0:01

Due to the nature of this episode, listener

0:03

discretion is advised. This episode

0:05

includes discussions of explosives, death,

0:07

and violence. Consider this

0:09

when deciding how and when you'll listen. It

0:17

was a seemingly normal afternoon

0:19

at the PNC Bank in

0:21

Erie, Pennsylvania. Clients

0:24

shuffled in line as tellers deposited

0:26

checks and dispensed money. And

0:29

at 2.27pm, a stocky,

0:32

bald man walked in

0:34

looking disheveled. It

0:36

was 46-year-old Brian Wells.

0:39

He wore blue jeans and two

0:41

t-shirts. The one underneath was grey,

0:43

while the one on top said,

0:45

Guess Jeans. His chest

0:47

bulged as if it was concealing

0:50

something. And

0:52

above his collar, he seemed to be wearing

0:54

a neck brace. In his hand,

0:56

he carried what appeared to be a cane. Brian

0:59

strode confidently past the line of

1:02

customers and straight up to the

1:04

chief teller. She told him

1:06

he needed to get in line and wait his turn.

1:09

Without hesitating, he handed her

1:11

a white envelope. She

1:14

immediately understood this was a

1:16

robbery. Shakily, she pulled

1:18

out a letter from inside the envelope

1:20

and read. Then she

1:22

looked up at Brian. He

1:24

wasn't wearing a neck brace. It

1:27

was a bomb. I'm

1:30

Vanessa Richardson, host of Serial Killers,

1:32

a Spotify podcast. You can find

1:34

us here every Monday. And be

1:36

sure to check us out on

1:38

Instagram at Serial Killers Podcast. To

1:41

continue our discussion on the pizza bomber,

1:43

I'm once again joined by my friend

1:46

and host of Conspiracy Theories, Carter

1:48

Roy. Hey everybody, thanks for having me.

1:51

Stay with us. is

2:00

brought to you by Sonic. Serial

2:02

killers get a lot of attention. I

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every time. Because messes happen.

3:07

Because... Hey honey, you know

3:09

your dad's world famous chili. Yeah, the one that

3:11

takes 24 hours to make. So I was trying

3:14

to help out and bring the pot to the

3:16

table, but it was like super hot and then

3:18

I, um, dropped it. And now the floor looks

3:20

all, you know, stained with chili. Look, the point

3:22

is, you guys cool with pizza for dinner? Honey?

3:26

Ooh yeah, that happens. So start

3:28

clean with Clorox. Use

3:30

Clorox products as directed. a larger plan. He

3:34

had already ordered a pizza at the store. He was told to get a new pizza at the store.

3:36

He was told to get a new pizza at the store. He was told to get a new pizza at

3:38

the store. He was told to get a new pizza at the store. He was told to get a new

3:40

pizza at the store. He was told to get a new pizza at the store. He was told to get

3:42

a new pizza at the store. bomb

4:00

and sent to rob the local PNC

4:02

bank. When he

4:04

arrived at the location though, Brian

4:07

was startled to discover that his

4:09

co-conspirators had rigged the collar with

4:11

an active bomb dangling

4:13

from the middle box at the bottom.

4:16

The farce had taken a deadly turn.

4:19

Brian turned to run, but his

4:21

co-conspirators Robert Panetti and Floyd Stockton

4:24

tackled him to the ground. He

4:27

struggled against their grip as the

4:29

two masterminds behind the plot, Marjorie

4:31

Deal Armstrong and Bill Rothstein,

4:33

strapped the live bomb around

4:36

his neck. Bill

4:38

had made the bomb himself. It

4:40

was connected to two sunbeam kitchen

4:43

timers by an open circuit of

4:45

wires and screws. When

4:47

the timer reached the 12 o'clock position,

4:50

the switch would close and

4:52

the bomb would activate. A

4:55

green plastic lever snapped the two

4:57

semicircular arms of the collar into

4:59

place. Unlocking it would require

5:01

the insertion of two keys into two

5:03

of the four keyholes at the front

5:05

of the collar. But

5:07

Brian's cohorts wouldn't tell him how to

5:10

unlock the bomb until after he had

5:12

robbed the bank. In an

5:14

instant, he went from being a

5:16

willing participant to a hostage. And

5:19

if he wanted to survive, Brian

5:22

had to do exactly what they

5:24

said. When the

5:26

struggle was over, Bill walked to his

5:28

van and retrieved a gun shaped like

5:30

a cane. He handed it to

5:32

Brian. Marjorie told him to use

5:34

it if the tellers didn't believe he was armed

5:37

with a real bomb. Then

5:39

she pulled out a white t-shirt out of her

5:41

purse. The Guess Jeans

5:43

logo was written across the

5:45

front. Marjorie reminded

5:47

Brian of his defense. If the

5:49

police pulled him over, he was supposed to

5:51

tell them that someone had forced him to

5:54

wear the bomb, threatening to kill him if

5:56

he didn't rob a bank on their behalf.

6:00

Oddly enough, the crew took their time

6:02

in getting to the actual robbery. While

6:05

Brian sat, untadily sick to his

6:07

stomach with worry, everyone

6:09

else chowed down on the pizza he had

6:11

brought them. Only

6:13

when they were finished eating, the crew tossed

6:16

the insulated pizza bag into Bill's car. Then

6:19

Marjorie drove off in her Jeep, taking

6:21

another conspirator, Ken Barnes, with her. Marjorie

6:25

drove towards the strip mall where the PNC

6:27

bank was located. He parked directly

6:29

across from the strip mall entrance. From

6:32

here, she and Ken could see

6:34

everything. They watched through binoculars as

6:36

Brian passed by in his Geo

6:38

Metro. Bill trailed close

6:40

behind in his Mercury Marquis. The

6:43

two vehicles turned into the strip mall

6:45

lot. Brian parked near the

6:47

bank while Bill stopped his car in front of

6:49

the eyeglass world store. And

6:52

then, at 2.27pm, Brian disappeared

6:54

into the bank. The

6:56

timer on the bomb was set seven

6:58

minutes before Brian entered the bank. As

7:01

far as he knew, he had an hour until

7:03

it detonated. But the screws

7:05

in the mechanism interfered with the

7:08

timer, shaving off three minutes. He

7:11

didn't even know it yet, but from the moment Brian

7:13

walked through the door, he only had

7:15

50 minutes left. Brian

7:27

strolled inside and casually made his way

7:29

past the line of waiting customers to

7:31

the chief teller. She told

7:33

him to get in line and wait his turn. But

7:36

Brian knew he didn't have time for that. He

7:38

handed the teller his envelope. Right

7:41

away, her eyes went wide. She

7:44

had worked in banking long enough to know

7:47

that this was a demand note. Shaking,

7:50

she opened the envelope to

7:52

find four pages covered in

7:54

small handwriting. Deceptionist, do

7:56

not cause panic or many

7:58

people will be killed. Sounding

8:01

an alarm will interrupt this

8:03

action and guarantee injuries and

8:05

death. Involving authorities at

8:07

this point will get the hostage

8:09

and other people killed. Immediately

8:12

without causing alarm, you must

8:14

contact the bank manager in

8:16

private. The bomb hostage must

8:19

accompany you. Bomb

8:21

is expertly booby trapped and

8:23

cannot be disarmed in time

8:25

unless keys are found by

8:27

following instructions immediately. The

8:31

letter went on to demand $250,000, an unreasonably high amount

8:33

of cash for any bank to have in its vault.

8:40

It also explained how after

8:42

he'd successfully obtained the money,

8:44

Brian could locate the keys

8:47

to save his life. The

8:49

final line was clear and certain.

8:53

Act now, think later,

8:55

or you will die. It

8:58

was signed, The Troubleshooters.

9:02

While the teller shuffled off to her manager's

9:04

office, Brian grabbed a lollipop from

9:06

the bowl and popped it in his mouth.

9:09

When the teller returned, she told Brian her

9:11

manager was out at lunch. He wouldn't be

9:14

back for another half an hour. Brian

9:16

was calm but adamant he told her he

9:19

didn't have that kind of time. He

9:21

needed the $250,000 now to prove he was serious. He

9:27

lifted his shirt, revealing the

9:29

bomb. By this

9:31

point, the teller was undoubtedly panicked,

9:33

but she couldn't oblige the outlandish

9:35

request. Only the manager

9:37

had access to the vault. Instead,

9:40

she offered to give Brian the money from

9:42

the drawers, hoping it would suffice. Trembling,

9:45

she reached inside her cash drawer and pulled

9:47

out all the money inside. Then

9:50

she went to the other stations, gathering their

9:52

cash too. She put

9:54

the money in a white canvas bag

9:56

and handed it to Brian. All together,

10:00

It amounted to $8,702. Now

10:05

it was Brian's turn to panic. He

10:07

was $241,000 short of the money he needed to get

10:10

out alive. If

10:14

he failed, he was dead. The

10:17

letter he'd handed to the teller made one

10:19

thing clear. No money, no

10:22

keys. Anxiously, he

10:24

told the teller it wasn't enough,

10:26

but her hands were tied. Brian

10:29

knew he didn't have time to argue. Each

10:31

second was precious. At this

10:33

point, his time was better spent trying to find

10:35

the key to his collar. He

10:37

turned and walked out of the bank. 11

10:40

precious minutes had been wasted on the

10:43

failed mission. At

10:46

2.38 p.m., Brian strolled out with

10:48

a lollipop in his mouth, looking

10:51

relatively calm, considering the imminent

10:53

danger he was in. In

10:56

his right hand, he carried the cane-shaped

10:58

gun. In his left, he

11:00

twirled the bag of cash. As

11:03

soon as he left, three people inside the bank

11:05

called 911. Within

11:08

two minutes, the Pennsylvania State Police

11:10

were on their way. Back in

11:12

the parking lot, Brian glanced at the

11:14

notes his co-conspirators had given him, simply

11:17

addressed to bomb hostage.

11:20

They contained his first set of instructions

11:23

for finding the key. The

11:25

instructions read, Exit the

11:27

bank with the money and go to

11:29

the McDonald's restaurant. Get out of the

11:31

car and go to the small sign

11:33

reading, Drive through, open 24 hours. In

11:37

the flower bed by the sign, there's

11:39

a rock with a note taped to

11:41

the bottom. It has your next instructions.

11:44

The gravity of the situation

11:46

finally sunk in. He

11:49

was being sent on a

11:51

scavenger hunt for his life. This

12:00

episode is brought to you by Sonic. Serial

12:03

killers get a lot of attention. I

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mean, you're listening to this show. You

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know what else deserves your undivided attention?

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For a limited time, you can get

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12:20

satisfy your hunger. So stop by Sonic

12:23

today and add a side of crispy

12:25

tots and your favorite drink to make

12:27

it a killer meal. Tax not included.

12:29

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more at uh1.com. Without

13:05

a moment to lose, Brian took off.

13:07

He drove to McDonald's and walked up

13:10

to the drive-thru sign as instructed. He

13:12

found the large rock in the flower bed,

13:14

and underneath it was his next set

13:16

of instructions. He was

13:18

to drive back to the Eyeglass World parking

13:21

lot in the same strip mall as the

13:23

bank and remove a piece

13:25

of orange tape stuck to his collar

13:27

bomb. Then he was told

13:29

to tie it around the fire hydrant at

13:32

Peach Street to signal that he had the

13:34

money and had left the bank. Brian

13:37

raced over to Eyeglass World, but

13:39

as he turned into the parking lot, he noticed

13:41

the flashing lights of a police cruiser in

13:43

his rearview mirror. His heart

13:46

sank. It was only 2.49 p.m., 11

13:48

minutes since he'd left the bank, and

13:52

already two state troopers had caught up

13:54

with him. their

14:00

way over to Brian, who obediently got

14:02

out of his car. They

14:04

noticed the brace-like device around his neck.

14:07

Cautiously, they handcuffed his hands behind

14:09

his back. From their

14:11

car across the street, two of Brian's

14:13

cohorts, Marjorie Deal Armstrong

14:16

and Ken Barnes, watched it all

14:18

happen in terror. There

14:20

was a good chance Brian could turn on them,

14:22

given the way things had played out. They

14:25

made the quick decision to hit the road.

14:29

Marjorie floored it out of the parking

14:31

lot, tires squealing. She ran a red

14:33

light and raced into the parking lot

14:35

of an auto auction business. Bill

14:38

Rothstein arrived moments later. After

14:40

a brief discussion, they realized they needed

14:43

to get rid of the remaining scavenger

14:45

hunt clues. The notes would undoubtedly incriminate

14:47

them if the police found them. But

14:50

by removing the clues, they

14:52

would seal Brian's fate. Marjorie

14:55

hopped into Bill's car and told Bill and

14:57

Ken to get in. Ken asked

14:59

why they weren't taking Marjorie's car. Marjorie

15:02

replied cryptically that she was thinking

15:04

of selling hers. In

15:06

reality, of course, she didn't want to be

15:09

driving around the crime scene in a car

15:11

that could immediately be traced to her. So

15:14

frantic, Marjorie tore out of the parking

15:16

lot and merged onto the highway, going

15:18

the wrong way. Ken

15:20

was terrified. Out the window, he

15:22

saw another motorist driving in the

15:24

right direction, wagging his finger at

15:26

Marjorie. But Marjorie did have a

15:29

plan. Back in the

15:31

parking lot, a handcuffed Brian kneeled on the

15:33

ground next to his car. More

15:35

police were arriving. Brian warned the

15:38

troopers that he was wearing a

15:40

picking time bomb. They

15:42

immediately fell back in caution. At

15:45

3 or 4 p.m., 14 minutes

15:47

before the imminent explosion, a

15:50

state trooper summoned the Erie Police's bomb

15:53

squad. Brian was growing exasperated.

15:55

He pleaded with them to help him

15:57

find the clues to the key. asked

16:00

them to lift up his shirt and check the

16:02

time remaining on the bomb. But

16:04

he'd have to wait until the

16:06

bomb squad got there. The state

16:08

troopers were still skeptical about the

16:10

whole situation. If they

16:12

were going to help, they'd need more

16:15

information. Brian told

16:17

them that he'd been delivering a pizza to

16:19

the TV tower on Peach Street when a

16:21

man snuck up on him. He'd tried to

16:23

get away, but the man fired a gun.

16:26

Brian said that he hadn't been hurt, but

16:28

he did fall to the ground. The

16:31

man had used that opportunity to fasten

16:33

the collar bomb around his neck before

16:35

ordering him to rob the PNC bank.

16:38

Brian claimed that two other men

16:40

were sent to follow him to

16:42

ensure he obeyed their instructions. It

16:45

was a tale that closely resembled the

16:47

truth. Brian likely lied about the identity

16:49

of his captors out of fear. If

16:52

they were listening, they would know he hadn't given

16:54

them up. But the troopers

16:56

continued to press Brian for details. What

16:59

did the man look like? What

17:01

was he wearing? What was he

17:03

driving? Brian had

17:06

no response. The

17:08

officials remained skeptical. They'd received countless

17:10

fake bomb threats, and for all

17:13

they knew, this was one of

17:15

them. Before they sounded

17:17

the alarms, they had to be sure

17:19

that the bomb was real. Two

17:22

of the troopers cautiously walked up to

17:24

Brian. One used a knife to

17:26

cut open his T-shirt and look at the

17:28

box hanging from the metal collar. Through

17:31

the steel mesh covering the box's

17:33

opening, he could see a white

17:35

plastic timer and a series of

17:37

wires. Then he noticed a

17:40

warning engraved on the metal panel on

17:42

the side of the box. It said,

17:44

do not open, do not

17:46

remove. Startled, the

17:49

troopers backed away. They

17:51

said the bomb looked real, but until

17:53

the bomb squad arrived, there was no

17:55

way to be certain. From

17:58

a safe distance, the troops Troopers asked Brian

18:00

how long he had before the bomb went

18:02

off. Brian replied that he'd

18:04

been given 20 minutes to

18:06

get the money and another 50 minutes

18:09

to follow the instructions back to

18:11

the keys. But remember, this

18:13

was a mistaken figure. In reality, Brian had

18:16

50 minutes in total

18:18

and time was running short. He

18:23

pleaded with him to go find the

18:25

next clue to locate the keys, but

18:27

the authorities only kept questioning him, asking

18:29

why he hadn't gone straight to the

18:31

police. Brian reiterated

18:33

that at least three other people were watching

18:36

him to make sure he followed through with

18:38

the robbery. And as far

18:40

as Brian knew, this was true. Bill,

18:42

Marjorie, and Ken had followed him

18:44

to the bank, although

18:46

now they were long gone,

18:50

sweeping up the last clues that could

18:52

save Brian's life. While

18:55

Brian was pleading with the troopers,

18:57

Marjorie tore down the wrong side

18:59

of the highway in Bill's Mercury

19:01

Marquis. After Ken pointed

19:03

out her error, she pulled into the

19:05

median, made a U-turn, and continued back.

19:09

Suddenly, without explanation, she pulled to the

19:11

side of the road. She

19:13

simply told Ken she needed to go to the

19:15

bathroom. Marjorie

19:17

walked around the back of the car, climbed

19:20

over a guardrail, and

19:22

scurried down an embankment. When

19:25

she returned, she tossed something into the

19:27

backseat. Ken didn't

19:29

see what it was, only that it

19:31

was wrapped in a white T-shirt. Investigators

19:35

would later believe this was one of the

19:37

scavenger hunt clues. Back

19:39

in the eyeglass world parking lot, FBI

19:42

agent Jerry Clark arrived on the

19:44

scene. He would become

19:47

an essential figure in the investigation,

19:49

but for now, Clark

19:51

was convinced the whole thing was

19:53

a hoax. As

19:56

an expert interviewer, he was tempted to jump

19:58

in and question Brian himself. But

20:00

he didn't want to jeopardize the rapport the state

20:03

troopers had already built with him.

20:05

He figured he would have a chance to talk to Brian once

20:07

this whole ordeal was over. But

20:09

this was assuming the bomb was either

20:12

fake or could be removed in

20:14

time. In the

20:16

meantime, Brian begged for the troopers

20:18

to remove his handcuffs. The

20:21

collar was heavy and the weight from the box was

20:23

hurting his neck. He wanted

20:25

to use his hands to hold it up,

20:28

but the troopers insisted that he

20:30

remain seated and handcuffed until the

20:32

bomb squad arrived. At

20:35

his wit's end, Brian asked for

20:37

a cigarette, but the troopers said

20:39

no. Then he asked

20:41

for a priest. Again

20:44

they refused. Finally

20:46

Brian asked why no one was trying to

20:48

help him. He pleaded

20:50

with the troopers to get the instructions out

20:52

of his car and then, strangely,

20:55

he asked them to call Mamma

20:58

Mia's pizzeria and tell them

21:00

about the situation. Suddenly

21:02

Brian said he could hear the bomb

21:04

beeping. He frantically begged for the

21:07

handcuffs to be removed. But

21:09

no one helped him. No

21:11

one could have. The

21:14

timer beeped for 10 seconds. Then

21:17

shifted slightly. Then

21:21

he was dead. However

21:27

you celebrate, the holiday season can

21:29

be a lot. What do you

21:31

mean the flight's cancelled? Don't fight

21:33

with your sister. Between travel, family,

21:35

shopping, cooking, and more. The turkey.

21:37

So when you're feeling overwhelmed, stop.

21:41

Take a moment. Check in on yourself.

21:44

Don't try to do everything at once. Focus

21:47

on one small thing at a time.

21:50

For more tips for dealing

21:52

with stress, visit mha.ohio.gov. Check

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hellofresh.com/listenfree with the code

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listenfree. At

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3.18 p.m., the

22:55

bomb strapped around Brian Well's

22:57

neck exploded. The

22:59

blast slammed the metal box holding the bomb

23:01

into his chest. It cut

23:03

into his heart, killing him instantly.

23:07

It had only been an hour and

23:09

a half since Brian had first left

23:11

the pizzeria on his fateful errand. At

23:14

3.21 p.m., three minutes

23:16

after Brian's death, the

23:19

bomb unit arrived. They

23:21

approached Brian carefully and examined his

23:23

body for other explosives, but none

23:26

were found. FBI

23:28

agent Jerry Clark stared at

23:30

the wreckage. Just

23:33

a few minutes before he had been

23:35

skeptical of Brian's story, but

23:37

now he was fascinated. He

23:40

wanted to be the one to solve this

23:42

case. Local law

23:44

enforcement wasted no time in verifying

23:47

Brian's identity. Meanwhile, a

23:49

state trooper drove to Mamma Mia's pizzeria

23:51

where Brian said he worked. The

23:54

trooper examined the restaurant's caller ID

23:56

box to determine who ordered

23:58

Brian's final delivery. They

24:01

tracked the phone number to a pay phone at

24:03

a local shell station. From there,

24:05

the trail went cold. Meanwhile,

24:07

state troopers and FBI agents

24:09

swarmed the TV tower on

24:12

Peach Street, looking for

24:14

the fictional man Brian had described as

24:16

his captor. But

24:18

they came up empty-handed. Back

24:21

at the crime scene, authorities

24:23

picked through the remnants of

24:25

the blast, an ever-active double-A

24:27

battery, scraps from two white

24:29

sunbeam kitchen timers, and a

24:31

bone fragment from Brian's neck.

24:34

When they searched Brian's car, they

24:36

found the instructions for the scavenger

24:39

hunt. He had

24:41

been telling them the truth. Investigators

24:44

followed the instructions onto the

24:46

highway, driving until they reached

24:48

Exit 180 for the Mill

24:50

Creek Mall. From there, the

24:52

note said to walk into the woods and

24:54

search for a container. Inside

24:57

the container was a note directing them

24:59

to another stop along the highway. This

25:02

time, they were to look for

25:04

a small sign indicating the boundary from

25:06

McCain Township. Once

25:09

there, the instructions said to walk

25:11

into the woods and follow orange

25:13

tapes to the container with instructions

25:15

inside. But when the

25:17

investigators searched the woods, they found

25:20

no container. Evidently, someone

25:22

had gotten there before them. Now

25:25

while the investigators were out on the

25:27

scavenger hunt, Agent Clark focused

25:29

his attention on getting a search

25:31

warrant for Brian's house. The

25:34

unassuming pizza bomber was the key

25:36

to cracking this case. Had

25:39

someone truly forced his hand, or

25:42

had he acted alone? At

25:45

1.25 the next morning, police blew

25:47

down the door to Brian's cottage.

25:50

But the search bore little fruit. The

25:52

only notable items were two spiral notebooks

25:54

full of names and telephone numbers. It

25:57

would become useful later on, but for now, it's time to go to

25:59

the hospital. Now the police were still struggling

26:01

to cobble together a picture of what

26:03

they were dealing with. Later

26:07

that day, FBI agents made their way

26:09

to a house near the Peachtree TV

26:12

tower. They wanted to ask

26:14

the resident, Bill Rothstein,

26:17

whether he'd seen any suspicious activity

26:19

the day before. Surprisingly,

26:21

Bill answered the door. The

26:24

agents questioned him about the previous

26:26

day, and Bill feigned complete ignorance.

26:28

He insisted that he never went

26:30

near the TV tower and hadn't

26:32

heard anything about the so-called Pizza

26:34

Bomber. The agents were

26:37

so satisfied with his response that

26:39

they didn't even search his house.

26:42

According to Agent Clark, they couldn't

26:44

imagine someone participating in a plot

26:46

that had unfolded so close to

26:48

their own home. They left

26:51

Bill's house with no idea. They

26:53

just found one of the masterminds

26:55

behind the bombing. It's just mind-boggling.

26:59

Now the following day, investigators

27:02

interviewed Brian's co-worker, Robert Panetti.

27:04

Once again, they had no clue they

27:07

were talking to someone who had actually

27:09

been involved in the robbery. But

27:12

Robert's performance was less credible than

27:14

Bill's. According to FBI agents,

27:16

he kept fidgeting and insisting he was too

27:18

busy to talk to them. The

27:21

agents finally relented, saying that they

27:23

would circle back with him. But

27:26

they would never get the chance. He

27:28

was undoubtedly guilt-stricken at having played

27:30

a part in his death, and

27:33

he may have feared that Bill and Marjorie would

27:35

turn on him, too. He was

27:37

right to be afraid. His cohorts had

27:39

no time or patience for a crisis

27:41

of conscience. They couldn't risk

27:44

him confessing. Mere hours

27:46

after his visit from the FBI, Robert

27:48

met up with his co-conspirators for the

27:50

very last time. Then

27:53

Barnes gave him a drink, which

27:55

Robert would have gratefully accepted, given his

27:57

nerves, but unbeknownst to Robert.

28:00

The drink was spiked with methadone

28:02

and Xanax. This

28:05

would silence him once and for

28:07

all. In

28:13

the wee hours of the next morning, Robert went

28:15

back to the house he shared with his parents.

28:18

His mother immediately recognized that something was

28:20

wrong. But Robert assured her that

28:22

he was okay. He said he'd been at

28:24

his sister's house and had a few too

28:26

many beers. At

28:29

5am, Robert's mother found

28:31

him lying unconscious in his own

28:33

vomit on the bathroom floor. An

28:36

ambulance was called, but Robert

28:38

refused to go to the hospital. By

28:41

9am, he was dead. The

28:45

coroner ruled Robert's death an

28:47

overdose. But Agent Clark

28:49

was deeply suspicious. Two

28:51

Mamma Mia's employees had died within

28:53

days of each other. Was it

28:55

really a coincidence or

28:57

were they somehow connected? Meanwhile,

29:00

the FBI's Behavioral Analysis

29:02

Unit in Quantico analyzed

29:05

the envelope of instructions that had been

29:07

given to Brian. They used

29:09

these to create a profile of the

29:12

person or people behind the plot. They

29:15

concluded, quote, the offender

29:17

likes power. He's obsessive.

29:20

He manipulates people. But

29:22

he's also patient. This

29:25

offender invested a great deal of thought

29:27

and planning into this scheme. It's

29:29

possible Brian knew the offender and misjudged

29:31

the level of danger. It's

29:34

also possible getting the bank's money

29:36

was not the motivating factor. For

29:39

whomever rocked the bomb around Brian

29:41

Wells, the ordeal was about

29:43

control and manipulation. The

29:46

profilers were spot on. Bill

29:49

and Marjorie had a long

29:51

history of devious and controlling

29:53

behavior. And the manipulating

29:56

had only just begun. Brian's

30:00

death, the investigation had still

30:02

gotten nowhere, but Marjorie

30:04

was growing more and more anxious. She

30:06

was worried that the investigation would point

30:09

to her and the

30:11

other person she'd recently killed.

30:13

Remember a few weeks before the

30:15

robbery, Marjorie murdered her boyfriend, Jim

30:17

Roden. He had initially agreed

30:20

to take part in the robbery, but

30:22

then backed out, so Marjorie

30:24

shot him to make sure he wouldn't

30:26

squeal. Now, his

30:28

body was still stashed in a freezer

30:30

at Bill's house. Marjorie

30:33

was so paranoid that she slept in

30:35

her Jeep at night, always prepared for

30:37

a quick getaway. Finally, on

30:39

September 20th, she and Bill decided

30:42

to take action. At 4.30 that

30:44

evening, the pair headed

30:46

to the store and left with an ice

30:48

crusher. They went back to

30:50

Bill's house and hung black tarps in the

30:52

windows to avoid being seen. At this

30:56

point, Bill wanted to wash his hands

30:59

of this whole mess. He

31:01

had already helped to plan the robbery,

31:03

built a bomb that killed Brian and

31:05

lied to the FBI agents, not

31:08

to mention stashing Jim's body in his freezer

31:10

for Marjorie. Enough was

31:13

enough, so while he and Marjorie

31:15

were hanging the tarps, he

31:17

insisted that they needed a stapler to

31:19

help. He told Marjorie he

31:22

had one in his van and quickly

31:24

excused himself. When he got

31:26

to his car, he immediately hopped in the

31:28

driver's seat and sped away. Then

31:31

he pulled out his cell phone

31:33

and dialed 911. When the

31:35

operator answered, Bill stuttered, at 8645 Peach

31:37

Street, there's a woman with

31:41

green slacks, a blue shirt, a

31:43

brown purse. The operator asked

31:45

Bill to slow down and tell her what

31:47

the woman needed. Bill responded

31:49

that there was a body inside

31:51

the garage freezer. He explained

31:54

that the freezer was his, but that he

31:56

didn't want anything to do with the woman

31:58

at the house. Bill's told

32:00

the operator that woman's name.

32:05

Marjorie Diehl Armstrong.

32:14

Thanks for listening to Serial Killers, a

32:16

Spotify podcast. We'll be back next week

32:18

for the final part of this story.

32:20

And be sure to check us out

32:23

on Instagram at Serial Killers podcast. For

32:26

more information on Marjorie Diehl Armstrong

32:28

amongst the many sources we

32:30

used, we found Mania and Marjorie

32:32

Diehl Armstrong by Jerry Clark and

32:34

Ed Palatilla extremely helpful to our

32:36

research. Until next time, remember, the

32:39

truth isn't always the best story and

32:42

the official story isn't always the

32:45

truth. Conspiracy

32:49

theories and Serial Killers are

32:51

Spotify podcasts. This episode was

32:53

written by Natalie McKeeran, edited

32:55

by Kate Gallagher and Chelsea

32:58

Wood, researched by Adriana Gomez,

33:00

fact-checked by Kara McEerlin, and

33:02

sound-designed by Sam Baer. Our

33:05

head of programming is Julian Bwarro,

33:07

our head of production is Nick

33:09

Johnson, and Spencer Howard is our

33:11

post-production supervisor. Conspiracy theories

33:13

is hosted by Carter Roy, and

33:15

Serial Killers is hosted by me,

33:18

Vanessa Richardson. Thanks

33:23

for watching!