48 Hours - Sade Robinson and the Secret Beach

Episode Date: February 23, 2026

A teenage girl goes missing. Will evidence on a secluded beach reveal what happened?  Anne-Marie Green reports. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is a once in a lifetime case. All I did was I pieced things together. I got the call from my inspector. He didn't have a lot of information. So it was more or less like go down there and figure out what we have. You don't often see body parts being discovered. So this is odd? Yes. Absolutely.

Absolutely. Do you have any idea of what you're getting yourself into? Not at that point. Like it could be a boating accident. I don't know. You know, at that point I did not know. When I get there, I make my way down on the beach and I stop cold. It was probably about 30 feet up the bluff.

There was just no way for that to get there by accident. And that's when I knew we had a homicide. You don't know who this victim is. She was definitely an African-American female. I don't know who she is. I don't know obviously who any suspect is. I know nothing. I had nothing.

I needed to know what happened to her. What brought you here? We came just to do a welfare check. My name is Nora Donagan. And I was a patrol officer. Who lives here? Shadee Robinson. Her friends hadn't heard from her.

Miss Robinson, Milwaukee Police, please answer the door. We're gonna come in otherwise. No, I don't hear anything. So they seen her on Monday morning at 9 and 10 o'clock. Shade was very excited about a date that she was going to be having. Nobody's seen her since the date. Right away, alarm bells were going off for me. for me. We needed to figure out who this date was. You can't stop thinking about this.

No. There was just something odd about everything, maybe the timing of them. Missing person, body part found. I had a weird feeling I reached out to the Sheriff's Department. Detective Donner from the Milwaukee Sheriff's Department. I just said, you know, I've got this girl who's missing. And I'm curious, do you think that this could be related? She said she thinks that that's going to be her girl. I got chills. Anne-Marie Green reports Shagay Robinson at the Secret Beach. Along the Wisconsin shoreline of Lake Michigan

sits a rocky, wooded area called Warnamont Park. It's not somewhere that you find a lot. lot of people. On April 2nd, 2024, a young man out for a walk with a friend made that gruesome find. As they're walking, that black, see that leg right there? Lead detective Joe Donner of the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office says she knew she had a homicide, but nothing else. You have a leg.

Where's the rest of her? At that point, I, didn't know. So you have human remains, no weapon, no suspect, where do we go from here? That was a question I asked myself most of that night. But with the help of Milwaukee police detective Nora Donaghan, Donner had a suspicion who her victim might be. Shadey Robinson, a 19-year-old college student. On the evening of April 1st, 2024, she had plans to go on a date, but had not been seen since. Donner soon learned that Shade's car had been found behind an abandoned building, three miles from Shade's apartment, set on fire.

This is Shade's vehicle. This is pretty much completely destroyed. It is. It definitely negated any. type of DNA fingerprints, anything like that. Though the car was heavily damaged, it still revealed a great deal to the fire investigator. The passenger site smelled heavily of a petroleum distillate. So what did that tell them?

That it was more likely in arson. And though the car's interior was destroyed, investigators were able to recover something crucial. So underneath the driver's seat, Shade's purse was tucked under there. To me, it definitely eliminates a robbery, right? And when investigators opened the trunk of Shadez car, they made a distressing discovery. We found her pants, her underwear, her jacket, and her shoes. This is the clothes she was wearing that night. And the jeans, it was apparent that somebody else had taken them off.

They were turned inside out, and the underwear were still attached to them. So, yeah, it was dead. definitely a red flag. Another red flag was something Detective Donner and her team noticed about the driver's seat, something that suggested someone else had driven Shade's car. We take note of the seat positioning because that'll give hide indicators. I was able to determine about how far back that seat was. I then went to a dealership and found an identical model.

With the driver's seat in the same position as the one in Shade's vehicle, Detective Donner grabbed a deputy who was about Chadeh's height. And when she sat in the car, she couldn't touch the pedals. Her arms were straight out. And she's like, there's no way. I can't drive like this without perching on the very edge of the sea. Donner also had a taller detective sit in the vehicle. And based on her experiment,

Donner says the last person to drive Chade's car had to be at least six feet tall. There's no way Chaudet was the last person in that driver's seat. No. No. The day after finding the remains on the beach, investigators contacted Shade's mother, Sheena Scarborough. I'll never forget that day.

Like, what's going on? Sheena immediately sent for Shade's 16-year-old sister, Adriana, to come home early from school. We drove over to my mom's house, and they were all very obviously upset. But Shade's. His family hoped that this was a mistake and Chade would be found alive and well. The officer asked Adriana to share Shade's cell phone location from her Life 360 app. What is Life 360? Unlike find my iPhone that gives you where your phone is right now,

Life 360 gives you historical data. And it uses GPS. So it tends to be far more precise than the cell records. When I pulled up the location, I saw that her phone had died at 4.35 a.m. at Warnamont Park. And when I saw that, it was like, that was a very unusual place for her to be. And when I said that, the detective, his face, like, dropped. And he was like, he just, like, yeah, he shut down, kind of. I knew.

Something wasn't right. Somebody had hurt my baby. It's your video, Shadeh. DNA tests hadn't yet determined if Shade Robinson matched the remains found along Lake Michigan. In the meantime, investigators began tracing the last known hours of her life. Younger sister Adriana saw Shade on Easter Sunday

the day before her date. date. We had worked together that morning. She picked me up. Shadee and Adriana worked as servers at a country club. She was one of the best workers they had. It was one of Shade's two jobs on top of being a full-time student at a local technical college. She wanted better for herself. She wanted better for me. The hard work was paying off, with a 19-year-old able to rent an apartment and buy a car all on her own. Shadei was set to graduate with an associate's degree in criminal justice the following month. Adriana says Shadei hoped to then enlist in the military. And she was looking to join the Air Force, so she had been meeting with recruiters.

That's how much she wanted to do everything that she dreamed of doing. After working at the country club on Sunday, March 31st, 2024, Adriana and Shade headed to their grandparents' house for Easter dinner. It was a really, really good night, and then she took me home. Whenever she dropped me off, it was always, like, a hesitation. We always be like, love you. And that night, I still remember it was, like, a different kind of hesitation. The next morning, Shadee facetimed her mom, Sheena.

She was just glowing through the FaceTime. She just looked so beautiful. She was in a bubbly mood. She didn't mention anything to me about going on a date that evening. Security cameras in Shade's building captured her leaving her apartment at 9 a.m. that morning. 15 minutes later, Shade arrived for her shift at the restaurant Pizza Shuttle.

Former owner, Mark Gold. Everybody loved her immediately, and that's kind of rare, I think, in a restaurant or any business. And she's a great worker. She comes in on time. She smiles. Every time she would work with me, I'd say, what's up, Shade? And she'd go to the sky, Mark.

She always said it, and now I miss it. Shade left Pizza Shuttle at 5 p.m. And texted a man she'd recently met, Maxwell Anderson. They are discussing where they're going to meet up for their date. Shade's text messages show they chose the twisted fisherman. Armed with that information, investigators then headed to the restaurant. and obtained security camera footage of Chaudet and her date together. Detective Joe Donner examined the footage for clues.

What's sort of standing out to you as you watch this video? Why is it important? You know, it's the demeanor. He does a lot of talking to the bartender. Doesn't do a whole lot of talking to her or even, like, turning and looking at her. It seems a little unusual for a date. There's not a lot of interaction.

Around 6.30 p.m., Shadei and Maxwell Anderson left the restaurant together. With the help of Shadei's Life 360 app, the detectives knew just where the pair were headed. I'm so glad that she had that app. So when you found out Shade had it on her phone, you must have thought. Cool, life. Yeah, score. Big time. According to her Life 360 app, Shade then went to a nearby bar called dukes on water. When investigators headed there, they found this security camera footage of

Shah Day and her date arriving together at the bar. Again, Detective Donner took note of the pair's dynamic. So they are playing beer pong with this couple. And honestly, this is the only time that it looks like she's having fun. I noticed that she seemed to be smiling and enjoying herself. Shaw Day and Maxwell Anderson left the bar together around 9 p.m. She's walking fine, doesn't seem to be impaired. I think it's interesting that they're walking together, but not until the very end. He kind of reaches over. Right. That's the only, like, real physical contact other than briefly while they were playing

beer pong that I see them have. From there, Shade's date got in the car with her. The Life 360 app shows Shade arrived at Maxwell Anderson's house around 9.30. Three hours later, the app shows Shade's phone left his house. Shade's car began traveling toward her apartment, but instead of going home, the car drove past the building. Multiple surveillance cameras would go on to capture Shade's car, with fogged up windows, driving around for hours.

Did there seem to be any kind of like rhyme or reason to where this vehicle was going that night? No. It seemed to be going all over the place. Then at 253 a.m., the Life 360 app shows Chade's phone arriving at Warnamont Park, where the battery on her phone would later die. When the investigators checked for security camera footage from a nearby building, they made a chilling discovery. The grainy footage shows someone, possibly a man, dragging something to the lake.

This is the path that he took, and then he would go down. Right around here. Yeah. And this is where he disappears off of camera. It drops off right there. That's where we lose sight of him. Roughly 90 minutes after first going out of view,

the shadowy figure walks away from the lake. but now carrying something. The final time that it comes up, you do see a large backpack on their back. Who do you believe that figure is? Maxwell Anderson. Who is the last person Chadey Robinson was seen with? Maxwell Anderson.

Who is this person? How do you know my daughter? Had you ever heard the name Maxwell Anderson? No. There were so many questions, like how they knew each other, motives were. The night Shadee Robinson disappeared was not the first time she had met Maxwell Anderson. Three days earlier, Sha'A, seen here on security camera footage, walked into a bar. The owner told 48 hours that Shadee was looking for a job. While there, she met the bartender,

six foot one, 33-year-old Maxwell Anderson. They exchanged numbers, and Maxwell walked Chadee to her car. It seemed like he was trying to be a gentleman to this girl he was trying to impress. What did you learn about Maxwell Anderson, his background? I learned that he had been in the service industry for a while. He owned a home down on the south side of Milwaukee. Was in the Navy for a brief amount of time. Why did he leave the military? I believe it was a general discharge. But the man Chaudet would go on a date with also had a criminal record that included operating a vehicle while intoxicated, disorderly conduct, and more. It was a little disturbing, like a history of violence towards his own family.

And in 2019, he'd also been accused of violence towards a total stranger. According to this police report, Maxwell, seen in this video filmed by a bystander, beat a man who tried to intervene during an argument Maxwell was having with a girlfriend. He was arrested for battery, but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge. This guy's got a temper, and he doesn't really seem to care who he takes that temper out on. You're thinking about what could have happened with Shadee? Yes. But could he be responsible for Shade's disappearance?

Detective Donner needed proof. Just spending the evening with her is not enough. Right. With the help of Shade's Life 360 app, Donner knew Shade had driven to Maxwell's house on April 1st. I wanted to get into his house, and we definitely had enough to do that. On April 4th, Donna got a search warrant

to enter Maxwell's home, and she sent another team to watch him. So they begin to follow him. We prefer to not have the resident in the house. It's just safer. Within minutes, the team realized Maxwell was heading home, and they had to act fast. Right, let's take him into custody.

The deputy and the detective said that, yeah, they definitely felt him shaking. Maxwell Anderson later asked for a lawyer and was never interrogated. But when investigators finally entered the house, they were surprised. There was no big bloody crime scene. And no sign of a cleanup either. It was very apparent that the dismemberment didn't happen there. Investigators did find something of interest. A lot of knives.

A lot of knives. There were, I believe, like 51 found in the kitchen alone. Anything that could have been used to dismember a body? I suppose none of those knives were used. After searching the house, Detective Donner was still missing key elements, like a weapon, crime scene, or even a single piece of direct evidence in Maxwell Anderson. in Maxwell Anderson's home, tying him to Chadeh's disappearance. It seemed like every hopeful, you know, lead,

I got disappointed each time. Detective Donner started looking into other possible suspects. While Maxwell Anderson seemed like a really good suspect, I wasn't going to focus on him. And she even considered the possibility that the remains on the beach belonged to someone else. What if this isn't? her. So I still checked missing databases.

But Shade's loved ones were certain Donner was on the right track. They sent a message covering Maxwell Anderson's yard with balloons and signs, all in Shade's favorite color, pink. Increasing the pressure on the investigation was the shocking discovery of more body parts across the county. A more human remains believed to be those of the young woman. The remains seem to be from the same victim. As law enforcement searched for more remains, so did volunteers, including Kiki and Arlinda, family friends of Shadez.

They were already searching. Why even get involved? I didn't see enough police out here. We came by in the area was empty. But we were like, okay, let's go back and double check and see if we could find anything else. While searching a wooded area, Kiki found a blanket that belonged to Shade. The next day, Arlinda discovered a human bone next to train tracks. Both were found in areas investigators had already searched.

Could you understand why people might feel a little frustrated when they hear that? Absolutely. Detective Donner was also frustrated. That's when this woman, Chloe Wright, stepped forward. It was like heart stopping. I mean, it's just like this can't be real. Chloe had dated Maxwell for more than a year, and she was stunned to hear her ex-boyfriend was a suspect.

This type of gruesome graphic murder I just didn't see from him. Chloe and Maxwell broke up a year earlier. She told us he was never physically abusive, but he could be verbally abusive. He made comments about my body weight often, me not being attractive. He wasn't a great boyfriend. This sounds toxic.

It was very toxic. Chloe describes Maxwell as a secretive person, but he did share one secret with her. Investigators were very interested to learn. I remember it was like winter when he had brought it up, and he was like, if we're still together, come spring, I'm going to take you to this secret beach. And then eventually he took me there.

But Maxwell was so protective of his secret beach that when Chloe drove them there, he would only give her step-by-step directions. He didn't want me to know the name in case we broke up. He didn't want me bringing other people to his secret spot. But she remembered where it was. The police were like, okay, you direct us. Repeating the directions Maxwell had always given her, Chloe led investigators straight to his secret beach, Warnamont Park.

Just having that proof that he knew about it and was familiar with it to a level that he referred to it as a secret beach. That was pretty big. What do we think happened here? This is where he dismembered her. When you think of that special place, special to him, what comes to mind? Chatee. Yeah. Think about Chatee.

On April 12th, 2024, Milwaukee County Sheriff Danita Ball made an announcement. The severed leg has been preliminarily identified as belonging to Ms. Robinson. That same day, Maxwell Anderson was charged with first-degree intentional homicide, mutilation of a corpse and arson. He would plead not guilty to all charges. DNA testing would later confirm the other. remains were also Shadee. On what should have been Shadei's 20th birthday, her family held a memorial for her. It would take a year before they would see the man accused of killing Shadei brought to trial.

Welcome to Radio Rental. The scariest stories you've ever heard in your life, all told by real people. And off we go. This wasn't a human. being that I saw. There's something here in this house, something not of this world. There was a woman moving through the hall. I stepped back and I was completely alone. Radio Rental is available now. Listen for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. In May 2025, Maxwell Anderson's murder trial began. Detective Donner knew it would be a tough fight with a circumstantial case. I really wanted that gotcha piece of direct evidence, you know, and it never came.

Use your common sense and search for the truth. Prosecutor Ian Vance Curzan took the jury through the last minutes of Chaudet's life. She was murdered by Maxwell Anderson. Her body was dismembered by Maxwell Anderson in a vicious and gruesome manner. And then Maxwell Anderson attempted to make her disappear from this world. The prosecutor showed the jury. this grainy footage of Anderson's home captured on his neighbor's security camera. It's hard to see, but investigators say it shows Maxwell and Chaudet, in silhouette,

arriving at his house and turning on the light of his second floor living room. Then through the upstairs window, moving shadows can be seen. Investigators had poured over the footage hoping to find proof of Anderson murdering Chadeh. Do we have any idea what's happening now? I don't. But Detective Donner did notice something that happened hours later. I'm only seeing one person leaving, and I note that one person that is leaving is the same height as the fence and the gate. Which is pretty tall.

It's six foot. Six foot. Investigators suspect Maxwell had already killed Chadee by that time. Max had nothing to do with these crimes. Maxwell Anderson's defense attorney, Anthony Cotton, told the jury that Anderson, being the last known person with Chaudet, proved nothing. We don't dispute any of that timeline that they went out together and went back to Max's house, but that doesn't mean he killed her.

And he dismissed the footage collected by the prosecution. All of this video, all the hundreds of hours of video, you can see the car, but you can't ever conclude that he is the one who is driving this vehicle. It's a pure speculation. Cotton highlighted what he called the serious holes in the state's case, mainly the lack of motive and the unknown cause of death. There is absolutely no reason for acts to commit a crime like this. Why would he ever do something like that?

Cotton pointed out that authorities can't even say how Chade died because some of her remains have not been recovered. CBS 58 reporter Adam Rife says the defense's case seemed to be effective with courtroom watchers. There was talk as this trial war on that not all the evidence is there. If it was Maxwell Anderson, how did he do it? And where is that murder weapon? But what would the jury think?

Did any of you think, oh, this is a slam dunk? We spoke to four of the jurors, Becca, Marilyn, Nikki, and Mel, who says she was unimpressed with the footage of Shade's car. that the prosecution presented. I was like, where the hell is this going? Why are they showing us this? Who's driving? We don't know.

Like, there's no definitive proof. But there was one video that did make an impression. This footage of a man leaving the scene of Shade's burning vehicle. You can hear a bystander calling out. Marilyn, the jury four woman, says the footage reminded her of the. mystery person on the beach. You know, that is the same silhouette that we saw walking the streets of Milwaukee. The man then gets on a city bus, and you can see his face crystal clear.

It was Maxwell Anderson. What does he have with him? He has that large backpack still. The backpack pants and shoes Anderson is wearing on the bus were never recovered. His gray jacket was eventually found. in his neighbor's garbage can. When the jacket was tested, it had Chaudet's DNA

inside the hood and on the zipper pull. Now, could it be maybe explained away? Sure. I mean, she did go to his house. Why would you throw it in a trash can two houses away from your home? Exactly. State calls Chloe Wright.

Chloe Wright, who chose to testify off-camera, spoke about her ex-boyfriend and his secret. beach. He looked at her like, I'm going to kill you right now. Don't you say a word. You all noticed that. She played a very vital role, I think. But jurors would soon learn about a safe found in Shade's apartment. Inside, marijuana and what appeared to be methamphetamine pills. Although the pills were never sent to the state crime lab for conclusive testing, the defense seemed to suggest more should have been done to see if Shade's murder was really connected to those drugs.

I felt that it was irrelevant to the case because there was never, ever any evidence that pointed to her as being a substance abuser. They're just trying to distract us. So it never crossed your mind once that maybe this was a drug deal gone wrong. Never, never. Never. Never. Investigators had tested Shade's remains. Did they find any drugs in her system? No. Caffeine was the only thing found. Jurors say it was actually one of the last pieces of evidence that they saw that made the biggest impact. Photos found on Maxwell Anderson's phone that he had taken and deleted.

The photos are of Shadeh at his home. She is face down. Her arm is over her face. you see the hand of a white male grasping what would be her right breast. Do you believe Chade was deceased or alive in those pictures? Do you know? I do not know. My assumption is that she was deceased.

To see the way he treated her like an object, it was really disturbing. I mean, I personally felt like I had lived the life. last few hours of Shaudi's life with her, and you were walking kind of her footsteps throughout the night, and to see her end up like that, it was disgusting, humiliating, just horrible. We went all back into the jury room, and there was a lot of quiet, a lot of hugs, and just, everybody was just kind of sick. That did it. That did it.

The state has no more witnesses. the state rests. Okay. And then Maxwell Anderson's defense rested without calling a single witness. Is it still your decision not to testify? That is my decision. The jurors headed to deliberate, but they didn't deliberate for long. After breaking for the night, the jury had a verdict in less than an hour.

We want to come in here and we want to make a statement with how fast we make this decision. We, the jury, find the defendant, Maxwell Anderson, guilty of first-degree intentional homicide, guilty of mutilating a corpse, guilty of arson of property other than a building, guilty of Shadeh Robinson's murder. But two months later, Maxwell Anderson decided to tell his story. Mr. Anderson, what would you like to say? This is the most. heinous crime this court will see. It doesn't get more serious than this. Shadey Robinson's family was determined to see that Maxwell Anderson would never be free again.

They spoke directly to the judge at his sentencing. 17-year-old Adriana. When Maxwell Anderson murdered my sister, he redefined the definition of misfortune. He made it to where I cannot meet any person without the fear that they're going to harm or kill me. because all my sister did was meet someone and as a result he ended her life. He tried to erase her existence and her value. Now I no longer have the opportunity

to try and give her everything she gave me. Chade's father, Carlos Robinson, told the court what justice would be for him. To lose your child in this manner is unthinkable. What he has done is inconceivable. He deserves the punishment that he gave to my daughter.

Everything that he did should be done to him. To me, that's justice. Sheena, wearing Shade's favorite color, pink on her eyelids, wanted answers from her daughter's killer. You disrespectfully spread my daughter across Milwaukee

like a piece of trash, how dare you? And she made a heartbreaking plea. I'm going to respectfully request that you confess where my daughter's crown is. Shade's crown, her head, which has still never been found. You've already done the worst. You can at least give us that much.

But if Shade's family was hoping for answers, they were disappointed. Mr. Anderson, what would you like to say? Maxwell Anderson finally chose to speak. I would like to start by saying that from the bottom of my heart, my deepest and most sincere condolences go out to Cháide's family, as well as everyone else affected by this tragedy. That being said, Your Honor, I did not commit these crimes.

I hope and pray that further investigations not only prove my innocence, but find and deliver true justice. You would think that he would tell us the things we wanted to know and finally feel some remorse after sitting in jail for these moms. And then he didn't. Anything else you wish to say? No, ma'am. Judge Laura Cravello read a statement Anderson made to an investigator after his conviction.

He regretted he did not walk Ms. Robinson to her vehicle when she left his apartment, and he believed it was at that point she was abducted by an unknown assailant, quote, either from the alley or from my backyard, unquote. When asked how he accounted for his presence in the area where Ms. Robinson's vehicle was set on fire, Mr. Anderson said that he was set up. You're hearing this stuff and you're like, no.

Nope. What do you think happened that night? I believe that they went back to his house. I think he may have wanted to take things further than she was comfortable with, and that maybe she rejected him. And his rather well-documented temper came out. And Donner suspects Anderson would have killed again. I think this was his first time killing.

I could be wrong, but that's my opinion. I do firmly believe, though, that it probably wouldn't be his last. if he hadn't been caught, given what he did to her body. Chloe wonders if she could have been one of his targets. A year after they broke up, she says, Maxwell sent her a message on Instagram. And it was, ignore time is over. Five hours later, Maxwell Anderson met Todd A. Robinson when she applied for that job. It's got to give you the chills.

It's eerie. Before sentencing Anderson, Judge Cravello took a moment to share her own thoughts about the loss of Shadee Robinson. She was a girl that I would hope all young ladies strive to be. She was loved in the community by almost everyone that touched her. You stole a truly shining light is what it sounds like. And then she gave the man who stole that light the maximum. You shall be sentenced to imprisonment for life. I am ordering that you will not be eligible for extended supervision.

Life without the possibility of parole. Thank you guys for supporting us. Outside the courthouse, Chade's loved ones thank the city of Milwaukee for keeping her memory alive. I do appreciate the city of Milwaukee. because they have showed my daughter a lot of love. A mural of Shadee sits beneath her beloved pizza shuttle. Sheena has launched a program in Shade's honor to help crime victims, and she has partnered with a Wisconsin state representative

to create a task force to examine and prevent the disproportionately high levels of violence against black women and girls. In May of 2024, Adriana, dressed in a pink cap and gown. accepted Shade's degree at what should have been her big sister's graduation. Seeing her live her life as such a hard worker who never let anything stop her. I knew that she would want me to do that after I lost her, that she would want me to keep living. And so I'm going to remember her by following in her footsteps

and feel the hole that she left. Although I know I can never live up to anywhere near her shoes. I don't know about that. do. In Wormonmont Park, the site where this tragic investigation began, Chade's family and friends unveiled a memorial bench. It's in the area Detective Donner has searched dozens of times in the hopes of fulfilling Shade's loved one's deepest wish of laying all of Shadee to rest.

Do you think we'll ever find Shade's crown? I think so when the lake is ready to give her back. In August 2025, Maxwell Anderson announced he planned to appeal his conviction.