Murdaugh Murders Podcast - TSP #123 - What A Tangled Webster We Weave: Unpacking The Horry County Sex Scandal That Wasn’t

Episode Date: November 13, 2025

Investigative journalists ⁠Mandy Matney⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠ expose a shocking case of alleged retaliation at Horry County Police Department. When CIT Investigator Kelsey Manemeit filed a sexual harassment complaint against Deputy County Administrator Randy Webster—whose name adorns a $24 million building—she expected justice. Instead, she and county PIO Mikayla Moskov were accused of participating in a allegedly fabricated "sex scandal" and forced to resign. Attorney Jonny McCoy shares how HCPD Chief Kris Leonhardt allegedly weaponized an internal affairs investigation to punish women who reported misconduct, while Webster quietly retired with his reputation intact. Today we examine disturbing text messages, questionable timelines, and a pattern of alleged corruption in the same department that failed Mica Francis Miller and Scott Spivey. Did transparency claims mask retaliation, and why did this case represent a reckoning for Horry County's Good Ole Boy network? Tune into Jonny McCoy's Facebook to watch his press conference at THURSDAY November 13 at 2 pm 🔊 So much to cover, so let’s dive in! 🥽🦈Leave A Review for Hulu's Original Series!⁠“Murdaugh: Death in the Family” on IMDB⁠ ⭐⁠“Murdaugh: Death in the Family” on Rotten Tomatoes⁠ 🍿Episode References Mandy and Liz’s Apology & Promise of Action Facebook Posts - Nov 12, 2025 🌐 Learn more about Jonny McCoy at his website 👋 Horry County Police Department’s Press Release on Facebook - Nov 7, 2025 🌐 “Horry official who led Bikefest planning, flood response honored” - The Sun News, Updated March 4, 2016 📰 “Look inside new state of the art center for Horry Co. Emergency Management Department” - ABC15 News, Updated Sept 1, 2022 📰Stay Tuned, Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight...☀️ Learn more about Premium Membership at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lunashark.supercast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get bonus episodes like our Premium Dives, Corruption Watchlist, Girl Talk, and Soundbites that help you Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight Support Our Show, Sponsors and Mission: https://lunasharkmedia.com/support/ Quince - Hungry Root - Bombas ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/4cJ0eVn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** ALERT: If you ever notice audio errors in the pod, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[e-mail]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and we'll send fun merch to the first listener that finds something that needs to be adjusted! *** For current & accurate updates: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lunashark.supercast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/mandy_matney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠   |   ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/elizfarrell⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠   ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky.app/profile/mandy-matney.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky.app/profile/elizfarrell.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TrueSunlight.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/TrueSunlightPodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/TrueSunlightPod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube.com/@LunaSharkMedia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tiktok.com/@lunasharkmedia⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Alec Murdoch. I need police in an ambulance immediately. Murdoch, Death in the Family Official Podcast, is here. I'm joining Patricia Arquette, Jason Clark, and the cast to uncover all things Murdoch. Family first. To unravel the story piece by piece was really surprising because you don't want to believe it. Murdoch, Death in the Family Official Podcast, Wednesdays. And stream Murdoch, Death in the Family on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus for bundle subscribers.

Terms apply. I don't know what ORI County Police Chief Chris Lionheart was thinking when his department issued a shocking media release Friday, accusing four officers of being involved in a sex scandal that apparently did not happen. But if he thought that that would distract the media from finding out about a much more concerning sexual harassment case involving a county administrator, boy, is he mistaken. My name is Mandy Matney. This is True Sunlight, a podcast exposing crime and corruption, previously known as the Murdoch Murders podcast, which was the inspiration for Hulu's original series, Murdoch Death in the Family,

and the Murdoch Death and the Family official podcast, now both streaming on Hulu and audio episodes wherever you listen. True Sunlight is a Luna Shark production written with journalist Liz Pharrell. So, I want to start the show by apologizing to the ORI County police officers who were accused of being involved in a sex scandal, particularly to Michaela Moscov, Kelsey Manimate, two women who I now see as the victims of the disgusting leadership in ORI County, two women who did not deserve for their names to be forever maligned with a sex scandal, now knowing what I know about what ORI County officials did to apparently cover up sexual harassment allegations.

If you don't follow me on social media and you didn't see my deleted post about this incident, and you don't know what I'm talking about, don't worry. We will fill you all in. But to really understand this story and to see how truly shameful the ORI County Police Department is, we need to go back. So remember the police department that repeatedly ignored Micah Francis' repeated calls for help while she was trying to leave her pastor husband, J.P. Miller. Remember the police department, who did nothing when she said this, months before she was found

shot to death in a North Carolina swamp? And I believe at this point, based on my, the people that he's come in contact with, some of them reported to me that based on how he was talking, they feared he had killed and buried me somewhere. You know, the same police department that fought us. on our foias in every step of the Micah Francis investigation that over-redacted every report and gave us the least amount of information they could whenever they could. The same police department that repeatedly broke the law by not only withholding public

information, but by not even telling us they were withholding reports and 911 calls. Not even acknowledging that they existed. This is the same police department where this guy, Brandon Strickland, was second in command, in charge of a $65 million annual budget and almost 400 sworn officers, when his buddy, Weldon Boy, decided to shoot and kill 33-year-old Scott Spivey, claiming self-defense. Good thing, Dopey Weldon recorded their phone calls. Do they know how many times he was hit or anything? They'll do the autopsy either today or tomorrow.

I don't know. But I was up through it last night talking. I was working, I was into shadows last night. I weren't there, but I was in shadows. Well, to almost no one's surprise, that same police department, Ory County PD, is in the spotlight yet again for something bad. This time, a massive sex scandal that somehow is exponentially worse than what has been reported in the media. So last week, we received a number of tips that claimed several officers at ORI County PD were fired after an internal investigation revealed a sex scandal.

These same tips also said this happened right after Deputy County Administrator slash Director of Public Safety Randy Webster suddenly retired, quote unquote, due to medical reasons. Randy Webster's sudden resignation was a big deal. And to understand the depth of police misconduct in the story, we need to start by telling you about Randy Webster. So the first thing to know about Randy, the county named a building after him. A whole building. Let's talk about that a little, and please,

please stick a pin in this because you're going to need this at the forefront of your mind when we drop the worst parts of this story. story on you. This story starts out in 1989 when Randy Webster and his wife, Stickapin and Wife, were vacationing in Myrtle Beach, this same place they went for their honeymoon. They decided to leave West Virginia and moved to the good old Republic of Ory County. According to a 2016 story in the Myrtle Beach Sun News, when the South Carolina Emergency Management Association named old Randy Emergency Management Director of the Year. According to the newspaper, Randy started with the county as a paramedic.

He later became the deputy emergency management director, then interim director. He also served as fire chief, but he's been the head guy in charge of emergency management since 2003. So, this is just to say that Randy Webster has been around for a while. So in 2017, the county council began talking about the need for a new emergency operation. Center. In 2018, Randy went to work trying to convince counsel that this new building needed to happen sooner rather than later, or else everyone was going to die. Just kidding, but he did use scare tactics, such as making sure counsel knew that the building they were in couldn't withstand 100 mile per hour wins, and that put public safety officials at risk. In November 2020, the county

broke ground on the building. The estimated cost for the 43,000 square foot building, that can allegedly withstand a Category 5 hurricane was $16 million. Notice, I said, was. By the time the building was done in fall 2022, it cost taxpayers $24 million, and they named it after Randy. It's not just the EOC, it's also where the 911 dispatch center is. Another thing to stick a pin in is that in June 2019, Randy Webster announced that he would retire on July 31st.

told the press and his employees that, quote, opportunity rose that I was not seeking. What opportunity? Not clear. He didn't share any details with reporters at the time, at least on the record. But less than a week after this, Randy Webster changed his mind and planned to stay

and was, quote, hoping for a promotion. I'm not going to get into the who's who here, but in looking at the news reports from that time, in our opinion, it looks like political shenanigans might have been afoot. Because on June 10th, 2019, the press was told that the assistant county administrator for public safety was no longer with the county. And the day after that, the county announced that retiring Randy would take over the role

in the interim. When he resigned abruptly last month, saying he was retiring for health reasons, he was the deputy county administrator of public safety and the emergency management director. I promise, all of this is leading. somewhere. In October, Randy, who was making more than $231,000 in salary alone, wrote a bizarre and email letter to staff, saying that his last day would be November 3rd. Here's David with that email. Oh, I know this is not the email you were expecting from me today. After 37 plus years with ory county and over 42 as a public servant. I am retiring. Over the last few years,

I have been asked when I was leaving, and that was always followed by, quote, I have a few years left in me and a few projects I would like to see completed. But you know, I may wake up one morning and say this is it. Well, that morning came, and this is it. I have enjoyed all that I have been been able to do with Orrie County serving the community and the staff. I have had some wonderful accolades and completed a lot of major projects and initiatives. I have mentored and assisted many current and past county employees by providing encouragement and opportunities for many to show and prove their skills and talents. Stick a pen in mentored, but also vomit. Can you imagine getting a goodbye email from your boss, where he talks about how great he's been.

Ugh. No, thank you. While this is not my first time letting you know I was retiring, this is the last one you will see. Oh my goodness, he's so ominous. The first time was a fake out, but this time he means it, y'all. You're about to find out why. Keep going, David. I have been thinking more about it over the last few months all the while looking

for that easy end point where everything I wanted to do is complete. I have realized that day will never come, so there is no reason to try to wait for it too. Working here has brought a lot of joy, but also a lot of sorrow. What in the world? Sorrow? Sorrow? Did he accidentally copy and paste a paragraph from his feelings journal? No one in any professional world wants an email from their boss talking about his interior sadness about work. I'm so scared to say this, but David, keep going. You may not be aware that I have almost died twice. Most recently in May when I ended up in ICU and I can attest that the stresses of the job contributed to those events and I have other ongoing medical issues to battle as well. Almost died? Twice? Why couldn't he?

When he, what's wrong with just saying I'm retiring for real this time? Stay in touch. Randy, why is he making this so weird? Okay, David, what does the next page in Randy Webster's memoir have to say? One thing I have realized is that working here is wonderful, but it also has consumed me. And because of that, I was becoming a person I did not know. Oh, sir. Oh, no. Maybe not on the outside, but without a doubt, on the inside.

No, no more inside stuff. Why are you talking about your inside so much? I was losing touch with who, quote, Randy is, with you and especially with my family. Oh, God, I'm sensing an eat-pray love moment coming. The struggles are real, and I have chosen to address them by making a significant change moving forward through retirement. So is this retirement about medical issues and almost dying and his stress or is something else happening here? Because why is he so disappointed in himself? I'm blessed to be in a position to retire and to understand. enjoy spending time with my family and to focus on proper treatments for severe medical

issues. One piece of advice I want to leave you with, it is a true honor to be a public servant and to give back to your community. Though it can be a thankless job, I highly recommend it and the rewards you get to experience. But at the same time, do not let it consume you like I have to the point your true self. becomes lost. Do your best to find a good balance. I didn't think this could get any more unsettling, but boy, was I wrong. My last official day will be November 3, 2025. For now, please contact Barry or David Jordan until you get further instructions. I admire all of you, and know you will

continue to serve and protect everyone in ORI County as best that you can. Well, wishing, to all of you, Randy. Okay, so Randy Webster, of the Randall S. Webster Emergency Management Center in Conway, South Carolina, retired, retired, like really this time. Now, how many red flags did you see waving about when you were listening to that email? It was a lot, right?

Like, the entire inventory from the big red flag warehouse was contained in that email, and without knowing anything else about the situation. It probably would prompt you to be like, something's going on here, right? This is abrupt. He said it was about medical issues, but then boohooed about existential issues

as they relate to the workplace. I mean, there are so many questions to ask here. And local media didn't seem to do that. Instead, we got headlines like these ones. David? ORI County Deputy Administrator to retire. ORI County Deputy Administrator announces retirement. ORI County Deputy Administrator retiring in November.

In that last story, there is this little bit of information. Quote, a source with knowledge of Randy Webster's plans said his retirement is effective November 3rd. County spokeswoman Michaela Moscove confirmed the move. Quote, our county team hopes to have more information to provide as succession plans are implemented in the coming days, Michaela said. Succession plans? Is this Game of Thrones? Again, what is happening? Why is this not striking the media as weird? So, a guy who has a building named after him, who has worked for the county for dozens of years, who makes 35% more than other deputy

county administrators throughout the state, and who only makes 12,000 less dollars than his boss. Well, that guy gives two weeks notice in the most Eeyore retirement announcement in the history of 100-acre wood. And this news station quotes what might actually be the weirdest part of Randy's very weird announcement. Quote, I was losing touch of who Randy is, end quote. And that's it. No other questions for him? No other points to raise for the public, dots to connect? Nothing like, so. When you say you lost touch of who Randy is, what does that mean exactly?

Nope, nope, nobody cares because they're all in the wind beneath Randy Webster's wings. Here's the thing that they missed. Randy did not lose touch with who Randy is, as he completely lived up to his name. Which brings us back to the ORI County Police Department sex scandal. Last Wednesday night, we got a tip about Randy Webster's sudden retirement being connected to a complaint made by an Ory County police officer named Kelsey Manimate who reported Randy's behavior to her superiors.

We were also given the list of names of the people who had also resigned as a result of being in some sort of sex triangle, not triangle. It was like a square or a hexagon. So, as we were trying to verify what our tipster told us, ORI County Police posted a lame press release on their Facebook, doubling down on their annoying vagueness. Here, I'll have David read what it said. The ORI County Police Department recently conducted an internal affairs

IA investigation that resulted in the discovery of violations of the Code of Conduct stemming from internal personal matters. In light of the investigation, four officers with the Ori County Police Department submitted their resignations as of November 6, 2025. Ori County expects our officers to maintain the highest standards of professionalism and the public trust. The investigation revolved around internal matters and is not related to any external criminal cases. ORI County Police Department is committed to maintaining the highest professional standards and appropriate conduct for its officers. Oh, look, O'Re County saying nothing, while claiming to be competent and transparent.

Again, where have I seen this before? Hmm, oh yeah, the odd press conference that police chief Chris Leonhardt held to willfully mislead the public on how it came to be that Officer Damon Viscan. was fired in connection with the Scott Spivey case. How was he fired? Slead questioned Viscovy about why he wrote Act Like a Victim on a notepad to show Weldon Boyd at the scene of Scott's killing. How did Slead know about that?

Oh yeah. Luna Shark reporter Beth Braden was going through body camera footage, frame by frame, and found it, which we passed on to Jennifer Spivey Foley's attorney Mark Tinsley, who contacted Slead. And we agreed to hold the story until Dumb-Dum Viscovy came home from him. his last ever vacation as an Orie County police officer. So yeah, Chief Leonhardt took credit for that. And then there were those mislabeled videos that his investigators happened to find while all this was going on. Videos that were not given to Jennifer when she subpoenaed Scott's case file.

That's all just to say that even though O'Re County was vague and not forthcoming in their press release, it was still surprising that they did this proactively. Turns out they didn't. They did it because a post-in-currier reporter was asking questions about the resignations. So once again, Ory County Police is caught in the act of pretending not to be a corrupt good old boy organization, and then it got worse. More on that after a quick commercial. Along with many other pesky Ory County residents, we called out Chris Lianhart in the whole department on Facebook about the post that was simply a annoying at this point, saying that four officers resigned but not being open about the details

or the who and the why, just that these people had violated codes of conduct, which, sorry, chief, you are not getting away with that. Beth set out to get Ory County to explain themselves. Now, the chief could have simply given more details about the nature of this case without creating a full-on shocker of a story that results in this kind of headline, David? Enter office freak-off-like sex pattern documented at HCPD. Yeah, that was an actual headline. So, back to Friday, a few hours after Beth was trying to get answers,

around 6 p.m. on Friday, Ory County released the most stunning, in strangest, internal affairs investigation report that I have ever seen. It was completely unredacted. Someone named Thomas Bell, whose work title was interim ORI County Police Information Officer, announced that four police officers had resigned. And he announced that the county PIO, Michaela Moskov, had also resigned.

So that would be Randy Webster, sudden resignation. Four police officers, sudden resignations, and the county PIO, sudden resignation. And Thomas Bell slash ORI County was responding to questions, and they willingly provided the media with the internal affairs report associated with the resignations? We were slightly impressed at the time because it was so not like them. They seemed to be dealing with the sorted affair head-on, whereas with Green C-13, you know, the other sex scandal that rocked Ory County PD that we'll have to tell you about in a future

episode, because there's still a giant lump in the rug that they swept it all under. This media release on Friday was so unlike them. It's the opposite of how they do business. These jerks routinely redact the name of the person you've asked reports for so you cannot tell if they are the victim or the suspect. We ask for them to give us all the calls for service to a particular place and they've been known to redact the address that we ask for. It is absurd.

But this, not a single word, was redacted. There is David with the narrative of this strange IA report. Allegations. On 1027, 2025, HCPD Office of Professional Standards, OPS, were notified of an allegation of a relationship between HCPD Officer Kelsey Manamette and HCPD Officer Tori Lewis. This relationship was advised to be causing an unharmonious working environment due to Officer Manumet's being currently married to another HCPD officer. The Office of the Chiefs requested an inquiry by OPS. During the investigation, it was alleged that Kelsey Manumet also been involved with HCPD Officer

Donald Kobitin and that Tori Lewis had been involved with HCPD Officer Misty Gore. Summary of findings. It was found during the investigation that Kelsey Manimate and Tori Lewis had been involved in a sexual relationship while she is still currently married. to a current HCPD officer and spec ops member. It was also found that Tori Lewis had been involved in a sexual relationship with Misty Gore, who was a current spec ops member, and Michaela Moscoff, the county PIO, both currently married.

It was also learned that Kelsey Manimate had also been involved in a sexual relationship with Donald Kobatin, who is also a current spec ops member, while also still married to a current HCPD officer and spec ops member. So when this came out, it immediately looked to us like yet another egregious example of how poorly the department was being run. It was just another sloppy sign of the officer seemingly doing what they want and causing chaos and drama in the workplace. And when we look at the daily arrests these guys make, we see people getting arrested for the pettiest of violations. Like, like glue sniffing and having a messy yard.

It was like, oh, so are these clowns going for the low-hanging fruit? So they look like they're out there doing their jobs? When really they're playing taxpayer-funded silly pants with each other. And because this report was given to the press with presumably Chief Leonhard's blessing, that made it official. So we spoke out about it on social media. And let's just say our followers are super funny people, because the comments or comedy gold.

Like, guess we can stop telling people not to pronounce the H in Ori? And oh my gosh, the drawings. So many renditions of diagrams with arrows pointing to each name like Season 1, Episode 1 of Vanderpump Rules for those who celebrate. But again, not everything is like it seems, and this is especially not how it seems. Over the past two days, we have learned so much more about this case. And according to Kelsey Mainmite and Michaela Moscov,

and their attorney, Johnny McCoy, who y'all might remember from the Murdoch case, he was one of Cousin Eddie's first attorneys in the so-called roadside shooting case. What Ory County Police put out is about as far from the actual situation as you can get, according to them. In other words, what appeared to be a case of office footsie, it seems to be a case of potential retaliation and possibly defamation. And Kelsey and Michaela are ready to fight. Which, I need to say this again, Liz and I feel awful about posting Ory County Police

Department's account of what happened, because it seems like we, and the rest of the media, got tricked by these immature bird brains, and I hate letting good old boys get away with tricks. Kelsey and Michaela's account of what happened and in what order is highly familiar and highly relatable. How do we know this? Because attorney Johnny McCoy called me on Tuesday to tell me the shocking details that will be included in the lawsuit and he plans on filing against Ory County Police Department in the near future. And don't worry, you get to hear from him in a minute. So real quick about Michaela, we were at odds with her when she was the PIO for the police department. So it is interesting to hear that she says that she was forced to resign because she started to get shunned

when advocating for the department to be more transparent about the Scott Spivey case. And it is interesting because from our angle, it looks like she was gatekeeping for the police. It looked like she was complicit in their disregard for public information laws, which was odd to us because Michaela seemed to love being a public information officer, and she seemed very well respected by other PIOs in the state. So how was it that she was a part of this? And also, why did she get a 35% raise in 2024? Going from $86,000 to $15,000.

Was it some kind of recognition for her work protecting the agency with her non-answer answers and her general lack of responsiveness? That's what our thinking was behind the scenes, And it's so interesting, looking back now through Michaela's eyes, knowing what we know now. Because, according to her attorney, Michaela really did a good thing. The thing that you would want a fellow woman who you work with to do in this situation. But we will get there in a minute. First, we have to tell you about Kelsey Manamette's story.

Let's start with where Kelsey lived before earlier this year. She lived right across the street from Randy Webster. At the time, she was a sworn officer at Conway Police Department, and Kelsey is tall and fit, and she's very pretty. None of that should matter. But as we all know, in some workplaces, some men feel entitled to act like total jerks and then claim ignorance when called out for their unprofessional

and harassing behaviors. Specifically, behaviors that involve someone beholden to them for their job and their paycheck. Enter Mr. Randy. Among the many red flags that we should have seen earlier in the strange ORI County media release regarding the sex scandal, the biggest one is what name was not on there? The name of the O'Re County Deputy Administrator of Public Safety and Emergency Management Director, Randy Webster, whose name was mentioned consistently in the tips we received. Again, Randy outranked all of these officers and made in a lot of cases at least twice their annual salary. and he has a whole dang building named after him. Dear South Carolina, can we stop recklessly naming things after good old boys?

It never turns out good. And yet his name is nowhere near this potential career-ending document released to the public right after he suspiciously retired early, giving two weeks notice, and sailed off into the Myrtle Beach sunset without a scratch on his record? We know better than that. Of course, there's more to the story. What a tangled Webster we weave. So not mentioned in their little slut-shaming propaganda media release

was the fact that Kelsey had complained to Chief Chris Lee and Hart accusing Randy Webster of sexual harassment on October 16. Again, Kelsey, a mother of three who filed for divorce in March of this year from her husband who works at Ory County Police Department, happens to live across the street from Randy Webster. And that's where this allegedly started. According to Kelsey's divorce documents, Kelsey accused her husband Michael of cheating in March 2025

when she filed for divorce on the grounds of her. adultery. I have to comment here because let's go back to that allegedly and absolutely defamatory IA report approved for public release by Chief Leonhardt. In the report, it accused Kelsey of having an affair while married when she was separated from her husband and has paperwork to prove it. So shame, shame, shame on Chief Leonhardt for acting like the marriage morality police, punishing a police officer for an alleged affair when the legally documented story says something entirely different. police officer because a police officer is a police officer. That's how it should be. But no, no. A male police officer is just a police officer. And a woman in law enforcement is a female police officer.

And we all know the rules apply differently for men, right? So I should say woman police officer here to be accurate. And it offends me that I have to say it. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Leinhard did nothing to punish Michael for his alleged affair. But don't worry, guys. This is just the beginning of revealing Leonhard's sexist and stupid leadership skills because we have to talk about the complaint Kelsey made about Randy Webster on October 16th and how Chiefie appeared to handle that complaint in literally the dumbest and worst way possible. And before we talk about the complaint, I want you to know that it's full of grammatical and spelling errors and it's a chronological, a mess. You want to know why? Because according to the final paragraph of this four-page statement, Kelsey had to sit with two men, the director of human resources for the county. and his deputy director of HR, and one of them typed up her interview, meaning he did that. Also, let's just be real.

A woman having to share her allegations of sexual harassment by a powerful man who has influence over her employment. To two men who are going to take her words and turn it into an official statement, that is an uncomfortable situation that's hard to trust. In Kelsey's complaint, she accused Randy Webster of escalating behavior to the point that she could no, longer take it and quote-unquote could no longer work on October 15th. In the document, Kelsey quoted a series of inappropriate text from Webster, who was essentially her boss's boss at work, and he was the guy who helped her get this much-needed job. She said on July 15th, Randy, who is 61 years old, texted her asking if he is desirable? His text said, quote, should I feel that I am

desirable, at least in others' eyes. Phew, here goes. I am really wondering if I am not desirable, question mark, end quote. And welcome to the part of our episode that explains why Randy says he lost touch with Randy. Kelsey claimed that Randy Webster, Mr. 24 million dollar namesake building after himself, kissed her cheek and hugged her inappropriately on several occasions while they worked together, but things apparently got worse in October 2025. According to the complaint,

on October 6th, Randy texted Kelsey that he was struggling to focus on work because he had a dream about her, quote, in very little clothes. Also on October 6, Randy allegedly texted Kelsey, by the way, the fault is you can't help being beautiful and desirable. Ugh. On October 12th, Kelsey confronted Randy about his behavior, according to the complaint. And yes, this is what terrible work environments with rules created by abusers ask their victims to do to confront their alleged abusers. According to the complaint, Kelsey texted Randy the following.

There are times that comments are made that make me uneasy. I always want to make sure that our partnership both personally and professionally, Are not jeopardized and ensure conversations always remain respectful for that purpose and for the purpose of others. I am grateful for the mentorship and guidance you provide me. I also think our team is building a great thing, and I want to continue to do that. I hope this makes sense, and I hope that you understand where I am coming from. I'll have David read Randy's response, according to the complaint. totally understand, and I wish you would have said something before now, but I get it. That is

exactly what I want as well. I know people say things, and I am sorry for that, but no worries moving forward at work. I will do my part so you don't need to be concerned. That said, on the personal side, I want to continue to be able to stay close to you and talk. That is very important to me and I hope you as well. Just please don't pull away on the personal side if that is okay, Randy said. You mentioned comments being made from me or others. If it is me, please tell me. If me, I am truly sorry if I ever offended or upset you by something I said. Regardless, I will make sure I don't moving forward. I enjoy our friendship a lot and I want to see you succeed and build a great new life. I will text you in the morning to let you know I am on my way

with the food, still looking at 6.30 to 640 delivery. I made a lot, so I hope you enjoyed it. Okay, so the complaint doesn't say this, but again, they are neighbors. And apparently Randy didn't get the memo that Kelsey wanted space because he still insisted on bringing her family food the next morning. According to Kelsey's complaint, she did not respond. But Randy texted her the next morning and said he woke up too late to deliver her family food. At work the next day, according to her complaint, Randy continued to behave in a way that made her feel uncomfortable by hugging her in the hallway and then going to her office to address her text from the day before. I'll read what Kelsey's complaint said about that interaction.

He brought up the conversation from the previous night and he thanked me for having that conversation and told me to clarify his boundaries. And he asked if he could still say good morning and good night to me. And I told him I don't mind it, but I just need for everything to stay respectful. And like I said, inappropriate comments that have been made and comments that would be disrespectful to your wife and others. You know, comments like, I'm dreaming about you, and asking weird questions about whether he's desirable. In the complaint, Kelsey alleged that she wasn't the only female employee receiving a lot of texts from Randy. She said her female friend who works there was also getting texts from Randy, like on October 13th.

Randy said his day was, quote, good. He got to talk with Kelsey some, which made it nice for sure. When Kelsey's friend asked a male or a county employee, if he gets messages every day from Randy, he said, no, I'm not a girl. Ew. Anyway, according to Kelsey's complaint, the unwanted texting from Randy continued throughout the week right through October 15th. And of course, it was allegedly more than texts. During fall bike week, Kelsey said Randy kissed her in her car and told her he loved her. Kelsey said, quote, left work early that night because I wanted to get away from him and didn't want to be around him. I can't even work. I feel like I can't do my job without being pulled away for something that he needs or he just needs to hear my voice. Finally, according to

the complaint, on October 15th, Kelsey told Randy no more good nights. And he allegedly replied, all you have to do is tell me and be clear. He said, I know I said I love you, but I told you after my diagnoses and almost dying and that I was going to make sure that everybody I know knows it. Ugh, what are these diagnoses? So, again, upon the final warning, Randy, did not get the message. And Kelsey felt like she had no other option but to complain to Chief Leonhardt. And let's pause for a second and consider the amount of bravery that action alone took.

It would be like a teacher making an official complaint about a deputy superintendent. Even after the Me Too movement and all the progress attorneys across the country have made it in the last few decades to protect women who voice their concerns about powerful men sexually harassing them in the workplace. It's still largely unique to see a woman do this because of the risks involved. Every woman knows that complaining about sexual harassment, especially when it involves one of the highest paid government officials in the county, still carries the potential risk of losing your entire career. Every woman who reports a superior for harassment, fears retaliation, slut-shaming, being labeled in the office, having her coworkers look at her a certain way,

losing out on future opportunities, not having the focus be on her actual work, and finally, losing her job. And in this case, something about all those fears allegedly came to life. And for Kelsey, The worst-case scenario was about to happen. And we'll be right back. On Wednesday, as all of this insane information was coming to light,

I was lucky to get to sit down with Johnny McCoy, who was representing Michaela and Kelsey in a future lawsuit against Ory County and others. Johnny said in order to understand the scope of how deep the corruption is in this case, we have to first talk about Michaela the PIO and how she got involved in this mess. So while this is going on, so you've got the issue with Kelsey and with Randy Webster going on over here. Michaela is the public information officer of Worri County Police, right? So Michaela is noticing, at her words, something's bother. and then I start seeing the interaction, the rubbing on the back, that's Michaela's words,

the constant hugging, the take photos of us, take photos of us, take photos of us, take photos of us over and over again when she was at a event and he's going, take photos of me and my behavioral services people the whole day. Michaela in text messages to her superiors and to other people in the public information office, it's like, sums off. This is, and to her words, you got to remember, Michaela is trained, media trained, so she's careful with her words. But she says, to her superiors, this is in May, something's off, this is bad optics, the way that Randy is hanging out and hanging all over Kelsey and other girls in the Behavioral Services Unit.

And I'm not comfortable to the point where I had to remove myself from the situation. I'd get out of the vehicle. And Kelsey and Michaela are not talking to each other about this, which is normal when you're being harassed. You don't tell other people you try to go to the one person above you that might be able to help. So Michaela and Kelsey were both complaining about this guy, separate from each other knowing what was going on. So Michaela continues to complain about the optics of Randy, about the optics of these girls working underneath them and the way that she is perceiving their actions to continue using her words, something is off, something feels weird. So, the Behavioral Services Unit is new to ORI County Police and was apparently under Randy's supervision.

We will talk more about that and about how this man allegedly was reckless with tax dollars and was apparently allowed to do whatever he wanted at O'Re County. And again, according to attorney Johnny McCoy, two of the five employees who were forced to resign last week had separately reported slash raise concerns about Randy Webster's alleged sexual harassment. And this is where it gets even more insane. Here is Johnny McCoy,

who really needs a nickname like Zero Dark Tensley. So on October 16th, Kelsey has had enough. And she does something that you only read about in books, and that is she goes in and files a formal complaint with HR. against Randy Webster, the guy whose name is on the building, her direct boss, in the same office, her neighbor, and sits down for what seems to be ours, and she goes through her text messages and reads them. This is what he said. This is what I said. This is what he said. This is what I said. And there's somebody sitting there from HR recording it. So this happens on October 16. brutal text messages where she is pleading and begging you know for this to be more professional and you know like I don't want anything with you like that so that happens on October 16th on October 19th whether it was just a coincidence or what her ex-husband who she Kelsey's ex-husband who is an Oregon County police officer who she filed for divorce against in March of this year everybody concedes that know about that she was when you file against somebody for adultery and you have a conversation

they're like yeah i'm dating somebody else you're allowed to go on dates and so she was allowed to start dating from as perception shows from i would call it the end of march when you know the stuff was filed and she said i'm going to adultery uh and as long as her ex-husband had another girlfriend that everybody in Oregon County PD knew about, right? So her ex-husband, on October 19, three days after she lodges this formal complaint, sends a group text out to members of special ops and maybe some other people. And it basically says, who's talking to my wife? Words, words like that, right? Who's talking to my wife? And I guess, you know, I mean, it's just, it's, it's a closed company. And so people start, and so Kelsey and Tori,

go in together to the chief's office and go, hey, there was this group text that went out last week. We're dating. You know, everybody knows that we like each other and, you know, he's being there for me and I'm being there for him. We've been dating for a little while. And sorry that, you know, this text got sent out, but it's a nothing burger.

And the chief agrees and says, y'all are consenting adults. You're not lateral employee. You're not a subordinate or the hierarchy. you know, there's no cause to be a concern. You guys aren't even in the same department. No big deal. Everything's fine, right?

So then on, that was on October 21st. So October 16th complaint, October 19th group texts, October 21st, her and Tori go in. They go in at separate times. Same day, Tori went in first and then Kelsey. And they went in on their own volition. They went in by, nobody called them in. They went in by themselves. okay so they go in and they meet with the chief of police who you could say his last day i don't

know a lot leonard or lanard or whatever and that guy says no big deal personal issues you're everybody knows he has a girlfriend you filed for divorce for adultery consenting adults not underneath each other's supervision no hierarchy issues have a good day so then on uh october 27 she finds out that there's an internal investigation going on and it looks like she went in on October 28th the day after she found out there was an IA that I guess she got called in and they sit her down and instead of saying what happened with you and Randy Webster they say who have you been having sex with in the orie County Police Department imagine for a minute that you are Kelsey thinking that you

are getting called in to disclose information about your sexual harassment complaint And then suddenly, you are asked strange questions about your newly single sex life. Imagine that. And to recap, according to Kelsey, this entire IA investigation was apparently launched after her estranged husband sent an inappropriate text to other police officers asking who was sleeping with her. And because of that, Kelsey disclosed with the police chief that she was dating another officer named Tori. And then that launched an investigation about who she was having sex

with. And that apparently led to five resignations accusing officers of participating in a sex scandal. What they did here in this press release with Kelsey and Michaela and all these other people, they said five Oregon County police officers or people affiliated with Oregon County were sleeping together and it was creating unharmonious work. environment it was basically i mean the way it read and the way that the comments have said it looked like they were all doing it together knew about each other and it was possibly at the same time which my definition would be an orgy i mean it literally reads that way and poor michela they used the word sexual relationship or sexual whatever it is and like they don't ever say like they don't

ever come out and say like like she had sex with anybody but they used the tory made a advance and her saying well yeah i mean i guess it could have turned into sex if i said yes Yes, as her being in a sexual relationship. And then they say, Michaela's married and that Kelsey's married. And they throw it in there so that the comments will go, just a bunch of girls trying to sleep around at the Oregon County Police Department to get ahead or do what they want. And all the while, Randy Webster sends a email retiring from 37 years of service

to the Orie County community and the police department, whoever else he worked for. And he states that it is due to ongoing stress, not related to being accused of sexual harassment, not related to creating a hostile work environment, but just all the effort that he's put in in the years of service

has finally waved him down to the point where he is, guys, we really should just thank you so much, Randy. I mean, I'm just glad you made it. this long, buddy. That's what he wanted. And he got that, too. There are quotes from county councilmen and from other people that are like, man, we got to go find another Randy Webster now.

There's a quote that says, from a county councilman, we need to go find another Randy Webster. You know how scary that is if you have a daughter in this community? I have to pause here, and I need you to think about everything you've learned about Randy Webster in the last

hour and ask yourself seriously. What kind of health of a county, once more Randy Webster's. Mind you, if it wasn't for Johnny McCoy fighting on his client's behalf, we probably wouldn't be talking about Randy Webster right now, and his reputation would have stayed completely clean. How terrifying is that? Johnny said point blank,

he thinks the sex scandal IA investigation was essentially made up to send a message to women who report abuse from, their superiors. And he thinks this, especially when he considers what little investigation was actually done about Kelsey's sexual harassment complaint. Not only do I think it was retaliation, and the evidence points to that, they never even interviewed Kelsey about her complaint, like still at this moment. They fired her before that she met anybody. They fired her before anybody even questioned her. Like, hey, we know you did this four-page single-space complaint, they didn't even mention that when they were

interviewing her in the IA. It is out of control. If this wasn't a retaliatory discharge, then I missed employment law and law school. I mean, like, this is the most clear-cut case of retaliation I've ever seen. And let me tell you this, if it wasn't for Kelsey having the courage that she had and Michaela for having the courage, I mean, Randy Webster's name is on the building. we are going to find out, hopefully it's you, I'm sure I'll get the emails and calls as well, but we are going to find out that 37 years was a lot more opportunity for him to harass young women than the five months that he had Kelsey underneath him. Think about that. Five months, she's pleading. Michaela, this is uncomfortable. He was in service, according to the website,

for 37 years. So yeah, we believe that this is in complete retaliation to Michaela voicing concerns to her superiors, Kelsey, with her unbelievable complaint that she filed, formal complaint. As of right now, the evidence that I've seen and the lack of transparency from Ory County when Beth has asked them to answer questions about Randy Webster, all of that points largely in favor of the brave women who stepped up to say something when they saw something wrong. The sick part here is that the current police chief, Chris Leonhardt, apparently believed that this corrupt plan to punish a woman for reporting

abuse by accusing her and other officers of participating in a sex scandal, he thought that would eventually convince the public that his agency is more transparent. He did this, y'all, in the name of transparency. I think, and this is the part that gets me the most, and I don't know if you're going to put all this in your thing, but I would appreciate it if you did. This guy, the Leonhard guy, made a gamble that if we feed them bread, Julie sees a reference here, if we give them bread, that they will look away from over here. And so what he did was he went, here's an opportunity, in my opinion, the chief and, I mean, he has to be involved in this. I mean, he has to know about it according to our witnesses and

and everything that we've seen. Chief was, he knew. I mean, he was talking to these people. If I'm the chief and I am getting smoked by Mandy Matney, Liz Pharrell, and Zero Dark Tensley, just saying he's got a cool nickname, then I am going to do everything that I possibly can to say, let's be transparent. Let's show them that we're going to, so instead of going through all the file,

I'm looking at my computer right here with tons of files with the Oregon Police Department where I'm getting cases dismissed at prelims because the officers are committing misconduct on the roadside. Instead of going through any of that and going, yeah, no, these guys are lying, these guys are crossing the line, they're getting cases kicked

because they're breaking laws. Instead of any of that, he goes, well, we've got something better. We've got a juicy sex scandal thing that we can feed them, feed the public, and then we can fire them, which is what he said on WPTW,

And we can say, look how transparent we're being. We're cleaning up a mess in here. He took an opportunity to play on our desperate need for ORI County to be transparent and for ORI County to do something about the corruption around here. They fed us a two-paragraphed press release on Friday at 6 p.m. And even I took the bait. And I am Mr. Anti-Corruption. You guys can Google me all you want.

I don't believe none of the authority. figures. These people did something horrific to me. They ruined my life. I have a suicide attempt for what happened in the state from authority figures. And I even took debate and said, I think I shared it and said, more corruption in Oregon County. I was right because the corruption was the press release itself. But in my heart for a second, I was like, me, maybe they are being transparent. We'll talk more about Johnny's background and his motivation to get justice for the vulnerable in another episode, because trust me, that is a story worth hearing. I've known this man since he represented Cousin Eddie and Murdoch, and I respect the heck out of him.

Johnny actually moved away to Denver a few years ago because the mental load of fighting the good fight against corruption in South Carolina was too much. Few people here understand what it's like to be one of the only ones to stick your neck out and stand up against the good old boys like Johnny does. And now that Johnny has returned home to Ory County, he really wants to use his lawyer power to fix the corruption eating away at so many. I'm fine handling other kinds of cases for people. I want nothing more than to live in a place where, you know, there's a transparent government where I can sleep at night, not wake up to all my friends and people saying, you got to help this person, help this person, help this person.

But if he really is serious about making Ori County a serious department that's transparent and all that other stuff, then don't feed us bread, feed us steak, and that's at the top. You need to start trimming some of this fat of individuals who have been in this, in these authority positions for decades who have, I mean, Alan Lawrence was a member of Ory County PD. Damon Viscovy was a member of Horry County PD. They went after Damon Viscovy after, after the mighty team at formerly Murdoin's now True Sunlight discovered through the greatest journalistic techniques ever

that Damon Viscove was orchestrating things on the side of the road. after the fact. So don't feed us personnel, personal issues. If you're serious, we know there's corruption. We know that you have police officers and investigators and people and authority figures

in Oregon County Police Department who are crossing lines and need to be held accountable. You need to start putting those people in front of us. And I used to say this, because I don't hate cops at all. I love good cops. They're how I sleep at night.

But in order for me, in order for me to believe, and we're talking about the chief here now, that you're a good cop, the first question that I ask you is, how many bad cops have you called out? And right now, his version of bad cop is these people were dating each, not around the same thing, they were literally dating each other. He was called what it's serious. They won't look like more of a circus now than ever. And, I mean, if you want it to be taken as a serious organization, you're going to have to really, really start feeding us some of the steak from the top, which is authority figure. Just pick one.

Just pick one. Why don't you just go through their personnel files and start just, hey, there was a complaint lodging against Randy Webster. Why don't you get, Randy Webster didn't just retire so that this goes away. finish the investigation. This thing ain't over. Like Johnny said, this thing ain't over,

not by a long shot. And if we want justice for Micah and justice for Scott Spivey and all of the victims who have been wronged by ORI County Police, we all have to work together to demand accountability now for the horrific corruption

coming from the top. Johnny McCoy of Axel Ford and Associates will be hosting a press conference today, and that is Thursday, November 13th at 2 p.m., with both his clients, Michaela and Kelsey, to announce their lawsuit against Ory County Police, Randy Webster, and others. The press conference will be broadcast live on Johnny's Facebook and say the link in the description that we will share on our social media channels too. Remember, pressure breaks the police too. Keep up the noise. Until next week,

Stay tuned, stay pesky, and stay in the sunlight. True Sunlight is a Lunar Shark production created by me, Mandy Matney, co-hosted and reported by journalist Liz Pharrell, research support provided by Beth Braden, audio production support provided by Jamie Hoffman and Grace Hills, case file management provided by Kate Thomas. Learn more about our mission and membership at lunasharkmedia.com. Interruptions provided by Luna and Joe Pesky.