1 00:00:01,577 --> 00:00:02,751 [narrator] Shawnie Mulligan always wanted a partner 2 00:00:02,753 --> 00:00:04,712 who could keep up with her. 3 00:00:04,788 --> 00:00:07,965 I just wanted someone nice and who had the same passion 4 00:00:07,967 --> 00:00:10,067 for riding bikes that I did. 5 00:00:10,069 --> 00:00:13,679 [narrator] Thrill seeker Ron Braden seemed like a perfect fit. 6 00:00:13,681 --> 00:00:16,390 [Thomas Phippen] He seemed to have a great job, life, 7 00:00:16,425 --> 00:00:18,017 that anybody in the community would look up to. 8 00:00:18,019 --> 00:00:20,394 [narrator] But Ron's lust for life 9 00:00:20,396 --> 00:00:23,063 leads Shawnie down a dark path. 10 00:00:23,649 --> 00:00:25,983 It started with one sexual act. 11 00:00:25,985 --> 00:00:28,318 And then things just progressed. 12 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:30,571 This isn't me. I don't wanna do this. 13 00:00:30,573 --> 00:00:33,699 And how do I get out of it? How do I stop it? 14 00:00:33,701 --> 00:00:36,869 [narrator] When Ron's secret blows up, 15 00:00:36,871 --> 00:00:38,762 no one is safe. 16 00:00:38,764 --> 00:00:40,497 [Shawnie Mulligan] One of the things they find is that AR-15 17 00:00:41,083 --> 00:00:42,958 and a huge bag of ammo. 18 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:44,376 [policeman] It's all 556. 19 00:00:44,378 --> 00:00:47,755 I feared for Shawnie's life, I feared for our life. 20 00:00:47,757 --> 00:00:51,050 It occurred to me that I had no idea who I was married to, 21 00:00:51,594 --> 00:00:54,094 who he would hurt, what he would do. 22 00:01:10,571 --> 00:01:12,696 [narrator] Growing up in Colorado, 23 00:01:12,698 --> 00:01:16,825 Shawnie Mulligan has always loved the thrill of the outdoors. 24 00:01:18,037 --> 00:01:21,538 As a kid, every Friday night we'd jump into the car 25 00:01:21,540 --> 00:01:24,041 and we'd drive three and a half hours to ski rac 26 00:01:24,085 --> 00:01:25,501 every single weekend in the winter. 27 00:01:25,503 --> 00:01:26,502 That's what we did. 28 00:01:27,171 --> 00:01:29,838 Shawnie was the fastest 29 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:32,800 ten-year-old girl skier in the country. 30 00:01:32,802 --> 00:01:35,969 Then Shawnie went into running races. 31 00:01:36,046 --> 00:01:38,680 She showed talent from the very beginning. 32 00:01:38,682 --> 00:01:41,517 She and her brother ran together. 33 00:01:41,593 --> 00:01:43,493 She was just phenomenal. 34 00:01:44,355 --> 00:01:47,689 [narrator] When Shawnie graduates from college in 2005, 35 00:01:47,766 --> 00:01:49,858 the economy is in a downturn 36 00:01:49,860 --> 00:01:51,902 Finding her professional footing is difficult, 37 00:01:51,904 --> 00:01:56,198 so she takes a job at a bike shop in Boulder. 38 00:01:56,200 --> 00:01:58,033 [Shawnie] Until the job market picks back up. 39 00:01:58,110 --> 00:01:59,609 And I was like, 40 00:01:59,611 --> 00:02:02,704 "Okay, like, this is, you know, what I'm gonna do." 41 00:02:04,667 --> 00:02:06,375 I was really into cycling then. 42 00:02:06,377 --> 00:02:07,775 Part of what I liked about riding my bike 43 00:02:07,777 --> 00:02:09,670 was that I was good at it. Like, I stood out. 44 00:02:09,746 --> 00:02:11,046 It was something I did well. 45 00:02:13,467 --> 00:02:16,426 Shawnie can put many men in the dust, 46 00:02:16,428 --> 00:02:19,429 uh, when it comes to running, cycling, skiing. 47 00:02:19,473 --> 00:02:22,391 [narrator] Even her own husband can't keep up with Shawnie, 48 00:02:22,467 --> 00:02:24,852 when she gets married at the age of 26. 49 00:02:25,688 --> 00:02:28,397 He was a really nice guy, well-educated. 50 00:02:28,399 --> 00:02:30,691 But they didn't have anything in common. 51 00:02:30,767 --> 00:02:33,944 [narrator] They divorce afte three years of marriage. 52 00:02:33,946 --> 00:02:37,030 And a few years later, Shawnie joins a dating site 53 00:02:37,032 --> 00:02:40,200 hoping to find someone more compatible. 54 00:02:40,277 --> 00:02:43,036 I just wanted someone nice and who had the same passion 55 00:02:43,038 --> 00:02:45,164 for riding bikes that I did. 56 00:02:45,166 --> 00:02:48,000 I believe Ron reached out to me first, 57 00:02:48,002 --> 00:02:49,376 and sent me a message, 58 00:02:49,378 --> 00:02:53,297 and that my biking photos were awesome. 59 00:02:53,340 --> 00:02:56,008 His profile picture wasn't great. 60 00:02:56,010 --> 00:02:58,010 It was just kind of this weird photo of him. 61 00:02:58,086 --> 00:03:01,805 Nothing, like, fun, riding bikes or anything like that. 62 00:03:02,683 --> 00:03:04,725 He had a good 15 years on me 63 00:03:04,801 --> 00:03:07,728 At the time, I was signed u for this big race 64 00:03:07,804 --> 00:03:08,770 called the Leadville 100. 65 00:03:08,772 --> 00:03:11,940 And he had done it before. 66 00:03:12,017 --> 00:03:14,109 It's one of the biggest mountain bike races in the country. 67 00:03:15,779 --> 00:03:17,821 It was definitely something we bonded over. 68 00:03:18,616 --> 00:03:21,408 So, the first day was a bike ride. 69 00:03:21,410 --> 00:03:23,285 We were gonna do a... 70 00:03:23,362 --> 00:03:27,164 this kind of afternoon night ride into the canyons 71 00:03:28,876 --> 00:03:32,628 Part of me was like, "Okay, let's see if this guy can really ride a bike. 72 00:03:33,505 --> 00:03:35,380 Is he gonna be who he says he is?" 73 00:03:35,382 --> 00:03:37,633 On the way down, I dropped my chain. 74 00:03:37,709 --> 00:03:39,843 He totally took advantage of that. 75 00:03:39,845 --> 00:03:43,055 And he's like, "Pass me!" Laughing at me. 76 00:03:44,433 --> 00:03:46,350 It was definitely, like, a little bit competitive. 77 00:03:46,352 --> 00:03:49,353 And that, you know, he's gonna take advantage 78 00:03:49,388 --> 00:03:53,357 of that tactical error and beat me to the bottom. 79 00:03:54,610 --> 00:03:58,153 And it was just fun. And he was kind of funny. 80 00:03:58,155 --> 00:04:01,448 He's like, "I've always wanted to kiss a girl on a mountain bike trail." 81 00:04:02,284 --> 00:04:04,701 He was very into it and excited about it. 82 00:04:05,746 --> 00:04:07,579 The day he left, after the third day, 83 00:04:07,581 --> 00:04:09,998 I remember he, like, left on of his mountain bikes with m 84 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:12,376 to try out, 'cause it was, like, a full carbon, 85 00:04:12,378 --> 00:04:13,835 really nice mountain bike. 86 00:04:13,921 --> 00:04:15,462 And I was like, "Whoa. 87 00:04:16,340 --> 00:04:18,340 Um, that's crazy." 88 00:04:18,342 --> 00:04:20,968 For once, it was someone that could keep up with her. 89 00:04:20,970 --> 00:04:24,596 He seemed like a really charming, genuine guy, 90 00:04:24,598 --> 00:04:26,390 successful in business, 91 00:04:26,392 --> 00:04:28,350 and just really different 92 00:04:28,352 --> 00:04:31,061 from any guy that Shawnie had dated before. 93 00:04:31,063 --> 00:04:34,398 [Kit Mulligan] Shawnie told that Ron was the IT Directo 94 00:04:34,400 --> 00:04:36,733 for the Town of Vail in Eagle County, 95 00:04:36,735 --> 00:04:41,071 which is a very highly respected, responsible position. 96 00:04:41,115 --> 00:04:44,783 And they really had fun mountain biking together. 97 00:04:44,785 --> 00:04:47,077 So we thought, "Well, this seems like 98 00:04:47,079 --> 00:04:49,663 somebody that's a better fit for her." 99 00:04:51,500 --> 00:04:53,500 [Shawnie] We dated long distance, 100 00:04:53,577 --> 00:04:57,170 and after about three month he kinda asked me, he's like 101 00:04:57,247 --> 00:04:58,922 "Why don't you move up to Vail?" 102 00:04:58,924 --> 00:05:01,049 And I was like, "Are you kidding?" 103 00:05:01,051 --> 00:05:02,843 [narrator] For an athlete like Shawnie, 104 00:05:02,845 --> 00:05:04,720 it's a dream opportunity. 105 00:05:04,722 --> 00:05:07,556 Vail is a luxury mountain town ski resort, 106 00:05:07,558 --> 00:05:11,268 an elite place to live and work. 107 00:05:11,270 --> 00:05:15,022 It's fantastic scenery. There's a lot of wealth that pours through Vail. 108 00:05:15,098 --> 00:05:17,232 A lot of very wealthy peopl 109 00:05:17,234 --> 00:05:19,151 have vacation homes there, 110 00:05:19,153 --> 00:05:20,694 or come during the winter to ski. 111 00:05:23,907 --> 00:05:25,949 [Shawnie] I was excited to move to Vail. 112 00:05:25,993 --> 00:05:28,285 Very few people who work in Vail 113 00:05:28,287 --> 00:05:30,078 actually can afford to live in Vail. 114 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:32,789 I was intimidated by how established he was, 115 00:05:32,791 --> 00:05:34,458 and the job he had. 116 00:05:34,501 --> 00:05:36,960 You know, I definitely was kind of... 117 00:05:38,005 --> 00:05:39,713 ...conscious of it, self-conscious, 118 00:05:39,790 --> 00:05:41,965 of, like, my status versus his status. 119 00:05:42,009 --> 00:05:45,135 I kept being afraid that Ron's gonna change his mind 120 00:05:45,179 --> 00:05:47,304 and he's gonna be like, "No, never mind." 121 00:05:48,724 --> 00:05:50,932 Ron let me know, I guess, that, 122 00:05:50,934 --> 00:05:53,810 you know, he was important, that he was in charge, that. 123 00:05:54,480 --> 00:05:56,980 ...you know, he knew everybody in town. 124 00:05:57,024 --> 00:06:00,442 I was his trophy girlfriend 'cause I was the athlete. 125 00:06:00,444 --> 00:06:02,402 In Vail, with Shawnie being there 126 00:06:02,404 --> 00:06:04,529 as a near professional level athlete, 127 00:06:04,564 --> 00:06:07,199 it raised her status within the community 128 00:06:07,201 --> 00:06:09,826 and Ron was able to ride on those coattails, 129 00:06:09,828 --> 00:06:12,704 and he loved that. 130 00:06:12,706 --> 00:06:15,957 Ron showered her with telling her how great she was, 131 00:06:15,959 --> 00:06:17,417 you know, how beautiful she was. 132 00:06:17,419 --> 00:06:20,420 And for the first six months, 133 00:06:20,422 --> 00:06:21,963 you know, all she got from h 134 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:24,883 was positives, good feelings, fun. 135 00:06:24,885 --> 00:06:27,302 [Shawnie] Absolutely loved him. And he was... 136 00:06:27,304 --> 00:06:29,262 He was my biggest emotional support. 137 00:06:29,264 --> 00:06:31,848 You know, he was the person I went to about everything. 138 00:06:31,850 --> 00:06:33,600 He was the person I talked to. 139 00:06:33,677 --> 00:06:37,104 And he just loved riding bikes and being outside. 140 00:06:43,278 --> 00:06:45,195 After Shawnie moved in with Ron, 141 00:06:45,239 --> 00:06:47,239 I didn't get to see her nearly as often. 142 00:06:47,241 --> 00:06:49,991 My contact with her decreased significantly. 143 00:06:50,068 --> 00:06:51,576 And then at that point in time, 144 00:06:51,578 --> 00:06:54,121 Ron also started to isolate her. 145 00:06:54,123 --> 00:06:56,123 [Shawnie] I think the first flag was... 146 00:06:56,875 --> 00:06:59,960 ...Ron didn't want me to wor 147 00:06:59,962 --> 00:07:01,670 And he's like, "No." 148 00:07:01,672 --> 00:07:03,672 Like, "I don't want you working full-time. 149 00:07:03,674 --> 00:07:05,632 I want to ride with you. 150 00:07:05,634 --> 00:07:08,510 Like, there's no reason for you to be working full-time." 151 00:07:08,512 --> 00:07:10,387 And so, I did end up quittin 152 00:07:10,389 --> 00:07:12,639 and just kind of doing the race, 153 00:07:12,641 --> 00:07:16,017 and he completely financially supported me. 154 00:07:16,812 --> 00:07:18,854 Ron always had a lot of mone 155 00:07:18,856 --> 00:07:21,273 Bikes, skis, gear. 156 00:07:21,275 --> 00:07:22,858 I never heard the words, 157 00:07:22,934 --> 00:07:26,570 "No, I can't afford that" come out of his mouth. 158 00:07:26,572 --> 00:07:29,865 It was always a question in the back of my head. 159 00:07:29,867 --> 00:07:32,826 When I asked Ron about money, he always gave me, 160 00:07:32,828 --> 00:07:34,911 "I'm a consultant. I get it from consulting." 161 00:07:34,913 --> 00:07:39,124 Like, that was always his go-to. 162 00:07:39,201 --> 00:07:41,251 [narrator] Shawnie dedicate herself to training 163 00:07:41,253 --> 00:07:43,170 and she gets stronger and stronger. 164 00:07:43,172 --> 00:07:45,046 But a year into their relationship, 165 00:07:45,048 --> 00:07:47,215 Ron starts falling behind. 166 00:07:47,292 --> 00:07:51,011 [Shawnie] In 2013, Ron started losing energy. 167 00:07:51,046 --> 00:07:52,721 He didn't have the energy to go ride. 168 00:07:52,797 --> 00:07:54,848 I remember one day he was literally 169 00:07:54,850 --> 00:07:57,100 laying down in his office, like, sleeping. 170 00:07:58,270 --> 00:08:01,104 There was kind of a correlation between low testosterone 171 00:08:01,148 --> 00:08:03,607 and men who rode bikes. 172 00:08:04,985 --> 00:08:07,527 He went to a doctor and the doctor basically was like, 173 00:08:07,604 --> 00:08:09,738 "You have very low testosterone. 174 00:08:09,740 --> 00:08:12,449 You need to be put on testosterone supplement 175 00:08:12,451 --> 00:08:14,951 to get you back to a normal level." 176 00:08:15,621 --> 00:08:17,329 [narrator] It works. 177 00:08:17,331 --> 00:08:20,081 Ron feels a boost in his energy almost immediately. 178 00:08:20,083 --> 00:08:22,000 But what was meant to be temporary 179 00:08:22,077 --> 00:08:23,668 becomes a habit. 180 00:08:23,670 --> 00:08:26,630 And steroid use leads to alarming changes 181 00:08:26,632 --> 00:08:28,131 in Ron's behavior. 182 00:08:29,384 --> 00:08:32,260 Ron started having these strange, violent outbursts 183 00:08:32,262 --> 00:08:34,137 and losing his patience a lo 184 00:08:34,139 --> 00:08:36,973 throw objects, lash out. 185 00:08:36,975 --> 00:08:40,185 And every time after Ron would have an outburst, 186 00:08:40,187 --> 00:08:42,479 he would be very apologetic 187 00:08:42,481 --> 00:08:44,940 and trying to shower her with love and affection. 188 00:08:45,016 --> 00:08:48,151 Get her new bikes and things like that. 189 00:08:49,571 --> 00:08:53,532 The testosterone also increases Ron's sexual appetite, 190 00:08:53,608 --> 00:08:55,825 revealing something surprising. 191 00:08:56,578 --> 00:08:59,454 Ron made it known to me that, you know, 192 00:08:59,456 --> 00:09:02,582 he'd had threesomes and that he was interested in that 193 00:09:02,584 --> 00:09:04,834 and this whole idea of swingers. 194 00:09:04,836 --> 00:09:06,753 It's like, what? Like, I couldn't believe it. 195 00:09:06,830 --> 00:09:07,837 And I made it clear, I was like, 196 00:09:07,839 --> 00:09:09,506 "If you want that, 197 00:09:09,508 --> 00:09:11,383 you're gonna have to find someone else." 198 00:09:11,385 --> 00:09:13,009 And what he said to me was like, 199 00:09:13,011 --> 00:09:14,719 "You know, I get I can't have it all, 200 00:09:14,721 --> 00:09:16,930 and I can't have that part of it... 201 00:09:17,724 --> 00:09:18,848 ...that's okay." 202 00:09:19,476 --> 00:09:20,892 And I believed him. 203 00:09:20,894 --> 00:09:22,644 You know, I thought, "Okay." Like, end of discussion. 204 00:09:22,721 --> 00:09:24,938 Like, no big deal. 205 00:09:26,900 --> 00:09:29,025 [Kit] My reservations about Ron... 206 00:09:29,861 --> 00:09:32,028 ...changed 180 degrees, 207 00:09:32,531 --> 00:09:34,281 when they went to this 12-hour, 208 00:09:34,283 --> 00:09:38,076 uh, mountain bike race outside of Phoenix. 209 00:09:38,078 --> 00:09:41,830 And they were in the two-person male/female category. 210 00:09:42,958 --> 00:09:47,210 And there was, uh, a lap around this course 211 00:09:47,254 --> 00:09:51,506 that they would race for 12 hours, basically. 212 00:09:51,583 --> 00:09:55,844 And he started out, he rode the first two laps. 213 00:09:55,846 --> 00:09:57,721 And then Shawnie took over. 214 00:09:57,764 --> 00:09:59,514 They were the fastest group 215 00:10:00,058 --> 00:10:02,517 of men/women out there. 216 00:10:03,103 --> 00:10:05,020 And then Shawnie went down. 217 00:10:05,096 --> 00:10:08,148 And her knee was just opened up... 218 00:10:08,900 --> 00:10:10,984 ...and blood just flowing everywhere. 219 00:10:10,986 --> 00:10:14,404 When Ron came in, he was really upset. 220 00:10:14,439 --> 00:10:17,824 And I said, "You gotta take her to the emergency room." 221 00:10:18,952 --> 00:10:21,494 And he said, "No, I'm gonna try to win this race." 222 00:10:21,571 --> 00:10:24,372 I knew my parents weren't happy that he didn't 223 00:10:24,374 --> 00:10:25,832 do anything to see if I was okay. 224 00:10:25,834 --> 00:10:28,460 I knew they weren't happy that he just kept riding. 225 00:10:28,462 --> 00:10:30,253 And he didn't care that I was hurt. 226 00:10:30,297 --> 00:10:32,047 Um, and I knew he was pissed, 227 00:10:32,049 --> 00:10:35,508 'cause I crashed, and that I ruined his race. 228 00:10:35,585 --> 00:10:38,970 I mean, I think I just had this, like, overwhelming sense of, 229 00:10:38,972 --> 00:10:41,389 "How do I make everybody happy in this situation?" 230 00:10:41,391 --> 00:10:43,266 I mean, I was absolutely in love with him, 231 00:10:43,268 --> 00:10:46,144 and I was terrified of him ending it 232 00:10:46,221 --> 00:10:47,537 because I did something wrong. 233 00:10:47,539 --> 00:10:49,898 [narrator] Her desire to please Ron 234 00:10:49,900 --> 00:10:52,150 puts Shawnie in a vulnerable position, 235 00:10:52,152 --> 00:10:54,653 which he uses to his advantage. 236 00:10:56,865 --> 00:10:58,740 [Shawnie] He propositioned 237 00:10:58,817 --> 00:11:02,619 the threesome swinger lifestyle again with me. 238 00:11:04,748 --> 00:11:06,873 But this was the first time I think that he started 239 00:11:06,875 --> 00:11:09,292 putting more pressure onto 240 00:11:09,336 --> 00:11:11,419 making it a reality. 241 00:11:14,383 --> 00:11:17,592 There's this website that we can put our profile up. 242 00:11:17,594 --> 00:11:20,095 It's like a dating site for swingers. 243 00:11:20,097 --> 00:11:21,930 I was kind of like, "I, I don't... 244 00:11:23,266 --> 00:11:24,516 ...I don't think so." 245 00:11:24,518 --> 00:11:26,643 And he said that, "This is so important to me, 246 00:11:26,687 --> 00:11:28,728 and this is what I need," and... 247 00:11:29,773 --> 00:11:30,772 And I guess I was like, 248 00:11:30,774 --> 00:11:32,482 "Okay. I'll give it a try. 249 00:11:32,484 --> 00:11:34,859 This is really important to him." 250 00:11:36,780 --> 00:11:39,030 And he told me, like, you have to, like, 251 00:11:39,107 --> 00:11:41,533 take a picture with, like, this date on it, 252 00:11:41,609 --> 00:11:42,951 to prove that you're real. 253 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:47,080 And I think it was just kind of that 254 00:11:47,082 --> 00:11:50,709 athletic mountain couple looking for, um... 255 00:11:51,586 --> 00:11:52,794 ...for someone. 256 00:11:52,871 --> 00:11:55,296 Ron wanted another male. 257 00:11:55,298 --> 00:11:58,299 He, like, he wasn't interest in another female. 258 00:12:02,848 --> 00:12:04,764 He was so excited. 259 00:12:04,766 --> 00:12:06,725 And I guess that's part of... 260 00:12:07,394 --> 00:12:09,060 ...why I kept going along with it, 261 00:12:09,095 --> 00:12:12,021 because it was, like, he was so happy, 262 00:12:12,065 --> 00:12:14,524 and it was, like, back in love with me, 263 00:12:14,568 --> 00:12:16,359 and, you know, like... 264 00:12:17,362 --> 00:12:19,279 ...I was like the best thing in the world. 265 00:12:19,281 --> 00:12:20,697 I felt like... 266 00:12:21,658 --> 00:12:23,324 ...I couldn't get out of it. 267 00:12:23,326 --> 00:12:25,618 I didn't know how to stop it. 268 00:12:29,958 --> 00:12:31,875 So we get a response to the ad pretty quick, 269 00:12:31,918 --> 00:12:35,128 and he was also a bike rider 270 00:12:35,205 --> 00:12:36,796 I guess that helped a little bit, 271 00:12:36,873 --> 00:12:38,089 when it, you know, I kinda... 272 00:12:38,091 --> 00:12:40,383 how I talked myself into it, I kept thinking, 273 00:12:40,385 --> 00:12:43,553 "Well, you know, he would probably be someone who I would date 274 00:12:43,555 --> 00:12:45,513 if I wasn't involved with Ron." 275 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:49,350 I remember on our way to meet him, I was just... 276 00:12:50,145 --> 00:12:51,126 ...sick to my stomach. 277 00:12:51,128 --> 00:12:53,146 And I just did not wanna go 278 00:12:53,148 --> 00:12:56,024 and I just did not wanna be part of this. 279 00:12:56,100 --> 00:12:58,234 And there was so much dread. 280 00:12:58,236 --> 00:12:59,986 [narrator] Soon Ron will take Shawnie 281 00:12:59,988 --> 00:13:01,738 past the point of no return 282 00:13:01,782 --> 00:13:04,365 into a nightmare of his own making. 283 00:13:04,442 --> 00:13:08,703 There was a lot that Ron was hiding from everybody. 284 00:13:08,705 --> 00:13:11,164 [Phippen] It seemed like such a small, quiet place, 285 00:13:11,241 --> 00:13:15,126 and yet, these heinous crimes being committed, it was disgusting. 286 00:13:15,128 --> 00:13:19,380 Trafficking minors for sexual things 287 00:13:19,382 --> 00:13:20,715 that I don't even wanna think about. 288 00:13:21,384 --> 00:13:23,051 It was almost beyond belief. 289 00:13:27,098 --> 00:13:28,807 [narrator] Against her better judgement, 290 00:13:28,809 --> 00:13:31,100 Shawnee Mulligan and her boyfriend Ron 291 00:13:31,102 --> 00:13:32,685 are meeting a stranger 292 00:13:32,687 --> 00:13:35,063 for a possible sexual encounter. 293 00:13:36,024 --> 00:13:37,649 [Shawnie] I was so uncomfortable. 294 00:13:37,651 --> 00:13:39,567 Ron told me, like, "You don't have to do this, 295 00:13:39,569 --> 00:13:41,236 we may just meet him and not like him." 296 00:13:41,238 --> 00:13:43,613 But yet he's like, "We're gonna take the RV." 297 00:13:44,366 --> 00:13:47,408 And then the guy and Ron were kinda like, 298 00:13:47,485 --> 00:13:49,869 "Do you wanna get together or do you wanna hook up? 299 00:13:49,946 --> 00:13:51,571 Like, what do you wanna do?" 300 00:13:51,573 --> 00:13:54,916 They were figuring out plans where to go to have sex. 301 00:13:54,951 --> 00:13:56,709 And I just was kinda like.. 302 00:13:57,504 --> 00:13:59,212 "Okay. This is happening." 303 00:13:59,214 --> 00:14:01,464 Like there's, there's no way out. 304 00:14:01,466 --> 00:14:04,717 It didn't feel like I could say no at that point. 305 00:14:04,794 --> 00:14:07,887 Like, they were excited, they were all about this. 306 00:14:07,889 --> 00:14:10,557 Something that I struggle with to this day, 307 00:14:10,633 --> 00:14:14,811 and I knew that Ron would be very upset and very angry... 308 00:14:15,772 --> 00:14:17,063 ...if I said no. 309 00:14:19,150 --> 00:14:22,318 We went out onto a back road. 310 00:14:22,320 --> 00:14:25,071 The whole time I was just like, "I just want this over." 311 00:14:25,073 --> 00:14:26,823 Like that's all I could think about. 312 00:14:26,825 --> 00:14:28,199 Just, get it over with. 313 00:14:28,276 --> 00:14:30,159 Ron was just standing there watching 314 00:14:30,161 --> 00:14:32,328 as I was with this other guy 315 00:14:32,372 --> 00:14:35,915 And I was just like, "This is surreal. This is just crazy." 316 00:14:35,992 --> 00:14:38,167 And it kinda became apparent to me 317 00:14:38,169 --> 00:14:39,919 that he just wanted to watch 318 00:14:39,921 --> 00:14:41,504 Like, it didn't feel good. 319 00:14:41,548 --> 00:14:44,090 And in order, I think, for sex to feel good, 320 00:14:44,092 --> 00:14:45,291 you have to wanna be there. 321 00:14:45,927 --> 00:14:48,928 How do I just, like, engage enough 322 00:14:49,005 --> 00:14:50,722 to make this be over? 323 00:14:50,798 --> 00:14:53,057 You know, and that's, that's just what I... 324 00:14:53,059 --> 00:14:54,976 That's all I wanted to do. 325 00:14:54,978 --> 00:14:56,686 Afterwards, Ron was so happy 326 00:14:56,688 --> 00:14:59,272 and he was kissing me and hugging me, 327 00:14:59,274 --> 00:15:01,482 and holding my hand and touching me, 328 00:15:01,484 --> 00:15:03,526 and telling me how much he loved me 329 00:15:03,528 --> 00:15:05,653 and how wonderful I was, 330 00:15:05,655 --> 00:15:07,447 like, Ron was so happy about this 331 00:15:07,449 --> 00:15:10,116 and so affectionate, and... 332 00:15:10,118 --> 00:15:11,701 You know, I was just, like... 333 00:15:12,787 --> 00:15:15,747 You know, "What did I just do?" 334 00:15:18,919 --> 00:15:21,294 It was probably within three weeks of that 335 00:15:21,922 --> 00:15:23,296 that we got married. 336 00:15:25,050 --> 00:15:26,407 We just went to the courthouse, 337 00:15:26,409 --> 00:15:28,426 filled out the paperwork, got the papers. 338 00:15:30,388 --> 00:15:31,930 Like, there was no ceremony 339 00:15:31,932 --> 00:15:35,099 "I'm gonna give you security 340 00:15:35,176 --> 00:15:38,895 No health insurance and some financial security 341 00:15:38,897 --> 00:15:42,106 Um, because at the time I wasn't making much money. 342 00:15:43,652 --> 00:15:48,029 [Kit] We didn't know how muc control he had over her. 343 00:15:48,031 --> 00:15:51,032 Financially, he controlled her. 344 00:15:51,660 --> 00:15:53,701 You know, "You don't have a job, 345 00:15:53,703 --> 00:15:57,830 you're dependent on me for money, for insurance, for everything." 346 00:15:58,917 --> 00:16:01,793 [Shawnie] He knew he could kick me out at any moment, 347 00:16:01,795 --> 00:16:03,461 and what would I have? 348 00:16:03,538 --> 00:16:06,506 I wouldn't have a car, I didn't have any money in the bank. 349 00:16:07,384 --> 00:16:08,615 Like, he knew that. 350 00:16:08,617 --> 00:16:12,178 I also knew, like, if I piss him off, 351 00:16:12,180 --> 00:16:14,180 what am I gonna do? Where am I gonna go? 352 00:16:14,182 --> 00:16:15,622 How am I gonna survive? 353 00:16:16,977 --> 00:16:18,851 [narrator] After the wedding Ron continues 354 00:16:18,853 --> 00:16:21,437 to take advantage of his power position. 355 00:16:23,441 --> 00:16:26,484 It was pretty clear that he wanted it again, 356 00:16:26,519 --> 00:16:28,469 and to do more. 357 00:16:28,471 --> 00:16:31,280 Ron made it seem like, "Oh, lots of people have threesomes. 358 00:16:31,282 --> 00:16:34,659 Lots of people swing. This isn't that uncommon." 359 00:16:34,661 --> 00:16:36,661 And he kinda, like, chips me away, being like, 360 00:16:36,663 --> 00:16:38,788 "You're the vanilla one. You're the boring one. 361 00:16:38,790 --> 00:16:40,915 Like, lots of people do this." 362 00:16:40,992 --> 00:16:44,460 You know, and you kind of start to think, "What's wrong with me?" 363 00:16:45,880 --> 00:16:47,672 The encounters were pretty frequent, 364 00:16:47,674 --> 00:16:49,424 I'd say maybe once a month. 365 00:16:51,052 --> 00:16:53,052 Ron started taking videos, 366 00:16:53,054 --> 00:16:55,346 I would say the fourth or fifth time 367 00:16:55,423 --> 00:16:58,224 that we were probably with someone. 368 00:16:58,226 --> 00:17:00,768 And he never asked me, it was just like, I looked u 369 00:17:00,770 --> 00:17:03,146 and I was like, "He's videoing me." 370 00:17:03,189 --> 00:17:05,606 I had no voice in this. 371 00:17:05,608 --> 00:17:07,775 He just did it and he had it on his computer, 372 00:17:07,777 --> 00:17:09,193 and I never saw it. 373 00:17:09,270 --> 00:17:10,945 I never saw any of the video, 374 00:17:11,022 --> 00:17:12,363 I don't know what he did with it. 375 00:17:12,365 --> 00:17:14,032 So that was hard. 376 00:17:15,660 --> 00:17:16,993 So difficult to explain 377 00:17:16,995 --> 00:17:20,413 the mental abuse that happen 378 00:17:20,415 --> 00:17:22,415 It would've been easier in some ways, 379 00:17:22,492 --> 00:17:24,250 if he had held a gun to my head and told me to do it. 380 00:17:24,252 --> 00:17:27,170 'Cause then I could at least explain to people 381 00:17:27,213 --> 00:17:30,423 exactly why I did something I did not want to do. 382 00:17:31,092 --> 00:17:32,759 If we had had... 383 00:17:33,720 --> 00:17:36,345 ...an inkling of the trauma 384 00:17:36,347 --> 00:17:39,724 that was to come in the next few years... 385 00:17:40,769 --> 00:17:43,436 ...John and I would've done whatever it took 386 00:17:43,438 --> 00:17:45,605 to get her away from Ron. 387 00:17:49,486 --> 00:17:51,360 [Shawnie] The testosterone was always 388 00:17:51,362 --> 00:17:53,404 a wild card for me. 389 00:17:56,242 --> 00:17:59,368 Like he was, without a doubt self-dosing himself. 390 00:17:59,370 --> 00:18:01,412 When a doctor prescribes you a medication, 391 00:18:01,414 --> 00:18:03,331 they give you a certain amount to use each day. 392 00:18:03,958 --> 00:18:05,666 Well, if Ron had a big race coming up, 393 00:18:05,668 --> 00:18:07,752 he'd use three times as much. 394 00:18:07,829 --> 00:18:10,379 And so, he found... 395 00:18:10,381 --> 00:18:13,341 ...a place, [sighs] I don't remember which country it came out of. 396 00:18:14,052 --> 00:18:17,095 And he just had it sent to the house. 397 00:18:17,097 --> 00:18:19,305 [narrator] As Ron's testosterone use escalates, 398 00:18:19,307 --> 00:18:22,558 he pushes Shawnie into edgier sexual scenarios. 399 00:18:22,560 --> 00:18:24,894 February 2016, 400 00:18:24,938 --> 00:18:27,522 Ron was trying to convince me 401 00:18:27,598 --> 00:18:30,024 to, to be with another couple, 402 00:18:30,101 --> 00:18:31,984 a husband and a wife. 403 00:18:31,986 --> 00:18:34,445 So they were both very into the lifestyle. 404 00:18:34,447 --> 00:18:37,365 And... it was horrible. 405 00:18:37,367 --> 00:18:39,450 The husband was so rough. 406 00:18:39,994 --> 00:18:41,828 And it hurt so bad. 407 00:18:42,497 --> 00:18:45,414 And I remember just looking at Ron 408 00:18:45,458 --> 00:18:46,666 and being like, "Please make this stop." 409 00:18:46,668 --> 00:18:49,544 'Cause it was so painful. 410 00:18:49,546 --> 00:18:52,380 Afterwards, talking to Ron on the way home, 411 00:18:52,382 --> 00:18:55,508 and I was like, "He hurt me 412 00:18:55,510 --> 00:18:57,135 The husband hurt me." 413 00:18:57,137 --> 00:18:59,637 And he didn't care. 414 00:19:02,016 --> 00:19:05,768 The next day, I just packed stuff in my car and just... 415 00:19:05,812 --> 00:19:08,729 I remember I called my dad. 416 00:19:09,274 --> 00:19:10,523 I was like, "I'm coming home." 417 00:19:10,525 --> 00:19:13,651 My dad's like, "What? What is going on?" 418 00:19:13,653 --> 00:19:17,697 And I give the G-rated versi of what happened. 419 00:19:17,699 --> 00:19:21,325 And then Ron starts texting me and calling me. 420 00:19:21,327 --> 00:19:23,661 [cell phone ringing] 421 00:19:25,498 --> 00:19:27,456 He was saying, "I did this wrong. 422 00:19:27,458 --> 00:19:30,418 I'm sorry. I messed up." 423 00:19:30,420 --> 00:19:32,378 Like, "I won't do this again. I'll get help. 424 00:19:32,380 --> 00:19:33,546 I'll stop taking testosterone." 425 00:19:33,548 --> 00:19:35,006 He was promising to change. 426 00:19:35,008 --> 00:19:38,050 And so I went back a couple weeks later. 427 00:19:38,052 --> 00:19:41,554 We had agreed that there were gonna be no more sexual encounters. 428 00:19:41,631 --> 00:19:43,681 I, I guess I truly believed 429 00:19:43,758 --> 00:19:45,725 that would happen. 430 00:19:45,727 --> 00:19:47,602 When I moved back, I was hoping 431 00:19:47,604 --> 00:19:50,980 it would get better and things would be okay. 432 00:19:50,982 --> 00:19:54,275 But a part of me knew it wouldn't. 433 00:19:54,277 --> 00:19:55,751 [narrator] A couple of months later, 434 00:19:55,753 --> 00:19:58,279 Ron approaches Shawnie with what seems like 435 00:19:58,281 --> 00:20:00,740 an exciting prospect. 436 00:20:00,816 --> 00:20:03,576 [Shawnie] He comes up and he said, "I wanna buy a house." 437 00:20:03,611 --> 00:20:04,860 It was a beautiful house, 438 00:20:04,871 --> 00:20:07,663 million-dollar house on acreage. 439 00:20:07,665 --> 00:20:10,374 [narrator] But there's a sticking point. 440 00:20:10,376 --> 00:20:12,919 [Shawnie] He's like, "I need a legal agreement basically saying..." 441 00:20:13,838 --> 00:20:17,548 ...um, "the house is mine, not yours." 442 00:20:17,550 --> 00:20:19,133 [narrator] Shawnie is to give up any potential 443 00:20:19,135 --> 00:20:23,137 financial claim she might have as Ron's wife. 444 00:20:23,139 --> 00:20:26,307 And then he had his attorney do the postnup. 445 00:20:26,309 --> 00:20:29,560 Like, the house was his, his retirement was his, 446 00:20:29,562 --> 00:20:32,063 all the savings accounts, the bank accounts, 447 00:20:32,065 --> 00:20:34,398 everything was his. Um... 448 00:20:35,860 --> 00:20:38,319 And nothing was mine. 449 00:20:42,075 --> 00:20:44,367 [narrator] This is the last straw. 450 00:20:44,369 --> 00:20:45,826 Shawnie decides it's time to become 451 00:20:45,903 --> 00:20:48,037 financially independent. 452 00:20:49,249 --> 00:20:52,250 I applied to be a deputy 453 00:20:52,326 --> 00:20:54,961 at a jail for the county, 454 00:20:54,963 --> 00:20:56,712 knowing that it paid decent 455 00:20:56,714 --> 00:20:58,965 and that I could get health insurance. 456 00:20:58,967 --> 00:21:03,052 He was pissed, knowing that I was trying to get out financially. 457 00:21:04,681 --> 00:21:06,722 So as a jail deputy, 458 00:21:06,724 --> 00:21:09,475 I carried a gun as part of the job. 459 00:21:09,477 --> 00:21:11,102 So I got a 9mm. 460 00:21:11,729 --> 00:21:13,262 So Ron gets a handgun. 461 00:21:13,264 --> 00:21:16,107 And, you know, at the time, I think it's odd, 462 00:21:16,109 --> 00:21:17,858 but Ron's the type of guy who, like, 463 00:21:17,860 --> 00:21:20,278 I get something, he needs to get something. 464 00:21:20,280 --> 00:21:23,614 You know, that's kind of how it works with him. 465 00:21:25,118 --> 00:21:27,118 A rifle case shows up in the closet. 466 00:21:27,194 --> 00:21:29,036 And I'm like, "What's that about?" 467 00:21:29,580 --> 00:21:31,831 He's like, "Oh, it reminds me 468 00:21:31,907 --> 00:21:34,709 of my old military days, my ranger days." 469 00:21:36,379 --> 00:21:38,754 which is special forces. 470 00:21:40,174 --> 00:21:42,675 I just remember thinking, "That's odd." 471 00:21:42,677 --> 00:21:47,555 I found out later that he was never a ranger. 472 00:21:47,631 --> 00:21:51,100 [narrator] Now that Shawnie has a job and has her own financial means, 473 00:21:51,144 --> 00:21:53,185 Ron has lost his control over her. 474 00:21:53,187 --> 00:21:55,730 And this, he can't except. 475 00:21:55,732 --> 00:21:57,898 [Shawnie] Ron kicked me out of the house. 476 00:21:57,975 --> 00:22:00,901 He just told me that he couldn't deal with my schedule, 477 00:22:00,903 --> 00:22:03,571 that me working nights was too much, 478 00:22:03,573 --> 00:22:07,408 and he couldn't handle me in this job. 479 00:22:08,328 --> 00:22:09,910 I was able to find a... 480 00:22:10,621 --> 00:22:15,583 pretty crappy apartment. 481 00:22:15,585 --> 00:22:18,336 But, I was out. 482 00:22:18,338 --> 00:22:20,338 We haven't filed for divorce yet. 483 00:22:20,340 --> 00:22:22,673 We're obviously separated. 484 00:22:22,675 --> 00:22:25,051 When I applied for the job, 485 00:22:25,127 --> 00:22:27,261 the sexual coercion had stopped. 486 00:22:27,338 --> 00:22:29,096 And I'm kind of like, "Okay, can... 487 00:22:29,098 --> 00:22:32,433 Can this get better? Can this work?" 488 00:22:32,435 --> 00:22:36,562 [narrator] Shawnie is about to discover why the sexual demands have stopped. 489 00:22:36,564 --> 00:22:39,982 Her world is about to be turned upside down. 490 00:22:40,026 --> 00:22:43,319 And it all starts while she's at work. 491 00:22:43,321 --> 00:22:45,863 [Shawnie] I'm working on the floor of the jail 492 00:22:45,940 --> 00:22:48,032 and I remember 493 00:22:48,034 --> 00:22:51,994 that there's a guy and he gets on the radio, and he's like, 494 00:22:52,997 --> 00:22:55,873 "Hey, Shawnie, the undersheriff wants to talk to you." 495 00:22:55,875 --> 00:22:57,282 [phone ringing] 496 00:22:57,284 --> 00:23:00,127 And I'm kind of like, "What is going on?" 497 00:23:00,204 --> 00:23:03,422 Then they tell me, "Your husband's been arrested." 498 00:23:04,342 --> 00:23:07,093 You know, I'm shocked. "For what?" 499 00:23:08,221 --> 00:23:09,628 Transporting a minor for sex. 500 00:23:09,630 --> 00:23:12,098 Prostituting a minor. Soliciting a minor for sex. 501 00:23:12,100 --> 00:23:15,101 [inhales] Sex crimes against children. 502 00:23:16,437 --> 00:23:19,397 And I just... shock. 503 00:23:24,862 --> 00:23:27,863 [narrator] Shawnie Mulligan finds out her husband Ron 504 00:23:27,865 --> 00:23:29,824 has been arrested at his Vail office 505 00:23:29,826 --> 00:23:32,493 for having sex with a minor 506 00:23:33,538 --> 00:23:38,249 I just was shaking. Like, I was just so confused. 507 00:23:38,251 --> 00:23:42,253 And then they, the charges just made no sense to me. 508 00:23:42,255 --> 00:23:44,922 I'd never heard of some of the charges and 509 00:23:45,633 --> 00:23:48,551 I didn't understand what they were. 510 00:23:48,553 --> 00:23:52,054 But I knew that it had to do with trafficking of a minor, 511 00:23:52,056 --> 00:23:53,931 sex trafficking of a minor. 512 00:23:53,933 --> 00:23:57,768 I called my parents and I was just crying and sobbing 513 00:23:57,770 --> 00:24:00,813 and, just, completely in shock. 514 00:24:00,815 --> 00:24:04,483 [narrator] A joint FBI-Colorado PD task force 515 00:24:04,485 --> 00:24:08,821 has uncovered a sex trafficking ring near Vail in Glenwood Spring 516 00:24:08,823 --> 00:24:11,073 They found Ron in a hotel room, 517 00:24:11,117 --> 00:24:13,951 having sex with an underage girl. 518 00:24:14,787 --> 00:24:17,163 Ron was charged with four charges. 519 00:24:17,239 --> 00:24:20,583 He was charged with solicitation of a child prostitute, 520 00:24:20,585 --> 00:24:22,501 patronizing a child prostitute, 521 00:24:22,503 --> 00:24:25,546 pandering of a child prostitute, 522 00:24:25,548 --> 00:24:29,049 and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. 523 00:24:29,677 --> 00:24:32,511 Those were serious allegations. 524 00:24:32,588 --> 00:24:35,181 Um, and it was shocking 525 00:24:35,183 --> 00:24:38,392 for the community and for his friends and colleagues. 526 00:24:38,394 --> 00:24:41,437 [Phippen] I obtained the indictment from the grand ju 527 00:24:41,481 --> 00:24:45,191 and what I read was, frankly, disgusting. 528 00:24:45,226 --> 00:24:49,278 It was... It gave me an icky feeling in the pit of my stomach 529 00:24:49,280 --> 00:24:54,408 to think that these young girls from Denver had been trafficked 530 00:24:54,485 --> 00:24:59,371 into sex for someone in my neighborhood. 531 00:24:59,373 --> 00:25:01,832 It came out later that they were girls. 532 00:25:02,168 --> 00:25:04,150 I was honestly shocked. 533 00:25:04,152 --> 00:25:09,215 You know, uh, it seemed like such a small quite, uh, place. 534 00:25:09,217 --> 00:25:12,635 And yet, here was this... these heinous crimes being committed, you know, 535 00:25:12,637 --> 00:25:15,971 at a hotel that I drove by, uh, almost every day. 536 00:25:15,973 --> 00:25:18,557 It was, uh, it was shocking 537 00:25:18,559 --> 00:25:21,393 They are very serious charges. 538 00:25:21,395 --> 00:25:25,564 A person is looking at life-changing outcomes. 539 00:25:26,192 --> 00:25:28,609 [phone ringing] 540 00:25:28,611 --> 00:25:31,403 [Shawnie] And then a couple hours later he started calling me. 541 00:25:32,615 --> 00:25:34,323 He was desperate. 542 00:25:34,325 --> 00:25:35,533 He was like, "It's all a mistake. 543 00:25:35,609 --> 00:25:38,744 This didn't happen." Like, "This is all wrong." 544 00:25:38,821 --> 00:25:41,830 And he was just, "Please, Shawnie, babe, come bail me out." 545 00:25:43,417 --> 00:25:45,501 [clicks tongue] So I did. 546 00:25:47,922 --> 00:25:49,797 [narrator] Even though they are still separated, 547 00:25:49,873 --> 00:25:51,549 Shawnie picks Ron up 548 00:25:53,010 --> 00:25:55,594 and brings him back to his house in Vail. 549 00:25:57,890 --> 00:26:00,099 There was a note in his property 550 00:26:00,101 --> 00:26:03,811 that said, "You've been put on administrative leave." 551 00:26:03,813 --> 00:26:07,231 Like the first thing he goes to do is try to access his... 552 00:26:07,233 --> 00:26:11,026 his email from his phone and he's blocked out. 553 00:26:11,028 --> 00:26:13,195 The town of Vail blocked him out of everythin 554 00:26:13,197 --> 00:26:15,364 Like, he was locked out of all accounts. 555 00:26:15,408 --> 00:26:18,826 And he's basically telling m he's gonna kill himself. 556 00:26:18,828 --> 00:26:21,120 And I didn't want that on my shoulders 557 00:26:21,196 --> 00:26:22,997 so I supported him for a while. 558 00:26:22,999 --> 00:26:24,957 I wanted to say, "Shawnie, 559 00:26:26,294 --> 00:26:28,752 Let him go. Get away from him." 560 00:26:29,797 --> 00:26:34,091 But you knew he still had a lot of control over her. 561 00:26:34,093 --> 00:26:37,344 You know, he was a master, master manipulator. 562 00:26:39,849 --> 00:26:43,350 [Phippen] The Vail papers didn't really run the story 563 00:26:43,352 --> 00:26:45,269 I thought it would be front page news in Vail, 564 00:26:45,271 --> 00:26:47,813 that the IT manager would be arrested for, you know, 565 00:26:49,150 --> 00:26:52,151 [sighs] having sex with a minor prostitute. 566 00:26:52,153 --> 00:26:55,613 But it, I think it made it on to page four, maybe. 567 00:26:57,033 --> 00:27:00,034 And there was certainly an embarrassment factor 568 00:27:00,036 --> 00:27:03,662 at the town of Vail that, you know, this man 569 00:27:03,664 --> 00:27:05,956 had been under their nose this whole time 570 00:27:06,033 --> 00:27:08,542 and had committed this terrible, terrible crime. 571 00:27:08,544 --> 00:27:10,919 Some were concerned 572 00:27:10,963 --> 00:27:13,172 about what Ron Braden would do or say. 573 00:27:13,174 --> 00:27:15,132 If they spoke to me, 574 00:27:15,209 --> 00:27:16,925 they didn't want their names in the paper. 575 00:27:16,927 --> 00:27:18,594 There was a pushback. 576 00:27:19,722 --> 00:27:21,639 Everywhere Shawnie would go in town, 577 00:27:21,641 --> 00:27:23,891 people would be looking at her differently. 578 00:27:23,967 --> 00:27:25,726 Not because of anything she did, 579 00:27:25,728 --> 00:27:28,520 other than caring about a person 580 00:27:28,522 --> 00:27:32,524 who made some horrible, horrible decisions. 581 00:27:33,110 --> 00:27:35,694 I was so thankful 582 00:27:35,771 --> 00:27:39,239 that maybe he was going to have to pay for some of what he did. 583 00:27:39,241 --> 00:27:42,451 My biggest fear, which turned out to be true 584 00:27:42,453 --> 00:27:46,038 was that they downgraded and downgraded his charges 585 00:27:46,040 --> 00:27:48,332 to where he just go probatio 586 00:27:50,211 --> 00:27:53,587 After a sexual crime on a minor. 587 00:27:53,589 --> 00:27:57,216 The other, uh, people who were leading the sex trafficking ring, 588 00:27:57,218 --> 00:28:01,178 both of them got long sentences, about 10 years. 589 00:28:01,180 --> 00:28:03,555 The judge openly agreed with Ron that 590 00:28:03,632 --> 00:28:07,059 he had been punished by losing his reputation 591 00:28:07,061 --> 00:28:08,394 and losing his job. 592 00:28:08,396 --> 00:28:11,563 He go a few years of probation 593 00:28:11,565 --> 00:28:15,359 and, uh, was sentenced to 100 hours of community service. 594 00:28:16,529 --> 00:28:18,612 But zero jail time. [sighs in frustration] 595 00:28:26,372 --> 00:28:27,896 [narrator] Ron is fortunate 596 00:28:27,898 --> 00:28:30,999 but he is still enraged at his loss of status. 597 00:28:31,001 --> 00:28:33,502 And he blames everyone but himself. 598 00:28:36,757 --> 00:28:38,882 I was worried when he got out of jail 599 00:28:38,884 --> 00:28:40,342 that Shawnie wasn't going to be safe. 600 00:28:40,344 --> 00:28:42,428 He basically threatened to kill her. 601 00:28:42,430 --> 00:28:43,595 He threatened to kill cops. 602 00:28:43,597 --> 00:28:47,266 He threatened to kill other people. 603 00:28:47,342 --> 00:28:50,519 [Shawnie] It occurred to me that I had no idea who I was married to. 604 00:28:50,521 --> 00:28:53,021 Nothing. Like, I didn't know who he was, 605 00:28:53,023 --> 00:28:55,733 what he was capable of, um... 606 00:28:55,735 --> 00:28:58,110 Who he would hurt, what he would do. 607 00:28:59,822 --> 00:29:02,156 [narrator] Shawnie tries to pick up the pieces 608 00:29:02,232 --> 00:29:06,285 and life her own life, but Ron won't let that happe 609 00:29:06,287 --> 00:29:08,829 [Shawnie] I went on a trip to Arizona with a friend 610 00:29:08,831 --> 00:29:10,247 and I came back 611 00:29:10,916 --> 00:29:13,459 and my door was open. 612 00:29:13,461 --> 00:29:17,212 I walk into my apartment and there were roses sitting on my coffee table. 613 00:29:17,757 --> 00:29:19,798 He had been in my apartment. 614 00:29:19,800 --> 00:29:21,425 Like, something was wrong here. 615 00:29:22,219 --> 00:29:24,011 And I was like, "I'm scared." 616 00:29:28,768 --> 00:29:30,350 [narrator] Shawnie Mulligan is living in fear 617 00:29:30,352 --> 00:29:32,728 of her estranged husband Ron 618 00:29:33,773 --> 00:29:35,055 [Shawnie] I was scared. 619 00:29:35,816 --> 00:29:37,816 And it was 'cause of those threats he made. 620 00:29:37,818 --> 00:29:40,027 I knew he had the weapons. 621 00:29:40,488 --> 00:29:43,030 I just, I knew I had to get out. 622 00:29:44,450 --> 00:29:47,951 My boss, actually ended up serving him my divorce paper 623 00:29:47,953 --> 00:29:50,412 'cause I was afraid to do that. 624 00:29:50,456 --> 00:29:55,083 All the things that were going on including Ron 625 00:29:55,127 --> 00:29:58,420 threatening to kill her, that started to have, 626 00:29:58,422 --> 00:30:01,590 you know, a psychological impact on her. 627 00:30:01,592 --> 00:30:03,926 And so she... 628 00:30:05,638 --> 00:30:07,721 kind of reverted to, uh, 629 00:30:09,517 --> 00:30:10,557 not eating. 630 00:30:15,731 --> 00:30:17,815 She developed an eating disorder 631 00:30:17,817 --> 00:30:21,610 after being raped at age 18 or 19. 632 00:30:21,654 --> 00:30:24,154 With her past history with the eating disorder, 633 00:30:24,156 --> 00:30:27,658 it was her way of dealing with the situation with Ron. 634 00:30:29,286 --> 00:30:30,911 [Shawnie] I never talked to anybody about it. 635 00:30:30,913 --> 00:30:32,955 I never dealt with it. 636 00:30:32,957 --> 00:30:35,707 I think that trauma started kind of... 637 00:30:37,044 --> 00:30:38,560 setting in. 638 00:30:38,562 --> 00:30:40,712 [narrator] Adding to her present state of fear 639 00:30:40,714 --> 00:30:44,633 is the disconcerting feelin that Ron has been hiding dark secrets. 640 00:30:44,677 --> 00:30:49,888 One day, she discovers why R has so much disposable incom 641 00:30:49,890 --> 00:30:53,433 [Shawnie] I had one of his former associates call me, who I knew, 642 00:30:53,435 --> 00:30:58,897 and he's like, "You should have the town of Vail look into this." 643 00:30:59,817 --> 00:31:03,110 There is some sketchy stuff that Ron was selling. 644 00:31:03,186 --> 00:31:05,904 Wireless that was owned by the town of Vail 645 00:31:05,906 --> 00:31:10,576 to private companies and then profiting by that. 646 00:31:10,578 --> 00:31:13,412 [narrator] Unsure of this information and what it mean 647 00:31:13,414 --> 00:31:15,706 Shawnie speaks to her dad. 648 00:31:17,418 --> 00:31:22,004 I said, "All of that is illegal. 649 00:31:22,006 --> 00:31:25,507 You're using resources for the city to make money. 650 00:31:25,551 --> 00:31:28,468 I said, "That's embezzlement 651 00:31:28,470 --> 00:31:32,222 And that'll get you 20 years if you're unluckily." 652 00:31:34,393 --> 00:31:36,894 [Shawnie] Immediately contacted my boss 653 00:31:36,896 --> 00:31:38,812 and I said, "I need to talk to you." 654 00:31:38,889 --> 00:31:41,023 And I went in and I was like, 655 00:31:41,066 --> 00:31:44,234 "I don't have proof, I don't have any evidence, 656 00:31:44,236 --> 00:31:46,445 but this is what I was told." 657 00:31:46,521 --> 00:31:49,531 And, you know, my boss was just kind of like, "Okay." 658 00:31:49,575 --> 00:31:52,784 And then he's like, "I need you to keep this to yourself 659 00:31:52,861 --> 00:31:54,745 This stays between us." 660 00:31:56,248 --> 00:31:58,874 My boss, he just looks at m and he's like, 661 00:31:58,876 --> 00:32:01,460 "Ron's troubles aren't over 662 00:32:01,462 --> 00:32:04,421 There's, there's more coming down the pipes." 663 00:32:05,841 --> 00:32:09,134 [narrator] As the investigation continu behind the scenes, 664 00:32:09,136 --> 00:32:12,763 Shawnie receives another terrifying threat. 665 00:32:14,683 --> 00:32:18,810 Not long after this, I was out on the trail at night 666 00:32:18,812 --> 00:32:22,439 and this guy was coming up the trail 667 00:32:22,441 --> 00:32:25,400 which was kind of unusual 'cause it's pretty isolated 668 00:32:25,402 --> 00:32:27,694 And he just said, "Hey, Shawnie. 669 00:32:27,696 --> 00:32:30,030 If you talk, there will be consequences." 670 00:32:33,285 --> 00:32:36,620 And I just turned around and ran back up the trail 671 00:32:36,622 --> 00:32:39,748 and just hit in the woods for, like, an hour. 672 00:32:39,750 --> 00:32:42,960 Like, I was terrified and I was afraid to tell anybody. 673 00:32:48,759 --> 00:32:53,136 [narrator] In July 2020, Vail PD gets the go ahead from the county DA 674 00:32:53,138 --> 00:32:56,807 to arrest Ron Braden on embezzlement charges. 675 00:32:57,768 --> 00:32:59,977 [Shawnie] I remember my boss was calling me 676 00:33:00,053 --> 00:33:03,313 and, "Where's he at?" and I was able to find out 677 00:33:03,390 --> 00:33:05,482 through mutual contacts that he was down in Denver. 678 00:33:05,484 --> 00:33:08,610 And I'm like, "It's hot. It's miserable. 679 00:33:08,612 --> 00:33:10,437 He's not going to be in Denver for that long. 680 00:33:10,439 --> 00:33:12,739 He's going to come back up to the mountains for the Fourth of July. 681 00:33:12,741 --> 00:33:14,307 Guarantee you." 682 00:33:14,827 --> 00:33:17,744 And he did come back up that day, Fourth of July. 683 00:33:18,664 --> 00:33:21,873 And we were in briefing for the Fourth of July parade. 684 00:33:21,875 --> 00:33:27,004 So I have my radio and I can hear everything that dispatch is saying. 685 00:33:27,080 --> 00:33:31,591 And my commander called me and he's like, "What's he driving?" 686 00:33:31,593 --> 00:33:34,428 I'm like, "Silver, Ford, van." 687 00:33:34,504 --> 00:33:36,179 He's like, "Big van?" I'm like, "Yep." 688 00:33:36,181 --> 00:33:37,931 And then I hear on the radio, 689 00:33:38,008 --> 00:33:41,852 like, that they're pulling over a van. 690 00:33:53,657 --> 00:33:56,783 Vail PD asked Ron, over and over again, 691 00:33:56,860 --> 00:33:58,368 -to get out of the van. -Nope. 692 00:33:58,370 --> 00:34:00,228 -[Shawnie] And he refused. -Why? 693 00:34:00,230 --> 00:34:02,372 [officer] We can explain it to you once you're out of the truck. 694 00:34:02,449 --> 00:34:03,665 No. 695 00:34:03,667 --> 00:34:05,917 [officer] Mmm-mmm. No, no, no, no, no... 696 00:34:05,919 --> 00:34:07,377 [Shawnie] And Ron tried to drive away. 697 00:34:07,379 --> 00:34:09,337 [officer] Ron, I'm telling you right now... 698 00:34:09,381 --> 00:34:10,696 -[Ron] Shoot me. -[officer] There's a warrant for your arrest. 699 00:34:10,774 --> 00:34:11,882 -[Ron] Shoot me. -[officer] Get out of the car. 700 00:34:11,884 --> 00:34:13,699 -Shoot me. -[officer] Get out of the car, Ron. 701 00:34:13,701 --> 00:34:16,178 -Shoot me. -Ron, I'll break you out of this damn window if I have to. 702 00:34:16,221 --> 00:34:18,221 -[Ron] This is bull [bleep]. -[officer] Ron. 703 00:34:18,223 --> 00:34:19,372 [Ron] What? 704 00:34:19,449 --> 00:34:20,932 [officer] There's a warrant for your... 705 00:34:20,934 --> 00:34:22,559 -Ron? -[Ron] Get away from me. 706 00:34:22,561 --> 00:34:24,043 [officer] No. 707 00:34:24,045 --> 00:34:27,314 [Shawnie] He's, he's trying to get their guns. 708 00:34:27,316 --> 00:34:30,942 And he's just yelling and screaming at them. 709 00:34:30,944 --> 00:34:32,486 [officer] Stop. 710 00:34:32,562 --> 00:34:35,197 [indistinct sounds of a struggle] 711 00:34:37,743 --> 00:34:39,076 [officer] Stop! 712 00:34:39,152 --> 00:34:42,788 He's fighting hard and it takes three of them 713 00:34:42,790 --> 00:34:45,499 to drag him out of the vehic 714 00:34:45,575 --> 00:34:47,667 and to get him cuffed. 715 00:34:47,744 --> 00:34:49,503 -[officer 1] Stop! -[officer 2] Give me your hand. 716 00:34:49,505 --> 00:34:51,755 [officer 1] Get on the ground, Ron! 717 00:34:51,757 --> 00:34:53,465 -[officer 2] Do you want to tase him? -[officer 1] Yeah. 718 00:34:53,467 --> 00:34:55,092 -[Ron grunting] -[officer 1] Ron? 719 00:34:55,094 --> 00:34:56,676 -[Ron] No. -[officer 1] Stop. 720 00:34:56,678 --> 00:34:58,720 [Shawnie] Even once they get him to the ground, 721 00:34:58,722 --> 00:35:01,014 and they get him cuffed, he's still fighting with the 722 00:35:01,016 --> 00:35:02,432 You know, and they'll... 723 00:35:02,434 --> 00:35:05,435 He's still just fighting and fighting. 724 00:35:06,188 --> 00:35:07,687 -[officer 1] Ron. -[Ron] No, wait! 725 00:35:07,689 --> 00:35:09,022 [officer 1] Don't play games. 726 00:35:09,024 --> 00:35:10,107 [Ron] What did I do? 727 00:35:10,183 --> 00:35:11,108 [officer 1] You know what you did, Ron. 728 00:35:11,184 --> 00:35:12,183 -[beep] -[Ron] What? 729 00:35:12,185 --> 00:35:13,777 -[handcuffs click] -[officer sighs] 730 00:35:14,905 --> 00:35:16,571 -[officer 1] All right. -[Ron] What the [bleep] did I do? 731 00:35:16,615 --> 00:35:18,406 [officer 1] We're going to sit you up, okay? 732 00:35:19,576 --> 00:35:21,827 [Shawnie] After he's arreste and taken away, 733 00:35:21,829 --> 00:35:24,204 they search is van and, um, 734 00:35:24,281 --> 00:35:27,332 one of the things they find is that AR-15. 735 00:35:29,878 --> 00:35:32,045 And a huge bag of ammo. 736 00:35:32,339 --> 00:35:34,131 [officer] It's all 5.56. 737 00:35:37,594 --> 00:35:41,179 When he was arrested and once I knew everybody was safe, 738 00:35:41,181 --> 00:35:43,431 to me it was like, okay, this, it's over. 739 00:35:47,563 --> 00:35:48,728 [officer 2] I'll go around. 740 00:35:49,648 --> 00:35:50,814 [officer 1] Step up there, Ron. 741 00:35:59,575 --> 00:36:00,907 Relax. 742 00:36:01,827 --> 00:36:04,536 Ronald Braden is facing all kinds of charges 743 00:36:04,538 --> 00:36:07,497 including embezzlement, theft, and assault on a police officer. 744 00:36:07,499 --> 00:36:09,166 He allegedly hurt two of the officers 745 00:36:09,168 --> 00:36:10,625 who arrested him over the weekend. 746 00:36:10,627 --> 00:36:13,420 Braden worked for the town for 24 years. 747 00:36:13,496 --> 00:36:19,718 Ron embezzled $854,000 from the town of Vail over a six-year period. 748 00:36:20,596 --> 00:36:22,012 When Ron posted bond, 749 00:36:22,014 --> 00:36:25,182 he was immediately placed on an ankle monitor. 750 00:36:25,184 --> 00:36:30,562 And that ankle monitor was monitored by Vail PD 24/ 751 00:36:30,639 --> 00:36:34,149 I was in briefing one day and the detective who was 752 00:36:34,151 --> 00:36:36,318 in charge of the phones looks at the phone 753 00:36:36,320 --> 00:36:38,612 and then she looks at one of the other detectives 754 00:36:38,688 --> 00:36:40,906 and I'm like, "What's going on?" 755 00:36:40,908 --> 00:36:44,367 And the detective looks at me and he's like, "Stay." 756 00:36:44,369 --> 00:36:47,871 And they're like, "He's near your place right now." 757 00:36:47,948 --> 00:36:51,333 By the time they got there, you know, he was gone. 758 00:36:51,376 --> 00:36:56,254 But he had violated his... that protection order for me. 759 00:36:56,256 --> 00:36:59,841 [narrator] Ron continues to push the boundaries of his protective order. 760 00:36:59,885 --> 00:37:02,260 And Shawnie is living in fea 761 00:37:02,262 --> 00:37:04,846 [Shawnie] Eight months afte his arrest, I was at work. 762 00:37:04,848 --> 00:37:08,016 A dispatcher comes over the radio and said, 763 00:37:08,018 --> 00:37:11,811 "There's been a tamper alert with Ron Braden's GPS monitor." 764 00:37:12,856 --> 00:37:14,422 And I just froze. 765 00:37:14,458 --> 00:37:18,610 And I was like, "Oh, no. Please tell me this is fake." 766 00:37:18,612 --> 00:37:23,198 They had found both of his cars at different locations 767 00:37:23,200 --> 00:37:26,326 Ron had cut his ankle bracelet off, left it in the snow. 768 00:37:27,079 --> 00:37:28,319 He was gone. 769 00:37:32,167 --> 00:37:33,541 The former Information Technology Director 770 00:37:33,543 --> 00:37:36,461 for the town of Vail is now a wanted fugitive. 771 00:37:36,463 --> 00:37:37,796 He's been accused of stealing 772 00:37:37,798 --> 00:37:40,632 more than a half million dollars from the town. 773 00:37:40,634 --> 00:37:44,844 Now he's accused of cutting off his court-ordere GPS monitoring device. 774 00:37:44,846 --> 00:37:47,639 Ron was on the run for a week. 775 00:37:47,641 --> 00:37:50,600 They were, you know, everybody was looking for him. 776 00:37:50,602 --> 00:37:52,936 They were doing everything they could to look for him. 777 00:37:53,522 --> 00:37:54,846 I was scared. 778 00:37:54,848 --> 00:37:56,481 [Kit] Ron seemed to be unhinged enough 779 00:37:56,483 --> 00:37:58,900 that who knew what Ron was gonna do. 780 00:37:58,902 --> 00:38:02,279 Shawnie came home that night and our terror was 781 00:38:02,281 --> 00:38:04,823 at the point where we barricaded our whole house. 782 00:38:04,825 --> 00:38:08,159 [Shawnie] My brother was the and he, like, blockaded door 783 00:38:08,161 --> 00:38:10,495 to, like, stop anybody from entering. 784 00:38:10,497 --> 00:38:13,498 My parents were terrified that he was going to come down there. 785 00:38:14,584 --> 00:38:16,001 Kill... kill me. 786 00:38:17,129 --> 00:38:19,045 [narrator] After a week in hiding, 787 00:38:19,122 --> 00:38:21,506 Shawnie decides to return to Vail. 788 00:38:22,592 --> 00:38:24,884 [Shawnie] And, uh, my boss called me. 789 00:38:24,886 --> 00:38:28,305 And he's a pretty no-BS kind of guy. 790 00:38:28,381 --> 00:38:29,848 He is kind of hemming and humming around. 791 00:38:29,850 --> 00:38:32,809 He's like, "Where are you? What are you doing?" 792 00:38:33,270 --> 00:38:34,769 And that's when he told me. 793 00:38:34,771 --> 00:38:36,813 Ron was tracked down to Arizona 794 00:38:36,890 --> 00:38:41,026 and they've put a violent crimes task force SWAT team type 795 00:38:41,653 --> 00:38:42,819 on him. 796 00:38:42,821 --> 00:38:44,988 And they were monitoring and watching him. 797 00:38:44,990 --> 00:38:47,866 The next day, he got into a vehicle and 798 00:38:47,868 --> 00:38:50,827 they decided that was the best time tactically to pull him over, 799 00:38:50,829 --> 00:38:55,165 the task force, the agents were trying to call Ron out 800 00:38:55,167 --> 00:38:57,125 And all of a sudden they just heard shots. 801 00:38:57,169 --> 00:38:58,251 [gunshots] 802 00:38:58,795 --> 00:39:00,420 And he had killed himself. 803 00:39:00,422 --> 00:39:01,921 Ron had killed himself. 804 00:39:01,998 --> 00:39:05,383 I was like, "Why... Why am I upset? 805 00:39:05,385 --> 00:39:08,470 I hate him. I hate him." 806 00:39:08,472 --> 00:39:12,891 But yet I was just sobbing that he was dead. 807 00:39:12,893 --> 00:39:17,062 To this day, I don't know why I was upset. 808 00:39:17,064 --> 00:39:18,438 And I hated this man. 809 00:39:18,440 --> 00:39:20,315 He had made my life hell. 810 00:39:22,444 --> 00:39:25,403 But I was, like, with him for eight years, right? 811 00:39:25,405 --> 00:39:26,821 Like, I loved him, you know? 812 00:39:26,823 --> 00:39:29,366 And he was gone. He's dead. 813 00:39:29,368 --> 00:39:33,370 My first thought was, "Thank God he's dead. 814 00:39:33,372 --> 00:39:36,414 'Cause Shawnie won't have to worry about him getting out 815 00:39:36,416 --> 00:39:38,616 and coming to kill her." 816 00:39:40,253 --> 00:39:44,506 Uh, you know, if you've not been in a situation where you really feel 817 00:39:44,508 --> 00:39:48,301 that it's possible that somebody is looking to kill you, 818 00:39:48,303 --> 00:39:50,095 it's hard to, hard to understand it. 819 00:39:50,171 --> 00:39:54,599 I was just, I was broken apart. 820 00:39:54,601 --> 00:39:56,768 I still, to this day, don't understand him. 821 00:39:56,770 --> 00:39:58,937 And I'm not sure I ever will. 822 00:40:01,942 --> 00:40:04,484 I had decided to leave Vail 823 00:40:04,561 --> 00:40:06,653 I wanted a fresh start and a I had a friend 824 00:40:06,655 --> 00:40:09,072 who lived in Washington and who I'd known for years. 825 00:40:09,074 --> 00:40:11,282 And she'd just bought a house there and she's like, 826 00:40:11,284 --> 00:40:12,492 "Come be my roommate." 827 00:40:12,569 --> 00:40:14,244 I was like, "Okay." 828 00:40:17,707 --> 00:40:21,584 [Hill] Shawnie has always be the kind of person 829 00:40:21,586 --> 00:40:24,254 who can make lemonade out of lemons. 830 00:40:24,330 --> 00:40:28,091 And I feel like, with this experience, 831 00:40:29,636 --> 00:40:34,431 Shawnie is going to be able to continue to help other people. 832 00:40:37,477 --> 00:40:40,103 [Shawnie] There's just been this impact on me that 833 00:40:40,689 --> 00:40:42,772 will never go away. 834 00:40:42,849 --> 00:40:45,483 You know, and I guess I have two choices. 835 00:40:45,485 --> 00:40:47,944 You know, I can let it destroy me 836 00:40:47,946 --> 00:40:49,612 or I can do something good with it. 837 00:40:49,614 --> 00:40:52,097 'Cause I can't... Can't go back. 838 00:40:53,660 --> 00:40:58,204 [narrator] Shawnie tells her story to create awarenes around both steroid abuse 839 00:40:58,281 --> 00:41:01,624 and the invisible crime of sexual coercion. 840 00:41:02,669 --> 00:41:07,297 My hope is that people become aware of symptoms 841 00:41:07,299 --> 00:41:10,091 to look for such as isolation, 842 00:41:10,093 --> 00:41:13,720 change in personality in your child, 843 00:41:13,722 --> 00:41:16,973 and to not be afraid to intervene, 844 00:41:16,975 --> 00:41:21,352 to shine light on that spousal or significant other abuse 845 00:41:21,354 --> 00:41:23,229 or any type of domestic abuse. 846 00:41:24,566 --> 00:41:29,027 You know, Shawnie's... the bravest person I know. 847 00:41:37,120 --> 00:41:41,039 [Kit] I am so proud of her and I pray every day, 848 00:41:41,791 --> 00:41:43,583 multiple times a day, 849 00:41:43,585 --> 00:41:46,336 that she finds true happiness in life. 850 00:41:46,338 --> 00:41:49,172 [Shawnie] I have amazing family. My parents are amazing. 851 00:41:49,174 --> 00:41:52,383 And they support me and since moving to Washington, 852 00:41:52,385 --> 00:41:54,010 I've learned to make friends. 853 00:41:54,971 --> 00:41:56,662 That's what's key, 854 00:41:56,664 --> 00:41:59,140 in the friends I've made and the community I've built 855 00:42:01,895 --> 00:42:03,853 You know, love, I don't know. 856 00:42:03,930 --> 00:42:06,981 That's a whole nother ball game, you see.