Why Melodee Buzzard’s Mom Still Isn’t Arrested — The Legal Loopholes Keeping Her Free

As part of our Hidden Killers 2025 Year in Review series, we’re revisiting one of the darkest and most complex cases in modern true crime — the alleged double life of Rex Heuermann, the accused Gilgo Beach serial killer who managed to live a picture-perfect suburban existence while allegedly committing unthinkable crimes. In this gripping two-part special, Tony Brueski and retired FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke unravel how Heuermann allegedly concealed a predatory world behind the mask of a mild-mannered architect. Dreeke dissects the psychological mechanics of deception — how a man can manipulate his own family into overlooking chaos, maintain the illusion of normalcy, and exploit society’s indifference toward marginalized victims. How do you hide something this horrifying in plain sight? By preying on a culture that doesn’t look too closely. The conversation dives deep into the psychology of incremental abnormality — how small behavioral shifts go unnoticed until the monster is fully formed. From the quiet control of his household to the alleged targeting of sex trafficking victims society ignored, Dreeke exposes the chilling behavioral blueprint of a man who thrived in the shadows of neglect. Then, the focus turns to Suffolk County’s corruption problem — one that may have allowed this case to fester for over a decade. Enter James Burke, the disgraced former police chief whose own scandals — including beating a suspect over stolen porn and sex toys — helped derail the Gilgo investigation for years. With former DA Thomas Spota later indicted for obstruction and witness tampering, the question becomes unavoidable: Did law enforcement’s rot give a serial killer room to operate? The episode also examines Asa Ellerup’s new public comments following Netflix’s Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer. Heuermann’s ex-wife isn’t pushing conspiracy theories — but she’s asking questions. Could her husband be a fall guy for a broken system? With DNA evidence hinging on a controversial technique called whole genome sequencing, the courts now face a precedent-setting decision that could make or break the case. 🎙️ Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski — 2025 Year in Review: The Crimes, The Corruption, and The Psychology That Defined the Year. #RexHeuermann #GilgoBeachMurders #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #RobinDreeke #AsaEllerup #JamesBurke #SuffolkCounty #TrueCrimePodcast #Corruption #SerialKillerCase #YearInReview #JusticeForVictims #TrueCrimeToday Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

27 Marras 45min

As part of our Hidden Killers 2025 Year in Review series, we revisit one of the most shocking and psychologically revealing cases of the year — the federal trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, where allegations of manipulation, coercive control, and psychological abuse have redefined how power, fame, and fear intertwine. In this full-length special, Tony Brueski sits down with psychotherapist Shavaun Scott and retired FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke for a two-part deep dive into the disturbing behavioral patterns emerging from the trial — and the psychology of a man accused of wielding control like a weapon. Shavaun Scott breaks down ten key psychological tactics allegedly used by Combs against Cassie Ventura, as detailed in testimony and filings: covert manipulation, emotional isolation, threats, intimidation, extortion through explicit material, and the gradual dismantling of personal autonomy. She explains how high-profile abusers create invisible cages — systems of dependence and fear that trap victims even under the public eye. Then, Robin Dreeke analyzes the case from a behavioral intelligence perspective — mapping how powerful figures maintain a dual identity: adored in public, feared in private. From the alleged use of surveillance and financial control to the orchestration of silence among inner-circle members, Dreeke exposes how a “high-functioning predator” can operate unchecked for decades. The discussion also explores the psychology of complicity — how enablers and bystanders become part of the abuse cycle, whether through fear, loyalty, or career survival. Both experts highlight the chilling consistency between Combs’ alleged conduct and established behavioral profiles of coercive narcissists and organized abusers. This is more than a celebrity scandal. It’s a clinical case study in power addiction, psychological dominance, and the systemic failures that allow fame to mask abuse. 🎙️ Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski — 2025 Year in Review: The Cases Where Power, Psychology, and Justice Collided. #DiddyTrial #CassieVentura #SeanCombs #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #ShavaunScott #RobinDreeke #PsychologicalAbuse #CoerciveControl #CelebrityCrime #PowerAndControl #TrueCrimePodcast #BehavioralAnalysis #YearInReview #JusticeForSurvivors #TrueCrimeToday Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

27 Marras 44min

As part of our Hidden Killers 2025 Year in Review series, we revisit one of the most jaw-dropping chapters in the ongoing Bryan Kohberger case — the digital trail that may have done what he allegedly couldn’t avoid in person: exposing him completely. Investigators say Kohberger, the Ph.D. criminology student accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022, may have left behind more than DNA on a knife sheath — he may have left a shopping list. A damning set of online purchases allegedly includes a K-Bar knife, matching sheath, and sharpening tool — all conveniently ordered from Amazon. In this Hidden Killers breakdown, Tony Brueski teams up with retired FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke and defense attorney Bob Motta (Defense Diaries) to dissect the chilling implications of the so-called “Amazon Evidence.” If true, this isn’t just forensic coincidence — it’s a psychological signature. Dreeke dives into what these purchases reveal about a possible obsessive, methodical mindset: someone fascinated by control, process, and precision. But in his precision, perhaps also arrogant — believing intellect could outsmart technology. Then, Motta joins Tony to examine how this alleged evidence fits into the broader defense battle. Could the prosecution argue that Kohberger’s shopping habits show premeditation? Or can the defense spin it as circumstantial — just a “collector’s curiosity” in military blades? And yes — that infamous thumbs-up shower selfie allegedly taken hours after the murders makes its appearance. Motta and Brueski unpack the surreal combination of vanity, detachment, and potential trophy-taking behavior. It’s the kind of moment that would be laughable, if it weren’t so horrifying. Together, they explore the haunting question that lingers behind every piece of evidence: Was this a one-time act of obsession, or a rehearsal for something darker? 🎙️ Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski — 2025 Year in Review: The Crimes That Defined the Year in Evidence, Psychology, and Pure Audacity. #BryanKohberger #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #RobinDreeke #BobMotta #TrueCrimePodcast #AmazonEvidence #KnifeSheath #IdahoFour #CriminalPsychology #MurderTrial #CourtroomDrama #YearInReview #TrueCrimeToday #DefenseDiaries #JusticeForVictims Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

27 Marras 34min

As part of our Hidden Killers 2025 Year in Review series, we’re revisiting one of the most jaw-dropping courtroom sagas of the year — the unraveling of Donna Adelson, the 75-year-old grandmother accused of orchestrating the murder-for-hire plot that took the life of Florida State law professor Dan Markel. In two of the year’s most explosive episodes, Tony Brueski sat down with both Defense Attorney Bob Motta (Defense Diaries) and retired FBI Special Agent Jennifer Coffindaffer to break down how a once-untouchable matriarch’s arrogance and denial helped destroy her family’s last shred of credibility. Donna’s courtroom appearance was supposed to humanize her. Instead, it showcased the same manipulative charm and self-delusion that prosecutors say fueled her alleged role in the murder conspiracy. From the stand, she painted herself as a frail victim of “inhumane jail conditions” — right before prosecutors rolled out recorded jailhouse calls in which she and her son Charlie Adelson discuss potential escape routes and non-extradition countries. Oops. Motta dissects the strategic disaster of Donna testifying at her own bond hearing — a move that may go down as one of the biggest self-inflicted wounds in recent courtroom history. Coffindaffer takes it even deeper, exposing the psychology behind Donna’s belief that she could still talk her way out of accountability, decades after manipulating everyone around her. From family loyalty turned liability to delusion on display, this episode captures the full scope of Donna’s implosion — and what it means for the rest of the Adelson family heading into the next phase of legal battles. Will she ever take a plea? Could she flip on her daughter Wendi? Or does Donna still believe she can win the game — even when the board’s already on fire? 🎙️ Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski — 2025 Year in Review: The Cases That Defined a Year of Crime, Corruption, and Consequence. #DonnaAdelson #DanMarkel #HiddenKillers #TonyBrueski #BobMotta #JenniferCoffindaffer #TrueCrimePodcast #MurderForHire #Justice #AdelsonTrial #CourtroomDrama #HiddenKillersYearInReview #TrueCrimeToday #DefenseDiaries Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

27 Marras 21min

In this episode, we take a brutally honest look at the now-viral TikTok posted by the biological mother of 18-year-old Anna Kepner — the teen found dead and concealed under a bed aboard the Carnival Horizon cruise ship. What should have been a grieving mother’s message somehow turned into a thirteen-minute monologue about everything but Anna. Excuses. Grievances. Old resentments. Contradictions. Life stories. Dental detours. Accusations. Chaos. And almost nothing about the daughter she lost. Tonight, I break it down section by section — with timestamps — stopping at the points where the emotional wheels fly off and the video reveals far more about the environment Anna came from than the mother ever intended. This isn’t mockery. This isn’t cruelty. This is context — because the instability, bitterness, and self-centered chaos on full display here help explain so much about the world Anna grew up in. Meanwhile, investigators are focused on real evidence:  • a body concealed under a bed  • keycard logs  • cabin access patterns  • surveillance footage  • a 16-year-old stepsibling publicly named as a suspect  • a stepmother pleading the Fifth  • and a family structure collapsing in real time This TikTok doesn’t give answers — but it gives a devastating look at the dysfunction that shaped this case from day one. Watch as we break down the video, analyze each section, and look at what this emotional unraveling tells us about the broader investigation into Anna’s death. If you want the unfiltered truth behind the headlines — and the family chaos investigators are up against — this is the episode you need to hear. 👇 Comment below — what was the most shocking part of her video to YOU? #AnnaKepner #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #TikTokBreakdown #TonyBrueski #CrimeAnalysis #CruiseShipCase #FBIInvestigation #FamilyDynamics #JusticeForAnna Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

27 Marras 31min

In the Delphi murders, the public was told a simple story: the police put the pieces together, the system worked, and justice was finally served. But when you actually read the documents — the transcripts, investigator depositions, Franks filings, internal notes, and the raw exhibits tucked into the case file — a very different picture emerges. This wasn’t a clean investigation. It wasn’t methodical. It wasn’t disciplined. It was chaotic, fragmented, and politically pressured from the moment Abby and Libby were found. Leads were documented once and never followed up on. Entire suspects — and entire theories — were quietly dropped without explanation. Investigators contradicted each other, forgot key details, and admitted under oath that they weren’t even aware of evidence sitting inside their own case file. And yet somehow, in year six, the narrative suddenly snapped into place — not because the investigation got better, but because it finally got a suspect it could backfill the story around. Tonight, we dig into the evidence that was ignored, the leads that were buried, the internal disagreements investigators never wanted the public to see, and the retrofitted logic that shaped the state’s case. This is not about saying who is guilty or innocent — it’s about asking why the most important homicide investigation in modern Indiana history was handled with the kind of inconsistency you’d expect from a case no one was watching. If this is how the system works when the world is paying attention… what happens in a case where no one is? Join Tony Brueski as we break down the investigation behind the scenes — the failures, the shortcuts, the missing follow-through, and the real-world consequences of an investigative structure that collapses under pressure. Subscribe and comment with your thoughts. This case isn’t just about what happened in 2017 — it’s about what kind of justice system we’re willing to accept today. #DelphiMurders #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #AbbyAndLibby #RichardAllen #DelphiInvestigation #JusticeForAbbyAndLibby #CrimeAnalysis #TonyBrueski #TrueCrimeCommunity Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

26 Marras 21min

The death of 18-year-old Anna Kepner is not just another tragic case — it’s a collision of panic, secrecy, and a blended family imploding in real time. Found hidden under a bed on a cruise ship, wrapped and concealed, Anna’s final moments are surrounded by unanswered questions and emotionally charged reactions from nearly every member of her family. Tonight on Hidden Killers, I sit down with retired FBI Special Agent Robin Dreeke to cut through the noise and focus on the behavioral reality inside that small cabin. Because cases like this aren’t just about evidence — they’re about human choices under pressure. We look at the concealment: Why was Anna hidden? What does that typically signal in juvenile behavior? Where is the line between immaturity-driven panic and intentional wrongdoing? We examine the claim from the grandmother that the 16-year-old “doesn’t remember what happened.” Is that trauma? Dissociation? Avoidance? Or something investigators hear when the truth is too overwhelming to say out loud? We explore what happens when adults make catastrophic decisions — like placing teenagers with known tension in the same sleeping quarters — and how that shapes what happens next. And then there’s the public chaos: the stepmother pleading the Fifth, the biological mother spiraling on social media, relatives accusing each other, all while a teen girl is gone. Robin breaks down how investigators filter useful behavior from emotional theater and why public performance can sometimes be a clue in itself. This is the interview that strips away the speculation and digs into the actual human behavior behind the headlines. If you want clarity instead of noise, depth instead of rumor — you’re in the right place. #HiddenKillers #AnnaKepnerCase #CruiseShipInvestigation #RobinDreeke #BehaviorAnalysis #TrueCrimeBreakdown #CrimePsychology #FBIExpert #JuvenileInvestigation #FamilyChaos Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

26 Marras 27min

When 18-year-old Anna Kepner was found hidden under a bed inside a cruise ship cabin, the story immediately drew national attention — not because of what investigators discovered, but because of all the things they didn’t. No intruder. No external threat. No clear cause of death. Just a 16-year-old stepsibling who now sits at the center of a legal and emotional storm. Tonight on Hidden Killers, we dig into the legal tensions surrounding this case — the gaps, the unknowns, the strict limitations of the juvenile system, and the uncomfortable reality that many of these answers may never become public. With attorney and former prosecutor Bob Motta, we explore every realistic scenario investigators must consider: accident, panic, trauma, a moment of fear that spiraled, an altercation without intent, a medical event mishandled, or an intentional act. The law doesn’t get to pick the neat version — it has to test all of them. We also break down the implications of the stepson’s claim that he “doesn’t remember what happened.” Legally, that can indicate trauma, shock, dissociation, or a panic-response blackout — all of which dramatically complicate the question of charges. Because intent matters. Mechanism matters. And mental state matters. We look at why certain charges are possible, why some are unlikely, and why others — like premeditated murder — simply don’t fit the known facts. And we explain the Fifth Amendment move by the stepmother: a headline-grabbing moment that creates more confusion than clarity. Most importantly, we dive into the biggest question: how does a case like this realistically end? A juvenile plea? Treatment? No charges? Or a sealed resolution the public will never see? This case is heartbreaking, confusing, and bound by legal blinders that make it even harder to understand. But tonight, we break down what the law actually says — not what the internet assumes. #AnnaKepner #CruiseCase #HiddenKillers #TrueCrimeToday #LegalBreakdown #JuvenileCase #BobMotta #CrimeAnalysis #JusticeSystem #InvestigationUpdate Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

26 Marras 25min