1 00:00:00,600 --> 00:00:04,440 Speaker 1: Crime Alert hourly update, breaking crime news Now. I'm Drew Nelson. 2 00:00:04,519 --> 00:00:07,120 Speaker 1: In Oregon, a man accused of kidnapping a woman and 3 00:00:07,160 --> 00:00:10,280 Speaker 1: locking her in a cinderblock cell is now facing trial. 4 00:00:10,600 --> 00:00:14,319 Speaker 1: Nigasie Zuberi, aged thirty, is charged with kidnapping a woman 5 00:00:14,360 --> 00:00:17,280 Speaker 1: from Seattle, driving her to his home in Klamath Falls, 6 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:20,720 Speaker 1: and imprisoning her in July of twenty twenty three. His trial, 7 00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:23,320 Speaker 1: which began this week with jury selection, marks the latest 8 00:00:23,320 --> 00:00:26,680 Speaker 1: of elements in a disturbing case that has captured national attention. 9 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:31,720 Speaker 2: The victim's focus, actions and her will to survive triggered 10 00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:35,360 Speaker 2: a law enforcement response that may have actually saved many 11 00:00:35,440 --> 00:00:37,400 Speaker 2: other women from a similar nightmare. 12 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:40,879 Speaker 1: The federal prosecution there, they say Zuberi posed as an 13 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:44,159 Speaker 1: undercover officer when he approached the woman in Seattle. He 14 00:00:44,159 --> 00:00:47,320 Speaker 1: allegedly restrained her with handcuffs, transported her four hundred and 15 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:50,120 Speaker 1: fifty miles across state lines, and held her captain in 16 00:00:50,159 --> 00:00:53,400 Speaker 1: the cell he built in his garage. After hours in captivity, 17 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 1: the woman escaped by breaking the cell's door with her hands. 18 00:00:56,600 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 1: She managed to flee the property and found help from 19 00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:02,360 Speaker 1: a passerby who called police. Zuberi was arrested the next 20 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:05,200 Speaker 1: day in Reno, Nevada, where police officers found him with 21 00:01:05,240 --> 00:01:08,000 Speaker 1: one of his children in the Walmart parking lot. The 22 00:01:08,040 --> 00:01:11,480 Speaker 1: trial also includes charges linked to another kidnapping in May 23 00:01:11,520 --> 00:01:14,680 Speaker 1: of twenty twenty three, where Zuberr is accused of abducting 24 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:17,720 Speaker 1: a woman in Klamath Falls. Prosecutors say he used a 25 00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:20,600 Speaker 1: taser to control the victim, then restrained and assaulted her 26 00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:24,920 Speaker 1: during the drive. Evidence collected by investigators includes video footage 27 00:01:24,920 --> 00:01:29,360 Speaker 1: of Zuberri purchasing cinderblocks, handwritten notes outlining plans to kidnap 28 00:01:29,480 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 1: multiple women, and a list of quote unquote ideal victims. 29 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: According to the FBI, he allegedly sought to create a 30 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:40,600 Speaker 1: quote underground army by holding women captive and forcing them 31 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:43,520 Speaker 1: to bear his children. Jerry Selection in Medford's U. S 32 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:47,760 Speaker 1: District Court has drawn considerable attention. Prosecutors have compiled over 33 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:50,280 Speaker 1: five hundred exhibits and are expected to call at least 34 00:01:50,360 --> 00:01:54,960 Speaker 1: seventy witnesses. Witnesses include FBI agents, local law enforcement, and 35 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:58,520 Speaker 1: medical personnel who treated the victims. Zuberri has pleaded not 36 00:01:58,560 --> 00:02:01,800 Speaker 1: guilty to the charges, set to face eight federal counts, 37 00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:05,960 Speaker 1: including kidnapping, illegal possession of firearms, and attempted escape. His 38 00:02:06,080 --> 00:02:08,600 Speaker 1: trial is expected the last three weeks with a detailed 39 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:12,240 Speaker 1: look into what authorities described as a calculated and premeditated 40 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:15,160 Speaker 1: plan to capture and control vulnerable women. 41 00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:19,960 Speaker 3: I'm Jennifer Gould, a Florida woman accused of killing her 42 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:23,800 Speaker 3: boyfriend by zipping him up in a suitcase, has rejected 43 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 3: a plea deal and is now facing a trial that's 44 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:30,800 Speaker 3: been delayed multiple times, most recently due to Hurricane Milton. 45 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:34,560 Speaker 3: Sarah Boone, forty six, is charged with second degree murder 46 00:02:34,639 --> 00:02:37,720 Speaker 3: in connection with the death of her boyfriend, George Torres, 47 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:41,280 Speaker 3: forty two, in February of twenty twenty. Torres was found 48 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:44,520 Speaker 3: dead inside a suitcase at the couple's in Winter Park apartment. 49 00:02:45,160 --> 00:02:48,200 Speaker 3: Boone initially claimed that she and Torres were playing a 50 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:51,960 Speaker 3: drunken game of hide and seek when she accidentally zipped 51 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:55,320 Speaker 3: him up in the suitcase. She says she fell asleep 52 00:02:55,600 --> 00:02:59,280 Speaker 3: and didn't realize he was trapped until the next morning. However, 53 00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:04,960 Speaker 3: prosecutors believe that Boone intentionally killed Torres. A video discovered 54 00:03:04,960 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 3: on Boone's phone after her arrest has recently gone viral. 55 00:03:08,760 --> 00:03:12,440 Speaker 3: It shows Boone laughing and taunting Torres as he struggles 56 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:15,480 Speaker 3: to escape the suitcase. Here's part of that video. 57 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:19,320 Speaker 4: For everything you've done to me, soah, for everything you've 58 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:22,680 Speaker 4: done to me, so thank you. 59 00:03:25,760 --> 00:03:33,720 Speaker 3: Sarah, You Sharo, stupid Sarah. 60 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:35,840 Speaker 2: That's my name, the learner. 61 00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:39,880 Speaker 3: In the meantime, Boone has now rejected a plea deal 62 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,040 Speaker 3: that would have resulted in a fifteen year prison sentence. 63 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:46,760 Speaker 3: Without the deal, she faces a potential sentence of twenty 64 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 3: two and a half years to life if found guilty. 65 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 3: The trial was originally set to begin this week, but 66 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:57,120 Speaker 3: has been postponed now to October fourteenth due to Hurricane Milton. 67 00:03:57,720 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 3: This marks the sixteenth in the case, which has been 68 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 3: plagued by numerous issues, including the withdrawal of eight defense attorneys. 69 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:11,000 Speaker 3: The suitcase video also adds another layer of complexity to 70 00:04:11,080 --> 00:04:15,480 Speaker 3: this case. Boone's defense attorney, James Owens, has indicated that 71 00:04:15,640 --> 00:04:19,080 Speaker 3: he plans to use the battered spouse syndrome as a 72 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 3: defense strategy. He argues that Boone was a victim of 73 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:25,599 Speaker 3: abuse and that her actions were the result of that trauma. 74 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:29,080 Speaker 3: In addition to the trial delays and the viral video, 75 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,919 Speaker 3: Boone has also faced other legal challenges. Just last week, 76 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:37,400 Speaker 3: a judge denied her request for professional hairstyling and makeup 77 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 3: for her trial due to security reasons. Boone's legal team 78 00:04:41,640 --> 00:04:45,960 Speaker 3: argued that the denial was unfair and would prejudice her case. 79 00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:50,440 Speaker 3: Despite the numerous setbacks, Boone remains confident in her defense. 80 00:04:50,600 --> 00:04:54,000 Speaker 3: Her attorney has stated he believes she's innocent and he 81 00:04:54,040 --> 00:04:55,640 Speaker 3: will prove it at trial. 82 00:04:56,680 --> 00:05:00,800 Speaker 4: I'm Nicol Parton. New details have emerged from court records 83 00:05:00,800 --> 00:05:04,640 Speaker 4: in Jasper County, Indiana, shedding light on a death investigation 84 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:08,839 Speaker 4: that has been ongoing since September. Police began looking into 85 00:05:08,920 --> 00:05:13,240 Speaker 4: the activities of Steve Valet, thirty one, and Samantha Sabella, 86 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:18,400 Speaker 4: twenty five after receiving a report on September twenty Valet 87 00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:22,000 Speaker 4: was allegedly reported to have confessed to killing his two 88 00:05:22,160 --> 00:05:26,039 Speaker 4: young children, burying them in a fire pit. It was 89 00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:29,600 Speaker 4: also suggested that he smothered his first born and drown 90 00:05:29,720 --> 00:05:34,039 Speaker 4: his second born child. Authorities visit a property in Wheatfield 91 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,120 Speaker 4: where Valet was said to have buried his children, but 92 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:40,920 Speaker 4: he no longer lived there. The current property owner allowed 93 00:05:40,920 --> 00:05:44,479 Speaker 4: a search, leading to the discovery of bone fragments near 94 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:48,200 Speaker 4: a fire pit and in the garage. The materials were 95 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:51,960 Speaker 4: sent for analysis, which confirmed they were bone fragments, but 96 00:05:52,040 --> 00:05:55,680 Speaker 4: could not determine their origin. A neighbor who wishes to 97 00:05:55,720 --> 00:05:59,600 Speaker 4: remain anonymous, spoke to Fox fifty nine. 98 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:03,200 Speaker 5: I was hoping that it wasn't real when they started 99 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:05,840 Speaker 5: digging around. I was hoping that they wouldn't find anything, 100 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:07,400 Speaker 5: that this was just going to be a bad rumor. 101 00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:10,279 Speaker 5: But I'm starting to feel like it wasn't and it 102 00:06:10,400 --> 00:06:13,880 Speaker 5: just makes me feel very, very uneasy and sad and sick. 103 00:06:14,600 --> 00:06:19,520 Speaker 4: Further investigation revealed messages on Sabella's phone indicating Valet had 104 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:24,960 Speaker 4: killed and burned multiple children. Valet later admitted to burying 105 00:06:25,040 --> 00:06:28,599 Speaker 4: two children in his backyard after they were prematurely born 106 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 4: and died. He claimed to have saved some of their 107 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:36,119 Speaker 4: ashes to make a necklace. Police revealed that Valet told 108 00:06:36,160 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 4: them the children were buried for three to five years 109 00:06:39,839 --> 00:06:42,880 Speaker 4: before he dug them up and burned them in his 110 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:47,240 Speaker 4: fire pit. Valet added that he saved some of those ashes. 111 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,479 Speaker 4: Valet and Sabella were both arrested and charged with murder 112 00:06:51,520 --> 00:06:55,400 Speaker 4: and abuse of corpse, obstruction of justice, and failure to 113 00:06:55,480 --> 00:06:58,640 Speaker 4: report a dead body. It was also noted that the 114 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:03,000 Speaker 4: deceased children may have undocumented as authorities could not find 115 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:07,440 Speaker 4: any official records of their existence. Another child currently in 116 00:07:07,520 --> 00:07:12,040 Speaker 4: their care has been removed. No additional information is available, 117 00:07:12,080 --> 00:07:16,440 Speaker 4: but police say this is an ongoing investigation. For the 118 00:07:16,520 --> 00:07:20,520 Speaker 4: latest crime and justice news, follow Crime Alert hourly update 119 00:07:20,680 --> 00:07:25,040 Speaker 4: on your favorite podcasting app with this crime Alert. I'm 120 00:07:25,160 --> 00:07:25,960 Speaker 4: Nicole Parton.