The dark truth behind a picture perfect marriage (Part 2/2) | Forensic Files

[Music] our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any
time you need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support
and for a more detailed list of content warnings please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our
website whenever Darren Lopez heard the song What Might Have Been by country music band Little Texas his mind
wandered and he began to reminisce in the song the narrator laments to a former romantic partner
about the fact that he cannot change the past and there's no way of knowing what
their relationship might have become Darren was drawn to the thoughtful lyrics which included lines
like we could sit and talk about this all night long and wonder why we didn't last yes they might be the best to days
we will ever know but we'll have to leave them in the past Darren first heard what might have
been in 1996 after returning home from military deployment in South Korea the song of Ed happy memories of
his youth in Arizona specifically of his high school sweetheart Jennifer Nichols the pair had met when they were
both 15 in their school's jazz band and maintained a mutual friendship for several years until a 3 weekl long
school trip to Europe brought them closer together by the end of that first week Darren and Jennifer were officially
boyfriend and girlfriend they shared their first kiss under the Eiffel Tower from then on the pair were
inseparable Jennifer admired Darren's politeness his organizational skills and the way he made her feel so
safe they attended prom together Jennifer in a sleeveless red dress and Darren in a suit with a red bow tie to
match as they entered College they shared hopes that they would one day marry but it wasn't meant to
Darren dropped out and followed in his Father's Footsteps by joining the Army Jennifer opted to stay p and continue
pursuing her education in Health Sciences in 1993 as their paths in life naturally deviated the pair amicably
split years passed with no contact between them yet anytime Darren heard what might have been his thoughts turned
to Jennifer he wondered where she was what she was doing and who she might be with most of all he truly wished her the
best [Music] [Music] 2019 wasn't a good year for Darren Lopez he had separated from his wife lost
touch with friends and barely had any contact with anyone he was never big on technology and had forgotten the
passwords to his long neglected social media accounts his daughters were mostly grown
up and off experiencing life the younger ones split their time between Darren and
his ex-wife though spent most of their time with their mother on New Year's Eve Darren resolved
to spend 2020 getting back into life and reconnecting with people then the covid-19 pandemic hit as
lockdowns quarantines travel and social restrictions were deployed across the country Darren grappled with severe
loneliness and depression on his isolated Ranch the darker his thoughts became the
more importance he placed on achieving his New Year's resolution by any means possible Darren turned to the internet
to reach out to those he genuinely cared for but hadn't seen or heard from in a while one was his high school girlfriend
Jennifer Nichols having lost touch after their breakup in college Darren was curious to
know what Jennifer was up to after all she had never been far from his mind while in the military Darren had to
provide top secret information that could help confirm his identity if he was ever taken hostage by the enemy the
information had to be extremely personal and couldn't be easily uncovered online
or obtained from anyone else in turn Darren disclosed fond memories he had of Jennifer Nickles memories that no one
else knew about retaining this information during his two decades of active service
was Paramount for his day-to-day survival it became ingrained in him and profoundly
meaningful in 2020 Darren searched social media until he believed he had finally tracked to Jennifer down on
business and employment website LinkedIn she was no longer Jennifer Nichols but Jennifer
faith on Tuesday March 17 Darren sent Jennifer a brief message reintroducing himself he received a response within
the hour which read hi Darren wow was I surprised to hear from you I hope you understand if I
am a bit skiddish in responding how do I know this is really you Darren was elated he
responded would it help if I called you Angel this was the special Nick name he'd had given Jennifer during the time
they were together he signed off with the quote as you wish which was a line from the 1987 film The Princess Bride a
movie they'd bonded over in the past Jennifer's response was Swift yep that did it send me an email
and let me know how you are excited to talk to you Darren sent Jennifer a lengthy email
filling her in on the past three decades of his life he thanked Jennifer for teaching him to braid hair as the skill
had endeared him to his daughters and their friends Darren admitted you have no idea how much I
have thought of you over the years he encouraged Jennifer to look up the song What Might Have Been by Little
Texas as it made him think of her and always put a smile on his face Jennifer responded well my head has been
swimming since I read your email this morning you made my day month year and possibly decade in reaching out to me
and saying such nice things Jennifer revealed that she thought about Darren a lot and had
searched for him over the years all she'd been able to deduce was that he was married and lived in
Tennessee you're a hard man to find she wrote there are no details out there about
you Jennifer told Daren that things hadn't been easy for her after their breakup after one failed marriage she
swiftly married the next man who came along a decision she called a huge mistake as it only lasted 9
months as a single mother she struggled physically emotionally and financially while also completing her College
studies and a bir in career as a therapist then she met her third husband Jamie faith and her life greatly
improved together with the Jennifer's daughter they formed a happy family Jennifer excelled in her career
and by 2020 she was overseeing therapy programs and assisting new hospital openings across the
country her daughter was 22 years old and had just completed a master's degree while Jane was a big deal at American
Airlines Jennifer sent Darren a candid happy photo of herself Jamie and their daughter together adding I have
definitely missed you over the years and there have been so many times I've wanted to talk to you thanks for being
persistent in looking for [Music] me Darren replied with a recent photo of himself before confessing that ever
since Jennifer had responded to his email he couldn't get her off his mind the two continued sending each
other long emails throughout the day and into the night catching each other up on
every aspect of their lives they eventually began reminiscing about their High School romance at which
point the tone of their correspondence became wistful and flirtatious Darren admitted that
Jennifer was making him feel like that teenage boy so many years ago while she said she was completely
giddy by the next day Darren was overwhelmed with feelings he wrote an email to Jennifer calling their reunion
a great love story not wanting her to slip away from him again he declared I am glad you have had a Jamie
in your life it looks like you have made a great family and what you have is unique and special and I don't want to
break that up that being said said I know my heart and you still possess it I love
you Jennifer confided in Darren that her commitment to jimie had waned in recent
years due to a lack of affection Darren made it abundantly clear that he was willing to provide
Jennifer with the intimacy and romance she desired while taking things as slowly as she
needed Jennifer reciprocated Darren's feelings and with within days of reconnecting the pair began
brainstorming a 5-year plan for a future together Jennifer and Darren traded cell
phone numbers and as their contact continued they agreed to permanently delete their
texts however their email correspondence remained archived in Darren's inbox his ex-wife came across the emails
while Darren was in custody awaiting trial for Jamie Faith's murder shocked by what they contained she
immediately sent them to detectives fronting the faith Case by this point Darren and Jennifer's
emotional affair had already been exposed while the emails didn't initially reveal anything investigators
didn't already know it was eye opening to Glimpse the intensity of the pair's mutual
affection but as detectives made their way through the emails something caught their
attention 3 weeks after Jennifer and Darren reconnected on the morning of Monday April 6 Jennifer sent an
uncharacteristically short and sharp email it read I can tell Jamie is texting you
sorry before Darren had time to respond Jennifer sent a follow-up email saying I love you I am sorry the has
become such a mess we just need to get through today somehow once Jamie starts to believe
you're gone it will be better I don't know what he is saying but whatever he is telling you I am okay I can handle
this if I don't lose you please talk to me I need you without access to the texts to fill
in the gaps investigators deduced that Jan had likely messaged Darren after learning of the emotional
affair they found this surprising as they had already examined data from Darren's cell provider and found no
record of any contact between Darren and Jim's cell phones Darren nevertheless confirmed the
encounter in his reply to Jennifer's email that same day writing I know today has been horrible
again you are being so strong for us Jamie cannot destroy us no matter how hard he
tries he encouraged Jennifer to keep planning their lives together saying his desire for her had only
grown as far as Darren was concerned there was nothing jimie could do to change his feelings for
Jennifer he signed off nothing can keep me from you angel I am your rock your Solace I am here always
later that same day Darren emailed Jennifer to say jimie started texting again if you decide to stay with the
Jamie you need to know what you are up against Darren claimed that jimie had lost his mind and had [ __ ] up
thinking he told Jennifer for some reason us together has shattered Jamie in ways neither of us could have
imagined Darren offered to help Jennifer leave her marriage though accepted that the
decision was hers to make and he would stand by her regardless he professed I love you I am still here and
this does not scare me away I am here with you through all this right by your side through this
Darkness we will find the light and come out together even stronger with each other
at no point in the emails between Darren and Jennifer did they address what Jamie
had done that had left them so rattled but things appeared to have escalated that
night according to an email from Darren jimie said he had one final test for Jennifer if she passed it she would get
her life back Darren wrote he plans on taking you somewhere as he talked about other men being with
you he has told me he would let others use you just want you to know what he said to me I just want you to be
prepared we will get through this I am forever your true love to investigators it sounded like
jimie had told Darren of his intentions to have other men sexually assault his wife as absurd as it sounded Jennifer
and Darren seemed genuinely Terri terrified and an attack appeared to have gone ahead Darren later wrote to
Jennifer I was with you through it all you did so good he really thinks he broke you and has driven me off we beat
him Darren suggested they FastTrack their 5-year plan so Jennifer could get away from jimie
sooner in the meantime the pair came up with a plan to start their text messages
with the code 575 this way Darren would know he was talking to Jennifer and not jimie based on this information
investigators deduced that Jaimie had been contacting Darren through his wife's cell phone which explained why
there was no phone data linking Jamie to Darren while investigators still couldn't figure out exactly what was
going on the situation seemed serious from the bits and pieces they could piece together it seemed like jimie was
subjecting Jennifer to abuse Darren reminded her to keep up the fight saying that he loved her and would
never lose her days later Darren received an email from Jamie Faith with the subject line
please stay away it read in part Darren I got your email from Jennifer's phone I would normally call you to
discuss this but I don't want this to be an angry conversation so it's easier for
me to send you an email and hope we can settle this in a civil manner I want to make a plea to you
manto man to please leave my family alone I know you and Jennifer have a strong history together but the fact is
you haven't been around I have you have no right to come come walting back into her life and destroy everything she and
I have built together if someone had done that to your family you would not have stood for
it Darren responded that same day alluding to the terrible things that jimie had done to
Jennifer everything you did to her this past week she went along with to make you happy he
wrote I am at a loss to see how a man that says he loves her and needs her in his life could treat her like that I saw
how bad she is hurting and I am very concerned for her safety there I have been talking with her at night because
she is terrified of you I will for sure keep checking in on her until I feel you
have regained some sense and can control yourself around Jennifer do you actually see how you are
making her feel you alone are destroying what you have there be the husband you say you want to be respect her let her
feel safe around you and being home with you Jim's Curt response arrived the next
day first off don't insult me you're more than friends second you didn't address any of my
concerns third her safety is my responsibility not yours I'm done communicating with you
my priority now is to make sure Jennifer knows where she belongs and who she belongs to and you can check in with her
all you want she'll learn what to tell you and what not to in early May Darren received another
email from Jamie that read has Jennifer been telling you everything like she is supposed to I have a feeling she has
stopped talking to you about what's been going on I am finally going to get what I want
from her this weekend make sure you ask her about it look up any rough gangbang triple penetration with breath control
porn and that's what we'll be doing to her see if she will tell you if she doesn't I'll need to start sending
details again later that month Darren received another email from Jamie with the
subject line injuries old and new attached were seven close-up images of what appeared to be injuries to
Jennifer's body including severe bruises a bleeding lip and most chillingly a healed neck
wound the accompanying message read good stuff enjoy knowing you can't do a [ __ ] thing about
it days later Jamie sent Darren an email to describing in disturbing detail how he and his friends were violently raping
Jennifer he called it training and told Darren too bad you will never know that sweet tone of her begging me to let her
go Darren responded Jamie you were [ __ ] you were sitting there thinking I can do nothing
to stop you from abusing Jennifer and I am going to show you I have plenty to ruin and to destroy your
life Darren threatened to take all the evidence of Jim's abuse to the police and to J's employer unless he promised
to stop abusing Jennifer there's still hope for you Darren wrote for some reason Jennifer
still believes you have redeeming qualities so I'm giving you a last chance you will never take your Jennifer
away from the house to be used and raped by other men all the [ __ ] up sexual things you were
doing to Jennifer will stop knowing that Texas had a 10-year statute of limitations for rape Darren
told jimie he intended to keep all the evidence of his crimes for the next decade I am a man of my word Darren
warned if you fail in any aspect I will destroy your life Darren then emailed Jennifer
assuring ing her that he wouldn't go to the authorities without her consent but pleaded with her to at least leave her
husband Jennifer didn't follow Darren's advice nor did a jimie heed his warning jimie began sending Darren
close-up graphic images of Jennifer's sexual abuse taking place Darren begged to Jennifer to tell
the police but she refused saying that Jaimie would punish her for speaking out she also feared that her daughter
could face retribution and didn't want her to know the truth about Jim's evil [Music]
nature feeling helpless in Tennessee Darren asked Jennifer to confide in a friend close by who could help her in
person she reluctantly gave Darren the email address of a coworker named Rob Schmidt Jennifer explained that she had
a known Rob for over 15 years she playfully referred to him as her work husband and viewed him as a
confidant Darren emailed Rob introducing himself and saying I am writing to you to ask you for your help jimie
Jennifer's husband is physically and sexually abusing her when he does this he takes Jennifer's phone and texts me
the graphic details of what he is doing to Jennifer and even sends me pictures I am asking if you are willing
to get involved and help a Jennifer get out of this situation Rob replied in shock he had
known jimie for a long time and didn't think he was capable of such abuse he probed Darren for more
details Darren explained that it All Began shortly after he reconnected with the
Jennifer for the first attack Jennifer was G raped by Jamie and six other men the rapes continued almost every weekend
after that with one carried out on Jim's birthday involving at least 10 men Jennifer had to take a whole week
off work to recover she had since developed a urinary tract infection but Jaime's Relentless assaults prevented
her from treating it and she was chronically ill as a result Darren informed Rob that a long
time friend of Jim's named Jeremy gabler was almost always involved in the attacks if Jennifer ever refused to
comply jimie used a stun gun on her Darren believed that jimie was trying to make it so that no other man
would ever want Jennifer he felt like jime was hurting Jennifer in order to hurt him
too Rob was shocked to learn that Jennifer hadn't gone to the authority ities but he acknowledged that she had a
strong sense of loyalty saying my guess is she wants to spare jamy and is probably blaming herself for
this to an extent Darren hoped that with Rob's help Jennifer would realize she had more
people on her side and would gain the confidence to stand up for herself and speak out if not Darren at least felt
reassured that he wasn't the only one who knew about the abuse and Rob could take immediate action if things got
worse shortly after Rob emailed Darren claiming he had called jimie to confront him jimie denied everything and accused
Jennifer of making it all up Rob wrote To be honest it makes me want to kill the
[Music] guy Rob Schmid and Darren Lopez remained in contact as they discussed how they
could best help Jennifer Rob shared Darren's Fury at the whole situation and the pair vented
their Brewing anger to one another at one point Rob forwarded a photo Jennifer had sent him of burnt
flesh and warned Darren Jim's been burning her among other things she didn't want me to tell you so please
keep it between us Darren later confided in Rob I still feel Jamie's very [ __ ] up
in the head I know I won't feel better about our situation until Jennifer is out of that house away from him or she
lets me put a bullet in Jaime's head Rob replied if it were up to me I would tell
you to go for it I'll give you an alibi Darren continued to receive confronting emails from both Jennifer
and jimie on a daily basis they both described in detail the pain and torment Jennifer faced but while
Jennifer's emails were anguished and frightened jimie were mocking as if he was goting
down after one particularly terrifying attack Jennifer turned to Darren for support she said that Jaimie had held
her head underwater in their hot tub while forcing her to perform oral sex on him she lost Consciousness and came too
with the Jamie performing CPR on her Darren implored Jennifer to go to the police but she continued to refuse
fearful of what jimie would do to both her and her daughter if she exposed his crimes as October 2020 approached jimie
emailed a Darren saying he was planning something special for his and Jennifer's
upcoming 15-year anniversary he said he enjoyed the near fatal hot tub incident so much that he
was going to see how many men Jennifer could handle in the hot tub he already had seven guys lined up for the
assault while investigators had initially theorized that Darren had been hired to kill Jamie this email changed
their minds they now believed Darren had been motivated by a desire to protect Jennifer
given that jimie Faith was killed on Friday October 9 2020 the day before the hot tub assault was set to take place
investigators believed that Jaime's threat of the attack was the Catalyst that finally prompted Darren to act
after all he was specially trained to save vulnerable people under the imposing threat of death and had earned
accolades for his heroism the level of Overkill as well as the bullet to James groin made sense
given the context of his sexual abuse it appeared that Darren Lopez wasn't a cold blooded killer after all
but a desperate man driven to save a woman he loved what investigators couldn't quite
get their heads around was that Jamie Faith's sadistic cruel and violent Behavior was in complete contrast to the
kind and gentle man his loved ones had described him to be they wondered if everything everyone
knew about Jamie Faith was completely wrong investigators Tracked Down Jeremy Gibler the longtime friend of Jim's who
Jennifer had implicated in her numerous sexual assaults Jeremy appeared to be shocked
by the allegations leveled against him he vehemently denied ever assaulting Jennifer claiming he'd only ever had
positive interactions with her in fact he was partially responsible for having set her and Jamie up in the first place
believing they were both good people who were perfect for one another Jeremy maintained that jimie had
been a courteous and compassionate man in the many years they to know each other Jeremy had never once sensed
anything Sinister was going on behind the scenes of the faith marriage investigators looked into
Jeremy's whereabouts over the weekends in mid 2020 where the sexual abuse of Jennifer was alleged to have taken
place Jeremy lived over 800 M away in the state of Arizona and was ruled out of having collaborated in Jim's alleged
crimes Jeremy was also one of the select few people who Jennifer had added to her
group text message thread wherein she provided updates about Jam's case why would she do this if Jeremy was
one of her feared abusers Jennifer had also added her close coworker Rob Schmidt to the group
text when Rob was shown the emails sent between him and Darren he was stunned according to Rob he hadn't
written the emails and had never even heard of Darren Lopez inquiries were made with the email
service provider they revealed that the email account attributed to Rob Schmidt had
been created on the same day that Darren first began receiving messages from that
address the same thing went for the email account attributed to Jamie Faith both accounts were deleted at the
same time on the same day shortly before Jaimie was [Music] murdered when Jennifer Faith had been
charged with obstruction of justice following Darren's arrest investigator carried out a search warrant on her home
and serendipitously took possession of her computer an examination of Jennifer's
inbox revealed a cash of emails sent between herself and adaren in which they discussed the abuse inflicted by
jimie investigators also found images of the injuries that had been sent to Darren as proof of Jaime's
violence some of the images were indeed of Jennifer but they were found to have been taken 8 years earlier and were the
result of a car wreck others like the bloody delip were stock images Jennifer had downloaded from the
internet the images allegedly depicting Jennifer's sexual abuse were also found to be stills from pornographic
movies Jennifer's computer was sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation to be more thoroughly
examined they uncovered a deception so unbelievable able that case detectives had only had one word for it
diabolical it turned out that Jennifer was the sole Mastermind behind every single email that had been sent to
Darren including those allegedly sent from Rob Schmidt and Jamie Faith there was Zero evidence to suggest
that Darren and jimie had ever been in genuine contact anytime Darren believed he was
communicating with the Jamie via text or email he was in fact speaking with the Jennifer this level of Deceit required
an exceptional amount of time and effort Jennifer was sending multiple emails to Darren each day from the fake
accounts while also pretending to be her own husband and maintaining round the-clock communication with Darren as
herself investigators had never seen anything like it they also found no evidence that jimie
had ever been abusive to his wife all the stories of physical emotional and sexual abuse were deemed
to have been outright lies manufactured by Jennifer and as it turned out this wasn't the first time she'd done such a
thing investigators discovered that Jennifer had a history of contacting ex partners and telling them she was is
abused by a husband or boyfriend in order to provoke a reaction Jennifer's second husband Rick
told a date line that he and Jennifer had originally started dating while she was separated from her first
husband one day Jennifer confided in Rick that her marriage had been hellish she called her husband a monster
saying he had physically emotionally and sexually abused her according to Jennifer her husband
sometimes tortured her with implements and brought his friends over to gang rape
her Rick was shocked and encouraged Jennifer to go to the police but she refused Jennifer told Rick she wished
her husband was dead as Jennifer continued to offload stories of her horrific abuse Rick found
himself wanting to kill Jennifer's husband he explained to dat line it's her idea until she makes you think
that it's your idea the pair devised a plan for Rick to shoot Jennifer's husband while he was
out tending to his garden but Jennifer had a last minute change of heart saying she didn't want
her daughter's father dead she ultimately divorced her first husband and married Rick
instead shortly after their wedding Rick started receiving emails from two men he
didn't know one claimed to be a surgeon and the other an airline pilot they both told Rick that Jennifer
was hot and said he didn't appreciate her enough Rick ended up divorcing Jennifer
within 9 months and in hindsight he was certain she was behind the strange emails after learning what happened to
Jamie Faith Rick assumed the stories about Jennifer's first husband were entirely
false he described Jennifer as the most evil person he'd ever come into contact with saying that being with her was like
swimming in a sea of Lies manipulation and pain investigators speculated that Jennifer stopped Rick from killing her
first husband because she didn't feel confident in his abilities in contrast Darren Lopez was a
trained killer who could get the job done swiftly and discreetly without drawing any attention towards
Jennifer there was also another element that made Darren the ideal Hitman in one of his initial emails to
Jennifer Darren had written extensively about his experiences in the military specifically the humy explosion
in Iraq that left him with a traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder
this information immediately peaked to Jennifer's interest through her work as a therapist
Jennifer told Darren that she had treated many patients with traumatic brain injuries over the years many of
whom were soldiers she claimed to be a certified brain injury specialist who had written
a number of articles for the brain injury Alliance of Arizona Jennifer said she wanted to help
Darren and convinced him to send her a copy of his medical records from the Department of Defense and the Department
of Veteran Affairs over 912 Pages the reports disclosed that Darren also had a major
depressive disorder as well as ATT tension deficit hyperactivity disorder he also suffered from severe
migraines vision loss ringing in his ears dizziness vertigo nightmares sleeping difficulties and frightening
flashbacks of combat B he was on various medications to treat these conditions while neurological
tests showed that he had performed below average on cognitive attention and memory
function his PTSD could be triggered by stress or crows which then caused him to
spiral emotionally with the Jennifer's knowledge of traumatic brain injuries she was aware of the many challenges
that patients faced there were personality changes behavioral issues memory lapses difficulties processing
profound emotions and difficulties with decision making post-traumatic stress disorder
can also alter the way a person's brain works specifically the emotional core of
the brain veterans with PTSD often endure irritability hyperarousal and aggression
problems as they find it difficult to turn their brain off and relax some feel like they are always on edge
enduring ongoing feelings of fear horror anger guilt and shame they can also struggle to trust
others as they typically view the world through a negative lens when their trauma is triggered they
often depersonalize and disassociate these skills serve them well while surviving on the battlefield
but have devastating impacts in civilian life from Darren Lopez's medical records it
was clear he was a particularly vulnerable individual he had been deemed fully disabled and was considered unfit to
perform normally in society as soon as Jennifer learned of Darren's condition she leaned heavily
into the affection he displayed towards her investigators believed she used these emotions to manipulate and exploit
Darren telling lies after lie about the horrific fictitious abuse her husband was allegedly
inflicting the stories Jennifer concocted were described by investigators as some of the most
sadistic things you can possibly dream up it appeared that Jennifer had successfully tricked a disabled veteran
into becoming her own personal assassin all the while she was living a double life maintaining her seemingly
happy marriage with Jamie in contrast to Jennifer's stories it appeared jie had no idea she was
engaging in an emotional affair while all this was going on he remained at home with the Jennifer and
even took her on two trips into state to visit his family it was now clear that Jennifer's
efforts to thwart her husband's murder investigation weren't to protect Darren her daughter or even Jamie she she was
only ever protecting herself the question was why did Jennifer want jimie dead by all accounts he had been a
loving and supportive husband and father Who provided Jennifer and her daughter with Financial Security and a happy home
life investigators wondered whether Jennifer thought the grass would be greener with
Darren perhaps she in ised the two of them having a more exciting and attractive life or maybe it was all
about money jimie had over a million dollars in life insurance and retirement funds
which Jennifer was the beneficiary of having access to this money also meant she could use Darren's Financial di
Straits to her own advantage in the words of one US Attorney Jennifer Faith prayed on Darren
Lopez's pocketbook to propel him to murder criminal prosecutors hoped they could get Darren Lopez to cooperate with
them once he learned the truth about Jennifer however when shown evidence of her extensive con Darren had the
opposite reaction he flat out refused to believe the allegations against Jennifer and
remained convinced that jimie Faith was an abuser Darren didn't trust anyone but
Jennifer and simply couldn't come to terms with the possibility that the whole ordeal had been a
scam even his own court-appointed attorney struggled to get him to accept the truth of the
matter Darren stood by Jennifer even when the extent of her deception was publicly
exposed she had done well to muddy The Waters by sending Darren a letter beforehand it began with the number
575 their secret code to confirm the letter was authentic Jennifer wrote just a quick note to say I never
lied to you and I never sent you the emails from any account but mine as me you once said you would never believe
anything about me unless you heard it from me I hope that's still true there is a ton more I wish I could
say but I can't right now soon hopefully for 6 months Darren refused to believe that Jennifer could have used
him in such an abhorent way he was convinced that the two were deeply in love and his hatred for Jaimie was so
pervasive and genuine it was impossible for Darren to view him any other way it took a difficult conversation
with one of his daughters before Darren finally saw the light with the veil lifted he agreed to finally tell
investigators the full story according to Darren Lopez he never wanted to be a home wrecker when he
confessed his feelings to Jennifer within days of them reconnecting he assured her that he was willing to take
things slow out of respect for her family he didn't want Jennifer's daughter to think poorly of him or view
him as the person responsible for breaking up their family furthermore from what Jennifer
had initially told Darren he thought jimie sounded like a legitimately good guy and hoped they could become
friends Darren encouraged Jennifer to be honest with the jimie even floating the
idea that jimie might agree to share Jennifer with him so neither man wound up heartbroken it wasn't until Jennifer
told Darren that she had come clean to Jaimie about their emotional affair that Darren's opinion of Jaimie began to
change Jennifer reported back that jimie had taken the news poorly he had become
angry and violent his abusive Behavior Amplified by alcohol and cocaine from then on she constantly
bombarded Daren with details about the horrific things Jamie subjected her to she called Darren at all hours of the
night depriving him of sleep as she cried about the latest abuse she'd endured in addition to the rapes
Jennifer claimed that Jaimie kept her tied up in a closet was restricting her diet and had once forcibly cut her hair
off these details coupled with the emails Darren received from Rob Schmidt and Jamie Faith made him sick he felt
like he was losing his mind while he wanted to alert the authorities Jennifer made him swear not
to if Darren ever told the police Jennifer said she would deny everything Darren gave his word that he
wouldn't go behind her back and in the military word is everything in October 2020 Jennifer told
Darren that she'd reached her Breaking Point she confessed that she wanted dead and began brainstorming ways to kill him
she considered poisoning him but was worried what would happen to her and her daughter if she got
caught Darren was shocked by Jennifer's plan and didn't express any interest in getting
involved he even tried to convince her to reconsider in turn Jennifer appealed to
Darren's sense of Duty and honor commending his protective instincts it was clear she was trying to get him
to carry out the killing instead Darren pondered the idea in a factious and Wishful manner while trying
to convince Jennifer to Simply leave jimie she refused to do so fearful that he would retaliate against her and or
her daughter Darren invited the two women to come live with him in Tennessee but
Jennifer dismissed this possib ability saying that they had to stay in Texas for her daughter's
work it was only when Darren received emails from jimie warning him of his plans to orchestrate a hot tub gang rape
for his into Jennifer's 15th anniversary that Darren started seriously considering Jennifer's
proposal scared that Jennifer could be killed during this attack which was planned for the weekend of Friday
October 9 2020 Darren was left agonizing over what to do he said he didn't settle on a
decision until the day before Thursday October 8th that day Darren convinced himself
that he needed to eliminate the threat to save Jennifer's life after promising Jennifer that she
would never go through another bad weekend again Darren set out for Texas the 10-hour Drive gave Darren
plenty of time to Transit ition back into a military mindset he hyped himself up reminding
himself over and over that he had to rescue Jennifer and her daughter from jimie as he approached the Texas border
his emotions ramped up and he turned off his phone but once he reached Dallas he
became lost he drove helplessly among the unfamiliar dark roads with no idea where to go or what to do
panicking as time was running out the intense emotions triggered Darren's post-traumatic stress disorder and he
had a mental breakdown overwhelmed and spiraling he had to pull over to get his bearings as far as he knew the love of
his life was going to be attacked within hours his mind was flooded with thoughts
of what she was about to endure and the possibility that she could be killed with the Darren's stress levels peaking
he was plagued by visions of the loved ones he'd lost over the years there were his military comrades a close friend who
had taken his own life and a Darren's own granddaughter who had drowned while he was on
deployment Darren Felt responsible for all these deaths as he wasn't able to prevent
them he'd since told himself that if he was ever in a position to help somebody he wouldn't hesitate
he remembered an old military saying it's better to be judged by 12 than carried by
six in other words it was better to face a jury than wind up in a casket Darren knew the only way he could
get out of his predicament was to turn his phone back on so he could search for directions he knew this would leave a
digital record of his whereabouts and potentially seal his fate but he felt as though he had no other
option if he returned to Tennessee and Jennifer ended up dead he wouldn't be able to live with
himself with that Darren powered on his cell phone searched online for South Waverly Drive and followed the
map once he reached the Faith's house Darren turned his phone back off he didn't want to storm the Faith's
home and risk any collateral damage Jennifer had already informed him that the house to the right was vacant
so Darren had it there he positioned himself against the fence in reconnaissance mode and
[Music] waited Jennifer had already told Darren that she and Jamie walked their dog
Maggie every morning at Daybreak Darren listened until he heard the faith door open he then heard Jennifer's voice and
saw her walk past with Maggie it was the first time Darren had laid eyes on her since they dated 30
years prior he then watched as jimie walked casually by Darren acted immediately shooting
jimie three times in the chest and causing him to fall to the ground as a military medic Darren knew
the human body could survive significant trauma even though he thought jimie was
a monster he still didn't want him to suffer he stood over jimie and shot him three times in the head before shooting
him in the groin as payback for the sexual abuse he'd inflicted on Jennifer Darren stole Jaime's wedding
ring to make it look like a robbery gone wrong he then launched an attack on Jennifer Darren hadn't forewarned
Jennifer of his intentions to do this because he wanted her reaction to be genuine he thought this would add
credibility to the staged robbery while also giving Jennifer plausible deniability Darren knocked Jennifer to
the ground punching and slapping her before duct taping her hands together it was the first time they had
touched since 1993 Jennifer's blood curdling screams made Darren sick he tried to pull off her wedding ring
but it got stuck that's when he noticed a witness rushing over it was Emory Wilson one of the
Faith's neighbors Emory approached Darren and the two made eye contact Darren was carrying extra ammo
and could have killed Emory to protect his own identity but he maintained his mission of not wanting any collateral
damage once Emory ran off Darren got back into his truck the commotion had drawn several
more neighbors onto the street so Darren drove off slowly not wanting to accidentally run any of them
down Darren wasn't happy about what he'd done but was nevertheless satisfied that
he'd accomplished his mission on the long drive home he tossed to J's wedding ring out the
window he didn't get rid of the murder weapon because he wanted to make sure it was never used to hurt another person
again while Jennifer pretended to be a grieving Widow in public behind closed doors she was elated that jimie had been
killed she showered Darren with money gifts and praise when Darren was arrested he took
solace in knowing he had saved Jennifer and her daughter but that all changed once he
finally accepted that Jennifer had duped him Daren was devastated to realize he had taken the innocent life of a proud
family man he was equally shocked that Jennifer would bestow such tragedy on her own
daughter he told detectives Jennifer turned me into a [Music] monster while Jennifer had told
countless lies to Darren he'd only have Allied to her once his military training had taught
him to always have an Escape Route he therefore assured Jennifer that he'd deleted all of their
Communications when in reality he'd kept their emails following Darren's confession
investigators upgraded the charges against Jennifer Faith from obstruction of justice to murder for H
this was a federal offense that carried the death penalty Jennifer maintained her
innocence as she was placed in custody pending trial a month later she wrote a letter
to her father claiming the prosecution and media had Twisted the situation and taken things out of context in order to
paint a damning picture against her yet just 2 days after sending the letter Jennifer was informed that darham was
cooperating with prosecutors and was willing to testify against her this coupled with the overwhelming
evidence dissuaded Jennifer from taking the case to trial in exchange for the death penalty
being taken off the table she agreed to tell the full truth about her husband's murder Jennifer admitted that jimie had
never been anything other than a wonderful and loving husband after learning of dar Lopez's
disability she' used fake online identities and misleading images to convince him that she was being abused
by Jaimie in the hopes that Darren would be compelled to kill after Jaime's death Jennifer
rewarded Daren with gifts and adoration to keep him on her side and prevent him from exposing her
involvement in the words of one US Attorney Jennifer Faith's conduct both before and after her husband's murder
was extraordinarily heinous and cruel the one person that Jamie Faith loved and trusted more than any other
led him to his death at Jennifer's sentencing in May 2022 the presiding judge criticized her
treatment of Darren stating he thought he was the only person who could save you you tricked
him because you thought his brain wasn't working Jennifer's subsequent attempts to sway
law enforcement and public opinion were described as spineless at one point Jennifer started
to cry the judge told her Mrs faith I'm not sure why you're crying what you did was
such a betrayal you are pure evil not to mention disgusting Jennifer Faith was sentenced
to life imprisonment she was also ordered to pay $65,000 in restitution to jae's family
to cover his unpaid funeral expenses as well as a $250,000 fine outside Court one US attorney
remarked Jennifer Faith put on quite a performance in the wake of her husband's Murder She poured out her sub story to
reporters and law enforcement then headed home to orchestrate her cover up but crocodile tears didn't stop the
feds we were committed to getting Justice for Jamie and with the judge's imposition of a life sentence were one
step closer Darren Lopez's murder trial went ahead in July 2023 1 year after Jennifer's trial and almost 3 years
after jamy Faith was murdered given that Darren had already confessed to the killing that wasn't up
to the jury to determine whether he was guilty of murder per se they just had to
consider the degree of his culpability and whether a lesser charge like manslaughter was more
applicable in their opening statements the defense told the jury that what they were about to hear was one of the most
heart-wrenching and tragic cases anybody's everever heard in this Courthouse while Jennifer Faith wasn't
on trial the defense asserted that she was the real guilty person in this scenario the Crux of their case was that
Jennifer had taken advantage of Darren Lopez's disability as well as his feelings for her which meant she knew
which buttons to push quote Darren pulled the trigger but Jennifer pulled him given Darren's past trauma the
defense argued that he viewed danger differently than the average person and therefore he genuinely believed that
Jennifer's life was in immediate danger which required necessary action in their opinion what Darren did
amounted to self-defense the prosecution called this idea absurd and unbelievable Texas law dictates that an
individual can only be justified in using Force against another if they reasonably believe the force is
immediately necessary to protect themselves in the face of imminent harm but as the prosecution argued there
was nothing immediate about what Darren did from the day Jennifer had first confided in Darren about the alleged
abuse 186 days passed before jimie was killed Darren therefore had plenty of time to consider other less drastic
options he could have reached out to Jennifer's family contacted Jim's employer alerted the authorities or
helped to Jennifer Escape after all he had the special forces's training needed to conduct an
escape Mission without taking any casualties Darren had considered all of these options in his emails to Jennifer
but the prosecution argued that he glossed right over them instead all he did was email Rob
Schmidt a man he'd never met when Rob didn't do anything Darren skipped all the other options and jumped
straight to murder it took him 10 hours to drive to Dallas at which point he laid in wait
for 5 hours before ambushing Jamie Faith the prosecution asked what is immediate about that it
has to be immediate that means now right this moment action is needed not in a few minutes not in a few hours not later
today not this weekend right now a split second decision fear of future danger is Never
Enough and certainly when you have premeditated an execution there is nothing immediate about
it when Darren did act the prosecution highlighted that jime was unarmed unsuspecting and had done nothing to
provoke Darren Darren was trained in situ ational awareness and assessing threats
yet he killed jimie when he was innocently walking past with his dog and with his
wife his use of force was therefore unnecessary the prosecution stated the defendant talked a lot about
honor there was no honor in this this was the most dishonorable thing that a man can
do they argued that even if Baron had been completely misled it still didn't justify him committing
murder as an elite special forces Soldier Darren was well equipped to conduct reconnaissance to confirm if
Jennifer really was being abused not only did he fail to do so he also knew that jime was a tech whiz who
worked for one of the most regulated Industries on Earth surely he didn't believe that jime
would send damning evidence of his crimes through a BAS email account in his own
name even with his disability the prosecution argued there was nothing to suggest Darren lacked the critical
thinking skills necessary to question Jennifer's assertions when asked understand why he
didn't scrutinize the claims about Jim's Behavior Darren testified I put my faith in Jennifer
[Music] as far as the prosecution were concerned Darren knew that Jennifer's stories of
abuse were Bogus the two of them had shared detailed sexual stories watched pornography together and bought each
other adult toys they even roleplayed fantasies in which Jennifer was gang raped while
Darren watched or participated some of these sorted conversations took place immediately
after Jennifer confided in Darren about the sexual abuse she was enduring as the prosecution pointed out
what kind of man would have these types of conversations with the woman he loved
if he genuinely believed she was enduring this kind of sexual abuse in real life they
stated the abuse was the fantasy they played this out through calls texts emails they were roleplaying they were
enjoying it it was all part of the fantasy the violent graphic nature of this was part of
it while Darren claimed he had made a last minute decision to kill jimie there was an abundance of phone calls and
texts between him and Jennifer that couldn't be retrieved the prosecution believed these
communications contained evidence of the P scheming to get rid of jimie well before October
2020 Jennifer had given Darren access to a since deleted online document titled concerns SL things to be addressed
slone she had also sent him texts about what time her pool cleaner was expected at the property along with information
about the way in which Texas license plates were displayed on a vehicle in another text prior to October
Darren told Jennifer I'm just going to take the freeways even that's exactly what he did
on the day Jim was killed these factors combined painted a very suspicious picture while the defense had made
Darren out to be a victim the prosecution were unconvinced they told the jury there are lies and there are
stories and there's strange sex and Strange Love but there's no defense there is but one victim here one
victim Jamie Faith after 3 days of testimony the jury deliberated for just 90 minutes before
returning a verdict for the murder of jimie Faith they found Daren Lopez guilty speaking anonymously with NBC
news after the trial one juror revealed that they all agreed an innocent person was dead because of Darren's
actions what they couldn't agree on was the level of punishment he deserved Darren faced anywhere from 5
years to life in prison while the jury accepted that Darren had been manipulated and didn't
present an ongoing danger to society they believed he should have asked more questions and considered alternative
options to help Jennifer ultimately the jury settled on giving Darren Lopez 62 years in prison
following his conviction Darren Lopez sought help from the governor of Texas to get a reduction in his
sentence in an exclusive interview with NBC's dine Darren accepted the consequences of his actions but said he
deserved a leniency because Jennifer Faith was the true criminal and he was just her
weapon he also pointed out that the jury hadn't been fully informed that he'd helped secure Justice against against
Jennifer by providing a detailed admission to police had they known this Darren believed they might have looked at him
more favorably as of August 2024 his appeal efforts are ongoing when Jennifer Faith's friends
found out that she'd used their fundraised money to pay her husband's killer they were
devastated the fundraising platform had anti frud policy and everyone who made a
donation was fully reimbursed regardless of Jennifer's deceit the donors regretted
nothing one said I would do it again if I thought that a neighbor was in need because that's who we are and we're not
going to change because somebody was awful if nothing else our actions were a witness that people
care it turned out that some people had been suspicious of Jennifer's actions from the
outset some thought it was strange that Jaime's killer had spared Jennifer's life despite her being a witness to
their crimes others immediately thought the shooting had all the Hallmarks of a HED
hit those close to the faiths also found it odd that soon after Jaime's murder Jennifer cropped a Jamie out of her
existing profile picture on social media the Faith's neighbor Emory Wilson had also been suspicious of
Jennifer after Jim's death Emory was one of the supporters who put his own anxieties aside to accompany Jennifer as
she walked her dog during one walk Emory offhandedly remarked that he had seen the then yet
to be identified gunman Jennifer immediately stopped in her tracks previously unaware of this fact
she abruptly asked Emory if the man seemed Black Or Hispanic Emory replied that he couldn't
tell as he had only noticed the man's dark eyes Jennifer didn't press Emory any further Which Emory found
strange he thought she would want to learn all she could to help identify her husband's
killer the situation left Emory with mixed feelings about Jennifer and he stopped walking with her after
that Jamie Faith's death had a profound impact on his loved ones a friend of his
told ABC News not having Jamie in our group definitely left a hole I just miss my
friend others felt blessed to have known him recognizing jimie as a rare find who
genuinely cared about others without limit jimie was the only real dad his adopted daughter had ever known the two
were Incredibly Close and were described as being joined at the hip with the Jamie gone and her mother
in prison the Faith's daughter moved away from Dallas taking the family's beloved dog Maggie with
her on their last Valentine's Day together in February 2020 Jennifer gifted Jamie a hard cover book she had
created just for him it was titled to thank you for being you and for being mine a message on the first page
read Jamie thank you for my wonderful life this book is a Keepsake we can look back at for years to come I can't wait
to celebrate many more Valentine's days with you my love the book featured handdrawn
illustrations of the couple along with a list of all the things Jennifer loved about jimie including his generosity his
humor and the way he always had her back Jennifer thanked Jamie for appreciating her and always making her
feel safe saying he was the sweetest most caring partner she could ask for Jennifer
wrote I hope you feel how much I love you and how grateful I am to have you in my
life one month later Darren Lopez found Jennifer faith [Music] online e

Case 293: Jamie Faith (Part 2)

[Part 2 of 2] After arresting Darrin Lopez for the murder of Jamie Faith, detectives were confident they had solved the case – but the biggest revelation was yet to come.

Watch part 1 here - https://youtu.be/ThH5ojFg3h4

CREDITS

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

SOCIAL LINKS

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources, please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-293-jamie-faith-part-2

Brief Summary

Darren Lopez kills Jennifer Faith's husband, believing he is saving her from abuse, only to discover he was manipulated by Jennifer's lies.

Key points

Darren's Emotional Reunion. Darren reconnects with his high school sweetheart Jennifer after decades apart, igniting old feelings.
Jennifer's Struggles Revealed. Jennifer shares her difficult past and struggles with Darren, deepening their connection.
A Dangerous Situation. Darren learns of Jennifer's abusive marriage and vows to help her escape.
Darren's Fury. Darren and Rob vent their anger over Jennifer's situation, sharing a photo of her injuries.
The Catalyst for Action. Darren's decision to act is prompted by a threatening email from Jamie about Jennifer.
The Deception Unveiled. Investigators discover Jennifer orchestrated the emails and abuse claims against Jamie.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I have thought of you over the years.

Darren expresses his long-held feelings for Jennifer.

7:16WatchAug 24, 2024

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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