Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Teen Murdered Family, Plotted School Shooting

Episode Date: March 23, 2025

Nicholas Prosper has been sentenced in the United Kingdom for murdering his mother, Juliana Falcon, and his younger siblings, Kyle Prosper, 16, and Giselle Prosper, 13. Nicholas shot all three of them last September and planned to carry out a mass shooting at his former elementary school. Police said his family waking up stopped the school shooting. Law&Crime's Angenette Levy goes through the horrific case in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: If you or someone you know have been diagnosed with bladder cancer or other cancers after prolonged exposure of hair color, visit https://forthepeople.com/hair to submit a claim in 8 clicks or less!Host:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5Guest: Dr. Daniel Bober https://www.instagram.com/drdanielbober/CRIME 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. Okay, I don't have to say anything, but it may harm your defense if you do not mention one question. Police officers in the UK slapped the cuffs on a teenager who had shot his mother, brother, and sister, and planned to carry out a mass shooting at his elementary school. Now Nicholas Prosper has learned his punishment. You do not want to be here, but it is not your choice. You have to face the consequences of your actions. I for joining me. I'm Anjanette Levy. School shootings are really one of the most horrific things we can talk about when someone carries out an act of mass murder at a place full

of children and their teachers. Thankfully, that didn't happen in this case, but this case is still tragic because the lives of three innocent people were taken. They were Julie Falcon and her children, Giselle Prosper and Kyle Prosper, and the person who murdered them was someone they should have been able to trust. It was Julie's son and Giselle and Kyle's older brother, Nicholas Prosper. Giselle was only 13 and Kyle was 16. It was September 13th of last year, Friday the 13th, eerily, when the investigation began with a 911 call. Police found Julie Falcon shot to death with a book about describing how someone can kill their family on her legs. Giselle Prosper had been shot in the face.

Kyle, according to the judge presiding over the case, had tried to run but was shot by his older brother. Police captured Nicholas Prosper that morning after he came out of some bushes after hiding. Nicholas Prosper was charged with three counts of murder, having an article with a blade, purchasing a firearm without a certificate, and possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life. Throughout the investigation, police pieced together many clues, some of them using surveillance video. Surveillance video from September 12th of last year shows Nicholas Prosper walking out of the elevator in his apartment building carrying a padded rifle case. Sometime before that, a man had pulled into a parking lot driving a silver car. Police have

circled that car and it backs into a parking space and the man gets out and waits. A minute or so after Nicholas Prosper had walked out of his apartment building, he meets up with the man gets out and waits. A minute or so after Nicholas Prosper had walked out of his apartment building, he meets up with the man in the silver car in the parking lot. This is the parking lot of his apartment building. Nicholas Prosper and the man walk to the back hatch of the car and they appear to look at something. Now this is the man that sold Nicholas Prosper the gun. They're at the back of the car for more than a minute. Nicholas is obviously checking out the gun that he's going to buy. He and the unsuspecting man talk for a little longer. This man would later tell police that Nicholas Prosper was very

well-mannered, and that was apparently different from his typical demeanor, which was described as off-putting. At 11.02 a.m., nine minutes after Nicholas had walked out of the building, he walks back inside. The gun is clearly filling out the padded gun case, and he's also carrying some type of case in his other hand. It took just nine minutes for him to buy the gun. He gets into the elevator and almost appears happy. The man in it offers to push the button for him. He rides back upstairs, his family likely having no idea what he was planning in just a matter of hours. This is so incredibly disturbing and unsettling. This is a photo of the shotgun Nicholas Prosper bought from the man that morning.

Less than 24 hours later, he would use it to kill his younger siblings and his mother. Horrifically, Prosper was planning a mass shooting, and he had been doing so for a year. Police found this video of him practicing his aim in his family's apartment. He was dressed in a yellow and black outfit he'd selected to carry out the crime at the elementary school that he had once attended. He'd sadistically wanted to target very, very young children, four-year-olds. Here's the judge at his sentencing. You explicitly sought to emulate and outdo Adam Lanza, the 20-year-old American who shot dead 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut, in 2012,

before shooting himself to avoid capture. Yu aimed for 34 deaths, one more than the deadliest school shooting of recent times in the United States of America at Virginia Tech in 2007. This is a Morgan & Morgan legal alert. Emerging reports reveal that hair color products may not come with clear warnings about potential health risks. If you or someone you know frequently handles hair color chemicals and have been diagnosed with bladder cancer or other cancers, Morgan & Morgan is here to fight on your behalf. Scan the QR code on your screen or go to forthepeople.com slash share to start a claim now. Why anyone would want to emulate or outdo a school shooter

is something I will never be able to understand. This case incorporates many recurrent themes in school shootings, such as a young male perpetrator, selection of distinctive clothing or uniform, recording a message about the activities, A sexual interest in children. Withdrawing into an online world. Reference to violent computer games. Suicidal intention and a lack of empathy towards the victims. Luckily, his plans to carry out the mass shooting at the school were thwarted by his own family. And I'll tell you how momentarily. The judge, when sentencing him, talked about Nicholas's flaws and his disturbing character

traits. Your internet activity has been analyzed. You are deeply fascinated by notorious murderers, perpetrators of mass school shootings around the world, and rapists. You collected images ymgyrchion ysgolion mas ym Mawrth a rhagwyr. Cyfreswyd ffynion o ddyn 6 oed, C, un o'r ddifrifwyr o'r masager ysgol Sandy Hook, ffotograffiau o ddwy ysgolion prifysgol ymraen ac ym mhob 200 o ffynion a fideos o blant. 19 o'r rhain oedd o'r math mwyaf seriol, Categ category A, depicting the rape of children. You recorded audio files discussing topics such as necrophilia, the six-year-old victim C, and a computer game called The Walking Dead. Nicholas Prosper's plans were thwarted, the judge said. When Juliana Falcon awoke early that morning and saw her son, she fought him for the gun. The judge said he ended up shooting his younger sister in the face

after she awoke and put on her glasses. And Kyle, his younger brother, tried to run but didn't make it out. Now, this guy is sick and sadistic. The judge said he had planned to rape his younger sister and that he planned to kill himself after carrying the school shooting out so he would be famous. But he didn't plan on his family waking up. Surveillance footage from the apartment building showed Nicholas Prosper walking out at 4.33 a.m. with his gun case. He then walks out of the building and toward the bushes quite calmly as if nothing is wrong. Later at 6.55 a.m., you can see him walking down the sidewalk in the yellow and black outfit. Then he appears on the sidewalk and waves down a police cruiser.

The family of Julie described her as a strong, loving mother to her four beautiful children who were her absolute world. In her spare time, she was a keen athlete and enjoyed raising money for charity. She was always putting others first. Kyle was a kind and funny young man who loved football and boxing. He was creative and thriving on TikTok, a big talent with massive potential. Kyle's friends were his everything. And Giselle was a beautiful soul and caring young girl. She liked to laugh and loved her family and her big brothers. She was lovable with an infectious smile, and she was also an exceptional student and loved by her fellow students. After Nicholas Prosper's sentencing, police spoke about the victims and the tragedy of this case.

I would like to pay tribute to the bravery of his victims, his own mother, Juliana, and siblings Kyle and Giselle who fought for their lives. The judge today said that their actions had almost certainly saved the lives of many other children. Everyone at Bedfordshire Police is utterly shocked and appalled by the sickening actions of this individual. Over the last six months, a team of highly experienced and professional detectives has worked extremely hard to find every piece of information to try and understand the motivation behind his actions and to ensure that there was no ongoing risk to the wider public.

What we have uncovered is that he was a lone individual whose plans were fortunately disrupted. I want to finish by reminding you all of those who lost their lives on the 13th September 2024. Juliana Falcon and her children Kyle and Giselle Prosper. It is their names we should remember and pay tribute to for the bravery they showed in those unimaginable final moments. We should not be remembering the person who took their lives. I want to bring in Dr. Daniel Bober. He's a forensic psychiatrist who works a lot with teenagers. Dr. Bober, this case is really disturbing. I mean, we cover so many disturbing cases here, but this one is particularly disturbing. We have a teenager who was plotting

a school shooting for a year. The judge said he wanted to rape his teenage sister. It sounds like he was kind of obsessed with watching school shooting content online. And the judge called him a pedophile. I mean, this is like crazy stuff. I think it's very complicated and ultimately it's going to be multifactorial. There are a number of factors that are at play here. I've heard, for example, that a lot of people are saying

because he was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder that this was the cause of the violence. But what I can tell you is, is that people with autistic spectrum disorder are not criminals. They don't engage in violent behavior. If there is violence and they happen to have autistic spectrum disorder, there are usually a number of other factors at play. Autistic spectrum disorder is a disorder that's neurodevelopmental in nature, where people have deficits in social and emotional communication, restrictive or repetitive behaviors. They're hyper or hypo reactive to certain sensory stimuli. And sometimes they have very focused interests or fixations. Okay. So we know, for example, that there was a study that showed that a lot of mass shooters disproportionately were diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder, more so than you would find

in the general population. But here is the thing, right? Again, these are all factors that come together that cause the perfect storm. So when you look at school shooters, there are a number of risk factors, everything from social isolation to bullying, exposure to violence, early childhood trauma, substance abuse, mental health diagnoses. So you cannot isolate it and say that one factor is the cause. And the bottom line is that there is not one perfect profile of a school shooter. It's interesting you bring up the judge saying that he was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. She also said that he had psychopathic tendencies. So could you

be diagnosed as a psychopath, which they don't really call it that anymore. They call it antisocial personality disorder. Could you have antisocial personality disorder and be autistic as well? So that's very interesting. So this gets back to something that we call the theory of mind or mentalization. And this is a theory in cognitive neuroscience that we have, that we developed the ability from early childhood to appreciate the mental state of other people, right? To appreciate their thoughts and feelings separate from our own. What are we talking about here? We're talking about empathy, right? So people with autistic spectrum disorder can have a deficiency in this ability. You could

also see it in people with psychopathy, antisocial personality disorder, and psychosis. But what I see here is a man who necessarily, what I see here is not a man who acted because he had autistic spectrum disorder. I see someone who acted because they lacked empathy and they wanted fame. And we see this a lot in other school shooters who try to emulate the activities of ones that have come before them. But in attaining that fame, they throw their lives away. And he planned, I guess, after he was going to carry out the school shooting. And thank God he didn't get to. I mean, they said, you know, the judge said basically that the family, the mom waking up early, that they it was almost like they sacrificed themselves and they were killed and that stopped

the school shooting. But in gaining this infamy and fame, you throw your whole life away and that's how you become famous. And you're not famous for anything good. And you're famous. You might be famous and your name might go up on the internet but then nobody cares i mean you're you're gone like you know what i mean it's it's like a bad kind of fame and really like if i think about school shooters i'm not thinking about school shooters every day i'm i'm thinking you

know i there are people who are gone they're not in my mind i mean so why do they think that that's that's like a good thing or that's notoriety? That's like the worst kind of notoriety. So you raise an interesting point. There is a theory that what you're really talking about here when you're talking about a school shooter or a mass shooter is an angry form of suicide, right? These are people that feel that they're marginalized. They're on the fringes. They feel helpless. they feel like they have no power in life, they're impotent, they're inept. And this final act is what finally gives them a sense of empowerment. So much rage, but it finally gives them a sense of domination and control. So they are prepared to die and they are prepared to take

other people with them in that final act. So what you're really talking about here is in some way an angry form of suicide. And we see this a lot in mass shooters. It seems like you really are just full of self-loathing, you know. And you're going to make everyone else pay for the fact that you feel so horrible about yourself and finally feel a sense of control. I know you're a psychiatrist. You're in the helping field. You want to help people. But this is the kind of person, I mean, the judge called him a pedophile. He's in chat groups and stuff looking at child pornography. He wanted to rape his sister. I know you want to help people. You want to treat people.

Is this somebody that can ever be helped? Because to me, it does not sound like this is a guy who is ever going to be helped. And he's going to prison for at least 49 years. I mean mean i don't think he's ever getting out of prison ever but are there just some people that no matter what you do they're just lost causes well listen as a psychiatrist as someone who wants to help people who wants to see people get better there are definitely some people that they're very tough and you have to have the highest expectations possible, but you also have to be realistic and there's going to be a certain baseline that they're going to achieve and it may not be very high. I have met plenty of patients and I specialize in treating the hard to treat, the treatment resistant type patients. But there are some of them that just are not going to be able to function in society. And you have to keep them, you have to keep society safe from them. There was a level of planning that went into this. I mean, he's posting a video where he's

practicing, you know, with a piece of wood that's carved to kind of look like a shotgun. He buys this shotgun less than 24 hours before he kills his family. I mean, he studied this. He had a book about how to kill his family. I mean, this was methodical, according to everything the judge said and what police found. I mean, police said this is probably one of the most disturbing things that they've ever encountered. So I just, you know, this is an 18-year-old. We know that there are school shooters who've been younger than he was, but I just don't understand where this comes from,

you know, wanting to do something like this. You know, I mean, killing four-year-old children, that's who he wanted to target. Four-year-olds, that was the goal, and to kill more than 30 of them. Well, you're talking about someone who engaged in something that was cold, calculated, premeditated. There were efforts to conceal the crime. There were efforts to deceive the fake gun license. All the research that went into it, all the planning, as you say, very methodical, very well thought out. So this is obviously not something where probably an insanity defense would be very successful. But again, a very angry individual who lacked empathy, who probably had some exposure to early childhood trauma. We're talking about genetics.

There are a lot of factors that play into this to create an individual like this to perpetrate such a horrible crime. What's the pornography connection? Can you explain that? I mean, it sounds like that that's a common thread in these school shootings too. And it sounds like from what the judge was saying that he was ginning himself up, like revving himself up to do this. Well, I think there's an intimate connection, pardon the term intimate, between sexuality and aggression. And for some people, they go hand in hand. So I think this plays into it. Is it because it's sexually arousing? Maybe the pornography coupled with violence? The violence itself can become sexually arousing. Absolutely.

Yikes. That's horrible. So, you know, this is somebody who, you know, his mom, it sounds like, tried to get him help. He didn't go through with getting counseling and help like that. I mean, what can people do? What can parents do if they're maybe noticing some signs? I mean, obviously, you can try to force your kid. I mean, if they're 17, you can do a lot of things to try to get them into therapy and things like that. But this kid sounds like he was pretty far gone, pretty far out there. Yes, this reminds me very much of a case here in South Florida, the case of Nicholas Cruz,

the Parkland shooter. How many attempts were made to try to help him and unfortunately, unsuccessfully, to the dismay of many people. But you know, this is something that as a psychiatrist, I literally see every week parents calling me saying you know, my kid is exhibiting behaviors, they're cutting themselves, they're starving themselves, they're not going to school, they're doing the most awful things and they will not get help. I hear it from kids, I hear it from adults and the point is you know, at some level,

you have to appreciate the fact that you're going to have to force them into treatment, not just for their own safety, but especially for the safety of society. If they're making threats or you feel like they can be dangerous. And I say this all the time, you know, access to firearms. We have a lot of lax gun laws in this country and we have more than one gun for every person. And while I support the Second Amendment, and I think people should have the right to carry firearms if they want to, when there are certain unstable individuals that you combine with all these firearms, the wrong people are going to die. And that's why I think these red flag laws and risk protection orders are so critical to give law enforcement the tools to remove weapons from people who are mentally ill and violent. Well, it's a horrifying case. And you know what? I don't even want to say the guy's name

because that's what he wants. But I think it's important to talk about these things because if one parent, if one kid thinking about this, here's this, maybe somebody gets some help. That's my hope at least. Dr. Daniel Bober, thank you so much. I really appreciate your time. Thank you. Nicholas Prosper will likely never get out of prison. He will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars.

And that's it for this episode of Crime Fix. I'm Ann Janette Levy. Thanks so much for being with me. I'll see you back here next time.