Episode 242: John Edward Robinson | Morbid

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I have been listening to the Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club, which actually Elena recommended to me.

She did not listen to it, but she said, girl, this title sounds so you.

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Hey weirdos, I'm Ash. And I'm Elena. And they're...

This is morbid. It is morbid. And it's morbid in the morning.

Could you tell? I bet you could tell. Yeah.

Oh, you know what somebody said? You know how last time I was like, Elena, that's not how the song goes.

Um, somebody was like, oh, that's like Troy and Abed.

Like, it sounds like that. Like, yeah, radio show.

Oh my God, you're right. Yeah, I didn't even think of that.

That's very true. I mean, that's like not what it is, but it's fine.

I'm kidding. We love a Troy and Abed moment.

I love community. We truly do. It's on Netflix.

It's on Netflix. Do it. Oh, and shout out to my community college brethren, because we used to think that they watched us in community colleges. college I think they did as well about it so you used to tell me stories and I'd be like yeah but I saw that on that episode and you're like no no no I did that first Heck yes.

We're like, no, we did that. Listen, Joel McHale, it was me.

I'm saying. So shout out to you guys. You know who you are.

Hell yeah. Joe and Sammy and Jeremy. their ability i only know joe and joe crow is the best joe crow we love you So, yeah, I think there's really not a lot like at least right this second going on in the true crime world.

Yeah. I think everything's like still for a moment.

But I did see, and I'm really excited about it, and I'm sure everybody else will be, that BuzzFeed Unsolved has a new season out.

Oh man, our mail count Our male counterparts, Shane and Ryan.

And I truly think we're them. I really do.

And I truly think that we need to like collab with them.

I'm going to manifest it right here, right now.

Shane. Ryan. You're invited. We're ready to do this.

Let's get it. So let's do this because it would be amazing.

That would be so much fun. I love BuzzFeed Unsolved so much you actually got me into it yeah I love it so I was excited to see I think I saw both of them tweet like a couple of days ago that there's a new season.

So go check that out. We're promoting them just because we like them.

We're not being, you know, this is not an ad, I promise.

But I think that's really all we gotta...

We got to go over. I think so, too. This is your episode, not mine.

This is my episode guys. What you doing?

So let's do this. So today we are going to be covering the case of John Lennon.

Edward Robinson. Oh my god, do you know that I thought you were doing an entirely different case and I was like, I almost went to say it with you and then I was like, oh. you're like oh but no that is not what i'm doing excuse me No, I decided I actually switched up my case at the last second.

Shocking. Crazy for you. It's crazy. Because I am going to be redoing the Black Dahlia case.

So I think that's going to be happening as well in the next week or so.

Cool. But I wanted to put a little more touches on it, so...

Decided to push it. So here we are. So here we are with John Edward Robinson.

And just to give you a quick little, so this is going to be a two-parter.

This is a very long case. And the first part is going to have a lot of scamming.

It's going to have a lot of fraudulent activity.

It's going to have a lot of theft. okay it's gonna have a lot of adultery it's gonna have a lot of a lot of that shady shit and then there's gonna be like little sprinkle of like oh is that murder oh we we're not we're not sure a little sprinkle And then part two is going to be like, oh, that's murder. like this is gonna be awesome spoiler alert so just letting you know like part two is gonna be like whoa murder and this one's gonna be like lots of shady shit Okay.

Just so you're aware. I'm excited. So June 2nd, 2000, at least... five women's bodies were found in barrels on John Edward Robinson's 16-acre property. near, I don't know how to say this.

So I'm going to look it up Kansas because I love you.

Laseen, Kansas. See me? Laseen. Not spelled that way at all.

But Lucene, Kansas. And he also had a rented storage unit in Raymoor, Missouri.

And the bodies were found in both of them. those locations so this sounds like straight up murder that's not a sprinkle straight up murder but we're not going to get like into all these murders like a dollop of And these weren't his only victims.

Soon, an entire... crazy background of just like lying, adultery, frauding, scamming, shadiness.

Yucky. Being gross, being dumb. Just comes rushing forth like a tide.

Like a typhoon. like a tidal wave I was gonna say that next like a tsunami I was gonna See, that knocks like a cyclone.

So let's talk about John Edward Robinson.

He was born December 27th, 1943. So the day before me, but many years earlier.

I knew that clear energy. So he's a Capricorn.

He was born in Cicero, Illinois, and he lived in a nice...

Just a nice regular normal home at 4916 West 32nd Street.

I'm getting the vibe that this was not a nice regular home.

It was just a regular home. He was the second of five kids.

He had an older brother, Henry Jr., and a younger brother, Donald.

He had two sisters, Joanne and Ellen, and he got along with his younger brother, Donald, really well.

They remained close for a long, long time.

He hated Henry Jr., his older brother. Okay.

He got along with his sisters, but definitely was more close to Joanne than he was to Ellen, according to sources.

All right. We've got a dynamic, everyone.

We've got a dynamic. And the book that I used for a lot of this research, I used a lot of like I used a lot of articles and I also happened to find a book because we know I love a good book on a case.

It's always just so helpful. It is. I love getting a good book because that's where you get the most stuff.

Yeah, that's where you're going to get like the good stuff.

So this book is by John Douglas. You might know him. from the FUBA, the FBI.

And it is called... A true story of sex and death on the internet.

Anyone you want me to be. Oh, bitch. I'm saying.

I'm about to read that. So it's by John Douglas.

Douglas with Stephen singular. That's why I said Douglas.

So John Douglas with Steven Singular. I will link it in the show notes.

But yeah, so it's a really good book, got a lot of information.

You gotta read it. And this involves the internet, huh?

This involves the internet. That's always scary.

Because why not? So the family kind of kept to themselves.

They were quiet and chill, according to neighbors.

There was nothing crazy happening there.

Okay. His father, Henry, was a machinist for Western Electric and he was also an alcoholic.

According to all sources, though, he was very loved by his kids.

He always went to work. He always got his work done, and at least when he was sober, he was known to be a good father.

All right. It was nothing crazy. When he would drink, he would definitely throw a wrench in things.

But there was nothing I could find that was like... terrible abuse was happening or anything.

I think it was just like traumatic having a father that was... sometimes be drunk and kind of like belligerent and just like not how he was when he was sober.

You know, like I feel like we all maybe know somebody.

Yeah, I was going to say everybody knows someone. at least what that probably is it's like you're especially as a kid you're used to having When you love your father and when he's sober, he's this great father who's there.

And then when he's drunk, he's not. Yeah, that's very traumatic.

His mother, Alberta, was definitely not his favorite parent. or any of the kid's favorite parent.

Was she strict? She was very strict, and she was the disciplinarian.

I got that. All you said was Alberta, and that doesn't scream strict, but I felt the vibe coming.

It just came to you. It did. But either way, so it's not like they had like a great warm fuzzy relationship, but she was just a very strict disciplinarian, you know, different time.

So in 1957, he actually became an Eagle Scout. which I know we've mentioned a couple of other people were like Eagle Scouts.

Yeah. uh what's his name i don't i was just trying to think of the shit the thing that i said You did.

Oh, you said eagle cubs. Eagle cubs. Eagles have cubs.

Yeah. Yeah. That was Josh Phillips. Yeah.

Took a second. I couldn't think of his name.

I kept saying Josh and then I was like, I don't know your last name.

Yeah, I was like, his name is Josh. Do we give a fuck what his real name is?

His name is Josh Turdface. Josh Asshole.

But he was also an Eagle Scout. And no, eagles do not have cubs.

But this is interesting. John Robinson here, he reportedly traveled to London with a group, like a whole scout group.

And they performed a song for Queen Elizabeth II.

Well, OK, then. So and it was he was like a young teenager and he actually became one of the first Americans to ever sing for the queen wow like it was a big deal you know my stepmom met the queen really that's so badass i know That's so cool.

I don't know why it's so cool. I just think like the monarchy is just interesting.

It's so interesting. It's bizarre as fuck, but it's interesting.

Yeah, I think it's like so bizarre because we're just like, wait, what?

We're like, you have a king and a queen?

That's cool. I know, it's cool. So apparently, this is very interesting.

This, like, blew my mind. So apparently... he saw as a teenager doing this Eagle Scout thing.

It's like a big thing where like, famous celebrities came to to perform.

That's huge. It was in the 50s, so he saw Judy Garland backstage.

Bitch. Which, right? I would have died.

My girl Jude. Was she okay? I think she was all right because she was about to perform after.

Okay. And he went by her. And I guess he was like a very lighthearted. sassy kid like he was just like out to like he was gonna talk to anybody he's gonna talk he's gonna And out there he was going to talk to whoever.

So he sees Judy and he says, us Americans got to stick together.

Imagine being Judy Garland and this like 10 year old walks by you and says that.

Which like he becomes the worst later. So that sucks.

But like, that's funny. Childhood him was funny.

Well, and I guess she like laughed and responded, you're right.

And then kissed him on the cheek. which that would have been a cool story to have if he wasn't such a dick yeah I wonder it's kind of like John Wayne Gacy meeting like you know like it's whenever you see these people like hobnobbing with like cool people you're like oh fuck that sucks I know, I wonder if Judy Garland later on was like, oh, shit.

I think I was just going to say that. She probably didn't even know his name.

I was going to say, honestly, it was way past Judy's time.

Judy's time. Unfortunately. Rip Judy. Rip Judy.

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So later that year, he went to Quigley Preparatory School.

Preparatory? Preparatory? Preparatory. I don't know how to say it.

I don't know why I couldn't say it. Is it preparatory?

Preparatory. Preparation H? Is that what it is?

I'm just saying. Preparatory? Preparatory.

Every time you say it, I laugh. Preparatory.

Preparatory school. There it is. I said it.

Preparatory. You did. Preparatory. I just could not get that word out.

Oh, I didn't know if I was saying it right.

And I was like. Preparatory. How do I say it?

Quigley Preparatory Seminary School in Chicago.

This was like a private school. It was for only boys and they were all going there because they all wanted to be priests.

They all wanted to get prepped. for that priest's life.

Cemetery, seminary. Guys, I've only had one cup of coffee.

You should take another sip. So he told...

He was telling everyone he knew how psyched he was to become a priest.

He was like all about that life. And he kept being like, guys, I'm going to work in the Vatican someday.

Just you wait. Spoiler alert. He doesn't.

I felt we weren't going in that direction.

We're not going in that direction. That's a different direction.

He was an okay student. Not great. Not terrible.

Same. Just... guiding right through. Me as well.

But he did graduate at 17, so he did the damn thing.

He spent some time doing... favors as well during this whole period for local crime families to make extra money.

So favors meaning like a member in Boy Meets World when Sean gets a job running to the to the docks for those you unlocked a memory in my core being yeah that i did not know i had that's what he was doing sean hunter things i gotta get disney plus he was getting that that envelope he wasn't asking what's in that envelope and he just brings it to the docks Sean Hunter found himself in so many sticky situations.

Do you remember when he was in a cult? Because I referenced it at least four times. on this fucking podcast.

That was the best. because when Mr. Matthews and it's Mr. Matthews like grabs him and is like You can't have Sean.

And in that moment, I was like, Mr. Matthews is hot.

Oh, yeah. Alan Matthews. And I still, to this day, think Mr. Matthews is very hot.

He's a dilf. Very hot. Do you all agree?

Should I add Mr. Matthews to my Hall Pass list?

That's honestly, Mr. Matthews has always been on my list.

But he always will be. Alan! Alan! But yeah, so he did the Sean Hunter thing.

He would, you know... just run favors. Run, run, run.

But, you know, he was making some quick money and he... This is the beginning of him seeing... i don't have to do a lot of work i can do some shady shit and i can make a lot of cash right Not a great thing to be taught.

The system is fucked. But still, in 1961, he did go to Morton Junior College in Cicero and he wanted to become an x-ray technician.

That was his goal. So he realized when he started working for crime that he was like, I guess I can't be a priest.

Yeah, I think he just gave it up. I didn't see anything for why.

He just all of a sudden was like, eh. I think this is the thing.

As we'll see. He's kind of like a, I don't know why I'm making so many television references.

I love it. But he's kind of like an evil Tommy Haverford from Parks and Rec.

He has a lot of big, big ideas. Okay, okay, okay.

And he's going to go in a million directions, but none of them are going to pan out.

He's just throwing pasta at the wall and seeing what sticks.

Okay, gotcha. But evil Tommy Haverford. I'd like to see that depicted.

So he did go to school. He did want to become an x-ray tech, and he did get a job as an x-ray tech at a Chicago hospital.

Alrighty. So, so far it's like, okay, all right.

You had a moment, the Sean Hunter moment, and that's okay.

Sean Hunter had that moment. Sean Hunter had that moment and he's okay.

He turned out fine. So in 1964, he met Nancy Jo Lynch.

Nancy Jo I love it adorable you know pretty lady and she's just like hello Nancy And it's like the 60s.

Yeah, it's the 60s. So she probably had really cool hair.

And great glasses, I bet. Yeah, and cool makeup.

Yes. She probably had high boots on, you know.

Was that a thing? And a short skirt. Oh, yeah, yeah.

Duh, duh. She's maud. But they got married in 1964.

Yeah. She was pregnant with their first child very quickly, actually before they got married.

So they got married while she was pregnant.

Okay. And which is... Which is fine. I said it like they got married once she was pregnant.

Scandalous. He was born, the oldest one was born John Jr. in 1965.

Later, they did have a daughter Kimberly and fraternal twins named Christopher and Christine in 1971.

Cute. Adorable. And we love a fraternal twin, just saying.

In 1969, not long after, you know, baby came and marriage.

He was arrested for stealing from his employer.

So you don't want to do that. He was on his way to like an okayness.

Yeah, we're doing okay. We're going to be a dad.

We're going to be an x-ray tech. Everything's going to be okay.

I got this. And then he just slipped right back into that I need easy money thing. he doesn't want to work for it hey kids that'll fuck you right up if you need some money Yeah, exactly.

So he stole from his employer. His employer ended up finding out, and he just begged them not to charge him, and he promised to pay back the money he stole, and they agreed.

Wow. So now he's seeing that not only can he make money doing shady shit very quick.

But now he can charm his way and use his charisma to get out of things easily. even when he's been caught red-handed.

That'll set a precedent. It's a bad thing.

So he got another hospital job. It's amazing how many jobs this man got with literally zero credentials.

It's like Dirty John. It truly is. It truly is.

And his name is John. Yeah. He's the original, the OG Dirty John here.

OG Dirt. So he got another hospital job, this time doing pediatric x-rays at Children's Mercy Hospital.

And he also got a job doing x-rays on adults at General Hospital.

Later, this general hospital gets turned into Truman Medical Center, so people might know that better.

I thought you were going to tell me it turned into a soap opera.

It did not. He got these jobs because he produced documents saying he was a medical lab tech. a nuclear medical technologist, and a radiographic technologist.

I feel like he wasn't any of those things.

He was none of those things. And weirdly, people liked him when he first started.

But then they started watching him work and they were concerned because suddenly they were like, You don't know how to take or read an x-ray.

Right. Which is wild. And also highly dangerous.

And they were like, also, you're handling infants, babies, and children.

And he was very like... like clumsy with them and like rough like he didn't know how to just like hold a baby yeah because that's what you learn in school exactly and they were like you are not because also like x-rays you got to put them in like weird positions like yep you know, my kids have had x-rays before and it's always like very jarring to watch because they have to be in move them, you know, and they're always so sweet about it.

Like Children's Hospital in Boston, like shout out to them because they're the best.

Oh my gosh. When one of my girls was like really sick that time, they were just fucking amazing.

And those x-ray texts are like... the sweetest people ever and they make it like a very chill experience.

Like they're trained to do that. that's part of the whole thing and he was not so he didn't know how to fucking do that And later they confirmed with the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. that he had none of those degrees or certificates that he claimed to have.

Here's the thing though, why don't we check that before we give someone a job?

Thank you, because this is what happens hundreds of times in this case.

He is given a job and no one checks. And then later on they check and they're like, oh, whoops.

And it's like, I remember watching... Here, I'm going to throw another TV reference for you.

I... I don't know what's happening right now.

I'm living in a television world today, but video killed the radio.

And I'm really bringing you back. which is fun well I even know this Sabrina the Teenage Witch of course the original Sabrina the Teenage Witch I remember that there was a point where Zelda got a job at the college because she just said she had a degree from Harvard.

And everybody was so impressed by that. They just gave her the job.

And then they found out later that she, the only Zelda that had graduated from Harvard did it like 200 years ago because she's witch so they were like you're a lying sack of shit and she was getting fired and I was like they would never have hired her without looking at that But they would.

But look, I'm sorry to the writers of Sabrina the Teenage Witch for doubting you all those years ago.

I doubted you. Egg on my face. That's egg on my face because that's, I was like, that's far too reaching.

I can't believe this. You're doing this for the storyline.

How dare you? I don't appreciate it. Like magic?

Okay, I can accept that. But like talking cats, I'm here for it.

Absolutely. Like another realm with Drell, who is actually Penn from Penn.

I'm done. You gotta go. But I can't accept that they hired Zelda without checking her credentials first.

But they did. They definitely did. And after reading this case, yeah, they did.

And then later they found out that it wasn't real.

That was a real storyline. You're ridiculous.

I want you all to know that. But yeah, he didn't have any of these degrees, none of the credentials.

They found this out later and they were like, well, shit.

Co-workers also said that he was actively all the time trying to seduce them.

He was married with children, remember? I was just waiting for that part of the story.

And he spent nights out at clubs, leaving his wife at home with all the children.

This is very Goodfellas. Very good fellas.

He was also very into BDSM, but he was into like really gnarly BDSM with like I don't think he was super psyched about like consent or anything like that.

Yeah. So this isn't like a normal like kink. kind of thing like i think it started out as a normal kink and then he made it weird yeah And his wife was not into it.

So that's... incompatibility right there first of all like if you're into that stuff maybe talk about that beforehand so that you can get on the same page here So instead of trying to work with her and trying to work together as a couple to try to figure out some kind of middle ground you can both get at, which if you're not both into the same thing,

You got to come together and figure it out.

You know, come together right now. Yeah.

Over cake. Over cake. Yes. That's a great shirt idea.

Come together right now over kink. Our shirts are getting kinky lately.

They're getting kinky. Our last one was about butt stuff like a devil. which I'm still waiting for anyone that's a patreon shirt but I know, we need to figure out how to make that because I want to wear that.

But yeah, they're getting weird. But his wife was not into it, so he would just try to find anyone at clubs that could satisfy this fetish, which is like, dude, Just kind of work with your right wife or get separated.

Yeah, exactly. You know, like there's a middle ground you can find somewhere.

I think it was a little scandalous still in the 60s, though, to get divorced.

Oh, yeah, for sure. Like, there's definitely some weird stuff.

But, like, dude, you have children. Right.

Just figure it out. He was fired from the Children's Hospital That's good to know Just because he was a dumbass And he got another job You got another job at Fountain Plaza X-Ray as a lab tech and an office manager.

With no fucking credentials. Well, and you would think too that when he got fired from one job, they would also maybe call that job and see why he was fired.

Yeah, I guess shit was different in the 60s, I suppose.

Right. But his boss was Dr. Wallace Graham. who is actually the president, who is actually President Harry Truman's doctor.

Oh, fuck. So this is like a doctor. This is not just a doctor.

This is a doctor. Like you got to say it like that. uh and he was also known though as like a very sweet person this doctor and he was known to be kind of night he was like brilliant obviously and yeah a brilliant doctor but he was very naive with like people.

Too trusting. He was very trusting and he was easily taken advantage of.

Oh bitch I feel the shit out of that. You do.

That's very much your But that's why I'm there to be like, no, no, no.

Yeah. But suddenly... money is starting to go missing from this medical practice as soon as he's hired.

That's so shitty. Weirdly enough. It's such a weird coincidence. yeah i know it's just like very wow uh so much money though this was so brazen that Dr. Graham couldn't even give his staff Christmas bonuses because so much was taken.

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They knew, so some, and they couldn't figure it out.

They were trying to figure it out. They couldn't.

But some of the other coworkers were noticing and seeing that it was him stealing money. and using the doctor's stamps to sign checks for himself.

Wow. Yeah. That's brilliant. right he's so brazen with these things and he would also ask patients to pay in cash And he would just pocket it.

Right, of course. So that's how he was doing this.

You know, I worked with somebody that did something similar to that.

Are you serious? Yeah. And they had like a special thing on their phone, like some kind of app. where they could swipe the card and they would get the card information.

Yeah, it was a big, huge scandal. That's so shady.

Yeah, it was crazy. Oh my God, that's so funny.

And like our tip money would go missing and stuff like that.

Like I would have like open envelopes and I'd be like, why is this open?

And like. I'd be like, oh, I know that person left me more.

Like what the hell? Oh, that's so shady.

Yeah. Stealing is so fucked. It's so fucked.

It's like work for your own money. And it's also just like very violating.

Don't take mine. Like that's a very violating thing.

You know how many shampoos I did to get that money?

Yeah, it bums me out. I wanted that three bucks.

Well, he also was having tons of affairs with coworkers and also a couple of patients.

He used the story, too, that his wife was terminally ill and had given him the blessing to have these affairs.

If someone said that to me, I'd be like, yeah, I'm not fooking you while your wife is still on the earth terminally ill over there.

Maybe instead of Fook and me, you should go take care of your wife, you asshole.

Who fell for that? Like a lot of people apparently.

That's ridiculous. Obviously he was caught eventually because people were fighting.

And he tried to do the same thing by saying, I'll pay it back.

Please don't charge me. But Dr. Graham was like, nope.

And he called the police, which like good for Dr. Graham.

Yeah. Because he was pissed. He was like, you took advantage of my fucking kindness.

Right. Exactly. And I couldn't give anybody Christmas gifts.

He was arrested for embezzling between $100,000 and up to $300,000 from that practice.

Oh my god, I'm going to Look up what that would be today.

Right. And he was sentenced to three years probation.

That's it. Wow. Three years probation. You said $100,000.

And that's like felony theft. Yeah. Yeah, that's insane.

Felony theft and this motherfucker got three years probation.

And this is another thing we're going to see.

He just gets out of shit. It's like a John Wayne Gacy kind of scenario.

How much is it today? It's Oh my god, $100,000 in 1960 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $909,442.

Holy shit. So he literally basically stole a million dollars from this guy.

Yeah. What the? fuck because if you think about it if he's like just using a stamp he can write whatever he wants oh yeah And also, if he's having patients pay for procedures, procedures are expensive, and he's just pocketing the money.

That is crazy and it says the dollar had an average inflation rate of 3.69 per year between 1960 and today. producing a cumulative price increase of 809.44%.

Damn. inflation is the craziest thing ever.

And he got three years probation. That's insane.

For felony theft. that's crazy yeah and so in 1969 he became a systems analyst for mobile oil and let me guess he didn't have the credentials for that either.

I don't even know what that means. They hired him with bullshit credentials and never looked into his background to see that he was on probation. too.

That's even terrifying. So they didn't do any of a background check because he charmed his way in.

Right. And he was so... nuts to me how like some people can just like schmooze He was a smooth talker and he was also an intelligent talker, which can sometimes lull people into a false fucking sense of security.

Yep. you can't just take that off of somebody.

You gotta like really look into it. But it worked, and his probation officers, the Missouri Board of Probation and the parole board, wrote a letter saying that, quote, Robinson, quote, does not appear to be an individual who is basically inclined towards criminal activities and is motivated towards achieving middle class values.

So he even had his parole people absolutely convinced that he would never do something like that again.

This is not something he's like... that he is like you know it's not a pathology he had a moment of weakness And that he just wants to have some middle class values.

He doesn't have delusions of grandeur. He just wants to do right now.

Me stealing that like 100 to 3,000. It's just a slip up.

So they were like, you know what? Good job.

Like you got a job. I think everything's fine.

But then, oops, he was caught stealing 6,200 postage stamps from the corporation.

That's very random. Weird. And he was fired.

But he was probably selling him. And somehow avoided jail time again.

That's so nuts. So in 1970, they decided to move to Chicago again because Kansas was now starting to know that he was a giant fuck up because he had gone all over Kansas just fucking up.

That'll do it. He can't get a job in Kansas because everybody's like, yeah, you stole from me.

We know that guy. Like you committed felony theft in our practice.

You can't work here. Word around town is you'll steal millions yeah there's that whole thing and you'll fuck our entire staff so it's like that's I'd like my Christmas bonus.

We can't have that anymore. So you can't be hired?

He moved back to Chicago. He got another job as an insurance salesman.

They never looked up his record because He was so good in the interview.

They were like, we like him. He was arrested once again for embezzlement of $5,585 from that insurance from a firm.

Wow. He again only had to pay it back and avoided jail.

I also would love to know what he was doing with this money.

Well, you'll see. So, but Kansas... At this time, he's in Chicago.

Kansas made him come back. Because they were like, oh, fucker, you're still on parole.

You can't move out of state without telling us.

I didn't even think of that. So his probation was extended three more years because of that.

So he had to stay there. So now he's back in Kansas, and when he gets back in Kansas, he opens up his own business. a medical consulting firm called Professional Services Association Inc.

No, thank you. What the fuck? And it's also just it's a bogus.

I'm also surprised that he was like allowed to set up some kind of corporation.

Yeah, you could do whatever the fuck you wanted.

So in 1971, he was actually... actually did get sent back to jail for violating his parole at one point. but it was only for a minute.

Like a quick stint. Once he was out, he came up with an investment scam that he was going to steal $30,000 from a retired school teacher named Evely McKnight.

Thankfully. Yeah. And when luckily that didn't pan out.

Yeah. But he had like come up with the whole.

He had started to scam her. When that didn't pan out, he started creating forged letters for investments and shit, like really bold fraud stuff. that he would like show to different businesses and be like, these businesses are going to invest in my company so they would invest.

Wow. Yeah, and he was caught. And they probably lost a ton of money.

Oh, they lost a ton of money. And he was caught and he was charged with...

False representation, securities fraud, and mail fraud.

Wow. Six months after that, he pled out to charges of interstate securities fraud.

And he was only given probation again. And those are all high class felonies.

Massive. charges here and he got probation again like mail fraud is like yeah I'm like what Male fraud, false representation, and securities fraud.

Damn. So what was he doing with all that money, you asked?

Right. Thank you. What? Well, he moved his family into a very upscale home, a mansione.

So did Nancy Jo know what he was doing? I have no idea.

I think she just knew that he was like a scammer and was just like...

I also think he had her convinced that he was a businessman.

Probably. He was just getting like fucked by the system.

Right. So he moved into a very upscale neighborhood and a huge house in Kansas by using the money stole.

That's fucked. He became a scout master for his kids, a baseball coach. he was a sunday school teacher wow he starts like just i'm gonna be he was he btk'd it like he started Being like, I'm going to be a BTK.

And I'm going to say at least he was there for his kids.

He was. Somewhat. And he also bought horses.

They had stables on their property. It's just so sad because it's like you could have made this for yourself.

Yeah, you could have had a great life. save your like he did go to college like he had a skill you know it's like save your own money and you could get there And that's the thing.

It's like, just work hard, man. Like, cause it does.

How does that feel good? And it's like he had all the opportunity given to him.

It's not like he wasn't given the opportunity or wasn't in a position to have like.

Right. He was in... He used it and abused it and he didn't use it the right way.

It's like... That sucks. And I just don't understand.

Because some people would kill to have that kind of privilege and that kind of opportunity that he had to go to college. to have all these different jobs, to be able to schmooze his way into whatever he wanted.

It sucks. It's a blessing. But I just don't understand how people look at like all that they've like amassed together, even though like it's not their money that paid for it.

Yeah, like you... I wouldn't feel good.

No, I would be like I could never like put my head on a pillow at night knowing that I didn't buy the house with my money.

Like I want to work hard, I want to earn my stuff, and I want to feel good about it.

Right. He also was like the local Santa Claus during Christmas.

Like Santa's a fraud, which he also like looked like Santa Claus when he got older.

So that's interesting. Like he's this Santa.

Yeah. Like this is a frog pack. That guy's a fraud.

People knew him as a good father and a family man around town.

Hey, you're right. and he worked on a committee that hired volleyball reps for games around the schools it's very random he took charge of the pleasant valley homeowners association that's where he lived That's also very BTK-esque.

Yeah, because not only that, like he took... hold of it and like btk when he got like a little power he became like a little dick he's like a tyrant and so he actually made some one of his neighbors come into court Because she wouldn't use wood shake shingles to roof her house after it was hit by lightning.

I'd also be like, you really want to take me to court?

You want to step into that building with me?

And apparently he did. What a fucking asshole.

He's so brazen. Yeah. So then he's like, I need a new business.

So he decided to create a new business called Hydro Grow Inc.

And it was a hydroponics, which is like a method for growing veggies inside, like an indoor kind of thing.

He also made a huge pamphlet about it, like this huge 70-page book about it called fun with home hobby hydroponics well and if you have the time to like sit down and write that then do it and actually do it exactly just go for it and do it the right way and like really put your like fucking nose to the grindstone and work that business into a real business.

You sat down and- Yeah, he got the plan.

He just never... That's what I'm talking about.

He has, like... the plans and he has the ambition for like a minute and then he doesn't want to do any of the work.

Right. He just wants the reward. Right. So in that, he wrote about how he hoped by reading this pamphlet, you would, quote, form an acquaintance with John Robinson as a sensitive and stimulating human being.

John Robinson's lifelong goal is hydroponics, and it's as far-reaching as his imagination.

That's what it said in the book. That would sell me, to be honest.

I'm going to form a long-lasting relationship with you and your hydroponics.

I'd love to be your acquaintance. He ended up using his business to swindle a friend out of $25,000 who had hoped to invest invest in this to help get health care for his actual dying wife.

Awesome. But he scammed him out of $25,000.

Awesome. That's great. We love to hear that.

So John Robinson is literally a demon. Already, and he hasn't even murdered anyone yet.

In 1977, he talked his way... onto the board of directors of a local charity organization, No, he scammed a charity, didn't he?

Yeah, and he also... forged letters from this charity's executive director that were supposed to be to the mayor of Kansas City.

So he forged letters from the director to the mayor and to other leaders in the community and all that.

And basically these letters said that he was this amazing charitable man.

It was saying that he was volunteering, he was just this hero, basically saying that he was amazing.

No. He should be man of the year. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

And eventually, he had himself named this charity organization's Man of the Year.

They threw or he threw a huge awards like banquet. in his own honor.

Everybody thought that his wife, and his kids attended thought that he had been named Man of the Year by like the mayor.

The mayor thought this was all on the up and up.

What? Yep. The fuck. Also, all I can sing in my head right now is Schoolboy Q's Man of the Year. thank you I know you don't know that song thank you I don't um and he was caught for fabricating this entire thing, fabricating the award, honoring himself with it.

He had created the plaque himself. What?

The press release around this he had made himself.

The Kansas City Times ran a scathing story once it all came out.

That was entitled Man of the Year Ploy Backfires on Honoree.

And it was honoree in quotation marks. Oh my God.

So he was totally exposed. He was totally exposed.

Meanwhile, Nancy, his wife is starting to fall apart because her husband was such a fucking embarrassing piece of shit. yeah he keeps it and now his children are getting like teased about this like Their dad's an asshole.

And she's probably worried that they're going to lose everything because nothing is even fucking real.

No, and she's finding out that he's having affairs with people now.

Nancy Jo. But the thing is, his children still love him.

And so even when she would finally get up the courage to like throw him out of the house, they would beg her to let him back in.

That's so fucked up. She would. She doesn't want to break up her family.

I don't want to like break their hearts.

So she was going to file for divorce in 1980, but she didn't.

She stayed and she tried to keep the family together.

She tried to like please her kids. She just wanted to take care of her kids.

I feel so bad for her because I can't imagine what she was going like.

That's such a miserable existence when you have to stay with somebody that you don't want to be with.

And that's not who you signed up for. No, you signed up for something totally different.

This is not what you signed up for. It's not who you fell in love with.

You were schmoozed. This is when things are starting to unravel.

So neighbors are starting to see... that this picturesque family is kind of, it's like a Salvador Dali painting.

It's starting to just like melt. You know, like everything's just starting to melt.

And so neighbors are seeing him be a dick to his wife now.

They're starting to see... I see him yelling at his kids more.

His horses look like they're starving. Because he's not actually really being an adult and feeding them.

He just got the horses to look like he had horses.

No, that's fucked up. That makes me really angry.

And he really can't handle adult conversations without sexually propositioning people.

Ew. And just being like, painfully stupid and a dick around people.

They were like, what is happening at this point?

And he was literally sexually propositioning women who were married and neighbors of his.

So now like, Husbands are finding out that he's doing this because the women are going back and being like, ew, this guy just did this.

And they're like, I'm going to fuck him up.

Yeah, because it also probably made them feel like a little unsafe in their own neighborhood.

Because they're like, what the hell is this? dude and then that's so embarrassing for Nancy Jo embarrassing for these children who now their dad's a fucking creep on top of this and they're old enough to start realizing this all this actually he got in like a huge actual physical fight with one of the husbands at one point I'm not shocked So things are not looking good.

So in 1979, his probation finally ended.

He got a job at that point as an employee relations manager at Guy's Foods in Liberty, Missouri.

It's like a warehousing kind of thing. He immediately started stealing.

Wait, what? He did? That's crazy. That's wild.

And he also started having an affair with the secretary immediately.

And he literally created a fake employee and had them receive a paycheck. but it was just to his own bank account.

How the fuck did he get away with that? I am astounded. by the lengths and the ways that he is able to steal.

How are you a company and you don't know who you're paying?

Like you're paying a human being that doesn't exist.

Yes. How do you not realize that that person doesn't work for you?

Exactly. It's because he's the employee relations manager.

So he's in charge of all that shit. Wow.

Yeah. And I think there was a lot of employees in this company.

That's smart. It just flew under the radar. fucked up way, but that's smart fucking way.

It's crazy. He even used the stolen money to rent an apartment outside of town where he would bring women to to carry on his business.

I was waiting for you to say that, to be honest.

Then the secretary, who he's having an affair with, gets pissed.

Yeah, because she thought she was the only lady on the side.

Well, and she's like, you need to leave your wife for me.

And he was like, no. And she was like, I want it all.

And she was like, well, I want you to leave your wife and marry me.

And if you don't, then I'm going to go to the police. tell them about you stealing from this place.

That's a really good way to set up a great relationship. really good way to start off long lasting full of happiness marry me or i'm gonna get you put in jail Because I know that you're a fraudulent man.

That's really great. Everything I've ever dreamed of.

Take a long look at the man that you are trying to lock down here.

Yeah. Probably not the best in the bunch.

No. He's probably, he's like a bruised peach.

Keep that mirror, sister. You're better than that.

Grab another one. So he wouldn't. He was like, I'm not leaving my wife.

Right. So she told. She... She like kept her promise.

Good for her because I would be scared of him.

And he was fired and charged with felony theft.

He had to pay 50 grand back. At this point, though, it's like, yeah, he pays back the money every single time.

But then he just steals it again. So why can't we just... like put him in jail and then he won't have to do this anymore and you won't have to waste your time well this is what's so silly and they gave him 60 days in jail It's not a lesson.

60 days. And it was more like a vacation.

Like, I think in the book, they described it as like a shock.

Sentence kind of like, ooh, you got put in jail.

60 days, he doesn't give a fuck. He's probably like, cool, I'm away from Nancy Jo.

I can't stand her. Exactly. And he got five years probation.

Which he already did that. It's fine. He literally.

But he had some weird thing with his wife where like he would not leave her.

Like he wasn't going to divorce her. He just, he needed to have his cake and eat it too.

See, I don't even think that's weird though, because guys do that shit all the time.

I think it's a pride thing. No, it totally is.

It's weird. It's weird to do. It's a weird thing to do.

And then like it's a have my cake and eat it too scenario.

Yeah. So he's like, no, secretary, I'm not going to leave my wife for you.

Like, I want you and I also want her when I go home.

Maybe enter in one of those polyamorous relationships.

Exactly. If that's what you want. But I don't know what it was with his wife.

But also... I don't think he would, I think he probably liked the whole scandal of it all too.

Yeah. want to be in like he likes the forbidden fruit i think that's his thing And I like I think he obviously likes the thrill of doing bad shit.

Because he likes the thrill of stealing.

He likes the thrill of getting away with shit.

He keeps doing it, so he obviously likes even when he gets caught because he's like, ooh.

I got away with it again. Let's see if I can do it again.

I think it's one of those like, oh, I can't wait to see what happens next.

I'm getting to the point of astrology where I just want to do everybody's chart that we cover.

I feel like he has some Gemini in his chart because Geminis are always a little bit tempted by the bad side of things.

I could see that. Because he's definitely got the Capricorn, like, I want to make money.

He's money driven. But he's not. He's definitely money driven, but like in a very different way. yeah like this is well he's a he's a january capricorn right no he's december 27th he's a day before my birthday okay yeah um he him and his wife did at one point try to make it work they like went to counseling and stuff but you know, things just kept going the way they were going.

I just want to give Nancy a hug. I know, I feel bad.

So in 1984, he decided to start two more fraudulent businesses.

What else are you going to do when you're on probation?

The first one was EquiPlus. It was a consulting firm of sorts.

I feel like whenever somebody says that it's a consulting firm, it's just like code for like, I'm either doing something shady or like you won't understand.

Right. Because there's like real consulting firms, but like no one knows what that means.

I don't know what that means. But like it's legit.

What am I consulting you about? Like if you work at a consulting firm. that's legit just nobody knows what that means like it's And you can say it and people will just go, oh, awesome.

That's kind of how I feel about like nonprofits.

Yeah, like they'll never ask. More about it?

Yeah, no. If you tell me you work to be like, shut down the conversation.

If you tell me you work for a nonprofit, I'm like, that's amazing.

Good for you. And then I'm like, Alina, what the fuck does that mean?

Oh, I love it. It's like a charitable thing.

Yeah, I know. But like there's so many of them and everybody works for one.

But like. Everybody works for one. You all work for one.

You all do. Good job. So the first one was EquiPlus.

The second one was Ecuador. Ecuador. Ecuador.

Ecuador. It was also that was also like providing consulting services to like charitable ventures and like medical things like that, all that shit. he also got a duplex that he leased in another part of town and there were rumors that he had opened it up as kind of like like a bordello kind of thing.

Oh, bitch, we're getting wild. But was catering to like rougher sexual interests.

Like sadomasochism. like way rougher okay like that was the place you go when you like When the BDSM stuff isn't getting you going, like, you're going here.

Okay. He was also getting into, like, selling Coke on the side.

Yeah. It was really a matter of time. Yeah.

He's touching all avenues. He was also like ripping lines.

Yeah. He's got his. Oh yeah. He's had to have been.

Yeah. And he's definitely got his like all hands on deck.

He's just touching everything. Yeah. All the bad shit.

Honestly, all hands on deck is very Capricorn-esque, though.

It is. It's usually just not the bad shit.

I want to have my hands on a hundred different things.

But you're supposed to do them well, and he's not doing that.

You don't have those two things. 1984. This is the year that everything's kind of like popping off for him.

Also a great novel. This is when Paula Godfrey, who was 19 years old, she came on to work as a sales representative for his company.

And he's Like, old, old at this point. Yeah, and she had answered, like, an ad in the paper.

And, like, you know, he's older. She was coming to work as like a sales rep, you know, like a normal job.

She had graduated from Olathe, I believe it is, North High School. only like the year earlier.

She was well liked, she was very popular, she was an honor student.

She was also a beautifully talented figure skater.

Oh wow, that's a lot. A lot of work. But she had had to take a little time off because she had gotten sick and it like threw her game off.

So she was like, I'm gonna get a job. She was also a very talented writer and was published regularly in a literary magazine. so a very well-rounded girl oh yeah so she literally had everything going for her And he said when he when he hired her, he was like, OK, I'm hiring you and a few other girls.

And I want you guys to go through a training program for like... like clerical stuff and learning how to do the office stuff, which was normal, especially back then.

Yeah. And he was sending them to a training program in San Antonio.

Okay. And so he picked her up at her parents' home on September 1st, 1984. to bring her to the airport.

This is the last time that her parents saw her.

Her parents didn't get a call from her that night or the following day.

And they panicked. Her father, Bill Godfrey, actually flew to San Antonio to look for her.

He panicked so hard. He found out that even though they had given them hotel information, she had never checked into that hotel.

No. So he went back home and he tracked down Robinson.

Right. And they had already filed a missing persons report and police had already questioned Robinson.

He denied any knowledge of where she could be.

So her father went to talk to him or himself and said, if I don't see my daughter in two days, i'm coming back and you're gonna be fucking sorry yeah literally hell yeah like away from the police was like i'm not even gonna bring the fucking police in here you like i will fuck you up myself so you better produce that that is a dad Immediately, within like a day, they received a typewritten letter with Godfrey's signature at the bottom. it said that she was thankful for Robinson's help, that she was all right everything was fine and that robinson had really given her such a good opportunity and that she was good though she didn't want to see her family She was starting a new life.

And her father was like, nope. He was like, first of all, in that letter there was like swearing.

Like, peppered in. And she did not swear.

Right. Two, there was, she was a writer.

And there was many grammatical errors and spelling errors in that.

And he was like, I know my daughter. She's been fucking published in magazines.

Like, fuck you. She doesn't talk like that. like that and it was signed love ya Paula and she never would sign something like that So the investigation ended up being terminated Why?

Because Godfrey was legal age and they could not find any evidence that anything happened. so they thought that letter was like legit they said she sent a letter I know you're saying that it doesn't look like something she would say but we can't say that we can't determine that she's 19 she's an adult so if she decided to leave you guys and never come back we can't do anything about it so if she was like six That would be a different story, but she's 19.

Wait, I have so many questions and I need you to keep going.

Yeah. So no trace of Paula Godfrey has ever been found.

So he must have forged her signature then, like gotten it and then figured out how to forge it.

Yeah. Yeah. Because I thought you were going to say like maybe he was like keeping her or something and then we were going to find her.

No, she's gone. Never been found. It's just so strange too that all of a sudden he just like starts up this company and then like...

How did he escalate to murder like that?

That's the thing. So I think he obviously Since he wasn't into like regular BDSM.

Yeah, do you think it was an accident? Like it's one thing to be into BDSM.

It's another thing to be into like a way fucking darker style you know like where like i said he wasn't interested in consent yeah he was more interested in the pain not the pleasure part of it i think um Because I know like BDSM like walks that line of like it needs to be equal parts, you know, that's important.

Right. But like. He was not into that pleasure for the other person or like there wasn't like safe words involved and stuff like that.

Straight up pain. right so i think he was already into inflicting pain okay he was already into some bad shit and then i just and i think it just escalated because it wasn't being satisfied with what he was doing And then I think he's getting these thrills from scamming.

He's getting thrills from stealing. But it's not the thrill he's in.

He's looking for more, more, more. And then he saw this as an opportunity and he was. and he's also a fucking creep he's probably raping people all over the place I was gonna say and it's like So he's getting these thrills, but you're going to escalate.

There's going to be a time where that's not enough and you need the next thing. thing right and i think he saw this as a good opportunity so he wow and she was gone So around the same year, 1984, he also joined a secret sadomasochism cult. called the International Council of Masters.

This cult was actually born in London in 1921.

Oh, wow. It was a bunch of straight-laced business dudes that started out.

They all wanted to just, like, be a dom. but like a different kind of dom.

And if you wanted to be in the club, you had to promise, one, not to talk about the club.

Don't talk about Fight Club. and also be really into dark shit like rape and like torture you had to be into that shit And they created a rape and torture dungeon and shit in their little club.

And they wore purple robes and they kept sex slaves chained in white robes.

His name in this club that he joined was Slave Master.

And he was tasked with luring victims to the gatherings to be raped and tortured by members. that is one of the most fucked up things i've ever heard in my life some fucked up shit And yeah, so how do you go from just being like your everyday scammer, I guess? and then wearing a purple robe and being in a cult. what happens in life what I know we just I know you just answered that question but like what the actual fuck well and he started at one point like later when the internet comes we'll see like that's why the internet Later when the internet comes.

When the internet enters the chat. That's so wild.

That's when he starts joining. like really like sadistic shit online and starts using that to get people.

So it's like, he's really into this shit and I think he's always really been into this shit.

And that's why he was cheating on his wife.

That's why he was getting it elsewhere. That's why he was renting apartments to do his shit in.

But then he realized that consent wasn't his thing.

But he's realizing that he just needs more He sees these people as his like kindred, you know, like they're businessmen.

They're like, they're like me. Yeah, you're not a fucking businessman.

No, you're not. Also, those people are fucked as well.

At one point in the mid 80s, he actually took his family on a European vacation with all the money he's stealing.

And he still tried to BTK it by keeping up with The Joneses, he's trying to pretend to be a family man, even though they are seeing, like I told you, his neighbors are seeing it falling apart.

But he's still trying to keep that whole... Desperately appearance.

Yeah, that whole facade going, and he's starting these new businesses trying to be like, you know what?

I slipped maybe a little, but here I am.

I'm back. I'm a businessman again. How many businesses can you create in a fucking lifetime?

So this is when shit gets real. really crazy.

So December 18th, the same year, 1984. There was a supervisor at the parole board that he had been working with.

They got a call from a woman and this woman worked at a local nonprofit group.

I knew it was coming. Called Birthright.

And this birthright place was a place where single pregnant women could find support.

Aww. And this woman said that this guy named John Robinson called birthright. and told her that he and like 15 other local business owners had started a nonprofit themselves. yeah I'm sure they were calling it Kansas City Outreach and they were offering a six month program that would help pregnant single women gain job training. they were going to give them housing, food allowance, and just like get them on their feet.

This is about to get so fucked, isn't it?

He said they could live in the duplex he had.

That's what he was going to set them up.

These young pregnant women. The one that we now know is a dark-ass bordello.

And they would get... They would each get money, like a stipend, every month.

And he was asking Birthright to refer some women to them. so that they could start helping them.

So they started referring women to him. But he kept asking, are you ready to see how even shittier he gets?

He kept asking if they were black or white.

And then he would refuse any black mothers.

He didn't want to help black mothers. What the fuck, dude?

I mean, he doesn't want to help anyone. I mean, looking at everything he's done, you're like, is it shocking that he's also a racist piece of shit?

But to be that upfront about it, wow. well in that way in general that's why they called the parole board because they were like like they were like this is weird why is he like only wanting black like white mothers and like like Why is he straight up refusing to help black mothers?

Like, this is weird. It leaves a bad taste in our mouth.

So we wanted to call and find out what's happening here.

Because I think they started looking into it and seeing that he was also on parole.

So they called the parole and were like, what's happening here?

Is he safe or not? Like I'm not going to send young pregnant women to somebody on parole.

I'm sorry. I don't care what you're on parole for.

No. Well, and they just thought it was weird that he was reaching out to get like young mothers because they were like, there is like a black market adoption thing. shit that they were worried that like they were going to start doing this kind of stuff.

Probably. So they're looking into this now.

Now they're starting to investigate it. But while they are doing this, he has already moved on.

He's already moving on to look for single young mothers at this place called Hope House, which was a battered women's shelter in Kansas City.

So this is a place where women would go.

Yeah. And they had recently taken in a 19 year old mother of a four month old girl and named Tiffany.

Her name was Lisa Stassi, and it was a social worker named Kathy who told her that this group of local businessmen were calling and were all about helping single mothers.

And referred her to Robinson. Okay. Which I believe that social worker got in... big trouble after this because like she didn't look into any of this good i can just refer this young mother yeah look into fucking stuff He introduced himself to her as John Osborne.

He promised her a job in Chicago as a silk screener.

He was going to get her on her feet. He was going to help her get her high school diploma, an apartment.

He was going to get daycare for the baby.

And so she was like, this is amazing. This is going to ruin me, isn't it?

Because she had been, you know, she had gotten married young to this guy named Carl.

Things had not gone well when she got pregnant, especially, and he had gone off to the military.

And so she was kind of sent to the shelter and alone.

So he actually made her and her baby stay with two other young mothers in a motel.

And he also made her write down the names, addresses, and number of family members.

Why? And then he was like, oh, just, you know, for references and stuff.

Emergency contacts or something? Yeah. And so there was one night... where she showed up at her sister-in-law's house.

And I think she was just going over there for a visit, like she was allowed to go over there. yeah and so they were talking and she kind of mentioned that she was like i don't know this john guy's like a little weird but i don't know like he wants to help us but i don't know if he's going to like kind of being like this whole situation is getting sticky and her sister-in-law was like something's off here.

No. She was like, I don't like this. I'm not into this.

So during the, and I guess it was like a blizzard that night and John ended up calling the sister-in-law's house because he had the number.

And he was like, I'm coming to get her right now.

And I guess the sister-in-law was like, no, it's okay.

She can stay here. And he was like, no, she can't. and he showed up in a blizzard, parked down the street from the house, And then walk to get her and bring her back to the motel.

What the fuck? If I was her sister-in-law, I would not let her leave.

I would. be like holding her back she was really upset and she was like but she wouldn't yeah obviously you say that in this situation you can't do that but it's like you feel like, oh my god, I just want to reach out and grab her.

And the next night she called Lisa, called her mother-in-law hysterical.

Oh no. And saying that John had told her that her mother-in-law was planning to take Tiffany from her.

What? And that she had to sign four blank pieces of paper to get control of her. four blank pieces of paper.

And so she was like, oh my God, like freaking out.

And her mother-in-law was like, no, like I would never take Tiffany from you.

Like, no, that is not true. Like he's lying to you.

And then she said. sign that she said don't sign anything and she already had and she had already signed it and then she said And the last thing that anyone heard her ever say was to her mother-in-law.

And she said, I've got to go. Here they are.

And then clicked off the phone. Who's they?

Exactly. So everybody's like, what the fuck did she mean there?

Like, who are these people? Oh my, that is the most ominous thing.

And that poor mother-in-law. to have like to think that she that tiffany oh my god I know that Lisa thought she was going to take Tiffany away.

She's like, oh, my God, I hope you don't think that about me.

And then that's the last communication you have with her.

Is you trying to be like, oh my God, I would never take her.

Don't sign that stuff. And then she's like, I already did.

And then she's like, they're here. oh my god and you have nothing you can do this is reminding me of like the Colleen Stan case a little bit the girl in the box and it's like like we know those he didn't belong to one of those like organization cult things yeah but you know that exists and it's like what if he was having her sign that blank piece of paper so that she could sign like a slave contract exactly That's what people think might have that like Nobody knows what happened here.

That's so ominous. But what's... This is even crazier.

Like, this is... the part that like just blows my mind oh my god how so the sister-in-law and the um and her actual her brother-in-law and sister-in-law ended up calling the police after this sure And they find out John Robinson paid the hotel bill at that hotel and checked them out.

Oh my gosh. And paid under his own name.

What a fucking dingus. So they confronted him.

And they were like, where is she? Like, we know she was with you.

And he flew into a fucking rage on them and was like, how dare you?

Like, how dare you accuse me? I was taking care of her.

I'm not like she left. I don't know what to tell you. that's like they ended up getting letters too from lisa that were not Not from Lisa because one of them was like typed and her mother even said like she doesn't know how to type.

Right. Like she couldn't have typed that.

And so and it was all like, I'm taking Tiffany and I'm like moving away.

We're going to start a new life. Well, and then does anybody know what happened to Tiffany?

Well, yes. So... Is there a trigger warning involved?

Okay. No, Tiffany is alive. Because I was like, I'm going to go.

Tiffany is alive today. Okay. but wait until you see what here what happened so suddenly that same night he shows up at his own home john robinson And hands his wife a baby.

Just hands his wife a baby. Oh my word. She said this baby was dirty.

She smelled. She had a full diaper. She needed food. like clearly and his wife cleaned her up oh my god got her went out and got her supplies And just cared for her.

But did she ask whose fucking baby that was?

And she was like... At first, she just took care of the baby.

She didn't even ask. She was like, I just like she's like, I looked at this baby and I was like, I need to take care of Oh my god.

And once she had cleaned her up, she was like, hey, who's this baby?

Like, what's going on here? This isn't Harry Potter.

And he said... Okay, so this baby came from a private adoption agency, and he said...

I paid $4,000 for this baby and he said, I did it so that Donald, his younger brother, And his wife could adopt the child because they were struggling to get pregnant.

Uh-huh. And he said, I take care of my little brother.

Yeah, I steal babies for him. And so he said they're flying out tomorrow and they're going to take her home with them.

So do you think. that's why he started this whole thing?

Like, excuse me, part of the reason? Well, it was definitely part of it because...

So they had been going through fertility treatments for years.

Donald and his wife, and they desperately wanted kids, like desperately.

And he had told his brother this a year earlier.

This was only a year earlier that he really found out about this at like a family reunion.

Sure. He had like opened up to him and said like, we're thinking about adoption, but it's like really expensive and we really want a baby.

Yeah. And John was like, Donald, I'm going to help you like sit tight. i'm gonna find i'm gonna find a family for you i'm gonna do it but he was making it seem like i'm gonna do this on the up and up but i'm gonna help you though right So he had called him and told him, hey, give me $2,500 and I'm going to find you a baby.

I have like business connections. History, just thing to say.

Whatever. So they were just psyched and they were ready to do that.

They were like, we just want a baby. Yeah.

He's not believing his brother's going to fucking steal a baby.

And he's like, I'm paying. I will pay the adoption fee.

Absolutely. It's like they don't just give you a baby. no like as a transaction so but he called him and said a baby you know a family has come up a baby is available for adoption they went crazy.

They were so excited, they decorated a whole nursery. were just ready on january 10th he said come now and get this baby and they were on it They were there the next day.

They were like, boom, we're coming. When they arrived, he had fake documents and shit.

Like, he had showed them documents. This poor baby's mother.

Yeah. And that's the thing. So Donald and his wife are sitting there being like, this is real.

Like we have documents, we have the adoption papers, everything's signed.

They paid a $5,500 fee to an imaginary lawyer.

To their fucking brother. There was real adoption papers.

There was signatures from a lawyer and a judge on them.

What the fuck? And I say that with air bunnies.

Yeah. And he said... So they were like, oh, you know, like, how did you find this family?

Right. And he was like, well, that's the thing.

And he said this baby's mother committed suicide.

Right. And he said, she committed suicide in a motel.

And he was like, so, you know, this baby desperately needs a home and like, I knew you were the right home for it.

So they all went to the Robinson home and they met Tiffany.

They renamed her Heather Tiffany. Because they were told her name was Tiffany.

Right. Because her mother was. And she was like little enough. she was little she was only four months old at this point so they renamed her heather tiffany And they were so fucking happy.

They took tons of pics. And I guess there's like a picture of this gathering, like because they were so happy they were Yeah, it's like a gotcha day.

Of John Robinson holding Tiffany and, like, smiling, like, in the picture.

Shh. And it's like he had just killed her mother.

What the... fuck dude he had just or he had either killed her mother which he definitely was involved with it or he had her help killing her mother Yeah.

What, how, where did you find this? What?

Right. Right? And they believe she was probably, first of all, they don't know what happened to Lisa.

So she's never been found either. She's never been found.

And they believe she was probably bludgeoned to death, but her body has literally never been found. they think that she was I think they just like put together the pieces of what happened there and there's not a lot of evidence but they're just saying they think that's probably what happened Heather, Tiffany, found out that the person she knew as Uncle John... was the man who stole her from her mother after murdering her and gave her to his brother.

She knew she was adopted, but she didn't find out until this all came out that he was a murderer in 2000. that's when she found out that she was actually one of his victim's children and that he had stolen her and given her to him.

Like, obviously, I think, like, kids sometimes have trouble like coming to terms with the fact that they're adopted obviously that's a tough thing to go through To add that on top of all of those layers.

Oh, yeah. To find out that you and the person that you've been calling Uncle John.

Murdered your mother. Murdered your mother.

And stole you. And kidnapped you. Yeah. And what's crazy, she grew up in a loving home with Donald and his wife.

I guess they were wonderful parents. That's even more wild than the people that steal babies at the nursery.

And I guess when this all came out... Donald and his wife were so scared that Heather was going to be taken from them.

Because it wasn't legal. And I think she was only like 13 or something at the time.

Like she was young enough that they could have...

And I guess they were like panicked because they were like, we thought we legally adopted her.

Like, she's not our child. But then they have to sit there and prove their intent.

How do you prove intent? Well, that's the thing.

And so they did end up legally adopting her. luckily because they were like she said she's like these are my parents yeah like they were They raised me and they did well by me.

They're wonderful parents. I love them. But she was like, holy shit.

And then Donald... finding out that his brother murdered somebody and then stole the child and then made him pay for the child to like and then like forged adoption papers and like made him live with this now Well, that's the other thing.

It's like you're putting that guilt on somebody else that doesn't deserve that.

Like you have rocked this person's world.

This is easily one of the craziest cases you've ever told me about.

And I'm just going to, so a few days after she disappeared, I told you like a letter was sent to her family.

Lisa, right? Yeah, Lisa's family. And they were typed letters.

And Kathy, the sister-in-law, actually received one.

Because remember, he asked for family members' names, addresses, telephone.

This is why he does this, so later he can send these letters.

Cover his tracks. what a piece of garbage and her letter said dear kathy i want to thank you for all of your help I have decided to get away from this area and try to make a good life for me and Tiffany.

I borrowed some money from a friend, and Tiffany and I are leaving Kansas City.

The people you referred me to were really nice and helped me with everything.

I'm very grateful for everyone's help. I will be fine.

I know what I want and I'm going after it.

Again, thanks for your help and Hope House and thanks for telling me about outreach.

Everyone has been so helpful. I owe you a great deal.

Again, she couldn't type. right that's a real long really coherent letter to type for someone that doesn't know how to type and also you didn't leave with tiffany Because Tiffany was given to John Robinson's brother.

So did her family also find that out later, that Tiffany was alive?

Yes. And I guess Carl, the father ended up wanting to be a part of her life, but she didn't want to be a part of his life.

Yeah. And it got like really weird and kind of messy.

She did get to know Lisa's mother. So her grandmother.

But her mother ended up passing away. Yeah, but her maternal grandmother and her did have a relationship.

Oh, that's good. And I think she ended up getting to know like Kathy and she deserves to know her mother-in-law as well. mother's family but it's such I feel horrible for Heather I feel horrible for Heather and I feel horrible for Donald and his wife.

Like, it's truly our... And then, like... What a situation to just put somebody into.

So many people were... This guy is fucked up on literally like every imaginable level.

Yeah. And what happened with Lisa Stassi is people stopped looking for her after that letter.

Because Robinson told police she moved away with a man named Bill to Colorado.

And they just stopped because they have a letter.

And again, she's of legal age. She's 19 years old.

She's of legal age. She left with their daughter.

As far as they were concerned, they were both gone.

Right. And then later they find out. That the baby was given to his fucking brother.

But, like, Nancy Jo, like, I just... I'm like, Nancy Jo, you know that your husband's a shady fuck and he shows up with a dirty baby.

That's the... I know like her first instinct was, which I'm glad it was to take care of that baby and like get her clean and stuff.

But you got to question things. Then you have to go to the police and say this is what's happening.

Yeah, my husband is like a known wild scammer. he does all this shady shit and he showed up with a baby with a filthy baby You know, I don't want to blame Nancy Jo, obviously, but had she gone to the police and told them this... Maybe this would have been... Solved and they could have looked for...

Because they could have said, like, they could have at least looked into this baby and been like, who is this? looked into the paper because Donald would have produced the papers and been like these are my adoption papers and they would have been like these are fake as fuck these are fake These aren't real lawyers.

Well, and, like, I would assume that, like, they fingerprint babies.

They could figure out who this baby belonged to, and then fucking John Robinson finally could have gone to jail.

So it's like I think a lot of people, including parole, like probation officers, parole people.

Family. Fucking police officers, family, employers all fucking looked the other way and just let him... goot through life and just do this kind of shit we're not even done yet but if you have taken one thing away from this case it's Look into things.

Double check things. Don't take people's word for anything.

Don't worry about overreacting. No. Overreact way more than underreact.

It's the same thing. You would rather be overdressed than underdressed and you would rather overreact.

Then underreact and avoid a crisis. It's like when we always say in investigations, yeah, expend the resources.

If it's for not... At least you gave it your best shot.

And you can sit there and say, I tried everything.

But you don't want to have to come later and say, I didn't do enough.

And how the fuck is the fact that there's more to this case?

There's more. I can't even imagine what we're going to get into in part two.

So that's the end of part one. Good, because my head is like, it's like when you wake up in the morning and you're hungover.

Yeah, and there's... Heather has done, like... There's some articles about her.

She needs to write a book. I think she's done, like...

I think she's done some kind of radio show where she talked about it a little, but...

I think she's like a real badass for coming through it.

I'm sure it's, I can't imagine that kind of...

I'm not kidding you, dude. World-rocking situation.

She must feel like, still, to this day, it must be a crazy thought.

And also she's beautiful and she was so adorable as a baby.

Oh, Heather, the cutest little four month old I've ever seen.

And when you see pictures of her like as a toddler and stuff growing up with Donald and his wife, Like, it's clearly a very happy... I'm glad that Donald and his wife are, like, normal functioning human beings.

I'm glad she had a good... upbringing well like thank god like uh john robinson didn't adopt her like I mean, obviously his children had a good life, like he was able to provide for them and stuff.

I guess. I don't know. Like, I don't know.

Well, we'll have to see if like. any of them had come out at any point and said different because maybe it was all a facade yeah well and like it's it sounds like donald and his wife were happy and everything so yeah yeah So wowie kazowie.

It's a real situation. So wow. Hang tight. for part two of john robinson well friends we hope you keep listening we hope you keep it weird but not so weird that you literally i just like i i'm too shook right Not so weird that you literally scam the entire world.

The entire nation. And murder someone and steal their baby and give it to your brother.

Not so weird that you steal a baby ever.

Yeah, don't do that. Oh, God. Bye. Thank you.

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[The Dark Path of John Edward Robinson: A Multi-Part Investigation]-[Episode 242: John Edward Robinson]

📋 Summary

The Deceptive Life of John Edward Robinson: Part 1

A Career Built on Fraud and Embezzlement

The Facade of the Family Man

Escalation: From Scammer to Predator

The Stolen Baby: Lisa Stassi and Tiffany

Conclusion: A Warning to Stay Vigilant

🎯Key Sentences

📝Key Phrases

📖 Transcript