48 Hours - Killer App

Episode Date: September 28, 2016

Was a teenage girl lured to her death with a few keystrokes on a smartphone app?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to this podcast ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app today. Even if you love the thrill of true crime stories as much as I do, there are times when you want to mix it up. And that's where Audible comes in, with all the genres you love and new ones to discover. Explore thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. Listening to Audible can lead to positive change in your mood, your habits,

and even your overall well-being. And you can enjoy Audible anytime, while doing household chores, exercising, commuting, you name it. There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca. In 2014, Laura Heavlin was in her home in Tennessee when she received a call from California. Her daughter, Erin Corwin, was missing. The young wife of a Marine had moved to the California desert

to a remote base near Joshua Tree National Park. They have to alert the military. And when they do, the NCIS gets involved. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. Listen to 48 Hours NCIS ad-free starting October 29th on Amazon Music. Real people. Real crimes. Real life drama.

Every time I seen her, she would be texting or Facebooking. She was constantly on her phone. I'm Nicole Lovell, and I've been nominated for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. She's a happy-go-lucky kid. She smiled and she sang all the time. Tonight the search intensifies for a missing teen from Blacksburg. Take a good look. This is Nicole Lovell. She's 13 and was last seen in the Lantern Ridge area of Blacksburg between midnight and 7 Wednesday morning.

Her father posted this message to Facebook. Nicole, honey, if you see this, if you're out there, you can come to me. I'm not mad at you. I'm worried about you. Police are looking into whether an app popular with teens was used to lure the girl. That night I was going to knock on the wall and tell her to come in and sleep with me like she usually does. And I didn't do it. me like she usually does. And I didn't do it. It's with every heart that I have to announce that we've located the remains of 13-year-old Nicole Madison Lovell.

100 Seacom in route 89 west, snowbird curve. So where was Nicole Lovell's body? Nicole was, from what we understand, in the trunk of the car. and they move her right over here, got close to the edge, and just... A very preliminary determination of the cause of death is stabbing. It's no longer a situation where you worry about your child meeting a stranger in the park. You really need to worry about the stranger your child's meeting on the phone that you gave them for Christmas. This is the new crime of our time. These kids don't realize that the person that they're supposedly talking to that claim they're 15 or 16 years old

actually may be the pedophile who's looking for someone to prey upon. And the danger is everywhere. We're on our way to Spokane, Washington, where there was an online predator story you're not going to believe. I was just going to write them a note telling them that I was running away and that I would make contact with them soon. We realize that she's fooled. She's lured in. and that I would make contact with them soon. We realized that she's fooled, she's lured in. She was 15 and she was communicating

with a 30-something year old. And he plans on getting her at three o'clock in the morning. Mom and dad had other plans. They put Elizabeth in lockdown with her brother and sister. Dad called his two buddies. I said, driver, turn the car off and throw the keys out the window. Put your hands on the steering wheel. Do not move or I will shoot you.

I'm Peter Van Sant. Tonight on 48 Hours, Killer App. Hot shot Australian attorney Nicola Gaba was born into legal royalty. Her specialty? Representing some of the city's most infamous gangland criminals. However, while Nicola held the underworld's darkest secrets, the most dangerous secret was her own. She's going to all the major groups within Melbourne's underworld, and she's informing on them all. I'm Marsha Clark, host of the new podcast, Informants Lawyer X. In my long career in criminal justice as a prosecutor and defense attorney,

I've seen some crazy cases, and this one belongs right at the top of the list. She was addicted to the game she had created. She just didn't know how to stop. Now, through dramatic interviews and access, I'll reveal the truth behind one of the world's most shocking legal scandals. Listen to Informant's Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery+. Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. And listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad-free right now. And listen to more Exhibit C True Crime shows early and ad-free right now. Have you ever wondered who created that bottle of sriracha that's living in your fridge? Or why nearly every house in America has at least one game of Monopoly?

Introducing The Best Idea Yet, a brand new podcast from Wondery and T-Boy about the surprising origin stories of the products you're obsessed with and the bolder risk-ters who brought them to life. Like, did you know that Super Mario, the best-selling video game character of all time, only exists because Nintendo couldn't get the rights to Popeye? Or Jack, that the idea for the McDonald's Happy Meal first came from a mom in Guatemala? From Pez dispensers to Levi's 501s to Air Jordans. Discover the surprising stories of the most viral products. Plus, we guarantee that after listening, you're going to dominate your next dinner party. So follow The Best Idea Yet on the Wondery app

or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Best Idea Yet early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. It's just the best idea yet. Every morning, I come out here, sit with her for an hour. It's just been a nightmare. I still hope that she would come around the corner when she gets off the bus, or she'll come out of her room. The nightmare for Nicole Lovell's mother, Tammy Weeks,

began on the morning of January 27, 2016. I pushed the door open, and the nightstand was up against the door. Sometime in the middle of the night, the 13-year-old had climbed out of her bedroom window, taking along her phone and her favorite blue cartoon blanket. Did you call her cell phone? Yeah, a bunch of times. And what would happen? It'd go straight to voicemail.

I'd text message her. Everybody was calling her, texting her. Tammy called police and began scouring the area. Before long, a neighborhood mother gave her some chilly news. Nicole had been playing with her daughters and said that Nicole said she was going out on a date. Like millions of teens, Nicole spent a lot of her social time online. So Tammy feared she might have left to see someone she'd met on the internet.

You must be a bit panicked at this point. Yeah. The FBI has now joined regional and state law enforcement in the search. This afternoon, they canvassed her neighbor. Nicole's disappearance also sent shockwaves through her hometown, Blacksburg, Virginia. Scene of that infamous 2007 mass shooting at Virginia Tech. And this community is known for stepping up, and we need them to do that at this time

as we pray for the return of a beautiful young girl. By midday, Blacksburg was stepping up again. More than 1,200 searchers are on a mission to find the 13-year-old. Volunteers even brought this infrared drone. I know she wouldn't go nowhere for that many hours without her medicine. Nicole was born with a damaged liver and needed a transplant before her first birthday. Now a teenager, she still needed her anti-rejection medication every day to survive. Her illness and surgical treatment had left Nicole with scars on her stomach and neck.

Tammy says Nicole had emotional scars as well. So she was being bullied? Yeah, she did. She hated going to school. She would always make me write her a note for gym because they would pick on her about her scar. Nicole's social media posts reveal a sadly typical teenage story. So lonely, she had suicidal thoughts, longing for love, and convinced nobody cared for her. Tammy says Nicole not only had trouble fitting in, she also had a difficult relationship with her father, David Lovell. He did prison time on a drug charge,

and he's had other problems with the law. She wanted his attention. She wanted his love. I have regrets that I wasn't there. I feel, you know, what did I do wrong? Why wasn't I there for her more often? He'd left Tammy before Nicole was born. The two were never married.

When you would go to work, was there anyone supervising her? Yeah, my parents. Your parents, did they live at the house? Yes. So she never went unsupervised. No, no. But Nicole was leading an unsupervised life online through the social media apps on her smartphone. It's like a loaded gun.

Good morning, Blount County. It's your district attorney, Pamela Casey. Alabama D.A. Pamela Casey is on a national crusade, warning people about the dangers of social media. If you pick up your child's phone and you don't know the password, that's a problem. She began speaking out long before Nicole Lovell disappeared in Virginia, and her online safety videos have been seen by millions across the country. I could actually go live on Periscope to post updates to you guys. If I can do that live sitting in my office, then your child can do that live in their bedroom. Years ago, you had to worry about your kid getting snatched. Parents don't realize that essentially your kid can get snatched, their life taken by somebody they meet in their own bedroom.

by somebody they meet in their own bedroom. By late on the day Nicole Lovell vanished, her parents' hope was fading with the winter light. We love you, Nicole. We miss you. We want you home. I didn't sleep at all that night. I waited. But it would be three days before Nicole's parents had to face the horrifying news that her body had been found. Your whole world just comes tumbling down. Because she was my everything.

Because she was my everything. Collie had a passion for pandas. Music, dancing. Nicole touched many people throughout her short life. Shock and sadness were everywhere. But investigators had gotten a big break. it came from nicole level herself she'd left behind virtual evidence of a real-life murder did you know that the movie candy man was partly inspired by an actual murder? Listen to Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app.

In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little-known British territory called Pitcairn, and it harboured a deep, dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reach the age of 10 that would still have heard it. It just happens to all of them. I'm journalist Luke Jones, and for almost two years, I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn.

When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with. In the Pitcairn Trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island to the brink of extinction. Listen to the Pitcairn Trials exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Nicole's dad, David Lovell, says even before her body was found, investigators had found a solid lead.

Something she had handwritten on her bedroom wall. She wrote all her usernames and passwords to all her accounts. FBI computer forensics experts traced Nicole's account information and quickly established that she'd regularly used Kik, a popular chat app attractive to teens, in part because they can communicate anonymously without their parents knowing. When you had her phone, did you ever click on the Kik app just to see what was inside? No. I just made her delete it, uninstall it. Do you believe she reinstalled it?

Yeah. So the FBI puts in what they call an emergency disclosure request to Kik. They want to see Nicole's personal account and they make a startling discovery. It turns out that in the last two days of her life, she'd been messaging with a person who had a chilling username, Dr. Tombstone. Using an IP address provided by Kik, investigators traced the Dr. Tombstone's screen name to this young man, David Eisenhower, 18, a freshman engineering student at Virginia Tech. I will personally not stop until I reach my peak performance.

David Eisenhower seemed the last person in the world capable of killing a 13-year-old girl. He'd been a high school track star. Former classmate Dorothy Callahan says his brains and charisma were as strong as his strides. He was a very celebrated student. He always had straight A's and he was sort of cocky and he was like, yeah, I'm David Eisenhower. I was just on the local news. I'm a big deal. Three days after Nicole went missing, Eisenhower was picked up by police at his dorm and taken in for questioning. His roommate, Jeremy Bazdeo, walked in on the startling aftermath. I went to my room and I saw the door open. I got turned around by the Virginia State Police and the FBI. And what did they say? They said, don't worry, it's not about you. It's about your

roommate. Bazdeo told 48 Hours that Eisenhower's behavior the night Nicole Lovell vanished was really odd. He put on boots, but it wasn't raining that hard for boots. But, you know, I just let it go. And then he came back at 2 in the morning. And did you ever see a knife in the room? Yes. He usually leaves it on his desk. Was it on his desk when the cops showed up?

No, they couldn't find it. Eisenhower soon admitted to police he'd talked to Nicole outside her house that night. He was arrested and charged with abduction. Eisenhower's statements led them to another young woman, Natalie Keepers. She was brought in for questioning, too. Finding a job in this economy has gotten to be extremely important. What did 19-year-old Natalie Keepers know about what happened to Nicole? Keepers, another Virginia Tech freshman and another unlikely person of interest.

Mark Jenkins used to be her boyfriend. She wanted to study engineering and be like her father, who worked for NASA. Investigators strongly suspected Natalie was involved. She, too, was arrested. 18-year-old Eisenhower, a Virginia Tech freshman engineering major. And his friend Natalie Keepers.

With two people in custody, police made a grisly discovery. Nicole's nude body was located 90 miles away in North Carolina, says Surrey County Sheriff Graham Atkinson. What kind of wounds were on her body? She was stabbed and her throat was cut. And then the thoughts turned to, who were the animals that could have done something like this to her. Sometimes it's usually the people we least expect. D.A. Pamela Casey says Eisenhower and keepers may represent a new kind of predator.

They could be your next door neighbor. They can stay behind their phone and hide behind their phone, just like your child is doing. Casey says criminals often use apps like Kik. Why? Because it's where kids hang out online. In fact, Kik, a Canadian company, claims that millions of American teens use their app every month. You can be anybody. This man should know. He says he used the internet to

groom kids and spent 10 years in prison for molestation. Steve, as we'll call him, told us he now feels a new urge to sound the alarm about anonymous chat apps like Kik. Kik is a predator's paradise. Pedophiles, do they go on Kik, pose as a 13, 14, 15 year old in order to hopefully strike up a relationship with a child? Yes, that's quite common on there. Steve is now going to show us just how easy it is for an adult to use the Kik app to begin a conversation with a child. We created, and later deleted, a Kik account for the demonstration. Steve showed us how Kik can be used as a gateway to other apps where predators can set the age and gender of the people they want to meet, say girls between 13 and 15. My message is I'm sad and lonely. So we're going to time this. You hit send.

Go. I just got it. Okay, what's the time? 44 seconds. 44 seconds. Another girl, apparently a teenager, responded less than three minutes later. In two days max, I could have her sending me nude pictures. Once you make them happy, you got their heart. Once you got their heart, everything else follows.

Three months had passed since Nicole Lovell's murder. With David Eisenhower and Natalie Keeper still behind bars, investigators had discovered text messages that led them to this man's door, Bryce Dustin. I almost felt like he was like a little brother. It was on this gaming site that Bryce, now 21, first chatted with Eisenhower. And though they never met in person, they began a six-year-long internet friendship. David kept coming back to me for advice on everything. What kind of problems would he ask you advice about?

Girls was a big one. Dustin told us he remembers Eisenhower talking last winter about a problem he had with one girl in particular, a girl Dustin now believes was Nicole. He told me that he found out she was underage and that she wanted to be with him and that she was going to expose him if he wasn't with her. He says Eisenhower was worried about being outed in a relationship with an underage girl, so he offered some big brother kind of advice. If she wants to be your girlfriend, you know, let her.

But don't be the greatest boyfriend, you know? Just like, just don't text her. Just ignore her. She'll go away. ignore her, she'll go away. This family was about to have one of their daughters go away as well in the car of an online predator in Spokane, Washington. This guy wants to kidnap my daughter tonight. He's planning to kidnap my daughter tonight.

Her last moments is what flashes through my mind. That's my nightmare. David Lovell wishes he had done better in protecting Nicole. If it can happen to my family, it can happen to anybody. I mean, flat out, anybody. It can happen to any family, including one here in Spokane, Washington,

about 2,500 miles from Virginia. The parents here got a tip that their 15-year-old daughter was being targeted by a 30-year-old man. And what's worse, the two were planning to run away that very night. She's going to leave her iPad, hop in the car with a man she doesn't really even know. with a man she doesn't really even know. It was June 7th, 2013, when Detective Elise Robertson of the Spokane Police Department's Special Victims Unit

got the kind of call cops all over the country have come to expect. A father was saying that his daughter was having a internet relationship with a 30-year-old man, and he had just found out. And then that's when everything broke loose. Until that moment, Brandi Sarachan and her husband Brandon seemed to have the quintessential American family.

She, teaching at a local church. He, studying for a Ph.D. in psychology. They'd been hands-on parents, raising their two sons, Joshua and Josiah, and two daughters, Ariel and Elizabeth. We believe in the crucifixion. They shared a love of God, country, sports, and each other. My parents were pretty strict. and each other. My parents were pretty strict. Elizabeth, now 18, says it wasn't always easy reconciling her upbringing with a growing lust for life. I felt like my parents were holding me back

from what the average kid gets to experience. And how much did your parents monitor your life? I would say that they thought that they were monitoring me. They didn't understand that they actually weren't monitoring me. They probably had no clue about Kik and those dating sites. But her parents did become suspicious when Elizabeth, then 15, suddenly started acting strangely. She would be going to bed earlier than normal. Elizabeth seemed distracted, less interested in family activities, in church, even in friends. Her parents took her smartphone away and asked to see her social media accounts.

She refused. And at that point, you're like, OK, something's really wrong here. They were stunned to learn just how wrong. It all started with a phone call from Elizabeth's best friend's mother, a call that turned their world upside down. Elizabeth is dating a 30-year-old, and he plans on coming down and getting her at 3 o'clock in the morning. That very day?

Yeah, and we're like, what? Elizabeth was angry and evasive, but her parents finally got her passwords and soon discovered the truth. She had been communicating with a stranger, a 30-year-old Seattle area man named Jason. Jason Richards says, when I see you, baby, I'm grabbing you, pulling you close to me, and holding you tightly. What does Elizabeth say? No kiss.

And Jason says, baby, I'm going to kiss you deeply. This guy's evil. She's fooled. She's lured in. Initially, Elizabeth told Jason she was 18, but later admitted her real age, 15. The Syracians were stunned to learn

that the pair had already met in person and been intimate. They were even discussing leaving the country. The two had used apps including Facebook and Kik. This is playing out in some ways like your own personal family horror film. Yeah. The horror continued as the Sairachans realized that within hours, The horror continued as the Sairachans realized that within hours, Jason would be driving the 280 miles from Seattle to Spokane to pick up their daughter. They locked Elizabeth in her room with no phone or internet access and called police.

This guy wants to kidnap my daughter tonight. He's planning to kidnap my daughter tonight. Were your hands kind of tied? What do you do at that moment? You have a 15-year-old girl who's your only witness who's denying everything. Detective Robertson says that without hard evidence of an actual crime, police had to stay on the sidelines. So there's nothing they can do for you? There's absolutely nothing they can do for me. When you hear that, you feel totally helpless and it's like, okay, well, what are you going to do now? What they did was hatch their own plan to turn the tables on the man who was about to lure their daughter away. This is my daughter and nobody's going to mess with her and nobody's going to get her and I'm going to do what it takes. Jason had already messaged from the car. I needed to communicate with him to get him to our house.

Gritting her teeth, Brandy went online, impersonating her own daughter. For seven hours, I sat there. And listened to him. Oh, baby, I can't wait to see you. I can't wait to get you in my arms. Lay in the same bed together to get you in my arms. Lay in the same bed together, wake up in the morning. And for seven hours, I communicated back,

oh baby, I love you too, I can't wait. You had a pit in your stomach, that must have been. It made me sick. Jason is getting ever closer to your house ever closer to your daughter my wife was up there and she was on the iPad she's communicating with him yes

posing as your daughter exactly yes while Brandy kept the conversation with Jason going, in the alley behind the Sierachians' house, Brandon and his friends had set up a sting operation, like something out of an action movie. I am over here with my car and my friend Phil. We're getting updates from my wife on the phone.

My friend Damon is on this side of the street. So the idea is like a pincer, right? You're gonna trap. It's like a bear trap that's gonna close. Yes. Brandon's friend, Phil, brought his 12-gauge shotgun. He'd been trained in Special Forces

and had no idea how Jason would react. Are you ready to use this? If I have to, yes. He pulls right in this drive right here. He pulls right into this drive right here. It was 3 a.m. in Spokane, Washington, but could just as easily been high noon. He comes all the way in here and about. As Brandon Syrochen and his team laid in wait, headlights appeared at one end of the alley. A 30-year-old man's sexual road trip to take a 15-year-old girl from her family was about to come to a shocking end.

He pulls in. At this time, we go ahead and we call Damon down here, and Damon just books it. And I'm pulling in here. Jason pulls in right there. Brendan's friend, Phil, quickly approached the vehicle, shotgun raised. Hendon's friend, Phil, quickly approached the vehicle, shotgun raised. I said, driver, put your hands on the steering wheel. Do not move or I will shoot you. A couple of times he moved his hands and I said, what part of do not move do you not understand? If Jason makes some sort of move, are you prepared to pull that trigger? If he exited the car abruptly, I would have shot him.

They called the police, who arrived minutes later and arrested Jason. In his SUV, they found cell phones and a pair of hunting knives. They would later discover he also owned a handgun. He was caught, but it wasn't over. Ninety minutes later, Jason comes face to face with Spokane detective Elise Robertson. So Jason, tell me a little bit about your house. I work for Royal Cup Coffee.

Detective Robertson learned Jason was actually Jason Richards, a 30-year-old divorced coffee distributor from the Seattle area. Like David Eisenhower and Natalie Keepers in the Lovell case, Jason Richards seemed nice and successful on the surface. Who is this guy? Jason is the guy next door. He tried to turn his crime into a love story.

Pretty much fell for her very quickly. We said I love you pretty quickly, about a week and a half into really talking with each other. At first, Richards insisted he had no idea Elizabeth was only 15 until a policeman told him at the time of his arrest. He told me that she wasn't 18. Okay. I responded, come again? And she's 18. Okay. I responded, come again. And like, she's now, like, she's 18.

He was lying. The whole time, he was lying. The whole time. Over and over and over. Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie. To see if her instincts were right... Would you give me permission to look at your account? Detective Robertson asked to see Richard's Facebook page.

There were literally hundreds of exchanges between him and Elizabeth. And I start looking at it and I realized, oh, he knew. He knew before he ever came over here, she was 15. Want to tell me the truth now? Well, I looked right at him and I said, so you're going to tell me the truth now? I fell in love with her and I didn't know what to do. She told you that she was 15 and still in school?

Eventually. Right. This is our first meeting spot. Elizabeth told her parents she was 15 and still in school? Eventually. Right. This is our first meeting spot. Elizabeth told her parents she was going jogging, but instead came to this parking lot. When you actually saw him face to face, what did you think? Holy crap. Like, I think it became a reality to me that it's not just somebody that I'm talking to over the Internet.

to me that it's not just somebody that I'm talking to over the internet. Elizabeth says Jason took her to a hotel, got down on one knee, and proposed marriage. And then they got in bed. In the following weeks, he came to town again. On those visits, did you have sex with him each time? Yeah, we did. For sex with him each time? Yeah we did. For you Jason is what? He's a sexual predator.

I've completely just f***ed up my life. My life was destroyed. The events of that chaotic day still seem to haunt the Cyrochians too. This hits you right now like a punch across the face, right? It's just absolutely unbelievable. This guy found out that she was a minor, and then after that's when he decided to sleep with her. Richards pleaded guilty to child rape and communication with a minor for immoral purposes. His lawyer argued Richards has autism, which can be a mitigating factor for several crimes in Washington state.

He got a light sentence, three years. When you learned that Jason was in jail. It broke me. When you learned that Jason was in jail... It broke me. Inexperienced at love, Elizabeth says her online connection with Jason had been instant. Everything progresses faster online because you're just more comfortable. You don't have to talk to that person in person. These apps are apps that children are using.

D.A. Pamela Casey says far too many Internet predators are turning to apps like Kik, and their alleged crimes are making headlines across the U.S., more crimes than Facebook and Instagram users combined. Law enforcement sources say just this week, the FBI and federal prosecutors in Manhattan began investigating allegations that disgraced ex-New York Congressman Anthony Weiner engaged in sexting with a 15-year-old girl using social media believed to include kick. Did you fall in love with Jason?

Yeah, I did. I hate to say it, but part of me still loves him. But Elizabeth didn't really have the whole story about Jason Richards. In fact, she may not have been his one true love. On Jason's phone, Detective Robertson had discovered these photos of young women and men. What's your reaction to all that? About ten minutes later... Do you want to say anything? I just feel so fooled. I just feel so fooled.

Like, for three years I've been defending him. It's not right. It's not right. Seeing some of Jason's graphic photo collection for herself drives home the point. It's a lot of pictures, though, of a lot of different women. Oh, and a man. Honestly, if anything, it makes me feel better. It's going to be easier for me to move on. Looking back, Brandi Syrochen says she wishes the judge had given Jason Richards as much as life in prison.

But in Virginia, Nicole Lovell's mother says there is no punishment severe enough for the accused predators. I want both of them to suffer. And she says Eisenhower and Keepers aren't the only ones who should have to answer for her daughter's murder. She blames Kik, too. They need to shut Kik down. It's just disgusting. Kik is now a billion-dollar company, and the CEO declined our request for an on-camera interview. It's ironic when the head of a social media company won't talk to us. So we're heading off to a technology conference in Brooklyn, New York,

in hopes of catching up with the CEO of Kik. That's him right there. Mr. Livingston. Evidence suggests Nicole Lovell was lured to her death over the Kik chat app, one of the same apps Elizabeth Sierachan used to communicate with the man who almost lured her away. Please welcome to the stage Ted Livingston from Kik. As Kik's CEO left the stage, we found him. Quick, move faster.

That's him right there? Yes, that's him. Go faster. The one on the left. Yeah. On his smartphone. Mr. Livingston, Peter Van Sant, how are you? I'm good, how are you? With CBS News.

So I wanted to ask a quick question. Sure. What personal responsibility do you have to make sure that children are safe who use the Kik app? Yeah, I think I have a huge responsibility. I'm sure you're familiar with Nicole Lovell, a 13-year-old girl in Virginia. What would you say to Nicole's parents? Like, when we heard about that case, like, that hit the office and hit me super hard. Like, it's just, like, so hard to hear about something.

And, like, I grew up with a brother with disabilities. Like many social media companies, Kik posts an online guide for parents. And in a statement, told 48 H Hours the company cooperates with law enforcement. Ted Livingston claims his app is as safe as the competition. I think it's no different than Facebook or Snapchat or Instagram. You know, you have bad people going. As a parent, I disagree. I can check my child's Facebook account and Twitter account. I friend them, but with Kik, I can't. I think that's no different than Instagram. You have a private mode, you can have private messaging.

All that exists there. That's true, but Kik's design is attracting millions of teens, in part because many believe it's parent-proof, the best app to keep their social lives secret. I'm sad and lonely. Sadly, predators also can keep secrets on Kik. Kids are gonna use a messenger. If we were to shut down Kik tomorrow,

there will be 10 right behind it. Back in Spokane, Elizabeth Sairachan is still struggling to make sense of what happened to her. Things with her parents are still tough. Any sugar? No, thanks. Mostly because, at 18, she's living with a new boyfriend she met at the gym. He's 35.

Well, I like to see some things change, of course. We'd all love to see that, but... You have to compromise. You can't just be your way or the highway. With Jason Richards in prison, the case against him is closed. But in Blacksburg, Virginia, Nicole Lovell's murder case has yet to be resolved. We're heading now to the courthouse

because David Eisenhower and Natalie Keepers, they have a joint hearing together. No cameras were allowed inside as police presented new details of Nicole's murder. Details they say were provided by Natalie Keepers herself. Investigators testified Eisenhower covered Lovell's mouth and cut her throat. Keepers later helped Eisenhower load Lovell's body into his car, leaving a trail of blood in the snow. A detective testified that Keepers admitted to helping Eisenhower plan the murder

and then dispose of Nicole's body. And that Keepers was excited to be part of something secretive. She said he was a sociopath and she was a sociopath in training. It's all too much for Nicole's mom, Tammy Weeks, who comes to court but can't force herself to sit through the day. I didn't know he had stripped her naked and poured bleach on her. There is no evidence that Nicole was sexually assaulted.

But David Eisenhower is formally charged with first degree murder and abduction, keepers as an accessory to murder. Both also are charged with transporting or concealing a dead body. Eisenhower has reportedly told investigators, I believe the truth can set me free. Is there any doubt who is responsible for the death of your daughter? No. I, without a doubt, believe that he did it. Eisenhower's former internet buddy, Bryce Dustin,

doesn't have much doubt either, especially after a final exchange he had with Eisenhower around the time Nicole disappeared. He texted me and said, you know, the original plans failed. He was like, he's like, do you know where I can hide a body? At the time, Bryce thought Eisenhower was kidding. He, along with so many in this shell shock community, still want to know how two intelligent college kids with their lives in front of them could wind up involved in taking the life of a 13-year-old girl.

I wish she would have done it to me instead of her. I would trade places with her in a heartbeat. in a heartbeat. Because he deserved to live. Nicole's bedroom door down there at the end of the hall, are you able to go into that room today? I am. You can't?

Nothing's the same. Nicole Lovell's death is a dark reminder of how social media Ask Nicole Lovell. have profoundly changed society. ALS ice bucket challenge. I hope everybody learns from this. Hold their kids tight because it can happen to you. Today, our children have a host of new ways to live and new ways to die as well.

David Eisenhower and Natalie Keepers are scheduled to be tried separately next March. If convicted, both could face life in prison with no parole. Jason Richards is scheduled to be released from prison on June 3rd, 2017. Want to know what's really on your kid's phone? Our tips for safety are on our website at 48hours.com.