Ransom

Launching May 15, 2024. Twelve-year-old McKay Everett disappeared from his Texas home in September 1995. His father Carl returned from an Amway meeting to find the back door ajar and the telephone ringing. On the line, a woman with a raspy voice demanded $500,000. Over the next week, the FBI played a game of cat-and-mouse with the kidnappers, who used inside information to stay one step ahead of the investigation. Ultimately the FBI uncovered a series of crimes that started long before McKay was taken. Most shocking of all was the suspect. McKay had been betrayed by someone he trusted – a pillar of the community hiding a dark secret. But decades later, McKay’s mother, Paulette, still isn’t satisfied with the official story. She doesn’t think everyone involved has been brought to justice. Ransom: Season 1 - Position of Trust is a story of greed and betrayal and how one’s outward appearance can be dangerously deceiving.

Carl and Paulette Everett return home to find the back door propped open and 12-year-old McKay missing. But, mysteriously, there are no signs of struggle or a break-in – It’s as if McKay has left on his own. Soon the FBI gets involved, everyone becomes a suspect, and a golden Chrysler raises suspicion. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM June’s Journey: June's Journey: Download June’s Journey for free today on iOS (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/junes-journey-hidden-objects/id1200391796) and Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.wooga.junes_journey_hidden_object_mystery_game&hl=en&gl=US&pli=1) Better Help: Visit https://BetterHelp.com/RANSOM today to get 10% off your first month.

The FBI begins polygraphing and interviewing persons of interest. Paulette thinks back through her relationship with Carl searching for clues, and investigators narrow down the search to three suspects. Thank you for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM June’s Journey: June's Journey: Download June’s Journey for free today on iOS (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/junes-journey-hidden-objects/id1200391796) and Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.wooga.junes_journey_hidden_object_mystery_game&hl=en&gl=US&pli=1)

FBI agent Ralph Harp discusses the investigation, as well as how he joined the FBI. Then, family friend Ric Metts on his perspective on the case and the other time he was accused of a crime and polygraphed. Thank you for supporting our sponsors! June's Journey: Download June’s Journey for free today on iOS (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/junes-journey-hidden-objects/id1200391796) and Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.wooga.junes_journey_hidden_object_mystery_game&hl=en&gl=US&pli=1)

Where was Hilton Crawford the night that McKay disappeared and what has he been doing in the hours since? The FBI follows up on a new lead regarding the golden Chrysler and tries to track down the raspy-voiced ransom caller. Thanks for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

FBI agent Cindy Rosenthal worked on the McKay Everett case as both an FBI agent and a lawyer, as chief division counsel for the Houston office. She walks us through how the FBI decides to pull the trigger and arrest someone they suspect of involvement in a crime. Thank you for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

The Everetts make a heart-wrenching plea for the kidnappers to spare McKay’s life. But with a suspect in custody, things escalate to a whole new level – How many accomplices are involved and where are they holding McKay?

For her role as the raspy-voiced ransom caller, Irene Flores was convicted of aggravated kidnapping and served 23 years in prison. Producer Ben Kuebrich interviewed her outside her home. She speaks about the her relationship with Hilton Crawford, the mindset that led to her involvement in the crime, and how she feels about the whole ordeal. Thank you for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

Using Hilton’s jailhouse map, a mad scramble is made to the Atchafalaya swamp, where McKay is found. Then, investigators learn the supposed motivation behind the kidnapping and a claim that becomes one of the biggest mysteries in the case – Hilton’s accomplice R. L. Remington. Thanks for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM Better Help: This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Visit https://betterhelp.com/Ransom to get 10% off your first month.

The night deputy Marcus Guidry discovered McKay’s body something else happened – he nearly got into a shootout. Guidry was ununiformed and got into a tense encounter with a deputy from a different parish, Jerry Stassi. The two say they’ve investigated many crimes at Whiskey Bay – a strange no man’s land out in the middle of the Achafalaya swamp.

What would drive a “family friend” to kidnap a 12-year-old boy? And how can someone capable of that darkness go unnoticed for decades? Hilton Crawford was a former sheriff’s deputy and was respected in the community. We explore Hilton's backstory and the red flags that were overlooked before the kidnapping. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM Better Help: This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Visit https://BetterHelp.com/RANSOM today to get 10% off your first month

Author Tannie Shannon spent years interviewing Hilton Crawford in prison. In the early days, Tannie was allowed to document the conversations on a tape recorder. On one of the tapes Hilton talks about his early life, his relationship with his wife and his law enforcement career with the Beaumont police and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Departments. Thanks for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

Paulette is overwhelmed by grief and rage at the tragedy. As she looks back, she realizes another accomplice might be in their midst, bringing up a bigger question: When someone hurts a child, how far does the culpability extend? Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM Better Help: This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Visit https://BetterHelp.com/RANSOM today to get 10% off your first month

Grief takes many forms and recently psychiatrists realized that some suffer from extended grieving which may require therapy to get over. Dr. Shear worked to investigate this phenomenon, which was officially recognized as ‘prolonged grief disorder’ in 2022. Studies show it’s particularly common with tragedies like McKay’s – following the sudden, unexpected death of a spouse or child, especially in horrific circumstances like murder. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

New facts about McKay’s murder come out at trial: A dead-ringer for R. L. Remmington is found and a murder-for-hire plot comes to light. But an explosive event prompts the defense to ask for a mistrial. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM Better Help: This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Visit https://BetterHelp.com/RANSOM today to get 10% off your first month

Dr. Fong describes the history of gambling disorder, how the rise in online gambling and day trading may be leading to a gambling epidemic, and how he thinks about whether gambling addiction or sociopathy can better explain a crime. Thanks for supporting our sponsors! SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM

In this final episode, McKay’s kidnapping leads to two more deaths,Tannie Shannon tries to get inside Hilton’s head and figure out what truly caused this crime, and Hilton undergoes an unexpected transformation. Than, Paulette and Carl struggle to move forward and find new meaning in their lives. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: Better Help: This episode is sponsored by Better Help. Visit https://BetterHelp.com/RANSOM today to get 10% off your first month

Reporter Mike Graczyk shares the insights he's learned from forty years of covering executions and death row inmates, and his experience reporting on Hilton Crawford and the McKay Everett case.

This podcast came to be because the son of an FBI agent asked his dad about the hardest case of his career. In our final bonus episode agent Donnie Miller and his son Austin joins host Art Rascon and producer Ben Kuebrich to talk about why the kidnapping of McKay Everett was so devastating. Thank you for supporting our sponsors: SimpliSafe: Get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring at https://SimpliSafe.com/RANSOM