She Died Sleepwalking? Inside Phoebe Handsjuk’s Suspicious Tragedy | Forensic Files

When a 24-year-old woman falls down a trash shoot from the 12th floor of her luxury apartment building, the coroner
rules her death an accident. But her family and nearly everyone else who's familiar with the case believes
something much more sinister is at play. I'm Britt Preyatt, co-host of the number
one true crime podcast, Crime Junkie. And the story I have for you today is one of the strangest cases we have ever
come across. The mysterious death of Phoebe Hanschuk. On December 1st, 2010, Phoe's family,
her boyfriend, and her boss get a strange group text from her. It reads, "Hi, family. I am in bed about to sleep,
and when I wake, I will transform into the most incredible human being you've ever seen." Not. I will go to the
hospital. It's safer there. And I hear the special tonight is tomato soup. Delicious, nutritious. I love you all
very much, but not enough to send an individual text. Sorry about that, but time is sleep and I must be on my way.
[music] Merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream. Exo. Now, even if you know nothing about Phoebe, this text is
bizarre, alarming even, but it is especially concerning for those who do know her because Phoebe struggles with
depression and anxiety and sometimes turns to drugs and alcohol to cope. So, fearing for her safety, Phoebe's
grandmother calls Phoe's boyfriend Anthony, or aunt as he's more commonly known. You see, Aunt and Phoebe live
together in this very fancy high-rise apartment in Melbourne, Australia. So, her grandmother assumes that if anyone
can provide more details about what's going on with Phoebe, it's probably Aunt. Aunt answers the phone and says
he's not currently with Phoebe, but he tells her that when he left this morning, Phoebe seemed just fine. He
says she was sleeping, but he isn't concerned. To ease her grandmother's worries, aunt says he'd go check on her.
Now, [gasps] this is where things start to get murky. It's unclear if Aunt [music] actually goes to the apartment
to check on Phoebe or if he ever calls her grandma back, but it seems as if his initial answer that Phoebe was fine,
just sleeping, was enough to put the family's mind at ease. The next day, Phoe's dad, Len, is supposed to meet her
and aunt for dinner. When he calls Phoe's phone to let them know he's running a little bit late, Phoebe
doesn't answer. Instead, he's surprised when only 30 seconds later, his phone rings, but it's not Phoebe. It's Aunt,
which is especially odd considering Aunt has never called Len before. When Len answers the phone, Aunt says that
[music] Phoebe isn't home, but her purse and keys are still there. And like any concerned father, Len is like, "What do
you mean she isn't there? We We had plans." And with a [music] text message from the previous day still in his mind,
Len urges Aunt to report Phoebe missing. But Aunt doesn't think the police would
take the situation seriously. So [music] when their call ends, Len takes matters
into his own hands. He begins calling everyone who knows Phoebe, asking them if they've seen her, but call after call
is a dead end. Then that night, [music] Aunt calls Len back. Phoebe had been found, but any momentary relief that
that statement may have provided is quickly dashed. Phoebe had been found, but she was dead.
No parent is ever prepared to hear the news that their child has died. But when Phoebe's parents learn how she died,
they're even more baffled. The story they get goes like this. At 7:00 p.m. on December 2nd, the apartment building's
concierge goes to the ground floor to look for a broom in the room where the trash compactor is located. But as the
concierge tries to open the door to the room, she can't. It's like the door is like jammed or there's something
blocking it from fully opening. And no matter how hard she pushes, there's still something like there, but she
manages to shift it enough to peer inside. And she sees the body of a woman lying on the floor with blood [music]
everywhere. And that woman is Phoebe. According to police, Phoebe had fallen 11 stories down the building's trash
shoot, and her foot was nearly severed by the compactor at the bottom. Investigators say she likely bled to
death while crawling toward the door and that it probably took about 5 to 10 minutes for her to bleed out. The
official explanation from investigators either a suicide or a tragic accident potentially caused by alcohol and
sleeping pills. Her blood alcohol level was a.16 and she'd taken a strong sedative called Stilnox which is
typically used to treat insomnia. [music] But to Fit's family, especially her grandfather, a retired detective,
the investigator's theory makes no sense. So, let's break this down. First, let's talk about this trash shoot. Now,
this trash shoot isn't a big open hole in the floor or wall like you would envision like a laundry shoot to be.
It's a small steel hat just about 11.8 8 in tall by 21 and 1/2 in wide and more than 3 ft off the ground. And it doesn't
open up all the way out like a drawer. It kind of just like fans open. So the top gets wide but the bottom is still
connected to the chute built into the wall. So to get in, Phoebe would have to pull it open, hoist herself up, and then
slide in feet first. And honestly, I think that even sober, a person could barely fit into this thing. And Phoebe's
grandfather actually builds a replica and has a friend try it. And as he expects, it's nearly impossible to
enter. And also, Phoebe has no cuts or bruises on her fingers, which you might expect if she'd pulled herself up. Her
jeans are also found pulled down to her knees, which makes climbing in even more
impossible. >> [music] >> And finally, no fingerprints are found on the shoot, not Phoe's or anyone
else's. So, this leaves everyone except the investigators apparently wondering how Phoebe could have gotten in there on
her own. But that isn't the only unanswered question Phoebe's family raises. Let's talk about the apartment.
When Aunt got back to the apartment that night around 6:09 p.m. on December 2nd,
something about the apartment was off. There was broken glass on the floor, blood on a computer mouse and a door
frame, and a hair straightener left on. And remember, Phoebe's keys and bag were
still there. And then there's what media refer to as a shrine on the bed with pictures and incoherent messages written
on post-it notes. But Aunt, even after seeing all of this, does nothing. Instead, he orders takeout from the Thai
restaurant that he and Phoebe were supposed to meet her dad at that evening. Aunt says he didn't learn
Phoebe was dead until the delivery driver told him police had blocked off the building, at which point he begins
to put the pieces together. But the investigation that unfurled did very little to answer the questions that are
like staring Phoebe's family in the face. Exactly. When did she die? Was anything captured on CCTV footage that
could help explain what happened? Was the blood in the apartment Phoebe's? Where did the broken glass come from?
And what do her phone and computer records show? Now, according to reporting on the case, when they found
her, no one had checked Phoebe's body to see if she was still alive. We have no idea how long she was lying on that dark
basement room floor. It could have been minutes. It could have been hours. Authorities reportedly don't collect the
nearby trash bags either or pull CCTV footage before it's erased. They don't even test all the blood present at the
scene. and Phoe's phone and computer are both left with Aunt and not examined by
law enforcement for months. By the time police try to investigate further, all of Phoe's emails had been deleted and
crucial information is gone forever. But as it turns out, there is one question that the investigation is able to
answer. There is video footage of the last time Phoebe was seen alive. Now, let's talk about this last piece of the
investigation. a little bit of CCTV footage. At 11:43 a.m. December 2nd, the fire alarm in the apartment building
goes off. It wasn't triggered by a real fire, but Phoebe and the rest of the residents file out of the building. And
then just a few minutes later at 11:50, she's seen going back into the building.
[music] And from what everyone can tell in the video, she seems fine. According to
investigators, Phoebe could have died anytime between noon and 7:00 p.m., which is a large time of death window,
considering how quickly they discovered her body. And honestly, did anyone even touch her when she was discovered? I
feel like we could have gained so much more insight into when she actually died if they had. Years later, her family
fights for and is ultimately granted an official inquest. And that's how I have enough information to tell the story at
all. During the inquest, everyone from the case is called to speak [music] and every last detail is analyzed. As part
of the inquest, they appoint council to serve as a second set of eyes and ears on the [music] case, ensuring everyone
hears and sees the same thing. And at the end of the inquest, council provides a formal recommendation to the coroner.
So, you're probably asking, what's the council's recommendation? As it turns out, she recommends the
coroner rule Phoebe's death undetermined, but in the end, the coroner overrules her recommendation,
maintaining that Phoe's death was an accident. Now, admittedly, I don't know a ton about the Australian legal system.
But from what I've been able to find, it's super unusual for the coroner and assisting council to disagree. And then
came a twist that reignited everything. [music] In 2018, 7 and 1/2 years after Phoe's
death, another young woman, 25-year-old Bailey Schneider, is [music] found dead.
And guess who Bailey was dating at the time? You [music] guessed it, aunt. Bailey had been out all night and
arrives home between 8:30 and 9:30 in the morning. She crosses paths with her parents, who she lives with, just as
they're about to leave to run some errands. And on their way out, they notice that it sounds like Bailey is
having an argument with her boyfriend. When Bailey's parents get home later that day, they found her slumped over on
the floor with a cord around her neck in a kitchen where there was nothing to hang from. Her death is quickly ruled a
suicide. [music] But just like Phoebe's family, Bayileleyy's parents fight back.
They pushed for Bayileleyy's case to be re-examined. And in 2020, the corner said an experienced homicide detective
reviewed the circumstances of Bayileleyy's death and also determined that Bailey took her own life. two
women, both young, both dating the same [music] man, both dead under bizarre circumstances.
And one little note I will just add because you may find it interesting. As it turns out, Aunt's father was a
retired Supreme Court judge and his stepmother was a current sitting county judge at the time of Phoebe's death.
Aunt denied [music] any wrongdoings in Phoebe's death and was found not responsible in both Phoebe's and
Bailey's [music] deaths. And to be clear, we're not suggesting otherwise. Now, we just passed the 15th anniversary
of Phoebe's death December [music] 2nd. And to this day, Phoebe's death still is
officially an accident. But with missing evidence, impossible physics, and unanswered questions, it's hard for many
to believe that's the full story. Maybe one day her family will get the answers that they've fought so hard for. But for
now, all we have are questions. If you want to dive deeper into this case, listen to the mysterious death of Phoebe
Hanschuk wherever you listen to Crime Junkie. And don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the bell so you never
miss our next investigation.

On December 2, 2010, 24-year-old Phoebe Handsjuk was found dead at the bottom of a trash chute in her luxury apartment building in Melbourne, Australia. Police quickly called it an accident — but nearly everything about the scene, the timeline, and the investigation that followed raises troubling questions.

Phoebe’s family was immediately alarmed by strange messages she had sent the day before, but even more disturbed by the evidence inside her apartment. And then there’s the trash chute itself: a narrow hatch 14 inches by 8 inches, three feet off the ground, an opening nearly impossible for a person to enter voluntarily. No fingerprints were found. Her jeans were partially down. And crucial CCTV footage was never preserved. Years later, an official inquest revealed even more inconsistencies, but the final ruling remained unchanged.

Join Crime Junkie co-host Brit Prawat as she investigates one of Australia’s most perplexing cases, a story filled with missing evidence, questionable conclusions, and a family still searching for answers.

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Key Episode Moments 0:00 - 0:33 - Case Intro 0:34 - 1:12 - Disturbing Final Text Message 1:13 - 3:18 - Phoebe Reported Missing 3:19 - 4:25 - Body Found in Trash Compactor Room 4:26 - 6:24 - Trash Chute Entry Questions 6:25 - 7:59 - Apartment Scene Anomalies 8:00 - 9:10 - Last CCTV Footage 9:11 - 10:02 - Official Ruling: Accidental Death 10:03 - 11:01 - Inquest 11:02 - 11:45 - Bailee Schneider’s Death 11:46 - 12:12 - Unanswered Questions Remain 12:13 - 12:25 - Outro --------

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Brief Summary

Phoebe Hanschuk's mysterious death raises questions about the investigation and her boyfriend's involvement.

Key points

The Mysterious Death of Phoebe Hanschuk. A young woman's death is ruled an accident, but her family suspects foul play.
Bizarre Text Message. Phoebe sends a strange group text before her death, alarming her family.
Unanswered Questions. The investigation leaves many questions about Phoebe's death unresolved.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

No parent is ever prepared to hear the news that their child has died.

The moment Phoebe's parents learn of her death.

3:29WatchDec 10, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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