Unseen - Unmasking The Deadpool Stalker | The Case of Lauren McCluskey | UNSEEN

Episode Date: June 7, 2024

“I think he’s trying to lure me somewhere”-- On October 19th, 2018, a strange man is seen lurking around a college campus, hiding his identity under a Deadpool costume. The same day, 21 year old Lauren McCluskey calls the police to report threatening text messages harassing her and inviting her to a supposed funeral. The young student is doing everything she can to try and get help, but no one is listening. What happened that night would change more than just one life; Her story created a ripple effect that would change college campuses forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pay attention to the man in the Deadpool costume. This footage shows him walking through a college campus parking lot in broad daylight. For the past two weeks, the man has been stalking this student, 21-year-old Lauren McCluskey, and on October 22nd to 2018, Lauren disappeared without a trace. October 13, just nine days earlier, Lauren walked into the campus police department and reported that she had been receiving threatening text messages from unknown numbers.

In the following week, she called the cops a total of 14 times. but no one believed her. October 9th, 10 days before the man was seen in the parking lot, security cameras from the university capture Lauren, meeting with her boyfriend, Sean Fields. According to her roommate, she was planning to break up with him that very same day. The problem is, Sean Fields is not his real name. The circumstances surrounding Lauren's disappearance would remain a mystery.

If it wasn't for the clues she left behind, she made sure someone would find out the truth about what happened to her and exposed the man in the Deadpool costume. He was a predator, manipulator. Very skilled at getting what he wanted. Someone who you shouldn't believe a word of what they say. This is Euphoria Calvin Klein, the new elixir collection, featuring three perfume intense scents,

inspired by a unique orchid accord, paired with vanilla, each with its own distinct attitude, each with its own universe, bold elixir, sensual, woody, addictive, magnetic elixir, sweet and romantic like a lingering touch. Solar elixir, a radiant expression of joy, ultra-concentrated for amplified impact and lasting power. Find your euphoria. Discover the euphoria elixir collection by Calvin Klein. The year is 2013. Lauren lives with her two loving parents, Matthew and Jill, in the small town of Pullman, Washington. She has a happy childhood, doing well in school, and has many close friends. She was the kind of friend that you could rely on. It wouldn't matter the time or the day

if you needed someone to talk to, Lauren would be there for you. Growing up, Lauren showed a natural talent and passion for sports. She was incredibly fast and agile, impressing her parents from an early age. Lauren was just athletic from the very beginning. She could climb trees at two years old and she had no fear. She was pure determination. With her parents' encouragement, Lauren pursued her love for sports, quickly discovering a talent for track and field.

At only 10 years old, she earned second place at the USA Junior Olympics, and by the end of high school, the University of Utah recognized her excellence and granted her a scholarship. It's now September 2015. Lauren and her parents arrive at the vibrant Salt Lake City campus, home to over 20,000 students. Her parents are anxious about leaving their only daughter at college, hundreds of miles from her small town. But Lauren's confidence and maturity help her quickly make new friendships, including her new best friend, Alex. We were roommates our freshman year, and we became instant friends. For the next three years, Lauren continued to excel in everything she did.

She was dedicated and determined, focused on her studies, track events, and of course, spending time with her many close friends. Her eyes let up when she talked. Super smart. You didn't just see her as an athlete. She was a comedian. She's also a dancer. She did extremely well.

She was very excited about graduating. But on the night of September 1st, 2018, Lauren's life would change forever. It's the start of her final year of college. and Lauren, having recently turned 21, decides to go out on the weekend for a fun night with her best friend Alex. It's Saturday night, downtown Salt Lake City is bustling with nightlife, as students fill the streets and bars. Lauren and Alex arrive at the entrance of the London Bell, a popular bar in Salt Lake City,

known for their live music and dancing, and conveniently, only 15 minutes away from their dorm. Before entering, they're stopped by the bouncer, a friendly and charismatic man, standing over six feet tall. He greets the two young women with a smile. and introduces himself as Sean Fields, before letting them inside the establishment. I remember him being very huge, very big muscles. Throughout the night he would come back and pass through and stop and talk to us a few times. It's now midnight, and after a full evening of fun,

the girls decide it's time to head home to get a good night's sleep, as they both have studying to do the next day. Lauren walks toward the bar's exit, when suddenly there's a hand on her shoulder. It's the man she's been sharing glances with all evening, the handsome bouncer, Sean. They chat for a bit more, and before saying their goodbyes, he asks her out.

She gave him her number, and they made plans to go on a date later that day. It's now September 2nd. Lauren gets ready for her first date with Sean. In her life, Lauren has never had a serious boyfriend. And so far, Sean is ticking all the boxes. He's considerate, friendly, attentive, and they both bond over their college life

since he's a student as well, majoring in computer science. Although he's a bit older than her, at 28 years old, Lauren feels safe and happy with him. At the end of the date, the young college student goes back home with a smile on her face. Sean is everything she could hope for, a gentle and dedicated student, but also an independent man with the part-time job of his own. It sounded sort of old-fashioned the way that he was paying attention to her. He took her out for dinner and bought her flowers and asked her to be his girlfriend. She clearly seemed very happy about her relationship.

It started off really good, like a fairy tale. But soon, Lauren's close friends notice unusual behavior in the new romantic relationship, which suggests it isn't as rosy and loving as it first seemed. She said he told me to wear a t-shirt and jeans, so that's why I'm wearing this. Her friends become concerned, noticing the independent Lauren they know in love, now seems to be questioning her every decision. The affection and devotion Sean gives her now looks much more like obsessive and controlling behavior.

He constantly harasses Lauren over texts and calls, and she would always answer, seemingly fearful, of what would happen if she didn't. Why do you have to answer your phone when that person calls? And she's like, you know, they really want me to answer my phone right away because they just want to make sure where I'm at, what I'm doing, and if I'm okay. After just a few weeks into the relationship, Sean now spends all of his time with Lauren, basically living with her on campus.

He makes friends with other students in her dorm, and with these connections, he can freely move through her building without a key card. Lauren becomes more and more withdrawn, always exhausted, and her friends notice she isn't acting like herself anymore. We noticed she was tired. She seemed stressed. You could tell at least physically in her face that she was going through emotionally. a lot with the relationship. This guy is literally not good for her. October 1st, one month after Lauren met Sean, things take a disturbing turn. Sean tells Lauren he wants to give her something. He says it is for her protection. The gift? A loaded military-grade pistol. We would just tell her like, no, you don't need it. Your safety

is fine. If anything, he's compromising your safety. When Lauren's friends hear that her her boyfriend wants to give her a gun, they quickly tell their resident assistant, Diamond, a fellow student who works for the university's housing department, exactly what's happening with the new relationship and share their fears surrounding Lauren. She's not hanging out with us as much. He's talking about getting her a gun, and then that's when it had passed a point of, oh, this is harmless gossip. I called my first supervisor and asked her, what some steps did you want me to take?

Do you want me to call the police? Surprisingly, Diamond is not told to contact the authorities, but Rappellant Rather, send an email to the university security and explain to them the details of the escalating situation. And so, on October 2nd, one day after the unsettling gift, campus security receives the first alarming email about Sean Fields. The concerns are mostly centered around Lauren and that she may be in a potentially harmful relationship, but also that her non-resident boyfriend has been on campus frequently, that he might be acquiring a weapon for her,

and there are suspicions that he's even tracking his girlfriend's movements. However, days go by, and yet Diamond's email inbox remains empty. The email is seemingly ignored. Then, only a few days later, on October 9th, Lauren makes a frightening discovery of her own. She finds Sean's ID card, but somehow, only the photo matches. The name and birthday are both wrong. The identity under the photo is of a 37-year-old man named Melvin Rowland. Lauren immediately begins to investigate, going online to search for his name. to know who her boyfriend really is. She and a friend found a picture that looked like him that was a sex offender.

And I was like, you know, are you 100% sure it could be this person? Based on what I was reading online, that was a really hard offense. Lauren discovers that the name Sean Fields doesn't exist at all, but Melvin Rowland is a real person with an alarming police record, second and third degree felonies, including enticing a minor over the internet, attempted forcible sexual abuse, and repeated parole violations landing him back in prison multiple times. Through her quick internet search, Lauren even learns that her boyfriend is currently

on parole. We're coming up with like a plan for how she should break up with him. It's late in the evening on October 9th, Lauren anticipates Melvin, as he's arriving at her dorm any minute. She now knows about his criminal history and wants to end the relationship as soon as possible. at night, he enters her dorm room, and Lauren summons all her courage to confront him, telling him all the information she has learned. Melvin's whole personality shifts, becoming extremely resistant and aggressive. He denies all his past accusations, but Lauren knows he's lying,

and remains persistent that their relationship is over. After hours of Lauren pleading with Melvin, he finally leaves. October 10th, the next day, Lauren, now broken up with her boyfriend, believes he's out of her life for good, but that would be far from the tree. She started getting a lot of texts. Many unknown numbers begin messaging Lauren's phone, identifying themselves as Melvin's friends. Each text becomes more alarming than the last, and Lauren, unsure what to do, responds to them,

telling them to stop messaging her, blocking the numbers. But more and more new callers keep harassing her, and Lauren responds again, threatening to contact the police if they continue. But unfortunately, the messages only get worse. Although the numbers are unknown, she notices many spelling mistakes and grammatical errors, which are oddly similar to that of Melvin's past messages. One particularly concerning text said that Melvin has just died in a fatal car accident and insists Lauren must attend his funeral. On October 12th, at 4.23 p.m., three days after the breakup,

Lauren calls the campus police department, scared that she may be in danger. I've been getting these texts from these numbers of different people. They were saying that he was in the hospital, that he passed away. I got a text about asking if I wanted to go to his funeral, and I think they're trying to lure me somewhere. I'm officer to give you a call. Is that okay? Yeah, sounds good. But no one calls Lauren back. Days go by, and police haven't even provided an update, and the text continued to escalate.

At that point, she had already contacted campus police. It was like, you have to go in person. Saturday, October 13th, we headed to the police department. We went inside. I felt like they weren't taking it seriously. He's a sex offender. He went to jail, and I actually had to Google it myself and hand my phone over to him.

I do remember them saying, it's a scam. It's probably a scam. She showed them one of the numbers that was sending her messages was the same number Roland had had when they were in a relationship together. They tell her that the detective was currently not in the office and that Warren will hear. here an update by Tuesday.

The case was assigned to the on-call detective Kayla Dahliv, who at the time was actually away on vacation. Although Lauren provides police all of the concerning details, including his criminal history, no one in the campus police department follows up with her claims. And most importantly, they neglect to even check Melvin's parole status, which would have brought much-needed urgency to Lauren's case. Worried she isn't getting the urgent help she needs, the college student goes above campus police and calls the Salt Lake City Police Department a much larger authority, hoping they can speed

things up. University of Police will probably take the case than just one sec. I've talked to them already, but I just wanted to call here as well. Usually we just take it where you live, and then that agency does a case. Yeah, I was just concerned because I wasn't sure how long they were going to take. Okay, let me get you up to them and see what's going on with that just one moment. Do you know when an arrest would be made? You can talk to an officer if you want.

I can arrange that if you want that. Okay. Yeah, that sounds good. The Salt Lake City Police choose to redirect her call back to the campus police once again, who, in over a week since the first notice, have still not made any progress on her case, but Lauren refuses to back down. Over the next few days, she would continue to advocate for her own safety, reaching out to police on over 20 different occasions since she first began exposing Roland's disturbing past.

She was still being harassed and she was still getting messages. I know she was nervous. It's October 19th, Melvin had recently bought a Deadpool costume. The comic book superhero movie Deadpool 2, starring Ryan Reynolds, had come out earlier that year, and Melvin was planning to wear this outfit on Halloween in just a few weeks. But in this footage, captured just 10 days after Lauren broke up with him, Melvin is seen lurking around campus, his identity concealed, secretly searching, and stalking Lauren. At 4.02 p.m., Lauren has no idea that her ex-boyfriend is stalking her right around the corner.

Notice how he holds a small black bag. Police would later discover hidden inside the bag was a deadly weapon, a fully loaded 40-caliber beretta. Three days later, on October 22nd, Melvin is captured again by multiple security cameras, lurking around the campus, looking for Lauren once more, and holding the same. same black bag. 8 p.m. later that same day, Lauren finishes her last class and heads back to her dorm alone like any other night. While walking, Lauren calls her mom back home in Washington State.

The family routinely calls each other almost every day to chat about their day and the overall updates about how things are going. She sounded positive and telling me that she was going to go home and finish an assignment. Matthew and Jill, both hundreds of miles away, are talking with Lauren on speakerphone when suddenly both parents hear strange noises over the phone, and then the sound of someone yelling. She must have gotten tackled or something because I hear the phone fell to the ground.

We were yelling, Lauren, Lauren. I kept calling for her and she didn't answer. I knew that her life was in danger at that time. I took the landline and dialed 911. Hi, my daughter, Lauren McCluskey, was talking to her mom. It sounded like someone might have been grabbing or there something. We were scrambling trying to figure out where she might be.

All units attempt to locate a suspect involved in possible kidnapping. The victim is Lauren McCluskey. Police, after weeks of Lauren's calls, finally take the case seriously and desperately look for the missing young woman, searching the area as fast as possible, but nothing turns up. Lauren's parents keep calling the police. Everyone is now on the lookout for Lauren. At that moment, police might have just...

received their first lead. When authorities get a phone call from a student who found something while walking through the campus. Hi, I did found a whole bunch of stuff spread out all over the ground and a phone that had an answer call. I picked it up. Where is that backpack out? Can you get a location for me? Police find Lauren's personal belongings scattered all over the ground, but she's still nowhere to be found. Dozens of cop cars and police dogs surround the area, setting up a perimeter. Worried students across the campus start asking questions.

No answers, you know, what were they looking for, what was going on. There's multiple calls for students, one thing more. The campus staff issues a shelter-in-place alert and releases a description of the prime suspect, Melvin Rowland. A manhunt begins. Police broadcast his face on television, hoping someone will recognize him. The clock is ticking, and Lauren is still nowhere to be found. I'm telling about my daughter, Lauren, the hospital is missing.

We do have officers on scene. Finally, police review the security cameras. and notice a man matching Melvin's description heading away from the college grounds. At 8.21 p.m., Roland is seen leaving the campus parking lot on foot. He proceeded to walk to a nearby light rail station before getting picked up by a driver. Hours go by, and police have no idea where he is or what he's doing. Until, later that night, a terrified woman contacts law enforcement, telling them she recognizes the man wanted on the television.

I saw the picture of this guy, and then I saw a... that he may have been picked up in a silver sonata, which is like a description of my card. I saw the picture, but the name isn't the same of the age. The woman tells police that Melvin, who once again assumed a different identity, went out with her that evening. She says they had met through an online dating app, and she had agreed to pick him up at the train station before going out to dinner and spending time at her place. He took a shower at her home, and then left after midnight. An hour later, 1 a.m., Melvin is spotted by a police officer walking near 200 east and 500 south in downtown Salt Lake City.

I have officers chasing near suspect on the shooting. He is in foot pursuit right now. Melvin runs down the sidewalk, evading police. The officers close in on him, but he slips away, breaking into a nearby church and barricading himself inside. The neighborhood is locked down and no one knows what to expect next. And then, without warning, gunshots echo loudly. Police must act now. They force their way in through the large wooden doors, guns raised.

Once inside, they find Melvin Rowland's lifeless body. We have your suspect inside the church. It looks like he has a gunshot wound self-inflicted. While police were on the hunt for Melvin, they were simultaneously looking for Lauren. They found her belongings and searched her dorm, but they couldn't find her. Later that evening, police eventually find the vehicle Roland was driving. a small silver four-door car, the authorities approach it,

examine it closely, only to find a body inside. Acting quickly, the officer calls for urgent medical attention. On the night of October 22nd, Lauren's parents receive a phone call from the university's track and field coach, telling them news that no parent ever wants to hear.

And I said, is she okay? And he said, I'm sorry, she's not. She's gone. I just started crying. It was like trauma, like getting hit by a baseball bat. I remember getting a text from Mrs. McCleskey. She said that we lost her.

She said that that Lauren had been shot. I just remember going outside and just looking up in the stars and just hoping I just hope you didn't suffer, Lauren, and thought you weren't in pain. Lauren's parents and her friends are in disbelief. The whole school community is in a state of shock. Days after her passing, the school holds a vigil to grieve the loss of Lauren.

She was an amazing, genuine and caring person, and she would be really missed. Matt and Jill McCleskey are in disbelief at how the campus police department could have overlooked their daughter's repeated pleas for help. Please it seemed to go unheard. Facing widespread criticism, the university holds a controversial press conference

where the president states that there was nothing the campus security could have done to prevent Lauren's train. tragedy. This report does not offer us a reason to believe that this tragedy could have been prevented. I was shocked that she would say that. I just felt sick to my stomach. These parents lost our kid. She is gone and you have the audacity to try to cover your ass. The sheer number of times that she was trying to get help from the police when in fact it should have just been one phone call. Outraged by the university's response and driven to ensure nothing like this ever happened.

happens again, the parents file a lawsuit against the university, believing it failed to protect their daughter and hoping to reform the university and create positive change in her name. I do not want to be in this world without Lauren, but being stuck here, I have no choice but to try to make this world better. Matthew and Jill McCluskey create the Lauren McCluskey Foundation, with a mission to bring campus reform and enhance the security of students across the world. All the proceeds of this settlement will go to the Lauren McCluskey Foundation. It will make the world better and make the students across the country much safer.

This tragedy has sparked an incredible movement that's captivated communities across the nation. You can see some of the signs left by protesters here on the windows of the DA's building. Justice for Lauren! Since Lauren McCluskey's death, they've made huge changes in almost every aspect of safety, changes within the police department, to housing, to new task forces, to faculty training, pledging to build an indoor track and field facility bearing Lauren's name. And Lauren is honored and remembered every day. Women must be believed and taken seriously when they ask for help.

When there is a situation, if someone tells you what's going on, that you respond with urgency. The family created what would become known as Lauren's promise. A promise that I will listen and believe you if someone is threatening you. That promise taking root in communities nationwide. To increase awareness of the problem. This is not your fault that you're in this situation, and it's okay, let's talk about it and let's do something about it.

I've had students come to me and say, because of Lauren's promise, I'm alive.