48 Hours - Post Mortem | The “Batman” Intruder

Episode Date: December 17, 2024

CBS News Correspondent Nikki Batiste and Associate Producer Mike Loftus delve into the case of Morgan Metzer, who was assaulted on New Year’s Day in 2021 by an intruder later identified as her ex-husband, Rod. The team examines Rod’s manipulation tactics, including gaslighting and a fake cancer diagnosis. They also discuss his 9-1-1 call and why investigators thought it was suspicious.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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the case of Morgan Metzer, who was assaulted in her home by an intruder, but incredibly she survived to tell the story. And she also brought justice to her assailant. So joining me today is CBS News correspondent, Nikki Battiste, and associate producer, Mike Loftus. Welcome guys. Thanks for having us. Good to be here. And remember, if you haven't listened to the 48 Hours episode yet, you can find the full audio version just below this episode in your podcast feed. So go ahead and take a listen and then come on back for the conversation. Morgan and Rod Metzer, they are childhood sweethearts, right?

They meet when she's 14. He is 17, which I thought was a little old, because, you know, at that age, that's quite an age gap. But nonetheless, they fall in love. They date for quite a long time. They get married when they're in their early 20s. And then they have twins. But then Morgan said Rod starts to become abusive,

and Morgan falls for divorce. And then weeks after the divorce was finalized, Rod says to her, I have pancreatic cancer. And then we find out in the hour that he lied about pancreatic cancer. Who lies about that? Did Morgan think that he faked the cancer diagnosis in order to persuade her to get back together with him? I think in the moment she believed he had pancreatic cancer and was worried enough about him that she actually took him back into her house to try to take care of him. And she was saying, look, you need to tell your family. He hadn't told anyone else at that point. And he

didn't want to. And she started to get frustrated later after this assault transpires and she reflects and investigators tell her, look, this was a fake diagnosis. We have a fake letter from a doctor, a fake email account, you know, fake bill. I asked her that question. I said, do you think that this was a way to try to get back to you? Do you think this was just part of his bigger plan? And she does think, reflecting that it was in an effort to try to get her to feel badly for him, take him in. I mean, cancer and particularly pancreatic cancer is a tough, tough battle.

I don't know if he had like a long-term plan. I don't think it's easy to sort of fake pancreatic cancer treatment. You're going to look sick, you're going to be tired. I don't think he thought this out. It's one of the deadliest cancers and his younger brother had passed away from leukemia and yet he does this. I mean, on top of all this,

investigators found that he made fake hospital bills and stuff to try and show that he had cancer. He searched cancer diagnosis letter online. So he went through great lengths to try and prove this. Yeah, his searches were like a treasure trove as we learn as the hour sort of unfolds. So this case is particularly different for 48 hours, not only because Morgan survived, but also because she details how much Rod was gaslighting her. Can we talk a little bit more about gaslighting and what was Morgan experiencing?

She told us a story which we have in the show about when they went on a trip to a lake and she said he physically attacked her and he said that she was kind of being upset. said he physically attacked her. And he said that she was kind of being upset. She was being out of control and he had to do this to constrain her. And she believed it. You know, she started believing, maybe I was upset, maybe I was out of control. So this is a prime example of, of gaslighting in this story. One thing I will say, what is unique is that Morgan did leave him eventually. She did.

Which, which we don't always see. But I think the gaslighting was gradual and became more severe. She also tells us a story in the hour about Rod essentially throwing himself down the stairs and then telling their kids that she had pushed him. Right. And her best friend also told us that Rod would make Morgan believe that she was crazy,

that this was her fault for some reason or another. And, you know, gaslighting has become a term that we hear so often now. Mm-hmm. Well, when I think about the fact that they met when she was just 14, and I know he was a teenager as well, you know, you sort of have to take into account that they have grown up together. And so she's gone from being a young teen to an adult woman with this person influencing her the whole time, for better or for worse. And so I wouldn't be surprised if, you know, what we hear in the hour are some pretty egregious examples of gaslighting, but I'm sure there were probably little things happening all

along, you know, over the years that maybe she did pick up on, maybe she didn't, maybe she just got used to. Yes, I think she has told us that reflecting back, you know, she can see it now, but I think it took her a while to initially because who would? Yeah. It's the love of your life since you were married in your 20s. Yeah. Right. And she told us that her friends and family even believed him and took his side too.

Oh my gosh. So, you know, that's where the gas line comes in. She's really convinced of this because everyone around her is saying this. Wow. All right. So let's go to the night of the attack. It's New Year's Eve of 2020. Morgan was sleeping in her bed, but then she wakes up in the middle of the night and there's

a figure standing in her door. And according to Morgan, he had a voice like Batman. Rod starts beating her and then he ties her hands with zip ties before sexually assaulting her. Morgan said he strangled her twice until she nearly passed out during the attack. And after this sort of mystery intruder left, Morgan's ex husband, Rod, then shows up. He calls 911. I want to play an extended clip of the 911 call that I was in the apartment, river show, and somebody's tapping on my windows talking about my life.

And I couldn't get on the phones. I ran over here and I walked on back to the house. He was on the back porch and the back door was wide open. Okay, so sometimes with 911 calls, you sort of get an inkling that it's not legit, right? I mean, he sounds reasonably concerned. Does anything stand out about the 911 call? He makes a move that investigators told us was very suspicious, and he basically offers

the 911 operator an alibi, saying, I was home, and I heard a knock on my window. And we know from many of the true crime stories that we've covered that it's a token move by men and women who ultimately are convicted of their crimes. So immediately that alerted the investigators. Right, he's already offering so much information and all the operator asked for is what's your name and address and he's already coming up with where he was at the time. Oh see I did not pick up on that, but that totally makes sense. You know, name and address and the condition, what help she needs.

That's the sort of stuff you would be talking about. I just found my wife and she's, you know, beaten badly. Oh, I was home and someone knocked on my window. That wasn't necessary. Ah, fascinating. Bad move. Yeah. One of many, it turns out, as the hour unfolds.

In the hour, Morgan said that she suspected the intruder actually could be her ex-husband when he picked her up. And she said it really felt familiar because he had done that before when she was pregnant. But was that the first time that she suspected it could be Rod? I think this is a question a lot of the viewers will have because you feel like you just know your husband, especially someone you've known for years. But she has indicated that it crossed her mind

it might be Rod earlier than that, but it was really that moment, that lifting of her off the bed that made her positive it was him. She knew that feeling. He was very sort of delicate in doing it like she was when she was pregnant. And I think if people are saying, well, how could she not know it was him?

Look, to the same point is the father of her children, the man she's loved for 20 years, she doesn't want to believe that it's him. And so she is avoiding believing that it's him until she just can't anymore. She's like, I know that feeling and that touch. Yeah. Because the thing about this assault that struck me

is that it was really violent. We've seen cases where people have sort of done something similar, pretended to be an intruder. But typically, if the victim is someone they care about, they're not that violent. No, I said to the lead detectives, when you saw how violent the attack was, what did that tell you? And they, it's personal.

It's personal. And it turned out it was. Yeah. I mean, he could have killed her. I couldn't quite figure out how he thought this was going to end. I think we all wonder that. I think only Rod knows what his actual intention was on the way to her house that night. I feel like that's something that is going to get conflicting reactions from the audience

is what his true intention was and whether he decided to back out of doing something, taking it a step further in the moment or not. Because she said, I love my husband, don't hurt my husband. Right. She said she could feel the room change after that was said. Investigators, of course, go through Rod's phone while they're at the scene, and they find photos of Morgan on his phone that appear to be taken without her consent. This is in the hidden folder.

If you have an iPhone, there is a folder literally labeled hidden when you go through your folders. And if you are hiding evidence there, it will be found. Yeah, it's not the best place. Not the best place. So there are these photos of Morgan. They're able to arrest him for invasion of privacy because of that. They do this in order to get him in custody so that he does not destroy any additional evidence. Is that sort of a common practice? Like if you can nab a suspect on something else? And what did you think of that tactic? By doing that, they were able to then get a search warrant on his car in his apartment.

You know, if he was free, he could go back and destroy some of the evidence, the zip ties, et cetera, that were found in his apartment. So this was great for the investigators because now they can go in and search his car, search his apartment. They found some of the key evidence that, you know, the incriminating evidence for it. I think any good investigator immediately looks at an iPhone, a cell phone, because it's really a roadmap of our minds, our movements. It tells a whole story. — Harvard is the oldest and richest university in America. — Shame! Shame!

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It was really interesting to watch. I mean, first off, he denies having zip ties at his apartment. I don't know how they got there. That's what he keeps telling investigators. I don't know how. And they're like, well, who put him there? That was the biggie. I felt like a lot of the other evidence he could have made an excuse for, but why do you need

zip ties? Yeah. And his response is like, I don't know, there's something fishy going on here. And the cops are like, well, do you think we put them there? And he was like, I don't know, you know, I don't know anything. And then they also found a book in there called Seven Ways to be Her Hero, which, again, he said, oh, of course I'm reading that. I'm trying to win my wife back.

Like, of course I'd be reading that. And then he points out that it wasn't open. You know, he never even opened it. But when they brought up, we found the zip ties, that's the moment when he was really like, I don't want to talk to you guys anymore. You know, I'm a lawyer. And that's when he starts getting really upset

and really starts realizing he's their prime suspect. I think what struck me is that anyone who watches true crime knows that sometimes in interrogations, investigators might say something that isn't entirely true to try to get something out of someone they're questioning. But in this case, Seven Ways to Be Her Hero is not a book most people have.

And Rod Metzer knew he had that book. Rod Metzer knew he had zip book. Rod Metzer knew he had zip ties. Rod Metzer had to have known what they were saying were facts and that they knew they were onto him and that they'd seen this evidence. And the fact that he was still playing dumb, essentially, for lack of a better word, just didn't make any sense to me. Like I didn't understand what you're not helping yourself. And it was honestly his demeanor was just pretty brazen, I think. Yeah. Speaking of the evidence, investigators found Rod's browser history and that he searched, and this is a quote, how long to choke someone

unconscious. Rod was ultimately charged with 10 counts relating to the attack, including kidnapping, aggravated assault, sexual battery. How come he wasn't charged with attempted murder? I think it's a great question. It's a question that Morgan herself asked the investigators, and they told her that essentially because Rod, he had a gun, didn't shoot her, one, and two, to go off the bed and put her out on the porch knowing she was fully alive, saved him from an attempted murder charge.

And she said, well, what about the strangulation? She thought, as she told me in the hour, she was going to die. And they said, well, that's the aggravated assault charge. That's for the strangulation. But I think it's a really good question. I think Morgan really struggled with that because I think she believed, certainly at some points, that he intended to kill her. Yes. And it might have been hard too on their part, the investigators in the DA too, to

take that in court, you know, prove the attempted murder charge. There's a chance he might have fought that too and let it go to trial if that was included. Oh yes. Maybe they didn't think they could get a conviction on an attempted murder charge, but they did get a deal. Rob Metzer was offered a plea deal and he accepted it. So they didn't have to go through a trial. And he got a pretty hefty sentence, right? 25 years in prison with an additional 45 years of probation. 25 years is a long time, but he's still going to be, you know, a middle-aged man when he gets out. Is Morgan concerned about her safety?

I asked her sort of just how she's feeling, you know. I don't think she's actively concerned about her safety. He is not allowed to contact her. I think she hopes that he'll respect that. I think at the moment she feels okay. I think right now she's just sort of in the present and trying to take care of her kids. 25 years is still a long time. So I think right now she's okay. And he's not allowed to contact Morgan or the kids in any way. So after the 25 years in prison, he then has 45 years of

probation and he's not allowed to contact Morgan even during the probation. So basically that is the end of his relationship with his children as well. It seems that way, yes. Did she talk about what kind of father he was? She did say during the interview that he was a good father. The thing with these cases is there's never a good answer to why. But why would you mess up that relationship as well? I know, I struggle with that too, we're, so it's hard to imagine. And the one thing

I'll say about Morgan, and I respect this, I'm sure a lot of the audience will, that even given what she's gone through, and Rod's in prison having pleaded guilty to these crimes, she's told us that whenever her children who are young still bring up their dad, she talks about the memories. She tries to keep him in a good light for them, the dad that he was, the dad that they knew. And I think that really shows a lot of grace on her part. Absolutely, absolutely. So one of the things that you managed to do

is you actually interviewed Rod's mom. And I want to talk a little bit more about that. I'm curious if the kids have a relationship with his family. At the moment, according to Rod's mom and I want to talk a little bit more about that. I'm curious if the kids have a relationship with his family. At the moment according to Rod's mom they don't. It was clear to me that Rod's mom, Kathy, would love to see her grandchildren, but I think out of respect for Morgan she hasn't and I'm sure that's difficult for her how that will transpire in time. I'm not sure. Yeah, because she would have known Morgan all this time too since Morgan was 14. It's got to be heartbreaking. I'm glad she spoke, because I think often when we see cases like

this, you do think, well, what kind of family that person come from? And it's clear that she loves her son. Why do you think she spoke to 48 hours? What did she want to get across? Does she believe he's guilty? I asked her several times if she thought Rod was guilty. She never said either way that she did believe he was guilty or not guilty. What she did say is that he pleaded guilty. That was her response to my repeatedly asking her about his guilt. I think she spoke to 48 Hours because she's still his mom. She still loves him.

She did tell me that he'd been through quite a bit of trauma. We know when we talk about in the hour that his younger brother died of leukemia. They had been very close. She said that hit him very hard. We also learn in the hour that Morgan and Rod lost a baby at 18 days, obviously crushing for anyone. days, obviously, crushing for anyone. So I think that she feels her son was broken in a way and wanted to make sure that someone spoke for him. And he's the last one in her immediate family because Rod's father, her husband, also passed away. So it's Rod and the twins.

Boy, she's been through a lot. So much. It was really, my heart broke for her because she has lost both sons in a way. She lost a grandchild, she lost her husband, and her only surviving son is in prison. She speaks to him by phone often in prison and she's worried about him. Did she talk about how those conversations go with Rod from prison? We were able to listen to snippets of a small number of calls between Rod and his mom. And this was earlier on when he was in prison. And initially, you know, it's a mom worried about her son.

She's trying to figure out what's going on legally. She's trying to see what he needs. He's diabetic. And I think currently she's mostly worried about his health. She has told me she's worried he will die in prison as diabetes has gotten so bad. And she says the prison isn't providing the care that he needs, the medical care that he needs. Lauren Henry Morgan is incredibly courageous telling this

story. She does not have to do this. I'm sure she wants to go on with her life. How is Morgan doing right now? I saw her again after we sat down for quite some time. We chatted again in Georgia and asked her how she's doing. And she said, you know, things are going pretty well. She's trying to rebuild her life. She wants to help other women and men who've been through something like this, gaslighting. She spoke at a domestic violence event recently to share her story

and try to help women. And she said she hopes to write a book too. I mean, I could really see her doing it because I thought to myself in the interviews with you that she looks remarkably well for someone who has gone through such trauma. And I think what I saw was strength. She's remarkably strong. And I'm glad you brought that up actually, because we talked for, it had to have been about two hours the first time we sat down.

And I don't know that she was emotional at all, maybe briefly. And I was struck by that, and I believe I said that to her in the interview. I'm struck by how strong you are. It's amazing, given what you've been through. And then we learned that during her victim impact statement in court, she doesn't cry once.

She's just strong. It's notable and it's noticeable how strong she is. And she's also been just so great working with us throughout this because she wants people to know about this. A lot of people are now going to learn about gaslighting. She wants this story to be told to help others, because people can start noticing the signs before it gets worse.

Exactly. It's a good reminder. Do not ignore the little red flags because they can become big red flags. And in this case, she's really lucky to be alive. Very lucky to be alive. Yeah. Well, thank you, both of you, for helping her tell her story. And it's always great having you guys here.

Thanks. Thanks, Emory. Thanks. Thanks for having us. If you like this series Post Mortem, please rate and review 48 Hours on Apple Podcasts and follow 48 Hours wherever you get your podcasts. And you can also listen ad free on Amazon Music, Wondry Plus in the Wondry app, or with a 48 Hours Plus subscription on Apple Podcasts.

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