Criminally Obsessed

What would you do if your ex-husband, the father of your child, confessed to being a serial killer? That’s the reality Asa Ellerup faces after Rex Heuermann, the Gilgo Beach serial killer, admitted to murdering and dismembering multiple women in the home they shared. In this episode of Criminally Obsessed, we take a closer look at Asa’s account revealed in the Peacock documentary The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets. Some of the actions she’s taken after hearing Rex’s confession are… unusual. We wanted to learn more, from an expert with the perfect background to take us in...

The details of Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s murder just keep getting darker. We’re now confronted with disturbing facts uncovered in the preliminary hearing evidence brief for the accused killer, David Anthony Burke, known as D4vd. They’re things you can’t unhear… the court document reveals he purchased an inflatable kiddie pool to contain her blood, stood by while she bled to death, and returned to the location where he dumped her belongings - twice.

We had to talk to someone with experience analyzing the most gruesome of crime scenes, so in this episode, we’re joined by...

His brother was murdered, and he thinks he knows why. 

27-year-old Zamil Limon and his girlfriend, 27-year-old Nahida Bristy - both University of South Florida doctoral students from Bangladesh - were brutally murdered and left in garbage bags. Zamil's roommate, Hisham Abugharbieh, has been arrested and charged with two counts of premeditated first-degree murder. The question on the minds of their families, communities, and all of us is… why? 

Investigative reporter Anne Emerson spoke with Zamil’s brother, Zubaer Ahmed, and he shared what he believes is the motive behind this vicious attack. We hear firsth...

One month later, where is Lynette Hooker? She disappeared in the Bahamas on April 4th after her husband, Brian Hooker, said she fell from their dinghy near Elbow Cay, but let's face it, does anyone REALLY believe him? In this episode of Criminally Obsessed, we explore new theories about where her body could have been hidden and how evidence may have been destroyed, but what could still be left behind.

Investigative reporter Anne Emerson and forensic diver Alex Beer break down what he says divers should be looking for now - one month later. From reaction time...

A couple vanishes and a week later, they’re found dead in the most disturbing way. In Tampa, 27-year-old Zamil Limon and his girlfriend, 27-year-old Nahida Bristy - both University of South Florida doctoral students - were discovered in black garbage bags, one on a bridge and the other in the water. Their families are left devastated and begging to know why this happened. Police say a trail of evidence led to Zamil's roommate, Hisham Abugharbieh, who has now been arrested and charged with two counts of premeditated first-degree murder.

Investigative reporter Anne Emerson is joined by Dr...

Nick Reiner is accused of stabbing his parents to death… but did he know what he was doing? In this episode, investigative reporter Anne Emerson is joined by Dr. Joni Johnston, a forensic psychologist and expert witness on insanity pleas, to discuss the psychological side of the shocking killings of Rob and Michele Reiner in Los Angeles in December 2025. 

As Nick appeared in court today - quiet, expressionless, and reportedly glaring at prosecutors - we learned that the case is stalled until September, with autopsy reports still not completed four months later without explanation.

These upd...

What kind of person kills a 14-year-old girl, dismembers her, and hides her remains inside a Tesla? That’s the disturbing question at the center of the case against singer David Anthony Burke, known as D4vd, who is accused of murdering Celeste Rivas Hernandez after she was last seen outside his Los Angeles home. 

In this episode of Criminally Obsessed, we explore the disturbing psychology of the accused, and of this crime. Investigative reporter Anne Emerson is joined by forensic psychologist Dr. John Delatorre to discuss the psychological profile of someone capable of such violence, and the...

What happened to 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez? As new details emerge, this case only gets more disturbing. Months after her body was discovered in Los Angeles inside a Tesla linked to singer David Anthony Burke (known as D4vd), the newly-released medical examiner’s report reveals the horrific way this child was murdered. What we’re learning is hard to process, adding to the outrage as we await updates on D4vd’s murder charge. 

In this episode, investigative reporter Anne Emerson is joined by forensic scientist and death investigator Barbara Butcher. We break down new information shared...

Nearly three weeks after Lynette Hooker went missing, the questions are only growing. She fell off a dinghy in the Bahamas on the evening of April 4, 2026 according to her husband, Brian Hooker. We’ve been following this case closely - speaking with people who know and love Lynette like her daughter, Karli, learning from a forensic diver about the complications of water investigations, hearing from a criminologist who studies intimate partner violence, and more to cover the case from all angles. 

Now, we’re bringing you into the conversation. We share 10 of your comments on this case with...

It’s a case that’s been occupying so many of our minds, and a situation that’s nearly unimaginable. When Lynette Hooker vanished after allegedly going overboard while sailing in the Bahamas with her husband Brian Hooker on April 4, 2026, her daughter was left without answers. 

When we cover these stories, we want to speak to the real people involved, to learn what’s really happening beyond the headlines, and what we can do to push for answers. That’s why we spoke to one of the people who knows Lynette best - Karli Aylesworth, Lynette’s daughter.

The case of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez is unraveling before our eyes like a real-life horror movie. The teenager was last seen in April 2025, and then found dismembered in the trunk of a Tesla in Los Angeles in September 2025. That Tesla belonged to rising music artist, David Anthony Burke, known as D4vd. Now, he faces first-degree murder charges with shocking special circumstances.

In this episode, we go beyond the headlines to unpack the disturbing evidence tied to Burke’s abandoned Tesla, and the questions that still don’t have answers. From eerie overlaps betw...

How do you investigate a disappearance when it happens in the open water? Lynette Hooker has now been missing for more than two weeks after reportedly going overboard from a dinghy.
She was sailing with her husband, Brian Hooker, near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas - despite media attention and investigation efforts, there are still no answers. With no body recovered and few clues, law enforcement is facing one of the toughest challenges in any case: searching the open water.
In this episode of Criminally Obsessed, we break down what that really means - from shifting currents...

What really happened to Lynette Hooker? The woman who reportedly went overboard near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas has still not been found, and questions and suspicions are only growing. Her husband, Brian Hooker, says strong winds and rough water separated them on April 4th, but his version of events isn’t sitting right with Lynette’s daughter, his friends, or experts looking at the case. 

In this episode, Investigative reporter Anne Emerson is joined by forensic criminologist Dr. Laura Pettler, who specializes in staged crime scenes. We break down the conflicting accounts, including messages Brian sent in re...

“There’s not a lot of room for escape.” Anna Kepner was asphyxiated in her cruise ship cabin back on November 7, 2025—a cabin she was sharing with her 16-year-old step-brother while on a family vacation.
The 18-year-old cheerleader's body was found under the mattress. The step-brother, who is yet to be officially identified, has now been indicted as an adult by a federal grand jury for murder and aggravated sexual abuse and will be tried as an adult.
Criminally Obsessed’s Anne Emerson investigates the cruise ship crime scene forensics with DrLaura Pettler as well as the family dyn...

Where is Lynette Hooker… and what REALLY happened? Ten days after she allegedly went overboard a dinghy in the Bahamas, there’s still no sign of her - no body, no witnesses, no clear answers. Rumors, suspicions, and accusations continue to spiral against Lynette’s husband who was with her, Brian Hooker. He’s now been released by police without charges, but his story has raised serious questions.

Investigative reporter Anne Emerson interviews Daniel Danforth, a close friend of the Hookers, who spoke with Brian as the news of Lynette’s disappearance unfolded. Daniel says the timeline doesn’t ad...

Serial Killer Ted Bundy is back in the headlines - but this time, it’s bringing long-awaited answers in a 51-year-old cold case. 17-year-old Laura Ann Aime was found beaten, bound, and left on the side of a highway after disappearing in Utah in 1974.

DNA has now confirmed what investigators and her family long suspected: Bundy was responsible for killing this beloved daughter, sister, and friend.  

Investigative reporter Anne Emerson speaks with Laura’s younger sister, Michelle Impala, who opens up about finally getting confirmation that Laura was a victim of Ted Bundy. Now, as police...

Yesterday, on April 8th 2026, the world watched as Rex Heuermann pleaded guilty to the killings of eight women on Long Island, New York. Investigative reporter Kristin Thorne watched in real time, in court with the man we can now call the Gilgo Beach Serial Killer. 

She takes us into that room and explains what it was like - Rex Heuermann’s “overly confident” demeanor as he confirms his killings, his body language, and reactions from his own ex-wife and daughter along with victims’ family members. As a reporter who followed this case from the beginning, Kristin reacts to the da...

We now know what many of us have long suspected - Rex Heuermann IS the Gilgo Beach Serial Killer. 

Today, Wednesday April 8th, 2026, Heuermann pleaded guilty to strangling eight women on Long Island, New York. We anticipated a guilty plea to the murders of seven women, but he also pleaded guilty to intentionally causing the death of an eighth victim, Karen Vergata. He will be sentenced on June 17th, 2026.

As the true crime world watches these breaking updates unfold in real time, investigative reporter Anne Emerson speaks with a woman who could have been one o...

Newly released jailhouse bodycam video is raising questions - and eyebrows - about the mental state and belief system of “doomsday mom” Lori Vallow Daybell. The footage from July 2025 shows her being cited for contraband in prison, including M&Ms, gum, and self-proclaimed “miracle” toothpaste that appeared after she prayed for it.

Vallow Daybell is serving time for murdering her two children, Tylee Ryan & JJ Vallow, whom she believed were “zombies,” as well the murder of her first husband Charles Vallow, her current husband’s first wife Tammy Daybell, and the attempter murder of her niece’s ex-husband, Bran...

If South Carolina's Supreme Court Justices decide to overturn Alex Murdaugh's double murder conviction, what happens next? And who called Alex in the days after those oral arguments?

Investigative Reporter, Anne Emerson filed a FOIA request and will tell you who he spoke with in this episode of Criminally Obsessed. But, as we anxiously await the state Supreme Court's decision, Anne spoke with attorney Eric Bland, who represented several of Murdaugh’s financial victims. He says the possibility of Murdaugh ever walking free is more complicated than many think. And the decision could eventually be up to th...

On the night of April 1, 2006, the 27-year-old Ohio State medical student Brian Shaffer went out with friends to the Ugly Tuna Saloona. Surveillance cameras captured him inside, laughing and socializing. But when the night ended, something chilling became clear—Brian was never seen leaving. 

His friends searched for him that night but eventually went home without answers. From that moment on, Brian Shaffer was never seen or heard from again. 

An intense investigation followed, with massive searches, national attention, and a reward that eventually reached $100,000. But in the years since, no confirmed sightings, no financial acti...

Marla Waldman-Conn was 7-years-old when her mom was murdered in their Long Island home.  For years, she wasn’t really allowed to talk about it.  Her dad remarried.  The years went by.  Her mom’s case went cold.  She was told to forget about it.  But she had to find out who killed Barbara Waldman, because she was someone, her mom and her life mattered.  So she set out to learn everything she could about investigating murders.  And she saw the words, BE PERSISTENT. 

She became relentless and admits she was obsessed, but that drive paid off.  Her mom’s case...

Rex Heuermann was arrested in 2023 in connection to the Gilgo Beach murders. The case dates back more than a decade, when the disappearance of a woman in Long Island, New York led to the discovery of multiple bodies along the South Shore, bringing the known victim count to seven. He is now expected to plead guilty on April 8, 2026.

Investigative reporter Kristin Thorne joins Criminally Obsessed’s Anne Emerson to share what struck her the first time she saw Heuermann — a towering presence compared to the petite victims he’s accused of targeting — and to break down the chilling...

The Long Island Serial Killer case - also known as the Gilgo Beach murders - is back in the spotlight. We’ve learned that Rex Heuermann, accused of seven murders, is expected to plead guilty to these grisly crimes on April 8th, 2026. What began 16 years ago with a missing woman in Long Island, New York led investigators to a chilling discovery along Ocean Parkway: the skeletal remains of multiple women, many of them sex workers, in what would become one of the most disturbing serial killer cases in recent true crime history. 

For years, the suspect known as...

What comes to mind when you hear the name ‘Murdaugh’? A legal dynasty spanning generations? A boat crash? An unsolved homicide? A double murder on a South Carolina property twice the size of Central Park? Stolen money? A dead housekeeper? 

How about all of the above? 

Senior Investigative Reporter Anne Emerson spoke with Wall Street Journal reporter Valerie Bauerlein, who wrote a bestselling book on the Murdaugh saga - here's what Valerie had to say: 

“There's something endlessly fascinating about the Murdaugh case. And it's not Alex Murdaugh. It's not the human being Alex Murdaugh. It is this sprawling dy...

If the crimes of the Murdaugh family are a knot, there’s one thread we’ll never let go of here at Criminally Obsessed – the unsolved homicide of Stephen Smith. He was found dead on a rural South Carolina road in 2015, and we’ve followed the case through all its twists and turns. 

We’ve spoken with the people closest to Stephen, including his mom, Sandy, and twin sister, Stephanie. Despite moments of hope during a long investigation – an exhumation of Stephen’s body, an independent autopsy, and a ruling of Stephen’s death as a homicide – we still need answers.  

S...

Who is the real Alex Murdaugh?

Before the guilty verdict… before the appeal… there were secrets no one saw coming.

Even the prosecutors who helped convict him for the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul say the full picture is more complicated than many realized. Behind the influence and legacy: financial crimes, alleged schemes, and a hidden opioid addiction that stunned South Carolina and drew national attention.

In part 2 of Anne Emerson's exclusive archival interview, the prosecution team breaks down: • The most credible witnesses in the Murdaugh murder trial • How Murdaugh’s financia...

Three years after Alex Murdaugh was found guilty of murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul, his case is once again at a critical turning point. The South Carolina Supreme Court is now weighing whether his conviction could be overturned — and a possible retrial could be on the horizon.

In this rare and exclusive 2023 interview from the archives, five members of the prosecution team break down the trial, key testimony, and the timeline that led to Murdaugh’s conviction to our senior investigative reporter, Anne Emerson, who was in the courtroom for the duration of the trial. This...

This episode is hard to watch, but impossible to forget. We mean it when we say you’ll need tissues for this conversation. Lucia Iris Seifried was a giggly 9-month-old with bright blue eyes and a big personality. Her parents, Matthew and Rebecca Seifried, remember her ‘sweet giggle that could light up a room’. On April 26, 2025, the family was enjoying an evening outside together - Lucia playing in the grass - when a drunk driver tore through their yard in Allegan, Michigan going 50 miles per hour.  

“We're sitting in our front yard and just enjoying the sunset,” Matthew, Lucia’...

“Methodical.” “Cold.” “Premeditated.” These are words West Virginia State Police Sergeant Ronnie Gaskins uses to describe 16-year-old Skylar Neese’s killers, fellow 16 year olds Shelia Eddy and Rachel Shoaf. But these girls weren’t just teens; they were also Skylar's so-called ‘best friends.’  

Sergeant Gaskins was the lead investigator in the shocking 2012 murder case, and is now back in the spotlight with the release of a new Hulu documentary, Friends Like These: The Murder of Skylar Neese.  

In this interview, Ronnie gives our host, Senior Investigative Reporter Anne Emerson, his chilling inside perspective on a case that still unsettl...

Dave Neese’s daughter, Skylar Neese, was stabbed in the back by her two best friends in 2012.  They attacked her with kitchen knives and left her in the middle of the woods.  For six months, no one knew what happened to Skylar Neese.  Meanwhile, Rachel Shoaf and Shelia Eddy went back to life as normal teenagers acting as if nothing ever happened. 

Dave and his wife, Mary, were beside themselves.  They couldn’t eat or sleep.  They had to find their daughter.  She was their whole WORLD. They were devastated. Why did she leave? Where was she? Would she ever come home...

“I would be devastated!”  Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson has a lot of opinions about Alex Murdaugh’s appeal to overturn his double murder conviction. She was one of the family’s housekeepers for years.  The South Carolina State Supreme Court heard oral arguments from both the defense and prosecution on February 11th, 2026.  While the Justices mull over their decisions, Blanca isn’t backing down from believing Alex killed his wife and son and that he had help cleaning the scene.   

In this episode, she goes even further as to why she believes someone was there when Alex returned to the kennels at Moselle the night of...

“I spoke the truth.”  Murdaugh housekeeper and confidant of Maggie, Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson says she’s faced some backlash for using her voice.  In previous interviews with Investigative Reporter Anne Emerson, Blanca opened up about the kind of person Maggie Murdaugh was.  She was more than a boss; she was a dear friend.  Blanca’s book Within the House of Murdaugh hit #6 on the New York Times Bestseller list where she questions the investigation into the double murder involving a southern legal dynasty.  

In this follow-up interview, Blanca says she "will not be intimidated or bullied" amid a disturbing encounter/incident...

David Robinson wants everyone to know his son's case is anything but cold.

Daniel Robinson went missing in the desert of Buckeye, Arizona in June 2021. The 23-year-old geologist’s jeep was found overturned in a ravine, but he remains missing. What started with a devoted father jumping in his car and driving  2,000 miles from South Carolina to Arizona to search for Daniel, has turned into years of perseverance that has inspired us all here at Criminally Obsessed.

From 50 weeks of desert searches for his son, to creating new laws for reform in missing persons investigations, David’s work on D...

The star witness in the Alex Murdaugh murder trial is independently investigating the Stephen Smith cold case — and he says they “got a good idea who committed this.”  

Stephen was a blonde haired, blue-eyed 19-year-old left dead on a rural South Carolina road in 2015. Kenny Kinsey, who’s a forensic investigator brought in by attorneys for Stephen’s mother, has reviewed the evidence, the second autopsy, police interviews and walked the very road where Stephen’s body was found on that hot summer night.

Senior Investigative Reporter Anne Emerson spoke with Kinsey about his investigation, what he learned...

It's been more than 3 weeks since 16-year-old Madison Fields was last seen by her parents, or by anyone.  What started as a search for a missing teen in Colerain Township, Ohio has shifted to an FBI investigation into the dark corners of the internet - encrypted apps, private messaging platforms - and the people who hide there, preying on kids and teens. 

We now know that a 43-year-old man named Kyle Lawrence has been arrested in Buffalo, New York in connection with the investigation. He’s charged with Transportation with Intent to Engage in Criminal Sexual Activity, Travel with Intent to E...

Watch the Criminally Obsessed original documentary "Dead Silence: The Casey Pitzer Investigation" out now on our YouTube channel.

“She's got her hand on my shoulder guiding me slowly. But she's there. She's there with me all the time."    

Nearly thirteen years ago, a day meant to celebrate luck and joy took a dark turn for 32-year-old mother Casey Pitzer. She was last seen leaving a bar in Wilmington, Ohio the night before St. Patrick’s Day 2013... and was later discovered a week later in a retention pond, her death ruled an accidental drowning. But failed polygraphs, dest...

Michelle Newton was found 42 years after police say her mom kidnapped her and she’s now revealing more of her mother’s lies. 

When Anne Emerson first spoke with her back in December after the viral video of her mother’s arrest in Marion County, Florida, Michelle had so many emotions about finding out who she really was and catching up with family she’d never met.  The federal investigation into why her mom left was still fresh and left her with many unanswered questions.  Michelle has spent the last four months reading 40 years of police reports, court docume...

For many of us, the case of Michelle Newton started with a viral video of a woman being arrested in Florida. But for Joe Newton, this case started decades ago, when his wife and 3-year-old daughter up and vanished from their life in rural Kentucky. We now know the woman in the video was Debra Newton, arrested for kidnapping her own daughter, Michelle. We’ve seen Debra's arrest and interrogation, and even spoke with Michelle back in December, when the life-altering identity shift was still sinking in. 

Now, Senior Investigative Reporter Anne Emerson speaks with Joe Newton, who...

All eyes are on the trial of Kouri Richins, the Utah mom accused of murdering her husband by poisoning his cocktail with a lethal dose of fentanyl in 2022. Following her husband’s death, Kouri wrote a children’s book about grief and healing for her kids – which prosecutors are trying to prove was just part of her painting a narrative of being a good mother, not a murderer. We learned from forensic expert and host of the Body Bags podcast, Joseph Scott Morgan, about the “how” of poisoning deaths. Now, we want to know why. What’s going on in the mind...