The Misery Machine - The Story of Kylr Yust, Kara Kopetsky, and Jessica Runions

Starting point is 00:00:00 Kara Elise Kopetsky was born on February 17th, 1990 in Frankfurt, Germany. She was the only child born to Michael and Rhonda Kopetsky. Kara was described as having a contagious smile and a carefree attitude that attracted people to her. She loved music, shopping, and animals, and had a fierce loyalty for her family and friends. The Kopetskis moved to Belton, Missouri, just a 25-minute drive south of Kansas City. Now, Michael and Rhonda would later divorce, but eventually the mother met Jim Beckford, while working for UPS and remarried when Kara was nine years old. The couple soon welcomed a son named Thomas into their new family.

Starting point is 00:00:38 Now flash forward to 2006, Kara is a 17-year-old girl attending Belton High School. She was your typical teenager of the mid-aughts. She smoked cigarettes, cut class, and wore her hair and makeup in the style that the era was known for. After school, she worked a part-time fast-food job at Popeyes. She loved to shop, listen to music, and talk to. and text on her cell phone. Those of you who were old enough back then will remember when your cell phone bill actually printed out a list of your activity. In one month, Kara's was 40 pages long. The same year, Kara met and began dating Kyler Ust, who was two years for senior.

Starting point is 00:01:18 Born on September 14th, 1988, Kyler had a turbulent relationship with his parents and was raised by his grandparents. Kyler was covered in tattoos and piercings and was something of a bad boy, except not the acceptable kind that's made be fun to date when you're a teenager. Kyler was jealous and controlling and liked to put his hands on Kara. The 17-year-old was often covered in bruises and her friends encouraged her to break it off. In April of 2007, she finally did. She was free and clear of their nine-month nightmare of a relationship, or so she thought. On April 28th, Kyler showed up while Kara was working her shipped at Popeye's and forced her into his car

Starting point is 00:01:59 where he began to berate her for not wanting to hang out with him. Eventually, he led her out of the car in Grandview about six miles north of Belton. On April 30th, Rhonda and Kara filed a protection order against Kyler with the Cass County Court. The order cited that Kyler caused physical injury, stalked Kara, and inflicted emotional abuse by the following acts. Quote, Saturday, April 28th, kidnapped and restrained.

Starting point is 00:02:26 One month ago, choked me. December 2006 had knife in hand and said, I'm going to slit your mother-fucking throat. March 2007 wouldn't let me out of my home, end quote. It goes on to note that an immediate and present danger exists because Kara was unsure of what Kyler would do next because of how he was getting worse over time. Kyler was served this order on May 1, 2007.

Starting point is 00:02:55 Finally, Kara thought that she was safe and out from under the thumb of her jealous ex-boyfriend. Sadly, she was mistaken. The last time Kara was seen alive was on May 4, 2007 at 9.18 a.m. She was briefly captured on a security camera at Belton High School and then disappeared from the frame. She never showed up for her schedule shift at Popeyes that evening and never made it home.

Starting point is 00:03:20 Worried about her daughter's well-being due to the nature of what was going on with Kyler. Rhonda reported her daughter missing to the Belton Police Department. Due to Kara being 17 years old, the police did not take her disappearance seriously, even though the legal age of majority in Missouri is 18. When Kara did not come home the following day, the police finally began to listen, and after a cursory search of her room, they became concerned. All of Kara's belongings were as she had left them.

Starting point is 00:03:51 The brand-new iPod that she had gotten for Christmas had been left behind. All of her clothes were still put away in drawers, and she hadn't taken her makeup or her flat iron. In 2006, you did not leave without your flat iron. As we mentioned earlier, Kara was a smoker. In her room was a nearly full carton of marb lights with only one pack missing. Now, as an ex-pack-a-day smoker,

Starting point is 00:04:15 let me tell you something. If you're going to run off and you smoke, you're absolutely going to be taking the rest of that carton with you. Even more concerning was the fact that her debit card had been left in her locker and her bank account showed no activity whatsoever. Kara, who once racked up that 40-page cell phone bill, had not placed any calls nor made any text since the day prior.

Starting point is 00:04:38 What was puzzling is that there wasn't any reason for her to just up and take off. She had things to do. She had a job interview at a convenience store on the 5th, and had made plans to hang out with friends for the next two weeks. Kyler was questioned about Kara's whereabouts on May 6th, but denied having anything to do with her disappearance despite what occasioned the protection order. The cops have said you've been very cooperative.

Starting point is 00:05:02 I have been because I don't have anything, I don't know anything about where she is or about what happened. I wish I did. Did you threaten to slit her throw? No. Didn't. What happened? That didn't happen that night.

Starting point is 00:05:15 That was before. With no leads and no evidence to charge him, the police had to move on. However, not even a month later, The body of another teenage girl would further complicate Kara's case and create a media frenzy. On June 2nd, 18-year-old Kelsey Smith disappeared from Overland Park, a city just across the border in Kansas. Now, due to their ages, similar appearances, and the fact that they both seem to have vanished into thin air, the media quickly started up rumors that there was a serial killer on the loose in the greater Kansas City metro area preying upon young girls.

Starting point is 00:05:51 This sparked nationwide coverage which led to Jim and Ranta giving interviews to Heralda Rivera, Nancy Grace, and Greta Van Sustrin. Kelsey, who had just graduated from high school and was preparing for college, made a run to her local target for supplies. She wanted to make her boyfriend John a scrapbook to mark their six-month anniversary. But Kelsey never returned home, and she stopped answering her phone. John, as well as Kelsey's sister Lindsay, went to the mall to search for her. Her father, Greg Smith, a veteran cop, called police departments to find out if car accidents had been reported. John and Lindsay found Kelsey's car in the mall across the street from Target and left it untouched until the police arrived.

Starting point is 00:06:35 Kelsey was not in her car, nor were her phone and her keys present. The car was towed to the Johnson County Sheriff's Office crime lab where it was processed for fingerprints and DNA. Kelsey's family members and boyfriend were interviewed and after their alibis were checked. out they were clear to suspects. Surveillance video showed Kelsey entering the store, walking through aisles, checking out, and exiting into the parking lot. According to now retired Overland Park PD detective Candace Bridges, quote, the outside video shows Kelsey walk into her car, putting her items in the passenger side door, and then getting in the driver's side door. That's when she drives away, end quote.

Starting point is 00:07:15 While the search for Kelsey continued, detectives reviewed video footage showing Kelsey's car being parked in the mall across the street from Target. It showed an unidentifiable male figure getting out of the vehicle and walking away. Authorities scrutinized this footage of Kelsey in the Target parking lot in search of any sign of the male figure seen driving her car. What they found next shocked them. According to Detective Bridges, quote, as Kelsey is opening her driver's side door, you see a flash of a figure wearing a white shirt

Starting point is 00:07:46 and dark colored pants come up from behind her. We believe the blurry figure was forcing Kelsey into her car, end quote. Investigators went back to the video of Kelsey inside Target. Police discovered that Kelsey was being trailed by a white male wearing a white top in black shorts. According to now retired detective Sergeant Bob Miller, quote, You've seen the National Geographic shows where the predator is circling. That's what you see, end quote. When the image of the suspect, who appeared to be in his 20s and had a goatee,

Starting point is 00:08:18 was released to the media and the public, police were flooded with tips. Many weren't valid, but some stood out. Multiple calls came in claiming that the man in the video was a local called Edwin Hall, who also went by the name Jack. Investigators confirmed through a driver's license photo that Edwin was the match for the man in the video.

Starting point is 00:08:38 When police arrived at Edwin's address, he confirmed that he went by the name Jack and agreed to be interviewed at the station. Detective Sergeant Miller showed him a picture of Kelsey in order to get him, his reaction, but he denied ever seeing her. When investigators showed him security footage from Target, he admitted being in the store, but said he never saw Kelsey. But later remarked that she had great legs. He even freely offered up his DNA and fingerprints. Investigators caught a break

Starting point is 00:09:09 when a local waitress reached out, saying that Edwin Hall was the same individual who harassed her and skipped out without paying his bill. He was subsequently booked for theft. Now, around the same time, Kelsey's phone records became available, with the final ping pointing to a wooded area known as Longview Lake. There, the nude body of a woman later identified as Kelsey was found under a pile of branches. A nylon belt was found around her neck, and there was an indication that she had been essayed and sawed.

Starting point is 00:09:41 Shortly after Kelsey's body was discovered, the crime lab matched Edwin's thumbprint to one found on the back of the driver's side belt buckle in her car. On June 6, he was arrested in charge with kidnapping, homicide, and SA, among others. To avoid the death penalty, Edwin Hall pled guilty to all charges. He is currently serving life without the possibility of parole. Sadly, Edwin Hall's arrest and subsequent conviction did not lead to any clues as to what happened to Carr. Meanwhile, three years had passed and Carr's case began to go cold. Although it really shouldn't have as Kyler, now in his mid-20s, began to get loose lips.

Starting point is 00:10:25 On April 26th of 2010, one of his friends went to the police and claimed that Kyler, while drunk, confessed to killing Kara. But this wasn't the only confession. In fact, Kyler bragged about the killing to his high school girlfriend, Caitlin Ferris, who in turn agreed to wear a wire for the EFTA. Upon meeting up with Kyler, Caitlin asked him why he was in a bad mood, and he told her it was because she had moved away and was dating someone new. Then he went into this rant where he said, quote, I'm nothing to you. I'm going to be alone for the rest of my life. You're never going to hold me. You're never going to hold my hand. You're never going to brush my hair behind my ears. I will never be loved. Every time I meet someone, I'm not good enough for them.

Starting point is 00:11:14 end quote. But later at a restaurant, Kyler could be heard saying, and I quote, I strangled the fuck out of her, end quote. In addition, Kyler and Caitlin went into the woods

Starting point is 00:11:28 with a makeshift Ouija board and tried to summon the ghost of Kara. I'll just play some of this for you right now. Oh my God. I just like felt her hand on my shoulder and I heard like, she didn't say anything. It was just like her voice.

Starting point is 00:11:44 I promise I will come back and see you, Colin. Later, that you had another creepy discussion that was recorded. This really turns you on that I killed a girl. It doesn't really turn me all. Yeah, well, you're saying all that bull shit, did I? I know. Just because you're trying to get me to confess. No.

Starting point is 00:12:03 Yeah. No. You'd think that the police would have enough receipts at this point to arrest Kyler, but for whatever reason, they didn't pull the trigger. Because I killed her and left out in the wilderness alone. What? The first spirit just warm the horse. A year later, Kyler still can't manage to keep his hands off of his girlfriend.

Starting point is 00:12:26 On August 17th of 2011, Kyler tried to kill another woman, one who was carrying his baby. According to Candace St. Clair in the early morning hours of July 23rd, Kyler came home drunk, and the two began to argue. Candice threatened to leave him, but Kyler was not about to allow that. Instead, he grabbed her, dragged her, and pinned her to the ground where he began to strangle her. Every time Candice would lose consciousness, he would punch her legs to wake her back up, and then he would begin to strangle her again. He said to her, quote,

Starting point is 00:13:03 My family has a ranch with pigs that will eat anything, including bones. If you scream again, I am going to kill you fast. then you can let another scream out of your throat, end quote. Eventually, Candice did black out. The next morning, she woke up to Kyler spooning her, whispering, I love you into her ear. According to Candice, Kyler threatened to kill her, her family, and her little sister if she went to the police.

Starting point is 00:13:29 He told her, quote, I have killed people before, even ex-girlfriends out of sheer jealousy. I will kill you, end quote. But Candice did go to the police and reported, all of this. She even showed them texts from Kyler that she had saved on her phone where he threatened to take his own life if she left him. Additionally, she told them something even more disturbing. A month and a half earlier, Candice had come home from work and observed Kyler beating one of their kittens on the bathroom floor, which killed it. Prior to that,

Starting point is 00:14:04 he had taken two of their kittens, tied them up in a sack, and threw them into a creek behind their apartment complex. Kiler was arrested and charged with assault, but was released on supervised probation. He was to have no contact with Candace due to a restraining order, which cited the following complaint. Quote, most recently harassed on August 15th

Starting point is 00:14:28 by text message. Around the second week of July, he choked me and slapped and punched me. He pinned and drew a pentagram on my forehead and started to say gibberish. He threatens to kill me and my family, family and my baby, end quote. It went on to note that, quote, he has made threats on my life and abused me in the past, end quote. A few days later, Kyler was in court for animal cruelty and was

Starting point is 00:14:54 released on a thousand dollar bond. In Missouri, animal cruelty is a class A misdemeanor unless torture is involved, which bumps it up to a class E felony. But this wasn't the end of Kyler and Candice. A few months later, Kyler was pulled over for speeding. Yes, who was in the passenger seat, Candice. Despite this restraining order being in place,

Starting point is 00:15:17 apparently Kyler couldn't be arrested for the violation because the officer couldn't find documentation that he was properly served. It's interesting that the cop thought this to be possible as all of this went down while Kyler was in police custody. After all of these slaps on the wrist,

Starting point is 00:15:36 Kyler finally got himself into enough trouble where he was actually going to find himself locked up. In 2012, he was arrested after he received drugs in the mail, as well as stealing while employed as an apprentice at a tattoo parlor. He was found guilty of felony drug trafficking and was sentenced to three years and nine months in federal prison, after which he had to serve three years of probation. In September of 2015, a detective with the Belton Police Department traveled to the federal prison in Oklahoma where Kyler was being held in hopes of interviewing him about Kara, except Kyler would not speak to them, but six months later, his cellmate came forward with some information. Apparently, the detective's presence worried Kyler, and he asked his cellmate to help him

Starting point is 00:16:23 with an alibi. Eventually, he totally spilled everything to him, admitting that he had strangled Kara and dumped her body in the woods. Now, keep in mind, between 2010 and 2016, seven witnesses had come forward with reports of confessions from Kyler, and all of their accounts matched, all seven. You would think at this point that with enough witness statements, the information from the cellmate was the statement that was the final straw to charge Kyler with Kara's death. But sadly, you would be wrong.

Starting point is 00:17:01 Kyler would soon be released from prison, and even more tragic, Kara would not be the last of his victims. 21-year-old Jessica Runyon was born on July 10, 1995 to parents John and Jamie. She had two younger sisters and resided in the Kansas City area. Jessica worked as a pastry chef and had recently been promoted to a management position. Her family described her as a generous, loyal young woman who loved music, dancing, and baking. Most of all, she loved her family, especially her little sisters.

Starting point is 00:17:36 According to some sources, Jessica's boyfriend was childhood friends with Kyler used. Some publications have alleged that there might have been an affair going on between Jessica and Kyler, but there simply isn't any legitimate evidence to support that claim out there. On September 2nd, 2016, Kyler was released from federal prison and attended a party in Grandview just four days later. This was no doubt something that probably violated his probation terms. Witnesses at the party claimed to have seen him arguing with Jessica and that he had been drinking heavily and acting possessive of her. The pair left at around 11 that evening.

Starting point is 00:18:18 This was the last time that anyone saw Jessica alive. When she didn't meet her mother Jamie at a doctor's appointment on September 9th, her family became concerned and reported her missing. In the early morning hours of September 10th, the Kansas City Fire Department responded to a call concerning a car that was engulfed in flames. A 2012 black Chevy equinox was located at Blue River Road and East 95th Street under an overpass in a heavily wooded area. It was Jessica's. Soon after, Kyler's half-brother, Jessup Carter, contacted the Belton Police Department to tell them that Kyler had confessed to strangling Jessica and that he hid her body in a wooded area. He claimed that

Starting point is 00:19:04 Kyler had asked him to help get rid of Jessica's car in the process. During this time, Kyler sustained burns to his hands and his face. The following day, Kyler was arrested at Jessup's mobile home on Peacant Drive. His face was covered in burns and scratch marks. He was charged with arson in relation to the burning of Jessica's car, but the police couldn't charge him with her death because there simply wasn't enough information out there to prove that Jessica wasn't still alive. Kyler, where's Jessica?

Starting point is 00:19:35 I have no idea, sir. What happened to your face? Do you get burned? What happened to your face? Did you kill Jessica? Did you? No answer? Once in custody, Kyler made a call to his mother and the two began to argue.

Starting point is 00:20:05 According to him, the reason that he had killed a girl was due to his issues with his mother. Now, eventually she had enough and hung up on him. But finally realized, that the call had more than likely been recorded. He called his mother back and tried to play it off as if he was lying. Hello, you have a call at no extent to you from... This call would be recorded in subject to monitoring at any time. Eust and his mother's conversation quickly escalates into an argument.

Starting point is 00:20:37 Eust tells his mother she was a bad mother who abandoned him with a dangerous man. His mother said, Why don't you tell me where Jessica's at so that her family can have her? Yus then began accusing his mother for being partly responsible for his actions. So all this people I sat in the front window in my house waiting for you come pick me up with a backpack full clothes for it. It's been a weekend. And those times she didn't show up. So that's why you go and kill her, girl?

Starting point is 00:21:05 That's part of it. That's part of it. That's why you did it. Part of it. It's part of the Tiena. Oh, Kyla. It's my, I would say, I would say it's part about 50. So did you kill car?

Starting point is 00:21:21 You know, I'm going to talk to a lawyer today, mom. After Eust called her an expletive, she said. You know what? Bye. Then jurors heard a second call from jail from use to his mother, apologizing, saying he said what he said out of spite and anger. The fact of the matter that, you know, I didn't do anything. I know everything I said, I picked back. At the same time that Kyler was arrested,

Starting point is 00:21:45 just that she was picked up for an unrelated arson charge. It seems that he's something of a firebug. Unfortunately, he took his own life in his jail cell in 2018. Please keep this information in mind as it will become important later on in our story. Meanwhile, Kara and Jessica's families banded together for a common goal to bring their girls home. However, their search efforts unearthed even more tragedy. On January 21, 2017, John Runyon discovered human remains in a creek bed, wildcat hollow drive and 67th Street in Kansas City, which is directly next to the Kansas City Zoo.

Starting point is 00:22:25 They were later identified as belonging to 21-year-old Brandon Herring, who had gone missing on November 22nd of 2016. Stay with us because these people deserve to have their stories told as well. We will tie this all back to Kara and Jessica in just a moment. Brandon was described as a loving teddy bear. In fact, he went by the nickname Macbear. According to his mother, Rhonda Herring, quote, I called my son, I said, how are you doing?

Starting point is 00:22:54 He said, I'm all right, mom. I said it doesn't sound like it, what's going on? A mother knows her children. Her heart lets her know what's going on, her stomach. I told him that I loved him, and he said, I love you too, mama. That was it. I called back 15 minutes later to ask him a question I forgot to ask him, and his phone was just off, end quote.

Starting point is 00:23:15 This was the last conversation. Rhonda Herring had with her son. She went on to state, quote, the police told me right after he hung up his phone, they feel that's when they had shot him in his head, end quote. When Brandon failed to return home in Miss Thanksgiving, his loved ones grew very concerned. Brandon also had a girlfriend who was pregnant with his child,

Starting point is 00:23:39 so his disappearance was extra suspicious. Family members canvassed the areas Brandon frequented, passing out flyers and talking to anyone they could find. It was through this canvassing that they got a tip that led them to the Park Meadows apartment complex, where a woman claimed that she had seen Brandon sitting on the steps. Several of Brandon's loved ones immediately headed to the apartments. There, they said they discovered several shell casings and a unit with a window that appeared to have been shot out.

Starting point is 00:24:10 Kansas City police responded and collected evidence outside, but did not locate anyone inside of the apartment. But Brandon's death wasn't the only one that was uncovered due to the efforts of Kara and Jessica's families. On January 29th, the body of Dante Jamal Jefferson was discovered. He had gone missing on December 5th of 2016 and was last seen getting into a gray Chrysler sedan. At the time of his disappearance, he was staying with his mother.

Starting point is 00:24:37 After Christmas came and went and there was no sign of Dante, his family filed a missing person's report. Both Brandon and Dante's deaths have been ruled as homicides, and as of the date of this recording, are still currently unsolved. If you have any information regarding either of their cases, please reach out to the Kansas City Missouri Tips Line at 816-474-847. We'll also have this listed in our show notes. On April 3, 2017, a man foraging for mushrooms and a heavily wooded area of peculiar Missouri came across a set of human remains. Police were immediately dispatched to the area, and after a thorough search, a second set of remains were also located. These remains

Starting point is 00:25:26 appear to be much older than the first set. On April 5th, the first set was identified as belonging to Jessica Runyon's. The second set was sent away for analysis at the FBI Crime Lab in Quantico, Virginia. On August 16th of the same year, they were identified as belonging to Kara Kowicz. Finally, Kyler Eust was held accountable for the deaths of both Jessica and Kara. On October 5th, he was charged with homicide, which he promptly pled not guilty to. In fact, Kyler's defense team did everything possible to delay his day in court. They argued he was not competent to stand trial, which a psychavow quickly disagreed. They claimed they wanted further DNA testing done. They alleged that there was evidence of a recording out there of someone else taking responsibility

Starting point is 00:26:16 for Jessica's death. They claim that the pandemic was slowing things down. They alleged that an investigator was having a lurid affair with a witness. They claimed phone calls between Kyler and his legal team had been recorded without their knowledge. And finally, they claimed that Jessup Carter, who, mind you, is dead, killed both Kara and Jessica, and was a serial killer. Luckily, no one bought any of this nonsense. In April of 2021, Kyler was found guilty of second-degree homicide and voluntary manslaughter. The jury recommended that he received the maximum sentence for each count. I guess running your mouth to almost a dozen people about your crimes really isn't the best idea. On Monday, June 7th, 2020,

Starting point is 00:27:04 a Cass County judge sentenced Kyler used to life in prison plus 15 years for the killings of Kara Kopetsky and Jessica Runyon's. Judge William Collins decided to adopt the juror's recommendation that Kyler received the maximum sentences for both convictions. That means life in prison for second-degree homicide and 15 years for voluntary manslaughter. Now, in Missouri, because life sentences are capped at 30 years, the sentences will run consecutively for a total of 45 years in prison. You've heard that correctly. He will be out in 45 years. Kara's funeral was held on Saturday, September 17th, 2017

Starting point is 00:27:47 at the IBEW Local Union 124 Meeting Hall in Kansas City, Missouri. She was finally laid to rest in a proper grave in the Mount Moira Cemetery, also in Kansas City. Her granite gravestone bears a photograph of her smiling happily. The inscription reads, forever in our hearts, loved by all. Jessica's celebration of life was also held at the same union meeting hall and was open to the public. Her 14-year-old sister, Megan, organized and led the ceremony, which featured pictures and videos of Jessica throughout her life. A private funeral was held at a later date.

Starting point is 00:28:28 Family friend Cheryl Finch organized a memorial fund to help Jessica's sisters. The money raised would go towards counseling and education for the two girls. She said, quote, we sat around thinking, how can we honor Jessica? What would she want? Taking care of her sisters was the first thing that came to mind for many of us. For what they've been through the last seven months, they're doing amazingly well. We want to make sure that that continues, end quote. Unfortunately, Jessica's sister Megan,

Starting point is 00:29:03 dropped out of school due to being bullied by her classmates for being, as they called her, the dead girl's sister. As we've mentioned in previous episodes, if you or someone you know is experiencing intimate partner violence, help is available. Call 1-800-799 safe, text start to 8-8-788, or visit the hotline.org where they have a live chat option. All of these resources will be left. linked in our show notes. If you feel like you're in danger, it is never too soon to call.

Starting point is 00:29:38 Please do not wait until it is too late.

The Misery Machine - The Story of Kylr Yust, Kara Kopetsky, and Jessica Runions

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