Was Anastasia’s Death Part of a Chilling Goth Subculture Pact? | Forensic Files

Hi crime junkies. I'm your host Britt Preyad >> and I'm Ash and we're switching it up
today. Britt is taking over. I have been deep, you know, just trying to identify
a serial killer. So, thanks. No big deal. >> No big deal. >> But the story I have for you today
seemingly starts as a late '90s fatal teen romance. But a shocking confession and so many twists and turns later,
you're going to be wondering if police got this one right. Now over 20 years later, I'm bringing you a crime junkie
breakdown on what happened and digging into who could be responsible for murder.
This is the story of Anastasia Whitfugan. [Music] It's almost 4:00 a.m. on October 23rd,
1997 when Deputy David Eper with the Jackson County Sheriff's Department is patrolling through Kansas City,
Missouri, and cuts into Lincoln Cemetery. He's looking for any sign of stolen vehicles. Apparently, it's a
common place people leave them. And this cemetery is dark. He's just got his headlights shining ahead. And as he gets
to a turnaround spot in the back of the lot, he comes upon someone lying on the ground. He doesn't know if they're drunk
or hurt, but they're not moving. So, he gets out of his cruiser only to realize it's neither of those things. In front
of him is a woman with dark hair lying on her back with a huge gunshot wound to the middle of her face. to Deputy
Eperson. It looks like she was shot right there where she stood, point blank, and by someone else because
there's no gun present. He calls for backup. And while he waits, he looks for anything that can help ID this woman.
But there's nothing around her. No purse or anything. And the only thing they find in her pockets is a key and a
cuckoo clock keychain. That's nothing that's going to immediately help IDing her. By the time the sun begins to rise,
investigators have already looked the woman over and had her body removed for an autopsy.
>> Is she like young, old? >> She's definitely young, but without an ID, there's really no way of knowing,
right? And with the light, they now have a more thorough search of the cemetery that gets underway, looking not just for
evidence, but also for witnesses. They don't seem to get anything from anyone at Lincoln Cemetery. But when they
expand out their search and canvas radius to include the cemetery next door, one that's called Mount
Washington, the property manager there says something interesting that helps police build out a potential timeline.
He says that the night before there was actually a young woman hanging out alone
in his cemetery. He saw her a little before 5:00 p.m. Didn't interact with her then. She wasn't up to anything or
trespassing. It was fine for her to be there. But then when he was doing a quick patrol around,
he saw her again. This time with two guys and a girl. Now, at that point, the cemetery was closing, so he pulled up
behind them, flashed his lights, letting them know, "Hey, you need to get out of
here." He never made contact with them, but it seemed like they took the hint and left. Now, he didn't know the girl
or any of the people she was with, but he knows that whoever it was he saw, that girl's dad had been looking for her
around 6:00 a.m. that morning. Like, you're talking about like like literally just a couple of hours ago.
>> Yeah. A man comes up to the gates and asked him if he'd seen his daughter. This man shows the guard a picture and
it was the same woman from the night before. He didn't have anything to offer this dad more than what he just told
police. But that guy had left his number. So he hands the dad's number over to the officers. When they ring the
guy, they find out that he's Robert Whitulls Fugan, who goes by Bob, and his daughter, who he'd been looking for, is
18-year-old Anastasia Whitfugan. They don't tell Bob why they're calling or what they found. They just over the
phone ask if he knows who his daughter's dentist is. >> Well, you I mean like he's got to know
what they're looking for. Like you don't even need to be a crime junkie to know what the implication is.
>> Well, if he didn't know, he's about to find out because while they track down
her dental records, another officer drives over to Bob's house and tells him in person that they're working on
identifying a young woman. and they ask if he could give a statement and I don't
know if it's denial or their delivery because this whole thing has unfolded so backwards or what but he's like I don't
know what you want me to give a statement about but the pieces eventually >> he's like not
>> he's not connecting like all of the dots here but the pieces eventually fall into
place the dental records confirm it's Bob's daughter Anastasia and her family helps put a further timeline together of
what she was doing the night before. Bob says his wife, Anastasia's stepmom, dropped her off at Mount Washington
Cemetery to meet up with her boyfriend, Justin Brutin, a little before 4:30 p.m.
Why is she dropping off to the cemetery? Like, is her boyfriend dead? Like, I don't even So, they were into the goth
subculture, and the cemetery fit that aesthetic. Anastasia would go there and write poetry and it was just like this
quiet place to hang out for like the vibes, >> right? Okay. So, Bob says he got home
around 9:30 p.m. and realized that Anastasia was still out and that Justin had tried to call the house before he
got home looking for Anastasia. Bob calls Justin. It goes to voicemail, but by around 10 p.m., Justin called him
back. And Justin told Bob that getting his call made him immediately worried because yes, they had been together at
one point that night, but they gotten into a fight that led to Anastasia getting out of the car and walking off
alone, and he hadn't heard or seen her since. Bob tells detectives that that's when he
went out and started searching for her. But aside from talking to that property manager, he hadn't found any sign of
her. So obviously police want to talk to Justin. A to figure out if his story is
legit and B if it is legit, find out where she got out of the car and which direction she started walking off in.
>> Right. That's like her last known movements. >> Right. But they run into problems right
away. His story doesn't line up. >> No, they can't even get his story because Justin seems to be MIA. There's
no answer when they call him. no one at his apartment when they go knocking. He's 20 and lives alone. So, it's not
like they were expecting anyone but him to answer. Like, he could just be out because his two door blue green Honda
seems to be missing from the apartment building's parking lot. So, they're kind of left with this question like, is it
bad timing or is the boyfriend of our victim in the wind? >> Well, it's and it's super sus because
like clearly he's calling her dad. like he knows he he's says he's worried, he knows dad is worried, and now all of a
sudden he can't find you. Like >> Right. Like he knows that like her whereabouts are unknown. Right.
>> Right. >> So look us, but they don't know what to make of it. And without him, it's making
it harder to find out who else they were with that night. Cuz even though Justin
hadn't mentioned other people to Bob, remember what that guy at Mount Washington said?
>> Oh, that that she was with other people, right? She was like with two guys and a
girl, >> right? So then if one of the guys was Justin, then there has to be at least
two more people, right? And before they even begin to try to figure out how to solve this problem, the investigative
heavens open up and these mystery friends just come to them. Honestly, it would be suspicious if they
didn't. Like I mean, I imagine word is spreading fast about something like this.
>> Yeah, that's exactly what happened. These two got when that Anastasia had been found and they came forward because
I was with her last night. Like >> exactly. >> So the other guy is 18-year-old Byron
Casease and the girl is his 15-year-old girlfriend, Kelly Moffett. They say that
earlier in the night on October 22nd, Byron and Kelly were hanging out with Justin when Justin got a call from
Anastasia. She was calling them from a pay phone at a Dairy Queen. Hello90s, which was across the street from the
Mount Washington Cemetery. What they picked up from the conversation was that Anastasia was upset with Justin because
apparently the two of them were supposed to meet at Mount Washington Cemetery to
talk about their relationship, but Justin didn't show. He just like ghosted her. Yeah. So Anastasia asked them to
pick her up and they tell police they got to the Dairy Queen at like 7:00 and they all went back over to Mount
Washington within a couple of minutes. And this is when they're seen by that property manager who got them to leave.
So they loaded up in Justin's car, drove off, but as they did, Anastasia and Justin, who was driving the car, started
fighting, and she got out of the car at a stoplight about a block away and started walking into what Kelly tells
police is a sketchy part of town. They just like, "Leave her." >> Yeah. >> All of them. Justin sped off and took
Kelly and Byron back to his place where they just hung out until Kelly had to get home for her 9:00 p.m. curfew. Byron
and Justin took Kelly to her house around like 8:30. Okay. >> They drop her off. And when they did,
apparently Justin went in Kelly's house real quick to make that first call to Anastasia's house. And Byron tells
detectives that Justin was getting worried. He didn't like that Anastasia just bailed from the car. and he wanted
to check to see if she had called asking anyone else to pick her up since that's
kind of what he assumed she'd do. He didn't think that there was any way that she was going to walk like almost 4
miles back to her dad's house. It would have taken like an hour and a half. So, he made a quick phone call to see if
Anastasia had called her house. Anybody there had heard from her. Whoever answered said no, she hadn't called. And
that worried Justin. Yeah. I'm also like picturing her like when you talk about her hanging out a cemetery and like goth
culture, I'm picturing her in like full like chunky black boots. Like you're not
going for a 4-mile hike home in this. Like you would have had to have gotten a ride.
>> Totally. And it's at no still out there. >> Yeah. At the time, Byron and Kelly
didn't know anything was wrong. After dropping Kelly off, Justin took Byron home. He got dropped off around like
10:00 that night at his mom's place where he lives, and he just went to bed. He had talked to Justin once more,
though. He said the next morning, Justin called him saying he couldn't sleep. He
said it was like 9:00 a.m. and that was far too early for Byron. So, he told him
he'd call him back later. >> Is the insinuation that he's been like awake this whole time if he can't sleep?
Yes. But Byron had no time for this. His sleep was important to him. When he finally does wake up, he tries calling
Justin and Justin doesn't answer any of his calls. And it was after that when he
found out about Anastasia being found and that kind of sent him into a little bit of a spiral. He still couldn't get a
hold of Justin. He started worrying about him. So it's not like the cops have just like missed Justin. Nobody can
find him. >> No one can find them. So even though these kids are telling a story that
matches up with Justin, like this is all the more reason they need to lay eyes on
him. It's now been a full day since they found Anastasia, and no one has heard a
peep from him since he made that 9:00 a.m.ish call to Byron. The autopsy results had come back by now and showed
Anastasia died from a gunshot wound to the head, and the gun had been pressed to her nose when the trigger was pulled.
There was an exit wound, but no bullet found. And they don't know what kind of gun was used. They found a lead fragment
in her scalp and set it out for testing, but it wasn't helpful at all in determining what type of gun could have
been used. She had no defensive wounds or drugs or alcohol in her system, and there were no signs of sexual assault.
Unfortunately, they can't determine a time of death for Anastasia. But once those initial autopsy results
are back, police released a statement saying that they just want to talk to Justin about Anastasia's murder. one of
the last people who were with her. Her friends came forward. >> He's not considered a suspect or
anything. They just want to talk to him to line up this story, these timelines. So,
>> the longer you're gone, the more sus it gets. >> Exactly. So, they put out a bolo for his
car and officers are posted up in the area. And one of those officers is Deputy Eper, who remember is the officer
that found Anastasia. So, he's posted up at the entrance of a third cemetery close to both Mount Washington Cemetery
and Lincoln Cemetery. Cemeteries are like >> it's like cemetery town here, it seems.
>> So, he's posted up there and Bob rolls up and asks to be taken to the place where his daughter was killed, which is
super random because like he doesn't even know if they're working the case like these officers, but the officers
are like, "We can't help you. contact the detective unit for that information and Bob leaves. But worried about Bob's
wellbeing, the deputies go check to see if Bob actually went to Lincoln Cemetery. And sure enough, they find him
there. In fact, Bob is standing in the exact spot where Anastasia's body was found.
Bob notices the detectives show up and straight up says, "Am I close?" Wait, is there no crime scene tape up? I
don't think they were processing the scene anymore at this point. So, it seems like you could just walk right up
on it. And I don't know if there was still blood or anything that marked it, but he was close. All right. I mean,
Epson didn't want to tell him, but he's right on the mark. And while he's there,
the weight of everything must have kind of settled in because Bob says he remembers something from the night he
went out looking for his daughter. Something he hadn't mentioned before. He says around 11:30 p.m. he heard a loud
gunshot from what he thinks was a large caliber rifle. And somehow in that moment, he just knew
his daughter was dead. I mean, first of all, feels relevant. >> Yeah. I don't understand. Like, so we
know she's shot, right? So, like, this could make sense. But was she shot at 11? Did anyone else hear this gunshot? I
mean, I feel like someone would. We know it's across from a Dairy Queen. So, no one reported hearing any shots. Not at
11:30. Not at any other time, which >> to your point is kind of wild to me. But here's what else is wild. Speaking of
not like crime scene taping anything off, Bob goes back to the scene another time and he comes to police after and
he's like, "Uh, I was out there and I found some skull fragments today. Don't worry, I picked them up for you guys.
They're over in my desk if you want to grab them." I'm sorry. He's just like, first of all, why are they there? And
why is Bob picking them up and putting them in a bag? I mean, he didn't put them in bed. I don't know what he did
with him, but like >> he has them in his desk somewhere, right? But get this. After looking over the investigative
files, it doesn't seem like police do much with this like at all. Like >> like they don't like go test them.
>> They don't even go get them. >> What? >> So, it's one thing to not get them the
first time, but after he's like, "Hey, by the way, I have this." Do they >> Yeah.
>> Okay. So, >> okay. This case popped on my radar after journalist Leah Rothman did a super deep
dive into it on the third season of her podcast, The Real Killer. >> I love that podcast. I listened to the
two seasons before this. Yes. >> Highly recommend. >> Yes. Thanks to her, we got access to a
massive case file with all of these details. And she comes to the similar assessment about how the police's
investigation could have been more thorough. And like >> you have to go listen to season 3 once
you finish here. Anyway, even though everyone they talked to during their canvas didn't hear anything, they do
find a witness who saw something. Police come across a mechanic who works nearby
this area where the cemeteries are, and he thinks he saw Anastasia that night getting out of a car. He said the car
drove off and Anastasia took off walking east, which from where he was would have
been in the direction of both Anastasia's house and Lincoln Cemetery where she was found dead. like she would
have had to walk past Lincoln Cemetery to get to her house. >> And what time is he seeing her?
>> This is around 8:30 p.m. >> So like what's so like it seems like everything that Justin is telling or
told Bob was like true. >> Yeah. Which is great, but they still want to confirm it with Justin himself.
I mean, at this point, Justin's timeline is hearsay essentially. >> Yeah. Yeah. And they're still looking
for him the next day on October 25th when they get word from an agency in Kansas about 30 m away that Justin's
been found dead. What? Cause of death? Gunshot wound to the head. [Music] I am popping on to start a conversation
about a case. I cannot get it out of my head. A true mind bender. a huge twist your way. You gut check all your
assumptions cuz this is a case that starts like so many before. >> Hi, crime junkies.
>> This other agency in Kansas had found Justin's car abandoned near an old warehouse. They ran the plates and
learned that the owner of the vehicle was wanted for questioning in a homicide investigation in Kansas City, Missouri.
So, they do a sweep of the area and as they were conducting their search, they found Justin on the ground lying next to
the building. So, outside of his car, yes, unlike in Anastasia's case, police did find a shotgun next to Justin, and
they know that it was the weapon used. Authorities quickly ruled his death a suicide and then informed the Jackson
County Sheriff's Department of his death. Now, Justin's exact time of death is unknown, but he appears to have been
dead for at least 18 hours before he was found on Saturday, October 25th, meaning
he would have died around 700 p.m. on the 24th. And like, this is a timeline in my head.
>> To keep this all in context, the timeline is super important. >> Yeah, cuz I'm like I'm trying to figure
out like was he has he been dead this whole time he's been missing? So, police believe that Anastasia was shot the
night of the 22nd and found the morning of the 23rd. And then they believe that Justin died the evening of the 24th and
was found on the 25th. So, there's a gap, >> right? There's like a two-day gap. Where's he been for 2 days while
everyone's been looking for him? >> Detectives have no idea. But I think they're wondering what did Justin do
after 10:00 p.m. when he dropped Byron off, >> right? Like say Bob's account of hearing
a gunshot around 11:30 near the cemetery is actually true. >> True. Yeah. >> Is there a way that Justin was with
Anastasia and shot her? >> Like did he go back looking for her? >> Right. >> I don't remember what you said. Did they
get a time of death for Anastasia? >> They the Emmy could never determine a time of death. So basically the last
time someone saw Anastasia was around 8:30 p.m. >> That mechanic guy. >> Yeah. and Byron last saw Justin at 10:00
and then Anastasia's body is found at 4:00. So there's like an 8hour window that detectives are working with and six
of those Justin is unaccounted for. >> And they theorize just like you were that maybe Justin met back up with
Anastasia alone, killed her, then took off and took his own life out of guilt. >> Yeah. And that would explain, at least
to me, why there's like no gun found at Anastasia's crime scene. Like >> it could
>> with him and then he used it, right? >> It could, but authorities from the other
agency had found a receipt in Justin's trunk. The receipt is for the shotgun, and it's dated Thursday, October 23rd.
And when investigators go to the gun store looking for surveillance footage, they see Justin buying it at 10:25 in
the morning. So she's already dead by then. >> Yeah. So he would have what? Like he
would have got rid of the gun he used on Anastasia, then went out and bought a different one to take his own life.
That's what investigators need to find out. >> Like that doesn't even like make a lot
of sense, >> right? So next they search Justin's condo for any information on why he
possibly would have wanted Anastasia dead. collect his computer and other personal notes to go through. And they
find a card from Anastasia. And in it, she apologized to Justin for how she acted and hope that they could still be
friends. And this is dated September 19th, so a little over a month before this all happens.
>> And when she talks about still being friends, so like are they at the time that this happens, are they together or
are they broken up? >> It'd be great to talk to Anastasia or Justin to know for sure. I mean, they
were going to meet up to talk about their relationship. It sounds like they were broken up in this note. But
regardless, investigators are feeling more and more confident about this murder suicide theory with like each
piece of evidence they find. Like a letter they found on Justin's hard drive that's seemingly written and edited by
Anastasia just 2 days before her murder. Here's part of it. You remember when you
said that you could beat me over the head with a bat and spray paint on my face? That you did it. and still
tomorrow I would call up and ask for forgiveness because I believed that I caused it. Well, you're wrong. I may
forgive you for a lot of things, including hurting me, but believe me, I have nothing holding me here. I never
cared what anyone thought of me until I loved you. Then I only cared what you thought of me. Byron can go himself for
all I care. You don't deserve my love. You don't care about my love at all. I am strong. stronger than you will ever
know. You and Byron deserve each other because that seems to be the one you want. Someone who shares your brain and
your thinking and so me. So that's the condensed version. The original note is long.
>> Um I feel like this is new. What is this Byron and Justin stuff? Yeah, they've
already started hearing rumors that Justin and Byron may have either been messing around or that Byron was
enamored with Justin. Like, there's clearly more to this group than it seems on the surface.
>> Yeah. Facebook status complicated. >> Yeah. So, detectives speak to more of Anastasia's friends and loved ones, and
their assessments of Byron vary. Some say he was super upset by his friend's deaths. Others say he didn't seem that
affected at all. And lots of people have no idea what they're talking about when
they mention a love triangle or any kind of romantic connection between Byron and
Justin, which >> Byron completely denies, by the way. >> So, I was going to say, "Yeah, we have
Byron. Let's just ask Byron." >> Yeah. He says, "Absolutely not." >> Okay. >> So, somewhere along the way, detectives
come up with this theory that maybe Justin and Anastasia's deaths were part of a quote goth suicide pact. that maybe
>> tell me it's the '9s like >> right but that maybe Kelly and Byron just backed out of but like this pact
was for the four of them >> but everyone they talked to was like no definitely not
>> I could have told you no and not just because we're like halfway through the episode.
>> Even though Byron and Kelly are still some of the last people to see Anastasia
alive, there's nothing tying them to her murder. So police aren't able to do anything except keep coming back to the
same people asking the same questions. And they do this a year out, even try to bring Byron back in for questioning. But
now he's lawyered up. And it seems investigators have hit a wall. But that wall starts to crumble when Kelly walks
into the police station and says she is ready to tell the truth about what really happened to Anastasia.
[Music] Now 17 years old, Kelly tells detectives she's been lying for years, but she's
ready to tell the truth as long as she gets transactional immunity. The hell is transactional immunity? Like, I thought
there was just immunity. >> So, yes, but it's a little different. Transactional immunity offers her a
broader protection from specific offenses related to her testimony. It's like a full pardon for whatever she
says. And at this point, detectives have nothing. And since they've always been pretty sure that the key to this case is
locked up somewhere in what Kelly and Byron know, >> they're like the only two people left.
Yeah. >> Right. Like they're like, "You know what? Sure. We're willing to play ball
with this transactional immunity thing." And so Kelly tells detectives how the night Anastasia was murdered really went
down. Kelly starts by telling detectives that the whole thing, Anastasia's murder, was planned by Justin and Byron,
and that she, Kelly, had no idea what was going to happen. That day, Kelly got in the car, expecting them to just hang
out or whatever, but Justin and Anastasia were fighting again. They had a pretty rocky relationship, and Justin
was complaining about her. He looked at Kelly in the back seat and said, "Who's my biggest problem?" Kelly, not knowing
where he was going with that, was like, "I don't know." And he told her, "Annastasia, she's got to go." Kelly
didn't really know what they meant, but as they drove around, they got to scheming. And ultimately, the guys made
Kelly call Anastasia before picking her up. Wait, I thought Anastasia called Justin from Dairy Queen. That was the
original story, but now Kelly's telling them that she made the call and it's been a couple years. She could be
misremembering. >> But I like that doesn't even make sense to me because like how would she know
that Anastasia was going to be at the Dairy Queen? >> I don't know. >> Well, I'm confused. Did anyone like pull
the phone records? >> That would have been great, wouldn't it? >> No. Are you kidding me?
>> Detectives never pulled any call logs. >> Not even early on when they like Not for
Kelly, not for Anastasia. Not for DQ. >> Like like even like the like Justin calls like did he meet up with her
later? Great question. I bet his call logs would have something. >> No call logs.
>> So Kelly continues her confession by saying that on their way over, Justin and Byron begin talking about what it
would be like to kill Anastasia. So the three of them pick her up around 7:00. They went to Mount Washington, then
ended up next door in Lincoln Cemetery. And it wasn't long before Justin and Anastasia began arguing about the
relationship and got out of the car. And Kelly and Byron were in the back until things started escalating between Justin
and Anastasia. And Kelly says that's when Byron got out, opened the trunk, pulled out a shotgun, walked up to
Anastasia, aimed the gun at her, and pulled the trigger. Byron? >> Yes. Then Byron threw the gun back in
the trunk and got into the car. And Justin completely lost it, but still managed to drive them out of the
cemetery. All the while, he was yelling at Byron, asking him if he'd heard him say, "Never mind." And Byron's like,
"No, I was focused on what I was doing." And they drove over to some train tracks
and threw the gun out. Once they'd fled the scene and dumped the weapon, they went back to Justice's place, came up
with a story to make sure they were all on the same page, and Kelly says she was
shocked by what had happened. And she remembers telling Byron, "You know this makes you a murderer, right?"
>> You think? >> And his response was, "So matter of fact, he said, "No, I did it because
Justin asked me to." And a murderer is someone who doesn't feel bad about what they did. I feel bad, but what's done is
done still makes you a murderer. >> Yeah. And this information helps things click into place for police. Byron's odd
behavior, his jealousy of Anastasia, it makes sense to them that he would kill Anastasia for Justin because he had
romantic feelings for Justin himself. But detectives need to know why now? Like, why is Kelly coming forward now
after almost 3 years have passed since that awful night in the cemetery? And specifically, episode 5 of The Real
Killer really gets into that. It kind of boils down to Kelly's trauma from witnessing Byron kill Anastasia sent her
down a dark path of substance use that she was now trying to turn her life around from. And she didn't really feel
like she could do that while still holding on to this. Also, you say this all the time, ties that bind weren't so
tight anymore. >> Usually takes longer, but a couple years it'll change things. >> She tells them that Byron had recently
moved to St. Louis and tried cutting all contact with Kelly and that had triggered her. She felt wronged by the
fact that Byron seemed to be doing fine while she was spiraling deeper into addiction. She'd been kicked out of her
parents' home and was experiencing homelessness before getting admitted to rehab. And she decided to finally tell
the truth to police after she admitted what happened to her rehab counselor. So, the story was huge for police, but
they were going to need more than a story if they hoped to solve this case and take it to court. It would basically
be Byron's word against Kelly's. >> So, hoping to find some substantial evidence, detectives take Kelly for a
ride to see if she can show them where they threw the gun that night. And she does show them to a few areas where it
could be. But 3 years out, I don't think anyone's surprised when they don't find
anything. Wait, where does she even say they got the gun to begin with? She doesn't. Detectives push her on her past
statements, and she previously told them that Justin had a shotgun or something like that, but Byron told her that he
had sold it. Today though, she's saying Byron made her lie about that, so it kind of make Justin look guilty since he
was already gone. Okay, so she's saying that he shot her. They all get back in the car.
Like I keep thinking like there was probably blood on the gun or like someone's Byron's clothes if he was the
one that was there or Justin's clothes if he was standing next to her >> and then they all get in the car, right?
>> Like there's no way they came out without some kind of like something on them. Like I feel like like did they
ever even check Justin's car? So looking back through the reports, police looked
at his car and noted that it was clean and tidy. They looked in his trunk too and nothing in their notes said there
was blood anywhere. Yeah, but like I mean we're like we have a window of time. Like you could have cleaned the
car before he died. You're right. And the car was towed to a secure lot for the Jackson County Sheriff's Department
to retrieve it, but I couldn't find anything in the police reports saying that they retrieved and processed this
car. >> Well, yeah, that too. Like if it like you would have to like look in detail.
I'm not saying they're like soaked in blood and if you don't just like if all you're doing is just scoping this car
and being like nothing to see here. Yeah, but that's pretty much all we have confirmed. We don't even confirm that
the agency in charge of Anastasia's case even retrieved the car, let alone processed it. And basically, they still
have zero physical evidence because this was a poor investigation from the start.
>> No kidding. A lack of evidence isn't stopping investigators, though, because they've set their sights on a confession
from Byron. >> But that's the only thing they're going to be able to get. Like they they have
literally there's nothing else. So, detectives tap Kelly's phone lines, hoping she can get Byron on the phone.
And eventually, on June 5th, 2001, Byron picks up. And we're going to play a snippet of their conversation that we
got from Leah. And fair warning, it's not great quality. And on top of that, Byron sounds kind of muffled, but here
it is. Why? Seriously, why did you have to kill her? What was the whole big deal? Could you explain that to me?
Because I don't get it. Seriously, Justin said dead for no reason. She's dead for no reason. They're still
selfdep. And for some reason, they're talking to me because you won't talk. So, I'm And
it makes me look horrible because everybody already knows that I'm a crackhead, that I'm a cokehead, that I'm
an alcoholic, and I don't remember. And if I try to talk to him, nothing's going to add up. So, I mean, if you
could seriously explain to me as to why you actually felt the need to kill her, then that would really help me feel
better about the whole thing. I mean, is there seriously any reason to all of this?
>> Talk about it. >> Why? >> We should [ __ ] off. >> Of course, we should. So, police think that that's a tacit
admission, which is when someone indirectly admits something without saying it. And police are like by saying
we shouldn't talk about this, he's admitting that he did kill her, >> that there's something to talk about or
the thing to talk about is the thing she's saying. >> But let's be honest, the audio quality
alone leaves a lot to interpretation. Like does he actually say we should talk about this?
>> Like we should [ __ ] off. >> Of course we should. >> It's almost impossible. Like I can see
your face. I didn't consider that it's impossible to put that out of your mind. But police have made up their
minds that he says, >> but I I also do feel like someone who like if this truly is coming out of
nowhere, right? Like their original story is she gets out of the car, they all have like a normal night. I feel
like if that's what happened, I'd be like, "What are you talking about?" Not like we should or shouldn't talk about
this. I'd be like, "Where is this coming from?" >> Right? And I mean, even if his response
is like, "Oddly, we shouldn't talk about this." Maybe he's not talking specifically about the murder, right?
Maybe it's just like we shouldn't talk about this incredibly traumatic thing that happened in our lives.
>> Fair. Yeah. >> But either way, police think that and Kelly's confession are enough. And 6
days later, Byron's arrested in his home and charged with firstdegree murder and
armed criminal action. Dude, this is what I'm talking about. But we see cases where like there's this w like huge
circumstantial case and they're like, "Oh, police like not enough. Prosecutors like not enough." Like I get someone's
telling you what happened and they were there, but this doesn't feel like enough. If I'm like I feel like I'm
losing my mind. >> Yeah. There's nothing else. And even the public defender he gets to represent him
knows the prosecution is reaching a little a little bit. >> Yeah. Yeah. You think
>> because in pre-trial, the prosecutors asked to be allowed to discuss Byron's goth lifestyle and his obsession with
death. >> It's like West Memphis 3. Like, please. >> They definitely want to use the tap
phone call as their proof of admission. And they have a clear objection to the defense's request to present Kelly's
medical records. The defense wants to show that Kelly is essentially an unreliable witness with a substance use
disorder. And they're like, "No, no, no. We don't need any details about her or how we got here. just what she's willing
to say about the night and who did it. So, all that gets put before a judge and the judge decides that Kelly's medical
records stay sealed. That's not going to get brought up in court. >> The recorded conversation is in and some
of the Goth lifestyle info is out, which means some of it's also in. Byron's trial begins April 29th, 2002. Kelly
testifies giving the same story she told police that Byron is responsible for killing Anastasia.
Byron takes the stand in his own defense maintaining I know and he maintains the
same story he originally told police. His defense calls Evelyn Casease Byron's mother and she testifies that Byron got
home at 10 p.m. that night. And in the days after Anastasia's murder, Evelyn never felt that Kelly was acting afraid
of Byron, and things seemed normal between the two. She says Kelly called her after Byron got arrested and told
her that she felt responsible, too, and that she should be in jail with him. The
jury deliberates for over 3 hours before coming back with a verdict. They find Byron Casease guilty of murder in the
first degree and armed criminal action and the judge sentences Byron to two concurrent life terms. And that's where
this story could end. But Byron still claims his innocence. In 2010, the Midwest Innocence Project looks into
Byron's case. Ultimately, they pass on taking it on. And we tried reaching out to them to ask why. I
>> was just going to say why. >> But they never got back to us. And it's actually a personal injury attorney
named Brian Russell who stumbles upon the free Byron case website in 2019. And he immediately goes down the rabbit
hole. He reads all the case files and court transcripts and decides to call Byron up and see if he wants a lawyer.
They have one meeting and Brian decides to take on the case to help clear Byron's name. Leah interviewed Brian
Russell for the real killer and he told her he wasn't even convinced Byron was innocent when he first offered to take
on this case. He just knew that he didn't get a fair trial. But the more they talked and Brian got to know him,
he says the more he became convinced of Byron's innocence. And like I can't vouch for that. Our team reached out to
Byron, but he said his attorneys didn't want him to talk to us. Regardless, Brian and his team feel confident about
their case, which is built not just on the things that they think went wrong and the lack of physical evidence
against Byron. They know that their burden of proof is much higher now that he's already been found guilty.
>> You don't have that like not that I I you know, in some cases you never get the like presumption of innocence.
Definitely not now. >> Yeah. But they don't have to prove if not Brian then who. But having an
alternative suspect sure wouldn't hurt. >> Yeah. >> And they put forward not one, not two,
but three alternatives. [Music] First up is Justin. Turns out Kelly herself wasn't even always consistent
with her story about Byron being the killer. Apparently, the night before Kelly went into rehab, she told her dad
that Byron did it. But while she was in rehab, she told her counselor Justin did
it. >> Um, but she later said she only claimed that in rehab because by that point
Justin was already gone, police were thinking he did it then and she thought he was just as guilty as Byron. And by
the way, prosecutors brought up her inconsistency at trial. This was >> this was not brand new information like
after Byron's conviction. And listen, like honestly, like there's things that don't piece together, but Justin makes
more sense to me than Byron. Well, and it could have been an accident, too. Bob told police that he heard secondhand
that Byron had given Justin a loaded gun. And Justin, not knowing it was loaded, aimed it at Anastasia, and
accidentally shot her. Which is possibly why Justin felt guilty if he really did
take his own life. I also keep coming back to like in my mind Justin didn't own the gun that killed Anastasia
otherwise like why go buy a new one still even even going and buying one like if you all dumped it together you
could have just gone back and get that I I don't know whatever but the thing I don't understand is like if it really
was Justin like she would just say Justin like there's no point in in ever pointing the finger at Byron. So like he
and he's like he's almost easier to point the finger at cuz he's not here >> right? Byron's team said that Kelly had
some sort of like grudge against him. Like I don't know her feelings right when this happened, but before she came
forward, apparently he just cut off all contact. I just have like a zillion questions. And like I I I keep coming
back to his suicide if that's what it really was. Like his death has to be involved. He had to have known something
more about what happened. It sure feels that way because there's never been any other explanation for his death. Like
there was no suicide note. As far as I know, he didn't say anything to anyone before.
If they're even like suggesting that it was Justin, why didn't Byron just say that ever? Like Byron's always, like you
said on the stand, he stuck to his original story about like going home and hanging out and nothing. Like same way
where I think it'd be easier for Kelly to point the finger at him. Like Justin is Byron's get out of jail free card and
Byron's the one who's been on trial. I don't know. They could have just walked into the police station after Justin
died and said, "Look, they killed her, then he killed himself, but that doesn't make it doesn't make sense.
>> But they don't. They walk in from like day one and say she walked away and we
never saw her again. This is driving me nuts." And like we also have the mechanic who saw her. Right.
>> Right. So, the mechanic saw her get out of the car and start walking. So, okay,
let's just say Justin did it. Okay, like we talked about earlier, what the police
were initially thinking, a murder suicide seems plausible. And clearly other people thought he did this. Well,
let me tell you, this is totally unrelated to this case, so bear with me. I promise it comes back to our story.
It's a short story. In 2008, a woman named April Wilkins filed an appeal against her conviction for first-degree
murder for shooting and killing her ex- fiance, Terry Carlton, on April 28th, 1998. April claimed she killed Terry
because she was experiencing intimate partner violence. And in her appeal, she said one of the reasons she was so
afraid of Terry was that he told her he had a nephew Justin that had recently killed his ex-girlfriend,
aka Anastasia. And Terry told her, quote, "That got what she deserved and said that she was
next." And maybe this was a baseless threat Terry was throwing around to scare April. Yeah. Because also like it's just
what everyone believed at the time. >> Or maybe Justin should have been investigated more than he was.
>> Yeah. Like investigating his death and processing his car. You mean? >> Yeah. Just those little things.
But for lack of effort because the evidence wouldn't have been there even if they went looking for it.
>> They just have nothing solid to back that up. There is this little like it's not even a full theory. I'll call it a
half theory that pops up too when they're speculating. It's one that Anastasia's dad Bob and her godfather
seem to think is plausible. That someone completely unknown, maybe someone in their friend group, maybe a total
stranger, shot Anastasia, then shot Justin later to keep him quiet. That maybe Justin's death could have been
made to look like a suicide. I mean, yes, I have so many questions about his death that don't make sense to me, but
to me, that only makes sense if we're back to Byron and Kelly. Well, take Kelly out of the equation for a second.
Byron still says nothing happened. I think they're saying that what if it happened after they all stopped hanging
out. Again, not a lot of meat to this theory to grab on to. And like I mean like do we know anything about her other
friends or like or like >> Ashley, we could spiral about this for days, but Justin is just the first
alternative theory. >> Okay, >> I brought up Anastasia's godfather. Let me introduce you to Patrick Rock.
He's another person Byron's team identified as someone worth looking into. He runs Anastasia's memorial
website.org or and he's close family friends with Bob. Apparently, Anastasia was known to
be comfortable enough to call him if she needed him. And allegedly, she knew his
number by heart. The theory from Byron's team is that if Anastasia had gotten out
of the car after her fight with Justin, then she would have needed a ride home and she could have called Patrick. We
know that the DQ pay phone is nearby like I told you earlier. Yeah, could have, would have, should have. You don't
have the records to show that she actually did though. >> Correct. >> And that doesn't even really feel like a
solid theory to me. Like, oh, she was close enough that she memorized his number. Like, it's the '9s. Like, I
still remember your home phone number. Like, >> you told it to me like the other day.
>> Yeah. I'm sure she had a lot of numbers memorized, not just his. Like, she probably had Justin's memorized from the
pay phone. She probably had Byron. She probably had Kelly's. Like, >> right. For me and seems like for you
too, there's nothing there. >> Yeah. Anastasia could have called anyone when slash if she got out of that car.
And despite what Byron's innocence team is trying to say, Patrick has never been
named a suspect. Our team reached out to him for a comment and he declined to talk to us. Honestly, Patrick's most
suspicious to me because of his friendship with Bob. So, after Justin and Patrick, another
alternative theory leads us back to Bob. >> He's dad Bob. Yes, he's been a grieving
dad, a persistent advocate for justice for his daughter. He's been relentless in making sure detectives were
investigating her case and taking everything seriously. But there's a few things that I left out. Bob was also out
here doing some strange is too nice of a word. He was straight up being suspicious. As I
mentioned before, in the days after Anastasia was found, Bob walked up to some deputies and asked them to take him
where she was killed. >> Yes. And when they said to call the detective unit for that, Bob started
going off about how his daughter was frisky and she would have put up a fight if she was attacked. And the officers
are like, "Okay." And then Bob leaves. >> This is when he goes to like her grave
or where she was shot at the graveyard. Okay. Then after detectives went to check on Bob and Bob realized they were
there. He went off on them again. He was like, "What are you guys doing following
me? I'm not the bad guy. You guys should be out looking for the bad guy." >> And this is when he tells him that he
hears the gunshot. Right. >> Yes. And he knew his daughter was dead. He clapsed his hands together and said,
"Boom. There goes the neighborhood." >> What does that mean? >> I don't know. But there's those
interactions plus him finding supposed skull fragments, remember? Downright creepy,
>> right? >> Weird sus. Which is like it makes me wonder, were they even skull fragments
now? Like where was he acting weird? And like police like were like, I'm not collecting this like weird piece of
plastic that you have like or or animal or did he have anything at all if they never even went to go get anything?
>> Right. And there's some things about Bob's past I haven't told you about yet either. Betsy Owens, Anastasia's mother,
talked to the police after Bob's home was searched. I was wondering like she hasn't come up in the story. So, she and
Bob had been divorced for about 10 years and she told detectives that Bob's behaved inappropriately with a young
child in his neighborhood. Oh. It's noted in the police report that she says there were claims that he exposed
himself to children and was being accused of molesting another child. I feel like that changes things.
>> No police reports were made at the time of these alleged incidents. So, nothing's done. And they definitely
should have done something about it because today Bob's serving a 7-year sentence in Missouri for statutory
sodomy of a minor. What? According to the Missouri Sex Offender Registry, his victim was a
15-year-old girl. There's no indication that Bob abused his daughters. Detectives asked Betsy as
much. But she did tell them that if he was inappropriate with Anastasia, that could explain why Anastasia moved in
with Justin for a little bit. Wait, when did she move in with Justin? I thought she lived with her her parents. So, I
don't know when she had moved in with Justin, but Anastasia was for sure back living with Bob before she died.
>> And they had broken up. So, maybe she like moved in with him and then when they broke up moved back home.
>> Yeah, maybe. And looking back, they do a search of Bob's house or at least Anastasia's room because I know they
collected like hard drives and stuff, but guess what they found on her bed? >> A stun gun.
>> A weapon. >> Yeah. Like what? What's she protecting herself against? Or like, well, who
from? >> Exactly. It doesn't seem like she was afraid of a stranger because like why
not take that with you when you leave the house to hang out in a cemetery at night?
>> Yes. >> Yeah. Then like what? Like it's it's at your home. >> Mhm. >> So, are you keeping it to protect
yourself from someone in your home? Mhm. >> Did they find anything else in her room?
Like or more specifically, like I'm wondering, we've got that note from Justin's hard drive, like did she write
anything on hers? Did she keep a diary about like maybe stuff that was happening in the home?
>> Nothing's ever mentioned about interesting items on her digital stuff. And it doesn't seem like she journaled.
Bull. Like I I'm sorry, but like you started this whole thing being like that she likes to go into the cemetery and
like she wrote there and she like like those are the vibes and she was a writer. Whatever. Whatever. She's
writing these like long letters to Justin. >> Mhm. >> I keep thinking about like 1990s. I
would bet the farm that she had a journal but what? It's not there or they just didn't collect it or
what? I wish I had answers. So throughout the investigation, Bob just kept doing weird. We got this huge
police report packet from Leah with over 2,000 pages. And there are so many emails from Bob to police and police
reports about Bob. In one of those reports, they wrote that Bob was rambling almost every time he talked to
them. I mean, literally, the police reports about Bob are endless. In another report, almost 6 months after
Anastasia's murder, Bob point blank asked the lead detective if he was a suspect. And the detective said, "No
one's been ruled out yet." And a couple months later, Bob came back and was like, "Well, if you need more people to
look at, I've got a list." And Ash, this is absolutely absurd. But Bob gave detectives a list of 31 cars to look
into with license plates and driver descriptions and everything >> from where? So he says the night he was
searching for Anastasia, he parked at the south gate to Mount Washington Cemetery and watched all 31 of these
cars go by in the span of like 10 to 15 minutes. And he's pretty sure that all those drivers either know what happened
to Anastasia or were directly involved in her death. Wait, he's doing this the night he's out looking for her.
>> Yeah. When he doesn't know anything's wrong yet. That's what I'm saying. That
makes no sense, >> right? >> Like you're Which And have you already heard the boom? Like if you heard the
boom and you think she's dead, why aren't you like going to look for her? Why are you just like taking down
license plate numbers? No. I like I don't even know what to say because like that's so wild. Yeah. It
kind of feels like maybe they were he was like making a list so they wouldn't look at him.
>> Yeah. Like it feels so weird to me because it's not like a list of names. >> It's cars.
>> It's cars and license plates where it's like it's like I'm giving you a name.
I'm giving you a chore >> and they all either know what happened or have something to do with it is what
he says >> because he was there. And like how many cases have you seen where like profilers
talk about or like detectives talk about like someone placing themselves there >> inserting themselves in the
investigation >> and not well inserting themselves like later on but like when they talk to
police they're like they put themselves at the scene when it happens. >> They have a a reason to be there that's
not the crime itself. >> It's weird. Yeah. So now knowing his criminal history and all of the
suspicious things happening with around him back in the '90s, it honestly just makes me question
everything. Like, yeah, >> it was a bad investigation from the start. >> We know that. Yes.
>> But now I don't know if we'll ever get to the truth. All that to say, despite
him being one of the three possible alternatives Byron's lawyers suggest, Bob has never been named a suspect in
Anastasia's case. Our team reached out to him as well, but he declined to comment. Regardless of what Byron's
innocence team is trying to convey, in the eyes of the justice system and Anastasia's family and loved ones,
including Bob and Patrick, the person responsible for Anastasia Whipples Fugan's death, is behind bars. But the
investigation and claims of a tacit admission leave a lot to be desired. The Jackson County Sheriff's Department is
no longer investigating Anastasia's death. Her case is closed and from what we know, Byron has exhausted all of his
appeals. Wait, so that's it for him? Yeah. And something that strikes me is how easy it is for Anastasia's story to get
lost amid all the theories and rumors and odd behavior. Like, we can't forget this is her story. She's at the heart of
why we're telling it. And at the end of the day, Anastasia was a young woman filled with so many emotions and she got
caught up in an emotionally volatile relationship, which is so easy to do as a teen. She had her whole life ahead of
her and she was passionate about sharing those feelings through her writing and poetry. But sadly, all of her future
stories were cut short. And I know we talked a bit about suicide in today's episode. So, it's important for you or
anyone you know who is thinking about suicide to be aware that emotional support can be reached by calling or
texting the suicide and crisis lifeline at 988. You can find all the source material for this episode at our website
crimejunkypodcast.com. Be sure to follow us on Instagram, CrimeJunk Podcast, and we'll be back
next week with a brand new episode. [Applause] [Music]

Today, we dive into the tragic and controversial 1997 murder of Anastasia WitbolsFeugen, an 18-year-old found shot in Kansas City’s Lincoln Cemetery. Exploring the tangled web of relationships between Anastasia, her boyfriend Justin Bruton, friend Byron Case, and key witness Kelly Moffett, we unravel the events of October 22, 1997, that led to a shocking crime and Justin’s subsequent death. With no physical evidence and a case hinging on Moffett’s testimony, we examine the investigation, trial, and lingering doubts about Case’s conviction, fueled by Robert WitbolsFeugen’s relentless pursuit of justice. Join us as we navigate the mysteries, goth subculture rumors, and unanswered questions in this haunting true crime story.

For more on this case, check out The Real Killer podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-real-killer/id1596167670

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Check out these other great crime channels: @StephanieHarlowe Coffee & Crime: Double Murder at Devil’s Den: A Family Hike Turned Nightmare https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dvP-WsLj0M @kallmekris This IMPOSSIBLE Cold Case Was Solved By A Teenager | Marise Chiverella https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX6t7--6dAw @rottenmangopod China's "Red Uncle/Sister Hong" Exposed W/ 1600+ Victims But Became The Biggest MEME https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j631kMaKCpg @annieelise She Was Canada’s Silent Serial Killer | Elizabeth Wettlaufer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eY39NWj5p_o

Brief Summary

Anastasia Whitfugan's murder leads to a complex investigation involving her boyfriend Justin and friends Byron and Kelly, raising questions about guilt and innocence.

Key points

The Start of a Tragedy. A young woman's body is discovered in a cemetery, sparking an investigation.
The Search for Justin. After Anastasia's death, her boyfriend Justin goes missing, raising suspicions.
A Shocking Discovery. Justin is found dead with a shotgun, ruled a suicide, complicating the case further.
Kelly's Confession. Kelly reveals the shocking truth about Anastasia's murder, implicating Byron and Justin.
Byron's Arrest. Byron is arrested based on Kelly's testimony and circumstantial evidence.
Trial Verdict. Byron is found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

But a shocking confession and so many twists and turns later...

Setting up the complexity of the case.

0:14WatchAug 14, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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