1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,780
Hello, I'm Kenna. I'm Koelle and welcome back to diagnosing A Killer

2
00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:09,680
Are we gonna rap again? No?

3
00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:35,680
It's not even a rap. It's just awkward.

4
00:00:35,680 --> 00:00:41,200
Um, hi everyone, how's it going? We are back with my part two of Robert Burdella

5
00:00:41,840 --> 00:00:47,600
I think at the end of the mental breakdown. I was listening back and I said Robert Burdella, so I apologize

6
00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:49,600
That was my case. I don't even know his name

7
00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:51,760
Who?

8
00:00:51,760 --> 00:00:56,560
So before we get started today, I just really quickly wanted to shout out one of the clinicians that I work with

9
00:00:56,800 --> 00:00:59,280
I'm not gonna say her name because I don't know if she's comfortable with that

10
00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:03,440
But I was speaking with her earlier and she said that she started listening and I'm really excited

11
00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:06,480
And she got one of her girlfriends to listen as well

12
00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:12,240
And she was actually talking about when we did the criminalization of mental illness mental breakdown

13
00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:14,960
And she was like this is seriously no judgment

14
00:01:14,960 --> 00:01:17,680
I just want to let you know because I didn't know and my friend taught me something

15
00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:25,840
But I think I recall saying something along the lines of if you are taken into a hospital setting for suicide watch

16
00:01:25,840 --> 00:01:28,400
They keep you for 72 hours and then they release you

17
00:01:28,400 --> 00:01:34,160
That's actually incorrect. This person does work with an inpatient facility and it may be different per facility

18
00:01:34,160 --> 00:01:36,000
But at least for this one

19
00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:42,320
They actually keep you for 72 hours at the most but afterwards if they still think that you are needed or even if they don't

20
00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:48,320
They will actually refer you to an inpatient facility or an outpatient facility to get ongoing mental health care

21
00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:50,240
So I think that's really cool. I didn't know yeah

22
00:01:50,720 --> 00:01:55,520
It kind of sounds like obvious, but you know, sometimes it doesn't maybe we maybe the assumption that I should

23
00:01:55,520 --> 00:02:01,360
have so yeah, unfortunately, you know in the case of Andre Thomas nobody really followed up with him and then

24
00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:07,120
It was also that uh, the british guy was uh, alexander alexander

25
00:02:07,440 --> 00:02:11,120
Renwell, I think Renwell Lewis Renwell Lewis Renwell hyphen

26
00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,800
Yeah, wow, we're like that's Wednesday wedding

27
00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:22,160
Yeah, but I guess I made the assumption that that's the case in every situation which

28
00:02:22,160 --> 00:02:28,240
Thankfully, it's not so thank you for that little piece of information that was really kind of nice to hear actually like okay

29
00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,240
No, we don't just throw people to the curb

30
00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:34,320
But unfortunately it does happen in certain cases like that

31
00:02:34,880 --> 00:02:39,760
Um, well that being said, I think we're gonna get right into part two. We talked about

32
00:02:40,160 --> 00:02:44,960
Robert Bridella last time we talked about his uh, first six victims

33
00:02:45,040 --> 00:02:50,720
He we talked about how he had his little mo that was kind of changing but was usually pretty similar

34
00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:56,720
I think we left off talking about uh, Christopher Bryson. It was the last victim and um

35
00:02:56,880 --> 00:03:00,240
The kind escape yes, and how uh, the last thing that

36
00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:02,560
Bronella said

37
00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:07,920
Was quote I've gotten this far with other people before and they're dead now because of mistakes they made

38
00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:10,480
I hate that I hate that so much

39
00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:14,880
Yeah, so so we're just gonna go ahead and get started with part two

40
00:03:14,880 --> 00:03:16,880
We're gonna pick up right where we left off

41
00:03:16,880 --> 00:03:21,840
Now by the third day of his capture Christopher Bryson had earned Robert's trust

42
00:03:22,080 --> 00:03:26,160
And he was actually able to convince him to establish a daily routine

43
00:03:26,640 --> 00:03:34,080
Of tying his hands in front of him after he was abused rather than above his head into the bed like he had done in the past

44
00:03:34,320 --> 00:03:38,160
Christopher's reasoning being that it was restricting the circulation to his arms

45
00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:41,760
And I guess at this point maybe Robert felt some sympathy for him question mark

46
00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:45,840
I don't know we can't assume that that guy's capable of sympathy right of course

47
00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:51,360
Yeah, but I guess like he started trusting him and he's like oh it's like a mutable trust thing

48
00:03:51,360 --> 00:03:54,080
Yeah, he's not gonna do this growth. Yeah, which is disgusting

49
00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:59,280
I trust you enough to wrap your hands in front of you than behind you. Yeah

50
00:04:00,320 --> 00:04:03,200
Yeah, this is all this privilege you get exactly

51
00:04:03,760 --> 00:04:09,120
Now along with this Christopher had also actually convinced Robert to leave the tv on in the room

52
00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:15,520
With the remote control left between his legs whenever Robert left the room so that he could like control the tv obviously

53
00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:22,160
So Christopher later stated that he almost consistently was thinking about ways to escape like almost constantly

54
00:04:22,720 --> 00:04:28,160
And regardless of how submissive he was pretending to be he was always in the back of his mind trying to figure out

55
00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:32,160
Okay, how the hell so I get out of here as one would yeah now the following day

56
00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:34,240
This is now day four of his capture

57
00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:40,480
Christopher noticed a book of matches that was accidentally left in the room by Robert when he left for work

58
00:04:41,120 --> 00:04:45,600
Well, you work for a few hours at a time. So this is like looking pretty good, right?

59
00:04:46,160 --> 00:04:48,800
He was somehow able to get one of the matches lit

60
00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:52,400
I'm not sure how but he's a bad bitch and using that

61
00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:58,160
He actually burned through the rope that held his hands together and was able to break free bad bitch

62
00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:04,560
All right, so after getting out of the restraints Christopher bravely jumped from the second story window

63
00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:08,800
Wearing nothing but a dog collar around his neck. We talked about that in part one

64
00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:12,000
And also breaking a bone in his foot in the process

65
00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:14,080
Ouch

66
00:05:14,080 --> 00:05:15,440
Oh, no

67
00:05:15,440 --> 00:05:17,440
Oh this poor guy at least he got out late

68
00:05:18,320 --> 00:05:22,160
This is when he spotted the parking meter attendant and shouted for the man to call the police

69
00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:24,960
The meter attendant led Christopher to the house

70
00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:28,400
He had been approaching where they promptly called the police who arrived minutes later

71
00:05:28,960 --> 00:05:33,520
When the police arrived they questioned Christopher for nearly four hours

72
00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:38,400
He initially claimed that he had been hitchhiking when Robert picked him up and abducted him

73
00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:40,480
content warning

74
00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:46,640
After picking him up Christopher stated that Robert kidnapped raped and tortured him for four days before he escaped

75
00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:51,840
As Christopher spoke the officers noted that along with the dog collar and broken foot bone

76
00:05:51,840 --> 00:05:57,760
He had also had red swollen eyes and visible scars and welts over his entire body

77
00:05:59,040 --> 00:06:04,560
Two of the four officers at the scene were informed to maintain a discrete surveillance of Robert's property

78
00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:10,800
One officer accompanied Christopher to the ER and the last officer radioed the Kansas City Police Department

79
00:06:11,120 --> 00:06:15,760
To request a formal search warrant of the property to be written up so that they had it when they arrived

80
00:06:16,640 --> 00:06:20,560
Upon arriving to the hospital police were able to get more information from Christopher

81
00:06:20,560 --> 00:06:22,560
He explained that along with all of the abuse

82
00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:27,120
Robert had also shown him photos of other men who appeared to be deceased

83
00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:30,720
He stated that Robert told him that these had been previous individuals

84
00:06:30,800 --> 00:06:33,360
He had unsuccessfully attempted to quote

85
00:06:33,920 --> 00:06:34,800
collect

86
00:06:34,800 --> 00:06:36,800
as his sexual slaves

87
00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:37,760
the collect ah

88
00:06:37,760 --> 00:06:39,760
the collect word comes back

89
00:06:40,320 --> 00:06:45,760
Furthermore Christopher stated that Robert told him he had no intention of ever allowing him to leave his home

90
00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:49,280
And he claimed to have killed the other men who became a nuisance to him

91
00:06:49,280 --> 00:06:54,320
He also told Christopher he would do the same to him if he acted the same way as the previous victims

92
00:06:54,880 --> 00:06:56,880
That is awful

93
00:06:56,880 --> 00:06:58,880
Isn't that so scary to hear though?

94
00:06:58,880 --> 00:06:59,760
That's just sad

95
00:06:59,760 --> 00:07:04,880
That's like this is what I've done and what I'm capable of and this is what's gonna happen to you if you don't cooperate

96
00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:06,080
What would you do?

97
00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:07,280
That is so terrifying

98
00:07:07,280 --> 00:07:11,680
Like you know that that person is capable of such acts that he's you know saying

99
00:07:11,680 --> 00:07:13,680
But I'm you know, I'm wondering if that's not also

100
00:07:14,240 --> 00:07:16,240
It's like kind of like a

101
00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:18,240
Like a fear tactic

102
00:07:18,240 --> 00:07:26,240
Like what well for for Robert? Yes, but in Christopher's mind, it's like what do I have to lose then like I'm gonna plan my escape

103
00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:32,240
That's because the only other alternative is death. You know, like might as well go out fighting

104
00:07:32,240 --> 00:07:42,240
Yeah, if I am well, thank good for freaking him. He made it the same afternoon that Christopher escaped police arrested Robert on charges of sexual assault against him

105
00:07:42,240 --> 00:07:50,240
When he declined to allow officers in his home, they had received the search warrant right about the same time and were able to go ahead and enter the residence anyways

106
00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:54,240
Middle fingers. Yeah

107
00:07:54,240 --> 00:07:56,240
Middle fingers, no one can see you

108
00:07:56,240 --> 00:08:18,240
A metal tray containing syringes, small bottles that looked like they were holding prescription drugs, cotton swabs and eye drops were also close to the bed

109
00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:30,240
The posts on the bed were also noted to be extensively worn leading investigators to believe that restraints had been tied to them recently and multiple times with victims trying to escape from them

110
00:08:30,240 --> 00:08:34,240
So fucking awful

111
00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:40,240
Content warning this does get pretty graphic so I will just put a big content warning right here

112
00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:50,240
During the search of the rest of the house investigators discovered a human skull inside of a closet on the second floor and another partially decomposed head was found in the backyard

113
00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:58,240
The search also uncovered several human vertebrae that were noticeably scarred by both hacksaw and knife marks

114
00:08:58,240 --> 00:09:04,240
Along with this there were two separate envelopes found containing several human teeth

115
00:09:04,240 --> 00:09:14,240
Both a hacksaw and a miter saw were found in the basement along with a chainsaw that was covered in blood, flesh and pubic hair

116
00:09:14,240 --> 00:09:16,240
A chainsaw

117
00:09:16,240 --> 00:09:24,240
Illuminal tests later determined that the basement as well as both trash cans outside were covered in blood

118
00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:35,240
In the home in multiple different locations investigators found 334 Polaroid pictures and 34 snapshot prints of various male victims

119
00:09:35,240 --> 00:09:45,240
These pictures showed Christopher Bryson and several other men in both life and death and many images had been taken as subjects were tortured

120
00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:54,240
Lastly the search discovered numerous restraints, sexual devices, pornographic literature, a book on narcotics and hypodermic needles

121
00:09:54,240 --> 00:10:02,240
Perhaps the most eerie find however, the Journal of Roberts with intimate details of each victim and their torture logs

122
00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:13,240
Inside there were also several newspaper clippings from the Kansas City Star regarding a missing young man, Jerry Howell

123
00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:18,240
A wallet and driver's license for James Ferris were also discovered

124
00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:28,240
So this motherfucker took out newspaper clippings from his first victim that he abducted and was just like hanging onto them for keepsake

125
00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:33,240
How does that house not fucking smell? I said it in the first episode, I'm gonna say it in this one too

126
00:10:33,240 --> 00:10:42,240
How do you walk in there and not be like, this smells like death, like puke and shit and blood and death

127
00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:45,240
Like how does that enrotten shit?

128
00:10:45,240 --> 00:10:51,240
But like the outside of his house was all unkempt too, maybe they thought he was a nasty fuck, I mean he was

129
00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:54,240
Don't go in that house, that's where the witch lives

130
00:10:54,240 --> 00:11:00,240
But seriously, how do you not, and that he opened his house to all different types of people and like who'd want to stay there?

131
00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:04,240
Like how do you not walk in that house and just smell the nastiness?

132
00:11:04,240 --> 00:11:12,240
But when you think about it, the people that he was abducting and letting stay at his home were transient, like people that were down on their luck

133
00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:16,240
People that probably didn't have any money or probably really didn't give a shit where they were staying

134
00:11:16,240 --> 00:11:18,240
Roof over their head, oh yeah

135
00:11:18,240 --> 00:11:29,240
Before the search of the property had concluded, the Kansas City Police Department had assembled a task force of 11 detectives and one sergeant to focus solely on this case

136
00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:37,240
This group was tasked with looking into Robert's history and discovered that he was a well-known individual among the male prostitutes in town

137
00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:40,240
And had earned a reputation for praying on young men

138
00:11:40,240 --> 00:11:45,240
Sorry, I don't mean to laugh, but yeah, they never suspected it

139
00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:50,240
He was an upstanding citizen, for sure, he just had a reputation about, you know, creepy

140
00:11:50,240 --> 00:11:57,240
In fact, most of the men involved in this community stated that they were reluctant to accept him as a client

141
00:11:57,240 --> 00:12:07,240
Because he was considered very strange when it came to his interactions, but also that he was a known suspect in the disappearance of Jerry and James

142
00:12:07,240 --> 00:12:11,240
So, like, known to the community or known to the fucking police?

143
00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:15,240
No, known to the community, the community was like, why isn't anybody arrested this dude yet?

144
00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:17,240
And the police were like, oh, I don't know, he's a stand-up guy

145
00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:19,240
I don't know, he's a stand-up guy, yeah

146
00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:20,240
Oh my god

147
00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:23,240
In fact, he was on the neighborhood watch or something, right? Wasn't he like neighborhood watch?

148
00:12:23,240 --> 00:12:24,240
He was like the head of the neighborhood watch

149
00:12:24,240 --> 00:12:26,240
He like owned the thing

150
00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:28,240
He invented it

151
00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:39,240
In fact, during the original investigation of these two missing men, Robert was taken in for questioning on two different occasions and denied any involvement both times

152
00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:43,240
Remember earlier in part one that I said that he wasn't ever suspected?

153
00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:44,240
I was incorrect

154
00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:45,240
He was?

155
00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:47,240
He was, multiple times, apparently

156
00:12:47,240 --> 00:12:49,240
According to my research that I did

157
00:12:49,240 --> 00:12:50,240
That I did

158
00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:53,240
On which cases?

159
00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:54,240
Jerry and James

160
00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:57,240
The two people that he was suspected of in the community

161
00:12:57,240 --> 00:13:08,240
Despite being considered a suspect and even being put under surveillance for a short period of time, police were unable to find any solid evidence linking him to either men's disappearance

162
00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:13,240
And in both cases, Robert refused to speak with police without a lawyer moving forward

163
00:13:13,240 --> 00:13:21,240
He would later even have his lawyer reach out to police and inform them that they would be filing a harassment complaint against them if their questioning did not cease

164
00:13:21,240 --> 00:13:25,240
Oh my god, but isn't that so typical of someone who is like a pathological liar and guilty?

165
00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:27,240
And guilty is what they're like

166
00:13:27,240 --> 00:13:29,240
Yeah

167
00:13:29,240 --> 00:13:32,240
No, everything that they said, they actually did to me

168
00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:33,240
Seriously

169
00:13:33,240 --> 00:13:34,240
You don't understand

170
00:13:34,240 --> 00:13:35,240
Exactly

171
00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:37,240
Content warning for this next part

172
00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:45,240
When the police finally were able to identify the victims based on evidence, they contacted the families to get confirmation of identity

173
00:13:45,240 --> 00:13:51,240
James Ferris' wife identified him in several photos found at the property, including some taken after death

174
00:13:51,240 --> 00:13:58,240
Paul Howell formally identified one picture of a young man hanging upside down in Robert's basement as Jerry Howell

175
00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:04,240
Several other photos had been assigned to detectives to determine if the victim was alive or deceased in the photo

176
00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:10,240
And if they were alive to determine the circumstances of the photo, what was happening at the time it was taken

177
00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:13,240
Like if it was a consensual sex act or whatever

178
00:14:13,240 --> 00:14:14,240
Okay

179
00:14:14,240 --> 00:14:16,240
Get this

180
00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:22,240
Several of these images had even depicted some body parts of the photographer

181
00:14:22,240 --> 00:14:35,240
So on April 13th, Robert was ordered to pose nude for a series of photographs in order so the position of his body would match the unidentified person taking the photos

182
00:14:35,240 --> 00:14:36,240
Damn

183
00:14:36,240 --> 00:14:38,240
And it matched the shape and size of his ugly ass

184
00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:39,240
Damn

185
00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:41,240
That's savage

186
00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:42,240
Isn't that wild?

187
00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:48,240
What a fucking idiot, like let me just put like my penis in here that they can totally identify

188
00:14:48,240 --> 00:14:54,240
We probably never thought that he would have to pose nude in front of a bunch of police officers and then reenact it

189
00:14:54,240 --> 00:14:56,240
I hope they gave him the old squat and cough

190
00:14:56,240 --> 00:14:58,240
It's like

191
00:14:58,240 --> 00:15:01,240
I hope they gave him the good ol' whoopsy daisy

192
00:15:01,240 --> 00:15:04,240
Oh my god

193
00:15:04,240 --> 00:15:09,240
They gave him the ring the doorbell ding dong

194
00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:15,240
Numerous male names had been found scribbled on various pieces of paper in the home as well

195
00:15:15,240 --> 00:15:19,240
So detectives tracked these men down as well in order to see if they knew anything

196
00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:23,240
One of the individuals was able to be tracked down by the name of Freddie Kellogg

197
00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:31,240
He was able to inform detectives that he and several other young men had intermittently stayed with Robert since the early 1980s

198
00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:40,240
And that Robert was known for giving his lodgers drugs typically intravenously before engaging in sex with them with or without consent

199
00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:41,240
Damn

200
00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:44,240
So on top of all this, he's been a creep way before he started killing people

201
00:15:44,240 --> 00:15:46,240
Yeah, he doesn't end people just didn't say anything about it

202
00:15:46,240 --> 00:15:47,240
Raping people

203
00:15:47,240 --> 00:15:48,240
That's horrible

204
00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:58,240
Freddie also stated that one of the conditions for him to stay with Robert was for him to persuade young men that Robert found attractive to come to the house and attend parties

205
00:15:58,240 --> 00:16:06,240
And Robert found out that any of these men were police informants, he would use this knowledge as a tool to blackmail the young men to his advantage

206
00:16:06,240 --> 00:16:15,240
In addition to this information, Freddie was also able to identify three other young men in the photographs, Todd Stoops, Robert Sheldon, and Larry Wayne Pearson

207
00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:28,240
Investigators would later discover that Robert had paid a $30 fee to secure a bond for Larry in June 1987 and no further records existed to indicate that Larry was still alive following this record

208
00:16:28,240 --> 00:16:32,240
Remember when he bailed him out of jail and then he decided to kidnap him on the way home?

209
00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:33,240
Yeah

210
00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:36,240
So after that, there was no paper trail for Larry

211
00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:40,240
So that was how they put it together that he was the last person to see him alive

212
00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:41,240
Wow

213
00:16:41,240 --> 00:16:58,240
So after that, investigators did find out that in August of 1987, Robert had filed an assault report from a hospital in which he alleged a man named Larry Pearson had deeply bitten his penis during oral sex causing a serious laceration

214
00:16:58,240 --> 00:16:59,240
I forgot about that

215
00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:01,240
He already murdered him at this point

216
00:17:01,240 --> 00:17:06,240
Now he's literally legally filing an assault report on someone that he knows is deceased

217
00:17:06,240 --> 00:17:08,240
That's, yeah, that's

218
00:17:08,240 --> 00:17:10,240
That is beyond my comprehension

219
00:17:10,240 --> 00:17:12,240
Again, it's the cover-up thing

220
00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:13,240
It's like, you know

221
00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:14,240
It's the narcissism

222
00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:15,240
Yeah

223
00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:16,240
They're never gonna find out

224
00:17:16,240 --> 00:17:17,240
Yeah, exactly

225
00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:22,240
But I have to file, well, you know, somebody clearly assaulted my pain

226
00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:23,240
My manhood

227
00:17:23,240 --> 00:17:24,240
My manhood

228
00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:28,240
And now I have to, you know, if I don't file assault charges, it's gonna look weird

229
00:17:28,240 --> 00:17:29,240
You know what I mean?

230
00:17:29,240 --> 00:17:30,240
I don't know

231
00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:31,240
They should have just cut it off

232
00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:33,240
Sorry, it's too wounded, we gotta get you off

233
00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:43,240
On top of this, an interview with Robert Sheldon's employers had confirmed that he had been a reliable employee until he suddenly stopped showing up in April of 1985

234
00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:45,240
Further...burying

235
00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:46,240
Right

236
00:17:46,240 --> 00:17:47,240
Robert

237
00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:52,240
Shortly after the search of the property, Robert was informed as to what the detectives had found

238
00:17:52,240 --> 00:17:53,240
What?

239
00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:54,240
That's odd

240
00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:56,240
That's weird, a skull in my closet?

241
00:17:56,240 --> 00:17:57,240
Hmm

242
00:17:57,240 --> 00:17:59,240
I don't remember leaving that behind

243
00:17:59,240 --> 00:18:09,240
The same afternoon that he agreed to pose for the reenactment photos, investigators attempted to conduct their first official interview with him, where Robert invoked his right to silence

244
00:18:09,240 --> 00:18:20,240
They were also going to attempt to get handwriting samples from him in order to compare it to the journal, but he refused to cooperate and was therefore sentenced to sixth months in jail for contempt of court

245
00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:21,240
Hell yeah

246
00:18:21,240 --> 00:18:27,240
So they got him on something, right? Which honestly, like, that's kind of genius because they're like, okay, well, you're gonna fucking jail anyways, asshole

247
00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:28,240
Right

248
00:18:28,240 --> 00:18:30,240
You might as well think about what you've done and confess

249
00:18:30,240 --> 00:18:31,240
Yeah, you might as well cooperate

250
00:18:31,240 --> 00:18:39,240
Robert was initially charged with one count of felonious restraint, one count of assault, and seven counts of forcible sodomy

251
00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:48,240
He was assigned a temporary public defender as his legal representation and held in custody at a Jackson County jail in lieu of a $500,000 bail

252
00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:51,240
I did the...what is it? Conversionary?

253
00:18:51,240 --> 00:18:52,240
Hmm

254
00:18:52,240 --> 00:18:54,240
That would be $1.1 million today

255
00:18:54,240 --> 00:18:55,240
Damn

256
00:18:55,240 --> 00:19:01,240
Late April, the skull found inside Robert's closet was identified via x-ray as that of Robert Sheldon

257
00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:02,240
Hmm

258
00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:12,240
The same day, two men separately phoned the police department to state that one of the seven young men depicted in the photos was a former high school friend of theirs named Mark Wallace

259
00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:26,240
Detectives got in touch with Mark's sister who confirmed that he had been missing since mid-1985. Shortly after, investigators discovered that photograph labeled D released to the media was one Larry Pearson

260
00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:35,240
Robert would be formally charged with the murder by dismemberment of Larry in July after the head discovered in his backyard was formally identified as Larry's on May 12

261
00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:47,240
On July 22, 1988, a grand jury formally indicted Robert for the murder of Larry Wayne Pearson. The following month, he was arraigned and pleaded guilty to the first degree murder of Larry Pearson

262
00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:48,240
Oh, he admitted it

263
00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:49,240
He pleaded guilty

264
00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:59,240
The plea of guilty was entered following a late morning recess in the arraignment hearing and came as a shock to both the judge and prosecuting attorneys

265
00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:04,240
He was not going to plead guilty, then they went to a mid-morning recess and he came back and all of a sudden he's like, guilty

266
00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:05,240
Yeah, I did it

267
00:20:05,240 --> 00:20:06,240
Yeah

268
00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:07,240
God

269
00:20:08,240 --> 00:20:15,240
Following the submission and acceptance of the plea, the judge insisted that Robert confess under oath to Pearson's death

270
00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:24,240
Content morning, in response to questioning, Robert stated, quote, I put a plastic bag over his head and tied it with rope and allowed him to suffocate

271
00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:31,240
When asked if he performed this act deliberately and with malice afterthought, Robert simply stated, quote, yes

272
00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:34,240
He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole

273
00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:45,240
Upon being sentenced, he was taken to the Missouri State Penitentiary but was later temporarily placed in protective custody at the Potosi Correctional Center due to concerns for his safety

274
00:20:45,240 --> 00:20:47,240
Oh, whoopie

275
00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:50,240
He's so concerned for his safety

276
00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:51,240
He's good

277
00:20:51,240 --> 00:20:56,240
They gave him the electric treatment

278
00:20:56,240 --> 00:21:01,240
Gave him the electric, whoopsy daisy, in the butthole

279
00:21:01,240 --> 00:21:03,240
What's that going to say?

280
00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:04,240
No

281
00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:20,240
A second guilty plea was submitted on August 24th, earning Robert a second life term for one charge of forcible sodomy against Christopher Bryson and he would also receive a further term of seven years pertaining to one court of felonious restraint against Christopher

282
00:21:20,240 --> 00:21:27,240
Despite initially pleading not guilty to the other five murders on September 13th, 1988, because why would you...

283
00:21:27,240 --> 00:21:28,240
I don't get that

284
00:21:28,240 --> 00:21:29,240
I don't get that

285
00:21:29,240 --> 00:21:31,240
Like, you know, I killed two people but not seven

286
00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:33,240
But not seven, that's ridiculous

287
00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:34,240
Yeah, why would I?

288
00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:35,240
How would I do that?

289
00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:58,240
Despite initially not pleading guilty with the agreement of his two attorneys, Robert ultimately conducted a plea bargain with prosecutors to avoid the death penalty in the case of the remaining five murders. As part of the plea bargain, Robert agreed to confess in graphic detail as to whom he had killed, what indignities he had subjected each victim, how he killed each victim, and what he had done with their bodies.

290
00:21:58,240 --> 00:22:04,240
These confessions were given to prosecutors between December 13th and December 15th, 1988

291
00:22:04,240 --> 00:22:07,240
So it took him two days to explain all of this to them

292
00:22:07,240 --> 00:22:11,240
In return, prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty

293
00:22:11,240 --> 00:22:27,240
On December 19th, 1988, Robert formally waived his rights to be tried for any of the outstanding murder charges upon the understanding that he was to be convicted of one further count of first degree murder for Robert Sheldon and four counts of second degree murder

294
00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:28,240
Which is bullshit

295
00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:31,240
How could it possibly be second degree murder?

296
00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:33,240
It's a plea

297
00:22:33,240 --> 00:22:35,240
That's just how those things frickin work

298
00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:39,240
He formally pleaded guilty to these charges before Judge Robert Myers

299
00:22:39,240 --> 00:22:47,240
Members of the public were actually prevented from attending the hearing with only family members of the victims and news reporters allowed to be present

300
00:22:47,240 --> 00:22:48,240
But news reporters

301
00:22:48,240 --> 00:22:49,240
Yeah, right

302
00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:50,240
Nobody else can be here

303
00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:52,240
Public can't be in here, but news reports

304
00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:53,240
Alright

305
00:22:53,240 --> 00:23:05,240
In response to the guilty pleas, Judge Myers imposed five further concurrent life sentences with an additional condition barring any future prospect of parole, meaning a.k.a. he would never ever get out

306
00:23:05,240 --> 00:23:06,240
Yeah

307
00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:16,240
They go on to explain his confessions which are laid out in detail online, but for time's sake and for the sake of not being graphic, I'm not going to explain each of them, but you can definitely find that online if you want

308
00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:31,240
I will state, however, that although police extensively searched for the remains of the victims throughout their initial investigations, the confession Robert provided confirmed that the dismembered bodies were stowed in trash bags and taken to the landfill and therefore they were never recovered

309
00:23:31,240 --> 00:23:32,240
So sad

310
00:23:32,240 --> 00:23:34,240
It gets worse

311
00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:36,240
Because you're going to be pissed

312
00:23:36,240 --> 00:23:37,240
God damn it

313
00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:54,240
In the years following his convictions and incarceration, Robert granted an interview to a TV station and corresponded with a number of different individuals. To all concerned, he attempted to restore his image as a quote, sensitive citizen who has simply quote, made mistakes in committing his crimes

314
00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:56,240
What the fuck ever

315
00:23:56,240 --> 00:24:00,240
I'm just a sensitive citizen and I just made some mistakes

316
00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:07,240
Using your debit card too many times and then you go into the grocery store and then you go to check out and your card is declined. That's a mistake

317
00:24:07,240 --> 00:24:08,240
That's a mistake

318
00:24:08,240 --> 00:24:15,240
He further claimed that he had been unfairly demonized by the media before, during, and after his hearings and plea bargains

319
00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:24,240
Oh, and get this, he also claimed that police ineptitude had resulted in his being allowed to remain at liberty following his first murder

320
00:24:24,240 --> 00:24:29,240
Oh my god, okay, no, that's like, that's the whole um

321
00:24:29,240 --> 00:24:32,240
Well you let me out so I did it again

322
00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:34,240
Well you let me do it

323
00:24:34,240 --> 00:24:38,240
Like the police were so dumb

324
00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:40,240
I mean

325
00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:42,240
He's not wrong

326
00:24:42,240 --> 00:24:44,240
He's not wrong

327
00:24:44,240 --> 00:24:45,240
That's terrible

328
00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:46,240
He's not wrong

329
00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:50,240
Well, I mean

330
00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:53,240
He was questioned for two disappearances in the beginning

331
00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:55,240
And then they just let him go

332
00:24:55,240 --> 00:25:02,240
But that doesn't mean that he should be like, oh, okay, that's his excuse though, is that he's like, oh, they didn't figure it out soon enough

333
00:25:02,240 --> 00:25:05,240
So what was I supposed to do? I guess I'm just supposed to keep killing people

334
00:25:05,240 --> 00:25:06,240
Keep moiterin'

335
00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:07,240
Keep moiterin'

336
00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:14,240
Oh, get this, he also lodged multiple complaints with prison officials regarding prison conditions

337
00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:21,240
Are you upset that you don't have a soft bed so you're an advocate now?

338
00:25:21,240 --> 00:25:29,240
He also wrote several letters to the local prison minister claiming that prison officials knew of his high blood pressure

339
00:25:29,240 --> 00:25:32,240
Yet were not providing him with his medication

340
00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:37,240
Oh my god, wait, oh, wait, he's high blood pressure

341
00:25:37,240 --> 00:25:40,240
Is that why he wouldn't become a five-star athlete?

342
00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:42,240
Literally

343
00:25:42,240 --> 00:25:44,240
This pisses me off

344
00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:52,240
In 1992, Robert contacted the counselor who he first met when he became incarcerated, Reverend Roger Coleman

345
00:25:52,240 --> 00:25:57,240
He informed Coleman of his distress due to the staff withholding his medication

346
00:25:57,240 --> 00:26:05,240
At 2pm on October 8th, 1992, Robert complained to prison staff of chest pains and was taken to the infirmary

347
00:26:05,240 --> 00:26:06,240
Get it, boy

348
00:26:06,240 --> 00:26:07,240
Get it, boy

349
00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:11,240
Medical staff determined his heart was unstable and called EMS

350
00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:20,240
He was taken to the hospital in Columbia, Missouri, where he was pronounced dead from a heart attack at 3.55pm at the age of 43

351
00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:22,240
He outlived his dad

352
00:26:22,240 --> 00:26:25,240
He outlived his dad

353
00:26:25,240 --> 00:26:26,240
That's amazing

354
00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:34,240
Shortly after his death, the judge at his trial, Alvin Randall, was informed and sarcastically responded with, quote, couldn't have happened to a nicer guy

355
00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:38,240
Oh, savage, bruh

356
00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:40,240
Your honor

357
00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:41,240
Your majesty

358
00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:43,240
That's fucking badass

359
00:26:43,240 --> 00:26:48,240
Damn, couldn't have happened to a nicer guy

360
00:26:48,240 --> 00:27:01,240
According to published reports, although Robert had a depressive personality disorder, he was also diagnosed a sexual sadist who gained extreme sexual excitation from the humiliation, pain, and torture to which he had subjected his victims

361
00:27:01,240 --> 00:27:02,240
On top of this

362
00:27:02,240 --> 00:27:03,240
Is that a midi-ethan-5?

363
00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:04,240
It is, I looked it up

364
00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:16,240
On top of this, despite his claims to media individuals, he never expressed any degree of remorse for his actions and referred to his victims as, quote, play toys in an interview he granted shortly before his death

365
00:27:16,240 --> 00:27:18,240
Not experiments

366
00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:29,240
In November of 1988, auctions of Robert's vast collection of antiques were held on four separate dates, with the intention that all proceeds raised be used to pay his high legal fees

367
00:27:29,240 --> 00:27:36,240
The auction attracted considerable interest across America and even overseas, because you know who he had, you know, contacts

368
00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:37,240
Yeah

369
00:27:37,240 --> 00:27:43,240
By the end of the first day, more than $60,000 or $137,000 today was raised

370
00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:47,240
His house was also purchased by a local businessman and demolished

371
00:27:47,240 --> 00:27:48,240
Hell yeah

372
00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:49,240
Fuck yeah

373
00:27:49,240 --> 00:27:51,240
I'm sure it's not like piss and vinegar

374
00:27:51,240 --> 00:27:52,240
He wants to be in there

375
00:27:52,240 --> 00:28:03,240
By the time of Robert's arrest, he had abducted, tortured, and murdered at least six young men. In addition, more than 20 different men were depicted in the polaroids found on the property

376
00:28:03,240 --> 00:28:07,240
Although Robert claimed he only murdered six of the men total

377
00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:10,240
Oh my god, you're such a freaking angel

378
00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:11,240
Bless you

379
00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:12,240
Bless you, sir

380
00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:29,240
His victims are as follows Jerry Howell 19 Robert Sheldon 20 Mark Wallace 27 James Ferris 25 Todd Stoops 23 Larry Wayne Pearson 20 and Christopher Bryson who escaped 22

381
00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:34,240
So that is the end of the Robert Bridella story

382
00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:35,240
What an intense case

383
00:28:35,240 --> 00:28:36,240
Right

384
00:28:36,240 --> 00:28:37,240
This is one I had not heard of

385
00:28:37,240 --> 00:28:40,240
Oh yay, I found one I didn't know about

386
00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:45,240
I didn't know about this one hardly at all either I knew a little bit about it but not definitely not as much

387
00:28:45,240 --> 00:28:46,240
Yeah

388
00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:47,240
But very interesting

389
00:28:47,240 --> 00:28:51,240
I think it's kind of a bummer that he just suffered from a heart attack

390
00:28:51,240 --> 00:28:52,240
It's too kind

391
00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:54,240
Yeah, I think so too

392
00:28:54,240 --> 00:28:56,240
I mean

393
00:28:56,240 --> 00:29:07,240
I just, I like, what a weird like psychology of it all because he's still even after his arrest and being in prison for murder

394
00:29:07,240 --> 00:29:12,240
He's still trying to like do his due diligence as a kind of like upstanding citizen

395
00:29:12,240 --> 00:29:13,240
Yeah

396
00:29:13,240 --> 00:29:14,240
It's very interesting

397
00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:25,240
It was really weird to me how it was like, okay this like stand up dude like family man even though he had never family but you know what I mean like the ambiance of the word like you know community asset

398
00:29:25,240 --> 00:29:32,240
You know things like this and then it almost seems like all of the sudden turned murderer and then after he got caught it was like a switch back

399
00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:33,240
Yeah

400
00:29:33,240 --> 00:29:46,240
And then all of that has to do with the depressive personality disorder maybe he was, I don't want to excuse it of course but maybe during this time that he was abducting these men he was going through a depressive state

401
00:29:46,240 --> 00:29:53,240
And maybe that kind of triggered something or maybe vice versa maybe he was going through a manic state and when he wasn't he was going through the other stuff

402
00:29:53,240 --> 00:29:57,240
Like manic or anxiety or whatever and that's you know that sense of control

403
00:29:57,240 --> 00:29:58,240
Yeah

404
00:29:58,240 --> 00:30:07,240
Because I've heard a lot of things about sexual sadism that doesn't necessarily always include murder I mean of course there's been some people in the past that have taken it to an extreme

405
00:30:07,240 --> 00:30:10,240
But I feel like that doesn't equal murder like

406
00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:25,240
Yeah I thought sexual sadism was more of the fact that like you get the high off of like a sexual experience of some type and then you are always looking to like push the envelope like I think there was that one guy that he found that he really liked cutting himself

407
00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:31,240
And so but he eventually cut his entire body up so badly that he bled to death

408
00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:32,240
Oh my gosh

409
00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:40,240
But it escalated so quickly you know and so that I thought was more attached to the sexual sadism

410
00:30:40,240 --> 00:30:41,240
Well when I've heard

411
00:30:41,240 --> 00:30:42,240
Then doing it to someone else

412
00:30:42,240 --> 00:30:43,240
Yeah

413
00:30:43,240 --> 00:30:46,240
But I mean like I said it's pushing the envelope just with someone else I guess

414
00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:54,240
Well when I've heard the sexual sadism thing in the past as well and it has been with someone else I've always heard of like not always but there's been times I've heard of consensual things like that like they want to

415
00:30:54,240 --> 00:30:59,240
inflict pain on someone and they find someone that is willing to be that person that they can do that to you

416
00:30:59,240 --> 00:31:09,240
And that's usually enough but in this case it was like and it wasn't even like okay there's my guy I'm gonna go get him bring him back with me and then do this plan it was like oh well he's here

417
00:31:09,240 --> 00:31:10,240
He's drunk enough

418
00:31:10,240 --> 00:31:12,240
Exactly like it was so odd

419
00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:13,240
It was opportunistic about it

420
00:31:13,240 --> 00:31:14,240
Yeah

421
00:31:14,240 --> 00:31:23,240
Which makes to me seem more just like of an indicative of just a traditional serial killer but you know what I mean like someone that's opportunistic

422
00:31:23,240 --> 00:31:24,240
Yeah

423
00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:32,240
Like you know I think we mentioned Ted Bundy although I didn't mean to mention Ted Bundy in the first episode I was definitely talking about Dahmer because I Googled that afterwards

424
00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:39,240
But with Ted Bundy he was opportunistic he would go to the beach and he would find someone that would follow him or whatever

425
00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:40,240
Yeah or Charlie Manson even

426
00:31:40,240 --> 00:31:41,240
Yeah

427
00:31:41,240 --> 00:31:44,240
Like people that would be willing to just fall all over him and be right there

428
00:31:44,240 --> 00:31:45,240
Yeah

429
00:31:45,240 --> 00:31:47,240
He had to work for it you know like that sounds kind of bad

430
00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:48,240
He didn't kill anybody though

431
00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:49,240
Yeah

432
00:31:49,240 --> 00:31:52,240
But he was a manipulator and I feel like he used people that would gravitate towards him in order to control them

433
00:31:52,240 --> 00:31:56,240
Right yeah yeah and he controlled with the mind not necessarily physically

434
00:31:56,240 --> 00:31:58,240
We definitely didn't talk about Charlie Manson

435
00:31:58,240 --> 00:32:02,240
Did you know that Charlie Manson's mom once sold him for a pint of beer?

436
00:32:02,240 --> 00:32:03,240
I believe that

437
00:32:03,240 --> 00:32:04,240
She did

438
00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:05,240
She got him back

439
00:32:05,240 --> 00:32:07,240
Well I think that he said that his mom was a prostitute

440
00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:08,240
Yeah she was a wild one

441
00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:09,240
Yeah

442
00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:10,240
That's wonderful

443
00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:11,240
Hey thank you guys for

444
00:32:11,240 --> 00:32:12,240
On that note

445
00:32:12,240 --> 00:32:13,240
On that note

446
00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:14,240
Prostitution

447
00:32:14,240 --> 00:32:21,240
Thank you guys for joining us for another part two or another two parter there has been a couple so maybe we should do that

448
00:32:21,240 --> 00:32:23,240
So maybe we should do some small cases

449
00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:24,240
Yeah

450
00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:27,240
For the next couple just to kind of ease the weight and the you know

451
00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:28,240
Setting on the next subject

452
00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:29,240
Already on my next subject

453
00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:30,240
So yeah

454
00:32:30,240 --> 00:32:31,240
And I think it'll just be one

455
00:32:31,240 --> 00:32:32,240
Yeah

456
00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:36,240
We'll definitely come back with another case and another mental breakdown

457
00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:39,240
If you guys have any suggestions please reach out to us

458
00:32:39,240 --> 00:32:42,240
We do have Gmail is diagnosing a killer at gmail.com

459
00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:44,240
We are on Twitter at killerdiagnosis

460
00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:47,240
We are on Instagram at diagnosing a killer

461
00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:49,240
We also are on patreon.patreon.com

462
00:32:49,240 --> 00:32:51,240
Slash diagnosing a killer

463
00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:55,240
And I think we are in the works of potentially starting a TikTok channel

464
00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:57,240
I think that might be happening

465
00:32:57,240 --> 00:32:59,240
We're talking about maybe getting some videos up

466
00:32:59,240 --> 00:33:00,240
What's up with my ideas

467
00:33:00,240 --> 00:33:02,240
Maybe just a little couple teasers

468
00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:05,240
We'll put like a couple lines from the next episode on a video

469
00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:07,240
So that you can get excited for it whenever you see it

470
00:33:07,240 --> 00:33:08,240
I like that

471
00:33:08,240 --> 00:33:09,240
So in the meantime reach out to us

472
00:33:09,240 --> 00:33:10,240
We love you guys

473
00:33:10,240 --> 00:33:11,240
Thanks for being here with us

474
00:33:11,240 --> 00:33:13,240
And we will see you soon

475
00:33:13,240 --> 00:33:14,240
Love you

476
00:33:14,240 --> 00:33:38,240
Bye

