Ray William Johnson: True Story Podcast - This Entitled Teen is in BIG Trouble // The Suzane von Richthofen Murder Story

Episode Date: May 12, 2026

Suzane von Richthofen is the mastermind behind the murder of her wealthy parents on October 31, 2002. Then an 18-year-old law student, Suzane conspired with her boyfriend, Daniel Cravinhos, and his brother, Christian, to bludgeon Manfred and Marísia von Richthofen to death in their São Paulo home while they slept.

So this teen girl is in big trouble. Now the girl's name is Suzanne, and Suzanne is 18 when this story starts, and she's living in Sao Paulo, Brazil. And Suzanne, she's from a seriously wealthy family. And she lives with them in a big house in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in Sao Paulo. And these guys have got millions of dollars in assets. They send their kids to the best private schools in the area, and they pretty much have the best of everything. But there's a problem. them. Suzanne's parents are apparently somewhat strict. Specifically, they don't like her boyfriend.

This guy, Daniel. They think Daniel is a bad influence and just kind of a loser in general. But Suzanne, she doesn't seem to care about all that. She thinks he is fine. So one day in 2002, while her parents are away on vacation, she invites Daniel to the family home. And it's just her and him there while the parents are gone, and this is great for them. Like, there's no one there to tell them what to do, so they're drinking all the time, they're trying all kinds of drugs, and they party like this for about a month. But then Suzanne's parents get back from their trip, and they are pissed. They don't like this Daniel guy, and now he's like, they're living in their house, but Suzanne, she's adamant about him being in her life, and that is when she suggests,

to her father that he buy her and Daniel an apartment to live in. Problem solved. And dad is like, fuck all that. He's not about to pay for her to live with that loser. So he says, if you want to live with Daniel, you do it with your own money. And Suzanne probably would. The problem is, she and Daniel don't have any money. She's a college student. He builds model airplanes as a hobby. neither of them have jobs. Mostly they just sit around all day and get high. And Suzanne is definitely not ready to break up with Daniel over this. So she starts thinking of a solution to this problem.

If her parents were to die, she would then get at least part of their estate worth around 17 million in U.S. dollars. Plus, her dad had opened up two Swiss bank accounts in her name worth 10 million US dollars. So she and Daniel would get that money too. Then they'd be rich and they could stay together. So Suzanne and Daniel decide that they're going to kill her parents. And they're going to try and make it look like a robbery gone wrong.

And for whatever reason, they decide they're going to do it on Halloween night. Which, Halloween isn't much of a thing in Brazil, but whatever. And to help them out with this murder, they recruit Daniel's brother. brother, who we'll just call brother. So Halloween night comes. And Suzanne, Daniel, and brother, they get together and they get high, they smoke a little zaza, and they sniff some paint thinner and some glue. And only now do they feel like they're super ready to take on this task. So the three of them get to the house, and Suzanne turns off the house's security system, and she lets Daniel and brother inside. Then she waved.

in the living room as the two guys make their way upstairs to where her parents are sleeping, and they've both got iron rods. Then the two sneak into Suzanne's parents' bedroom, and suddenly, pow, pow, they just start beating the parents with the rods as hard as they can. And unfortunately, neither parent survives. After that, Suzanne, Daniel, and brother tear the house up. Because remember, they're trying to stage this like a robbery. Then they steal like 7,000 US dollars cash from a safe that the parents had, because her parents keep their money in US dollars for some reason. After that, they flee the scene.

And to create alibis for themselves, Suzanne and Daniel spend the night in a motel, while brother goes to a fast food restaurant and he hangs out there to create his own alibi. The next morning, Suzanne comes back to her parents' house, and she pretends to discover the crime scene and she calls the police. And later, the police come and they investigate, and from the police's perspective, Suzanne is unusually calm about her parents just getting murdered. Like she's not crying, she's not falling apart, she's just over here vibing at her parents' own crime scene. So as they investigate, they start getting suspicious of Suzanne. They can't get over the fact that she's just so calm about all of this.

Plus, the only thing taken from the house was cash from the safe. while none of the other valuables were touched. Then the police discovered that the security system was disabled from inside the house. So now, of course, that limits their suspect list down to basically one person. However, they don't have any direct evidence that Suzanne was involved, so they can't arrest anyone. Meanwhile, a few days after the murder, a funeral service is held for Suzanne's parents, which also happens to be the same day her 19th birthday is on. So immediately after the funeral, she throws herself a 19th birthday party.

So unless the police find any direct evidence, it seems like Suzanne and Daniel have gotten away with murder. Plus, they're about to inherit a ton of money. They've got the alibis, they've got the cover story, they've got everything all lined up. Until Until Until Brother makes a big mistake

About a day after the murder Brother goes and he buys himself A brand new motorcycle And this dude He's not a guy who can just afford a brand new motorcycle Like everyone knows he's always been broke And weirder than that

Is that he pays for it in cash Using US dollars Dollars he would have gotten From Suzanne's parents safe And paying for something using US dollars would be rather unusual in this area during this time. And this immediately tips off local police, who then discover that this guy is Suzanne's boyfriend's brother. So they bring him in, and they question him like, where'd you get all the money

for that new motorcycle? And brother immediately panics, and he just straight up flips. And he's like, oh, I'll tell you all about the murder. And so, bam, he gets arrested. Also, bam, Daniel gets arrested. Also, bam, Suzanne gets arrested. Here's her mugshot. But then, it gets worse for her. Because while she's out of jail and she's waiting on her trial, Suzanne decides to do some interviews on television. I guess she's trying to set the record straight.

It seems like her plan is to go on camera and play the grieving daughter to gain sympathy from the public. And at one point, a Brazilian TV network sets up an interview with her. So she meets up with them and they mic her up and whatnot, but what Suzanne doesn't realize is that the microphones are already on before the cameras are rolling. And before the interview starts, that microphone picks up a conversation between her and her lawyer, and the lawyer is like coaching her on exactly how to act. Her lawyer's like, you need to cry on camera. You need to look sad. Generate some sympathy.

I'm guessing this is so she will win over the court of public opinion, and that would ultimately help her in her criminal trial, in theory. And so anyway, they filmed the interview and the network airs it, including the conversation with her lawyer, and instead of the public feeling sorry for her, the whole thing backfires. Because now people are watching her clearly perform her grief on command, and the Brazilian public is like, yeah, she's definitely guilty.

Anyway, so the brother goes to trial, and he's found guilty, and he gets 39 years in prison. While Daniel also goes to trial, he's found guilty, and he gets 40 years in prison. And Suzanne also found guilty, and she gets 40 years in prison.