Going West: True Crime - The Napa Halloween Murders // 91

Episode Date: October 21, 2020

On Halloween night in 2004, three roommates passed out candy to trick or treaters at their Napa Valley home before eventually heading to bed in their respective bedrooms. But just a couple hours after falling asleep, someone broke into their home and murdered two of them before running out of the house and out of sight. So, who committed these cold-blooded killings and why? This is the murder of Adriane Insogna and Leslie Mazzara. These are The Napa Halloween Murders. Patreon Bonus Episodes: http://patreon.com/goingwestpodcast Case Sources: https://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/tears-anger-a-life-in-prison/article_154b1b97-f54f-54d8-8a38-89263242c6ff.html https://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/LegalCenter/story?id=1187524&page=1 https://medium.com/the-true-crime-edition/the-2004-napa-halloween-murders-37c8d97e3d4b https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nightmare-in-napa-19-04-2007/ https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/greenvilleonline/obituary.aspx?n=leslie-mazzara&pid=140645941 https://edenpapers.com/blog/crime-the-murder-of-leslie-mazzara-and-adriane-insogna/ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36743450/adriane-michelle-insogna https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/pressdemocrat/obituary.aspx?n=adriane-michelle-insogna&pid=2805589 https://www.globenewswire.com/fr/news-release/2005/10/03/334234/87106/en/DNAPrint-genomics-Forensics-Technology-Assists-Police-in-Identifying-Suspect-in-California-Double-Murder.html Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What is going on true crime fans? I'm your host he and I'm your other host Daphne and you're listening to Going West. Today we have a terrifying case for you guys. One that revolves around Halloween, of course, since we're getting close to that time. If you guys are looking for more spooky stories, remember, we have a brand new podcast called The Dark Parts. I know we've been plugging in a lot lately, but it just came out three weeks ago, so we're really trying to get people to go on over there and check out those stories last week re-release probably my favorite episode yet, The Stalker. So that just tells

different stories about stalkers and it goes into kind of the psychology of how the brain works when it comes to thinking that somebody's watching you. He did the research for that and he did an amazing job. We also it also kind of has a true crime elements to that episode. so for all of you true crime fans, you should definitely check that one out in particular because we do talk about real life events that happen. Yeah, all of the stories that we're going to tell on that show are going to be different mysteries and just different things that are creepy in any way.

So go check that out, again again that's the dark parts. Also one other announcement we're not going to be doing shoutouts at the end of the show for reviews anymore. We are going to do it for this episode for the last time. We just don't want to put too much focus on the reviews but if you guys still want to give us a nice review if you like the show that's always welcome. We really do appreciate everybody who's left us a nice review, so thank you. Alright guys, without further ado, this is episode 91 of Going West, so let's get into it. On Halloween night in 2004, three roommates passed out candy to trick-or-treaters at their Napa Valley home before eventually heading to bed in their respective bedrooms. But just a couple hours after falling asleep, someone broke into their home and murdered

two of them before running out of the house and out of sight. So, who committed these cold-blooded killings and why? These are the Napa Valley, California. Three roommates lived together in a four-bedroom home in a residential neighborhood and spent the evening passing out candy to trick-or-treaters until around 11 p.m. when they all turned in for the night. 26-year-olds Leslie Mazzara and Adrian Insania had their bedrooms upstairs, while 27-year-old Laura Mienza had her bedroom downstairs.

So a bit about the roommates. Leslie Mazzara was born on August 1, 1978, in Orlando, Florida, to her mother, Kathy Harrington, and she also had two brothers named Paul and Andy. Growing up, Leslie was a ballerina with the Greenville Ballet Company, which was a huge passion for her. But after high school,

she decided to put her dancing career behind her and focus her studies on one of her other passions, philosophy. So she attended the University of Georgia and got her bachelors in that field. Leslie was really a go-getter and loved being active. So during college, she was on the lacrosse team and even the Karate Club. After graduating, she spent some time in South Carolina where she competed in the 2003 Miss South Carolina Pageant after having previously won a pageant the

year prior. And we posted photos on social media so you can see her because Leslie was absolutely gorgeous. So again, she did a lot with her young life. And according to her mom, Kathy, Leslie was goal-oriented from the start. As a child, she told her mom that she wanted to be a teacher, a mother, a nurse, and Miss America before turning 21, so this was like embedded in her. The following year in 2004, when Leslie was 26, she and her boyfriend broke up, so she decided to make a change and move to

Napa, California to work in the wine business. Her first job in Napa was as a greeter at the Nebom Coppola winery, which is Film Director Francis Ford Coppola's winery. Leslie's mom lived in Berkeley, which is only about a 50-minute drive from Napa. So that's how she got the idea to go to Napa. She loved it there and felt a bit stuck in life because she didn't know if she wanted to be a teacher or maybe a lawyer So she thought a year or so in Napa would be a fun experience But almost as soon as she got there

She decided that she wanted to work in wine industry and start her life in Napa and she really had the charisma and outgoing Attitude to start as a greeter at a winery. Like, people were drawn to her because of her. I mean, she was beautiful, and she just had a really bubbly and very friendly personality. Yeah, and honestly, I can't blame her for wanting to spend time or live in Napa because for those of you who have been to Napa, California, that is 100% wine country and it is gorgeous.

It's beautiful there. There's tons of different vineyards there So if you're a wine lover and you've never been there, you got to check it out. Oh my god, it's amazing And it's funny because while I was doing this research the whole time or at least in this part of the story when she was moving to Napa I'm like, God, that just sounds like what a life, you know, yeah Absolutely Adrian and Sonia was born on December 30th, 1977, and Callastoga, California, to parents Arlene and Tony and Sonia alongside sisters Lexi and Allison and brother Michael. Callastoga is a beautiful small town featuring many wineries

and natural hot springs in Napa Valley. Growing up, she was a Girl Scout troop leader and an athlete, she played volleyball and softball, and she loved helping out in the community in every way that she could. Adrian always lived in Napa Valley, except during her college years when she attended Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo, California, to study civil engineering. But after graduating in 2001, she returned to Napa to put her new engineering skills to the test with a job as an assistant engineer at Napa Sanitation District, which is a water treatment plant. She really enjoyed this job because again, she loved being part of the Napa community, and she was always

getting involved in different local charitable events. So all around, Adrian was a funny, loving, and passionate person, but she also was incredibly tough. In 1994, while she was a 16-year-old sophomore in high school, Adrian was involved in a terrible car accident with her best friend Lily Prudehome that almost killed her. The car rolled three times and Adrian's window was open, so she hit her head right on the pavement. And because of this, she kind of had to relearn some of her skills because she had some memory loss that occurred. But she healed within a few months in return to school and then went on to a big university. So she was not the

type of person who just gave up on anything. She had dreams and goals in her life and she was, you know, setting out to achieve them. In 2004, Adrienne began dating a guy named Christian Lee. They had a bit of an on-again, off-again type relationship and there seemed to be a lot of drama there because Christian didn't take their relationship as seriously as Adrienne did and they even had an argument about this on Halloween night Leslie Adrian and Lauren all passed out candy that evening together and just hung out at the house because again They lived in a residential neighborhood Super suburban area. So I'm sure they had a lot of trick or treaters that night.

Yeah, and not only that, they're in their 20s. They're just kind of just chilling out, right? Yeah, they're just hanging out at the house, doorbell rings, pass out candy, and it's just the three of them. But during this time, Adrian left for a little bit to go to her boyfriend, Christians' place, where they argued about the fact that

Adrian had recently met a new guy at a party, and she kind of dangled that in front of Christian's face, which made him angry. But it was her kind of saying, hey, if you're not going to commit to me, then, well, hey, guess what, I met this other guy and maybe Hill want to be serious with me. Kind of thing. You know, Christian didn't want to commit to her, yet got very upset that she was potentially going to see someone else. And Adrienne wasn't usually the type of person to have drama or get into tips with anyone like she wasn't that person, but Christian not wanting to commit to her cause some issues. Around 10pm that October 31st evening, Adrienne came home and hung out with her roommates

Leslie and Lauren before they all set off to bed by 11pm. And this was a Sunday evening, so I'm assuming they all kind of had to go to work the next morning, so they just had a nice chill night. Right, they're not trying to stay up and party the whole night away. Right, and they all got jobs, they're responsible young women. It seemed that Leslie also had some male drama in her life. In October of 2004, she was dating two different men casually but was starting to get serious with one of them, the one who was a bit older. Just a week or so before Halloween, the older love interest came over and spotted some

flowers that belonged to Leslie and he asked her about these. It turns out that they were from the other love interest, and this made the older love interest very upset. And by the way, we're saying love interest because we couldn't find their names anywhere, so we're just gonna call them love interests. Anywho, so Leslie wasn't the kind of gal who played with people's feelings, but neither relationship was very serious at all.

So she was just kind of feeling it out and seeing what she wanted. At this point, she was kind of leaning towards the older love interest, but the whole flower situation caused a bit of a tiff. And Leslie kind of had this thing about her, where she, whoever she talked to, she kind of made them feel special. So it's really no wonder that she had so many people that wanted to like be her friend or her romantic partner. She just had this way about her. On Halloween night in 2004, Leslie was a bit upset and turned to a friend in South Carolina. She explained to her friend that she kept getting calls from her ex-boyfriends Dad that night,

which is super fucking weird, and it was almost like he was kind of harassing her to like get back with his son. And this is the ex-boyfriend from South Carolina, the breakup that had prompted her to move to Napa. So the dad is just calling her over and over again and she calls her friend in South Carolina and is just kind of venting to her about it. And this is on Halloween night. It's like, dude, why are you bugging her? This whole thing is just strange in itself. Your son or daughter breaks up with their boyfriend or girlfriend, you don't go like pestering that boyfriend or girlfriend and saying like, just makes it worse. Yeah, it's just weird. Don't be fucking weird.

Crime in Napa was not at all high at this time and it still isn't because Napa has always been known to be very homie and a very safe community overall. So with Leslie and Adrian sleeping upstairs, Lauren dozed off in her downstairs bedroom before the clock struck midnight. But as 2am came around, Lauren heard the distant sound of what could have been broken glass. And in her dog barked, her dog was in the room with her, and it woke her up from her deep sleep. As she pavved for a moment, still disoriented from having just woken up, she originally assumed that it was one of the guys that Leslie was seeing,

because there had been a recent issue of him coming over late and disturbing the other roommate, so she was just kind of like, oh, this guy again, this older guy, whatever's older love interest. The old, old love interest, yes. So, but that's when she noticed that the security light was on outside near the garage, meaning that someone had definitely been out there. But then she just wondered if it was one of the cats who tripped the light. Because you hear broken glass, you see the light is on outside.

You're like, okay, something's out there. But, you know, you don't assume for the worst. You're just like, oh, it's probably the cat. It's probably no big deal. Yeah, and like, it's so funny side note. Whenever we see, like, or whenever I see our neighbors driveway light come on, I'm always like, ah, like, what was that?

But you always kind of assume like, oh yeah, it's probably just a cat or like something come on, I'm always like, what was that? But you always kind of assume like, oh yeah, it's probably just a cat or something like that or possum or something. Well, and we've talked about this before is that you don't ever assume that something bad is actually going to happen to you. So it's easy to just have be in a situation like that and say, it's nothing, it's fine.

So she just assumed that and then she tried to fall back asleep. But suddenly Lauren heard the sound of horrifying screams and they seemed to be coming from upstairs. For a moment Lauren didn't know what to do. I mean with someone in the house she had no idea what was going on. So she quietly snuck out of her bedroom to head upstairs to check it out. But as she did this, she heard frantic footsteps headed for the stairs, like the top of the stairs. Not knowing who it could be, she dashed out the back door, terrified. As she crouched in the backyard, she could hear someone

struggling with the kitchen blinds on the front side of the house, and then silence. But then she heard Adrian upstairs pleading for help. Hoping that the possible intruder was gone, Lauren went back into the house and upstairs to see what had happened, and it was an absolute blood bath. Leslie's bedroom was the first one at the top of the stairs, and Leslie appeared to be deceased, faced down in a pool of her own blood. When Lauren then went into Adrian's room, she slipped in the blood before noticing Adrian hiding behind her bed on the brink of death. Lauren then ran for the house phone, but it was dead.

Whoever came into the house had cut the lines. So Lauren ran back into her own bedroom and grabbed her cell phone before sprinting out the door and into her car. She was so scared that whoever had killed her roommates would come back for her. So she drove away and called 911 to explain what was happening. Within minutes, police and paramedics were on the scene. Although Adrian was still alive when they got there, she died from her injuries before they were able to try and save her life. Both Adrian and Leslie had died from multiple stab wounds, but no one had any idea who would

have wanted them dead. It seemed like Leslie had been attacked in her sleep, and Adrian heard the attack and was attacked herself before she could flee from the scene. But judging by the state of her bedroom, it was clear that she fought hard for her life. And by the way, I'm assuming that Adrian was not conscious enough to get up and leave the room with Lauren or leave the house with Lauren, or else, I don't think Lauren would have just left her conscious friend in house because the reason with Lauren or else, I don't think Lauren would have just left her conscious friend

in the house because the reason that Lauren left was because she was like, how many people did this? Is anyone still in the house? Is he gonna come back? Cause he knows that I'm still alive. She didn't know what to do. She was just like, I need to get the hell outta here.

But I'm assuming that she didn't just leave Adrian who was bleeding out, just terrified. And I did watch an interview of Adrian's mom who commended Lauren for what she did and was kind of saying, like, I can't imagine what that must have felt like to be in her position. So I'm assuming that she wasn't just like, peace out Adrian. Like, she had to get out of there. Yeah, yeah, you cannot blame Lauren for feeling that way and having that fear. I mean, I mean, who knows? Who knows? Maybe if she did try and get involved, she would be dead as well. So,

she was, it's not like she was just trying to self-preservate, like do self-preservation or whatever, but she was terrified. I mean, there's a killer in her house. She sees one of her roommates is like probably not going to make it, laying on the floor, dying. Like, what would you do? You know what I mean? Yeah, just overall a very scary situation. So she did what she had to do, and you know, luckily she survived, but unfortunately her two roommates did not. So as a couple hundred pieces of evidence was being collected at the crime scene, a forensic specialist found three cigarette butts, two of which were out by the front of the house,

and one which was in the backyard. Since none of the roommates smoked, they were confident that this could be a connection to the killer. There was also blood found by the window on the outside wall of the house. So they collected this as well, hoping that it was the killers. And by the way, we did also post photos of the house so that you guys can kind of get a visual of what this whole scene looked like. So I know that helps me.

Under the broken window was also a pack of zip ties, which according to Lauren, didn't belong to any of the women. So now police were speculating that the killer had originally planned to bind the women, but instead, killed them quickly and fled. Nothing was missing from the home, so they knew it wasn't a robbery gone wrong. Someone had intentionally gone in there with a plan to murder these young women. Two weeks after the murders, Adrian's best friend Lillie organized a candlelight vigil held in Adrian and Leslie's honor, so everyone could pay their respects.

As we mentioned earlier, Leslie attracted a lot of attention between her looks and her personality. So, please felt confident that the killer was likely someone who had become obsessed with her, especially since she was the first one to be murdered. Police licked into her phone records and noticed all the calls that came into Leslie's phone the night that she was murdered, the ones from her ex-boyfriends father. And they thought that this was a very suspicious lead. Investigators also searched Leslie's computer and found a recent email from her ex-boyfriend which again was suspicious.

Apparently, he had proposed to her earlier that year, and she had turned him down, and then moved away shortly after breaking it off with him, so this gave him potential motive. However, phone records and other witnesses would place the father and her ex-boyfriend all the way across the country in South Carolina on the night of Halloween. As police continued to unravel Halloween day in their home, they discovered that a handyman had come to their house that afternoon, so they wondered if he was behind the murders, but he too had an alibi. So at this point,

police were starting to feel stuck. This episode is brought to you by our sponsor, Best Fiends. We already know that you guys love solving puzzles and mysteries, which is probably why you like true crime, and by this point, you must know about Best Fiends. It's an awesome mobile puzzle game that challenges you without adding any stress, which I think we all have had enough of right now. In fact, we've found it's a great way to de-stress and unwind during or after a long day, especially after listening to a stressful true crime case. Isn't that right? The game's bright, colorful, and ultra-fun approach is a perfect breather. I love the best fiends updates the game every single month because I play a lot,

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This year has been exponentially difficult for everyone. And if you're struggling and you feel like you need someone to talk to, you're not alone, and that's why BetterHelp is here to assist you. BetterHelp matches you with a licensed professional therapist that you can call, text, or video chat from the comfort of your own home. Especially in these hard times when we're practicing social distancing, this is a safe and private way for you to connect with a therapist on your own schedule. It's an incredibly affordable way for you to get the help that you need, and financial aid is available. So whether you're dealing with depression, anxiety,

trauma, LGBTQ matters, anger, or anything in between, better help is the convenient and confidential way to talk it through. This service is available worldwide. So what are you waiting for? We want you to start living a happier life today. As a listener, you'll get 10% off your first month by visiting betterhelp.com slash going west. That's betterhelp.com slash going west. Join over one million people and counting, taking charge of their mental health. Again, that's BetterHelp.com slash Going West. One of the other people that police wanted to interview right away was Adrian's boyfriend Christian Lee. They did think it was more likely that the killer was connected to Leslie, but they did their due diligence and questioned everyone possible.

But after interviewing Christian and other people in Adrian's life, no one seemed to be a match at all. The investigation on this case was very extensive and I mean they interviewed over 1,300 people total. Turns out the blood found at the scene that didn't match either Adrian or Leslie belonged to a male and this male DNA matched the saliva that was found on the cigarette butts as well as the DNA that was found on the zip tie bunch.

Christian Lee, who again was a durian's boyfriend, didn't match the DNA sample. And neither did any other DNA sample they had from people they interviewed. And they had hundreds of samples. Yeah, that makes it really hard at that point. Yeah, I mean, they even entered it into Kodis, which had been around for about six years at this time.

So there were over four million DNA samples updated into Kodis. And so obviously, they're like, this could work out. You know, maybe he's committed a crime in the past. Right, you're always hoping that there's gonna be some sort of hit. I mean, four million people, you know, maybe he's committed a crime in the past. Right, you're always hoping that there's going to be some sort of hit. I mean, four million people, you know, but there was no match in Kodas. So this obviously was incredibly disappointing because they had interviewed so many people and Napa wasn't even the biggest town. At the time of these murders, there were around 70,000 people in

Napa. So the fact that they had a DNA sample and it wasn't matching a single person in Cotus, nor any of the hundreds of potential suspects that they had didn't really make a whole lot of sense. After months of intense investigating, this case pretty much went cold. Leslie and Adrian's families and friends were devastated that they didn't have any answers regarding their loved ones' murder. So there was nothing they could do except for wait for answers to come. Lily Prudehome, who remember was Adrian's very best friend, who she got in a car accident

with, got married a few months later to her longtime boyfriend, Eric Kapel. And Adrian and Lily had been best friends since childhood, so it was really important to Lily that Adrian's mom Arlene come to her wedding since Adrian couldn't be there, obviously. And Arlene even read a scripture in memory of her daughter to the wedding audience. Lily also had them play She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5 in honor of Adrian since that was her favorite song. That was really sweet that she had Adrian's mom kind of go because they had known each other for so long. So, this is her best friend. Yeah, so Arlene was pretty much a big part of Lily's life anyway and had known her forever.

So, sweet that she was kind of like, please speak at our wedding and please be there and then kind of did a little homage to Adrian. A few months later, investigators got the idea to look further into the cigarettes that were found at the scene of the crime. There wasn't a brand on the actual cigarette but, but there did seem to be a logo on the very tips of the cigarette, like where it had burned down to. Which appeared to be little golden arches. After a little bit of research, they discovered that the cigarettes were Turkish gold, which was a newer variation of camel cigarettes. Those were actually the first cigarettes I ever smoked.

Really? Yeah, yeah. And no, seriously, I used to smoke those like- In 2004? Literally, yeah. Well, no, I smoked them in 2005, yeah, and no seriously I used to smoke those like In 2004 literally yet. Well, no, I just kidding. No, I smoked them in 2005. Yeah, that's when I started Wow, that's so weird. Thank God I quit though. No smoking for me. Yeah, he's quit smoking in May if you're thinking about it Just talk to Heath exactly you can always come to me and talk to me about it. So These Turkish gold camels hadn't been on the market for very long.

So they thought that this was a pretty great lead because that probably meant that there weren't, they weren't super popular and that not too many people were smoking them yet. Especially in that local area, right? Like you would assume that because they're such a new cigarette, not very many people were smoking them and also in who lived in Napa. Right, right, exactly. That's what I mean. Yeah, exactly. Since it was only a town of 70,000 people. So they decided to release this information to the public and ask people to come forward if they knew of anyone who could possibly be the killer that smoked this certain brand of cigarettes.

Since people usually know what their loved ones smoke, like my dad is an American spirit sky all the way, your mom is a Mar-Boral lights lady, like you just know what your people smoke. I'm surprised you know that. Of course, I know the woman, I know Beatrice, we go way back right now. And what was my brand? You were into, okay, well you liked Paul Mals

and the other cheap brand. Well, you like Marvel's too sometimes, but what was the other one that you did it when you were about to quit? Wait, no, it was Paul Maul's. It was always Paul Maul. See, I know. It was always Paul Maul's.

So that was kind of the idea behind this. There are like, everybody knows what kind of cigarettes there are people smoke. How many smokers are even in Napa? Let's just put it out there. And they also asked Lauren, the surviving roommate, to put together a list of people that she knew who smoked. Because again, they felt like this killer knew the young women. And they just didn't really see this as being a random

attack. You know, who, I mean, random murders happen all the time, but he went in there with the intention to kill them and leave. So they're like, he can't be a stranger. The town of Napa was really afraid during this time, because they didn't know all the details of the case, so rumors were being spread and they worried that there was a possible serial killer on the loose in their quiet and beautiful area. This is when the community really came together and raised $100,000 as reward for finding the killer or killers of Adrian and Leslie. Yeah, because they're like, we want this guy caught, we don't want a killer running around

our town. So they just gathered together all this money because they're like, we need to catch him. Which is super dope. I love when communities do that. They come together for the people, for their people. Oh yeah, it's the best. But lucky for the community, the police felt confident that the killer's identity would

be discovered very soon. Because not only did they have a DNA sample and the cigarette brand info, but there was also a new technique being used in DNA technology that could help determine what a person looked like based on their DNA samples. A DNA expert took a look at the killer's DNA sample and was able to determine that he was of Northwestern European descent, so either in the UK or France or Germany, that whole region. Right.

And it was also able to fully rule out certain ethnicities. The DNA expert was certain that the killer was not Asian, African-American, or Hispanic. So that really helped to narrow things down. But he was also able to determine that the killer had blue or green eyes, as well as naturally light hair. And this is amazing technology, like how- Does it have a huge- Like mind-blowing for for 2004 right. Totally.

So now they knew that the killer was likely white with light hair and eyes. This still didn't give them a concrete answer, but it was something to go on. I mean, this is science saying that this person looks like this. And it's even though it was a newer technology, I mean, that's amazing. Yeah. Shortly before all of this was discovered, which was in the late summer of 2005, so almost one year after the murders, Lauren, who again, remember, is a surviving roommate. I keep saying that because Lauren and Leslie both start with an L, and I know that that confused me originally.

So anyways, Lauren, the surviving roommate, discussed possible smokers that she knew. The only problem was she really didn't know anyone who smoked. And in fact, she could really only think of one man who did, 25-year-old Eric Kapel. Eric Kapel was Adrian's best friend, Lillie's new husband, remember, as Heath was just telling us. Lillie was close to all the girls in the house, so naturally, Eric was around once in a while,

and Lauren remembered that he was indeed a cigarette smoker because he always smoked when he was at the house or whenever she was around and he was around, kind of thing, because he was a smoker. Eric wasn't too close to any of them because he was very shy and it's just't too close to any of them because he was very shy and it was just super quiet. Kind of an awkward dude. Yeah, just really, really kind of boring guy, so he didn't really insert himself in any conversations with any of them when he was around. Turns out,

investigators did question him in the beginning of the investigation, but they didn't have his DNA on file, so they reached out to him. But one month later, in September 2005, Lauren reached out to the police and asked if they had spoken to Eric yet and they said that they hadn't been able to locate or contact him. So obviously, Lauren's kind of afraid in general, her roommates were killed, she for some reason survived and wasn't attacked, and the only person that she could think of that smokes that's close to the girls in the house is Eric Cople. And she did say that he didn't come off as a killer, he was just quiet, so it's not like he, she knew him to be violent or aggressive. He was just kinda just there.

Yeah, and sometimes those people who are just there or who are quiet can be some of the most evil people. Which I think is probably another reason why she was like, hey, have you checked in on him yet? Because it's not like he was known to be this like really sweet, like amazing outgoing, just sweetie pie. She just kinda thought he was a little weird. Yeah, yeah, totally. So this was also around the same time that they released the brand of cigarettes to the public,

and within just a few days, multiple members of Eric Coppill's family, as well as his friends, recognized Turkish gold camels to be the very same type of cigarette that Eric smote. After a few of those who were close to Eric asked him about this, he decided to turn himself into police. And remember, Adrian's mother spoke at this man's wedding. How fucked up is that? And this was her best friend's partner in a man who attended her candlelight vigil. Weirdly enough, no one, not even Lauren, felt that Eric seemed

to be sinister at all. He was just very shy but seemed like a nice guy. So this came as an incredible shock to the community. Eric matched the description of the DNA profile that they had. He had light eyes, he had dirty blonde hair, and he was white. They took his DNA to be sampled as they questioned to make sure that he was in detailing the truth to them, and Eric didn't give much explanation. All he said was that he knew both of the women who were murdered and that he did it. He gave them information about the crime scene that hadn't been released to the public and explained everything that had happened, so police knew that he was

their guy. On top of that, the DNA was a solid match, so I can't really get away from that. Unfortunately, Eric wouldn't tell them why he committed the crime or where he put the murder weapon. He just kept saying that he didn't know, and please didn't buy this at all. For some reason, Eric just didn't want to explain those answers. All he would say is that he committed the crime and he did it alone. The only reason he was confessing was because he knew that they would find out eventually,

because of all the DNA testing that they were doing. He had seen on the news that they were looking for someone who smoked his brand of cigarettes and they even had his description correctly. Again, since Napa is small, he figured that they would have kind of figured out it was him eventually and didn't want to sit in agony every day until that time came. With that, Eric Coppel was arrested and charged with two counts of first degree murder. It was very devastating to the families that this man murdered two innocent young women and wouldn't give an answer as to why. But after investigators searched Eric's home, they found a suicide note that Eric had written

that indicated that he was jealous of Lily's relationship with Adrienne. That Adrienne was taking his girlfriend away from him. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that Lilly had broken off her engagement with Eric in 2004, and that Adrienne was partly behind that decision. Lilly's friends felt that she could do better than Eric, and because of this, it made Lilly second-guess her relationship and postponed the engagement and wedding. In fact, it wasn't until after the murders that Lily decided to move forward with marrying Eric Kapil.

So this definitely makes sense as a motive for murder. Eric was so upset with Adrian for looking out for Lily's best interest that he brutally murdered her and Leslie and then convinced Lily to marry him after all. Jokes on you, idiot. Now you don't even have Lily because you're in prison. Nice. Yeah, good job, douchebag.

I, again, like we, we talk about this every time, like, a husband kills the wife or something like that where they think that they're going to get away with it and live a better life after. It's like, did you really think that you could kill her best friend and just not a, not have guilt from that? And b, just live a happy life as if Adrian was just never born, she never existed anyway. And you know what I mean?

Like, how did you think that this was going to solve any of your problems? Yeah, I don't know. I mean, it did, it did get Lily to marry him. Right. It did, but I mean, that was short lived. Not in prison. Well, exactly.

So stupid. So obviously Lauren began to wonder why she didn't fall victim to Eric. But her only answer was that it was probably because her door was closed. So he wouldn't have known who was in there with her or if she was in there with her or if she was in there at all.

But it's also possible that he knew Adrian's room was upstairs because she seemed to be the target here. And unfortunately, it seems that Leslie was maybe just a casualty because she and Eric had actually never met. Leslie had only moved into that house a few months prior, whereas Adrian and Lauren had already been living there. So, since Leslie's room was closest to the stairs,

it's possible that Eric went in there, thinking it was Adrian's room, and that's why Leslie was killed. But then, when he realized she wasn't Adrian, he quickly moved to the next room and then bolted out of the house. And if that's the case, I mean, I'm just so sad to think about that. His target was Adrian and he killed Leslie. It's just, that's just so... Like his Leslie didn't have to die. Right, I mean, nobody had to die in this situation,

but it's just unfortunate that that may have been the case with Leslie. Well, right. And with Adrian too, it's so sad because she had endured that terrible car accident where she did almost die when she was 16. So they would hurt her and her family and friends always kind of said that she cheated death.

And then 10 years later, she is murdered. And so I can't even imagine her poor family almost losing her once and then actually losing her to a horrible, horrible tragedy when she was so young. And then, of course, Leslie, which is just so sad. In January of 2007, so just over two years after the murders occurred, Eric Kapel faced trial. During trial, Adrian's mother spoke. She said, Eric, you knew Adrian and Eric, I faced trial. During trial, Adrienne's mother spoke. She said,

Eric, you knew Adrienne and Eric, I know you. And I know that you are a man who brutally and callously took the life of a wonderful woman that you never met. And she's talking about Leslie here. You are the one who violently stabbed to death the best friend of the woman you loved. You cannot love Lily and murder her best friend. You cannot love Lily and bring a knife into Adrian's home and stab her again and again and again and again and yet again. And Arlene actually said this while she was slamming her fist repeatedly on the podium. My baby never wore a turtleneck sweater in her life and yet she had to be buried in

one. and still, it could not hide the extent of her wounds. You were the man who was so cruel as to invite me, the mother of the woman that you murdered, to stand up for you at your wedding, to read scripture to you of love and death, and to bless your union. Throughout that weekend, you brought me into the heart of your family. Knowing all the while, it was you who destroyed mine. So I say to you, Eric, go. Leave this world of family and friends of hopes and dreams of life and love and laughter. There is no place for you here. You will be forgotten, and when the door closes behind you today, I will think of you no more.

And when the door closes behind you today, I will think of you no more." In turn, Eric cried and explained that he was a broken man who had suffered from depression and suicidal thoughts since childhood. He explained that he used alcohol to battle that depression, but that it only made it worse, that there was a rage inside of him. He then spoke directly to both Adrian and Leslie's families and sobbed as he apologized for what he did. Eric still never gave an actual answer for why he did what he did. He just says that he doesn't know why he did it. And weirdly enough, Lily actually spoke as well and said that she knows a gentler Eric. And that

although he committed this act, it didn't break their bond. She said that alcohol and depression sent Eric into a violent explosion, and that he has paid his debt through Jesus Christ. Her final words to the court were, In the days before he confessed, I knew something was bothering him. I told him, Eric, there's nothing in this world that you could do to make me love you less. Those words are just as true today as they were that afternoon. This man brutally murdered your best friend and her innocent roommate, and you're expressing forgiveness to him right there in front of Adrian and

Leslie's families who aren't doing the same thing. Especially since the families aren't on the same page, like keep those twisted thoughts to yourself. Eric smoked three cigarettes outside of the house before he went in. He knew what he was about to do. He thought about this. He even cut the phone lines to prepare for it. This was in a moment of rage. This was on purpose. Yeah, I absolutely agree with that, but at the same time, I also see Lily as a victim in this case, because it was her best friend. I know that she says that she's forgiving Eric, and that's maybe just to cover her own ass because she fucking married this guy, but at the same time, her best friend did get murdered. So I wonder what she's feeling in that situation as well. Before Eric was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, Leslie's mom Kathy also made a statement to Eric saying,

I demand resurrection for Leslie. It was her dream to meet her perfect partner and have four boys. Babies that I will never get to hold in my arms. For the rest of your life, you and your family will experience what both of your victims and loved ones have felt. Terror, desperation, hopelessness, and violence. I wish I could tell you that I forgive you. At this time, I can't. And finally, I pray that never again

will any mother's child grow up to be a murderer. [♪ OUTRO MUSIC PLAYING [♪ Thank you so much, everybody, for listening to this episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode, and next week we'll have an all-new episode for you guys to dive into. Again, we're not going to be doing the shout outs anymore, but we are doing them this one last time. much for listening to this episode and next week we'll have an all new episode for you guys to dive into.

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