The Second Break-In That Took Nothing - Episode 33

The Texts That Came From Inside the House: The Murder of Lisbeth Almon-Papoka

A seven-year-old girl woke up alone and couldn't open her own bedroom door — a door that had never been locked before. Two days later, a message arrived from her mother's phone number asking the family not to worry. The account that sent it was created two minutes after her grandfather said he was going to the police. Someone was watching the clock.

In this episode, we explore the exact 36 web searches Jonathan conducted on how to fold down the Lexus backseat on the same day he claims Lisbeth simply left, a single blue fiber found in the trunk that FBI analysis matched to the blanket wrapped around her body, and why cadaver dogs alerted to the precise spot where air freshener had been sprayed just hours before. Was a decade-long relationship ending in freedom — or was it ending in a shallow grave behind a restaurant dumpster?

Case Details

Victim: Lisbeth Almon-Papoka, 26, undocumented immigrant and mother originally from Guerrero, Mexico.

Date: July 1, 2020 (disappearance); body recovered July 15, 2020.

Location: East Haven, Connecticut, USA.

Case Status: Jonathan Jera Akupina pleaded guilty to murder in February 2024 and was sentenced to 25 years in prison, with immediate deportation to Ecuador upon release. No appeal is currently pending.

Episode Key Points

- A Pinger account impersonating Lisbeth was created under the email JonathanJera2020@ and traced to Jonathan's home Wi-Fi, exactly two minutes after her father called Jonathan to say the family was going to the police.

- Surveillance footage shows Jonathan spraying air freshener throughout the Lexus trunk on July 1 — the same spot where cadaver dogs later alerted.

- Jonathan conducted nearly 36 internet searches on how to fold down the Lexus backseat on the day he claimed Lisbeth had already left in the car on her own.

- A single blue fiber recovered from the Lexus trunk was confirmed by the FBI lab to match the fleece blanket in which Lisbeth's body was found wrapped and secured with clear tape.

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