Snapped: Women Who Murder - Sheila LaBarre

Episode Date: February 2, 2025

Police follow a lead in a missing persons investigation to a farm, unearthing the site of a crime.Season 31, Episode 13Originally aired: Oct 9, 2022Watch full episodes of Snapped for FREE on ...the Oxygen app: https://oxygentv.app.link/WatchSnappedPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Hello, Matt and Alice here and we're the hosts of Wanderers podcast, British Scandal. We are and our latest series covers one of the century's most controversial and complicated figures, Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder who risks it all in the pursuit of freedom of information and ended up locked up in London. You might listen to this series and pump the air in support of the little guys exposing the corrupt secrets of governments and militaries around the world. Or you might be filled with fury at the brazen disregard for who gets hurt in that quest. Or you might just get creeped out. While wars in Iraq and Afghanistan raged,
Starting point is 00:00:35 Assange was singularly focused on undermining America's narrative of the conflicts by making the truth known. But did his difficult personality and extremely questionable conduct compromise his efforts? Join us in London's Ecuadorian embassy to find out. Follow British Scandal Now wherever you listen to podcasts and you can binge entire seasons early and ad free on OneDri Plus. I'm Afua Hirsch. I'm Peter Frankenpun. And in our podcast Legacy, we explore the lives of some of the biggest characters in history.
Starting point is 00:01:10 This season, we're looking at the life of the most famous Queen of France, Marie Antoinette. Her death is seemingly more well known than her life, but her journey from the daughter of the Austrian emperor to becoming the most hated woman in France is just as fascinating. to becoming the most hated woman in France is just as fascinating. So we're going to look at the ways in which her story was distorted during the French Revolution and dig deeper into her real experiences in a troubled, difficult time. Marie Antoinette is one of the most well-recognised but least well-understood names in history. And we'll talk about how her death led to the way that she was spoken about in the
Starting point is 00:01:46 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Follow Legacy now from wherever you get your podcasts. Or binge entire seasons early and ad-free on Wondery+. For one young man searching for love, a bucolic farm in New Hampshire offers the promise of romance and a fresh start. It was everything that he had hoped for. He wanted to have a girlfriend. She owns the farm, 115 acres.
Starting point is 00:02:22 She is the richest woman in town. But when he suddenly disappears, it becomes clear this idyllic life is not what it seems. At first, it didn't seem like it was going to turn into such a big case. But as it went along, it became huge. Investigators uncover a twisted world of sexual seduction, vengeance, and control. It was one of the largest homicide scenes in the state of New Hampshire ever. You've got a predator going after the same type of prey.
Starting point is 00:03:01 We started getting real concerned that we were going to have other victims. A quiet rural town with a monster in its midst. I don't know if he's been killed. I don't know. It was almost immediately apparent from the first time I met her. She was absolutely stark, raving man.
Starting point is 00:03:23 I'll kiss your head, it. She was absolutely stark raving man. February 24, 2006. Temperatures are hovering just below freezing in Epping, New Hampshire. It's been four days since Caroline Lodge, who lives about 45 miles south in Massachusetts, has heard from her son, and she's starting to worry. I was working a patrol shift as a patrol sergeant, and we received a 911 call from Carolyn Lodge, who was the mother of an individual in his 20s named Kenneth County. She had concerns because Kenny had some mental limitations.
Starting point is 00:04:26 His mother would check in on him sort of on a very frequent basis to make sure all the normal things were being taken care of. He had a job working in a car wash. Carolyn talks to his boss. He hasn't showed up for work. Carolyn had historically had fairly continuous contacts with her son. So it was alarming to her. Caroline tells police Kenny had only recently moved
Starting point is 00:04:55 to Epping, New Hampshire to live with his girlfriend, 47-year-old Sheila Labar. Kenny wanted to be a normal guy. He wanted to have connections with friendships. And he wanted to be in a romantic relationship and have a girlfriend. However, Kenny's sudden move has his mother worried. She says Sheila has taken him away from the setup
Starting point is 00:05:21 that he had and isn't returning him to his regular life. And she considers Sheila being Kenny's abductor. Carolyn was somewhat worried about Kenneth's ability to take care of himself, stand up for himself. She was a mom who was worried about her son. Epping police agreed to pay a visit to Sheila's farm. On February 24, 2006, Sergeant Gallagher and I did go to the LaBarre farm. We banged on the rear door of the home. We asked Sheila, where's Kenny? Few minutes later, Kenny came down, wrapped in a towel.
Starting point is 00:06:09 And we asked him if he wanted to be there. He said, oh, heck yeah. He looked happy to be there. He told us he wanted to be there. We don't have that type of power to forcibly remove an adult from a location that they want to be in, and we shouldn't. That was that, and we left. [♪ dramatic music playing over radio transmission and radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in background, radio transmission in her, he had an apartment with a friend in Massachusetts. Carolyn had spoken to his roommate, found out that Kenny hadn't been around in more than a month.
Starting point is 00:06:57 And she spoke to Sheila, and Sheila said that Kenny wasn't around anymore. So now he really is missing. Born in Tewksbury, Massachusetts on July 18th, 1981, Kenneth County Jr. struggled most of his adult life. Kenny County was a mentally disabled man. His childhood had been relatively carefree. He was well cared for.
Starting point is 00:07:31 But he became an adult, and he wanted to get away and be independent. He finally was able to get an apartment, live with a friend. His mother certainly helped set him up to have the life of a normal 20-year-old despite some of his limitations. Kenny moved 15 minutes away from his mother to the nearby town of Wilmington, Massachusetts
Starting point is 00:07:58 with his roommate, who helped Kenny get a job at a car wash. Kenny wanted to be an independent adult man. He was desperately lonely, which is why he joined a telephone dating service. This is before the age of apps and people meeting in that way. And so there were phone chat lines. And people would call these phone lines in an effort to meet somebody to go out on dates with. It was on a chat line that Kenneth first met
Starting point is 00:08:35 47-year-old Sheila Labar. Beyond simply being attractive and having a great Southern accent. Sheila was very adept at reading people and giving them what she felt they wanted. The youngest of six children, Sheila Labar grew up in Fort Payne, Alabama. From what I hear, it is not a very affluent area.
Starting point is 00:09:06 She had a really rough childhood. As a teenager, Sheila loved to sing and dreamed of becoming a model or country music singer when she grew up. There comes a time when we will be cold and peace This was someone who was once a beauty contestant. She really was an extremely stunning young lady. In 1987, Sheila was in her late 20s when she first met Dr. Wilfred LeBar of Epping, New Hampshire, through a singles ad.
Starting point is 00:09:46 Everybody in town knew Wilfred LeBar. He was a chiropractor by trade, and I think that's where he made his money for his horse farm, which is a very beautiful piece of property. Widowed at 57, the chiropractor lived alone on the sprawling 115-acre property. He was at a point in his life where he was lonely. He was looking for female companionship. So he puts an ad in a newspaper, and Sheila answers the ad. There's a tremendous age difference.
Starting point is 00:10:23 She is in her late 20s, maybe 30 years old. He's 61. But it doesn't seem to matter. Sheila was boisterous and free, and she easily drew Bill in. After a few visits in Alabama, Bill was smitten with Sheila, and she returned with him to Epping. Sheila stuck out in Epping, New Hampshire like fire engine red lips in a black and white movie.
Starting point is 00:10:57 She was flamboyant. She drove a Mercedes. She was in town for maybe 48 hours before everyone knew she was there. But Sheila had no trouble settling in to life on the farm. Sheila was an animal lover and especially loved her rabbits and was doting on them. Though Bill and Sheila never married, she took his last name. However, 13 years after she arrived in New Hampshire, tragedy struck. Bill LaBar died at a somewhat early age in 2000 because of heart problems. And when he passed away despite having family and children, the entire state went to Sheila. She inherited everything. The farm, acres of land, the Mercedes, the Cadillac.
Starting point is 00:11:53 I think there was a couple of trucks. The family is shocked to find out that in his last years, he had changed his will, giving the family only scraps and leaving everything to Sheila. She is the richest woman in town. Sheila worked hard to keep the massive farm running, but she was lonely. After Bill's death, she turned to phone dating. Sheila loved going on these chat lines, and she would call people and talk all night.
Starting point is 00:12:31 And in February of 2006, after Sheila first spoke with Kenneth County through the chat line, their relationship moved quickly. They went out on their first date on Valentine's Day. He was a young guy that was sort of struggling to find his way in the world. Life wasn't always easy for him. Sheila invited Kenny to come up and live at the farm. There were expectations that he would help maintain the enormous property
Starting point is 00:13:03 and that he would have a home. Just days after their first date, Kenny moved an hour north to Epping, New Hampshire. Kenny moves in with Sheila. This is really his dream. He's independent of his mother. He's out in the real world. He's through the moon.
Starting point is 00:13:26 It's for Sheila Labar. Crazy in love. The promising new life seemed the answer to both of their prayers. But just a month after the move, Kenny's mother Caroline contacts authorities for a second time. On March 23, 2006, Carolyn Lodge had called Sheila Labar to check on her son and found out that Kenneth was no longer at the house. Sheila, she believed that Kenneth had gone back
Starting point is 00:14:00 to Massachusetts. Carolyn called the police demanding that something was wrong and they needed to go find her son. Coming up, investigators return to Sheila's farm. We decided we were going to go out to check for Kenneth County one more time. As soon as I kicked the door, very eerily, somebody yelled, what are you doing? And what they find is haunting.
Starting point is 00:14:33 I want to know where he is. That's all. Handle it back. MUSIC March 24, 2006. Investigators in Epping, New Hampshire are en route to Sheila Labar's farm for the second time in a month in search of missing 24-year-old Kenny County.
Starting point is 00:15:02 I had gotten on duty at 5 p.m. and right around 6 p.m. we decided we were going to go out to Sheila Labar's house to check for Kenneth County one more time. As we drove out there that night to Sheila's house, it was dark. Somebody was burning something. There was a barrel, a 55 gallon rusted out barrel, a burned pile on the ground. There were no lights on in the house, no lights on outside. Here in New Hampshire, burning debris isn't something that's uncommon. When people burn though, they get a burn permit. It has to be during certain hours. This was at night and it is dark out
Starting point is 00:15:50 and there are burning piles right next to the house. All Sheila's vehicles were at the property. We had every reason to believe at that point in time that possibly both Sheila and Kenny were still in the home. Ultimately, we knocked on the door and tried to get a hold of somebody. Nobody came to the door, and we walked back out to take a closer look at the burn pit
Starting point is 00:16:21 that was in the middle of the front yard. I was extremely happy not to be alone because this was getting spookier and more eerie by the second. Investigators are looking around when they spot something unusual jutting from the burn pile. When I put my gloves on, I bent down. I'll never forget it. I picked it up and I looked at it, and I showed Sergeant Gallagher. In the fire pit, there was what appeared to be, um, a bone.
Starting point is 00:16:53 As a police officer, the sense really kicks in that something is very seriously wrong at that home. And the concern for Kenny and Sheila had gone through the roof. Is it plausible that that could be an animal bone? Absolutely. But we wanted to enter that residence to make sure that there wasn't anything happening to Sheila,
Starting point is 00:17:21 wasn't anything happening to Kenny. We said, well, we got to get into the home now. As soon as I kicked the door, very eerily somebody yelled, what are you doing? And it actually made me jump. The officers suddenly find they are not alone. Sheila comes down the road and kind of starts screaming immediately, what are you doing?
Starting point is 00:17:54 Sheila had been grocery shopping. This is just perfect timing. We explained that we were there to check on Kenneth, said, yeah, he left. He left on his own. Sheila says Kenny left a few days earlier, and she has not heard from him since. That's when I asked her what the bone in the fire pit was from. She immediately stated, well, that's a rabbit or a pedophile. bone in the fire pit was from. She immediately stated, well, that's a rabbit or a pedophile. I asked her, why did you say that it's a rabbit or a pedophile?
Starting point is 00:18:34 And she claimed that she did not say it was a pedophile, that she never said that. Our concerns were really, really high at that point that something terrible happened to Kenneth. And we asked her if we could take the bone that we found on the burn pile. And she said no. Sheila demands the officers leave her property. She said, don't come back without a search warrant or something to that effect. So we got in the car. You know. I was not happy that we were leaving, but that's what we had to do. There was a whole lot of red flags that I had just observed,
Starting point is 00:19:10 and I just didn't like driving away from it. But we did. When we leave, we still have a missing person, so that starts a clock. The next day, a judge signs the search warrant, and at 8.50 a.m., authorities return to Sheila's farm. We found Sheila LeBard kneeling in her front yard by the fire pit. She was covered in ashes and sitting on this chair, there was a plain plastic Walmart bag. Noticeably absent is the bone officers saw the day prior.
Starting point is 00:19:58 With their suspicions heightened, police ask Sheila if she is armed, and she proceeds to hand over a.38 caliber handgun. We had asked her if she had any other weapons. She said no. She exposed her breasts to show us she had no weapons. It was very, very strange. Two of the officers talk with her, strange. Two of the officers talked with her and the rest of us began a search of the outside of the home.
Starting point is 00:20:37 An officer asks Sheila outright, where is Kenny? He said I call him Adam Olympian Labar. He wanted to change his name to my name. Cheryl, can I ask you... Go ahead. The night before he left, what went on here? Would you argue, fight? Was there anyone between you? When do you think he left? I don't know. I fell asleep. The bottom line is the chief and I both know and you want to know where he is. That's all.
Starting point is 00:21:00 He's in that bag. He is in the bag? Which bag did you say he was in when you said, I guess he's in there? The Walmart bag. When we looked in the bag, it appeared to be full of bone fragments. I felt like that was the worst possible scenario that could have
Starting point is 00:21:26 happened. I obviously suspected that he was deceased and couldn't comprehend what would have happened to him to reduce him to be in a bag. Coming up, Sheila exhibits more bizarre behavior. She stated that she would only go to the police department if she could bring one of her rabbits. And Sheila accuses Kenny County of the unthinkable. He admitted to raping children and his family. You say it in April?
Starting point is 00:22:03 Yes. I said, you're a bad die. I said only God can save you. A few miles from the glass spires of Midtown Atlanta lies the South River Forest. In 2021 and 2022, the woods became a home to activists from all over the country, who gathered to stop the nearby construction of a massive new police training facility, nicknamed Cop City.
Starting point is 00:22:36 At approximately nine o'clock this morning, as law enforcement was moving through various sectors of the property, an individual, without warning, shot a Georgia State Patrol trooper. This is We Came to the Forest, a story about resistance. The abolitionist mission isn't done until every prison is empty and shut down. Love and fellowship.
Starting point is 00:22:57 It was probably the happiest I've ever been in my life. And the lengths will go to protect the things we hold closest to our hearts. Follow We Came to the Forest on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of We Came to the Forest early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus. I'm Sarah Trelevin, and for over a year, I've been working on one of the most complex stories I've ever covered.
Starting point is 00:23:23 There was somebody out there who was faking pregnancies. I started like warning everybody. Every doula that I know. It was fake. No pregnancy. And the deeper I dig, the more questions I unearth. How long has she been doing this? What does she have to gain from this?
Starting point is 00:23:37 From CBC and the BBC World Service, The Con, Caitlin's Baby. It's a long story, settle in. Available now. In March 2006, authorities investigating the disappearance of 24-year-old Kenny County are searching a farm in Epping, New Hampshire owned by Kenny's girlfriend, 47-year-old Sheila Labar.
Starting point is 00:24:04 It was filthy. There were rabbits all over the place, probably, you know, 100-plus rabbits at this home. Officers are pressing Sheila for more information after she made a terrifying comment concerning Kenny. She said, he's right there in the Walmart bag. And she pointed to the bag that was on the chair. Do you think somebody killed Kenny?
Starting point is 00:24:34 I don't know if he's been killed. I don't know. OK. Unless I tell him out there. Why do you keep saying that? I mean, you keep telling me that. Because there's too many bumps for a rabbit. Why do you keep saying that? I mean, you keep telling me that.
Starting point is 00:24:42 Because it's too many bones for a rabbit. Investigators collect the bag full of bone fragments for testing and send Sheila down to the police station for a formal interview. She stated that she would only go to the police department if she could bring one of her rabbits. go to the police department if she could bring one of her rabbits. So when, when did you first meet him?
Starting point is 00:25:12 With February the 14th, except the Ash one. But first, originally he hit me up with messages on a chat line. Okay. And how did it go when you met her? Well, my first thought was, when I looked at it, I thought, well, she like, I don't talk to myself. I was thinking, I'm 47. You know, he's legal, I hate him, he wants to chase me, so, okay, you know, we'll talk. She says that their relationship started strong, but ended abruptly on March 21st or 22nd
Starting point is 00:25:45 when she discovered that Adam was hiding a dark secret. That's just to me that he has raped numerous children. He didn't start with this. Obviously, I wouldn't let him stay in my home. You say it, and they told him? Yes. I said, you're a bad boy. Look at him. You're a bad boy.
Starting point is 00:26:22 However, authorities find the accusations against Kenny are simply not true. There is no evidence and not even a sliver of an investigation against Kenneth County for ever being a pedophile. There's no evidence of that. There's no evidence of that. There's no reports of that. Sheila says after Kenny left her farm, she burned everything he touched, including the mattress that he had been sleeping on
Starting point is 00:26:54 in her living room. It's squirming up. Detectives try moving the focus back to Kenny's whereabouts. After a few hours, Sheila has worked herself into near hysterics and asks to end the interview. We still did not have enough to make the arrest of Sheila Labar. So it was determined she would be released that night, but the police would tail her and follow her. After she left the police department, she did go back to Manchester and stayed in a hotel. ? Investigators ask Sheila not to return to her residence
Starting point is 00:28:17 until they have finished processing the scene. We had 60-plus officers do the large exterior search at Sheila's farm. The exterior of the home comprised two burn pits. The property is over 100 acres and the search efforts are extensive. We had found hedge clippers, a knife handle, a saw handle. There were bone fragments found in that fire pit. We had found hedge clippers, a knife handle, a saw handle. There were bone fragments found in that fire pit. We collected as much evidence from the outside as we could.
Starting point is 00:28:52 Those bone fragments went off to the University of Maine. Investigators hear back from the lab with chilling results. Within a matter of four hours that came back that those bone fragments were indeed human. The property was blocked off by police. We had shut down the scene as an act of a crime scene. the scene as an act of a crime scene. When the search team enters the farmhouse, no one is prepared for what they find. I walk into the home and I'm looking around and I remember the state trooper in charge.
Starting point is 00:29:38 He walks in, he says, what do you see? And I'm colorblind, so I have a tough time seeing some colors. He said, it's a bloodbath in here. And I looked at him and I said, what do you see? And I'm colorblind, so I have a tough time seeing some colors. He said, it's a blood bath in here. And I looked at him and I said, what do you mean? And this trooper started pointing out blood everywhere. There's blood here. There's blood here. There's blood here.
Starting point is 00:29:58 Literally, there was blood everywhere inside this home. In the living room where Kenny slept, they find an empty area where they believe his mattress used to be. There was blood cast off found on the wall consistent with the swinging of a blunt force trauma instrument or a knife. So obviously that kicks off an exhaustive search.
Starting point is 00:30:29 Investigators find nearly 1,000 hours of audio recordings of Sheila's conversations with her husband Bill LaBar, Kenny County, and other men. And detectives are quick to notice another disturbing detail. The crime scene investigators noticed that the blood splatters were not all the same age. Some was fresh, some was old, some was dust covered. I've seen my fair share of death. You know, there was a creepy feeling. Something horrific happened there.
Starting point is 00:31:06 Coming up, is this farm a place of refuge or revenge? Neighbors had called about odd behavior. Neighbors would see men running away from the farm. Music March 27, 2006, New Hampshire state investigators are searching Sheila Labar's farmhouse for missing 24-year-old Kenneth County when they come across an appalling scene. They find blood splatter all over the house and blood splatter of different ages. So it didn't all happen at the same time. Blood samples are collected and sent out for analysis. While awaiting lab results, authorities dig deeper into Sheila's background. Sheila was quite a character in town.
Starting point is 00:32:07 The police were familiar with the LeBar farm. I think Sheila and Wilfred LeBar's relationship was more tumultuous than anything else. The police department would be involved several times with domestic disputes. According to friends and neighbors, would be involved several times with domestic disputes. According to friends and neighbors, after her husband's death, there was a revolving door of men in Sheila's life.
Starting point is 00:32:35 I knew that Sheila was pretty promiscuous. She didn't hide it, I'll tell you that. She was picking up her men from the homeless shelter. Neighbors had called about odd behavior, seeing men go down to the farm, and then they would see them being dropped off by Sheila at the end of the driveway, sometimes with bruises and markings on their body.
Starting point is 00:33:02 Neighbors would see men, you know, running away from the farm. and markings on their body. Neighbors would see men, you know, running away from the farm. [♪ dramatic music playing throughout video clip, and with a Sheila's neighbors said he was a man who she picked up at a local homeless shelter in Portsmouth. However, when detectives track down Michael Deloge's family, they learn that no one has seen him since July of 2005, about seven months before Kenny moved in. About seven months before Kenny moved in. Michael Deloge is 38 years old, and he has been out on his own for a while. His family's used to him not being around, from not hearing from him.
Starting point is 00:33:54 They say he has a drinking problem. He's been known to take drugs, which is why he's in the halfway house. She brought him to the farm. She gave him a place to live and food. And he was working at the farm for her. They engage in a very intense sexual relationship. I think he saw Sheila as providing some sense of security.
Starting point is 00:34:20 At first, Michael DeLoges' family is thrilled. At first, Michael DeLoges' family is thrilled. But one day, they get a letter from Sheila accusing them of abusing Mikey. And this is all confusing and frightening to them. And of course, none of it was true. Investigators also find audio and video of Michael in Sheila's batch of recordings. 2004 is tapers for my mother and I started to remember things about the past. You really messed me up.
Starting point is 00:34:57 You psychologically damaged me. And if it wasn't for Sheila, I wouldn't know half the things I know. Now that I know what I know, I don't want to visit you. In February of 2005, Michael's family received another letter from Sheila's address asking them to leave him and Sheila alone. The family of Mikey Deloge has been extorted into leaving them alone. The next time they try to get in touch, Sheila said he's not here anymore.
Starting point is 00:35:33 He left. He didn't say where he was going. Family members had actually assumed that he had left there and just went traveling. there and just went traveling. The search kind of turned into what happened to Michael. Where is he and does any of the evidence that was already located in the home, such as blood spatter or blood stains, did any of it possibly belonged to him. While investigators sift through the evidence collected on the farm, they get word
Starting point is 00:36:10 that Sheila may be looking to skip town. A woman came by the police department in Epping. She explained that she and her daughter were at a pet store the day before, and they'd met Sheila, who had one of her rabbits with her. She offered them money in order to care for her rabbit. The three women ended up having a conversation which led to Sheila going back home with them.
Starting point is 00:36:41 They were watching the evening news, and the news was reporting the missing persons investigation regarding Ken County. Sheila Labar at that time started explaining that Ken County was her boyfriend. The woman says Sheila then asked for a ride to a local bank. Sheila, she was concerned she was being framed and that she needed to get bail money. The woman described driving Sheila LaBarre to a branch of TD Bank and observing Sheila LaBarre withdraw $85,000 from the bank.
Starting point is 00:37:24 After that, she dropped Shil LaBar off on the side of the road and had no further contact with her. I had been fearful the whole time that she would leave. I know that she had access to funds. We are trying to figure out what our next moves are while we're continuing to build the case. We are still sorting through all the stuff that's in the house.
Starting point is 00:37:55 Investigators dig deeper into the hundreds of hours of audio recordings. I haven't seen another cache of recordings like that in the rest of my career. In these recordings, Sheila seems to coerce her male visitors into making alleged confessions. I am struggling with the issue of whether to go forward to have charges brought against this individual for severe, repeated, horrible acts of child molestation. I could hear her questioning Kenneth about being a pedophile and asking him over and over again, you are a pedophile, aren't you? And at some point he did say yes.
Starting point is 00:38:48 And then she said, Kenneth County is now pretending to throw up. And then she said, why are you passing out? Kenneth County is now faking that he passed out. The recordings suggest Kenny was under duress when he made these statements. There was no evidence that he was a pedophile, and no indication that he ever did anything like that.
Starting point is 00:39:22 Investigators sorting through photos in the house make another disturbing discovery. The most eerie picture was this picture that she took herself of Kenneth County at the Walmart in Epping. And he has a gas can in the front of his cot, and that was within a day or so of her killing him and burning him. When the state lab finally issues its report, the findings are damning. There was actual blood spatter that was matched to Kenneth County in his DNA.
Starting point is 00:40:01 They used DNA technology to determine that both Kenneth County's and Michael DeLoges' blood were all over the walls at Sheila's house. On March 31st, authorities are finally able to issue an arrest warrant for Sheila. There's only one problem. Nobody knew where she was. You know, I had some fears that something may happen where she would never face trial for this.
Starting point is 00:40:33 Coming up, the manhunt for Sheila intensifies. There was a bolo put out for Sheila LaBarbe on the lookout. And investigators' worst fears are realized. Bolo put out for Sheila Labar be on the lookout. And investigators' worst fears are realized. It starts to become clear that we may have more victims. Sheila Labar, the prime suspect in the disappearance of 24-year-old Kenny County, has just withdrawn over $85,000 and fled town. So there was a BOLO put out for Sheila Labar to be on the lookout, and that gets broadcast
Starting point is 00:41:21 through Massachusetts and New Hampshire. It was on the news that the police had issued a warrant for Sheila's arrest, which caused a witness to phone in that she'd been in Revere, Massachusetts. He told us she was hitchhiking and looking for a ride down to Massachusetts, and so he picked her up. And so police were sent to their location, and they found who they believed to be Sheila Labar in a parking lot. However, her hair was now dyed red. She denied that she was Sheila Labar for quite some some time, but it was apparent based on the photographs,
Starting point is 00:42:07 police had of her, and she was finally arrested. On April 2, 2006, Sheila is finally behind bars, but investigators still have questions. bars, but investigators still have questions. We come across some of the blood smears, spatter that were in the home that did not match Mike Deloge or Penn County's DNA. As we're investigating this, it starts to become clear that we may have more victims. With evidence piling up against her, Sheila finally comes clean. But there's a catch. After she was arrested, she had obtained legal counsel. She wanted to plead insanity, but
Starting point is 00:43:01 understanding in order to do so that she had to provide a confession. She confessed to the state psychiatric expert about her version exactly how she killed both of these men. Now, do I believe those versions are true? No, I don't. But then she said, I was not sane when I did it. was not sane when I did it. In April of 2006, Sheila Labar is charged with the murders of Kenneth County and Michael
Starting point is 00:43:33 Deloge. Ultimately, she killed Kenneth. I think she probably stabbed him over and over again, which created all that blood cast while he lied in bed. When she realized that she had killed him, she decided to dismember him and burn him in an attempt to hide. I think Michael Delores suffered much the same fate. the same fate. At her trial in May of 2008, Sheila pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.
Starting point is 00:44:18 It was almost immediately apparent from the first time I met her. She was absolutely stark raving mad. That's basically the heart of any insanity. The client did it, but should not be held responsible for it. There's a big difference between mental illness and insanity. Insanity is a legal distinction. The perp did not understand the difference in quality between right and wrong. Sheila, purposely after finding out she could be held accountable,
Starting point is 00:44:53 went to lengths to take out money, escape the jurisdiction, hide her appearance. And these are all things that show she knows what she's doing. On June 20, 2008, after 13 hours of deliberation, jurors return with a verdict. Guilty on all counts. It was a very emotional verdict. Both Kenneth County's family and Michael Delage's mother were in the courtroom. There was a lot of just plain relief and tears
Starting point is 00:45:35 by those family members that this woman met justice. There is no evidence against Kenneth County or Michael DeLose for ever being a pedophile, ever committing such an act or being sex offenders. Even now, detectives wonder, are there more victims? I think it was more towards the end of the search. Toes that were found at Sheila's home and sent off for a DNA comparison and that did not match Michael Deloge or Kenneth County. To this date, Sheila has never mentioned the third victim.
Starting point is 00:46:21 She will not talk about it. And that section of this case remains open. Sheila LaBar is serving consecutive life sentences in the New Hampshire Correctional Facility for Women without any possibility of parole. No other victims have ever been identified on Sheila's property. Harvard is the oldest and richest university in America. But when a social media-fueled fight over Harvard
Starting point is 00:47:03 and its new president broke out last fall, that was no protection. Claudine Gay is now gone. We've exposed the DEI regime and there's much more to come. This is The Harvard Plan, a special series from the Boston Globe and WNYC's On the Media. To listen, subscribe to On the Media wherever you get your podcasts.

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