Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Florida Man kills 2 kids after sexually assaulting 1, sets mobile home on fire | Crime Alert Recap Saturday 11.15

Episode Date: November 15, 2025

Florida Man kills 2 kids after sexually assaulting 1, sets mobile home on fire  Investigation underway in the death of 18-year-old Anna Kepner.  Wisconsin investigators say they have uncovered one of the worst child-neglect cases the state has ever seen: a 14-year-old girl rescued from a trailer park home in the town of Oneida weighing just 35 pounds. The FBI continues the search for six people who vanished from a rental home in Missouri, in relation to an online cult. Drew Nelson reports.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Crime alert, hourly update. Breaking Crime News now. I'm Holden Zappel. A Florida man is facing several charges after allegedly murdering two children and setting fire to a trailer with the children inside. First responders on the scene battle flames at a trailer before going inside to discover the bodies of two children ages seven and nine and a dog after a mobile home fire in

Pensacola. The home was fully engulfed in flames when a Scambia County fire rescue. arrived on the scene just before 1 a.m. last Friday. John Henry Walston Jr. 27 faces a list of charges including first-degree murder, arson, sexual assault, and torturing an animal. Ascambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons says investigators were able to determine both children were killed before the fire was set, and one of them had been sexually assaulted. Deputies said Walston escaped the fire and was later located at a hospital receiving treatment. Witnesses say the children's mother ran into the trailer when she saw the flames to try to save her children, she was taken to the hospital and treated for her

injuries. Sheriff Chip Simmons says in an update Saturday, investigators determined Wollston initially set fire to the home after sexually assaulting one of the children, then killing both. Welston ran to safety after setting the fire, according to Simmons. Wollston is in Escambia County Jail without bond. His first court date is set for November 26th. More crime and justice news after this. The Spartaned the investigation into the death of a Florida teen on a carnival cruise ship continues, and details remain scarce. Anna Kepner, 18, of Titusville, died while on a cruise on the Carnival Horizon. The ship returned to Port Miami on November 8 after a trip to the Caribbean. For more, here's crime stories, Sydney Sumner.

A relaxing Caribbean cruise turns a nightmare when crew members discover a passenger dead, just hours before the Carnival Horizon returns to Miami. The FBI now investigating 18-year-old Anna Kepner's mysterious death, not commenting on whether foul play is suspected. Tytosville, Florida, grieving the laws of the high school senior with a bright future and looking for answers. Anna K-Kepner, affectionately known as Anna Banana by her family, was a senior at Temple Christian, a private K-12 school in Titusville. She was an A-student and a cheerleader with plans to join the military after graduation in May. She was the best child you could ever meet, said family members. We always remember her for that, and she was looking forward to this cruise to celebrate her graduation.

Crime stories Holden Zappell tells us about the planned cruise. Anna's grandparents gift her a spring cruise as an 18th birthday gift. Anna enjoys the experience so much, she books a six-day trip with stops in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, the Grand Cayman's, and Cozumel, Mexico. Anna, posting her excitement about her upcoming cruise on social media left out of time. Titusville and headed to the port, expecting the vacation of a lifetime. Investigative reporter Dave Mack. Anna drives to Miami Sunday morning to catch the Carnival Horizon. The ship leaves port that afternoon, and guests spend a day on the open ocean before arriving in Jamaica.

It's smooth sailing from Ocho Rios to the Grand Caymans and Cosmel. The horizon is on its way back to Miami when tragedy strikes. While information has been limited, some tourists on the cruise ship said, once they returned to the port, they were hurried off at the deportation routes, and they watched in distress as corners removed Anna's body from... I'm Drew Nelson, Wisconsin. Out of Gamy County investigators say they have uncovered one of the worst child neglect cases the state has ever seen. A 14-year-old girl rescued from a trailer park home in the town of Oneida weighing just 35 pounds, a condition doctors

described as life-threatening when she was airlifted to take. Children's Wisconsin in Wauwatosa. Prosecutors say the teen had been kept isolated inside a small room with a bare mattress on the floor, denied food, denied medical care, and forced to ask permission to use the bathroom. In court, Aldigamee County Court Commissioner Brian Figgi said the abuse defied comprehension. And it's alleged that the minor child was, quite frankly, living in a house of horrors. But for the grace of God, she did not die. Four adults are now charged with five.

felony counts of chronic child neglect. The girl's father, 47-year-old Walter Goodman, his wife, Melissa Goodman, Melissa's daughter, Savannah Lefevre, and Lefevre's romantic partner, Kayla Stemler. Prosecutors said all four adults participated in or enabled the prolonged mistreatment. The investigation began in August when Goodman called 911 to report his daughter was vomiting, lethargic, and, quote, not eating much. First responders immediately realized the severity of her condition. The girl appeared to be the size of a six to eight year old, unable to stand and cold to the touch. Inside the home, investigators found conditions that pointed to years of neglect, no medical visits since 2020, no schooling since the pandemic, and a pattern of emotional

and physical deprivation. Messages recovered from the adults' phones showed them calling the child dummy and stupid, discussing when they would allow her to eat and complaining about her asking for food. Two of the women, Melissa Goodman and Savannah Lefevre, were described in the complaint as so obese that they were, quote, nearly bedbound. Prosecutors say this case stands apart in its severity without a Gamy County's assistant district attorney, Julia Du Quain, calling it unprecedented in her time handling child abuse cases. This is the most egregious case of child neglect. I think I have ever personally seen in my nearly 25-year career. Doctors at children. Wisconsin diagnosed the girl with severe malnutrition, organ dysfunction, and hypothermia,

but within days of receiving regular food and sleep, medical staff said she improved dramatically. According to the complaint, the girls, quote, eyes lit up when she was told she would receive three meals a day. Staff noted she could eat normally and function, quote, largely within expected parameters for her age, contradicting her family's claims that she refused food because she was autistic. As the criminal cases move forward, officials say that scene is recovering with proper care and support, but the shock of the discovery still reverberates through the community. The four defendants face decades in prison if convicted. More crime and justice news after this. Six people vanished from a rental home in Missouri, and no one has seen them

since August of 2023, Michaela Denise Wickerson, her three-year-old daughter, Malaya, Michaela Thompson, Jerry L. German, German's three-year-old son, Ashton Mitchell, and Namon Williams were all last seen on August 6th at the Quality Inn on Dunn Road in Florissant, Missouri. All four adults have been living with the children inside Wickersons' rented home in Berkeley near St. Louis Lambert International Airport. They are unrelated adults who moved in together months before they vanished. Berkeley police found the home empty on August 12th during a welfare check. There was no sign of forced entry. Officers saw signs that the group left in a rush, their IDs left behind. The FBI and Berkeley police say the group was last known to be together at the hotel.

They were later confirmed on surveillance cameras inside the building. No one has seen or heard from them since that day. Family members say the trouble began months earlier. Wickerson's mother, Cartesia Morgan, said her daughter cut off contact in March of 23. She said Wickersen suddenly quit her job, maxed out her credit cards, and stopped speaking with her family. Morgan said she tried to report concerns to child services and ask police for welfare checks. Warkerson spoke to officers at that time and told them she was fine. Investigators say the group had followed online teachings from Rashad Jamal White, who calls his work the University of Cosmic Intelligence. Police described the online movement as a spiritual cult. Jamal has

tens of thousands of followers on the internet and is now serving an 18-year sentence in Georgia for child molestation. Three of the missing adults had adopted new names linked with that group. Neighbors told police the adults often acted in strange ways before they vanished. Police saw them outside, quote, worshipping the sun. Some described them running naked in the yard during rainstorms. Others saw them digging holes in their yard. Police say this group believed in polygamy, rejected the government, and tried to live off the grid. No one has answered calls or messages. Social media activity has stopped and their bank card use ceased. Berkeley police say there is no direct sign of violence. The FBI St. Louis Field Office is involved with both agencies

saying they need the public's help. Anyone with information is asked to contact 800 callfbi or tips.fbi.gov. For the latest crime and justice news, follow Crime Alerts hourly update on your favorite podcast app. With this crime alert, I'm Drew Nelson.