0:00
it was a moment that was entirely
0:01
unexpected on the bright and early
0:03
morning of May the 26th 1990 40-year-old
0:06
Marlene Warren and her son were busy
0:08
making breakfast in the kitchen when all
0:10
of a sudden they heard an unexpected
0:12
knock at the front door the two were not
0:14
expecting anyone so who could this be
0:17
well after leaving the kitchen and
0:18
walking to the front door Marlene opened
0:21
it to see something very bizarre it was
0:23
a clown but this was no ordinary costume
0:27
with Vivid colors orange hair and red
0:29
nose the clown stood there with flowers
0:31
and two balloons with one of them saying
0:33
you're the greatest and Marlene well she
0:36
was definitely baffled but also open to
0:39
surprises and so she responded with oh
0:42
how pretty by now Joe had joined his
0:44
mother at the front door but
0:46
unfortunately and unknown to him at the
0:48
time this would leave him with a
0:50
terrible memory for the rest of his life
0:53
in a single movement the clown reached
0:55
into the folds of their costume and
0:57
produced a gun but before Marlene or Joe
1:00
even react they then pulled the trigger
1:02
striking marene at Point Blank Range
1:05
Frozen in horror Joe watched helplessly
1:07
as the clown turned around and calmly
1:09
walked away while his mother started
1:12
bleeding out on the floor unable to
1:14
grasp the horror of what had just
1:15
occurred he watched on as his mother
1:18
desperately tried to cling on to her
1:20
life meanwhile the clown returned to
1:22
their vehicle which was a kler LaBaron
1:25
with no license plates before then
1:27
driving away a neighbor who was alarmed
1:29
by the sound of The Gunshot then dialed
1:31
911 First Responders arrived within
1:33
minutes transporting marene to Palms
1:36
West Hospital but sadly despite their
1:38
response her injuries were notably
1:40
severe and that bullet that had struck
1:42
her well it had lodged itself into her
1:45
spinal cord Marlene fought for her life
1:47
for 2 days in hospital but sadly the
1:50
damage was all too extensive and on May
1:53
the 28th she sadly passed away this
1:56
tragedy was one of the most bizarre and
1:58
violent cases to ever shake the
2:00
Wellington community I mean you may
2:03
expect to see a clown at your front door
2:04
over Halloween but not in the middle of
2:07
summer and definitely not with a loaded
2:09
gun and the crime scene itself would
2:11
plague officers with confusion even more
2:13
so when they were left wondering who
2:15
would want Marlene dead she was an
2:17
extraordinarily kind woman and
2:19
definitely had no enemies and to add to
2:22
that this mystery would compound itself
2:24
over time and although it would
2:25
eventually be solved it would take many
2:28
decades to get there in fact this case
2:30
would update itself as recently as 2
2:32
weeks ago and although we have had one
2:34
guilty conviction already I do really
2:37
believe that we have more to see in the
2:39
future good morning good afternoon or
2:40
good evening folks and welcome or
2:42
welcome back to Coffee House crime my
2:44
name is Adrien and today we're looking
2:46
at Florida's Infamous killer clown now
2:49
as many of you know I like to keep my
2:50
stories uninterrupted so before we begin
2:52
today here is a quick message from this
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get back to this case and so please grab
4:36
a coffee and get comfortable folks we're
4:39
about to examine the life of marleene
4:40
and the Killer Clown lurking in her
4:42
Shadows this is the case of Marlene
4:51
Warren born on April the 15th 1950 in
4:54
Michigan Maran was raised in a
4:56
middleclass family by her parents as she
4:59
grew older she eventually moved to
5:01
Florida where she carved out a life of
5:03
comfort and success on her own those
5:05
close to her described her as a kind
5:07
loving and generous woman who knew how
5:10
to get things done she was also a very
5:12
compassionate person that's for sure on
5:14
the topic of Love Marlene would meet her
5:17
first husband John arens in her teenage
5:19
years after marrying they would have two
5:21
sons named John junor and Joseph Joe
5:24
aens it is worth noting here that Joseph
5:27
arens was with her at the time of the
5:29
shoo in now sadly her first marriage
5:32
with JN would ultimately end in divorce
5:34
at the time Marlene was still very young
5:37
and ambitious and so her determination
5:40
did not stop her to go on to tackle new
5:42
adventures and find another man and this
5:44
is precisely what would happen because
5:46
this was when she would meet her second
5:48
husband Michael Warren Michael was a
5:50
relatively successful businessman in the
5:52
local area and with maren's headstrong
5:55
and proactive nature the couple would go
5:57
on to establish a very conf able life
6:00
together between the two of them they
6:02
built a rental estate portfolio in the
6:04
local area and all in the meanwhile
6:06
Michael would build a second business in
6:08
vehicle mechanics which he named bargain
6:11
Motors by the age of 37 Marlene was
6:14
managing the rental property Empire they
6:16
had built together all while the four of
6:18
them were living in the exclusive
6:20
Wellington AOC Club Community in Florida
6:22
aply named takeoff place the AOC Club
6:25
Community was a very prestigious area as
6:28
you can imagine it's it's a neighborhood
6:30
built around a small Runway and perfect
6:32
for all of those small plane enthusiasts
6:35
I mean just taking a look around here
6:37
you can see how beautiful some of these
6:39
homes
6:40
are however tragedy struck in the Autumn
6:43
of 1998 when all of a sudden Marlene's
6:46
older son John junor lost his life in a
6:49
car accident and quite understandably
6:52
this destroyed her and his younger
6:54
brother Joan following John Junior's
6:56
sudden death both Marlene and Joe would
6:58
support one another as they tried to
7:00
cope with their substantial loss she
7:02
poured all of her energy into supporting
7:04
Joe and maintaining a stable household
7:06
as he carried on with his education but
7:09
as some of you will know pain this deep
7:11
really can poison the rest of the
7:13
colorful parts of your life and Joe and
7:15
Malene they were left drowning in their
7:17
own dark Waters through this tragedy
7:20
cracks slowly began to form in Marlene's
7:22
and Michael's marriage and with reports
7:24
of him allegedly having an affair well
7:27
their marriage certainly was on the
7:28
Rocks however before Maran and Joe could
7:31
even make peace with the loss of John
7:32
junr or she and Michael could even
7:34
repair their marriage Maran was murdered
7:36
by a clown in a
7:39
suit before investigating the case
7:42
detectives initially surveyed the entire
7:44
Community interviewing not only
7:46
neighbors and acquaintances but distant
7:48
connections too it is safe to say that
7:50
the unusual nature of the crime really
7:52
did throw detectives off of their usual
7:55
process I mean a killer dressed as a
7:57
clown who then seemingly vanished
8:00
Without a Trace well that was sure to
8:03
leave the community Rife with
8:04
speculation and fear so was this a
8:08
professional hit or a personal Vendetta
8:11
the truth is that nobody knew for a very
8:13
long time and the once quiet and secure
8:16
neighborhood was now gripped with fear
8:18
as a result people locked their doors
8:21
watched each other cautiously and
8:23
anxiously awaited answers quite honestly
8:25
it is quite interesting to see how a
8:27
community treats itself when an unknown
8:29
killer is on the loose in the absence of
8:31
solid information rumors began to spread
8:34
therefore filling gaps and fueling fear
8:36
and Fascination as the list of potential
8:39
suspects grew so on that note let's
8:42
begin with the prime suspect as I know
8:44
many of you will have already thought
8:45
about it and of course we're talking
8:48
about Marlene's husband Michael Warren
8:50
initially the investigation focused
8:52
solely on him although Michael was a
8:54
successful businessman and also a car
8:56
dealer questions about his character and
8:59
person personality and potential motives
9:01
slowly began to surface I mean rumors
9:04
had long swelled around his infidelity
9:06
particularly around a former employee
9:09
named Sheila Kean both friends and
9:11
employees had often observed Michael and
9:13
Sheila together not merely at work but
9:16
outside of work hours too and so many
9:18
suspected that maybe their relationship
9:21
went beyond professional to add to this
9:23
family and friends shared that marene
9:25
had actually once confided in them about
9:27
her own concerns with Michael in fact
9:30
she had even once told her mother if
9:32
anything happens to me Mike did it those
9:35
who knew her quite well also speculated
9:37
that marene had been considering divorce
9:40
which in the grand scheme of things
9:42
could then jeopardize Michael's own
9:43
control over their shared assets this
9:46
would have included all of their very
9:47
important assets including their real
9:50
estate Empire and their car dealership
9:52
so with this in mind investigators did
9:55
wonder if Financial strain or an affair
9:57
could have possibly driven him to to
9:59
eliminate Marlene but Michael would
10:01
maintain his innocence and no evidence
10:03
ever connected him to her murder as
10:06
investigators dug into Michael's
10:07
business dealings there was another
10:09
angle that emerged it was noted that his
10:12
aggressive tactics used within the car
10:14
dealership had earned him both allies
10:16
and enemies outside of his business as a
10:19
result and mainly due to the allegations
10:22
of unethical practices many competitors
10:24
and customers harbored deep resentment
10:26
towards him you see Michael did all
10:29
sorts of shady when it came to
10:31
Vehicles things like meddling with the
10:33
odometer and even committing multiple
10:35
acts of insurance fraud one business
10:38
rival would even accuse Michael of
10:40
staging a car theft to damage their
10:42
company so could maren have been
10:44
murdered by Michael or was she targeted
10:47
in a more significant Vendetta against
10:49
him well despite this line of
10:51
questioning no clear evidence linked any
10:54
former business associate to her murder
10:57
oh and speaking of business assoc
10:59
assciates we haven't yet talked about
11:01
Michael's rumored mistress Sheila Kean
11:03
as a repossession agent working at
11:05
bargain Motors she would often interact
11:08
with Michael on a day-to-day basis the
11:10
other employees who worked there would
11:12
also note that their relationship
11:14
appeared to be suspiciously close close
11:17
enough to suggest that perhaps the two
11:19
of them had been having an affair in
11:21
addition to this Witnesses would report
11:23
seeing Sheila at a costume store shortly
11:25
before the murder they would also
11:27
observe that this costume was was that
11:29
of a clown and one that was very similar
11:32
to what Joe described on the day of his
11:34
mother's murder all of this was
11:36
certainly worth investigating by
11:38
officers and coupled with her alleged
11:40
affair with Michael Sheila quickly
11:42
became a key suspect however as the
11:45
investigation progressed those leads
11:48
against her would slowly begin to fray
11:50
and unfortunately investigators
11:52
struggled to connect any of the suspects
11:55
directly to the crime and so despite
11:57
Michael's potential motives Sheila's
12:00
questionable behavior and Michael's many
12:02
enemies no evidence was
12:06
available however that would be until
12:09
one breakthrough Discovery along a
12:11
lonely road officers found a clown
12:13
costume inside an abandoned getaway
12:16
vehicle that being a white 1986 krysler
12:19
learon which was the exact match to the
12:22
one scene when Marlene was murdered
12:24
detectives observed several synthetic
12:26
orange fibers on the clown costume
12:28
leading behind a potential way to tie
12:31
the evidence to the killer now naturally
12:33
this was massive news for detectives but
12:36
unfortunately forensic technology was
12:39
still primitive in the year 1990
12:41
therefore leaving no key suspect
12:43
attached to any findings and so as weeks
12:46
turned into months and eventually into
12:49
years the case of marlin Warren would
12:51
slowly lose momentum eventually her
12:54
friends family and the entire Community
12:56
were all left wondering if the truth
12:58
would ever surface and what began as a
13:01
chilling mystery ultimately turned cold
13:05
and so Marlene's case went eerily silent
13:08
after that and for many years this
13:10
killer clown remained elusive while
13:12
detective struggled to understand her
13:14
death and with this story being so wacky
13:16
and out there well it is quite
13:18
understandable why this became one of
13:20
America's most notorious cold cases in
13:23
the meantime life continued for
13:24
Marlene's loved ones and this was
13:26
particularly pertinent for her husband
13:28
Michael you see despite his close
13:30
connection to marleene and her murder he
13:32
really did seem to move on surprisingly
13:34
quickly and this raised a few eyebrows
13:37
not only in her family but in the police
13:39
force too and how about that alleged
13:41
Affair that he and Sheila were having
13:43
well as it turns out that was not
13:45
actually just a rumor in fact by the
13:48
year 2002 they were
13:51
married after this the couple then left
13:54
Florida and started a new life together
13:56
in Abington Virginia far away from the
13:58
long shadow of Marlene Warren's murder
14:01
after arriving and putting Michael's
14:03
business skills to good use they then
14:05
decided to open a burger joint called
14:08
The Purple Cow blending into a small
14:10
town life with a sense of anonymity the
14:12
Purple Cow allowed them to construct new
14:15
identities and purpose however for
14:17
Marlene's family friends and all who
14:19
knew her the absence of Justice remained
14:22
unbearable her younger son Joe who had
14:25
witnessed her murder firsthand struggled
14:27
for many years with trauma anger and The
14:30
Haunting image of her final moments in
14:32
the minds of those who knew and loved
14:34
Marlene Justice was long overdue but
14:37
without any fresh or new evidence her
14:40
case would gather dust instead among a
14:42
long list of cold cases in fact many
14:45
began to wonder if they would ever see
14:47
her killer held accountable now I really
14:50
do love this analogy but time has a way
14:53
of compounding even the smallest of
14:55
details you see over time one small
14:58
Ripple can of eventually cause
14:59
cataclysmic waves and in the year 2014
15:03
one tiny event would do just that for
15:06
Marlene's
15:07
case advances and forensic science
15:10
prompted Palm Beach County's Cold Case
15:12
unit to reopen her file and resume the
15:15
investigation this means that detectives
15:17
Revisited old evidence including the
15:20
hairs and synthetic orange fibers found
15:22
in the abandoned getaway car at the time
15:25
of the original investigation forensic
15:27
technology could not definitively link
15:29
the fibers hairs or suspects together
15:32
however with advancements in the
15:34
forensic field investigators now had a
15:36
new opportunity and way to solve the
15:39
mystery and guess what the DNA results
15:42
were groundbreaking when the analysis
15:45
returned it was determined that the
15:47
hairs and the fibers matched those of
15:49
Sheila Kean therefore confirming all
15:52
suspicions that she was definitely
15:54
involved in Marlene's death the rumors
15:56
of her affair with Michael which led
15:59
their eventual marriage and now the
16:01
forensic evidence between them well this
16:04
was shaping up to be a Perfectly Flawed
16:06
murder story as a result on September
16:09
the 26th 2017 and nearly 27 years after
16:13
Marlene's murder pal Beach County
16:15
investigators traveled quietly to
16:17
Abington Virginia to make their arrest
16:19
on Sheila Keen Warren it has to be said
16:22
that the arrest which took place would
16:24
shock the local community just as much
16:26
as it stunned her neighbors were left
16:28
deeply surprised and in awe they
16:30
couldn't believe that the local woman
16:32
who flipped burgers at the Purple Cow
16:34
was now suspected to be the primary
16:36
killer of one of Florida's most infamous
16:38
Cold Case murders as for Marlene's
16:41
family the arrest was both a relief and
16:44
of course a painful reminder of their
16:46
loss and although this was very welcome
16:48
news it brought all of that trauma back
16:51
nearly three decades later as Sheila
16:54
waited for her trial to begin details of
16:56
the investigation and her life with my
16:59
would resurface of course rekindling
17:01
public interest in the case yet again
17:03
moving into her trial court documents
17:06
revealed that Sheila had purchased the
17:08
clown costume and the balloons only a
17:10
few days before Marlene's murder with
17:13
Witnesses coming forward from a local
17:14
costume shop to identify her as the
17:17
purchaser and after combining the DNA
17:19
findings and her now already married to
17:22
Michael the case against her was very
17:27
strong now personally I don't see why
17:30
this couldn't have happened before DNA
17:31
advancements but I suppose it's better
17:33
late than never despite maintaining her
17:35
innocence Sheila was now facing a
17:38
growing mountain of evidence and also
17:40
the possibility of Life Behind Bars
17:43
however what I would argue is probably
17:44
the most shocking part to all of this is
17:47
that despite his almost undeniable
17:49
involvement in Marlene's murder Michael
17:51
Warren would actually ultimately evade
17:54
all charges this is just so hard for me
17:56
to comprehend because if he really was
17:59
innocent and really did love marleene
18:01
and had an inkling that Sheila had
18:03
murdered his wife well he would have run
18:05
for the hills and definitely not marry
18:07
her but instead not only did he opt to
18:10
entertain the affair but he then married
18:12
Sheila moved to another state with her
18:14
and then started a whole new reclusive
18:16
lifestyle with her in my eyes this guy
18:19
is not
18:21
innocent in April of 2023 and facing
18:25
overwhelming evidence Sheila Keen Warren
18:27
pleaded guilty to second degree murder
18:30
in exchange she received a reduced
18:32
sentence of only 12 years bringing an
18:35
official close to all legal proceedings
18:37
for Marlene's family Sheila's admission
18:40
did offer some form of closure but the
18:42
outcome was bittersweet by now nearly
18:45
three decades have passed with lives
18:48
changed forever and Marlene still gone
18:50
as Sheila accepted her sentence people
18:53
hoped that the story of Marlene's murder
18:55
had reached its final chapter but
18:57
unfortunately it wouldn't end there on
19:00
November the 2nd 2024 or just 2 weeks
19:03
ago if you're watching this video as
19:05
soon as it was posted Sheila Keen Warren
19:07
was officially released from custody not
19:10
only that but it turns out that Sheila
19:12
and her attorneys still claim that she
19:14
did not commit this crime instead she
19:17
now claims that she chose to take the
19:19
plea deal rather than risk a potential
19:21
life sentence behind bars so um pedial
19:24
aside what exactly happened to her
19:27
sentence well Florida sentencing laws
19:30
promote something called gain time which
19:32
tends to shave off time of a person's
19:34
sentence if they are on good behavior
19:37
although Florida now requires that
19:38
people serve at least 85% of the
19:41
sentence after gain time Sheila is
19:43
immune to this change in law as the
19:45
murder occurred before those changes
19:47
took place this means that from the time
19:50
she was arrested in the year 2017 until
19:52
the day she was released in 2024
19:55
Marlene's Killers have only served a
19:57
total of 7 years behind bars so what can
20:00
I say this reminds me of the Caitlyn
20:02
Markham case and is yet another tragic
20:05
story which displays a lack of
20:07
accountability Not only was this story
20:09
ultimately tainted with disappointment
20:12
but it was also marked by mystery
20:14
secrets and NeverEnding tragedy and
20:17
while Sheila's conviction would
20:18
eventually end the so-called mystery
20:20
behind the Killer Clown the sad memory
20:23
of Marlene Warren will endure forever
20:25
she is remembered not for the horror of
20:27
her death but for her kindness
20:29
resilience and dedication to her family
20:32
instead Marlene was a compassionate
20:34
hardworking woman known for her warmth
20:36
and Devotion to creating a stable loving
20:39
environment for her children after the
20:41
tragic death of her eldest son she
20:44
became even closer to Joe who after
20:46
losing his older brother was only 21
20:49
years old when he lost his mother too
20:51
her sudden and tragic death left a void
20:54
that has haunted her family for many
20:56
many years and although Sheila's
20:58
eventually ual conviction did bring some
21:00
sense of justice it was ultimately
21:02
short-lived the only hope we now have is
21:05
that perhaps one day Michael Warren will
21:08
eventually be found guilty
21:10
too personally speaking here but I have
21:13
no idea how Michael managed to get away
21:15
with Marlene's murder if I would has a
21:18
guess I think that he probably fell out
21:20
of love with his wife but the two were
21:22
both attached legally through the
21:23
business and so there was no painless
21:26
way out for him you see Michael and
21:28
Marley were in it together over this
21:29
real estate Empire and so if he did
21:32
decide to divorce marene well she would
21:34
have the right to 50% of all money and
21:37
profits and Michael well if the affair
21:40
didn't make it obvious enough already he
21:42
was a very greedy man so maybe he
21:45
decided that the best way forward was
21:46
simply to murder Marlene so he could
21:48
keep all of the money and profits for
21:50
himself but Michael did not want to get
21:52
his hands dirty and that's where Sheila
21:54
comes in if he were to offer her some of
21:57
the money that he would have lost
21:59
then maybe she would have agreed to do
22:00
the work for him anyway that is just a
22:02
potential Theory and merely an opinion
22:05
not even mine actually there are plenty
22:07
of people that think this online but
22:09
before I go today I would love to know
22:10
what you think about this and so what do
22:12
you think happened here do you think
22:14
that Sheila really was guilty of
22:16
murdering Marlene do you think that
22:18
Michael was The Mastermind behind it and
22:20
if not then who as always folks please
22:23
do share your thoughts in the comment
22:25
section down below because I genuinely
22:27
am interested in this one there just
22:28
just so many potential theories here and
22:30
yeah I mean I know this case is more
22:32
than 30 years old but I really don't
22:34
think it's over yet oh and by the way
22:36
I've put a lot of thought into the next
22:38
video which comes out next week I've
22:40
changed the structure around and
22:41
experimented with a few things to try
22:43
and keep the channel fresh and so please
22:45
do watch that one and let me know what
22:46
you think and thank you again to my
22:48
Heritage for sponsoring this video click
22:50
the link in the description or scan the
22:51
QR code on screen to get a 14-day free
22:53
trial just a reminder that I have a
22:55
patreon and so if you want to get early
22:57
access to my videos or support me in the
22:59
channel then please check it out I've
23:01
recently bought a whole bunch of new
23:02
equipment for the new studio and so if
23:04
you are a member of my patreon you're
23:06
directly contributing to more videos
23:08
coming out and by the way thank you to
23:10
all of you who already are members I
23:12
really do appreciate it and if you want
23:13
to follow me on my Adventures or simply
23:15
see more pictures of Nero then please
23:17
check out my Instagram too anyway folks
23:19
that is pretty much it for me today
23:21
thank you so much for watching I really
23:22
do appreciate your company as always
23:24
I'll see you again very soon for another
23:26
video and like I said next week is
23:28
rather special so please do tune in
23:30
until the moment arrives though remember
23:32
to look after yourself look after each
23:34
other and of course stay safe thank you
23:37
and goodbye