If someone is legally banned from owning a firearm, should it not be illegal for them to be hired for a profession that requires them to own one?!?! WTH
Obviously, but depending on the charge they aren't always heavily enforced. Until the last 10 years or so the DV gun ban was hardly enforced, but that had more to do with the writing being kind of ridiculous since an argument with a spouse that resulted in the police being called would often lead to a lifetime gun ban. It should probably be rewritten.
Apparently they only care if you have bad credit. Integrity and professionalism don’t matter. Coming from a 16 year Army MP who’s dream was to be in LE. Had bad credit though. I bet he had great credit (sarcasm)
As much as I absolutely agree, you also have to realize the weight of their words from a legal standpoint. Since nothing was proven in court, they can only say he allegedly did something or 'attempted' an act until legitimately proven beyond reasonable doubt. If they declared anything in this case before the court finalized anything they would be legally held liable for any downfall in the case
"Infiltrate" the police department? They threw down a welcome mat and invited him in. That's why Virginia State Police said "he didn't ever display red flags."
So good to know that people are being accepted into the academy with, not just giant red flags, but blinding flashing red lights with sirens saying, "Do not arm this man, he isn't sane!"
I had no idea the depth of this man’s mental health issues until this video. 24:37 is especially unnerving. He attacked his father, went into a mental health facility, was deemed not mentally liable to have a gun and *somehow* was enrolled in the POLICE Academy??! Like what is the screening process? and THEN the psychiatrist said that he did not pass the evaluation, and somehow they managed to rubber stamp him through the Academy. Could you imagine the damage he would have done if he had gotten away with it-he was already setting up houses..
This man didn't "infiltrate" the police department, he was accepted into it. It's the fact that the police departments take ZERO accountability for this that infuriates me.
Bs! The murders still would have happened if they would not have raken him. In the US it's so easy to get a gun. And he wiuld have gotten a fake police uniform - ir use a different strategy.
To the neighbor, your an absolute hero. So many cases people witness such obvious abnormal situations and not until much later when interviewd by police they say things such as "yes i seen a teenage girl screaming getting dragged into a van" or "I heard gun shots and seen a suspicious man leaving the house directly after with blood all over his clothes" . Never calling police, never mentioning it until asked. The neighbors in this horrific tragedy was dilligent and saved that girls life.
This one hit me really hard. When I was younger, I was that 14-year-old girl chatting with online strangers and meeting with some of them. It breaks my heart to realize I not only put myself in danger but also my family's life. It's so important to educate kids early on how to use the Internet and social media so horrific incidents like this can be prevented.
I did the same thing on AOL starting at age 13. I met five grown ass men and invited them to my house because my mom was never home. It makes me sick when I look back on it. They all knew how old I was and I don't know how in the hell I wasn't seriously hurt. I imagine it's ten times worse now with social media making it much easier to stalk their prey.
There but for the grace of the goddess go many of us. Glad it was not you. Keep spreading this message to any parents and teens you know. It's a very important one.
Right?? How could these poor souls be fooled like this?? I would never allow a “policeman” to enter my home without calling the REAL police…..especially if I’m innocent of any crime 🤔😡 AND how the FK did he overpower 3 adults ????
20:41 "We don't even feel comfortable affiliating him with law enforcement" What a joke of a response to murders enabled directly through use of police credentials.
This case is horrifying! The fact that he blacked out the windows of his home and did who knows what to his basement tells me that he had some frightening plans for these girls he met online! What a monster! I hope the family wins their case against VA, as law enforcement should have the most thorough background checks! It wasn’t human error that he was hired, red flags were seen and purposefully pushed aside. It doesn’t matter how “nice” he is! I hope the family can find peace!
That poor girl is going to feel responsible forever for bringing that man into their lives. I feel so sorry for her. She will never get past that guilt.
@@theconfusedphilosopher4724 No, she's not. This girl is a victim of a predator that most likely got all the information he needed to track her down because he got her to inadvertently download something like an IP tracker or something that kept close tabs on her computer/phone information. I have heard of such things being done from listening to the stories told by stalking victims to fictional police procedurals like Law & Order. It is terrifying the amount of programs out there where you can gain access to information like emails, text messages, IP addresses and GPS location. This girl stopped all communication with her attacker. Were you not listening to the story or are you intent on blaming a victim for something that wasn't her fault?
She didn't bring this monster into their lives. He stalked and harassed this girl and probably tracked her down with some kind of app that the victim inadvertently downloaded somewhere. She did nothing wrong. Can we stop blaming the victim?
@@TiffWaffles OP isn’t blaming the victim. It’s human nature to feel guilt or responsibility in a tragedy like this if the perpetrator is linked to you. No, it isn’t her guilt or responsibility to carry, but she will very likely carry it regardless.
Oh. My. God. Yet he was able to get in, and even completed the academy!!! Imagine how many of those "best and chosen" sheriff deputies have been running around to this day. This story is awful from A to Z Law enforcement corruption is nothing new, regardless, it's blood-boiling. I feel so sorry for the family and wishing healing to the victims' family 🖤❤️
He choose that profession, for no other reason, than to gain the community's trust and then make it so that young girls, and their family members, would trust him, as he entered their respective homes to kidnap their teenaged daughter. Such a vile demon. Smh.
There's no telling what all he got away with. 63% of SA goes unreported, and I'm certain that it's even less likely to be reported when it's an authority figure, especially one that is worshipped like a cop. There's no way that he only ever had two female targets. And it's telling that his interest in the other girl evaporated as soon as she became of legal age. Because his interest in her was never based on her as a person but her as being someone of her age. I'm tired of these monsters.
I live in England where Sarah Everard was abducted and murdered by a police detective. It was a tragic case, and destroyed faith in the police. A memorial service to her was disrupted by police. Disgusting.
Yes Gordon I believe he was a fire arms detective with the Royal protection unit.His nickname for years within the police service was the "rapist". Talk about red flags !
It's not a matter of being desperate, it's a matter of not caring. Oftentimes if a police officer is kicked off the force in the one state, they can easily get another police job in another state because their records system isn't national and departments don't bother to research. It's easy not to care when you're never held accountable and any "punishment" you receive is paid desk time or the department using taxpayer money to fend off lawsuits.
In the United States, training to become a police officer takes an average of 9 months, which is ridiculous. Here in Finland, the minimum training lasts 3 years, including an internship of about one year at a police station.
Why is it so hard for law enforcement to admit they were wrong & held accountable for their mistakes??? These are the same people that demand we as private citizens be held accountable for our actions if we break the law & ensure that if we are guilty we are held accountable with punishment & consequence. Why has this instead allowed to become nothing more than a " do as I say, not as I do" mentality???????
Um you can't admit anything when you are already dead and had he lived he would have been held accountable. You think they were just going to let him go?
Because they see themselves as sovereign citizens and are treated that way. They don't have to live by the same laws we do so theu dont have to apologize for their mistakes since they're part of a different class than us "regular folks"
Wow. The VA state police failed MONUMENTALLY. It's astonishing. Gross negligence is a horrific understatement. Thank God for small miracles as both children survived.
That's what police do. They fail people. That's their literal job. They have no responsibility to help anyone (supreme court ruling) and are class traitors whose job is is to hurt you for the benefit of a very small group of people.
So a man who can't own a firearm legally is given a badge and firearm by the police. On what planet does that make sense! I really hope the family gets every dollar of that lawsuit.
This is terrifying. I have two very young granddaughters and this scares me for them in the future. My oldest is only 6 and I think it's never too early to start talking about dangers on the internet with them. God comfort that family and families that have been through similar tragedies.
if i may add: as someone who was an adolescent at the time where the internet didn't have a many safeguards for children, its v important to get across the real danger of predators online. however, being too controlling can often backfire. i was lucky where my mom had enough trust in me to be smart and knowing that i would come to her if i needed to. i would suggest talking to someone who is tech savvy if you arent in order to be 5 steps ahead of anyone who might have malintent. good luck to you and your granddaughters!
What a truly sick monstrous individual, that is a terribly sad story, what a beautiful family that lost their lives in such a tragic way. This is so heartbreaking to watch. Thank you Truly Criminal, you always shine a light on horrific crimes & prayerfully, there's parents out here that learn things from these tragedies. RIP
This is crazy and there seems to be no repercussions for the agency involved! How the hell do you give a gun and badge to a man who isn't even allowed to buy his own! This is ridiculous! My heart goes out to the family, this should not have happened.
This one really got me crying. I feel so bad for the family members who lost their lives. And for those left to grieve and process this horrific crime. Thank you for sharing this tragic case. 😢
This is scary beyond words. The terror the family must have gone through is unimaginable. The oversights from the agencies are fully responsible for this tragedy 😢
Baffling that someone who failed a psych evaluation gets accepted into the police academy. Not the type of person I want to have the authority to arrest people and carry a service weapon. Especially when their illness presents as violence (attacking his dad).
So the police get a call about a suspicious person, wearing a mask and carrying a bag, but they can't do anything about it? Not even send out a patrol car to check on it?
The neighbour reported it to the non emergency number only because it seemed 'a bit weird', and the registration was duly logged. Police didn't attend because Edwards wasn't doing anything wrong, and had driven away in any case. He was wearing a face mask and carrying a bag; he wasn't wearing a gimp mask and swinging a machete. Hats off to police for connecting the car to the abduction and jumping on it so quickly. Credit where credit's due.
Reminder that the nation was gripped in "face mask hysteria" and it was quite normal for people to be wearing a face mask when they never would have otherwise.
There’s so many stories similar to this one already out there. Parents really need to dissect their children’s social media until they’re in their late teens if not early 20s. Always have a conversation with them, don’t stop!
Back in the early days of dial-up and AIM, I was that 14-year-old girl meeting up with strangers from online chat rooms. I had no idea at the time what danger I was putting everyone in. Thank god my story didn't end this way.
I doubt it would have stopped him from doing what be did. I agree we need to educate kids on the dangers online but he was nuts, he would have just stalked her regardless and propably still killed her. It's not her fault, really.
I really appreciate you mentioning the pets on the same level as the family. Thank you for giving importance to members of the family who are too often ignored ❤
I have heard this story covered before. Thanks, Truly Criminal, for putting out your professional take on this horrible crime. Well done. I just can't understand why a thoroughly disturbed individual is considered law enforcement material.
I recently had a police officer stalk me relentlessly. I live alone with my very naive but beautiful young husky, this man would enter my backyard and take personal items from my clothesline. Absolutely frightening, I am still not aware how long he had been stalking me but he has since been reprimanded... I don't even know what that means to be honest... I still feel watched and intuitively doubt he has been fired.
That is terrible, do be careful and installing some webcams around your house may protect you better. I saw a case as the scumbag committed horrible crime on innocent girls, police took years to catch the criminal, at last they found the criminal was a police when he committed crime, that is the reason why the criminal could flee from the crime scene under the eyes of police.
Damn. This is so sad. Those poor people. Poor doggies. The trouble is you trust people you believe are in authority. How the police ever allowed him in, I’ll never know. The response of the police was OUTRAGEOUS. Criminal beyond belief. Utterly enraging and tragic.
Such a really well covered story by Truly Criminal. Well done! You really brought home how terrifying it was and how totally avoidable this situation should have been.
Horrific case, awful what this "policeman" did to those dear Folks and their pets, luckily the kidnapped victim was saved. RIP Folks and their dear pets.
All of the tragedies told are heartbreaking but this one hit different for me. I’m not sure why. Maybe it was that the respect and love people had for the Winek family was so genuine. Their grief so real. The ceremonious renaming of the court was very touching. My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of Mark, Sherry and Brooke ❤️
A truely sickening and heinous crime. My deepest condolences to the family, and all my respect to the attentive neighbour who felt the need to report the suspicious behaviour the murderer was showing before his crime, it shows that sometimes a little bit of nosiness and going the extra mile just in case, could make the difference between life and death. Without her help I truely believe it might have been too late until they had traced his steps, and the abducted teenager might have faced grievous harm. also I truely believe his true intent was to abduct her to the basement of his newly purchased house and most probably keep her as a sex slave to satisfy his sick pedophilic fantasies. It is evident that he only stopped harassing and stalking his first victim once she was no longer underage, and he had found another innocent naïve underage prey to hunt.
What did you expect to happen?!? You have an entire generation that grew up thinking it’s “kewl” to hate police. It’s not exactly a desirable position in our society these days.
This is one that will stick with everyone. How horrendous, there's no words. I hope everyone effected is healing and getting as much help they deserve. 💜
I've watched listened to plenty and I mean basically all of your episodes since the inception but this one here was super scary and dark you've touched a heart all across the world from Barbados🇧🇧 in the Caribbean love your content ...... This episode was truly CRIMINAL!!
"We don't feel comfortable associating him with law enforcement, because that's not what people in law enforcement are about." Except, yes, they are, apparently. Stop side-stepping the issue and actually address it. Stop enabling these officers and actually make sure they're good people before hiring them! Stop ignoring red flags! We've seen too much of this already, and there's obviously a problem. DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
This goes to show you how irresponsible the police departments are and never want to accept responsibility. This man shouldn’t have never been allowed into the program. I thank God they caught that dirt bag before he harmed that teen. R.I.P hope they are in heaven. It’s so said ❤😢
Brooke fought so hard probably to try and protect her daughter 💔 what that young girl witnessed and what Brooke and her parents had to watch knowing they were next. Utterly horrific and heartbreaking.
she tried her best to protect and nurture her children. this was not something that anyone expected. he was being investigated for months by riv Co and other organizations .
What an awful awful atrocity to happen to a wonderful family it’s so sad and makes no sense why the police didn’t see this when they hired this man! It blows my mind and I hope that the family members of the slain will be able to move forward in some sort of peaceful way after loosing so many of their family! Especially there beloved dogs!! Wow it blows my mind and I’m so heart broken that there is people like this that take an oath to serve and protect the public and they are the ones to do the most damage! I cannot understand how a mental health report didn’t make law enforcement see what this disgusting man was capable of!! Justice will never be had for the family now that he is dead! R.I.P. Winek family your in my prayers! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Him being not on this earth is justice. She will never have to relive her trauma of going through trial, seeing his face or him getting "8yrs" or some ridiculous sentence only to have him stalk or unalive her when got out.
For anyone that does not know, it takes far more than 1 day to get anywhere in Virginia from anywhere in California. What a tragic story, thank you for telling it so well TC!
second most shocking thing in this case is that you can become a police officer in the US with just 1800 hours of (less than a year) total training?!? Its a full 3 year university degree where I live. And both physical and mental testing upon starting training.
I'm sending this video to every parent I know has young adolescents. My boys are grown so it's mostly to grandparents who will be watching. This video is an awful but good example of grooming and catfishing and the dangers of not monitoring your children's social media.
Thank you truly criminal for another great story!! One we can use as a tool for teaching our young ones about catfishing & dangers of social media! Prayers of healing to the surviving sister & family
the cop saying he didn’t want to consider him a police officer because of what he’s done… like they didn’t allow him to become one after not passing the mental exam and not legally being allowed to own a firearm. they literally accepted him and the outcome is in the hands of virginia police
When an online chat website allows children as young as 13 to use their site and connect with total strangers without the need to register, it becomes the perfect hunting ground for catfish predators.
@@icingcake That's the world of today. I agree though, especially if you're under 18. You shouldn't be allowed to be talking to random strangers online. It's fk'n weird. DO SOMETHING ELSE WITH YOUR TIME KIDS!
Show them the true crime videos of girls who were killed by stalkers, abducted by paedos, so they can feel the terror and not do stupid things like sharing personal information online or accepting "friend request" or "follow" request from unknown people. Accounts should be private if they're underage and still they should not share geolocation at the same time. Teens have been murdered because of sharing that on Instagram. Show them those cases without the gore of course. In my time, we didn't wanted to walk lonely streets at night because the danger was much more real, tangible.
And Thee Academy Chief with Confidence said "We chose you we chose the best" Wow. Slim Pickens? I guess so. They just check to see if your narcissistic, if yes, you qualify.
Can't believe this guy was an officer & decided to abuse his role to murder a family & traumatize a child. Absolutely despicable. Makes it hard to trust anyone, not even law enforcement that's supposed to provide protection as well as order & peace. May the family rest in peace and hope the child is doing ok. Ty for covering this case Truly Criminal 🙏
A truly heinous crime! Thank God this pos can't maim & destroy anyone else - he's exactly where he needs to be. Rotting in hell forever! My sympathy & love goes out to the family. I hope they can find some comfort & peace! 💔😢💔
I love how he's trying to blame the parents, "i know it's not fun but you have to check your kids' devices! We don't want this guy associated with us even though it makes perfect sense!" Despicable
My heart breaks for the child. The blame she must put on herself is heartbreaking. I hope she got the proper help to get her through this. May all 3 rest easy and just know he is in 🔥 His soul will forever 🔥
Yeah, I had wondered how he managed to do that. Geez. Another good reason to have a video doorbell; at least keep them outside while you call their supervisor or the no emergency number to check out if they’re legit.
1300 hours of training in over 100 different subjects! Wow that's like 4 days of class per subject! These guys must be geniuses! /s I love how the news made it sounds like the cops went through some rigorous training to become cops LOL
This is a new one for me,and wow it’s horrendous on every way!a figure of authority to be trusted and still this happens! Social media really is terrifying!
How the hell does a man that can’t LEGALLY buy a gun have 1 gifted to him by the state of Virginia?!?!🤬. I’m OUTRAGED!! This is sickening!! Thank you for covering this 🙏.
What a joke of a police department. I wonder how many other criminals are within the Virginia police department. The staff that failed to see this previous psychiatric history should be charged. What a poor excuse they gave.
All this stuff about checking what your kids are doing online… TAKE THEM OFFLINE. Don’t give them access to the internet. Give them books. And homeschool them if their school won’t support you. Do NOT give them iPhones, they do NOT need them.
How arrogant for that Police chief/ station that hired him even with all that crazy record he had. Their shameless arrogance. telling parents to check devices, seek advice. don’t be afraid to check their kids interactions online. When they neglected to check/handle his background accordingly. Ignoring all the red flags. They didn’t question it or seek advice. They gave him a free pass. hired him. gave him a gun and badge. A license to abuse the public. When he was not even allow to own firearm’s. And, on top of that. At the end, after the tragic event that was committed by one of their own. They don’t want to claim him. And literally blame the victims or parents for not checking on their kids. When they don’t even bother to check on the psychos they hired, or hold themselves accountable for their mistakes. They demand to hold people responsible for their actions. Only for civilians that is. Not for police departments, or their crazy members that they hired, by looking the other way, on top of the weak, lazy, low standard hiring process. That they already have. The irony!.
Oh, just wait. Some of those they loosely hired. will be the ones doing the internal investigation. Don’t hold your breath or time wondering what the results of that investigation will be. “After a full throughout investigation. We found nothing wrong, or any negligence in our hiring process”. He simply infiltrated the police department. Two different police departments didn’t hired him. He infiltrated the blue line. Yep.
Thank you! I really enjoy your videos, I watch a lot of true crime and you guys are fantastic. Always really interesting and well researched. Although I have to say, my main lesson from this is that apparently you can be a total psycho and also be a police officer so that's heartening, I'll go and hand in my application because it sounds like they could do with some people that don't kidnap teenage girls. At least if they gave me a gun, I wouldn't use it to shoot random people 😳
If someone is legally banned from owning a firearm, should it not be illegal for them to be hired for a profession that requires them to own one?!?! WTH
Obviously, but depending on the charge they aren't always heavily enforced. Until the last 10 years or so the DV gun ban was hardly enforced, but that had more to do with the writing being kind of ridiculous since an argument with a spouse that resulted in the police being called would often lead to a lifetime gun ban. It should probably be rewritten.
@@PenskePC17 police lover... lol
Apparently they only care if you have bad credit. Integrity and professionalism don’t matter. Coming from a 16 year Army MP who’s dream was to be in LE. Had bad credit though. I bet he had great credit (sarcasm)
@@hucklesnook1848 reading comprehension isn’t really your thing I take it?
My thought exactly.
"Attempted to kidnap her". He *did* kidnap her. That reporter needs to understand that words actually matter.
You did such a respectful video, truly.
I thought the same thing
As much as I absolutely agree, you also have to realize the weight of their words from a legal standpoint. Since nothing was proven in court, they can only say he allegedly did something or 'attempted' an act until legitimately proven beyond reasonable doubt. If they declared anything in this case before the court finalized anything they would be legally held liable for any downfall in the case
They try an down play it much as possible when the person that does the crime is a pink person
@@eugeneeugene6339 or a brown person.....
You are so dumb
"Infiltrate" the police department? They threw down a welcome mat and invited him in. That's why Virginia State Police said "he didn't ever display red flags."
Infiltrated.. I love that term so much. It's as if the police have high standards and he snuck his way in.
So good to know that people are being accepted into the academy with, not just giant red flags, but blinding flashing red lights with sirens saying, "Do not arm this man, he isn't sane!"
Right?!
I had no idea the depth of this man’s mental health issues until this video. 24:37 is especially unnerving. He attacked his father, went into a mental health facility, was deemed not mentally liable to have a gun and *somehow* was enrolled in the POLICE Academy??! Like what is the screening process? and THEN the psychiatrist said that he did not pass the evaluation, and somehow they managed to rubber stamp him through the Academy. Could you imagine the damage he would have done if he had gotten away with it-he was already setting up houses..
We need to bring back asylums for those that are such a danger to others and themselves.
MK Ultra controlling hisbrain.
and then they said it was "human error". The hiring process is a multi step process with more than one person looking at applications, records, etc.
This man didn't "infiltrate" the police department, he was accepted into it. It's the fact that the police departments take ZERO accountability for this that infuriates me.
Exactly, pretending he didn’t get accepted is not helping to prevent it happening again!!
Bs! The murders still would have happened if they would not have raken him. In the US it's so easy to get a gun. And he wiuld have gotten a fake police uniform - ir use a different strategy.
Agree totally…
He did. As a person who was adjudicated mentally unsound, he legally couldn't have a gun.
@bertrandlewis4906 Right. And he failed a test. They still LET him in, he did not infiltrate.
To the neighbor, your an absolute hero. So many cases people witness such obvious abnormal situations and not until much later when interviewd by police they say things such as "yes i seen a teenage girl screaming getting dragged into a van" or
"I heard gun shots and seen a suspicious man leaving the house directly after with blood all over his clothes" .
Never calling police, never mentioning it until asked.
The neighbors in this horrific tragedy was dilligent and saved that girls life.
You'd be calling them a Karen lol.
you're* an
girl's life
This one hit me really hard. When I was younger, I was that 14-year-old girl chatting with online strangers and meeting with some of them. It breaks my heart to realize I not only put myself in danger but also my family's life. It's so important to educate kids early on how to use the Internet and social media so horrific incidents like this can be prevented.
I did the same thing on AOL starting at age 13. I met five grown ass men and invited them to my house because my mom was never home. It makes me sick when I look back on it. They all knew how old I was and I don't know how in the hell I wasn't seriously hurt. I imagine it's ten times worse now with social media making it much easier to stalk their prey.
Same. 🫢
@@Ooh_PieceOfCandyWhy did you talk to grown ass men as a child - I just don’t understand why any child would want to do that
There but for the grace of the goddess go many of us. Glad it was not you. Keep spreading this message to any parents and teens you know. It's a very important one.
@@Ooh_PieceOfCandy oh em gee. That's scary as hell. Glad you made it out alive.
This is one of the most insane stories I've heard in a while. Horrific.
David Camm
Right?? How could these poor souls be fooled like this?? I would never allow a “policeman” to enter my home without calling the REAL police…..especially if I’m innocent of any crime 🤔😡 AND how the FK did he overpower 3 adults ????
dont get online n u will survive boom @@PetloverTN
20:41 "We don't even feel comfortable affiliating him with law enforcement" What a joke of a response to murders enabled directly through use of police credentials.
I know. Whether he likes it or not, this monster was law enforcement.
Plus, he blamed the parents for not checking their child’s devices. How about blaming the person who committed a crime? Birds of a feather…
Well, no, he pretended to be 17.
I agree. Ppl who think this way protect their own from investigations because they think they can divide the world up. You can't
This case is horrifying! The fact that he blacked out the windows of his home and did who knows what to his basement tells me that he had some frightening plans for these girls he met online! What a monster! I hope the family wins their case against VA, as law enforcement should have the most thorough background checks! It wasn’t human error that he was hired, red flags were seen and purposefully pushed aside. It doesn’t matter how “nice” he is! I hope the family can find peace!
That poor girl is going to feel responsible forever for bringing that man into their lives. I feel so sorry for her. She will never get past that guilt.
Because she is responsible
@@theconfusedphilosopher4724 No, she's not. This girl is a victim of a predator that most likely got all the information he needed to track her down because he got her to inadvertently download something like an IP tracker or something that kept close tabs on her computer/phone information. I have heard of such things being done from listening to the stories told by stalking victims to fictional police procedurals like Law & Order. It is terrifying the amount of programs out there where you can gain access to information like emails, text messages, IP addresses and GPS location.
This girl stopped all communication with her attacker. Were you not listening to the story or are you intent on blaming a victim for something that wasn't her fault?
She didn't bring this monster into their lives. He stalked and harassed this girl and probably tracked her down with some kind of app that the victim inadvertently downloaded somewhere. She did nothing wrong. Can we stop blaming the victim?
Wtf no
@@TiffWaffles OP isn’t blaming the victim. It’s human nature to feel guilt or responsibility in a tragedy like this if the perpetrator is linked to you. No, it isn’t her guilt or responsibility to carry, but she will very likely carry it regardless.
Oh. My. God.
Yet he was able to get in, and even completed the academy!!!
Imagine how many of those "best and chosen" sheriff deputies have been running around to this day.
This story is awful from A to Z
Law enforcement corruption is nothing new, regardless, it's blood-boiling.
I feel so sorry for the family and wishing healing to the victims' family 🖤❤️
an oversight on the academy and other parties involved
He choose that profession, for no other reason, than to gain the community's trust and then make it so that young girls, and their family members, would trust him, as he entered their respective homes to kidnap their teenaged daughter. Such a vile demon. Smh.
@A1SoniaM Not a demon, a monster.
@@sashinkaroseman1512 tomatoe, toe-mat-toe....same difference.
Exactly
There's no telling what all he got away with. 63% of SA goes unreported, and I'm certain that it's even less likely to be reported when it's an authority figure, especially one that is worshipped like a cop. There's no way that he only ever had two female targets. And it's telling that his interest in the other girl evaporated as soon as she became of legal age. Because his interest in her was never based on her as a person but her as being someone of her age.
I'm tired of these monsters.
Similar to social worker ect
I live in England where Sarah Everard was abducted and murdered by a police detective. It was a tragic case, and destroyed faith in the police. A memorial service to her was disrupted by police. Disgusting.
I am not sure if I watched her story. I am going to watch it after...
There's another channel called Irish coffee crime another good channel
Yes Gordon I believe he was a fire arms detective with the Royal protection unit.His nickname for years within the police service was the "rapist".
Talk about red flags !
💯
@@whoarewe7515 the lovely Bab's, a brilliant channel
These people died for no reason at all, so sad
Not to mention those poor family pets.
nobody cares bout damn pets homie really @@LaGreta1
I don’t understand how these psychos are allowed into law enforcement. Are we that desperate?
Did you even watch the video? Seriously.
@@Connie4422did you? He was a police officer....
It's not a matter of being desperate, it's a matter of not caring. Oftentimes if a police officer is kicked off the force in the one state, they can easily get another police job in another state because their records system isn't national and departments don't bother to research. It's easy not to care when you're never held accountable and any "punishment" you receive is paid desk time or the department using taxpayer money to fend off lawsuits.
Psychopaths are naturally drawn to positions of power
In the United States, training to become a police officer takes an average of 9 months, which is ridiculous. Here in Finland, the minimum training lasts 3 years, including an internship of about one year at a police station.
Why is it so hard for law enforcement to admit they were wrong & held accountable for their mistakes??? These are the same people that demand we as private citizens be held accountable for our actions if we break the law & ensure that if we are guilty we are held accountable with punishment & consequence. Why has this instead allowed to become nothing more than a " do as I say, not as I do" mentality???????
Um you can't admit anything when you are already dead and had he lived he would have been held accountable. You think they were just going to let him go?
Because they see themselves as sovereign citizens and are treated that way. They don't have to live by the same laws we do so theu dont have to apologize for their mistakes since they're part of a different class than us "regular folks"
Cause as soon as they get that gun and badge and given power they believe they are above us. 💯
@@jswa1225did you even watch the video or read this comment clearly? idiot
It’s called avoiding liability & lawsuits
Wow. The VA state police failed MONUMENTALLY. It's astonishing. Gross negligence is a horrific understatement. Thank God for small miracles as both children survived.
That's what police do. They fail people. That's their literal job. They have no responsibility to help anyone (supreme court ruling) and are class traitors whose job is is to hurt you for the benefit of a very small group of people.
So a man who can't own a firearm legally is given a badge and firearm by the police. On what planet does that make sense! I really hope the family gets every dollar of that lawsuit.
This is terrifying. I have two very young granddaughters and this scares me for them in the future. My oldest is only 6 and I think it's never too early to start talking about dangers on the internet with them. God comfort that family and families that have been through similar tragedies.
You are right, it's never too early. Please have those conversations with them. It could help save lives
if i may add: as someone who was an adolescent at the time where the internet didn't have a many safeguards for children, its v important to get across the real danger of predators online. however, being too controlling can often backfire. i was lucky where my mom had enough trust in me to be smart and knowing that i would come to her if i needed to. i would suggest talking to someone who is tech savvy if you arent in order to be 5 steps ahead of anyone who might have malintent. good luck to you and your granddaughters!
What a truly sick monstrous individual, that is a terribly sad story, what a beautiful family that lost their lives in such a tragic way. This is so heartbreaking to watch. Thank you Truly Criminal, you always shine a light on horrific crimes & prayerfully, there's parents out here that learn things from these tragedies. RIP
This is crazy and there seems to be no repercussions for the agency involved! How the hell do you give a gun and badge to a man who isn't even allowed to buy his own! This is ridiculous! My heart goes out to the family, this should not have happened.
This one really got me crying. I feel so bad for the family members who lost their lives. And for those left to grieve and process this horrific crime. Thank you for sharing this tragic case. 😢
Family murders are especially heartbreaking and creepy! I'm watching and crying! RIP beautiful people and poor pets!
That poor family and their animals. How awful that the daughter has lost everyone. I hope she has support from all the services. So, sad and evil.
This is scary beyond words. The terror the family must have gone through is unimaginable. The oversights from the agencies are fully responsible for this tragedy 😢
Baffling that someone who failed a psych evaluation gets accepted into the police academy. Not the type of person I want to have the authority to arrest people and carry a service weapon.
Especially when their illness presents as violence (attacking his dad).
So the police get a call about a suspicious person, wearing a mask and carrying a bag, but they can't do anything about it? Not even send out a patrol car to check on it?
My thoughts exactly
The neighbour reported it to the non emergency number only because it seemed 'a bit weird', and the registration was duly logged. Police didn't attend because Edwards wasn't doing anything wrong, and had driven away in any case. He was wearing a face mask and carrying a bag; he wasn't wearing a gimp mask and swinging a machete.
Hats off to police for connecting the car to the abduction and jumping on it so quickly. Credit where credit's due.
Reminder that the nation was gripped in "face mask hysteria" and it was quite normal for people to be wearing a face mask when they never would have otherwise.
@@snoozeflu Yeah that's true, forgot all about Covid and masks.
I mean, it’s California. That tells me all I need to know
How absolutely bizarre! Police in VA really dropped the ball.
There’s so many stories similar to this one already out there. Parents really need to dissect their children’s social media until they’re in their late teens if not early 20s. Always have a conversation with them, don’t stop!
Back in the early days of dial-up and AIM, I was that 14-year-old girl meeting up with strangers from online chat rooms. I had no idea at the time what danger I was putting everyone in. Thank god my story didn't end this way.
@@sfcitygirl88 Absolutely! I met a ton of weirdos in the late-90s and I’m so glad this wasn’t me, either.
Girl, they just gonna delete the messages b4 they get home from school
I doubt it would have stopped him from doing what be did. I agree we need to educate kids on the dangers online but he was nuts, he would have just stalked her regardless and propably still killed her. It's not her fault, really.
U mean early 20s as in somebody over 18+?
I really appreciate you mentioning the pets on the same level as the family. Thank you for giving importance to members of the family who are too often ignored ❤
I have heard this story covered before. Thanks, Truly Criminal, for putting out your professional take on this horrible crime. Well done. I just can't understand why a thoroughly disturbed individual is considered law enforcement material.
When they said Austin was 28. I gasped! He looks a fresh 40!
Hell yeah 😢😢😢😢😢
I recently had a police officer stalk me relentlessly. I live alone with my very naive but beautiful young husky, this man would enter my backyard and take personal items from my clothesline. Absolutely frightening, I am still not aware how long he had been stalking me but he has since been reprimanded... I don't even know what that means to be honest... I still feel watched and intuitively doubt he has been fired.
That is terrifying.
“Reprimanded” WTH is that supposed to do?
That's so scary.. im so sorry you have to deal with that. No women should be made to feel unsafe in her own home
That is terrible, do be careful and installing some webcams around your house may protect you better. I saw a case as the scumbag committed horrible crime on innocent girls, police took years to catch the criminal, at last they found the criminal was a police when he committed crime, that is the reason why the criminal could flee from the crime scene under the eyes of police.
He will try to kill your dog. Please be careful
Damn. This is so sad. Those poor people. Poor doggies. The trouble is you trust people you believe are in authority. How the police ever allowed him in, I’ll never know. The response of the police was OUTRAGEOUS. Criminal beyond belief. Utterly enraging and tragic.
Such a really well covered story by Truly Criminal. Well done! You really brought home how terrifying it was and how totally avoidable this situation should have been.
Horrific case, awful what this "policeman" did to those dear Folks and their pets, luckily the kidnapped victim was saved. RIP Folks and their dear pets.
All of the tragedies told are heartbreaking but this one hit different for me. I’m not sure why. Maybe it was that the respect and love people had for the Winek family was so genuine. Their grief so real. The ceremonious renaming of the court was very touching. My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of Mark, Sherry and Brooke ❤️
A truely sickening and heinous crime.
My deepest condolences to the family, and all my respect to the attentive neighbour who felt the need to report the suspicious behaviour the murderer was showing before his crime, it shows that sometimes a little bit of nosiness and going the extra mile just in case, could make the difference between life and death. Without her help I truely believe it might have been too late until they had traced his steps, and the abducted teenager might have faced grievous harm.
also I truely believe his true intent was to abduct her to the basement of his newly purchased house and most probably keep her as a sex slave to satisfy his sick pedophilic fantasies. It is evident that he only stopped harassing and stalking his first victim once she was no longer underage, and he had found another innocent naïve underage prey to hunt.
If people like him were “chosen because they were the best” i wonder what the rejects were like 💀
😹😹😹 fr fr - maybe the rejects were applying from prison 🙄🙄🙄💀💀💀
😅😅😅
Good question & scary thought. 😕😱
I think it tells us there are no rejects.
What did you expect to happen?!?
You have an entire generation that grew up thinking it’s “kewl” to hate police.
It’s not exactly a desirable position in our society these days.
Absolutely horrific 😢 I remember when this happened and my heart breaks for the family especially the survivor❤
This is one that will stick with everyone. How horrendous, there's no words. I hope everyone effected is healing and getting as much help they deserve. 💜
How?
Why?
Salute to the vigilant neighbor.
I've watched listened to plenty and I mean basically all of your episodes since the inception but this one here was super scary and dark you've touched a heart all across the world from Barbados🇧🇧 in the Caribbean love your content ...... This episode was truly CRIMINAL!!
"We don't feel comfortable associating him with law enforcement, because that's not what people in law enforcement are about."
Except, yes, they are, apparently. Stop side-stepping the issue and actually address it. Stop enabling these officers and actually make sure they're good people before hiring them! Stop ignoring red flags! We've seen too much of this already, and there's obviously a problem. DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
This goes to show you how irresponsible the police departments are and never want to accept responsibility. This man shouldn’t have never been allowed into the program. I thank God they caught that dirt bag before he harmed that teen. R.I.P hope they are in heaven. It’s so said ❤😢
Brooke fought so hard probably to try and protect her daughter 💔 what that young girl witnessed and what Brooke and her parents had to watch knowing they were next. Utterly horrific and heartbreaking.
she was beautiful
she tried her best to protect and nurture her children. this was not something that anyone expected. he was being investigated for months by riv Co and other organizations .
Quickly becoming one of my favorite true crime channels on youtube
Very respectfully narrated, this is horrific and one of the sickest and evil crimes ive heard.
💚💚💚
Good Lord!! What a sick sick man!!!
Great video done on a horrific case 😢
I remember this when it happened. Why? How could it?
Sending love to the family 💕💕
Rip! 🥀🥀🥀
What an awful awful atrocity to happen to a wonderful family it’s so sad and makes no sense why the police didn’t see this when they hired this man! It blows my mind and I hope that the family members of the slain will be able to move forward in some sort of peaceful way after loosing so many of their family! Especially there beloved dogs!! Wow it blows my mind and I’m so heart broken that there is people like this that take an oath to serve and protect the public and they are the ones to do the most damage! I cannot understand how a mental health report didn’t make law enforcement see what this disgusting man was capable of!! Justice will never be had for the family now that he is dead! R.I.P. Winek family your in my prayers! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Him being not on this earth is justice. She will never have to relive her trauma of going through trial, seeing his face or him getting "8yrs" or some ridiculous sentence only to have him stalk or unalive her when got out.
👀 i remember this case please be careful doing online chats 😮
I like how you guys go further then other crime channels. Most channels only cover the basics and wrap things up in 12-15 minutes. Great job!!!
For anyone that does not know, it takes far more than 1 day to get anywhere in Virginia from anywhere in California.
What a tragic story, thank you for telling it so well TC!
yes, that's like a week straight minimum of driving
second most shocking thing in this case is that you can become a police officer in the US with just 1800 hours of (less than a year) total training?!? Its a full 3 year university degree where I live. And both physical and mental testing upon starting training.
wait until you find out there's an IQ cap. which means you can get kicked out of training for having too high of an IQ.
“Parents are responsible for their teens devices!” “The police do not at all take responsibility for this POLICE OFFICER” be for real!!!
😭 WOW never had heard of this story!!!!!
I will be talking to my grandchildren Thank you 🙏🏻
I'm sending this video to every parent I know has young adolescents. My boys are grown so it's mostly to grandparents who will be watching. This video is an awful but good example of grooming and catfishing and the dangers of not monitoring your children's social media.
Thank you truly criminal for another great story!! One we can use as a tool for teaching our young ones about catfishing & dangers of social media! Prayers of healing to the surviving sister & family
the cop saying he didn’t want to consider him a police officer because of what he’s done… like they didn’t allow him to become one after not passing the mental exam and not legally being allowed to own a firearm. they literally accepted him and the outcome is in the hands of virginia police
When an online chat website allows children as young as 13 to use their site and connect with total strangers without the need to register, it becomes the perfect hunting ground for catfish predators.
Why is chatting with strangers even a thing - just why 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
@@icingcake That's the world of today. I agree though, especially if you're under 18. You shouldn't be allowed to be talking to random strangers online. It's fk'n weird. DO SOMETHING ELSE WITH YOUR TIME KIDS!
@@bL3dbL4k frfr I don’t even want to talk to strangers, much less leave the house these days and I’m a grown ass adult 😝🤦🏻♀️
Happy Saturday everyone🖤
Terribly sad Horrific story … Excellent narration ..
It’s was 7 family members that died. 3 pups and a bird too that I’m sure meant the world to the victims ❤ rip
Seriously. And the other poor dog put into the shelter! Terrible
Ummm…animals aren’t family. They’re pets.
Rule of thumb, kiddo:
If you put a collar on it, or put it in a cage…it’s NOT “family”.
😉
@@sendthis9480 then what does that make your mother
Apparently not, since the surviving dog went to the shelter.
🙄
Clicked on this without realizing what it was… this happened 5 mins from my house. Ambulance and cops were chaotic that day… crazy
As the mother of three chronically online teenagers, this is one of my worst nightmares. My heart goes out the the surviving family members.
Show them the true crime videos of girls who were killed by stalkers, abducted by paedos, so they can feel the terror and not do stupid things like sharing personal information online or accepting "friend request" or "follow" request from unknown people. Accounts should be private if they're underage and still they should not share geolocation at the same time. Teens have been murdered because of sharing that on Instagram. Show them those cases without the gore of course.
In my time, we didn't wanted to walk lonely streets at night because the danger was much more real, tangible.
Great job Virginia on cop hires - Great job demanding your cops investigate/police themselves. We're all sure that'll be fair and unbiased.
If Virginia’s standards are this shitty, think of how bad other states must be, my God!
And Thee Academy Chief with Confidence said "We chose you we chose the best" Wow. Slim Pickens? I guess so. They just check to see if your narcissistic, if yes, you qualify.
Right? What’s scary is that might actually be their best - the police applicant pool must be in the absolute toilet 🚽
Thank God for alert & proactive neighbours!
Can't believe this guy was an officer & decided to abuse his role to murder a family & traumatize a child. Absolutely despicable. Makes it hard to trust anyone, not even law enforcement that's supposed to provide protection as well as order & peace. May the family rest in peace and hope the child is doing ok. Ty for covering this case Truly Criminal 🙏
A truly heinous crime! Thank God this pos can't maim & destroy anyone else - he's exactly where he needs to be. Rotting in hell forever!
My sympathy & love goes out to the family. I hope they can find some comfort & peace!
💔😢💔
Thank u for covering this
I love how he's trying to blame the parents, "i know it's not fun but you have to check your kids' devices! We don't want this guy associated with us even though it makes perfect sense!" Despicable
Working in police is ideal for psychopaths because they feel powerful and invincible!
I don't trust anyone in the police force.
My heart breaks for the child. The blame she must put on herself is heartbreaking. I hope she got the proper help to get her through this. May all 3 rest easy and just know he is in 🔥 His soul will forever 🔥
Oh my goodness. I didn't know the beginning of the story (the bluffing to get in the house). This is just devastating 😢
Yeah, I had wondered how he managed to do that. Geez. Another good reason to have a video doorbell; at least keep them outside while you call their supervisor or the no emergency number to check out if they’re legit.
called poker face
Thanks so much for mentioning what happened to the family pets.
Why didn't they keep the only one that survived though?
The guilt that the young girl must feel knowing it was because she went online. I hope she finds peace.
An excellent video. Well done. I am definitely going to share it.
1300 hours of training in over 100 different subjects! Wow that's like 4 days of class per subject! These guys must be geniuses! /s
I love how the news made it sounds like the cops went through some rigorous training to become cops LOL
It's less than 12 months of training. For comparison, becoming a dental hygienist takes 2-4 years
Like it's 32 and a half weeks if it's a 40 hour week. Like I think you have to do more to qualify to be a hairdresser.
This is a new one for me,and wow it’s horrendous on every way!a figure of authority to be trusted and still this happens! Social media really is terrifying!
Pure evil. This is one of the worst cases .Tragic and terrible.
You do such an amazing job with your videos!
How the hell does a man that can’t LEGALLY buy a gun have 1 gifted to him by the state of Virginia?!?!🤬. I’m OUTRAGED!! This is sickening!! Thank you for covering this 🙏.
What a joke of a police department. I wonder how many other criminals are within the Virginia police department. The staff that failed to see this previous psychiatric history should be charged. What a poor excuse they gave.
dont get online and u prolly be alive still right homie
All this stuff about checking what your kids are doing online… TAKE THEM OFFLINE. Don’t give them access to the internet. Give them books. And homeschool them if their school won’t support you. Do NOT give them iPhones, they do NOT need them.
Love your videos, I've watched them all!
I'm just sick! Many opportunities should have been looked at & taken seriously, but weren't! My God!
Rest in peace family!💔
Thank you Ladies! I’m always happy seeing your notification. Guess I’m pretty simple 🤣 Have a wonderful weekend everyone! ❤
Thank you so much!!
I've never heard of this case! I'm excited to watch the video! I love this crime channel!
I will never mind my business as a neighbor when something isn't "normal".. imagine if that neighbor didn't get the plate.
Same being vigilant can save someone’s life.
There are heaps of psycho police. They want the power.
And the ones who aren’t accepted become security guards… 😔☮️
This was done so well, one almost forgot it is a tc channel. Excellent.
Thank you for that.
Beautifully spoken by the aunt, may the children find peace with the tragic loss they suffered
How arrogant for that Police chief/ station that hired him even with all that crazy record he had.
Their shameless arrogance. telling parents to check devices, seek advice. don’t be afraid to check their kids interactions online.
When they neglected to check/handle his background accordingly. Ignoring all the red flags. They didn’t question it or seek advice. They gave him a free pass. hired him. gave him a gun and badge. A license to abuse the public. When he was not even allow to own firearm’s. And, on top of that. At the end, after the tragic event that was committed by one of their own. They don’t want to claim him. And literally blame the victims or parents for not checking on their kids.
When they don’t even bother to check on the psychos they hired, or hold themselves accountable for their mistakes. They demand to hold people responsible for their actions. Only for civilians that is. Not for police departments, or their crazy members that they hired, by looking the other way, on top of the weak, lazy, low standard hiring process. That they already have. The irony!.
Oh, just wait. Some of those they loosely hired. will be the ones doing the internal investigation.
Don’t hold your breath or time wondering what the results of that investigation will be. “After a full throughout investigation. We found nothing wrong, or any negligence in our hiring process”. He simply infiltrated the police department. Two different police departments didn’t hired him. He infiltrated the blue line. Yep.
I used to live right there as a kid by Castle Park!
This is utterly horrifying & heart breaking…
They died for nothing!!!
So damn painful 💔💔💔
Thank you! I really enjoy your videos, I watch a lot of true crime and you guys are fantastic. Always really interesting and well researched. Although I have to say, my main lesson from this is that apparently you can be a total psycho and also be a police officer so that's heartening, I'll go and hand in my application because it sounds like they could do with some people that don't kidnap teenage girls. At least if they gave me a gun, I wouldn't use it to shoot random people 😳
The sister knew something was wrong when he asked to go see the room, I wish she'd called the police with her concerns
Agreed!!