Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - 'Killer' Leads Cops to Body Parts of 'Brother' He Murdered: Sheriff

Episode Date: October 8, 2025

Rainor Joiner, 23, faces a number of charges including first-degree murder, conspiracy and tampering with evidence in the death of Matthew McLaughlin in Taos County, New Mexico. Detectives say Joiner confessed to shooting McLaughlin in the chest and head on July 25 because he was "running his mouth." Joiner and co-defendant, David DeGroat, had served in the U.S. Army with McLaughlin and the three had moved to New Mexico. Law&Crime's Angenette Levy goes through body camera footage just released of Joiner leading detectives to McLaughlin's remains in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.Host:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5Producer:Jordan ChaconCRIME FIX PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinVideo Editing - Daniel CamachoGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee 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 binge all episodes of this Law and Crimes series ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Sheriff's off the search warrant open the door! A SWAT team moves in looking for evidence of murder after a soldier confesses to murdering his roommate who'd been reported missing. The fact that you're taking us to recover his body, the fact that you came clean and more honest, I'm going to ensure that that's reflected with the district attorney. And detectives say that man, Rainer-Joyner, led them to the man's body parts. Did you plan to kill him, Matthew?

No. I go through the entire horrible case. Welcome to Crime Fix. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. This case is so disturbing, sad and frankly, unbelievable, and disgusting. Two U.S. Army soldiers are accused of murdering another soldier they both once considered a brother. But what detectives say was done to Matthew McLaughlin is so cold-blooded and calculated, it's hard for a lot of us to imagine anyone doing something like this. But detectives say a man named Rainer Joyner was cold and calculated enough to murder Matt McLaughlin

with the help of one of their roommates. Detectives say, after Joyner, shot McLaughlin, Loflin. He dismembered him over a period of days and scattered his body parts in different locations in New Mexico. The alleged motive for this, an affidavit says that Joyner told detectives that McLaughlin was, quote, running his mouth. Seriously. That is what detectives say Rainer Joyner told them. Matt McLaughlin was killed in Tows County, New Mexico in July. That's about 70 miles northeast of Santa Fe. His mother had reported him missing on July 31st. We now know that Matthew McLaughlin, he's dead. Arrest affidavits say that Rainer Joyner shot Matt McLaughlin his fellow soldier and roommate back on July 25th after a confrontation. Rainer Joyner,

when confronted by detectives, confessed to killing McLaughlin, shooting him in the chest with an AR-15, and then walking up to him and shooting him again in the head with a Beretta handgun since McLaughlin was still alive. Detectives say Joyner and McLaughlin's other roommate, David D. De Groot started to dry-heave when the pair was confronted and said he helped Rainer dispose of McLaughlin's remains and that Rainer Joyner killed Matthew because he was starting rumors about him and bringing drugs to their home. De Groot told detectives that Rainer Joyner took this as a sign of disrespect. And Rainer Joyner told detectives he didn't regret killing McLaughlin at all, not for a minute. And you're going to hear from Rainer just a little bit

later, so stay tuned for that. Rainer Joyner was loaded into a sheriff's truck, and he led detectives to locations off of State Highway 64. It doesn't matter if it's a truck. It's on a little ride. What is that? Grab down these roads. It doesn't matter. Even a truck like here goes, we'll just outfit it like this. It's still a ride. Yeah, these roads are, you know, those are soapy off. Yeah.

You should see when it storms and rain. It rains and snow up here. Yeah, when, like, the spring when the snow is melting is when it's scary. For more than two hours, detectives drove and stopped as rain or Joyner sat in the backseat of the truck. The detective stopped at the locations that Joyner described. Some were miles off the road. At those locations, they found body parts that they believed belonged to Matt McLaughlin. How comfortable do you feel?

No, you know what? You're good. You're good. Just communicate with me through here. Guide me. I'm going to sit in the front. Just guide us to where we need to go. Okay. Appreciate you, bro. All I can tell you is, you know, me and my partner are the ones in charge of this. The fact that you're taking us to recover his body, the fact that you came clean and we're honest.

I'm going to ensure that that's reflected with the district attorney. Okay? I understand. I can promise you that I'll do that for you. I understand. Okay? Alright brother, let's go. Let's go get this man so that we can them to rest, okay?

Yeah. Let me grab my cell, serge. Okay. Rainer also made small talk with the detectives about guns. Yeah, well, the thing is that we're 1911, but anybody could pretty much carry what they want if they want to qualify and go through the steps, you know? Yeah, I know.

Debbie Needs stealing me. I know he rocks a, uh, uh, We're at a M-82, I think. Yeah, I enjoyed the Glock, though. Good old faithful. You were carrying a revolver though, aren't you? I was. I usually used a Springfield echelon, but... I was just in town.

I didn't find the holster for my echelon, so I just was carrying the... and the 38 special Rosco, snubdoes. Are you thirsty, man? Yeah, you could use the water. You stay here? No, we're leaving. Hey, but give me a water for... Hey, Calf, give me a water here.

That's uncomfortable. Mind if I'm comfortable. Yeah, no, I can't get out of these. Now, I'm good. I'm good. You are going to be in the dryer. There you go. If you need more, just let us know.

Now, later in the day, a SWAT team executed a search warrant at the home, the three once shared. The sheriff's office, search warrant, open the door! Search wires! The sheriff's office open the door! Search warrant! Search warrant! Search warrant! Serfs office! From your hands! Search wire, surf's office, throw your hands! Open and empty! Got Dead space, Death space left! It's tight, it's tight.

Dead space right. I'm gonna move left. Byers and Kevin, clear that left. I'll hold my hair. On me. Moving. Clear. Clear. Clear.

Secondaries. Check everything. I'm clear, ma'er. I'm clear, ma'am! Clear! Clear! Watch your fingers. Put you on this. Just let it down.

So it doesn't hit us in the face when we go out. Hey, we got to open the road by this vehicle. The detectives weren't messing around. You saw that video of that tank rolling up to the house. Before that search warrant was executed, and after Rainer Joyner led detectives to what they were fairly certain were Matthew McLaughlin's body parts in the locations where Joyner had directed them. The detectives took Rainer-Joyner to the sheriff's office.

This paper, using those pens, share when you want, I want you to write me a personal statement, a statement from you describing everything involving this incident from beginning to write out, as detailed as you humanly can. When you're done with that, on this sheet, I want you to draw a timeline, an updated timeline, accurately with what we obviously know happen now, okay? And take your time on it. We're going to hang out for whatever long it takes you. Also, I want to read you, your Miranda rights again, a little quick.

I'm just going to tell you. Yeah, the right remains silent. You say, it can I'll be against the court of law. You have the right to talk to lawyer and have him or present. Lizzie. If you're going to afford to hire a lawyer, one will be a point to representing you before any question, if you wish. Is that any time next to exercise these rights, not answer my questions, make any statements, having these rights in mind? Are you still willing to speak with me?

Yes. Okay. And you understand your rights? Yes. Okay. Thank you. And so Rainer-Joyner, he'd be. begins to write, and he writes for a long time. It's now early in the morning of August 18th, around 5.30 a.m.

You'll even hear a cat in the background as Rainer writes out his statement, which detectives say is a cold-blooded confession to murder. man. That's going to be the fucking factual thing. This is because of the fucking media. Yeah. I'll do this fucker that you can do that. Okay. That's going to be the best way to do it.

We're not here all the freaking morning. We're both going to be called to testify, huh? Yeah. You know what I mean? So. Oh yeah. It's cold, bro. Dude, I know.

You okay, brother. Yeah. what we should do because we did it to David to cuff his left hand to the to the chair yeah it's just that way we treat you the same as we treat everybody you know what I mean A lot more comfortable on the inside boat, just like that. Now, you heard one of the detectives mentioned David. That's Rainer's alleged co-conspirator, David DeGroote, who'd already confessed to detectives

telling a grisly story about how he'd tried to talk Rayner out of murdering Matthew many times. I want you to explain to me the plan that you're talking about. A plan to kill Matt. That's your name. Okay. So his idea was initially he was going to come up the road that we were going to have, and he was going to try to snap him with his 308 from a distance. And then his plan changed when Matt said he was getting dropped off over by the other road.

So then Joyner's idea was he was going to take my beretta so he can have a sidearm, and then he grabbed his AR and then waited in the bushes for us to come up and told me to stick to one side of the road and to be very loud when I'm near the area. So when he sees Matt come up on the side, despite how dark it is, he doesn't need to worry about who it is. Now back to Rainer, who finishes writing his statement. Starting from July 25 at roughly 1807 p.m. I, Jordan Rainer, confronted Matt on the right most path leading to the house about 600 meters away. When confronting Matt, I asked him to explain why he was spreading rumors about me and bringing drugs, strangers over to the house.

He, Matt, in parentheses, said that I didn't come up there often enough. So it was basically his place. A dark in a dark state of mind. I shot him with the Springfield St. A.R. rifle I was carrying. After shooting him, I dragged his body to a tree 40 meters away on the left side of the road. July 26 slash 27. I went to work. After work, I went to harbor freight. and bought buckets not having what I felt I needed. I went to tractor supply.

There I got trash bags and a splitter axe from there. I went to the land going back to the tree to cut off his head and hands. After doing so, I bagged them, then placed them inside one of the buckets. I took that bucket in my work van to a drain ditch four to five miles up the road, dumping it in there. The next Wednesday night I went to cut off the legs and arms. I found that wildlife had gotten him, so I cut off his forearm and legs. below the knee, bagged them, then I was able to rip out his upper leg bone from his hip

sockets, bagging them with some of his clothes. Oh, I believe you're trying to say finally, but it's spelled finel. I bagged his torso, throwing it all in a drain ditch, seven, and a six miles up. Thank you. Then Rainer, he's asked to elaborate on why he did what he did. What took place? Just describe and explain to us the entire situation with Matthew.

So everything I told you last time we spoke about my kids for any word words and all that. wasn't a lie, that was all factual. Probably the only thing that changed from what I talked to the last time and be confessing was basically just the fact that when I confer, instead when I confronted him, I didn't let him walk and we got shot. So everything was pretty much the same. Like I said, can you spread rumors?

He was bringing drugs. You bring strangers. Hey. I got in front of them, but I got, I don't know, I got pissed off and decided you're not going to give me the chance to get it. And so I shot him. So just like that, Rainer said he shot and killed Matt McLaughlin, and then he described what he did after that. When they didn't have what I was looking for, I went on, I'm afraid, and then decided that that's the group of the use would be the Slitter X and also both. some bags, 33-gallon trash bags.

When they were back up to the land, back up to that spot, cut off his head and hands, bag them up, put them in the harbor freight bucket, drove back down the mountain about four or five miles trying to deep-drained ships through the bucket down there. that next Wednesday, which I think was about the 30th, 31st. Um, Wednesday went into Thursday, was my next time off. Next day also I'll back up there, Wednesday night. Uh, late Wednesday night. Found the animals that are already.

Start to expediate the process, cut off his lower legs and forearms, the eggs bagging them up, sit them aside and back. bagged up his torso, sit, took it all back down, went to another training of chips that was further up about six to seven miles up, up the road. From there it's, from there you guys interviewed me a few days, something after that. I was around what, on this 16, 15, 16th. I don't regret what I did, is what I'm saying. At the end of the day, I don't know what I did.

That wasn't the same thing I started with, like I said before. And why don't you regret it? Honestly, I'm not... I've never been... I think I've got a normal sense of, I guess a normal sense of humanity. I don't know how I was to put that. I've always kind of been the odd one out when it comes to like that. It's always been the first one to just say it's like, you know, well, you can always

deal with a, there's always one way to deal with it probably permanently. When I was in the Army, when I was going through O-Sit, my first one actually had, my first one at the time forced me to go to behavioral health and talk to a counselor, because I didn't deal with you in a normal way. confessed to murdering Matt McLaughlin, but he denied planning it, despite what David DeGroote told detectives. Did you plan to kill him, Matthew? No.

No, I actually never planned to kill him. I never planned to actually kill him. And the sense of like, it wasn't premeditated. When I went up there, I was giving him one last chance to fix things. At times, Rainer, he appeared to brag about what he had done. And he told the detectives, He grew up chronically homeless. He recalled something his father had told him that always stuck with him.

He looked me in and said, it's like, son, you're like me. You're going to like killing. You're going to find it easy. But she's wrong. So, okay. Have you ever killed anybody else? Yeah. This is your first time ever murdering somebody?

Yes. Rainer Joyner faces a number of charges, including conspiracy, and first degree murder. So does David de Groot. Rainer Joyner's attorney told a New Mexico newspaper that he believes his client's mental competency could be an issue based on what he saw in that police interview. And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.