Love Trapped - The Third Man | EP 8

Episode Date: April 9, 2026

Laura Owens didn’t start with Clayton Echard or Greg Gillespie. In 2016, Michael Marraccini met Laura on a dating app, and he’s never been the same. He dated Laura for a year and a half. The relationship left him with lifelong psychological scars, and a legal battle that’s impacted his everyday life.  In this episode, we’re telling Mike’s story, which answers some of the biggest questions, like — what’s Laura’s endgame? Why does she do this?  And maybe most interesting of all... what does her family know?  If you would like to reach out to the Love Trapped team, email us at [e-mail] and follow along on Instagram @glasspodcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. What's up, everyone? I'm Ago Vodam. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot.

But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the, Cat, just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be... Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck.

Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed, I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe, on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular test twice, Ms. Ellen's, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. The lesbian, Michael Maranini. My mind was blown.

I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's Nora Jones, and my podcast playing along is back with more of my favorite musicians. Check out my newest episode with Josh Grobin. You related to the Phantom at that point.

Yeah, I was definitely the phantom in that. That's so funny. Share each day with me each night, each morning. Listen to Nora Jones is playing along on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, everyone. Before we start this episode, I want to let you know that this one includes some graphic descriptions of pregnancy loss, including both abortion and miscarriage. This episode also mentioned. suicide and includes allegations of sexual assault and domestic violence.

When Clayton Eckerd walked into the courtroom for his June 10th trial against Laura Owens, he wasn't alone. The room was packed with supportive family, friends, and dedicated content creators like Dave Neal. There were 50 people in the courtroom and 10,000 online. Clayton says having that support actually calmed his nerves. I wasn't nervous because it's, bigger than me. It was bigger than him. There were two people in the courtroom that day who'd been in Clayton's shoes. They'd been subpoenaed to testify because they'd been through

something similar with Laura Owens. The first, Greg Gillespie. Is he in the courtroom today? Yes. You already know Greg's story. But there was a third man in court supporting Clayton. When Clayton got on the stand, his attorney took a moment to point out the two witnesses. You're aware that she's filed orders of protection against two other individuals seated in the back of the courtroom, correct? That's correct, yes. They are on the left. Greg Gillespie and Michael Marantini. Time ran out before Clayton's lawyers could call either witness. But that wasn't the point.

All you need to do is just acknowledge that they exist. Because then the judge sees it and goes, these guys showed up. There's three of them. This corroborates the story that clearly this woman is at fault and she's not going to stop. As you know, the judge sided with Clayton. She went so far as to recommend that the county attorney's office review Laura's actions to determine if they warranted criminal charges. It was a win for Clayton and for both of the men who'd come prepared to testify that day.

One of them has been working to clear his name for almost a decade. And his story may be the most disturbing of them all. My name is Mike Maruccini. I dated Laura for a year and a half. I'm Stephanie Young, and this is Love Trapped. Six years before Laura Owens met Clayton Eckerd, and four years before she met Greg Gillespie, she was living in San Francisco and was swiping on dating apps,

which is how she met Mike Maruccini. When I think back on what originally made me swipe, right, there was a photo of her in like a plaid shirt, jean shorts. She looks like almost like a little country girl. girl, and she looked really cute. You didn't see a lot of that in the Bay Area. Her bio mentioned that she was a big animal lover, which I've always grown up around animals, and that was attractive to me. So they started messaging and made plans to meet up for a drink. Our first few dates were actually really fun. We had a lot in common. I actually thought,

you know, maybe this individual is a little on the nervous side or timid side, but I give everybody and opportunity. Within a few dates, they discovered they had mutual friends. Mike says he's not a bridge burner. He generally avoids conflict. Every woman he dated, he tried to leave on friendly terms with. That's how I always viewed our relationship is, hey, if it doesn't work out as a loving relationship, maybe we can be friendly with one another because we did have a lot of similar

friend groups. Back then, Mike and Laura were both in their late 20s. He was dating around, hoping to find the right person to settle down with. During the early days of their relationship, Mike saw a side of Laura we haven't heard much about. She was really thoughtful. She was always picking up baked goods and bringing them over. She was always just thinking about, you know, fun things to do and what we could possibly do. And really asking a lot about my family.

But within a few months, That side of Laura was replaced by something else. Intense control, guilt trips, broken promises, and constant medical crises. I know what this woman's capable of, and though she might be small in stature. She's got a pattern of behavior that is just diabolical. In this episode, we're telling Mike Maruccini's story. It's a standout in this case, mostly because he dated her, for a year and a half.

He knows Laura much better than Clayton or Greg ever did. Mike says their relationship left him with lifelong psychological scars. It also tells us a lot about who Laura Owens is. It answers some of the big questions I've grappled with since I started reporting. Like, what's her end game? Why does she do this? And maybe most interesting of all, what does her family know? If you're one of the people who's been following the Laura Owen story from the beginning,

then you might remember that in 2025, Mike Maruccini was featured on Inside Edition. This man says he's been living a nightmare after the woman he dated falsely accused him of fathering twins. Inside Edition was only able to tell a fraction of the story that we'll be telling. But their coverage was a turning point for Mike. He wasn't hiding anymore. He wanted to tell the truth about what he'd been through with Laura Owens. According to Michael, after he broke up with Laura Owens, he says she came up with a new story that he had abused her. That claim totally upended Michael's life.

When Mike looks back on his relationship with Laura, he can now see some of the early red flags. On the third date, she said that her father was terminally ill, and she wanted him to meet me just in case something was never happened to him. When Mike was 13, his father passed away from lung cancer. When she brought up to me that her father was sick, I said I would give everything for just one more day with my dad. And I said that really early on. But the idea of meeting Laura's parents intimidated Mike. They were local celebrities, both well-known San Francisco radio personalities. Her dad's show, the Ron Owens report, had been on the air for over 30 years.

They were pretty notorious in the Bay Area. After their third date, Mike agreed to go to dinner with Laura's parents. This was his introduction to the unique Owens family dynamic. When I first met her father, people were coming up to this individual nonstop. Everybody would recognize them right when he would walk in, and they would get VIP treatment. Mike noticed that Ron Owens seemed to like the attention. You had like major A-list celebrities approaching him, and he talked about how he was close he was with like Bob Sagitt and George Lopez, all these like big names were coming up to him,

wanting to get a photo with him and wanting to hang out with him for the night, like come to our table. After that night, Laura seemed to be much more attached. Every evening, she would prefer to spend with me rather than do her own thing with friends. Laura started saying she was in love with him. I noticed that as like the first initial red flag considering I'd only known her for a month. and she's just way too into this. He's already throwing out like the love's word, and she's just way too emotionally involved.

And I'm just not there. He started distancing himself, taking longer to reply to her texts, pushing back their next date, you know, the stuff you do when you're getting ready to break up with someone. Then came Mike's 29th birthday. He planned to spend the weekend away with friends.

That's where he was when he got the message that changed everything. I get the text and it's just a positive pregnancy test. The immediate thoughts are, oh my gosh, how is this possible? Because we had really only had like protected sex. It's the same thing that happened with Greg and Clayton. Just as Mike began to pull away, Laura sent a photo of a positive pregnancy test. I immediately thought to myself, oh my God, my life is over. Not about having a child, but who I'm having a child with. She knew I was falling away.

I knew that this person wasn't right for me anymore, and I knew that I didn't want to have a long-term relationship with her. So immediately, it was a pit in my stomach. I felt sick. But then he thought about how scared Laura must be and decided to put his own feelings aside. The breakup could wait. I wanted to support her.

At the time, I thought she was going to be going through an abortion. It's going to be really difficult. Mike made plans to meet with Lowe's going to. Laura the next day. She then has us do a meeting with her parents because they want to talk to me. The four of them sat down together at a restaurant. Mike was on pins and needles. We were at this like little Italian dinner and I told her family like, hey, this is just

not the right time. Like we don't know each other well enough. We've known each other for two and a half months. Like it's just not enough time. And they said like, hey, thank you. We respect that you came forward to us. I remember Jan grabbing my hand during the conversation. She put her hand over the top of mine and said,

thank you for being such a kind individual for being stand up. And we really appreciate you being by her throughout this journey. Now that I think back, it's such an odd scene, but I felt like they really cared at the time. The whole conversation with her parents felt like a minefield, especially because her dad was sick. Mike offered to go with Laura when she got the abortion. She said she would schedule it as soon as she could.

It was settled. I felt relieved that we were on the same page, and so my expectations were that she would have an abortion based off the conversation we had with her family. Soon after, he got a text from Laura's dad. We've had that text read by a voice actor. Hi, Mike. I was thinking last night that it's been unexpressure.

and wonderful to feel as if I've gained someone like a son at this point in my life. I feel very blessed. Please always treat Laura well. I know she really does like you. Mike thought it was a strange message, but Ron was sick with cancer. It made the impending breakup feel even more difficult. I was like, oh my God, I was just about to split up with her. Like, how do I do that?

That's when Mike made a simple, careless mistake. So I screenshot her dad's text because I wanted to send it to my mom and my sister. And I wrote under the screenshot something along the lines of how am I supposed to break up with her now? But I guess I was in a rush and I was rattled. And I accidentally sent that text and screenshot to Laura directly. Right when I went through, I had like a pit in my stomach. It's nightmare fuel. He watched Laura's three dots appear, disappear, and appear again.

And I'll never forget, she responded and said, is that for me? I told her that was not meant for her, and it was a wrong text. In the moment, Laura didn't have a big reaction. She seemed to accept his explanation that it was a simple mistake. I don't know how I talked myself out of that. Mike thought he'd pulled it off, crisis averted, feeling spared, but he was very wrong. Me sending the screenshot was the instance that triggered her to try and lock me in.

On July 7, 2016, Laura claimed the soonest her doctor could provide an abortion was the following week. The next day, she had a new plan, an appointment for July 12th. But the day before the procedure, Laura texted Mike saying she didn't feel right. Then she sent another text, which we've had read. by a voice actor. I'm not feeling comfortable about tomorrow. I'm feeling very insecure and embarrassed now. She said she still wanted to go through with it,

but just needed a few more days to prepare herself. To Mike, this sounded perfectly reasonable. Laura made an appointment at Planned Parenthood for the next week. She wanted to go with her mom. But after her appointment, Laura told Mike the doctor couldn't perform the procedure. She'd need to come back the following Friday. It's normal for people to go to appointments like these and change their mind. But in Laura's case, she claimed it was the doctor who couldn't perform the abortion.

I remember her saying that she couldn't get the abortion that day, and I just kind of went with it because one being a man and not wanting to push her to where I was forcing her to do something that she didn't want to do. Two days after this appointment, Laura sent Mike a text. We've had a voice actor read it. I think it speaks to Laura's motivations. I went to delete my league and bumble apps. Call me sentimental, but I wanted to screenshot our conversation

since it had led to something special between us. So imagine how I felt when I saw you had updated the info section of your profile when I clicked on your name. Laura must have been checking the dating app where they met to see if Mike was active. The truth was, Mike already had one foot out the door, especially after the text he'd accidentally sent Laura, he assumed she knew what was coming.

In his mind, he was just staying for a few weeks while she went through the abortion process. And yes, in the meantime, he dusted off his dating profile. I added a photo, a new updated photo, that I just recently took, and she was very upset. Mike says he wasn't meeting up with anyone, but just seeing that he was preparing to use the apps again, made Laura spiral.

Her text continued. I don't really even know what to think or feel. I spent my morning trying to work on seeing if I could expedite the abortion process somehow because you told me how stressed out you were feeling yesterday, and I wanted to help you out. I booked a consultation with a new relationship therapist to work on my trust issues because I didn't feel like you deserved anything but my absolute best, and because your integrity is so important to you.

My parents individually called me today to tell me how well you fit in our family. I'm really trying to be the best person I can be for you and see that you're updating your profile, so I guess wanting to see if someone better is out there hurts me beyond words. Mike owned up to it. He admitted he'd updated his profile, explaining that it was a direct result of the issues they'd been through lately. He tried to reassure her, promising he wasn't actually talking to anyone else, and apologized for hurting her feelings. The next day, he was slow to respond to her.

That was until the evening, when she texted saying she might be having a miscarriage. He replied to that right away and helped her triage the situation. They texted back and forth for a while before Laura determined it was a false alarm. Mike, who didn't have a medical background, was just trying to be there for emotional support,

but his energy was flagging. He was exhausted. So he told her he was signing off and asked her to please not call for the rest of the night unless it was a medical emergency. I'm sure you can guess where this is going. These are Laura's text to him that night, read by a voice actor.

Are you still my partner? Do you want to be with me? I genuinely love you. I hope you feel better. My mom's here trying to determine if it's an emergency or if we should wait and see. I know what signs to love. look for if it's getting worse, but hopefully no miscarriage.

We're on the way to the hospital, not doing well. Can you give me a quick call so I can update you? It's actually super important. When they connected the next morning, Laura told him the pregnancy was okay after all. In fact, she'd found out that she could be pregnant with twins. Through July and into August, Laura claimed she kept trying and failing to get an abortion. It was always for a different reason of why we had to wait. But then, on August 2nd, she told Mike she'd just received a surgical abortion at Planned Parenthood.

She sent him a document on Planned Parenthood letterhead, stating that she was no longer pregnant. You might think that's the end of it. But it wasn't. Because a few days later, Laura claimed the surgical abortion hadn't worked. It's impossible. to tell this part of the story in a linear or logical way. Because over the next few months, Laura sent Mike a barrage of contradictory, hard-to-believe medical information.

Here are some of the things she told him, with her texts being read by a voice actor. I left my appointment yesterday being super upset because my doctor won't confirm that the abortion was successful. I'm guessing she can't, from a legal standpoint, until I get more tests done. It's extremely stressful. on me and I just need some support.

I'm completely stressed. I took another at-home test that was positive today. You are with me tonight, correct? I may have to take a pill. I have a tilted, retroverted uterus, which makes a complete abortion harder, apparently, which is why I'm having these horrible symptoms. Not ideal to have to take Mithopristone on my mom's B-Day.

I'm trying to do the right thing. Mike was overwhelmed with updates. He didn't understand how any of this could be possible. But at the same time, it never crossed his mind that a person would lie about something this serious. It was very confusing for me at the time. I remember in total she had told me she had two pregnancies and six abortion attempts were made. In mid-August, Laura told him her doctors had a new diagnosis. She said she had cancer.

Ovarian cancer. Laura said the doctors wanted to operate immediately. She was going through this process of saying that she was having her ovary removed. So I said, like, please send me the doctor's notes. She sent me, like, some test results with some numbers saying that she had cancer. And, like, I originally Googled it. And I said, like, that doesn't make sense. This began a strange three-way communication between Mike, Laura, and Laura's doctor.

Laura sent Mike's questions to her doctor through a platform called MyChart. And then Laura sent back the screenshots of the doctor's replies. I've seen these messages. Some of them are mind-boggling. Then she had this doctor essentially respond to me and say, no, you're wrong. Laura's right. She definitely has cancer. You need to be a better boyfriend.

She's told me that you haven't been supportive and she's going to be needing your support. This reply, allegedly from Laura's doctor, would become an exhibit in a later domestic violence restraining order case involving Mike and Laura. We'll talk about that case later. But for now, we've had a voice actor read some of the note Laura sent him, which again, she claimed was written by her doctor. Thank you for your email. I am sorry you're going through such a rough time right now and will do my best to help you through it. I read the messages you sent me from your boyfriend and will answer him. his questions. Stage 1A is without a doubt considered to be true cancer and something that we take

very seriously. You were correct, Laura, that this cancer is found only in one ovary. He is incorrect in his saying that this means you just might have malignant cancer cells. Please tell him that yes, I have diagnosed you with real ovarian cancer, not something that just may be there. I am not sure what is meant by the message you forwarded that says I would only be diagnosing it if it were something other than stage 1A. That is a very real stage and simply means it has not spread beyond your right ovary. I recommend looking at the American Cancer Society's website page for more information. In addition, you can let him know that your diagnosis and treatment has been complicated by your pregnancy,

which on its own has been extremely difficult and unusual. I would strongly encourage him to change his attitude and support you at this time. I sincerely hope things get better. This wasn't the physical proof Mike had been expecting. Why is this so wordy coming from a doctor? They're always so short with me. Like I spend no more than 45 seconds in a doctor's office and they're kicking me out. Now I need to say something here.

You won't be surprised to learn that Mike was later dragged into a legal battle with Laura Owen. When Mike was deposed in 2018, he didn't include any information about Laura claiming to have cancer. I asked him why he didn't tell the courts about this back then. And Mike told me there were so many claims Laura made during their relationship that he honestly forgot about the cancer. He also said that for a long time, he truly believed her alleged cancer diagnosis was real. The message Laura forwarded Mike, allegedly from a Dr. Chan at Sutter He said her head. health was later authenticated by a digital forensic expert, meaning Mike didn't fabricate the doctor's message. The subject line of the email is ovarian cancer, parentheses Owens. During the June 10th

2024 trial with Clayton Eckerd, Laura was asked about this cancer diagnosis, and she vehemently denied it. Ms. Jones, you also failed to tell me that in 2016, Dr. Chan and Yee diagnosed you with cancer. They did not. Okay. So as you sit here today, you're denying that that happened. I will absolutely deny that that happens. Interestingly, in her deposition with Greg Woodnick during Clayton's case, Laura mentioned the same doctor named on this note, Dr. Chan.

And this time, she tells the court Dr. Chan treated her for potential pre-cancer. In your medical records, which we're going to talk about as we get to exhibits, You mentioned having, I'm going to butcher this, I'm sorry, polycystic ovary syndrome? Correct. Who's your doctor that treats you for that? That would be an OBG by N, but I haven't established regular enough care with an OBG by N, but I was treated for the PCOS in San Francisco by a provider. Who is the provider in San Francisco?

I was treated by Dr. Chan. He is a gynecologist for... He's like a specialized one for... Fertility? No, he's not. He's for cancer. Okay. Yeah, for cancer,

because they thought that I might have pre-cancer for ovarian. That's... I just can't... Do you recall the last time you saw Dr. Chan? Mary 2016. At the end of August 2016, Laura allegedly told Mike Maricini she had a surgery to remove her right ovary.

She texted Mike a letter from Sutter Health dated August 31st, 2016. It appears to confirm that she had her right ovary surgically removed. This letter would become an exhibit in that same restraining order case we mentioned earlier. Once Laura was back home, recovering from the surgery, she reached out to Mike. Laura had been texting me to please come by.

She just went through a big operation. She was really sad. She needed somebody there to be with her. As we said earlier, Mike's dad died of cancer when he was a kid. Laura's request for him to come be by her side as she recovered pulled on Mike's heartstrings. Despite everything that happened between them,

Mike decided to show up for Laura. So I'd go over, there's like an ice pack on her head. But Laura wasn't alone. Her mom, Jan Black, was with her. Mom's icing her lower abdomen. Immediately, the scene felt off to Mike. There was no hospital bracelet, no medication bottles. And as he looked closer, no abdominal swelling, no bruising, no wound at all.

He blurted it out. Where are your laceration? It's like, there's nothing here. There's no bandages, there's nothing. Her mom started to speak and she's like, oh, they don't have to do that. Laura and her mom, Jan, explained that the surgery is done through the vagina with no visible external incision. I said, whoa, there's no way she's lying about this. No way her mom is gaslighting me right now about her daughter having cancer.

There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And Rule 2, never mess with her friends either. We always say that, trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends... Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist.

I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends.

Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wodom. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network.

It's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best. advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where

you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's, okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right. It wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Yeah. Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth.

You doctored this particular test twice in so-ins, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg, a lesbian, Michael Marantini.

My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Maricopa County as Laura Owens

has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Nora Jones. and I love playing music with people so much that my podcast called Playing Along is back.

I sit down with musicians from all musical styles to play songs together in an intimate setting. Every episode's a little different, but it all involves music and conversation with some of my favorite musicians. Over the past two seasons, I've had special guests like Dave Grohl, Leve, Mavis Staples, Remy Wolf, Jeff Tweedy, really too many to name. And this season, I've sat down with Alessia Cara, Sarah McLaughlin, John Legend, and more. Check out my new episode with Josh Grobin. You related to the Phantom at that point. Yeah, I was definitely the Phantom in that.

That's so funny. Share each day with me, each night, each morning. Say you love me. So come hang out with us in the studio and listen to playing along on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. During Mike's relationship with Laura, her performance. parents, Ron Owens and Jan Black, were major players. Her mom and dad would always pressure me to try and stand by Laura. Like, our daughter is such a good person.

Why can't you just make this work? She's going through so much, whether it's physical ailments, abortions. She's doing all these things to try to make your relationship last. The summer and fall of 2016 had been incredibly chaotic. Laura told him she'd had repeated abortion attempts and complications. And now, she was recovering from cancer surgery. She told me they removed her right ovary,

and her mom was right there essentially corroborating it. I remember saying to her, I don't get what is happening. I don't know how this is possible. Mike knew all of this couldn't be accurate. He figured there must be some exaggeration on Laura's part, or a game of telephone gone wrong between Laura and her doctors, especially when it came to her cancer diagnosis.

She knows that my dad had passed away from cancer. She knew that my stepfather currently had it. She said that her father had it. And then I just couldn't even like wrap my head around it that somebody would lie about having cancer. Since their third date, Laura had been telling Mike about her father's cancer diagnosis. And to be transparent, we don't have a lot of, Ron's medical records. We can't say if he did or did not have cancer during this time.

What we do know is that almost every time Mike started to pull away from Laura, she told him about a new crisis with her father's health. Here are some of the texts from Laura to Mike, read by a voice actor. Doesn't seem great, but my dad got pulled from the air because they think he may be having a stroke, so dealing with that. I'm in a really bad mood. My dad went to the cardiologist, and he said my dad has to have open heart surgery to replace his valve ASAP. He got the worst possible news I think we could have gotten this afternoon. At the time, Mike believed that Ron's health was declining. He could see it with his own eyes. But Ron was still working full-time in radio, hosting his daily talk show. Then, in December

2016, Ron presented Mike with a career opportunity. Laura's father thought that I had a good radio voice. which I do not. What Mike didn't have was a background in radio or broadcasting. But he was in the middle of a career transition. Her dad would say to me, are radio stations looking for people

to meet the next generation of individuals? They want somebody who's young, who connects with like the millennials. Ron took Mike and Laura out to dinner to discuss the possibility with them. So we're having dinner. Ron's bringing this up to me, and Laura then starts really pushing this radio gig. She's like, okay, I've talked with the station, and the station really wants us to talk about, like, a dating show.

Co-hosting a dating talk show with Laura was the last thing Mike wanted to do. Then, Ron mentioned the money. The contract we're talking about with Laura is, like, quarter of a million dollars a year. You don't have to work that much. It's maybe, like, a couple hours a day. Having 18 years of radio experience myself, let me just say, these numbers are unheard of. In 2016, I worked part-time as on-air radio talent in Chicago. I worked my ass off, picking up every extra shift I could, and I made about 20 grand that year.

I had another full-time job to supplement my income. All that to say, no one new to the industry is paid a quarter million to get on the mic. The highest starting salaries for full-time work in 2016 would be about 60K. But Mike didn't know that. And why would he question Ron Owens, the voice of San Francisco? That's how Mike found himself recording radio shows, like this one. Hey guys, my name is Laura Owens, and I am joined by my co-host, Mike Maruccini. Like Feduccini. It's kind of a tongue-clister.

Maricini like Feduccini. That's how you guys need to remember his name. Mike worked in real estate. He knew that radio was not his forte. I want to be very clear. It was terrible. Apparently Ron Owens and his agent thought the pilot was solid gold. Mike wasn't exactly passionate about the radio show idea, but the money on the table was too good to pass up.

So on the weekends, start doing these radio things with Laura. I looked at it as just another revenue stream to put myself ahead in life. This was back before everybody had a potty. The segments they did never aired on the radio, but they were posted online on the KGO website. That December, Ron and Laura claimed the radio station wanted the duo to fly to Iceland for New Year's Eve to do a Boots on the Ground travel episode, all on the station's dime. I was like, hey, free trip, I don't have to stay with you. We'll have separate rooms. Let's go do this. In the months since the abortions and cancer surgery, their relationship had drifted apart. I've read Mike's texts with Laura during this time.

He's distancing himself and asking for more verification about her medical claims. Laura didn't handle this well. She started texting Mike grand romantic overtures. We've had a voice actor read one of those texts. I love you so deeply there aren't words for it. I will go to the end of the earth to make your dream. become reality if you need me to. I will be that reliable

of a partner, not being the one you have to worry about all the time. I'm going to be the great Netflix and chill girl, hooking up in lingerie, glacier walking, spontaneous, New Year's Eve kissing, supportive, understanding, co-dog owner, and eventually

wife that you deserve, and that is my life's mission that I will paint tomorrow. I love you more than I ever have loved any man in the world. Mike responded to that text by saying, That all sounds nice. I know what makes you feel better to look ahead, but you need to live in the present while you get help.

A few weeks before their trip to Iceland, Mike asked Laura to stop telling people they were dating. Apparently, this upset Laura in a huge way. Mike says she started talking about taking her own life. He encouraged her to get professional help. Then Laura's dad texted Mike something alarming. We've had this text read by a voice actor. We are desperate to get a hold of her and nothing yet.

She said you are talking. Can you please respond to her? We need her back. Mike was done being in the middle of this triangle. He told Laura, We need to have a meeting right now. He decided to bring a witness, so he wasn't alone with Laura. He picked up his sister's boyfriend,

now his brother-in-law. And when they arrived at Laura's house, they saw that she'd brought a witness to, her dad. Ron does the majority of the talking. He says, why are we here? So I clearly lay out why we're all there. Over the last nine months, Mike had been on an emotional roller coaster,

pregnancies, abortions gone wrong, and an alleged cancer diagnosis. Mike didn't know what to believe anymore. So he told Laura and Ron the truth. I feel like I've been lied to this entire time. And I would like an explanation of why I've been lied to. Mike's brother-in-law would sign a witness declaration, testifying to what he saw that day.

We're not naming him at his request. But that declaration would later become an exhibit in a restraining order case. Here's Mike's brother-in-law reading from his sworn statement. During the meeting, which her father Ron Owens steered, Mr. Owens told Michael that his daughter had a tendency to exaggerate or even flat out make things up. He remembers being struck by Ron's nonchalance. He did indicate knowledge of her just being this way and doing this.

This wasn't his first rodeo. He'd been down this row before. At this point, Mike needed to state the obvious. Anything romantic between him and Laura was over. Laura then is crying because I'm breaking up with her. Laura became inconsolable. That's when Ron pulled them aside. He had this kind of smile and weak in a nod moment with Mike to get him to not dump Laura.

Here's Mike's now, brother-in-law, reading another excerpt from his witness declaration. Laura was complaining of depression in suicidal thoughts at the fear of her relationship with Michael ending. and was very distraught. Mike's brother-in-law signaled to him to just focus on getting her calmed down. So Mike said what Laura and Ron wanted him to. He agreed to stay with her for the time being, even though everyone knew it was just delaying the inevitable.

He was doing what Ron asked and playing nice for a couple weeks from a month so he can get his daughter in the right state of mind. It wasn't like you're going to fall in love with my daughter and marry her. Ron was just asking him to give them some time to get her help and get her in a better place before making that step. It was unlike anything I've ever been a part of by a long shot. Laura had this kind of guilty look on her face, I guess is the only way I can describe it.

She knew she was caught, but was just going along with whatever arrangement would keep Mike in her life. She was desperate for him. That was very apparent. She was really just wanted to do anything to salvage the relationship. After they left, Mike says he got a text from Ron Owens. A screenshot of that text was later submitted as an exhibit in a restraining order case. Here's the text Ron sent Mike, read by a voice actor. Please call Laura and promise her anything she wants to keep her alive.

And I promise to help you get out of it as soon as she's safe. Please. Now. This wasn't the only promise Ron had been making Mike over the last nine months. There was the quarter million dollar radio contract and the trip to Iceland, which was already booked and paid for. In the wake of the confrontation, Laura told Mike the Iceland trip was off, and she was no longer going. And I thought I was just going to be going by myself. But on December 30th, when he boarded the Red Eye from San Francisco,

go to Iceland, he realized he'd made a serious miscalculation. She's sitting right next to me, which is going to be worse. This flight will later become part of the Laura Owens mythology. The flight takes off and she immediately starts crying on this red eye flight. And it progressively gets much worse and much more hysterical. She's asking me, like, do you forgive me? Do you love me? do you see a future with us

and it would be like the same repeated questions and I just said please leave me alone like we can talk about this at another time I didn't even expect you to be on this flight and you're here you just got to give me some space that's really what I'm looking for if you ever want a relationship

like friendly and or romantic like you need to give me some space people around us are all like turning around looking at us and she's like lifting off my headphones saying, please talk to me. Please talk to me. And I just said, like, hey, I'm going to go to the bathroom.

I don't want to have any more discussions with you. I don't think it's a good place to be doing this. So I get up and I leave. And I sit in the bathroom until somebody comes and knocks on the door and tells me that I have to essentially leave. I never yelled. I never raised my voice once. Never did anything. I was just annoyed.

I just said, please just leave me alone. The flight was emotionally draining for Mike. He wasn't even prepared for her to show up on the trip, let alone sit next to her for six grueling hours. It felt like it would never end. And in a way, it hasn't. We'll come back to this later. By the time they landed in Reykjavik on December 30th, 2016,

Mike regretted getting on the flight. We then arrived and I said, I'm flying back. There's no point for this trip. anymore. Like, I don't want to be around you. And she says, no, I will fly back. And I was like, great. He went to his room. But the next morning, Laura was still there. She then decides not to leave. It was New Year's Eve. Laura began begging Mike to spend the evening with her. But Mike had no desire to do that. Later that night, her father then calls me and says, like, Michael, you guys haven't seen each other at all. Would you please just spend time with her?

Mike had a hard time saying no to Ron. Remember, they were technically there for work, or at least that's what Mike believed. He hadn't made any money from the job yet, but it's true his whole trip had been paid for. So he gave in and eventually agreed to participate in a couple of activities with Laura before they left. I said, okay, we'll do like the last two events together,

which was the Blue Lagoon and the dog sledding. I didn't hang out with her much. She wanted to take a photo of the two of us there together for the podcast purposes. She posted the one photo of us to her Instagram like we were dating. I saw her at Lake Breakfast and I was like, what are you doing? Like, we are not together. I'm getting messages from people asking for it together. And I just like, we are not together.

After Iceland, Mike didn't see Laura, except for when they recorded a radio show. Laura was asking him for a full-time commitment to the show, but Mike was skeptical. He hadn't spoken to anyone at the station directly. Instead, Mike's only contacts were Laura, Ron, and somebody who Mike believed to be Ron's agent. Despite Mike's doubts, the supposed success of their first travel episode somehow led to another offer, a trip to Dubai.

They said they had listened to it and it was really successful. and they wanted to promote another destination spots. That's why they purchased the Dubai trip. Ron really wanted them to take this opportunity. But he felt like it would be unsafe for Laura to go alone. He was like, but she's going to a country in the Middle East. She definitely needs somebody because they don't treat women very well there. I was like, okay, being a typical wet wipe that I am, I just went with it.

Looking back, Mike can't explain why he went to Dubai. He didn't know how to get out. He'd never been in a situation like this before with anyone, much less with an entire family. You can't say no to Ron. You definitely don't want to be on his bad side. Mike said that trip to Dubai was pretty uneventful, and they stayed in different rooms in the same hotel.

One thing he said really stood out to me, though. She did try to solicit me to have sex and I would not have sex with her. At the tail end of the trip, Mike got bad news from back home. His stepdad, who was like a father to him, had suffered a massive stroke. He'd been placed on a ventilator. As soon as they landed back home, he rushed to be by his stepfather's side. We go to the hospital, and within a couple of hours, they essentially unplug the ventilator in front of me. Laura didn't go with Mike, but he told her what was going on.

She saw me like breaking down the airport, but she seemed like very kind in the moment. And she was like, I'm just so sorry. And her family was very kind at the time. Like I was very upset with them. And they sent my family flowers and all these other things to try to butter us up after everything that it transpired. After the Dubai trip, Mike continued to distance himself from Laura, at least romantically. He also told her, he was out of the day. the radio deal. I was still very friendly with her. I did not want to make enemies of them.

And I wanted to be as friendly as possible as I was exing the relationship. I made it to the point where we would have a coffee every few months where it was just be like a friendly conversation because I just wanted to keep the peace. But Laura wouldn't let it go. She continued to push for a relationship Mike clearly wasn't interested in. It got to the point that Mike could only see one way out. I told her that I was moving out of San Francisco just because she kept trying to press a relationship and I said, like, hey, I'm moving away.

Like, there's going to be no more of this anymore. To be clear, Mike wasn't planning to move. He just needed a way to get her to stop communicating with him. And for a few months, it seemed to work. He thought the whole Laura Owen saga was finally behind him. That all changed. So the night she met my next girlfriend, and then the tides turned back to chaos with her. He started dating someone new, who happened to live four blocks away from Laura's apartment.

A new restaurant opened up right next to Laura's house that my girlfriend at the time wanted to go and try. As they walked into the restaurant, Mike saw something through the front window. Out of the corner of my eye, I think I see Laura and her friend in this restaurant. We walk in and I look over like lock eyes with Laura and her friend. And I was like, oh shit. She now sees me with this blonde and she knows that this is probably a girl that I'm on a date with. So I turned on my girlfriend and I say, hey, there's somebody in here that I do not want to see. Would you mind if we leave, we can come back here a different evening?

My girlfriend was like, absolutely, let's get out of here. No questions asked whatsoever. Mike hadn't told his new girlfriend about Laura. Honestly, he didn't know how to explain it, or where to start. So they left the restaurant and made plans to come back the following night. There was no way Laura would be there two nights in a row. But when they showed up the following evening... We go to the restaurant the next night.

They walk us to the back of the restaurant, and they sit us down at a table, and directly next to us is Laura and her mother. This time, there was no way out. They stand up and she walks up to us and her mom walks up. And I say, hey, how are you doing? And they introduced themselves to my girlfriend, which then got a response to my girlfriend to tell them her first name. The conversation ended there and Laura and her mom left.

But Mike still owed his girlfriend an explanation. It opens up a whole can of worms of who is that? Why do they approach us like that? Why were they kind of weird? Mike gave her a simple answer. That is who I was trying to avoid last night. This is a person that I used to date, and they caused me a lot of pain.

The next day, Mike went over to his girlfriend's place. But when he got there, something was very wrong. She is, like, visibly shaking. I was like, what's wrong? It looked like you just saw a ghost. Laura had found her on social media because she gave Laura her first name. and she pulls up these messages from Laura.

Mike stared at the messages in disbelief. And it says all these really vile things about me that I took her within inches of her life. I would strangle her. I would beat her. That I raped her. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl.

You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And Rule 2, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends... Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me?

The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

I'm Ago Vodam. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day. And I was like, and Dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent.

He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there.

Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring. inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle

to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in soles, correct? I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfected.

They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg, a lesbian, Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. this is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues,

Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Nora Jones, and I love playing music with people so much.

that my podcast called Playing Along is back. I sit down with musicians from all musical styles to play songs together in an intimate setting. Every episode's a little different, but it all involves music and conversation with some of my favorite musicians. Over the past two seasons, I've had special guests like Dave Grohl,

Leve, Mavis Staples, Remy Wolf, Jeff Tweedy, really too many to name. And this season, I've sat down with Alessia Cara, Sarah McLaughlin, John Legend, and more. Check out my new episode with Josh Grobin. You related to the Phantom at that point. Yeah, I was definitely the Phantom in that.

That's so funny. Share each day with me each night, each morning. Say you love me. You know I... So come hang out with us in the studio and listen to playing along on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. After Mike Maricini ended his relationship with the... Laura Owens, he ran into her. Mike was with his new girlfriend.

Laura found her online and contacted her. Laura told her that Mike had assaulted and raped her during their relationship. I had to ask Mike about these allegations. I never abused Laura Owens. I can say that with 100% certainty. But Laura was telling people he had. And those messages to his new girlfriend were just the beginning. The next night is what really took it to the next level.

You've got to understand. Two nights in a row, I see her. I then deal with my girlfriend at her place on that third night. And on the fourth night, I'm like, I'm going to give my girlfriend a little bit of space for me. I'm going to go to dinner with my sister. Mike grabbed dinner with his sister Stephanie that night. He spent the whole time catching her up on the chaos of the last three days. Michael was terrified.

He had always wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. I think he felt a tremendous amount of shame. He had no peace. He was constantly worried. He was very depressed. He wasn't his jovial fun self. Stephanie couldn't help but worry about her brother. They finished dinner and made their way out of the restaurant.

Then Stephanie saw Mike jump. Laura is standing at the exit of the restaurant. His sister walked right up to Laura. My sister essentially says, leave my brother alone. Why are you following us? And in the middle of the street, she goes, you don't know who your brother is.

He was terrified. He went white. He like went to the side and put his head down. I'm the one that got in her face and said, how dare you put my brother through all of his trauma? And I am the one that responded to her. Mike did not. He knew what he was dealing with.

I didn't at the time, which is why I was just. as loud as she was. And I will always have a regret responding to her because I think that antagonized her. The confrontation ended with Laura saying that if she ever saw Mike again,

she was going to call the police. Mike couldn't get away from her fast enough. He was spooked in a way he'd never been before. I've now seen her three out of four nights after not seeing her for a while. I need to be on the offensive here. I just wanted to make a police report because I actually got scared.

So I called the police that night. They come and they file a report. And the next day is when it all starts erupting. And that's when she starts utilizing the justice system to take advantage of me. Once the police notified Laura that Mike had filed a report against her, she responded with the filing of her own. She filed a restraining order against me and said that I had been harassing and stalking her and taking her within inches of her life.

And that's when the next seven years of lawsuits begins. Mike was thrown into a legal battle, similar to what Clayton Eckerd and Greg Gillespie would soon go through. Except Mike spent nearly a decade fighting it. The whole time, he thought he was the only one. That was until 2022, when a family law attorney in Scottsdale took on an unusual case. I remember thinking during Greg's case that this would eventually be a lifetime television movie because it was so bizarre.

Attorney Greg Woodnick hadn't seen anything like this before. An allegation of abortion coercion brought by a woman named Laura Owens. While Woodnick was working on Greg's case, Laura sent him a link to a video. It appeared to be Laura herself giving a TED talk. Ted talk? Who is this person? In 2022, Laura gave a TEDx talk titled The Lifesaving Power of Kindness from Strangers. Just to be clear, TEDx is the localized version of the program, not the national TED stage. Wouldn't it click the link to Laura's TEDx talk and watched, dumbfounded, as she began to tell a story of a plane ride to Iceland gone horribly wrong?

December 30th, 2016. After months of planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Iceland, it's finally here. It's finally time to go on flight 162, San Francisco to Reykjavik. This plane ride should be a time to drift off to sleep and dream about seeing the northern lights, to wonder what it's going to feel like to soak in the blue lagoon, to go dog sledding for the first time.

Only you can't because of the noise in the background, and no, it's not the roaring of the jet engines. It's the loud voice of the man. sitting behind you who helped you with your luggage. He's speaking to a woman who's incessantly sobbing. He's spewing insults at her, demeaning her, and the more she cries, the harsher they become. She can barely get out a word to respond to him through her tears. She keeps crying, and he sounds disgusted. Look at you. You've never been my type. You're ugly. I'm going to skip ahead a few minutes. Laura continues speaking from the perspective of a

passenger witnessing the incident. A woman who will later become known in the online community as napkin lady. There's a napkin under your cocktail and a pen in your purse. You quickly scribble a note. You write, dear girlfriend, I know the Lord had me overhear your conversation to let you know that you were a very beautiful young woman that should have a man that makes you cry with wonderful laughter, not bullying. The woman who allegedly passed Laura this note is named Karen Ilmberger. Karen later signed a witness declaration, corroborating Laura's account of what happened on the flight. I've reached out to Karen several times, but have never received a reply. Here's how her note to Laura concluded,

You are being abused and he will never love you like you deserve. I'm very concerned about you and I'm praying for you. Run from him. My name is Laura Owens. I was the crying woman in seat 22H. The TEDx talk continued. with Laura describing how she survived domestic violence at the hands of an unnamed ex-boyfriend. We'd had a fairy tale start, and then it came down fast. It seemed like overnight, his charm and

compliments turned to criticism. His comments became more and more menacing until finally the verbal abuse became physical. Laura's TEDx talk went live in January 2022, nearly five years after her relationship with Mike Maruccini ended. The video's still up on YouTube. It has 120,000 views, at least at the time I'm recording this. But the comments have been turned off. The video's been reported numerous times. On a platform with over 44 million subscribers, Laura recounted not only being verbally abused, but physically abused. The first thing he did once we landed in Iceland and got to the hotel was asked me to pick a number, not knowing why I picked 40. He said that was how many times he was going to

slop me. He did, and then he choked me. The less oxygen I breathed in, the more he smiled. Attorney Greg Woodnick treated this video like evidence. Back then, he was working on Greg Gillespie's case, and Laura's TEDx talk raised a question. Who was the unnamed ex-boyfriend? We obviously immediately scrambled to figure out what the hell she was talking about. That's actually how we found Mike Maricini. Woodnick made some calls and finally got in touch with Mike Maruccini. I remember getting off the phone with him after I first spoke with him, and I found him to be very guarded. I think I misread the situation.

In hindsight, I think Mike was traumatized. Before we end this episode, there's one more thing I need to say. Michael Maruccini denies that he ever physically or sexually abused Laura Owens. But that is at odds with Laura's account and her mom's account. In a sworn witness declaration from 2018, her mom, Jan Black, told the courts, quote, One morning, in or around late May or early June 2016, Laura came over to our house with a black eye. When I asked her what happened, she started crying and explained that Mike had hit her in the middle of the night while she was sleeping. Laura told me that she thought Mike was asleep when it happened and said it was probably involuntary.

She expressed fear about the idea of sharing a bed with Mike because he'd hit her. so hard, however deliberate or accidental it may have been. That would have been in their first few months of dating. In the same witness declaration, Jan details multiple instances where Laura appeared to be injured after alleged physical abuse from Mike Maruccini. Here's another quote from Jan's sworn statement. In or around spring 2017, Laura told me that Mike had strangled her again. I told her it needed to stop and that she needed to get out of the relationship. She said that Mike had apologized to her and promised he wouldn't do it again. She expressed hope that he would change and would treat her like he used to before the abuse started. I had thought the Iceland incident

was an isolated event until Laura shared this with me. In all of her declarations, Jan never mentions her daughter having cancer. But in this statement, Jan Black does corroborate Laura's account of receiving a handwritten note on a napkin during her flight to isolate. Jan wrote, and I quote, On November 7th, 2017, I sent an email to the address listed on the cocktail napkin Laura was given. I explained that I was trying to locate the woman who took the time to write Laura the note and asked if I had the correct email address. The following day, November 8th, 2017, I received a response from a woman named Karen Ilmberger, saying, I remember your beautiful daughter.

A true and correct copy of the email is attached here to as Exhibit 1. I sent Miss Ilmberger an email that day explaining that Laura was doing much better since she had broken things off with Mike and thanking her for the note. I told her Laura's eyes were really open to what a bad relationship she was in when she received the note from her on the flight that day. As I said before, our team has reached out to Karen Ilmberger multiple times for confirmation of this account. She has never replied. On the next episode of Love Trapped. Wait, there's another guy? I was like, who's Clayton?

And that is when we found the Reddit thread. At some point, I saw M.M. And I was like, are they talking about me? That laptop included a trove of medical records from years before. When I think of Mike's laptop, I just think of it like sitting alone in a giant room in a museum with just a spotlight sitting on it. We hope that justice is served and that this individual is referred to the DA for prosecution so that a future victim doesn't have to go through what we went through the last few years. Thank you so much for listening.

Please be sure to follow Love Trapped on Apple Podcasts, the IHeartRadio app, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And please leave us a review. A five-star rating helps others find this show. We're grateful for your support. If you would like to reach out to the Love Trapped team, email us at Lovetrappedpod at gmail.com. That's Lovetrapped, P-O-D at Gmail. LoveTrapped is a production of Glass Podcasts, a division of Glass Entertainment Group in partnership with IHeart Podcasts. This show was executive produced by Nancy Glass,

Andrea Gunning, and Ben Federman. Written, produced and hosted by me, Stephanie Young. Our story editor is Monique Laborde. Producer on this episode is Sydney Gladu. Additional production support from Todd Gans. Our production manager is Kristen Melkiri. For IHeart podcasts, Ali Perry was our executive producer. Audio editing and mastering by Anna McLean, additional editing support by Tanner Robbins and Matt Delvecchio. A special thank you to our voice actors, Leslie Talley, Dean Welsh, and Tanner Robbins.

This podcast was developed in collaboration with Danny Passman and Lev Abramoff at Crybaby Media. The love-trapped theme is composed by Oliver Baines, music library provided by Mib Music. A special thanks to Carrie Lieberman, Will Pearson, Jessica Kreinschek, Ali Kanter, and the entire IHeart podcast team. And for more podcasts from IHeart, visit the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Vodom. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot.

But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against you. the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck.

Listen to Thanks Dad on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed. I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves.

We always say that, trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax.

You doctored this particular test twice, Ms. Owens, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg Alesbian. Michael Mancini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young.

This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's Nora Jones, and my podcast playing along is back with more of my favorite musicians. Check out my newest episode with Josh Grobin. You related to the Phantom at that point.

Yeah, I was definitely the Phantom in that. That's so funny. Share each day with me each night, each morning. Listen to Nora Jones is playing along on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.