1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,320 Speaker 1: I want to give a quick warning before we get started. 2 00:00:02,759 --> 00:00:07,600 Speaker 1: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence. Listener discretion is advised. 3 00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:17,720 Speaker 1: The whole neighborhood was definitely quiet and dark. This part 4 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:20,279 Speaker 1: of our story takes place in the late eighties in 5 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:25,160 Speaker 1: a sleepy bedroom community in the Midwest. It was kind 6 00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:30,320 Speaker 1: of eerie because typically in that neighborhood there's multiple street lights, 7 00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:34,479 Speaker 1: people's lights on under front porches and so on. There 8 00:00:34,560 --> 00:00:38,800 Speaker 1: was none of that. Steve Smith was a captain of 9 00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: the local police department, and that night around two am, 10 00:00:42,760 --> 00:00:45,280 Speaker 1: he was awoken by a call from the communications center. 11 00:00:46,560 --> 00:00:49,920 Speaker 1: Something unusual had happened out on a subdivision and he 12 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:52,519 Speaker 1: needed to get out there quick. He was met by 13 00:00:52,560 --> 00:00:57,320 Speaker 1: now retired Sergeant Rusty James. It was really eerie because 14 00:00:57,360 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: it knocked the street lights and everything out in the 15 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:04,680 Speaker 1: air you and everywhere you walked it crunched, and there 16 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 1: was a strong smell of the dynamite and burnt flesh 17 00:01:09,360 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: in the air. Rusty and his partner Sarah Vogelsberg had 18 00:01:14,200 --> 00:01:17,200 Speaker 1: been the first who arrived that night. As I pulled up, 19 00:01:17,959 --> 00:01:20,600 Speaker 1: uh there was still smoke in the air, and a 20 00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:23,679 Speaker 1: neighbor came over and told me that that he had 21 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:26,560 Speaker 1: found where it occurred. It was at the swimming pool 22 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:30,400 Speaker 1: for a residential area there. In the early morning hours, 23 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:32,600 Speaker 1: someone had parked their car in the lot next to 24 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:38,280 Speaker 1: the swimming pool and proceeded to blow themselves up. He said, so, Officer, 25 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:40,319 Speaker 1: I think that's a head laying over on the sidewalk 26 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 1: over there, but I'm not going to check. I said, no, 27 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: just going back, the crime scene was bizarre and gruesome. 28 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:49,840 Speaker 1: I mean, it's hard enough to hear about something like this, 29 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 1: let alone experience it. We were trying to figure out 30 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:56,080 Speaker 1: where this young man was because we knew where his 31 00:01:56,120 --> 00:02:00,480 Speaker 1: head was, but there wasn't anything else, and so we 32 00:02:00,520 --> 00:02:03,360 Speaker 1: started looking around fly slights, and there was one leg 33 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:06,240 Speaker 1: from the knee down in a tree. We probably didn't 34 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:12,440 Speaker 1: locate more than about forty maybe fifty pounds of identifiable 35 00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:14,959 Speaker 1: body of hearts because they were spread out throughout the 36 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 1: neighborhood and the woods close by. It was pretty horrific. Essentially, 37 00:02:22,040 --> 00:02:24,639 Speaker 1: from his knees to his neck, he was just gone. 38 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:33,200 Speaker 1: When I first started reporting the story five years ago, 39 00:02:33,480 --> 00:02:35,959 Speaker 1: there really wasn't a lot of information about the book 40 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: hit Man, which just led to a lot of questions, 41 00:02:39,160 --> 00:02:42,040 Speaker 1: most of all, why would this author, a woman who 42 00:02:42,040 --> 00:02:44,640 Speaker 1: claims she never owned a gun, write a how to 43 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:48,080 Speaker 1: guide on killing people and getting away with it. I 44 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:50,120 Speaker 1: figured there had to be a story behind this book 45 00:02:50,120 --> 00:02:55,160 Speaker 1: of nonfiction. It turns out there is, and it's stranger 46 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:59,200 Speaker 1: than fiction. This is the story of who I believe 47 00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:01,800 Speaker 1: to be the real Rex Ferrell, not the woman who 48 00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:04,320 Speaker 1: apparently wrote the book, but the man who may have 49 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:07,799 Speaker 1: inspired it or been inspired by it, a man who 50 00:03:07,880 --> 00:03:11,600 Speaker 1: left an extraordinary amount of wreckage in his wake, like 51 00:03:11,639 --> 00:03:15,600 Speaker 1: an explosion on a quiet night in a small Midwestern town. 52 00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: From my Heart Radio and Hit Home Media, I'm Jasmine 53 00:03:29,880 --> 00:04:02,480 Speaker 1: Morris and MS is hit Map. Just the whole circumstance 54 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:05,400 Speaker 1: was one of those things that bothered me for some time. 55 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:07,840 Speaker 1: And now you know, I've gotten past that. But it 56 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:12,160 Speaker 1: involved psychologists and many trips to them to get past that. 57 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: Where I where I would even answer a call in 58 00:04:14,240 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 1: that area, I wouldn't even drive there. When I first 59 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:21,080 Speaker 1: reached out to Stephen Rusty, they were both pretty surprised. 60 00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:25,080 Speaker 1: It been twenty five years since this explosion happened. But 61 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:27,360 Speaker 1: as soon as I called it kind of all came 62 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:31,280 Speaker 1: flooding back in and I remember almost like it had 63 00:04:31,320 --> 00:04:33,760 Speaker 1: just occurred within you know, the last day or two. 64 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:37,680 Speaker 1: First responders see a lot of trauma, But when talking 65 00:04:37,680 --> 00:04:41,000 Speaker 1: to these guys, especially Rusty, I mean, this was on 66 00:04:41,040 --> 00:04:44,279 Speaker 1: a whole other level. I asked him if he was 67 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:46,440 Speaker 1: sure he even wanted to go through with the interview. 68 00:04:46,839 --> 00:04:49,240 Speaker 1: You have to understand that incident was a little traumatic 69 00:04:49,320 --> 00:04:52,279 Speaker 1: on me. This was the days before you got post 70 00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:56,159 Speaker 1: traumatic stress assistance or anything. And with me and Sarah 71 00:04:56,240 --> 00:04:58,240 Speaker 1: and we showed weakness over this, at which we did, 72 00:04:58,440 --> 00:05:05,640 Speaker 1: I don't consider weakness, but everybod what else did really 73 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:10,479 Speaker 1: just imagine that day. It's a tight knit community. So 74 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:14,960 Speaker 1: when officers arrived, they recognized the car involved immediately they 75 00:05:15,000 --> 00:05:18,800 Speaker 1: knew who the victim was, a sixteen year old named Gregory. 76 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:23,080 Speaker 1: His car the hood was blown off of it, and 77 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:26,520 Speaker 1: as we walked around the area we ended up finding 78 00:05:27,200 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 1: some of his dismembered body parts. In the front seat 79 00:05:30,920 --> 00:05:35,440 Speaker 1: of his car was boom box with the cassette tape 80 00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:38,240 Speaker 1: in it that Gregory would have been listening to. He 81 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: was not a bad kid, but he was just somebody 82 00:05:40,640 --> 00:05:42,440 Speaker 1: that we had our eyes on. We had a couple 83 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:45,360 Speaker 1: of runnings with him, and but again not a bad kid, 84 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:48,840 Speaker 1: but he was very familiar to us, out and about 85 00:05:48,839 --> 00:05:51,520 Speaker 1: in the community at odd hours for somebody his age. 86 00:05:52,480 --> 00:05:54,560 Speaker 1: Steve and I, you know, we had had hard heart 87 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:56,680 Speaker 1: talks with Greg, trying to get him straightened up, you know, 88 00:05:56,880 --> 00:05:58,280 Speaker 1: and we tried to do what we could for him 89 00:05:58,320 --> 00:06:00,279 Speaker 1: and tried to keep him out of trouble, you know, 90 00:06:00,600 --> 00:06:04,840 Speaker 1: protect him from himself. Stephen Rusty both said it sort 91 00:06:04,839 --> 00:06:08,320 Speaker 1: of looked like an accident. What he did was he 92 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:13,800 Speaker 1: touched the blasting cap on that was attached to the dynamite. 93 00:06:13,800 --> 00:06:16,960 Speaker 1: He didn't quite understand how dynamite works. I don't believe 94 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:20,200 Speaker 1: he touched the blasting cap on the battery terminals of 95 00:06:20,320 --> 00:06:23,680 Speaker 1: his car and that was it. So he drove the 96 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:26,240 Speaker 1: car out with dynamite. But what was he hoping to 97 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:28,520 Speaker 1: do with it? You know, we really don't know, and 98 00:06:29,040 --> 00:06:31,920 Speaker 1: the only two people that really know are no longer here, 99 00:06:31,960 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: you know. So who is the other person that would 100 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:37,440 Speaker 1: be the mom's boyfriend. I don't know if that was 101 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:39,160 Speaker 1: just his name or not, but I do remember the 102 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:47,400 Speaker 1: name Rex. Rex. I mean, when I first heard that, 103 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:50,600 Speaker 1: you can imagine my reaction. It's probably the same one 104 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:55,120 Speaker 1: you're having. Ultimately, the teen's death was ruled a suicide, 105 00:06:55,760 --> 00:06:59,159 Speaker 1: but the investigation had just begun. Well, any time somebody 106 00:06:59,160 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: blows himself up dynamite, I would call it suspicious. Steve's 107 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:05,479 Speaker 1: first order of business was to try to figure out 108 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:08,359 Speaker 1: where this dynamite came from. So they reached out to 109 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:11,280 Speaker 1: local businesses and other police departments to see if any 110 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:15,760 Speaker 1: construction sites had been robbed. Eventually, in our investigation located 111 00:07:15,800 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 1: a empty box that had some identifiers on it the 112 00:07:20,800 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: Bureau of Alcohol to back when Farms did the follow 113 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:24,640 Speaker 1: up on that to fare out where it came from. 114 00:07:24,840 --> 00:07:27,480 Speaker 1: Whatever they found, they linked it back to a construction 115 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:29,720 Speaker 1: site burglary and I can't remember for sure where it was, 116 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:33,400 Speaker 1: but it didn't help us and trying to identify anything 117 00:07:33,400 --> 00:07:37,240 Speaker 1: about the story with the way it occurred, why it occurred, 118 00:07:37,240 --> 00:07:41,320 Speaker 1: and so on. So detectives started asking around, interviewing people 119 00:07:41,320 --> 00:07:46,800 Speaker 1: who knew Greg. That's when they discovered the boyfriend, rex Read. 120 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 1: And we tried to identify rex Read, but we couldn't 121 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,920 Speaker 1: find any driver's license or anything that would match up 122 00:07:56,000 --> 00:08:00,440 Speaker 1: with the description as far as height weight. Agents wanted 123 00:08:00,440 --> 00:08:03,720 Speaker 1: this guy. Um, I thought that was kind of odd. Plus, 124 00:08:04,400 --> 00:08:06,920 Speaker 1: if I remember correctly, Rex Reid was the name of 125 00:08:06,960 --> 00:08:10,680 Speaker 1: a character in a TV show, there's a renowned American 126 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:14,000 Speaker 1: film critic an occasional actor named Rex Reid. It was 127 00:08:14,040 --> 00:08:18,239 Speaker 1: definitely not that Rex. Read. When you can't identify somebody 128 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:21,640 Speaker 1: and they've got some TV name, it kind of raises 129 00:08:21,680 --> 00:08:26,080 Speaker 1: a flag. So detectives had a name or an alias 130 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:29,800 Speaker 1: and a lot of questions. Steve says they were discouraged 131 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:32,800 Speaker 1: from making contact with Greg's mother until after his funeral, 132 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 1: but Rex was there for all of it, even when 133 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:39,040 Speaker 1: they notified Greg's mom about what had happened to her son. 134 00:08:39,880 --> 00:08:42,760 Speaker 1: I just remember that, you know, he was close to her, 135 00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:45,760 Speaker 1: being supportive in those things. He didn't want to talk 136 00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:48,040 Speaker 1: to anybody, but he made it look like he was 137 00:08:48,080 --> 00:08:50,200 Speaker 1: a stand up guy at the end and was there 138 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:52,280 Speaker 1: for the mom at the funeral and all that, and 139 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:57,520 Speaker 1: then at right after the funeral he was gone. But eventually, 140 00:08:57,720 --> 00:09:00,160 Speaker 1: after speaking with Greg's mom and some of his friend end, 141 00:09:00,600 --> 00:09:02,840 Speaker 1: they started to learn more. You know, Greg really didn't 142 00:09:02,840 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 1: have a father figure, and I think Rex came into 143 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:09,920 Speaker 1: the picture, and you know, he was doing the karate stuff. 144 00:09:10,840 --> 00:09:14,319 Speaker 1: This guy Rex Reid, supposedly had a black belt in karate. 145 00:09:15,280 --> 00:09:19,440 Speaker 1: He and Rex had become close. He liked being around Rex, 146 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:23,600 Speaker 1: and I'm sure it's because just his attitude and he 147 00:09:23,720 --> 00:09:25,880 Speaker 1: was a guy that didn't take any crap off anybody. 148 00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:28,360 Speaker 1: And I believe that Greg was looking for anything at 149 00:09:28,360 --> 00:09:35,040 Speaker 1: that time, and and Rex certainly fit the bill. And 150 00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:38,080 Speaker 1: the fact that this guy was a little bit different 151 00:09:38,280 --> 00:09:43,200 Speaker 1: than most you know, dad's or boyfriends or whatever. I 152 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:45,480 Speaker 1: think was attractive to him. That this guy is, you know, 153 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:47,520 Speaker 1: out there living on the edge, and you know, he's 154 00:09:47,559 --> 00:09:50,840 Speaker 1: really cool. And I think that Greg may have been 155 00:09:50,840 --> 00:09:54,559 Speaker 1: trying to emulate some of those things. Detectives determined the 156 00:09:54,640 --> 00:09:57,320 Speaker 1: dynamite that Greg had used that had been stolen from 157 00:09:57,320 --> 00:10:00,440 Speaker 1: a construction site had been taken by this boyfriend. Rex 158 00:10:00,720 --> 00:10:04,360 Speaker 1: were both Rex and Greg, but other than that, they 159 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:07,560 Speaker 1: had no idea why the dynamite was stolen, let alone 160 00:10:07,640 --> 00:10:11,200 Speaker 1: who this guy really was. We never identified, like, you know, 161 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:14,160 Speaker 1: he came here for a job, or he had family 162 00:10:14,200 --> 00:10:16,200 Speaker 1: in the area or anything like that. He seemed to 163 00:10:16,200 --> 00:10:20,840 Speaker 1: be a loner. People told us that they didn't know 164 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:23,040 Speaker 1: who he really was anyway, but they just said that 165 00:10:23,520 --> 00:10:25,840 Speaker 1: Rex Reid was a bad guy. And that if anybody 166 00:10:25,880 --> 00:10:28,000 Speaker 1: tried some mess with them that you guys will never 167 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:30,920 Speaker 1: take him alive, and you know, some officers might get 168 00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:35,600 Speaker 1: hurt in the process. Greg's friends literally warned them about 169 00:10:35,640 --> 00:10:39,040 Speaker 1: this guy from the very beginning. We were aggressive. If 170 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:41,800 Speaker 1: somebody needed to be found, we were going to find him. 171 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:45,319 Speaker 1: And Steve Smith is a great detective. He put a 172 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:47,080 Speaker 1: lot of time in on this case because we wanted 173 00:10:47,120 --> 00:10:50,360 Speaker 1: that guy. He was obviously good at concealing his identity. 174 00:10:50,760 --> 00:10:52,679 Speaker 1: He literally just kind of fell off the face of 175 00:10:52,679 --> 00:11:02,640 Speaker 1: the earth. Eventually, the hunt for Rex led them to 176 00:11:02,679 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: a boarding house where he had been staying, about thirty 177 00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:09,480 Speaker 1: minutes away. We went to the house, made contact with 178 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:11,800 Speaker 1: the lady there, told her what was going on. She 179 00:11:11,920 --> 00:11:15,400 Speaker 1: told me that Rex had disappeared the day before, she said, 180 00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:17,000 Speaker 1: and we asked, you know, if he was going to 181 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:19,000 Speaker 1: be back she knew anything. She says, no, I think 182 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:21,520 Speaker 1: he's gone. He cleared out his room and they asked 183 00:11:21,520 --> 00:11:24,000 Speaker 1: her for her permission to search his room. In the 184 00:11:24,040 --> 00:11:26,760 Speaker 1: trash can, we located what turned out to be a 185 00:11:26,840 --> 00:11:30,000 Speaker 1: driver's license had been cut up into fifty sixty little 186 00:11:30,040 --> 00:11:34,920 Speaker 1: tiny pieces that one of the detectives, Alan Harris, very 187 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:37,920 Speaker 1: methodically putting back together, and then when he had it 188 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:39,719 Speaker 1: back together, we could get a name and a date 189 00:11:39,760 --> 00:11:42,880 Speaker 1: of birth. He entered that in the computer and we 190 00:11:42,920 --> 00:11:45,599 Speaker 1: immediately got an n C I s hit n C 191 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:49,280 Speaker 1: i C stands for the National Crime Information Center. They 192 00:11:49,360 --> 00:11:52,439 Speaker 1: learned this guy who went by the name Rex Reid, 193 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:55,440 Speaker 1: had several warrants out of the state of Florida for 194 00:11:55,520 --> 00:11:59,520 Speaker 1: a variety of serious felony crimes. And in order to 195 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:02,520 Speaker 1: protect the identity of the woman who I believe wrote Hitman, 196 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 1: we're going to obscure his real name at times and 197 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,319 Speaker 1: call him by one of his alias is at others, Randall, 198 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:11,760 Speaker 1: Wayne Phelps. We did the computer work in lo and 199 00:12:11,840 --> 00:12:17,240 Speaker 1: behold there he was the federal fugitive. Sometimes we'll hear 200 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:20,000 Speaker 1: Stephen Rusty called this guy Rex because that's what they 201 00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:22,720 Speaker 1: initially knew him as, and it would be thirty two 202 00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:27,679 Speaker 1: years before they finally learned the whole truth about him. 203 00:12:27,720 --> 00:12:30,600 Speaker 1: All while reporting this story, I've talked to dozens of 204 00:12:30,679 --> 00:12:32,720 Speaker 1: people who know a thing or two about a thing 205 00:12:32,800 --> 00:12:35,120 Speaker 1: or two, but no one I've talked to knows the 206 00:12:35,320 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: entire story, including Steven Rusty. They've never even heard of 207 00:12:39,720 --> 00:12:43,000 Speaker 1: Hitman until I called, and then I told Rusty and 208 00:12:43,040 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 1: Steve the book was linked to a triple murder. Did 209 00:12:45,800 --> 00:12:47,959 Speaker 1: you know that? No, I did not know that until 210 00:12:48,360 --> 00:12:51,439 Speaker 1: you had mentioned it. And then I, yeah, gone online 211 00:12:51,480 --> 00:12:54,920 Speaker 1: and started looking at things and saw it, and I thought, well, no, great, big, 212 00:12:54,920 --> 00:12:58,880 Speaker 1: giant surprise that he would author a book and somebody 213 00:12:58,880 --> 00:13:01,679 Speaker 1: would think that would be the manual to go about 214 00:13:01,720 --> 00:13:06,840 Speaker 1: doing bad things to good people. Even now, I keep 215 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:10,080 Speaker 1: finding new things. Just this week, as I was writing 216 00:13:10,080 --> 00:13:12,880 Speaker 1: this episode, I stumbled onto a passage and hit man 217 00:13:12,880 --> 00:13:16,120 Speaker 1: I didn't remember seeing before, probably because it wasn't relevant 218 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:21,440 Speaker 1: until now. Rex Ferrell says, quote dynamite is nice and 219 00:13:21,480 --> 00:13:23,959 Speaker 1: can be picked up from many building sites or roads 220 00:13:24,040 --> 00:13:27,560 Speaker 1: under construction, but during storage the sticks have to be 221 00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:30,920 Speaker 1: turned over regularly to prevent settling of the nitro, and 222 00:13:30,960 --> 00:13:34,040 Speaker 1: the blasting caps necessary to make it go off are 223 00:13:34,080 --> 00:13:37,440 Speaker 1: so tricky that just by walking across the carpet enough 224 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:41,719 Speaker 1: static electricity could be created to blow you away. As 225 00:13:41,760 --> 00:13:44,160 Speaker 1: I said in the beginning, unless you know what you 226 00:13:44,200 --> 00:13:47,680 Speaker 1: are doing, stay away from requests for this type of 227 00:13:47,760 --> 00:13:56,000 Speaker 1: extermination or the life you take, maybe your own. We'll 228 00:13:56,000 --> 00:14:13,760 Speaker 1: be right back. I truly thought I'd reach the end 229 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:15,920 Speaker 1: of the Rex Feral story. I learned it was a 230 00:14:15,920 --> 00:14:19,080 Speaker 1: woman now a grandmother in her seventies who originally wrote 231 00:14:19,080 --> 00:14:21,520 Speaker 1: a book of fiction and wanted it pulled after it 232 00:14:21,560 --> 00:14:25,160 Speaker 1: was associated with the triple murder in Maryland. But then 233 00:14:25,360 --> 00:14:27,760 Speaker 1: late one night I decided to just plug a few 234 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:31,080 Speaker 1: names and dates I had into some archives, and there 235 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:34,240 Speaker 1: it was the story I knew had to be there. 236 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:37,600 Speaker 1: I mean, I've had some similar moments of discovery while 237 00:14:37,600 --> 00:14:41,960 Speaker 1: making this podcast, but this was where I uncovered something huge, 238 00:14:42,560 --> 00:14:45,240 Speaker 1: A part of this story that literally no one, not 239 00:14:45,360 --> 00:14:49,360 Speaker 1: even Tiffany Horn, Bob Dean, Howard Siegel, I mean, no 240 00:14:49,400 --> 00:14:53,520 Speaker 1: one knew about. And the more I read, the more 241 00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:56,280 Speaker 1: I found about this guy, Randall Wayne Phelps, the more 242 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:59,360 Speaker 1: I really began to understand the genesis of this book. 243 00:15:00,960 --> 00:15:04,760 Speaker 1: Remember what the author said to Pellatan editor Virginia Thomas. 244 00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:08,320 Speaker 1: By the way, in answer to your question and that 245 00:15:08,480 --> 00:15:15,160 Speaker 1: of Mr. Land, I get my materials from books, television, movies, newspapers, 246 00:15:15,320 --> 00:15:22,000 Speaker 1: police officers, my karate instructor. Back in the early eighties, 247 00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:25,080 Speaker 1: right around the time Hitman was written, Phelps was training 248 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:28,320 Speaker 1: to be a police officer in Florida, I got his 249 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:30,760 Speaker 1: personnel records and was able to learn a little bit 250 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:33,920 Speaker 1: more about him. Apparently, he was five ten and weighed 251 00:15:33,920 --> 00:15:37,000 Speaker 1: one forty pounds. He was a U. S citizen and 252 00:15:37,120 --> 00:15:39,760 Speaker 1: was engaged to be married. I assumed to the woman 253 00:15:39,760 --> 00:15:43,360 Speaker 1: who I've been told authored hitman, because the emergency contact 254 00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:46,400 Speaker 1: listed on his new higher payroll notice and the first 255 00:15:46,520 --> 00:15:51,400 Speaker 1: name listed in his personal references that same name. Anyway, 256 00:15:51,640 --> 00:15:54,520 Speaker 1: according to his application for employment, he says he got 257 00:15:54,520 --> 00:15:57,359 Speaker 1: his g e d In attended community college in the seventies, 258 00:15:57,960 --> 00:15:59,920 Speaker 1: and in his employment record he says he was a 259 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:04,440 Speaker 1: harpet installation mechanic and converted to a carpet salesman. He 260 00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:07,960 Speaker 1: goes on to say, during this time, I have also 261 00:16:08,040 --> 00:16:12,280 Speaker 1: taught classes in self defense and martial arts to perfect 262 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:19,240 Speaker 1: and maintain my skills for personal enjoyment and for additional income. Again, 263 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:23,880 Speaker 1: our Rex Ferrell actor, he cites his fifteen years of experience, 264 00:16:23,960 --> 00:16:27,040 Speaker 1: is a fifth degree black belt karate instructor as a 265 00:16:27,160 --> 00:16:30,240 Speaker 1: skill or qualification that would make him fit for the role. 266 00:16:31,280 --> 00:16:34,880 Speaker 1: I hold belts in five styles, last being my own style, 267 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:39,760 Speaker 1: American Combat Karate, which is the layman's no nonsense approach 268 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:43,680 Speaker 1: to self defense and street fighting. As grand master of 269 00:16:43,760 --> 00:16:47,120 Speaker 1: this style, I've taught many law enforcement officers. He goes 270 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:50,440 Speaker 1: on to list several local police departments and a narcotic squad, 271 00:16:50,960 --> 00:16:55,800 Speaker 1: saying law enforcement agencies have always received training from me 272 00:16:55,880 --> 00:16:59,840 Speaker 1: and no charge as a public service. A public affairs 273 00:16:59,840 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: off sir from this department told us that back then 274 00:17:02,440 --> 00:17:04,719 Speaker 1: the field training would have involved riding in a patrol 275 00:17:04,760 --> 00:17:07,000 Speaker 1: car with an officer for a few days, and so 276 00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:10,840 Speaker 1: there's a couple evaluation reports in these files. At the 277 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 1: time his final evaluation report was issued, he was on 278 00:17:14,119 --> 00:17:16,879 Speaker 1: probation and had been training for five and a half months. 279 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:22,200 Speaker 1: This report gives him an overall performance grade of not satisfactory, 280 00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 1: especially in the categories of public relations, knowledge of work, 281 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:31,240 Speaker 1: work judgments, jobs, skill level, quality of work accepts, direction, 282 00:17:31,480 --> 00:17:36,320 Speaker 1: physical limitations, job attitude, etcetera. The field training officer giving 283 00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:40,720 Speaker 1: this evaluation elaborates in the comments section by saying, quote 284 00:17:41,320 --> 00:17:45,840 Speaker 1: two lacks in confronting suspects, traffic violation and field safety. 285 00:17:45,880 --> 00:17:50,960 Speaker 1: Example standing in traffic while issuing traffic summons, hair length 286 00:17:51,119 --> 00:17:54,399 Speaker 1: needs some attention, tends to be cold and indifferent to 287 00:17:54,560 --> 00:17:59,200 Speaker 1: people in their problems, Cold and indifferent to coworkers, does 288 00:17:59,280 --> 00:18:05,760 Speaker 1: not mingle into group. This comment section wasn't big enough. 289 00:18:06,359 --> 00:18:10,200 Speaker 1: The evaluation continues onto an additional sheet of paper, going 290 00:18:10,240 --> 00:18:13,439 Speaker 1: on to say things like recruit is very slow in 291 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:18,280 Speaker 1: writing reports and has many spelling mistakes. Recruit does assigned tasks, 292 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,840 Speaker 1: but acts as if he's board stiff doing them, very 293 00:18:21,880 --> 00:18:25,359 Speaker 1: slow to accept changes and wants a detailed explanation for 294 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:29,800 Speaker 1: the changes. Cannot control interviews with I rate persons. Intends 295 00:18:29,840 --> 00:18:33,399 Speaker 1: to become flustered and confused as to what actions to take. 296 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,639 Speaker 1: Apparently Phelps was color blind and he kept reading maps wrong, 297 00:18:39,840 --> 00:18:43,199 Speaker 1: getting confused and ending up in the wrong area. The 298 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:47,320 Speaker 1: evaluation says he has quote very poor driving habits and 299 00:18:47,400 --> 00:18:52,000 Speaker 1: kept nearly getting into accidents. And then there's this comment 300 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:56,320 Speaker 1: quote has told this FTO he is only interested in 301 00:18:56,400 --> 00:19:00,400 Speaker 1: major cases, especially drug pushers, and he has his own 302 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:06,280 Speaker 1: definite opinion as to how they should be treated. Remember 303 00:19:06,359 --> 00:19:11,840 Speaker 1: that this evaluation goes on and on. There are twenty 304 00:19:11,920 --> 00:19:16,800 Speaker 1: nine different comments. Again, retired Captain Steve Smith. He didn't 305 00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:22,440 Speaker 1: last very long. I think they got suspicious of his integrity. 306 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:28,080 Speaker 1: Helps His resignation letter dated June one reads, I find 307 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:31,080 Speaker 1: that I disagree with many of the practices and techniques 308 00:19:31,119 --> 00:19:36,720 Speaker 1: advocated in my training period. Unwilling to compromise my views 309 00:19:36,920 --> 00:19:40,360 Speaker 1: on the duties of a police officer as a public servant, 310 00:19:41,160 --> 00:19:44,399 Speaker 1: I wish to be free to offer my services elsewhere. 311 00:19:45,119 --> 00:19:48,080 Speaker 1: It was a short time after that that I believe 312 00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:52,879 Speaker 1: him and his companions started doing the drug dealer rip offs. 313 00:19:54,760 --> 00:19:56,560 Speaker 1: So I'm going to tell you about this book I 314 00:19:56,640 --> 00:20:00,640 Speaker 1: found sounds familiar, but I'm talking about the other book. 315 00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:04,159 Speaker 1: Rex Ferrell wrote. It looks like a comic book or 316 00:20:04,200 --> 00:20:08,280 Speaker 1: a silly pulp novel, same as Hitman. The cover is 317 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:11,160 Speaker 1: orange and there's a masked man bursting into the room 318 00:20:11,240 --> 00:20:15,040 Speaker 1: with a machine gun. He surprised two guys. They're jumping 319 00:20:15,080 --> 00:20:17,439 Speaker 1: up from a table covered in money and drugs and 320 00:20:17,520 --> 00:20:22,000 Speaker 1: open cans of beer. The book's title is just as ridiculous. 321 00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:25,840 Speaker 1: It's called How to Rip Off a Drug Dealer and 322 00:20:25,840 --> 00:20:29,760 Speaker 1: it was published in by Paladin. In the first chapter, 323 00:20:30,040 --> 00:20:34,399 Speaker 1: Ferrell rights, ripping off or stealing the merchandise of drug 324 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 1: dealers can be a very profitable business among the outlaws 325 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:44,440 Speaker 1: who grow, import and manufacture these illegal substances for distribution. 326 00:20:45,080 --> 00:20:49,080 Speaker 1: There exists the law of the jungle survival of the strongest. 327 00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:54,280 Speaker 1: Any outlaw who can outthink, out maneuver, or out fox 328 00:20:54,400 --> 00:20:58,199 Speaker 1: any other outlaw is entitled to the bounty he appropriates. 329 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:02,160 Speaker 1: The author pitched this book before Hitman was even released. 330 00:21:02,960 --> 00:21:07,040 Speaker 1: In her deposition, Paladin editor Virginia Thomas recounted something the 331 00:21:07,080 --> 00:21:10,320 Speaker 1: author wrote in a letter. I'm anxious that Rex Savage 332 00:21:10,400 --> 00:21:13,640 Speaker 1: established himself with Paladin readers as a top quality writer 333 00:21:13,800 --> 00:21:17,320 Speaker 1: who knows his stuff. I have ideas for additional books, 334 00:21:17,320 --> 00:21:20,600 Speaker 1: which we touched on briefly during our last phone conversation. 335 00:21:21,080 --> 00:21:24,159 Speaker 1: And again that's our actor reading the author's words. I 336 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:27,760 Speaker 1: should have the first two chapters on popping drug dealers 337 00:21:27,840 --> 00:21:30,560 Speaker 1: ready to send to you soon. I think it will 338 00:21:30,600 --> 00:21:33,359 Speaker 1: be better than The hit Man. It is, in a 339 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:36,880 Speaker 1: weird way better than Hitman. Some of the hard boiled 340 00:21:36,880 --> 00:21:39,280 Speaker 1: fantasy has been stripped away, and most of the book 341 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:43,560 Speaker 1: is straightforward, practical, actionable. How to assemble a team, how 342 00:21:43,600 --> 00:21:46,119 Speaker 1: to train them, how to storm a room, how to 343 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:50,399 Speaker 1: dispose of the merchandise. Actually it's pretty scary the level 344 00:21:50,440 --> 00:21:53,560 Speaker 1: of sophistication laid out in the book. The equipment and 345 00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:57,600 Speaker 1: tactics are all military. Great Two Way Radio's bulletproof vests 346 00:21:57,640 --> 00:22:01,200 Speaker 1: and infrared scopes. Rex Ferrell advises to use a fully 347 00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:06,000 Speaker 1: automatic Mac ten, which would later fall under assault weapons ban, 348 00:22:06,480 --> 00:22:10,520 Speaker 1: and votes a whole chapter to marksmanship too. Of course, 349 00:22:10,720 --> 00:22:14,720 Speaker 1: this being a rex Feral book, there are totally absurd moments, 350 00:22:14,760 --> 00:22:17,439 Speaker 1: like the long passage about why dressing up as a 351 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:21,679 Speaker 1: woman is the perfect disguise. You will need a method 352 00:22:21,840 --> 00:22:25,960 Speaker 1: for very close removal of facial and maybe even leg 353 00:22:26,080 --> 00:22:30,480 Speaker 1: hair in order to effectively portray a woman. Get your 354 00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:34,680 Speaker 1: wife or girlfriend to help you. Select some inexpensive makeup, 355 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:39,280 Speaker 1: then practice applying the makeup until you achieve a natural look. 356 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:43,240 Speaker 1: Women's magazines tell you how you don't want to appear 357 00:22:43,560 --> 00:22:47,040 Speaker 1: clownish or garish. You want your target to really think 358 00:22:47,040 --> 00:22:51,359 Speaker 1: that you are female. He suggests picking up quote hard 359 00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:55,280 Speaker 1: plastic breasts with nipples and other novelty items from party 360 00:22:55,320 --> 00:22:58,439 Speaker 1: shops to complete the look, and he consoles the reader, 361 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:01,520 Speaker 1: so why you stand in front of the mirror feeling 362 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:05,159 Speaker 1: just a little bit queer? Keep in mind why you 363 00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:09,000 Speaker 1: are playing in makeup if it bothers your macho self 364 00:23:09,040 --> 00:23:12,040 Speaker 1: image so you can't sleep at night. Instead of counting sheep, 365 00:23:12,680 --> 00:23:21,560 Speaker 1: try counting stacks of hundred dollar bills. The book How 366 00:23:21,560 --> 00:23:23,760 Speaker 1: to rip Off a Drug Dealer is dedicated to this 367 00:23:23,840 --> 00:23:27,920 Speaker 1: guy and quote to men of courage everywhere who dared 368 00:23:27,920 --> 00:23:30,879 Speaker 1: to take a chance, and to all those outlaws. I 369 00:23:31,080 --> 00:23:36,920 Speaker 1: dare not mention by name outlaw. There's a lot of 370 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:40,040 Speaker 1: hyperbole in these two books, but this is a detail 371 00:23:40,119 --> 00:23:44,919 Speaker 1: that is not an exaggeration, because Phelps apparently wasn't just 372 00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:48,399 Speaker 1: ripping off dealers. He was doing it while pretending to 373 00:23:48,440 --> 00:23:51,399 Speaker 1: be a cop. There's a whole section on how to 374 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:54,280 Speaker 1: do this in the book. It's called the police assault. 375 00:23:54,880 --> 00:23:58,200 Speaker 1: This method of entry is probably the safest and most 376 00:23:58,240 --> 00:24:02,680 Speaker 1: profitable of all or the serious and well equipped team. 377 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:07,399 Speaker 1: It consists of entering the location by flashing seemingly legitimate 378 00:24:07,440 --> 00:24:11,280 Speaker 1: police credentials and making the mark think he is under arrest. 379 00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:16,040 Speaker 1: If handled correctly, the entire procedure will go smoothly and 380 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:20,360 Speaker 1: one job will possibly lead to future jobs without resistance 381 00:24:20,560 --> 00:24:25,760 Speaker 1: or violence. This method requires one special skill, says Rex. 382 00:24:26,640 --> 00:24:29,200 Speaker 1: At least one of the inside men should be capable 383 00:24:29,240 --> 00:24:33,399 Speaker 1: of playing the part of a seasoned, knowledgeable, hardened cop. 384 00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:36,520 Speaker 1: Randall Wayne Phelps, of course, had been training to be 385 00:24:36,560 --> 00:24:39,679 Speaker 1: a police officer. Maybe he was better at playing a 386 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:44,280 Speaker 1: cop than he was at being a cop, So Phelps 387 00:24:44,320 --> 00:24:47,879 Speaker 1: resigned from the police department in three started ripping off 388 00:24:47,960 --> 00:24:51,480 Speaker 1: drug dealers the following year, and then the explosion happened 389 00:24:51,520 --> 00:24:55,480 Speaker 1: three years later. So when Rusty and Steve started investigating 390 00:24:55,520 --> 00:24:58,720 Speaker 1: that explosion, Phelps had already been on the run from 391 00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:02,520 Speaker 1: the Feds. An investigator for a state's attorney's office in 392 00:25:02,560 --> 00:25:05,160 Speaker 1: Florida actually hopped on a plane as soon as he 393 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:09,680 Speaker 1: heard about the explosion Steve was investigating. The guy's name 394 00:25:09,720 --> 00:25:12,239 Speaker 1: was ed Boone. His nickname was Boomer, and he had 395 00:25:12,240 --> 00:25:16,080 Speaker 1: a very booming voice, so it was appropriate I tried 396 00:25:16,080 --> 00:25:19,080 Speaker 1: to reach ed Boone. Unfortunately he died in two thousand fourteen. 397 00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:24,320 Speaker 1: Ed Boone ended up telling us that this had been 398 00:25:24,359 --> 00:25:27,480 Speaker 1: involved in a number of crimes. They were ripping off 399 00:25:27,920 --> 00:25:31,320 Speaker 1: drug dealers acting like they were the police. They would 400 00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:35,480 Speaker 1: do their search warrants supposedly and confiscate the drugs and money. 401 00:25:35,480 --> 00:25:37,800 Speaker 1: They would just tell the bad guys that somebody will 402 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:39,880 Speaker 1: notify you when the warrants issued and we'll be back 403 00:25:39,920 --> 00:25:43,080 Speaker 1: to pick you up on that. If you're a drug 404 00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:46,160 Speaker 1: suspect and the police never call you or show up again, 405 00:25:46,280 --> 00:25:48,920 Speaker 1: you just kind of figure you skated and nothing else 406 00:25:49,040 --> 00:25:56,000 Speaker 1: is going to go on. It's kind of a perfect crime. 407 00:25:56,440 --> 00:25:58,760 Speaker 1: I mean, it sounds like that idea could actually work. 408 00:25:59,119 --> 00:26:02,440 Speaker 1: But like James Harry, they messed up. They did make 409 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:04,800 Speaker 1: a mistake and hit a house that wasn't a drug house. 410 00:26:05,160 --> 00:26:08,920 Speaker 1: I found a newspaper article from December that says three 411 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:13,160 Speaker 1: men Phelps as co conspirators, were found guilty of imprisoning 412 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:16,679 Speaker 1: two families and robbing their homes while posing as federal 413 00:26:16,760 --> 00:26:21,720 Speaker 1: drug agents. The unsuspecting families inquired and these people ended 414 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:24,679 Speaker 1: up calling the police later to find out, you know, 415 00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:27,359 Speaker 1: the circumstances and why they got targeted, And all of 416 00:26:27,400 --> 00:26:31,240 Speaker 1: a sudden, the Florida Law Enforcement Agency started putting two 417 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:34,359 Speaker 1: and two together that this was people out acting like 418 00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:39,560 Speaker 1: they were police ripping off drug dealers. According to that 419 00:26:39,680 --> 00:26:42,479 Speaker 1: article I found about the robbery that went wrong, police 420 00:26:42,480 --> 00:26:44,240 Speaker 1: found the book how to rip Off a Drug Dealer 421 00:26:44,359 --> 00:26:48,040 Speaker 1: in their possession. These men were convicted of two counts 422 00:26:48,080 --> 00:26:51,560 Speaker 1: of kidnapping, two counts of false imprisonment, two counts of 423 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:55,200 Speaker 1: armed robbery, two counts of burglary, two counts of grant theft, 424 00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:58,760 Speaker 1: two counts of conspiracy and eight counts of carrying a 425 00:26:58,800 --> 00:27:02,760 Speaker 1: firearm during the sition of a felony. Phelps, on the 426 00:27:02,800 --> 00:27:05,600 Speaker 1: other hand, he had kind of just disappeared into the wind, 427 00:27:06,680 --> 00:27:10,760 Speaker 1: kind of like he did after we started looking for him. 428 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:13,520 Speaker 1: So these three guys got arrested. Phelps was on the run. 429 00:27:13,840 --> 00:27:17,560 Speaker 1: But then I found this. Another article from March n 430 00:27:18,760 --> 00:27:21,119 Speaker 1: said a thirty six year old woman had been arrested 431 00:27:21,200 --> 00:27:26,000 Speaker 1: after providing fake Drug Enforcement Administration identification and warrants to 432 00:27:26,080 --> 00:27:29,560 Speaker 1: the three men who committed the robbery. According to the 433 00:27:29,640 --> 00:27:32,840 Speaker 1: arrest warrant and sworn testimony from one of those three men, 434 00:27:33,440 --> 00:27:36,240 Speaker 1: she typed these false warrants and I das in her home. 435 00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,440 Speaker 1: She had been charged with two counts each of conspiracy 436 00:27:40,440 --> 00:27:43,399 Speaker 1: to commit a robbery with a firearm in conspiracy to 437 00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:45,960 Speaker 1: commit a burglary of a dwelling in which an assault 438 00:27:46,080 --> 00:27:50,879 Speaker 1: or battery occurred. So while Phelps got away, his girlfriend 439 00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:54,000 Speaker 1: or fiance was being held accountable for her part in 440 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:59,200 Speaker 1: this crime. This woman's name, once again the same one 441 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:01,879 Speaker 1: I believe to be the author of hit Man. This 442 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:11,200 Speaker 1: article even says this woman calls herself a writer. Phelps 443 00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:14,280 Speaker 1: went by several names, and while he was a federal fugitive. 444 00:28:14,640 --> 00:28:16,680 Speaker 1: Some of the elias is popped up over the years 445 00:28:16,680 --> 00:28:21,280 Speaker 1: and other states. At one point in August after the robbery, 446 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,520 Speaker 1: he was arrested in Florida after his car broke down. 447 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:29,400 Speaker 1: According to the booking report, the officer says, while on patrol, 448 00:28:29,760 --> 00:28:31,560 Speaker 1: he saw a tan jeep off to the side of 449 00:28:31,560 --> 00:28:35,440 Speaker 1: the road with the hood open. He pulled up behind 450 00:28:35,440 --> 00:28:38,680 Speaker 1: the jeep and started running the Texas tags. He said 451 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:41,479 Speaker 1: he saw a white male approximately five nine and one 452 00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:46,000 Speaker 1: fifty pounds, leaning in the jeep on the passenger side. 453 00:28:47,520 --> 00:28:49,840 Speaker 1: He had his hands in the vehicle. He kept looking 454 00:28:49,920 --> 00:28:53,080 Speaker 1: back at the officer and back into the jeep. He 455 00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:57,360 Speaker 1: did this about six times. There was another man with him. 456 00:28:57,440 --> 00:29:00,200 Speaker 1: The officer says. We were on a dark road and 457 00:29:00,280 --> 00:29:03,160 Speaker 1: due to the suspicious furtive movement made, and for fear 458 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:05,760 Speaker 1: of my safety, I took a survey look into the 459 00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:07,560 Speaker 1: vehicle to make sure there was no one else in 460 00:29:07,600 --> 00:29:10,560 Speaker 1: the jeep to do me harm. When I did, I 461 00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:14,200 Speaker 1: observed a light colored green shirt wrapped tightly around what 462 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:17,120 Speaker 1: outlined a gun on the front seat, where the person 463 00:29:17,160 --> 00:29:21,400 Speaker 1: had been bent over. The officer says earlier that night 464 00:29:21,440 --> 00:29:23,880 Speaker 1: he heard over his police radio that two people had 465 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:26,680 Speaker 1: held up a seven eleven and one of them had 466 00:29:26,720 --> 00:29:29,280 Speaker 1: a green shirt wrapped around his hand to indicate he 467 00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:33,160 Speaker 1: had a gun. The officer then discovered they had a 468 00:29:33,200 --> 00:29:37,240 Speaker 1: duffel bag filled with holsters and other guns, handcuffs, a 469 00:29:37,320 --> 00:29:40,880 Speaker 1: blue light, two badges, cans that look like tear gas, 470 00:29:41,360 --> 00:29:44,920 Speaker 1: clips and ammo, and two items that look like silencers. 471 00:29:45,760 --> 00:29:48,160 Speaker 1: There was also a large amount of marijuana next to 472 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:53,360 Speaker 1: this bag. This is kind of our only moment seeing 473 00:29:53,400 --> 00:29:58,520 Speaker 1: Phelps up close, well, aside from his police evaluation Ed Boone, 474 00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:03,120 Speaker 1: Steve Smith, Rusty James. They were always right behind him, 475 00:30:03,160 --> 00:30:06,560 Speaker 1: but this officer actually interacts with him, even though he 476 00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:11,160 Speaker 1: has no idea who he's dealing with. Literally, as he 477 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:14,360 Speaker 1: handed the officer his license, his real license with his 478 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:17,920 Speaker 1: real name, the officer saw another idea underneath it for 479 00:30:18,120 --> 00:30:21,360 Speaker 1: Randall Wayne Phelps. This is where we learned of that Elias. 480 00:30:22,400 --> 00:30:24,680 Speaker 1: When the officer asked him why he had to Florida 481 00:30:24,760 --> 00:30:27,880 Speaker 1: I d S. Phelps said he got the driver's license 482 00:30:27,920 --> 00:30:36,000 Speaker 1: with that name so he could write a book. After 483 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:39,080 Speaker 1: he was arrested and charged with carrying a concealed firearm 484 00:30:39,120 --> 00:30:42,560 Speaker 1: in possession of marijuana, Phelps made bail and went on 485 00:30:42,600 --> 00:30:45,440 Speaker 1: the run again. Do you know how long he was 486 00:30:45,640 --> 00:30:48,040 Speaker 1: actually on the run for and all? It seems like 487 00:30:48,360 --> 00:30:51,560 Speaker 1: initially six or eight years on the front end, and 488 00:30:51,600 --> 00:30:55,080 Speaker 1: then after we tried to locate him, it was another 489 00:30:55,680 --> 00:30:59,680 Speaker 1: six to nine years I think before he met his 490 00:30:59,760 --> 00:31:23,040 Speaker 1: dumb eyes. We'll be right back. There are a ton 491 00:31:23,080 --> 00:31:25,280 Speaker 1: of illustrations and photos and how to rip off a 492 00:31:25,320 --> 00:31:27,800 Speaker 1: drug dealer, but there are two that I keep coming 493 00:31:27,840 --> 00:31:31,080 Speaker 1: back to. There's a shot of a falsified d A 494 00:31:31,280 --> 00:31:34,320 Speaker 1: I D. The man in the photo looks big, strong, 495 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:37,680 Speaker 1: He's wearing what's obviously a fake mustache and a wig. 496 00:31:38,120 --> 00:31:40,760 Speaker 1: But am I looking at Phelps? I still haven't been 497 00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:44,040 Speaker 1: able to locate his mug shot. And then there's another 498 00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:47,160 Speaker 1: which is just so disturbing. It's in the section about 499 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:51,320 Speaker 1: interrogation techniques, about using a blade to get someone to talk. 500 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:55,800 Speaker 1: A young woman lies on the ground, her hands bound. 501 00:31:56,240 --> 00:31:59,360 Speaker 1: A masked man kneels above her. He's got a handful 502 00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:02,600 Speaker 1: of her hair and a knife to her throat. Who 503 00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:12,720 Speaker 1: is that man? Is that Phelps? Who's the woman? Phelps 504 00:32:12,800 --> 00:32:16,040 Speaker 1: was like this aberration, a ghost that would cause harm 505 00:32:16,120 --> 00:32:21,080 Speaker 1: and then disappear after all these robberies, and after the explosion, 506 00:32:21,320 --> 00:32:26,760 Speaker 1: he had somehow gotten away every time. Steve eventually learned 507 00:32:26,800 --> 00:32:30,000 Speaker 1: that Phelps had returned to Florida. At some point, Ed 508 00:32:30,040 --> 00:32:35,840 Speaker 1: Boone had given us the information about his girlfriend in Florida. 509 00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:39,440 Speaker 1: He'd apparently gone back to his girlfriend fiance, the one 510 00:32:39,480 --> 00:32:41,920 Speaker 1: who I think wrote hit man, who at the time 511 00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:45,800 Speaker 1: had two children, including a teenage son, And Ed was 512 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:48,320 Speaker 1: going to pursue that a little bit more when he 513 00:32:48,360 --> 00:32:51,400 Speaker 1: got back to Florida, to see if he started getting 514 00:32:51,440 --> 00:32:54,120 Speaker 1: mail at her house or showed up to her house. 515 00:32:54,440 --> 00:32:58,600 Speaker 1: And then one day Steve's phone rang, It was Ed Boone. 516 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,280 Speaker 1: When I answered, he just said, we got him, and 517 00:33:03,680 --> 00:33:05,560 Speaker 1: I knew it was Boomer, and so I knew he 518 00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:08,920 Speaker 1: had to be talking about. He told me that they 519 00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:11,200 Speaker 1: had him, but he was in a box. And then 520 00:33:11,760 --> 00:33:15,800 Speaker 1: his girlfriend's son shot and killed. You know, he had 521 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:19,479 Speaker 1: evidently been back there living again, and they had had 522 00:33:19,520 --> 00:33:23,720 Speaker 1: another one of their fights, and evidently when it became physical, 523 00:33:24,520 --> 00:33:28,040 Speaker 1: um this young man decided that this guy wasn't gonna 524 00:33:28,080 --> 00:33:30,680 Speaker 1: hurt his mom anymore and shot and killed him. That's 525 00:33:30,680 --> 00:33:33,080 Speaker 1: how I found out that we didn't need to be 526 00:33:33,120 --> 00:33:44,280 Speaker 1: looking for him. Anymore. This happened just two weeks after Millie, Trevor, 527 00:33:44,280 --> 00:33:48,360 Speaker 1: and Janice were murdered. A local newspaper article from this 528 00:33:48,440 --> 00:33:52,440 Speaker 1: time says the young man who shot Phelps was fifteen 529 00:33:52,520 --> 00:33:56,040 Speaker 1: years old, and that Phelps died after being shot in 530 00:33:56,080 --> 00:34:00,959 Speaker 1: the head. This all happened in the family's living room. 531 00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:05,360 Speaker 1: I was shocked, No wonder, she's never wanted to talk 532 00:34:05,400 --> 00:34:10,120 Speaker 1: about this. Her teenage son shot her fugitive boyfriend right 533 00:34:10,120 --> 00:34:13,320 Speaker 1: in front of her. The fifteen year old was arrested 534 00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:16,279 Speaker 1: on an open count of murder. We also reached out 535 00:34:16,280 --> 00:34:20,080 Speaker 1: to him for this podcast and got no response. Authorities 536 00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:22,880 Speaker 1: also discovered a meth lab in a shed behind the 537 00:34:22,920 --> 00:34:25,840 Speaker 1: house that they described as one of the more elaborate 538 00:34:25,880 --> 00:34:30,840 Speaker 1: labs they'd seen. Sheriff's deputies believed Phelps built and operated 539 00:34:30,840 --> 00:34:33,960 Speaker 1: the lab, so he'd gone from ripping off drug dealers 540 00:34:34,360 --> 00:34:38,680 Speaker 1: to becoming one. Apparently, an officer from the same police 541 00:34:38,680 --> 00:34:41,359 Speaker 1: department Phelps was kicked out of said when he learned 542 00:34:41,360 --> 00:34:45,359 Speaker 1: Phelps had been killed, he wasn't terribly surprised. He called 543 00:34:45,440 --> 00:34:50,919 Speaker 1: him extremely deadly. Rusty remembers getting the call. I just said, hey, 544 00:34:50,920 --> 00:34:53,239 Speaker 1: who says there's no justice? You know he was a 545 00:34:53,280 --> 00:34:56,280 Speaker 1: bad man. He's a bad guy. Do you know anything 546 00:34:56,280 --> 00:35:01,600 Speaker 1: about that girlfriend in Florida? Nothing other that here than uh. 547 00:35:01,880 --> 00:35:06,560 Speaker 1: I believe her son did the right thing. I think 548 00:35:06,600 --> 00:35:08,200 Speaker 1: the kid he had a lot of courage. And I 549 00:35:08,239 --> 00:35:10,520 Speaker 1: won't say I was happy, but I was glad that 550 00:35:10,560 --> 00:35:12,239 Speaker 1: he was not going to be a threat to anyone else. 551 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:14,840 Speaker 1: I can't say that I was sad about it. It 552 00:35:14,960 --> 00:35:17,480 Speaker 1: was like, good, he's off the street. He can't hurt 553 00:35:17,480 --> 00:35:23,000 Speaker 1: anybody else or disrupting any other families lives. But there's 554 00:35:23,080 --> 00:35:26,319 Speaker 1: one more question that keeps snagging at me. We know 555 00:35:26,400 --> 00:35:29,399 Speaker 1: Phelps started ripping off drug dealers after the second book 556 00:35:29,440 --> 00:35:34,480 Speaker 1: was written, but what about the first book was Rex 557 00:35:35,520 --> 00:35:38,560 Speaker 1: hit Man? Now? I don't think we'll ever know, but 558 00:35:38,600 --> 00:35:42,759 Speaker 1: I'd say that there's a good probability. Of course, if 559 00:35:42,920 --> 00:35:45,120 Speaker 1: every department had a cold case squad, they could go 560 00:35:45,160 --> 00:35:47,440 Speaker 1: back and look at the things in those books and 561 00:35:47,480 --> 00:35:49,400 Speaker 1: then compared with what they have, I think they may 562 00:35:49,440 --> 00:35:52,960 Speaker 1: be able to find some things like that, but that's 563 00:35:53,000 --> 00:36:03,640 Speaker 1: the luxury. Most departments don't have. The stories I've told 564 00:36:03,640 --> 00:36:05,879 Speaker 1: you about in this podcast could just be the ones 565 00:36:05,960 --> 00:36:08,200 Speaker 1: we know about Hitman and how to rip off a 566 00:36:08,280 --> 00:36:11,040 Speaker 1: drug dealer, might be the so called blueprints for other 567 00:36:11,160 --> 00:36:15,160 Speaker 1: crimes committed by Phelps himself or others. I mean, the 568 00:36:15,160 --> 00:36:19,120 Speaker 1: books just a book, obviously. But what's so crazy about 569 00:36:19,120 --> 00:36:21,600 Speaker 1: all of this is that it seems like there was 570 00:36:21,719 --> 00:36:25,680 Speaker 1: a real Rex Ferrell. Maybe he was the inspiration or 571 00:36:25,719 --> 00:36:29,120 Speaker 1: the co writer, or Phelps somehow morphed into this character. 572 00:36:29,560 --> 00:36:34,719 Speaker 1: But that persona the macho, rogue, dangerous maverick. He was real, 573 00:36:35,680 --> 00:36:38,880 Speaker 1: and what else did Phelps do? We actually put in 574 00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:41,880 Speaker 1: a Freedom of Information Act request into the FBI to 575 00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:44,640 Speaker 1: try to get their files on Phelps, and just this 576 00:36:44,719 --> 00:36:47,880 Speaker 1: morning we got back a reply that said, please be 577 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:52,960 Speaker 1: advised that quote unusual circumstances apply to the processing of 578 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:57,360 Speaker 1: your request. Apparently, unusual circumstances could mean a couple of 579 00:36:57,360 --> 00:37:01,440 Speaker 1: different scenarios, like quote a need to search, for, collect, 580 00:37:01,560 --> 00:37:05,680 Speaker 1: and examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records. 581 00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:08,760 Speaker 1: I have a feeling I'll be finding more and more 582 00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:12,719 Speaker 1: well after this podcast ends. I mean, we started this 583 00:37:12,760 --> 00:37:15,359 Speaker 1: story talking about this book written by a so called 584 00:37:15,440 --> 00:37:18,680 Speaker 1: hitman himself and then a triple murder, and then we 585 00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:22,520 Speaker 1: discovered the author was actually a woman. But wait, there 586 00:37:22,600 --> 00:37:25,760 Speaker 1: was also a man who seemed to have embodied the book. 587 00:37:29,280 --> 00:37:32,360 Speaker 1: We've spent a lot of time with these wrong doers Randall, 588 00:37:32,360 --> 00:37:36,480 Speaker 1: Wayne Phelps, Lawrence Horn, James Perry for some paid or 589 00:37:36,640 --> 00:37:40,399 Speaker 1: Lund although maybe that's not fair, but anyway, we've spent 590 00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:44,160 Speaker 1: time with these guys because we've had to. But this 591 00:37:44,239 --> 00:37:47,000 Speaker 1: is where it all ends, with the people who really 592 00:37:47,040 --> 00:37:52,960 Speaker 1: propelled and compelled me to tell this story, the survivors. Hi, Hi, right, 593 00:37:52,960 --> 00:37:56,680 Speaker 1: how are you. I'm good? How are you doing? Oh good? 594 00:37:56,880 --> 00:37:59,040 Speaker 1: I wanted to touch base with you and see how 595 00:37:59,080 --> 00:38:03,200 Speaker 1: things are going. I kept Tiffany Horn updated on everything 596 00:38:03,200 --> 00:38:05,800 Speaker 1: I learned over the last two years or so, every 597 00:38:05,800 --> 00:38:08,520 Speaker 1: Motown interview, every lawyer I got back in touch with, 598 00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:12,080 Speaker 1: but also every strange new twist I uncovered about the 599 00:38:12,080 --> 00:38:14,920 Speaker 1: book and the story behind it. I was sort of 600 00:38:15,000 --> 00:38:17,040 Speaker 1: driven to get to the bottom of this, in part 601 00:38:17,120 --> 00:38:19,640 Speaker 1: for her, because she'd given me so much of her time, 602 00:38:20,400 --> 00:38:23,200 Speaker 1: and meanwhile, Tiffany had to go on her own journey 603 00:38:23,200 --> 00:38:26,920 Speaker 1: for closure, including a prison visit with her dad. There 604 00:38:26,960 --> 00:38:29,160 Speaker 1: were so many demons and so many things that I 605 00:38:29,160 --> 00:38:31,479 Speaker 1: had been battling, so much rage that I had had 606 00:38:31,960 --> 00:38:34,400 Speaker 1: that had been building inside me. It was important for 607 00:38:34,440 --> 00:38:37,600 Speaker 1: me to to let that go and to face him. 608 00:38:37,640 --> 00:38:41,680 Speaker 1: I wanted to really settle with him and look him 609 00:38:41,680 --> 00:38:44,480 Speaker 1: in his eye and also just see my dad again, 610 00:38:44,520 --> 00:38:46,560 Speaker 1: like I wanted to be that little girl that I 611 00:38:46,640 --> 00:38:48,839 Speaker 1: used to be and just look at him that way 612 00:38:48,880 --> 00:38:52,799 Speaker 1: instead of as this monster that's next on hit Man. 613 00:39:00,280 --> 00:39:13,880 Speaker 1: H Hitman is a production of I Heart Radio and 614 00:39:13,960 --> 00:39:17,600 Speaker 1: hit Home Media. It's produced and reported by me Jasmine Morris. 615 00:39:17,920 --> 00:39:21,400 Speaker 1: Our supervising producer is Michelle Lance. Mark Latto is our 616 00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:25,520 Speaker 1: story consultant. Executive producers are main Gesh, Hatika Door and Me. 617 00:39:26,040 --> 00:39:29,200 Speaker 1: Mixing by Michelle Lance and Josh Ferguson. Our fact checker 618 00:39:29,280 --> 00:39:33,000 Speaker 1: is not Sumi Ajisaka, voice acting by Levi Petrie and 619 00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:36,719 Speaker 1: Kelly Jane Farnsworth. Our theme song by Alice McCoy and 620 00:39:36,760 --> 00:39:39,680 Speaker 1: additional music written and produced by the students at DIME 621 00:39:40,080 --> 00:39:42,880 Speaker 1: powered by the Detroit Institute of Music Education,