Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Female "Baby Photographer" lures mom with online ad to STEAL BABY!

Episode Date: February 19, 2020

A young mom answers a Facebook post for a free photography session for a newborn. A supposed newborn photographer, Juliette Parker, drugs the mom with a poisoned cupcake, with plans to steal her baby girl.Joining Nancy Grace today to discuss: Kathleen Murphy - North Carolina, Family Attorney James Shelnutt - 27 years Atlanta Metro Major Case detective, SWAT Officer (RET) Attorney Caryn Stark - NYC Psychologist  Joe Scott Morgan - Professor of Forensics Jacksonville State University, Author,"Blood Beneath My Feet" Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Did a former mayoral candidate, a 38-year-old mom who dragged along her 16-year-old daughter, according to cops, Juliet Parker, did she pose as a baby photographer to steal a baby from a young mom to raise as her own? It's almost too much to take in. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Music

A woman who was a former candidate for mayor in Colorado Springs is behind bars after police say she tried kidnapping a baby in Washington State. Pierce County Sheriff's officials say she was arrested along with her daughter for posing as a photographer for newborns and drugging a mother during a photo shoot. Detectives say she has plenty of aliases. When she was running for mayor in Colorado Springs, she did so under the name of Juliet Parker. A mother who did not want to be identified spoke with a reporter about her encounter

with Parker and detectives say they found evidence of her plan. She had said she was looking for a pregnant woman, but she had made some emphasis on being very near their due date. We believe the lady was deliberately planning on selecting a baby and kidnapping the baby and leaving the state. Parker was going by Joliet Noelle and Juliet Gaines. Last week, a victim said she felt numb and drowsy after eating a cupcake. Detectives say she helped bring about the arrest. You are hearing our friend Joel Hillen at CBS4 Denver. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. Thank you for being with us. Take a listen to this. Authorities say Juliet Parker used social media to lure in unsuspecting moms, offering free maternity photos.

She says she wanted to build her portfolio, but detectives allege her real motive was much more sinister. She wanted a girl, and she wanted him five weeks younger so she could raise it herself, take it out of state, and pretend it was a newborn of her own. A mom in Washington state answered the post, inviting Parker into her home three times. Police say the woman spotted Parker taking selfies with the baby and wiping down her fingerprints from items she touched inside the home. During the third visit,

authorities say Parker and her 16-year-old daughter gave the woman a cupcake. The mom suddenly began vomiting and feeling numb and drowsy. She told the two to leave and called 911, only to realize her house keys were stolen. Basically, she was drugged. They put drugs in a cupcake. She ate it for an attempt to take her kid. How do you come up with such a crazy scheme? That was CBS News correspondent Carter Evans, and we're learning so much about this scheme to snatch a baby from a young mom.

Jackie here in the studio has found this bizarre post that Juliet Parker made. It says, quote, I got new professional photography equipment for Christmas and would like to offer free, all caps, newborn and or maternity photo sessions to four or five people to build up my portfolio. Hey, Karen Stark, New York psychologist, take a listen to this word for word. If you have a new baby that's less than 14 days old or are at least 37 weeks pregnant, that means viable, viable. The baby's viable.

If it's cut out of your stomach, comment below with a pic of your cute baby or baby bump and his or her birthday or your due date. I'll select people randomly tomorrow and the next day. I'll select people and I can come to you for the photo session. Don't worry if you don't have a car. Smiley face wink. I'm also looking for two or three people to do a quote fresh 48 hour session for free to build my portfolio. I don't know what that really means, fresh 48 hours. So if you're pregnant, put in your comments if you're interested. The pics are just a few ideas of what I would like to do to try with whomever gets selected. Ooh, selected for what? Being drugged and your baby stolen? Listen.

I responded to a Facebook post from a woman named Juliet who said she was a photographer that would take free photos of my newborn baby for her portfolio. I exchanged several messages with the photographer and she came to my house on three different days to take photos of my newborn. On the third day, the photographer came to my house with her teenage daughter. They brought a bottle of wine and cupcakes that she said she had baked. She offered me a glass of wine and they pressured me to try the cupcakes. As I ate one, my lips and face started to feel numb. I saw the photographer wiping down her wine glass and other items in my house. My legs and arms started to go numb and I repeatedly told the photographer and her daughter to leave my house. After they left, I noticed my

house keys were gone and I started to vomit uncontrollably. What a story. Straight out to crimeonline.com investigative reporter Levi Page. Start at the beginning. I don't want to miss a thing, Levi. Nancy, investigators say that Juliet Parker would go on Facebook and join groups that are for mothers of newborns, and she would post and offer her photography services to them free of charge. She says, I'm a new photographer, and I'm looking to build my portfolio, so I'll photograph you and your newborn for free. And this investigation started, Nancy, when one mother responded, and this woman, Juliet Parker, visited her multiple times. And she called 911 after the last visit because she was given a cupcake by Juliet Parker's teen daughter. She was drowsy. She was dizzy. She started vomiting. She could barely stand up. And she told them, get out of

my home. And they left with her keys. She called 911 and investigators now say that this is a scheme, a sick scheme where Juliet Parker and her teen daughter were planning on kidnapping babies and raising them as their own. And police say that this is probably not the only victim, that there are more out there. Oh, my stars. I want you to take a listen to our friend at CBS, Carter Evans. She used her sleeve to open the front door. And when she came into the house, she wouldn't even sit in a chair. She sat on the ground. Victoria Morris says something seemed off about Parker when she met her after responding to the Facebook post. Parker took maternity photos and was supposed to be inside the delivery room with her.

I was in shock, but I also didn't want to believe it, to be honest, because I was just upset about it. It ultimately affects our economy. Parker unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Colorado Springs last year. Authorities say the 38-year-old operated under several aliases. I do think this should be a warning to other moms. It makes me anxious to know that people like that can be so manipulative and really work their way into your life and it's so easy to get caught up in it. Okay, so she wiped everything she touched once she is inside Victoria Morris's home. She arranged for Juliet Parker to be in the delivery room when she has the baby.

The fresh 48 photos are apparently the first 48 hours of your baby's life. She was targeting specific, specific ages of babies. Levi Page, investigative reporter, didn't this woman have a criminal history? And it was bizarre. Yeah, she had trespassed onto military property. She had discharged a firearm in her home, which caused a fire. So she does have a criminal history. Wait, wait, wait, wait. It's my understanding she trespassed on military property and she found some old ammunition and took it. Now, if I'm out for a hike or a walk and I happen upon some old bullets, the last thing I'm going to do is pick them up and bring them home. No. And then she discharged it in her home and started a fire.

What's with all the... You're correct. Yeah. I mean, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Let me go to Shelnut with me. James Shelnut, Metro Major Case, SWAT officer, now lawyer. I used to love reading it out in front of a jury when a person had a lot of aliases. Yeah. I mean, you have to think, what are you trying to hide? Why do you need to be different people at different times? That certainly is an interesting fact that you want to bring out.

Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Since this happened, I am terrified to be at my house. I don't go anywhere. I don't like being at home. I'm not sleeping. I'm not eating. I carry a machete, a knife, and pepper spray in my house and in my car. I sleep with a knife even under my pillow as a result of this. Just yesterday, I saw someone posting on social

media looking for a baby photographer. Please, if you do have somebody with you at all times, check the websites, reviews, check to see if they have a business license, ask for references. Just be very careful and trust your instincts. Juliet Parker, did she pose as a baby photographer to steal a baby from a young mom? it's almost too much to take in. Take a listen to our friends at King 5 News. This is reporter Amy Moreno. When we found out she was a girl, we felt like, you know, a piece of our heart was coming back. Gabby Romeus expects her daughter to be born in a matter of days. She was so grateful when she heard about the opportunity to get some newborn photos for free from a photographer who said she wanted to expand her portfolio. They had everything ready to go.

I was supposed to contact her after I tell the hospital on my way and she was going to meet me there. For Gabby, this is her rainbow baby, a pregnancy after the loss of another child. I had lost my first daughter in 2017 and this this birth is so emotional and it's like to think I almost let someone like that around my family. It's kind of hard. Investigators say the free photography was just a ploy to get access to babies. You know ploys. For instance, in another case, 19-year-old Marlon Ochoa strangled dead by Clarissa Figueroa and her daughter Desiree. by offering discounted or free baby clothes in a Yahoo baby chat room. This is a ruse in the current case, claiming baby photos for free. Karen Start, New York psychologist, weigh in. Well, obviously this is a person who's very disturbed, Nancy, and is able to come up with ploys to get her to be in people's homes, to be at their deliveries, with the intent, it appears, to kidnap their children.

And I think it's just incredible that this person knew to report that she'd been poisoned. What's disturbing is that they changed the locks on her home. And I just, I can't imagine how frightened she must be just with the idea that the locks were changed, but that there are people like this walking around who would want to take children. And we know that's happened as well as what you mentioned before, babies being cut out of people while before they were born. Take a listen to our friend Annie Moreno. More possible. More possible victims are coming forward saying Juliet Parker contacted them. She tried to drug one mom and evidence shows she went to that woman's home in Pierce County several times, possibly laying the groundwork to take the baby. She'd been there a couple times

taking selfies and pictures with the infant, trying to establish a timeline in case she were to take the baby that it was hers because she had photos leading up to this. Investigators say she rejected moms who reached out that had baby boys and seemed to only be interested in those who were having girls. We talked with another mom who was struggling financially during her pregnancy and had asked for help through a community group. She said Parker contacted her and said she could help with somewhere safe to live. We believe she was actually targeting people that most people wouldn't notice if there was a problem. Intentionally targeting people that she thought might be easy victims. Easy victims. To Levi Page, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter.

What does he mean by easy victims and how many victims are out there? Nancy, authorities are asking anyone that may have used Parker services, possibly under the name Juliet Noel or Juliet Gaines, to contact them at their tip line at 253-798-7724. And there are multiple people that have come forward. I don't have the exact number, but police think that there could be dozens of women out there. And we know that she wanted single women, women that were struggling financially, and she did not photograph baby boys, only baby girls, Nancy. So those are the specific people that she was preying on in this sick scheme.

Take a listen to what police are saying now. We have about a dozen people or so that have contacted us through different means that believe that they had contact from her and or she showed up and took some photographs. And that's all part of the information that we're putting together for future as the investigation continues. Our two detectives right down here are working the case, and they're by no means done with this yet. There's a lot to do.

Single moms, moms, low-income moms. What more do we know about the victims she targeted, Levi Page? Just like you said, Nancy, some of them were struggling financially, having problems finding home, didn't know how they were going to care for their child after their child was going to be born. They wanted photographs taken. A lot of them couldn't afford them, so she was offering it for free. And we see this a lot, Nancy, and we've even seen cases. There was a big high-profile case not long ago where a newborn was taken from the hospital and raised to adulthood with a woman that was not even her mother. And is that what was going to happen here? I mean, I'm glad that she was stopped before

she was able to take one of these children, because we know a lot of these poor families don't have the resources to fight for justice for their kids after they've been kidnapped. And it's easy to target these moms that allegedly Juliet Parker was targeting. Let me harken back to the case of 19-year-old Marlon Ochoa. She had posted, quote, help a sister out. I need help. I'm having a baby. Does anybody have clothes, baby goods that I could use, borrow, or could you donate them? She was having a hard time. She reached out for help, and then her killer, Clarissa Figueroa, saw that and used it to her

advantage. That's what we're talking about. Listen. 19-year-old Marlene Ochoa was nine months pregnant when she went missing on April 23rd. Hours later that same day, a 46-year-old woman came running out of her home here claiming that she had just given birth to a baby boy and he wasn't breathing. The baby was rushed to Christ and he remains there in intensive care. The family has since determined Marlene came to the home on 77th place to swap items arranged through a Facebook group called Help a Sister Out. The older woman claimed to have a stroller and other items. She was giving clothes away supposedly under the pretenses that her daughters had been given clothes and they had all these extra boy clothes and that's where the false pretenses that I believe led her to that house. I don't know what happened. I don't know what happened. I don't know what happened. I don't know what

pretenses that her daughters had been given clothes as they had all these extra boy clothes, and that's where the false pretenses that I believe that hurt to that house. Neighbors say the people being questioned include the 46 year old woman,

her boyfriend, her daughter and a man in his twenties. They were also surprised by an alleged birth since no one knew of a pregnancy. The Facebook group Marlene used is said to be shut down. A member says she had talked with others about taking precautions when making exchanges. Don't go in strangers' houses. Always bring somebody with you. I think it's making people more aware. We're hopeful.

We have faith. But preparing for the worst. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. cupcake i ate one i was fine i ate another one and then my face started instantly going numb okay and then they kept asking if i was getting tired or not where was this at something at my house like something's wrong with me who do you think someone might have drugged you yeah i don't know if they drugged me. I like seven when I ate the cupcakes. Who are the people that might have drunk you? Where are they?

They're gone now. They are where my kids' photographer. They gave you the cupcake? Yeah. Okay. okay they gave you the cupcake yeah okay i'll tell you something's wrong with me okay i don't feel good yeah we're gonna get somebody out there okay i'm nancy grace this is crime stories thank you for being with us juliet With us, Juliet Parker. Did she pose as a baby photographer to steal a baby from a young mom? Take a listen to this. Once I ate the cupcake, it was pretty instant, within minutes.

I started going numb and whatnot. And I asked her questions and she gave me an answer that didn't make sense to the cupcake and how I was feeling. As the drugs went into my system, it was progressing worse and worse. And I then reached out to somebody and sent them mine and my children's names like full names date of births everything and then reported I think she drugged me and like abcd of what was continuing to happen so I had that going on at the same time and then obviously got my kids ready for bed so they were in like my control and then asking her and her daughter to leave my house. Joining me Kathleen Murphy North Carolina trial lawyer you can find her at ncdomesticlaw.com. Kathleen Murphy what about it?

I think that this woman has such a crazy history because she was wiping her fingerprints off of items in this house. Then she was using her personal cell phone. But, Nancy, I have to give a shout out to the police officers in this particular case because these police officers saw that this woman was terrified of the photographer. They went above and beyond the call of duty, and they paid to have her locks changed on her apartment door so that she would feel safe. To our senior producer, Jackie Howard. Jackie, weigh in. Kathleen Murphy is right. Nancy, the Pierce County deputies bought the victim new locks and window guards and installed them in their home while they were investigating this attempted kidnapping. And a patrol car was also placed outside of her house. That's because

the victim said she was missing her car keys and her house keys when Juliet Parker and her daughter left her home. As you heard her say just a few minutes ago, Parker did call her and say that she had someone to return her keys. But the problem and the concern was, did she make copies? Listen, I'm terrified. She's going to get back out. Like this is my kids. This is my house. She violated that.

She violated my safety. Try to kidnap my house. She violated that. She violated my safety. Tried to kidnap my daughter. Seeing her is scary. I'm terrified she could come back. Anything could happen. She could be successful next time and take her. Take my other child. Anything's possible.

Tonight, I can have my knife two inches further away from me. Yes, but will I be able to take a shower knowing that she could bail out and come to my house? No. Will I sleep content? No. Just because she's behind bars, that doesn't give me a peace of mind. She still knows where I live at. She still knows my children. Take a listen to our friends at K-I-R-O-7 Seattle. This is Jessica O. And to think that that came this close to happening to us. I'm not sleeping tonight. Sarah Elizabeth, who asked that we not show her face, is in shock tonight after hearing the photographer she was trying to hire for portraits of her baby

just got arrested for roofing a mom during a photo shoot. She drugged her cupcake. We believe the lady was deliberately planning on selecting a baby and kidnapping the baby and leaving the state. Pierce County detectives say she tricked parents by posing as a photographer on Facebook groups, offering free pictures for newborn babies so she could build a portfolio. And so I reached out to her commenting on it. She was saying, you know, I have a new baby, just got out of the NICU. Sarah was excited, but then she learned about what happened when police say that photographer went to another mom's home just last week.

And then when they roofied and drugged one of the participants, she got sick and called them out on it. They fled. So all these women are coming forward. That was Sarah Elizabeth. We now believe there are many other victims. We know Parker did three photo shoots with this victim before drugging her in an attempt to gain her trust. You know, there's another issue to this. How do you convince your 16-year-old daughter to go along with what you're doing? You know, to Joe Scott Morgan, forensics expert, professor of forensics at Jacksonville State University and author of Blood Beneath My Feet on Amazon,

what evidence do you believe exists to tie her back to this mob's story? You know, I think that her proximity to this poor mother, reaching out to her, kind of setting the bait. I think one of the most troubling things about this, Nancy, are the use of drugs in order to try to subdue her. I'd like to know if the police had kind of tracked this backwards relative to what this individual was being given in order to sedate her to the point where she could be very, very vulnerable.

Well, what would happen if you got GHB, gamma hydroxybutyrate? They're saying roofies. Yeah, and so with the roofies, the rohibanol, you want to think about this in terms of how did she get access to it and how was it applied? This is a very, very scary situation when you think about the dosages that are being used. What is it that's going to be enough to push them over the edge to a lethal amount? One of the things that would have to happen is that specific toxicology would have to be drawn in the victim's body and marry that up with whatever the perpetrator had at their disposal in order to subject this individual to take a listen to this then she gave me the

cupcakes that ate one it tastes fine and then the second one i instantly started feeling okay then you started getting the reaction have you ever reacted to food like this before? No. Okay. All right. What's your name? Alicia, E-L-Y-S-I-A. Alicia, did you also want the police to respond to report this? Not at the moment. I just need to figure out what's wrong with me. Okay. Because after they left, like, I couldn't find my house keys or my car keys.

Okay. So they were missing. Are you sure you don't want the police to also contact you? I guess they can, yeah. That's fine. I don't mind. crime stories with nancy grace um as i stated that i'm carrying a machete with me, a knife with me, pepper spray with me, in my house even. There's my knife with me at all times.

My machete goes with every room that I'm in. My kids have to stay in the room that I'm in at all times, so that way she came back, I'd be able to protect them. We're talking about Juliet Parker. Did she pose as a baby photographer to steal a baby from a young mom? Take a listen to our friend Jessica O. at KIRO Seattle. Detectives say the suspect has plenty of aliases. Pierce County detectives say this is video of her when she ran for mayor in Colorado Springs last year under the name Juliet Parker. Looking back, Sarah can see all the red flags. She had said she was looking for

pregnant women, but she had made some emphasis on being very near their due date. Shocked to realize detectives say the suspect was baby shopping and curious to learn if other parents had close calls too. I'm worried about who else is out there. I know I saw quite a few other women who commented on her post. And we should note the woman who was drugged actually did three photo shoots with that suspect before she realized before anything ever even happened and detectives say that really goes to show how much the suspect was trying to win over trust. And they also told us they really do believe there are additional victims out there. And listen to this woman, Juliet Parker, in her own words, speaking to NBC5 KOAA.

Background, let's see. I'm a mother of two. My dad was an Army officer my entire life, so I moved around a lot. Once I was able to finally pick a place to settle myself, I decided on Colorado Springs. We came here frequently in between moving from base to base, and it was always somewhere that was like, when I grow up, I'm going to move there. And so when I was able to, I did. Other than that, I've ran and built several businesses of my own. I've gone to move there. And so when I was able to, I did. Other than that, I've ran and built several businesses of my own. I've gone to several different colleges. I don't actually have a

college degree. I didn't go to college with the anticipation that I wanted to do that as a career because I'm more of an entrepreneur kind of person. But I wanted to get a bunch of different experiences and learn things that I didn't know already. So what do we know about her Levi Page? Nancy she ran for mayor in Colorado Springs and came in second place and we also know that she ran a non-profit called MENDA which stands for Meaningful Empowerment Through New Development in Art and that she considered herself an advocate for the homeless and was an advocate for affordable housing, Nancy. And she claims that she had worked specifically with homeless veterans, and it just makes you wonder. We see her targeting the mothers of newborns. What did she do with

these homeless veterans? I mean, these are vulnerable people too. Was she scamming them, doing something to them as well? I think that there's going to be more layers to her background as this story develops. Listen to King 5 Seattle, Tony Black. Pierce County Sheriff's deputies arrested a 38-year-old woman and her 16-year-old daughter Friday while they investigate claims the two allegedly posed as photographers and drugged a woman so they could take her newborn child. She used a fake photographer photography studio persona and joined some parent groups baby groups and found some people on Facebook offering free services. The woman was posting on Facebook under the name Juliet Parker. Authorities believe that's

one of many aliases that she's been using. Detective Ed Troyer says the two befriended a victim through those Facebook posts and came to the victim's home three times. Authorities say the victim was given a cupcake by the daughter and immediately fell ill. Basically she was drugged. They put drugs in a cupcake. She ate it for the intent to take her kid. The victim filed a police report and Detective Troyer says through their investigation they discovered a shocking plant. Obviously shows that she was attempting to find an infant to take and take out of state and go raise as her own. There's going to be one heck of a digital trail for police to follow. Listen to Tony Black. Thousands of comments mostly from parents were made within hours of Pierce County posting the arrest on their Facebook page. Troyer says what's terrifying is how close this plan came to actually working.

Her house keys were missing. She remembers her wiping prints down in the kitchen. We think she was seeking females five weeks and younger because she wanted a girl and she wanted them five weeks and younger so she could raise it herself, take it out of state and pretend it was a newborn of her own. Authorities say the victim and her baby are okay and they changed the lock on the victim's home and set up a patrol car outside of her place. Troyer stresses that if something is too good to be true, it probably is. She didn't have a photographer company. She didn't have a bakery where the cupcakes came from. Now the 16-year-old daughter that was arrested here is being held at a juvenile detention facility.

We are still learning more, though, about the woman that is inside this Pierce County jail. Troyer did mention that she had involvement in a theft of materials that could be used to make bombs. She apparently stole those from the JBLM a few years back, and she also reportedly has political ties in Colorado Springs. To our senior producer, Jackie Howard. Jackie, weigh in. Nancy, Juliet Parker has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and attempted kidnapping. 38-year-old Parker entered that plea in Pierce County Superior Court. Now, Parker had been released over the weekend on $5,000 bail.

It was originally set at $50,000 but bonded down to 10%. But after Parker pleaded not guilty to those charges of assault and attempted kidnapping, the judge raised her bail from $50,000 to $150,000 saying that he had to consider the safety and security of children who may be involved and she was rebooked into the Pierce County Jail. That was also due to the fact that the judge considered her a flight risk. Now one of the things as you heard the victim mention earlier she is now constantly afraid worried that Juliet Parker could get out since she knows where she lives. It also raises concerns for the police.

One of the things that we want to do is put a warning out there for other people. Don't necessarily trust what you see and hear on social media. Make sure you're not a victim by having a second person with you in the residence. Trust your gut feeling. If something's wrong, you know, if you have two people there, another adult, it's going to be less likely you're going to be targeted. And that goes with anything. Selling rings, if you're going to use the Internet or bringing people over, goes back to the old adage, if it's too good to be true, it probably is.

Wow. We wait as justice unfolds. Nancy Grace, Crime Stories, signing off. Goodbye, friend. This is an iHeart Podcast.