Sins & Survivors: A Las Vegas True Crime Podcast - What Happens When the System Fails?

Episode Date: October 31, 2023

What if the system you trust to protect you fails miserably? Phoukeo Dej-Oudom and her three children were murdered by her estranged husband, Jason, despite her pleas for protection. Join us as Shaun and John confront the unrealistic expectations of easy answers.They were robbed of their dreams and their lives in the city that markets itself as the city of second chances - Las Vegas. This heart-wrenching episode of Sins & Survivors brings to light the intersection of domestic violence and gun violence. The haunting echo of Phoukeo’s story resounds in our current legal landscape, with a Supreme Court case considering the constitutionality of gun removal in the cases of protective orders being argued in November 2023. It’s a complex matter, and we’re taking a hard look at the way victim blaming permeates these narratives. http://sinspod.co/episode2sourcesDomestic Violence Resourceshttp://sinspod.co/resourcesClick here to become a member of our Patreon!https://sinpod.co/patreonVisit and join our Patreon now and access our ad-free episodes and exclusive bonus content & schwag!Apple Podcast Subscriptionshttps://sinspod.co/appleWe're now offering premium membership benefits on Apple Podcast Subscriptions! On your mobile deviceLet us know what you think about the episodehttps://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2248640/open_sms Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/sins-survivors-a-las-vegas-true-crime-podcast--6173686/support.

To listen ad-free, visit Zinspod.co slash subscribe. Starting at $2.99 a month, you'll also get access to our exclusive bonus content episodes when you join through Patreon or Apple subscriptions. Thanks for supporting the show! Las Vegas, with its bright lights and big promises, is sometimes called the city of second chances. It's a city of endless possibilities. People come here from all walks of life, from all over the country and the world, looking for a fresh start. Many people think of Las Vegas as a giant neon reset button,

a chance to start over. One of the most sobering facts about escaping domestic violence is that statistically, the most dangerous time for a survivor is when they leave the abusive partner. 75% of domestic violence-related homicides happen after a breakup. We talked last week about how you often hear the question asked, or even ask the question to yourself, why don't they leave? This week we talk about a case where a woman tried to leave, did in fact leave, and sought help several times, but was hindered by the broken system. Tragically, her pleas for help to authorities and the system were simply rejected. She filed for an order of protection against a man with a history of violence so extreme that he put his then five-year-old daughter in the hospital at one point, but was denied. Welcome back to Sins and Survivors, a Las Vegas true crime podcast with a focus on the complexities of domestic violence. I'm Sean, and with me as always is the one and only John.

I am the only John in the room. John, this week, like every week in Las Vegas or really anywhere in America, we had a lot of news related to domestic violence. Coming up later in this episode, we'll discuss a local case that deserves much more attention, the murder of Tabitha Tazi. But first, we're going to focus on the tragic and avoidable story of Fukayo Dej Odom and her family. Fukayo was murdered on June 30th, 2016, along with her three children as a part of a horrific murder-suicide committed by her husband, Jason Dej Odom. Fukayo's story has been appearing in several major news publications this month, as these murders remain relevant in the context of a case coming before the Supreme Court that

deals with whether it's constitutional to remove guns from those who have orders of protection against them. But we'll get into that. John, do you want to start us off with some information about Fucao and her children? Sure. Fucao, who went by Gail at work, in 2016, she was 35 years old. She was married to Jason, who was a couple of years younger in 2000, when they were ages 20 and 18. She was a huge Cleveland Cavaliers fan, specifically a LeBron James fan, remembering, of course, that the Cavaliers won the NBA championship right around that same time, June 19, 2016.

The family lived at the Torrey Pines Condominiums here in Las Vegas, and she was a stylist at Sport Clips. And by all accounts, she just lived for her children. Her children's names were Anurag Jason, who went by AJ, age 9, Zanajook, who went by JJ, age 14, and her one daughter, Adalavan Ariel, who was 15. All of her friends agree she was bubbly, friendly, a loving mother, and she lived for her children. Her co-workers described her as a prankster. She was bubbly, friendly, a loving mother, and she lived for her children. Her co-workers described her as a prankster. She was always in a good mood, and she never seemed to let her situation get her down at work. Her co-workers at Sport Clips said that her kids would often

join her at work, and they were the best, most well-behaved kids. So polite, so bubbly. Neighbors said they saw them playing outside a lot and said they seemed very happy. One said that she saw Fukeo walking with her kids every day, and sometimes they would go to a local park and have picnics. Anurag's teacher, the youngest, described him as being caring and helpful, an overachiever, an excellent student, and a beautiful light in the classroom. They called him AJ. He was great at math, and he was withdrawn from school in January 2016 to be homeschooled. Dalavan was amazing and nice and gorgeous, and she always tried to make people happy and lit up a room with her beautiful soul.

Obviously, these people are more than what happened to them, but unfortunately, this is all we were able to find out about them. We posted some links to articles containing some photos, which normally we wouldn't really do, but since they're all gone, it's a nice way to see them, remember them, and honor their memories. Now regarding Jason. Jason was 34 at the time of his death. He was born in May of 1982. According to court documents, Fucao listed him as being unemployed. He has some criminal history, non-domestic violence-related criminal history.

He was charged with felony theft and forgery in 2007. He pled guilty to the theft and the forgery charge was dismissed. And he was on probation until 2014. So Fucayo and Jason got married in Franklin County, Ohio in the year 2000. In her order of protection application, Fucayo reported that as of 2016, she had been with Jason for 20 plus years and living together with him for 20 years. So that means they'd been dating and living together since they were teenagers.

In the show notes. One of the more chilling items you'll find is the actual order of protection request in Fucayo's own handwriting. When we read through it, we were at a loss as to how this thing fell on deaf ears. As for his domestic violence related criminal history in Ohio, Columbus police responded to a call and and Fuqueo told the police that Jason had been beating and kicking and choking their daughter, Dalavan. He put his daughter in the hospital, and she was five years old.

Fuqueo herself suffered injuries to her head and neck from Jason punching her. On that occasion, Ohio police declined to arrest Jason, and on their report, it is listed, and this is actually true, as not a crime slash other service. They instead left Fuqueo resources and information on protection orders. So five hours later, on that same night, Fuqueo calls the police again to report that Jason is calling her because she left and saying things like something was going to happen to her because she left. And according to the police report, a friend tried to call Jason and get him to calm down. And the friend had told Fuqueo that Jason said that if he did not find out where Fuqueo was, that he was going to kill somebody. The family moved from Ohio to Las Vegas in March of 2015, presumably after Jason's probation ended for that theft charge.

We don't have any information on what might have happened in between 2005 and their move in 2015. According to their new Las Vegas neighbors, they were a quiet couple and friendly. One neighbor said he'd seen Jason repairing a motorcycle in the parking lot of the complex and that they seemed like just an average family. And when they first moved in, they went around their apartment complex to meet people, to get to know their neighbors, especially they made it a point to get to know their kids' friends' parents. And to me, John, this gives me the feeling that they were trying to make a fresh start. They want to become part of their new community.

And it also seems like as late as 2015, she was giving Jason every chance to be better. The couple separated on March 26, 2016, and Fukeo moved into her cousin's house. As I mentioned, there's a lot of detail in the order of protection and we will provide a link to that so you can read it. Shortly after, according to what Fukeo told co-workers, Jason took the three kids to Ohio without her permission and without even telling her. And when he finally came back with them, she had had enough and she filed for divorce shortly after. Yeah, on May 25th, 2016, she files for divorce. In her divorce petition, she states there is domestic violence

and child protective services involvement with her family. She requested sole custody of the three kids and wrote, quote, the father is a flight risk, and the children need to be in my care for education purposes and stability. Father cannot hold a job, end quote. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal's investigation, police did respond to a domestic violence call at the family's apartment in early June of 2016, but there's no additional information that we were able to locate. The police withheld that information as part of an ongoing investigation

when this all happened. I'd like to talk about a few items from the June 8th Order of Protection just to emphasize how shocking it was that it was denied by the family court. So these are quotes from Fucao from the petition in her handwriting. Throughout the marriage, the children's lives as well as mine have been threatened. Guns have been pulled out and pointed at our heads multiple times. He said me not returning home is not an option. If anything were to happen to the children, I hope you can live with that. In the petition she wrote on June 7th, just the day before she filed, Jason was calling her and sending harassing text messages. She told him to stop, and he ignored her. Then later that day at 3pm, Jason showed up at her job and threatened to take the kids back to Ohio again and told her, this will not end well.

One thing I want to note that you and I talked about in a couple of places in her petition, as you said, is written in her own handwriting. It looks to me like there are two different people writing on her order of protection petition, which means to me that she had someone's assistance and support in filing it. There's a couple clarifying notes made as part of the petition. And I would have thought if she had help, that would have helped her get the relief she was asking for. But it looks to me that someone made a note on her paperwork that had the opposite effect. Yeah, I see that. The threats were made in 2000 through 2007 when we were living in Ohio. So it's written as if it was written by her, but it is written in what is clearly different handwriting. It's right after the part where she says guns have been pulled out and pointed at the kids' heads. So we have a Huffington Post article that explains the situation

and why the order of protection was denied by Amy Mastin, who is still currently serving as Clark County Hearing Master. Bio in the show notes. Because it did not meet statutory requirements. I will say that I am not qualified to evaluate whether it met statutory requirements, but you will talk about that more in a bit. The reason given was that because Fuqueo referenced situations in Ohio many years ago between 2000 and 2007 involving the father and guns, but nothing had occurred recently in Las Vegas. So I think that points directly to the fact that Amy Mastin looked at that report, saw that the threats were made in 2000 to 2007. And based on that, she decided it did not meet the statutory requirements,

which it seems like is the reason that the order of protection was denied. Yeah, for me, something is not adding up here. It's not clear why it wouldn't have met the statutory requirements. I know I'll go into this in more detail, but this protection order request, this was one that's in effect only for 45 days. And under Nevada law, the other party doesn't even need to be there to get that order because it's supposed to be about safety. So under Nevada law, harassment and threats are included in the definition of domestic violence. And Fuqueo does allege events that just happened just the day prior. So she files on June 8th, on June 7th, he's coming to her work, he's threatening her,

and all of that happened in Las Vegas. And the hearing master could have asked for a hearing if she felt that there were unanswered questions. And I know we have hindsight here, but in the cases of violence, victims need options. And it's not clear to me what harm would have come to Jason if her request was granted. I don't understand what the downside is to granting this order of protection. Advocates in the community explained to the Review Journal in an article we link that in cases where the victim files for divorce and applies for an order of protection, the family court will often deny the order because the judge in the divorce case will

issue a no-contact order, which didn't happen because Fuqueo was in hiding on June 22nd when her initial custody hearing was heard, so the case was dismissed. So shortly after the order of protection was denied, according to her co-workers, Fuqueo started missing shifts at work. The Review Journal has reported that on June 18, 2016, Fuqueo quit her job. She texted her manager, quote, I cannot work. He'll know where I am. I have to quit now, end quote. According to her co-workers, she was scared for her life. And as John said, on June 22, there was a custody hearing related to the divorce, but neither Fucao nor Jason showed up, so the motion was dismissed.

And that brings us to June 29th, 2016, the night of the murders. So on that night, around 7 p.m., Las Vegas Metro Police received a call about a woman running through traffic. This was Fucao. She was fleeing from Jason. on that night, around 7 p.m., Las Vegas Metro Police received a call about a woman running through traffic. This was Fuqueo. She was fleeing from Jason. She was seen waving her arms and screaming in the road. A good Samaritan was driving by and saw her, stopped her car to pick her up. Jason then followed them in his car and pulled up beside them and threatened the driver with a gun. So the driver, of course, pulled over and Jason pulled Fucao out of the car at gunpoint and security footage showed him forcing Fucao into his black Mercedes and him driving away with her

hanging out of the car window. She was able to get out of the car and again she runs she runs around through the drive-through of a walgreens pharmacy he fires four shots at her one hits her in the back of the head another good samaritan bystander finds her body just minutes later and attempts to render aid and cpr but focao was was gone so then around 8 p.m., as the police are processing the scene where Focayo had been murdered, Metro gets a call from a relative of Jason's, calling from Ohio, saying that Jason had texted him, saying he was suicidal and distraught, and reporting that he had done something wrong. So at this point, the police don't know these two incidents are related. Officers are dispatched to the family's apartment, which is close by, and when they pull up to the complex, they notice a car that matches the

description of the car that was chasing the woman at the Walgreens. So they go into the situation cautiously, and they start to put two and two together, anticipating a standoff. They set off flashbangs and order him to come out. He doesn't respond. So when SWAT officers show up at the apartment, they wait for a few hours until when SWAT officers show up at the apartment, they wait for a few hours until they realize that the children are in the apartment, and they decide to breach. And when they do, they discovered all three children are dead from gunshot wounds, and Jason is as well. One of the important lessons we want to talk about with regards to Ficayo's case is that the most dangerous time for survivors is when they leave.

This statistic comes from the Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness. 75% of domestic violence homicides occur upon separation, and there's a 75% increase in violence upon separation for at least two years. And I know we can see that pattern here with Fokeo. She moves out in March. He takes the kids in April without telling her. She files for divorce in May. His threats continue to escalate. He's coming to her work. She files for the order of protection. It's denied. She quits her job. That's how bad it's gotten for her. And it's obvious here that the systems we had in place to help create a bubble of safety around survivors, around people like Fukayo, has failed in this instance.

So just to add some more detail to the order of protection information, in Nevada, you can get a basic temporary order of protection, which is what some people might call a restraining order. You can get one without the courts holding a hearing, which will order the other party to stay away from you, your kids, your workplace, et cetera, for 45 days. The court will even serve the notice on the other party for you. If you meet the statutory requirements for domestic violence, the court should offer you that short time of protection. What happened was after the murders of Fikeo and her family, the Nevada legislature in 2017 session did take a look at the statutes around domestic violence and order protections, and they did take steps to try and strengthen what protection could be offered by an order of

protection. So we mentioned the temporary orders, but a victim can request an extended order, which can last up to two years. It used to only be one year, but in 2017, the law was changed to make it two years. And for this order, the court has to hold a hearing. But at that point, an offender could be ordered to turn over their guns or be prohibited from purchasing guns. And that was something that was added in 2017. And the Nevada legislature also passed a bill that year that required employers to provide leave, could be paid, could be unpaid leave, but some type of leave to domestic violence victims and additional protections, which can help when you're trying to escape domestic violence. And maybe you don't need to quit your job

in order to do what you need to do to get safe. And just as an aside, if you're convicted, if a person's convicted of the crime of domestic violence in a criminal case, you can't own a gun. Nevada's red flag law went into effect in 2020, allowing for guns to be removed from high-risk individuals, which could be domestic violence offenders or other individuals that law enforcement or even family members think are at risk for harming themselves or others. But definitely in future episodes, we're going to talk more about the relationship of guns, domestic violence, and mass shootings. On the national level, related, in November of 2023, next month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case United States v. Saki Rahimi. So this case deals with the issue

of whether an existing law, 18 U.S. Code Section 922, which we'll link in the show notes in case you're interested in reading that, violates the Second Amendment. In short, the law prohibits the possession of firearms by persons subject to domestic violence restraining orders. I really recommend reading the SCOTUS blog article on this. I'm not a lawyer, but I find this stuff really interesting. We will link it in the show notes. Another thing I want to touch on here, again, is the idea of victim blaming, which I think if you're listening, you understand that's a topic you're going to hear about a lot as we talk about these cases. On the rVegas thread on Reddit, there's a conversation from the time in 2017 where you can see someone comment, maybe she should have left him a long time ago. And as another person in the thread points out, Fukeo checked all the boxes and tried like hell to get away from Jason. She moved out,

she physically removed herself from her and her children from the situation, and literally hid from him. She filed for divorce, and she filed for an order of protection. In our last episode, the victim was physically unable to leave. She was literally handcuffed. Whereas Fukeo did leave. In this case, it was the broken system that may very well have cost her and her children their lives. I'll also say that I think it's natural to search for simple solutions and think that because we can come up with simple solutions, like, just pack up a bag and go. This isn't the reality, though.

And I think that's more of a coping mechanism we use to convince ourselves that this will never happen to us. I kind of just want to share a little bit more about what happened after Fukayo and her kids were murdered. On July 1st, 2016, there was a memorial held at the Walgreens where the murder took place. And the children's teachers were there. People lit candles and shared messages about the family. John, in about a year after the family first moved to Las Vegas, they were killed and their extended families are in Ohio and Texas. And according to the GoFundMe that was posted after the murders. The plan was to bring the family home to Ohio for burial. The GoFundMe, of course, now is closed and there are no updates. But at the memorial,

the Review Journal reported that, quote, men, women, and children of all ages and races helped each other light memorial candles, end quote. So in the short time that they lived here in Las Vegas, it's clear they made an impression on so many people, their teachers, their co-workers, and their neighbors. We did an extensive search, and we could not find any obituaries for Fuqueo or the children, but we know that they had many family members and friends who loved them dearly. Something interesting that I want to share is that the story of what happened to them is memorialized in the official United States congressional record. Fuqueo and her children's murders were included in a statement made on the House floor by Congresswoman Jackie Speier of California on July 7, 2016. Fuqueo and her children's murders occurred about two weeks after the Pulse nightclub mass shooting in Orlando, which happened on June 12, 2016. So Congresswoman Speier spoke on the floor of the House that morning to honor lives lost to gun violence in the month of June 2016.

Pukeo and her children were included along with 47 other victims of gun violence that were lost that month, in addition to the 49 lives lost at the Pulse Nightclub. So then on March 14th, 2018, on the floor of the Senate, Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto made a statement on the issue of gun violence. She stated that over the past five years, Nevada has lost an average of 10 kids a year to gun violence. She read a list of 50 names of children lost to gun violence in Nevada, and Fuqueo's three children were included. This was on the day when students all over the country did walkouts to protest gun violence, one month after the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

This summer was seven years since the family was murdered, and I have mixed feelings about this, but Fuqueo and her story continue to be used as an example of how we can do better as a society and improve our systems to protect victims and their children. And this case comes up very often in the national media regarding domestic violence and gun violence. So next week, we're going to cover the Tabitha Tozzi case. Earlier this week, Tabitha's family and friends held a peaceful protest on what was the six-month anniversary of her murder. Tabitha was shot and killed on April 22nd of this year. A warrant has been issued for her boyfriend, Oswaldo Nathaniel Perez Sanchez, but he has yet to be apprehended.

He shot Tabitha during an argument in front of a house on Legger Drive, which is near Cimarron and Alta in Las Vegas. A $10,000 reward is offered for any information leading to Perez Sanchez's arrest. Tabitha's mother, family, and loved ones are seeking justice and asking anyone with information to come forward. They are also demanding that the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department provide an update on the status of the case and what efforts have been made to locate and arrest Perez Sanchez. Also, her family and friends mentioned that as part of the protest they held on October 22nd, that they wish to draw attention to gun violence and the murder of women and girls by men, which relates to Foucault's case and sadly to many others.

So keep an eye on our social media this week because we'll be posting Perez Sanchez's wanted poster and description, and we will cover Tabitha's case fully in the next episode. And it's important to note that when we post Perez Sanchez's wanted poster, sharing that may seem like something that's unimportant.

But in fact, the more widely we can get that wanted poster shared, the more likely it is that someone's eyeballs who have seen him recently will let the police know where he is so he can be apprehended for this murder. So with that, thanks for listening.

And reminder to subscribe and follow Sins and Survivors because what happens here happens everywhere. Thanks for listening. Visit sinspod.co slash subscribe for exclusive bonus content and to listen ad-free. Remember to like and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Threads at Sins and Survivors. If you're enjoying the podcast, please leave us a review on your podcast platform of choice. You can contact us at questions at sinsandsurvivors.com. If you or someone you know is affected by domestic violence or needs support, please reach out to local resources or the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

A list of resources is available on our website, sinsandsurvivors.com. Sins and Survivors, a Las Vegas true crime podcast, is research written and produced by your hosts, Sean and John. The information shared in this podcast is accurate at the time of recording. If you have questions, concerns, or corrections, please email us. Links to source material for this episode can be found on our website, sinsandsurvivors.com. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the podcast creators, hosts, and their guests. All individuals are innocent until proven guilty. This content does not constitute legal advice.

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