Mind of a Serial Killer - SERIAL KILLER: "The Alaskan Attacker" Pt. 1

Episode Date: May 19, 2025

Joshua Wade survived a violent, unstable childhood—but instead of breaking the cycle, he became the monster he once feared. In this episode, we uncover how years of trauma and unchecked rage culminated in murder—and launched one of Alaska’s most chilling true crime stories. Killer Minds is a Crime House Original Podcast, powered by PAVE Studios. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. For ad-free listening and early access to episodes, subscribe to Crime House+ on Apple Podcasts. Don’t miss out on all things Killer Minds! Instagram: @killerminds | @Crimehouse TikTok: @Crimehouse Facebook: @crimehousestudios X: @crimehousemedia YouTube: @crimehousestudios To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Crime House. It doesn't matter who you are or where you come from, we all face challenges. But some of us are dealt a tougher hand than others. That was definitely true for Joshua Wade. Nothing in life seemed to go right for Josh. He suffered through a tortuous childhood, and as an adult, things weren't any better. For Josh, the pain was overwhelming. But instead of trying to make things better for himself, Josh chose to make others even

more miserable than he was. Even if that meant killing them. The human mind is powerful. It shapes how we think, feel, love, and hate. But sometimes it drives people to commit the unthinkable. This is Killer Minds, a Crime House original. I'm Vanessa Richardson. And I'm Dr. Tristan Engels. Every Monday and Thursday,

we uncover the darkest minds in history, analyzing what makes a killer. Crime House is made possible by you. Please rate, review, and follow Killer Minds. To enhance your listening experience with ad-free early access to each two-part series and bonus content, subscribe to Crime House Plus on Apple Podcasts. A warning. This episode contains descriptions of murder and sexual abuse, including that of children.

Listener discretion is advised. Today we begin our deep dive into Joshua Wade, a young man who killed at least five people in Alaska in the late 1990s and 2000s. After a childhood full of abuse and pain, Josh took his rage out on the most vulnerable victims he could find. full of abuse and pain, Josh took his rage out on the most vulnerable victims he could find. In this episode, we'll explore his deeply troubled youth and how his traumatic past contributed

to his escalating violence, culminating in multiple murders. And as Vanessa goes through the story, I'll be talking about things like the lasting impact of suffering neglect and sexual abuse as a child, why Josh felt the need to show off his violent crimes, and why he decided to go after one of the few people who trusted him.

Next time, we'll cover how the authorities caught onto Josh. We'll go through his shocking confessions that showed the true depth of his crimes, along with how he was eventually brought to justice. And as always, we'll be asking the question, what makes a killer? psychology of history's most chilling murders, then you have to check out Clues with Morgan Absher and Kailyn Moore. Every Wednesday, Kailyn and Morgan take you deep into the world of the most notorious

crimes ever, clue by clue. And one thing I find really interesting about Clues is how they break down the ways that even the smallest pieces of evidence can crack a case wide open. From serial killers to shocking murders, Clues dives into all the forensic details and brilliant sleuthing of the world's most infamous cases. Clues is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.

From a young age, Joshua Wade's life was marked by instability, abuse, and loss. But at the very beginning, things didn't seem so bad. His parents, Greg and Catherine, had Josh's older sister, Mandy, in 1978. They lived in San Diego, California and were active members of the Mormon Church, where Greg was a high-ranking elder. By all accounts, they were a seemingly normal family. However, it wasn't long before things unraveled. Shortly after Mandy was born, Greg moved his young family away from their Mormon community

to Great Falls, Montana. It's not clear why they relocated, but once they arrived, Greg got a security job at the local Air Force base. Before long, Catherine gave birth to Josh on March 18, 1980. They didn't stay in Montana long, though. Soon after Josh was born, they went back to San Diego, then to Silverdale, Washington, about an hour outside Seattle. There, Greg ended up working as a bouncer at a nightclub.

Though soon, the new environment began to erode Greg's values. Greg got into alcohol and drugs, and eventually he started dealing those drugs. He also had affairs with multiple women. Around this point, he was excommunicated from the Mormon church entirely. And Josh's mom wasn't much of a role model either. Catherine later had an affair with a co-worker and became pregnant with the other man's child. Greg was enraged when he found out. One day, when a pregnant Catherine picked him up from work, he put a gun in her mouth. He threatened to kill her right then and there while Josh and his sister Mandy were in the back seat. An event like this is significant for a child, especially

since this is likely not the first incident of domestic violence that Josh witnessed, but it stands out to him because it was probably the most terrifying. Children are attached to their parents emotionally and physically, and witnessing domestic violence between them can cause confusion, terror, guilt, and even helplessness. And these are complex feelings for children to experience, let alone understand. They are still learning what they are feeling and why they are feeling it, and are even still learning what each feeling is called. And so with that, they also lack cognitive and verbal skills at that age, and that affects

their ability to articulate those feelings because they're still developing, learning, and growing. So as a result, children often express their distress or anxiety somatically, meaning physically, and typically they report things like headaches, stomach aches, or they simply tell their parents that they're not feeling good and they can't expand beyond that. And the unfortunate reality is with domestic violence, it's prevalent, and every year, millions of children are exposed to domestic violence in their home. Without intervention, they are at an increased risk of developing emotional, academic,

and behavioral deficits. What could that do to Josh's emotional development? How could that shape his view of the world? Yeah, to answer that, I need to provide a little psychological history. So Albert Bandura was a psychologist who identified the social learning theory. And according to this theory, children learn by observing, imitating, and modeling the behaviors of others.

He did a famous experiment with a doll named Bobo. And in this experiment, children were divided into groups and they were exposed to different scenarios with this doll. In one group, children first observed an adult interact with the doll appropriately before the children were allowed to play with it. In another group, they observed an adult physically assault the doll with a mallet before the children were allowed to play with it. And then in the control group, children did not observe an adult interact with the doll at all, they were just allowed to play with it. And then in the control group, children did not observe an adult interact with the doll at all, they were just allowed to play with it. And from this, they learned that the children who were in the group that observed an adult

act aggressively toward the doll imitated the aggressive behavior they saw significantly more than those in the non-aggressive and control groups. So from this we learned that abuse and violence is a learned behavior. So Josh is observing this in his home, and since this was likely not the first incident, he is at a significantly higher risk of imitating these same behaviors toward others. He is essentially being taught that feelings need to be expressed in hostile or violent ways and that aggression is a method of communication. This is how the cycle of violence begins and it's learned and it needs to be unlearned. Sadly for Josh and his sister, their difficulties were only beginning.

Their parents separated after the gun incident. Greg moved up to Anchorage, Alaska and Catherine went with the kids back to San Diego. Life as a single mother wasn't easy. Catherine couldn't afford to care for a third child, so after giving birth, she gave the baby up for adoption. But even then, she still wasn't equipped to provide for her children alone. Catherine also struggled with drug and alcohol abuse, and frequently left

her kids home by themselves. While she was away, a group of neighborhood boys started to prey on Josh. Later in life, he'd reveal that between the ages of five and seven, those boys didn't just bully him, they sexually assaulted him on multiple occasions. There is a lot to explore here to understand how this impacted Josh developmentally. But let's begin with the fact that he's had several abandonments. First with his father leaving for Alaska, then witnessing his mother give up her newborn for adoption, which as a child does appear like a form of abandonment because they're too young to really understand what they're seeing and why.

And then there's also emotional abandonment from both parents, especially with his mother, which occurs often when there's parental addiction. So child abandonment alone can cause low self-esteem, difficulty forming healthy relationships, attachment deficits, anxiety, depression, and even substance abuse. Children have a better chance at overcoming these odds if they have a healthy attachment to at least one secure adult, like a grandparent, a mentor, or a teacher. Because having that facilitates resiliency. And so far, it doesn't seem like Josh has any stable adult in his life that we know of.

Now, let's also talk about his environment. He's never had a safe one, not just because of the violence between his parents, but their addiction alone placed him and his sister's overall safety at risk. And because of that, he sadly became a victim of child sexual abuse. Trauma responses vary by individual, and this is especially true of children. Some children will become disinhibited. Others, especially more so in boys, will act out behaviorally. It is very confusing for children with some understanding it's wrong,

what happened to them, and experiencing shock and fear, whereas some don't know that it's wrong, even if they don't feel safe or comfortable when it occurred. And the impact of unresolved trauma like this can lead to the same deficits as I've talked about with regard to abandonment, but only now Josh is at a greater risk of experiencing suicidal thinking and is much more likely to develop difficulties with anger management. What kinds of beliefs might he have formed about the world as a result of the abuse that he suffered through on his own? Yeah, for starters, he's not been shown that he is valued and worthy by a single person

in his life. And if that's not corrected, he will begin to believe that he has no value. He'll begin to see himself as worthless. And this will then affect his ability to establish a normal sense of empathy or how to value others in return. But that last part of your question is important too because yeah, he is going through this on his own. And children learn how to self-soothe or regulate their emotions from the people who care for

them. And both his parents are emotionally unavailable for that, which means if this doesn't change, he will develop unhealthy habits and ways of coping, and those include substance use, recklessness, anger, and self-harm. Is there a difference in outcome when young victims of sexual abuse receive counseling and support versus when it's just never acknowledged? Yes, absolutely. And there's been a lot of research on this, the findings are very clear that trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy in particular can significantly improve their

outcomes. It is evidence-based treatment and it's been shown to reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, reduce anxiety and depression, and improve their overall functioning in the long term. And that's in comparison, obviously, to those who did not receive therapy. And from my professional perspective and experience, although therapy is so crucial and so important, so is the family dynamic. Perpetrators of child sexual abuse are often someone the child knows. And it's typically someone within the family or someone who's trusted by the family. So when a child does decide to report

what is happening to them, the reality is they often receive unfavorable or unsupportive reactions. Parents can react defensively with disbelief, denial, or displaced anger at the accusation itself. And when this reaction occurs, it's primarily because they don't want to accept what they are hearing. It's easier to assume that their child could be lying or mistaken than to accept that their loved one perpetrated violence against their child. And unfortunately, when those reactions happen, children internalize that blame

and they ultimately feel responsible for their parents' anger, which can inadvertently teach them that sharing has consequences. And unfortunately, that can cause avoidance and even deception to avoid future interactions that might feel unsafe. So they stop sharing or stop being honest. And it's vital that when children report sexual abuse as the adult, you remember to keep the conversation about them. Reserve your anger, your fear, or any reaction that isn't supportive of your child. If a child does not feel safe speaking to family about what happened, they will have a harder time feeling safe participating in therapy if they are put in it.

And that could impact the effectiveness of the therapy as a result. With no support structure in place, Josh struggled to cope. In 1990, when he was 10, Josh attempted to commit suicide by drowning himself in a bathtub. Afterward, he spent three months in a psychiatric hospital, but the treatment didn't help. Instead, when Josh was released, he began inflicting his pain on others. He reportedly engaged in armed home invasions and even attacked someone with a machete. By the time Josh was 13, he was too much for his single mother to handle. So in 1993, she sent him to Alaska to live with his father, hoping that would straighten him out. Nationally, suicide is the second leading cause of death for 10- to 19-year-olds,

which is absolutely shocking to conceptualize. Most of the time, death is not what they are seeking, but rather they are seeking to end the emotional pain that they're experiencing. And because of their age and the fact that their brains are still developing, they not only struggle to understand where that pain is coming from, but they believe suicide is the only way to stop their pain. So three months in a psychiatric hospital

can be very scary for a child, especially when they are away from everything they've ever known. Without knowing what treatment was provided, it's hard to assess why it wasn't effective for Josh. However, Josh is exhibiting criteria for conduct disorder, which is often a precursor to antisocial personality disorder. Psychiatric medication can improve any comorbid conditions that we see with conduct disorder, like a mood disorder or ADHD.

The conduct disorder is largely behavioral and that requires individual and family therapy. Hospitals are intended for stabilizing individuals with acute risk and once that risk is passed, they discharge patients. What Josh needs is long-term individual behavioral and family therapy to address what's going on here. Now let's explore his mother's decision to send him to Alaska to live with his father.

On the surface, this could seem like a good idea because on a case-by-case basis, a change of scenery could have a positive effect, especially if the child is heavily influenced by their current environment in negative ways, like with their peers, for example. However, the effectiveness of this change will depend on whether or not they are getting the support, like therapy, that they need, and whether or not the environment is healthy, structured, and stable. That would not be the case for Josh, given what we know about his father, Greg. And also, Josh has experienced, like I mentioned, a lot of abandonment in his life.

And his mother's decision to ship him off like this, rather than put him in therapy or start family therapy with him, is an abandonment in itself, which would actually reinforce core beliefs regarding his sense of self-worth. I don't see this having the effect that she would hope. It's also worth noting, Alaska's vastly different from San Diego, not just in weather, but culture too, which could mean difficulty relating to his peers and wanting to fit in. And that's crucial at his age. So overall, this decision feels to me like it would just cause more instability for Josh

and it's not addressing the root concern. Well, in Josh's case, the change of scenery didn't have the effect his mother was hoping for. For one thing, Josh's father, Greg, was still dealing drugs and he was very hard on Josh, even abusive. If Josh disobeyed him, even over something small like not doing his chores, Greg would stop feeding him. At times, Josh ended up living on the streets,

forced to scavenge through garbage cans for food. The situation was incredibly stressful, and Josh didn't have much in the way of healthy coping mechanisms. So, shortly after moving to Alaska, he was admitted a second time to a psychiatric hospital, this time for self-mutilation. But just like his last stay, the doctors weren't able to help Josh. Following his release, Josh grew into a rebellious teen with a penchant for violence, angry outbursts,

and law-breaking. Looking for an outlet to express his simmering rage, he drew cartoons of himself hurting animals. Greg later theorized that these drawings were an expression of Josh's fantasies about killing him. And foreshadowing darker things to come, Josh became obsessed with a movie called Faces of Death, which graphically depicted various ways to die. Meanwhile, Josh's real-world crimes continued to escalate. He stole from his dad's stash of drugs, getting himself high and becoming a dealer

himself. In 1986, two months after he turned 16, police stopped Josh while he was driving a stolen car. And when they looked inside the vehicle, they found cocaine and a loaded 9mm semi-automatic handgun, which he'd also stolen. Josh was also becoming sexually deviant. When he was 16, he was caught dangling a camera out of a hotel room and into the window of a woman staying on the floor below. Later that year, Josh was accused of molesting a six-year-old girl he was babysitting.

But Josh never faced punishment for any of these actions. Even though Greg was a harsh father, he helped keep his son out of trouble. Sometimes he promised the police Josh would change his ways. And in the case of the little girl, Greg intimidated her mother into not pressing charges. So Josh is learning quite a bit from Greg. I think it's important to highlight that it is a myth that all sexually abused children will go on to sexually abuse others. I have worked with so many survivors who would be more likely to harm themselves before they

ever harmed another person, let alone violated them in any way. However, although it is very true that not all victims become abusers, it is also true that most abusers have been victims. Josh is a great example of how some, not all, but some victims can become offenders. It's not simply because of the sexual abuse he endured, but rather a combination of everything that has been happening in his life until this point.

And to recap, there's family history of substance abuse and criminality. Look at Greg, for example. This could be something that predisposed him to those same things. He was also a victim of neglect, which affects his cognitive development, in particular learning empathy rules and understanding boundaries, Josh lacks stability, and there has been no indication

of any warm, loving presence in his life to create any resiliency. He's never been valued by the people in his life, and because of that, he hasn't learned to value others. He also continues to learn and observe violence and antisocial behavior from his father. So when we consider the biological predisposition from family, social and environmental factors that created learned behavior, psychological elements related to unresolved trauma as well, then we can see how Josh in particular is

somebody who was once abused who turned into an offender himself. Josh actually was assaulted between the ages of five and seven, so right in the same range as his alleged victim. Is there any significance to that? Yes, definitely. And I've talked about this in previous episodes that we've covered, but our first sexual experiences are lasting. They significantly influence our ideas and beliefs about sex as well as our future sexual behaviors. When we begin to see sexual deviance, typically there was a social conditioning that occurred. And for example, in Josh's case, his personal history of sexual abuse was secretive and non-consensual, which led to a distorted perception of intimacy

or boundaries, and this is very similar to voyeurism. Voyeurism is both secretive and non-consensual. But also, Josh learned everything through observing others, because there's no one there to nurture his development, and voyeurism is also about observing. If he wasn't taught sex education, for example, his instinct would be to learn about it on his own, and unfortunately he also wasn't taught boundaries or rules, which explains why he deviated to voyeurism. Now, the molestation. There's been a lot of research on pedophilia, for example, and one thing that has been theorized is that if the offender has a personal

history of childhood sexual abuse, and I say that because not theorized is that if the offender has a personal history of childhood sexual abuse And I say that because not all do but if they did They may have become emotionally stunted to the age when the abuse occurred causing them to in turn be Attracted to children of that same age which explains Josh's behavior here with that six-year-old girl They have also found there may be developmental issues with individuals with pedophilia. I know when I evaluated juveniles Josh's age who committed sexual offenses, I found that they commonly had below average IQs. What they were doing was acting on biological and hormonal impulse with the lack of reasoning or judgment.

And this is not an excuse for that by any means, but what it is is an explanation as to why that is occurring. Well, these were all disturbing allegations to say the least, but Josh was about to add a terrifying new crime to that list. On the evening of August 31, 2000, 20-year-old Josh was with a few friends driving around Anchorage, Alaska in his dad's Cadillac Seville. As they cruised, they came across a woman collapsed in the middle of the road.

She was a 33-year-old native Alaskan woman named Della Brown. Della had lived a hard life. After being given up for adoption by her biological mother, she was sexually abused by her adoptive father starting at seven years old. As an adult, she became addicted to cocaine and alcohol and was in an abusive relationship with a man twice her age. On that evening in August 2000, she'd stolen a credit card from her

boyfriend and snuck away to drown her sorrows in whiskey, which was how she ended up passed out in the street. But instead of stopping to help her, Josh joked he was gonna run her over. Thankfully, he never got the chance. One of Josh's friends got out of the car and pulled Della off to the side of the road, leaving her in some grass next to an abandoned shed. Josh and his crew continued on their way, heading to a friend's place to drink and smoke. But Josh was fixated on Della. Later that night, he told his buddies he was going to go back and rob her. This time, they didn't stop him. was going to go back and rob her. This time, they didn't stop him. After he left, Josh went back to the spot where Della lay on the side of the road. He tried to take her money, but she was awake enough to fight back. However, Della was weakened

from the drugs and alcohol in her system, and soon, Josh was able to overpower her. By the end of the struggle, Josh had smashed Della's head in with a rock, killing her. But Josh's horrific crime against her was just beginning. Hey, it's Vanessa. And if you love killer minds, where we take you deep into the psychology of history's most chilling murders, then you have to check out Clues with Kaylin Moore and Morgan Absher. Every Wednesday, Morgan and Kaylin take you deep into the world of the most notorious crimes ever, clue by clue.

And one thing I find really interesting about clues is how they break down the ways that even the smallest pieces of evidence can crack a case wide open. From serial killers to shocking murders, Clues dives into all the forensic details and brilliant sleuthing of the world's most infamous cases. If you're looking for a show that has compelling storytelling, crime scene analysis, and a new perspective through some of the world's most puzzling true crime cases, then you have to check out Clues. Clues is a crime house original powered by Pave Studios. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.

Late at night on August 31, 2000, 20-year-old Josh Wade killed 33-year-old Della Brown while she was incapacitated on the side of the road. But simply ending her life wasn't enough to satisfy him. Once she was dead, Josh dragged her body into an abandoned shed. Inside, he continued to take his anger out on her, making cuts on her legs and neck with a dull knife. Afterward, Josh went back to where his friends were hanging out. He cleaned his blood-stained hands with a rag, then asked if anyone had a condom.

Seemingly, no one questioned him, because then he went back to the shed and engaged in necrophilia with Della's body. When he was done, he rejoined his friends again and bragged about it. He told them what he'd done to Della, and how he'd done her a favor. In his opinion, he felt all Native people were worthless. He even brought some of his friends to the shed, daring them to look at the body to see what he'd done. Josh bragging like this is an indication that he has an unconscious but arguably pathological

desire for validation and attention, in addition to a need to feel superior. It stems from low self-esteem and a lack of self-worth. He wants to show how strong and hardened he is, and he needs people to see it so that they can reinforce that belief for him. As to the nature of his actions, they are particularly heinous, but also very disorganized.

Crimes like these are about power or control, and those are two things that he lacked as a child when he felt he needed them the most. It's very clear to me that Josh is overcompensating for years of feeling vulnerable by preying on the vulnerable. It's as if he wants to prove to himself that he is the predator and he can no longer be the prey. And to do that, he needs to remain calloused, detached, and proud. The more he plays the part, the more he gets validation

and the more he, in turn, believes it about himself. [♪ Dramatic music playing. V.O.] Well, whatever Josh's reasons were for what he did to Della, it didn't seem to weigh on him. He left her body in that shed and spent the next few days Well, whatever Josh's reasons were for what he did to Della, it didn't seem to weigh on him. He left her body in that shed and spent the next few days partying with his friends. It's not clear exactly what his friends thought of it, but it seems like some thought he'd just found the body already deceased and was pretending he'd killed her to look tough.

Others were so shocked they just tried to block it out of their minds and act like nothing was wrong. But on September 2nd, 2000, two days after Josh killed Della, someone else finally discovered Della Brown's body and they refused to ignore it. Sometime after midnight, a couple passed the shed on their way home from a late-night alcohol run. As they walked by, their dog sensed something and pulled them toward the building. The couple looked inside and found Della Brown's body. She was lying on her back, partially undressed and covered with blood.

The couple ran home and one of their friends called the police. Officers arrived at the shed around 3 a.m. They were able to tell the victim had been killed from blunt force trauma and that she'd been dead for a few days. But beyond that, there wasn't much information to go on. So once they identified Della as the victim, they started with the likeliest suspect, her boyfriend, Rudy Doppies. Rudy was known to be abusive. Once he'd beaten her so badly, Della was hospitalized. But ultimately, there wasn't any evidence tying Rudy to the crime. So the authorities started looking elsewhere, and on September 13,

two weeks after Della was murdered, the police received an anonymous tip. The caller said that someone named Josh had confessed to killing and sexually assaulting Della Brown. And given Josh Wade's lengthy criminal history, they quickly narrowed in on him. At first there was nothing tying him to the crime, but a couple weeks later, the police got another tip. On September 25, another anonymous caller told the police that a young man named Danny Troxell had more information about the murder.

Officers tracked down Danny and one of his buddies, but they were hesitant to talk. They gave shifting stories trying to implicate their friend Josh without getting themselves into trouble. But after taking a couple days to think about it, they decided to be more helpful. Both men agreed to wear wires to see if they could get Josh to confess to the murder while being recorded. The informants drove to Josh's trailer in a car equipped with recording devices. There was also a copy of that morning's Anchorage Daily News on the dashboard. The front page story was about how six local women had been murdered over the past 16 months.

Della Brown's picture was featured along with the five other victims. Police hoped the prop might get Josh talking. And he did. When the two men picked Josh up in the car, one of them asked if any of the women in the paper looked familiar. After a moment, Josh pointed out Della Brown. He said, that's her, that's her.

He also admitted to sexually assaulting Della after he killed her, gloating about how the cops hadn't found the condom he used. But Josh wasn't done talking, because then he suggested that he might have also killed two of the other victims from the story. He was so proud, he even wanted to keep a clipping of the newspaper for himself. This behavior makes me wonder if Josh views his friend group similar to a gang or is seeking something like that. His friends are certainly at a minimum enabling criminal behavior when they dismiss his actions or are seemingly comfortable looking at Della's remains and not calling the police. And I have worked with gang members for over a decade and his behavior is

truly reminiscent of a young aspiring member, someone who's eager, reckless, and seeking notoriety. He's glamorizing this and he's wanting a reputation among his friends. The benefit of having that reputation in Josh's mind is that people will fear him. They won't betray him or hurt him, which may be why his friends didn't turn him in right away because his reputation was working. Josh feels powerful when he does this, and this is evident in how quickly he wanted to show off what he had allegedly done to Della.

He knew he would be feared and likely believed this would earn him that respect or that credibility. The attraction to a gang or that mentality fits with what we know about Josh's background. He's been abused, neglected, and abandoned. Children like him are targeted by gang members and easily groomed because they are seeking belonging and protection. Josh seems to be seeking these things as well. Well, after that confession, it didn't take long for the police to show up at Josh's trailer with an arrest warrant. But Josh saw them coming and escaped into the woods on his bicycle.

He wasn't able to hide for long though. The next day, Josh was spotted again and was quickly surrounded by over 30 patrol cars. He was finally arrested. Josh was charged with first-degree murder for killing Della Brown, with bail set at $1 million. He didn't have the money, so he would remain in jail for the next two and a half years or so until his trial began. The proceedings finally started in January 2003. It wouldn't be easy to prove his guilt though.

Even though the authorities had a recorded confession from him, they still had to show some evidence that connected him to the crime. But they never found the rock he'd used to bludgeon Della, and despite his claim that he'd sexually assaulted her body, his DNA wasn't found on her. However, there were plenty of people willing to testify about what they'd seen Josh say and do that night, how he'd been covered in blood, how he admitted to killing Della, how he had shown them the body.

One friend even testified that Josh talked to him about the sexual assault he'd committed on Della after killing her. The witness said Josh seemed confused about his actions. He didn't understand why he'd done it. The witness also said, quote, it's kind of like he was using me as a psychiatrist or something. All right, this adds to the clinical picture and sort of confirms what I was saying previously

about how he views his friend groups because he was boastful and bragging to the group, meaning he wanted them as a collective to see how unaffected he was, how calloused he is, and what he is capable of. And that is for a purpose. Typically boasting is for external validation or attention. Assuming that he really did take Della's life because even some friends questioned whether or not he had but rather took credit for it.

Assuming that it was the case. He's speaking to a friend one-on-one. He's showing vulnerability. When he has a group, he's seeking attention. He's expressing confusion and possibly even some degree of distress. That is actually characteristic of disorganized killers. It's as if he's seeking comfort and guidance. Although he is indifferent to human life, the fact that he's questioning what he'd done could indicate that he can experience

some degree of empathy and guilt, even if it is selfishly driven. This indicates to me that Josh's behavior is largely influenced by his environments in the ways that I outlined previously. That's not to say there aren't any neurobiological components or predispositions, because it's usually a combination of these factors that create somebody who's capable of this, but people with antisocial personality disorder or sociopathy can experience some degree of empathy, though it's at a diminished capacity.

Taken all together, it certainly paints a bad picture of Josh. But his lawyers knew how to fight back. They systematically poked holes in all the testimony against him, claiming that Josh only said he'd killed Della Brown as a way of talking himself up, that he wanted to make himself seem more hardened than he really was. They insisted that the real killer was still out there, and the jury believed it. After the two-month trial ended in April 2003, Josh was found not guilty on eight of nine counts, including murder, assault, and robbery. The only charge he was found guilty of was evidence tampering, for moving Della's body

when he took his friends to the shed, and for taking the murder weapon from the scene. For that, he was sentenced to six and a half years behind bars. But at that point, he'd already served three. After spending just another year or so in prison, he was let out early and put on probation. By the end of 2004, 24-year-old Josh Wade was a free man. And in 2007, his probation ended. For those three years, he'd stayed out of trouble. Considering his violent history, it was a remarkable show of restraint. But now, there wasn't anyone looking over his shoulder.

And the second the coast was clear, he was going to strike again. In August 2007, 27-year-old Josh Wade was out of prison after serving a few years behind bars for tampering with evidence in Della Brown's murder trial. His probation had ended and he'd moved into a house in Anchorage, Alaska with a couple other guys. But instead of using his freedom to turn his life around, Josh used it to hurt someone else. He'd become fixated on his neighbor, a 52-year-old nurse practitioner named Mindy

Schloss. Friends described her as playful and fun-loving, fond of mystical things like tarot cards, crystals, and feng shui. Josh's bedroom window faced her house. Despite the 25-year age gap, Josh told some of his friends that he found Mindy attractive. But Josh didn't have much time to think about romance. Most of his days were spent doing backbreaking work on a construction site, mixing mortar to make bricks. It was no dream job, and on August 3, 2007, he had a particularly challenging day. Josh came home in a terrible mood, upset at being broke despite the hard labor he was doing.

But that day, he wasn't interested in trying to earn more money. He wanted to take it. And his attractive next door neighbor was the perfect target. Unfortunately, Josh reoffending is something that we see too often, especially for individuals with his psychopathology. Firstly, as I mentioned, Josh has antisocial personality disorder. This is a condition with a persistent pattern of disregard for the rules and norms of society or a continued pattern of violating the rights of others.

Josh has also met criteria for conduct disorder as a teen, and he's been cycling through the system in different ways ever since. His pattern of disregarding the rules and norms of society is deeply ingrained, meaning it's his normal. Secondly, the biggest factor for recidivism or reoffending is the inability to meet basic needs. Every time a person is discharged from a jail or a prison sentence

They are starting over. They've likely lost their homes, their cars, their belongings, as well as jobs and even relationships. Now they have a criminal record or they have a more severe criminal record with a longer time without employment and that makes it difficult to find any type of employment that's gainful. Newly released individuals need to be able to make enough money to not only replace everything that they lost, but to do that while meeting their basic needs at the same time. That requires working grueling hours or doing labor-intensive work like Josh is doing, and despite this, they still often find themselves broke or struggling financially.

Meanwhile, individuals who have antisocial personality disorder like Josh also struggle with impulse control. In the past, they have been able to get everything they wanted quickly and easily through illegal means, like stealing or robbing. When they've been struggling doing things the prosocial way, they see the attractiveness of resorting to old patterns and unfortunately

they impulsively go right back to doing that. Once Josh decided to rob his neighbor, he was committed to it. Late on the night of August 3rd, 2007, he grabbed a duffel bag and broke into Mindy Schloss's house. But he was too noisy and woke Mindy up. When she came out of her bedroom to see what was going on, Josh found himself at a crossroads. There was still time for him to run, but instead, he chose to attack. Josh rushed Mindy, then overpowered her and restrained her with zip ties. He forced Mindy to give him her ATM card and tell him the PIN. But he wasn't stopping there.

Even after she did what he asked, Josh tossed Mindy into the backseat of her own car, a red Acura sedan. He made a quick stop at his house to pick up a Glock pistol. Then Josh got in the driver's seat and drove almost 60 miles north toward an isolated area near the town of Wasilla. Along the way, he stopped at several ATMs to withdraw money from her bank account. Once they arrived at the woods outside of Wasilla, Josh forced Mindy out of the back seat and onto her feet. He promised her he wasn't going to kill her, he was just going to abandon her, giving himself a head start so he could escape. Except it was a lie.

Once they'd walked a little ways into the woods, Josh told Mindy to kneel down. As soon as her knees touched the ground, he shot her in the back of her head. There are a few reasons psychologically why Josh would lie to Mindy like this. First, he could be trying to convince himself that he was not going to harm her. He may truly have wanted to go there only to rob her,

but because she did wake up, he had to deviate from his plans. He may have really wanted to abandon her in the woods, but realized quickly he would be identified if he did that. However, this idea is challenged when we consider that Josh came prepared with zip ties and that he also needed her to be awake to get her pin number to their ATM card. That theory might have some holes. Secondly, and more likely, he could be

lying to her to gain control over her, to keep her quiet, or to prevent her from fighting back. He took quite a long drive and now is walking her into the woods, and she is in survival mode. So lying to her would increase his chances of keeping her compliant until the very end. Lastly, this could have been purely psychological manipulation for his own gratification. He may have enjoyed the idea of tormenting her with hope, knowing he planned to take it away. It's so hard to say in the case of Josh because he's so disorganized and impulsive, and at least so far, he doesn't seem to have a pattern.

The way he targeted Mindy is vastly different from Della. They are two very different women, with Della struggling with addiction and Mindy being older and an established professional. Not to mention, he had been watching Mindy from next door, but yet he happened upon Della by chance. The motives and methods are also so different. There's very little consistency, and it makes me question a lot of Josh's story. Regardless of what Josh's intentions were with Mindy, there was no going back now.

And this time he wanted to be sure nobody found her body. After confirming Mindy was dead, he set her remains on fire. Once the flames died down, he got back in Mindy's car and drove it back to Anchorage. Neighbors spotted the Acura pulling into her driveway around 9.15 the next morning. But it seems like Josh thought that might raise suspicions, so later that day he moved the car to the Anchorage airport. He'd chosen out of the way lot, presumably so nobody would see him leaving it there. But the lot wasn't as abandoned as Josh thought, and it wouldn't be long before the police were on his trail.

Thanks so much for listening. We'll be back next time as we discuss how Josh Wade was eventually held accountable for the murders of Della Brown and Mindy Schloss, as well as the shocking revelation he made once he was behind bars. Killer Minds is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. Here at Crime House, we want to thank each and every one of you for your support. If you like what you heard today, reach out on Instagram at Killer Minds. Don't forget to rate, review, and follow Killer Minds wherever you get your podcasts. Your feedback truly makes a difference.

And to enhance your listening experience, subscribe to Crime House Plus on Apple podcasts. You'll get every episode of Killer Minds ad-free, along with early access to each thrilling two-part series and exciting Crime House bonus content. Killer Minds is hosted by me, Vanessa Richardson, and Dr. Tristan Engels, and is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios. This episode was brought to life by the Killer Minds team, Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benedon, Lori Marinelli, Natalie Pertsowski, Sarah Camp, Nani Aquilagu, and Carrie Murphy. Of the many sources we used when researching this episode, the one we found the most credible

and helpful was Ice and Bone, Tracking an Alaskan Serial Killer by Monty Francis. Thank you for listening. How can one tiny clue change everything? Kaylin Moore and Morgan Absher break it all down on their new show, Clues. New episodes drop every Wednesday. Just search Clues wherever you listen to podcasts.