48 Hours - The Disappearance of Aniah Blanchard

Episode Date: July 1, 2024

College student Aniah Blanchard had a deep fear of being kidnapped. When she disappears, UFC fighter Walt Harris battles for justice for his stepdaughter. James Brown reports.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. I'm Erin Moriarty of 48 Hours, and of all the cases I've covered, this is the one that troubles me most. A bizarre and maddening tale involving an eyewitness account that doesn't quite make sense. A sister testifying against a brother. A lack of physical evidence. Crosley Green has lived more than half his life behind bars for a crime he says he didn't commit. Listen to Murder in the Orange Grove, the troubled case against Crosley Green, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app. When your sister, Aniyah, dropped you off that evening, she did indicate that she would give you a call when she got home, correct?

Yeah, sure, she did. And? Pure hell. Just the worst feeling ever to not know where your child is. I mean we were doing everything we could as parents in that moment to try to find her. 19-year-old Aniyah Haley Blanchard disappeared last week. Aniyah Blanchard was reported missing 11 days ago.

There has been no trace of her since she passed away. Blanchard is the stepdaughter of UFC fighter Walt Harris. Walt Harris! When she was missing, fighting was the furthest thing from my mind at that point. We just want our daughter home. We want her found. If you have any information, please, please come forward.

I was almost a shell of myself. You know, honestly, I didn't even know if I'd fight again. But she always was the one that was like, don't stop. That's it, keep pushing. You know, keep pushing, keep pushing. I know it's hard. Nine. Everything for me moving forward is about making her proud. I'm going to always fight for my baby girl.

She was a very happy girl that loved life. Very loving and giving. She always put others before herself. People could just really tell that she had something about her that was special. There was nothing in my mind other than finding Aniyah. You don't sleep, you don't eat, you're constantly thinking about where she is, what has happened. And it does not go away. We were just trying to keep each other sane so we could keep moving forward.

So it was a constant go, go, go. We're not stopping. J'ai, I love you and the mommy is not going to give you home Anaya, you're coming home so don't worry. James Brown reports, fighting for Aniyah. I had Aniyah on my birthday, June 22nd. That was just going to be something so special in life for she and I to share the same birthday. Happy birthday to you! Her laugh, infectious. Her spirit, irrepressible. Aniyah Blanchard was just 19 when she vanished. Her vibrant presence replaced by the terrifying silence of her absence.

Aniyah's mother, Angela Harris. She just embraces people. She just loved people. She would walk in, and no matter how you felt, how down you were, she could pick you up. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Aniyah's stepfather, UFC heavyweight Walt Harris, was a rising star ranked ninth in the world

in the fall of 2019. He says Aniyah constantly inspired him. You know, after wins, we'd celebrate. If it's a loss, she'd always pick me up, and she was always that rock, that voice that kept me going. Anaya grew up in Homewood, Alabama, near Birmingham. Now up the bat, number 22, Anaya Blanchard.

Go, Chase! It's practically local folklore that after every school softball game, Anaya invited the opposing team to join hers on the pitcher's mound to share high fives and the Lord's Prayer. And even if we lost, the other team lost, no matter what, no hard feelings. I think that was her whole thing. This is a way to connect people. Longtime friend Hannah Crocker met Aniyah in the sixth grade.

She was one of those people that just wanted to make sure that, hey, you're doing okay. If not, let me help you out. Did folks ever think you two might be boyfriend and girlfriend? All the time. Is this your girlfriend? I'm like, no, this is my sister. They were nearly inseparable, says Aniyah's older brother, Elijah Blanchard.

We grew up 17 months apart. We were always together and she even followed me to college. Elijah headed off to Auburn University in 2017. Aniyah enrolled at nearby Southern Union State Community College a year later, finding an apartment just minutes from her brother. at nearby Southern Union State Community College a year later, finding an apartment just minutes from her brother. I would call her every morning. Sorry, it gets kind of rough sometimes.

October 23rd, 2019, Aniyah, Elijah, and their mom, Angela, attended the funeral of a family friend in northern Alabama. Immediately after the service, the siblings had to leave. Both had to work the next morning back in Auburn, 185 miles away. She looked over at me. She said, hey, Mom, we really need to leave now because it's getting late. I said, yeah, you're right.

It's 7 o'clock. You've got a four-hour drive. And then she hugged me, and I kissed her on the cheek, and I told her I loved her. Driving right past Birmingham, Aniyah and Elijah made a pit stop at home to see their stepfather, Walt. He was training for his next fight. I didn't ever call them stepkids. They were my children. It's just the way I saw it. I loved them like my own.

The children's biological father, Elijah Blanchard Sr., a local pastor and businessman, remained a close presence in their lives. He and Angela divorced in 2004. Soon she started dating Walt Harris. And then he met Aniyah and Elijah Jr. for the first time. You came into her life around age three. Tell us about how that bonding process went. I think it started day one. Man, we did everything together.

It was beautiful for me to watch their bond grow over the years. They loved me like they knew me their whole lives. We just felt like a little family. Walt and Angela made it official, getting married in January 2010. They eventually had two children of their own, Asa and Ayla. He was with them more than I was because I worked a lot. Angela, a pediatric emergency room nurse, worked nights at a Birmingham hospital. So it was Aniyah who helped Walt with the younger children. It was me and Aniyah. She helped me basically raise her little brother and sister. Coming from a strong Christian background, I wanted to be a good influence in their lives. The kids certainly look up to their dad.

At 6'5", 250 pounds, Walt Harris has been a towering presence in their lives. And in the bruising octagon cage of the ultimate fighting championship, the UFC. Man, ever since he throws, it's hard. Win, lose, or draw, Walt's family has always been in his corner. My family's always been the reason why I fight, and they've always been the reason why I get back up. And Anaya, she was the main catalyst for that. After the funeral, Aniyah and Elijah's visit with Walt was all too short. A brief talk, a long hug, and they were back on the road to Auburn,

still about two hours away. When they left, Walt says he was left with a growing sense of regret. I struggle with it every day. I should have just told him to stay because I felt like she was tired. I remember she said, uh, no, I'm fine. I'll be fine. And I hugged her and I told her I love her and that was it. They made the drive without incident, arriving in Auburn around 11 p.m. Aniyah dropped off Elijah at his apartment. So I just said I love her, be careful and just make sure you get home safe. So at 11.09 p.m. I texted her and said, are you close to being home?

She responded right back, yeah. Aniyah's college roommate, Sarah O'Brien. She always let me know where she was at and when she would be home. We actually shared each other's location on our iPhone. That's because, Sarah says, Aniyah had a deep-rooted fear. Since the day I met Aniyah, she always told me that that was her biggest fear, to be kidnapped or martyred.

Like, as soon as she walked in, she would check every room. She would tell me multiple times, like, she had nightmares about it happening to her. You know, she really never went anywhere by herself at night. But that night, after dropping off her brother, she was alone with just three miles to go. That's how far away she and Sarah lived from Elijah. Three miles, normally a 10-minute drive. lived from Elijah, three miles, normally a 10-minute drive. But nearly 30 minutes later, Aniyah had not come home.

Sarah texted again. Did you go out without me? About a minute later came the reply. I'm smoking a blunt, LOL. It was the word blunt, Sarah says that stopped her she had never heard anaya use it i said who are you smoking with eric i say who is that i just met him and i responded with where it was 11 43 pm There would not be another response. Sarah checked her cell phone one last time for Anaya's location. She appeared to be at a nearby apartment complex where lots of students lived.

Sarah went to bed, she says, thinking Anaya was hanging out with friends. with friends. 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. As a kid growing up in Chicago, there was one horror movie I was too scared to watch.

It was called Candyman. The scary cult classic was set in the Chicago Housing Project. It was about this supernatural killer who would attack his victims if they said his name five times into a bathroom mirror. Candyman. Candyman? Now, we all know chanting a name won't make a killer magically appear, but did you know that the movie Candyman was partly inspired by an actual murder? I was struck by both how spooky it was, but also how outrageous it was. We're going to talk to the people who were there, and we're also going to uncover the larger story. My architect was shocked when he saw how this was created,

literally shocked. And we'll look at what the story tells us about injustice in America. If you really believed in tough on crime, then you wouldn't make it easy to crawl into medicine cabinets and kill our women. Listen to Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder, wherever you get your podcasts. The next morning, October 24th, Angela Harris took her children to school and reached out to Anaya to talk. It was their early morning ritual. We FaceTimed every morning. That was kind of our thing.

Like, good morning, what are you doing? What do you got planned for the day? So when I called her at 8 a.m. and she didn't answer the FaceTime, I thought, okay, well, you know, she's busy, so I'll give her a little bit longer. Sarah was eager to hear about Eric, the mystery man Anaya met the night before. She went straight to Anaya's bedroom. And she wasn't there. She would always come home. She wouldn't spend the night with anyone she'd just met. Sarah glanced at her cell phone, looking for Aniyah's latest location. But there was none.

Aniyah's phone had gone dark. When did concern turn to worry for you, Sarah? When I called her the lady that she babysat for, and she hadn't shown up that morning because she never misses a day to babysit those kids. She loved them. She was like a mother to my kids. Corinna Thomas, the working mother who depended on Aniyah, said she was the most reliable nanny she ever had. Amazing. I don't know how else to explain it.

Every good quality that you want in a person, she had. Like, everything. She never once, never once didn't show up to take care of those kids. And that's when I hopped in the car to look for Aniyah's car. The longer I drove, the more worried I got. I didn't see any trace of her at all. Sarah decided to get Aniyah's brother and take a second look. Sarah decided to get Aniyah's brother and take a second look. Her roommate calls me and tells me that Aniyah never even came home last night.

Aniyah's missing. And then I told him what she said about Eric and that she was with him. And he was like, no, she didn't tell me anything about that. My heart kind of just sank. And this was completely out of her character. This isn't Aniyah. Aniyah wouldn't have run away. Immediately, I called my parents and was like,

Aniyah's missing. And he says, Mom, we can't find Aniyah. And I said, son, what are you talking about? You can't find her. He said, no, Mom, I'm in her apartment and we can't find Aniyah. Immediately alarmed, Angela and Walt took off for Aniyah's apartment. Two excruciating hours away. We just got in his truck and just flew to Auburn. All types of things are going through our head. What's happened? What's going on? And pure hell. Walt, how did you process all of this when you found out that your daughter was missing?

That drive to Auburn was the hardest thing I've ever been through in my life because I knew something wasn't right. Elijah decided to check with Corinna Thomas again. Maybe Aniyah showed up. I wasn't worried until her brother messaged me. Hey, I'm Aniyah's brother. I was wondering if you heard from my sister today. No, I haven't.

I called her a bunch of times this morning, and she missed picking up the kids this morning. Yes, I'm at her apartment right now. We have been looking everywhere for her and can't find her. And Anaya never left her dog, Blue, alone overnight. That was her baby. We just knew when we got to her apartment that, wait, there's something really bad wrong here. Word quickly spread to Aniyah's friends.

And I was like, I was just talking to her last night. What are you talking about? I mean, I live three hours away from her. I was like, I don't know where she is. Hannah Crocker dropped everything and headed to Aniyah's apartment. Once it was 24 hours, I was like, that's not Aniyah. In my heart, I was like, she's a female, something happened. Yeah, Auburn is a college town. And it's a very safe place. Former Lee County District Attorney, Brandon Hughes.

This from the very beginning just felt differently, based on the information we had. It just didn't feel like this was a college student who decided to leave and blow off some steam. That just wasn't her personality. That's just not something she would have done. Aniyah's disappearance was breaking news. Right now, the search continues for a missing 19-year-old. They're looking for Aniyah Blanchard. If you have any information on where she is, call Auburn Police.

for Aniyah Blanchard. If you have any information on where she is, call Auburn Police. If you have any leads on where our daughter is, Aniyah Blanchard, please, please, please go to authorities, tell someone she was last seen in a black Honda CRV 2017. Please, if you know anything, we have to have her back.

We have to have her back. October 25th, with Aniyah gone for two days, her Honda was spotted in an apartment complex in Montgomery, Alabama, 55 miles from Auburn, and it was badly damaged. Worse still, there was no sign of Aniyah. Worse still, there was no sign of Aniyah. Corinna Thomas had to break the news to her children. And they said, Aniyah's missing. And then they cried. And then they came up with their own plan to help find her.

They got their tablets. Hey Google, how many houses are in Montgomery? And I was like, why are you looking that up? And he said, because we got to go see how many houses we have to go look for her at. They just wanted to find her. But nothing anyone did led to an Anaya sighting. Nothing anyone did led to an Aniyah sighting. Then a few days after she disappeared, police discovered that after Aniyah dropped off her brother, she stopped at this gas station, just two minutes from her home.

It's a Chevron gas station on College Street. Aniyah entered the Chevron gas station approximately 11.21 in the evening on the night of October 23rd, and she stayed there approximately a minute and a half to two minutes before she left. Aniyah bought a bag of sour cream and onion potato chips and a drink. That was her thing every night, even at home growing up. She would snack right before bed. We needed to know if anybody saw anything. What was she doing? Did she leave with anybody? Investigators zeroed in on the Chevron gas station where Aniyah was last seen on video before she disappeared.

They were looking for any leads to where she might be. Praise God, praise God, praise God. The community of Homewood, where she grew up, prayed for Aniyah's safe return. You come again. Ribbons and bows in Aniyah's favorite color appeared everywhere. It has rocked us to our core. It's one of ours. Come home, Aniyah. And when they weren't praying for her, they were out trying to find her.

Pretty quickly, people came together. It's like, hey, let's do searches here. Let's do searches there. We would go in the woods. We would go behind people's houses. We would go in alleyways. We drove my truck in backwoods. We were all in people's yards.

We must have canvassed from Auburn to Tuskegee, just me and her, within the first two or three days. The investigation quickly expanded across several counties, especially after Aniyah's car was found 55 miles away in Montgomery. You have to imagine, there were just massive areas that we had to search. There were dozens of agencies, state agencies, county agencies, local agencies, federal agencies, huge task force. And reward money poured in. UFC President Dana White and light heavyweight champion John Jones each contributed $25,000. It's a pain. It's anxiety.

It's just so many emotions. You're trying to hold hope that something positive is going to come out of it, but as the days go on, your hope just starts to dwindle and dwindle. Now missing eight days, hope was dealt a major blow. Tonight, police in Auburn, Alabama, say there's evidence that a missing college student is a victim of foul play. Evidence from within her vehicle is the reason that we are aware that she was harmed, and we do consider this a case where there's foul play involved. to consider this a case where there's foul play involved.

Police would not say what they found, but Aniyah's biological father, Elijah Blanchard, Sr., was not ready to give up. That was hard for us. I'm a man of faith, and regardless of what the police say, I still have hope that my Aniyah's out there waiting on her father to get her. Aniyah's disappearance was taking more than an emotional toll on Walt Harris. He immediately canceled his upcoming fight. Aniyah was the only thing on everyone's mind. I wasn't able to focus at all. There was chaos.

There was sadness. I just wanted to be there for my family. It's like a dark abyss. You're fighting that off. Then, after 14 days, the police announced they wanted this man. He was seen at the gas station store at the same time Aniyah was there. An eyewitness said he thought he saw him force Aniyah into her car before they drove off together. This is a person of interest. Anyone who sees him is asked to call 911. Someone did, and the man the police were looking for was not named Eric.

He was Ibrahim Yazeed, a 30-year-old from Montgomery, and he had a lengthy arrest record. He should be considered dangerous and would be potentially armed. Police said Yazeed was charged earlier that year with kidnapping, robbing and nearly beating a 77-year-old man to death. He was also accused of robbing and beating a second man. Despite the serious charges, he was free on bond and had been staying in a hotel near the Chevron gas station. How is this person free to walk into a gas station? How is he just minutes down the road from me?

How is he in the same gas station as my best friend? But he was. And that was at 11.22 p.m. But he was, and that was at 11.22 p.m. Anaya's car was next seen a few minutes later at another nearby gas station where Yazeed bought a small cigar. It would be a little more than an hour before a license plate reader picked up Anaya's Honda near the entrance to I-85, heading south towards Montgomery. Aniyah's parents clung to hope, and they had faith that their daughter would be found alive. They even prayed for Yazeed.

You can stop now. You can change this. You can let her go. God will forgive you. Police captured Yazeed the following day, hiding in the woods 145 miles away in another state. Police say he did not surrender peacefully. 30-year-old Ibrahim Yazeed was arrested overnight in Florida

on the charge of kidnapping in the first degree. Yazeed appeared in a Florida court the next day with a swollen left eye. And court documents finally revealed what police found in the car. It was blood and a lot of it. Court documents today say blood that was discovered in Aniyah Blanchard's car was, quote,

indicative of someone suffering a life-threatening injury. Yazeed waived extradition to Lee County, Alabama, where Angela and Walt Harris would be waiting, hoping to find out where their daughter was. The Harrises were committed to facing Yazeed whenever he appeared in court. And each time felt like the first time. As a father, as a guy, I'm imagining as well what might've been coursing through your veins. Then you see him, Mr. Yazeed, looking back at you guys.

Anger. I remember shaking. I wanted to climb across the barricade. It made me really angry, because he was just kind of smug. Like, you're tough, I'm tough too. You know, like he was challenging me almost. It took all of Walt's training in the ring

and Angela's steady hand to keep him from ripping into Yazeed. She grabbed me and she said, just breathe. And I just started trying to hear her voice because I couldn't, I wouldn't take my eyes off of him. Like, okay, who's going to look away first type of deal. Angela, how did you stay composed? I wanted him to know that I'm representing my daughter

and that I'm not going anywhere. We're right here and we're going to fight this all the way through. Yazeed maintained his innocence and the burden to find Aniyah mounted. Everybody was on edge because there's a lot of pressure. There's pressure to find this little girl. Angela and Walt Harris publicized their daughter's disappearance on Dr. Phil. I love you, baby girl. We're looking for you. We're doing everything that we can, and we're going to get you. I promise. And they're on television. You're doing everything you can, but up to this point, it hasn't been enough. television. You're doing everything you can, but up to this point, it hasn't been enough.

By then, the DA, Angela, and Walt had grown close. If you want to call up, get frustrated, and yell at me for an hour, cry with me for an hour, I'm there, and that's what we were doing. A month after Aniyah went missing, the DA had news. Authorities now believed that this man, Antoine Fisher, who once served time for murder, helped Yazeed dispose of evidence. He was charged with kidnapping. He soon cooperated, providing a roadmap to Aniyah. Aniyah's remains were located in Macon County, Alabama, which is between Auburn and Montgomery. Obviously we didn't know to a hundred percent certainty that

that's who it was. You know, there were several items of clothing out there. I saw a boot. I took a photograph of it. Hughes asked the Harris's to meet at the DA's office. And they don't know why they're there. I showed the Harris's the photograph. The Sorrell boots, like this one, were a gift from Walt when the family visited New York City. Walt looked at the phone. He just drops it on the table and said, y'all excuse me? My wife had come up there and she came up the back stairwell. She said she saw Walt just punching the wall. I mean, this is a concrete wall.

He's screaming and just punching this wall. That's hard. Talk about a parent's worst nightmare when her body was found. about a parent's worst nightmare when her body was found. Immediately, I just wanted to actually know if I could see my child. I just want to see her. You know, we were told no. I just didn't want to go on anymore.

Walt. Broken, confused, angry. I just wanted to know why and what happened. Hughes and the police returned to the woods to search for more evidence. Just literally crawling on hands and knees looking for evidence, looking for anything that we could find. And what they found helped the Harris's finally learn what happened to their beloved Anaya.

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 bold risk-takers 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.

Hotshot 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 Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, and listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad-free right now. A blood-soaked passenger seat. A blood-soaked passenger seat. A bullet hole in the door. The evidence tells a story of what happened to Anaya that night. Investigators aren't certain how Yazeed ended up inside the car with Anaya.

Did he ask for a ride? Did he force her? But the damage outside suggests there was a struggle at some point as the car was moving. Investigators say Yazeed shot Anaya as she tried to escape. Anaya Blanchard was killed in a manner of homicide. The cause of death was a gunshot wound. Was your faith shaken, rocked? To have an angel taken like that, I didn't know why God would allow it. But Walt ultimately found comfort in his faith.

It brought me back. It's helped me understand that God didn't do this. It's helped me understand that God didn't do this. And on December 2nd, 2019, then-District Attorney Hughes announced the person responsible was Ibrahim Yazeed. He was now being charged with capital murder. We'll also be seeking the death penalty. Two days later, the Harris' were in court when Yazeed fought back. Yazeed seemed pleased when he was done.

The attitude, the smirks, the looks. Wow. But maybe the most damning evidence against Yazeed comes from Antoine Fisher. Remember, he was facing charges of helping Yazeed. Those charges were dropped. Fisher told police that just hours after Anaya disappeared, Yazeed showed up in Montgomery looking for help. And he was driving what looked like Anaya's black Honda. Fisher said he followed Yazeed to an apartment complex, the same complex where police would find Anaya's Honda. Yazeed then got into the truck Fisher was driving, says lead detective Josh Mixon. They ended up behind a church near a cemetery, and when he looked in the rearview mirror,

he saw Yazeed dragging something wrapped in a comforter. It appeared to be two legs. He drug it in the woods, come back, got in the vehicle, and he said, tell me that's not a body. Fisher says Yazeed told him he shot a girl, quote, when she went for the gun. Wow, it's indescribable how someone could actually do those things to my beautiful daughter. And so traumatizing to think about what she went through. Hearing it in grave detail, it was painful. And then the Harris's would learn that Yazeed,

in addition to being charged with nearly beating an elderly man to death, was also being charged with shooting two other people the year before he's accused of killing Aniyah. What would you like to see happen? Justice. Definitely justice. I want justice for my daughter. But justice has been delayed.

The pandemic has slowed all of Yazeed's criminal cases, and his lawyer declined to be interviewed. Walt, who had considered ending his career, found inspiration when Aniyah came to him in a dream. She was sitting in our living room, and there was just a beam of light on her. And she had her arms out and I hugged her and she said keep going and I just woke up like with a renewed vigor I felt fresh.

One, two, three, four. Inspired by Aniyah, Walt Harris bravely returned to the ring. Incredibly, a fight was scheduled for October 24th, the anniversary of Aniyah's murder. When he first told me, I said, are you sure? He said, I'm sure. And so I knew how important that this was to him and how important that this would be to her, to Aniyah, and that she would want him to do it.

Walt flew to Abu Dhabi and spent two weeks in quarantine, training in a hotel. We love you, Aniyah. Angela, meanwhile, remained home caring for their family. I miss her so bad. And holding a vigil the night before Walt's fight, marking the anniversary for the last time they saw Anaya alive. The following day, the Harris' were on the edge of their seats to watch Walt fight halfway around the world.

Woo! Perhaps Harris planned possum a little bit. Walt started out strong. As Harris attacks the body and now goes up top. But in an instant, the fight was over. Walt's actually grabbing his stomach. In retrospect, Walt told us he needed more mental strength. He returned home, and a few days later, he released all that pent-up emotion. He just broke down and fell out on the floor, crying.

And through all of her pain, Angela found her new calling. And through all of her pain, Angela found her new calling. She started a nonprofit, Aniyah's Heart, to teach safety and help search for missing people. I've done group sessions for education. I just did one with some sophomores from Aniyah's high school, a group of like 20 girls, teaching them about education and safety. It was amazing. This is a must. We have to have this law. And she's campaigning for Aniyah's law, a bill which, if enacted, allows judges to deny bond to serious violent offenders. She has people committing multiple violent crimes and they just get out on bond. It's just not okay.

I know one thing, that I will not stop fighting for her. Around Christmas 2019, nearly 2,000 people came together to celebrate Aniyah's life. That beautiful smile she had, you could just light up a room. Aniyah was light. When you looked at her in her eyes, the way she made you feel, she just made you feel like you was okay. We will miss you. We are so happy you were our sissy. Anaya has been my best friend since I met her in sixth grade. She left me with the best memories ever, of course.

The best memories ever, of course. She was a leader. She would put people first even when she was sad or needed anything. I love you, Anaya. You are truly my sunshine on rainy days. Thank you. All this stuff is true. She was really, truly a special human being. All this stuff is true. She was really, truly a special human being.

December 21st, 2019 will be forever known as Anaya Haley Blanchard Day in the city of Homewood, Alabama. I love you, Bill. In March 2023, Ibrahim Yazeed pleaded not guilty to three counts of capital murder and the death of Anaya Blanchard. In November 2023, Alabama enacted Anaya's Law, giving judges discretion to deny bail to defendants accused of violent crimes. If you like this podcast, you can listen ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a quick survey at wondery.com slash survey. Quick survey at wondery.com slash survey. 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 reached the age of 10 that would still a virgin. It just happens to all of us. 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.