but Erica told the guard that Christine was fine.
Bordeaux was then transported to the hospital. That's when they found that she had multiple contusions
to her face and arms. She had a fractured finger, she had fractured nasal bones,
and a concussion. When Bordeaux was moved to another cell, they could hear Erica say, hey, they should have
let me finish that bitch off. A judge added 20 to 40 more years on top of her original sentence for the attack on her cousin.
NARRATOR: Multiple members of the Jenkins family were imprisoned for their part in the murder and
robbery spree of 2013, along with Nikko, Erica, and Christine. Erica's mother, Lori, was given 10
years for buying the ammunition used in the four homicides. JAKE WASIKOWSKI: These killings changed the family members
of the victims' lives forever. They were so random, and yet they were committed in some of the most brutal fashions
that we've ever seen in Omaha. And it's had a lasting impact on this community. I don't think a single person in Omaha
has forgotten the Jenkins family name. NARRATOR: In 2021, Erica Jenkins herself tried to leave her name behind when
she officially changed it to Elluminati Egoddess Enikko Prestige. TEMPERANCE IVORY: Honestly, who thinks of something like that?
I mean, I guess she has the time to come up with stuff like that. LINA HAJI: These are very grandiose narcissistic names--
Elluminati Egoddess Enikko Prestige. It's just, hi, I'm here, I'm not getting enough attention.
And so I'm going to need attention all the time, even when you're just calling my name.
NARRATOR: She may have changed her name, but Erica Jenkins couldn't change her nature.
JAKE WASIKOWSKI: In 2024, Erica Jenkins was convicted of second degree assault on a 41-year-old individual
while incarcerated at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women. Erica Jenkins is a very violent and evil person who shouldn't
be let out of prison. She played a role in helping people get murdered, also being a murderer herself.
And she showed no remorse, never saying that she was sorry for what she did. She's also continued to assault people while in custody,
so she should never be let out. HARRIET FOX: Inmates like Erica Jenkins should be housed in the maximum security housing.
These inmates are usually housed alone. It appears nothing will stop Erica attacking others.
LINA HAJI: Erica very much displays traits of narcissistic personality disorder,
if not the full-blown diagnosis. I think Erica Jenkins is a particular kind of evil
because she absolutely doesn't care that she's evil. She embraces that she's evil.
TEMPERANCE IVORY: There are demons walking this Earth. And I believe that she is possessed by one of them.
PAUL LOPEZ: You don't reason with certain people. You don't reason with animals or monsters.
You cage them. [ominous music] [theme music]

Born into a notorious crime family, robber-turned-killer Erica Jenkins goes on a murder spree in Omaha that shocks the nation. Behind bars, she continues her streak of violence, attacking corrections officers and hospitalizing inmates.

World’s Most Evil Prisoners is a chilling exploration of the terrifying offenders sentenced to a lifetime behind bars. Locked away, yet still driven by their twisted desires, these inmates delve into acts of torture, abduction, and homicide. Prepare to confront the criminals from the darkest facets of humanity.

For More FilmRise Check Out Our Other Channels: FilmRise Television: https://www.youtube.com/@FilmRiseTelevision FilmRise Movies: https://www.youtube.com/@FilmRiseMovies Highway to Heaven - Full Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@HighwaytoHeavenFullEpisodes

Brief Summary

Erica Jenkins, a cold-blooded killer, committed multiple murders and remains violent in prison, showcasing her dangerous nature throughout the episode.

Key points

Erica Jenkins: A Cold-Blooded Killer. Erica Jenkins, a notorious murderer, uses her charm to ensnare victims and commits brutal crimes.
The Brutality of the Jenkins Family. The Jenkins family is known for their violent criminal activities, with Erica at the center.
A Shocking Double Homicide. Erica and her brother Nikko commit a shocking double homicide, escalating their criminal activities.
Curtis Bradford's Tragic Fate. Curtis Bradford, unaware of the danger, is manipulated by Erica and ultimately murdered.
Chaos in Omaha. A series of random killings in Omaha leads to widespread panic among the community.
Erica's Violent Outbursts. Erica Jenkins proves to be a dangerous prisoner, attacking correctional officers multiple times.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

There's nothing about Erica that says that she's a human being.

A stark statement about Erica's character.

1:29WatchJan 21, 2026

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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