1 00:00:02,567 --> 00:00:05,048 Sean was one of the best preachers I've ever heard. 2 00:00:05,439 --> 00:00:07,006 When I speak, I know that Jesus 3 00:00:07,050 --> 00:00:08,703 is speaking through me, amen? 4 00:00:08,747 --> 00:00:09,965 Amen. 5 00:00:10,009 --> 00:00:11,880 In the holy atmosphere of church, 6 00:00:11,924 --> 00:00:14,883 a youth pastor holds sway over his flock. 7 00:00:15,623 --> 00:00:19,062 Joy joined the youth group to get closer to Sean. 8 00:00:19,105 --> 00:00:22,108 Joy and Sean were inseparable. 9 00:00:25,242 --> 00:00:27,766 Joy knew from the beginning that Sean was married. 10 00:00:29,246 --> 00:00:31,900 But living together just opened the flood gates. 11 00:00:32,640 --> 00:00:34,990 Their forbidden love defies the church. 12 00:00:35,643 --> 00:00:38,777 Sean is married to Joy and married to Sheila. 13 00:00:39,169 --> 00:00:40,692 He's in a polygamous relationship. 14 00:00:43,129 --> 00:00:45,392 And a need for total control. 15 00:00:45,436 --> 00:00:49,614 Sean was a calculated master manipulator. 16 00:00:49,962 --> 00:00:52,399 He was like, this is my girl, 17 00:00:52,443 --> 00:00:55,228 and I'm making her life into what I want it to be. 18 00:00:56,055 --> 00:00:57,970 Can quickly turn into... 19 00:01:00,190 --> 00:01:04,411 A federal ranger starts taking the rocks apart 20 00:01:04,455 --> 00:01:05,978 from the shrine. 21 00:01:06,021 --> 00:01:08,937 They believed that they in fact had a murdered person. 22 00:01:09,199 --> 00:01:11,157 A killer relationship. 23 00:01:13,203 --> 00:01:15,901 What kind of a person does that? 24 00:01:15,944 --> 00:01:20,297 A cold-blooded killer does that. 25 00:01:34,267 --> 00:01:37,705 There's an unbelievable story in every homicide, 26 00:01:37,749 --> 00:01:40,752 but there are some stories and some homicides 27 00:01:40,795 --> 00:01:43,407 that are truly unforgettable. 28 00:01:44,364 --> 00:01:47,846 And this case in particular, is one that even after 29 00:01:47,889 --> 00:01:50,631 all my years of experience focusing on relationships 30 00:01:50,675 --> 00:01:51,937 and families, 31 00:01:51,980 --> 00:01:53,982 blows my mind. 32 00:01:54,026 --> 00:01:55,984 It's a tale of moms and daughters 33 00:01:56,028 --> 00:01:58,291 of the church and spirituality, 34 00:01:58,335 --> 00:02:01,338 of absent fathers and father figures, 35 00:02:01,381 --> 00:02:02,382 of love, 36 00:02:02,426 --> 00:02:05,342 a whole lot of love and death. 37 00:02:06,299 --> 00:02:09,215 And it begins in San Diego in the mid-90s 38 00:02:09,259 --> 00:02:12,175 with a young free spirit named Joy Risker. 39 00:02:18,616 --> 00:02:22,272 Joy in high school was super bubbly, 40 00:02:22,315 --> 00:02:25,362 really positive, fun, 41 00:02:25,405 --> 00:02:28,191 very smart and creative. 42 00:02:28,234 --> 00:02:30,193 I don't know how anybody 43 00:02:30,236 --> 00:02:32,934 that hung around Joy for more than an hour, 44 00:02:32,978 --> 00:02:34,501 couldn't have been in love with her. 45 00:02:34,545 --> 00:02:37,722 [Lora]as open-minded, non-judgmental, 46 00:02:37,765 --> 00:02:41,334 she was willing to listen to different opinions and ideas, 47 00:02:41,378 --> 00:02:45,120 and she was also open enough to share her own concerns 48 00:02:45,164 --> 00:02:46,731 or struggles. 49 00:02:47,949 --> 00:02:49,255 Seven years earlier, 50 00:02:49,299 --> 00:02:51,649 Joy's father walked out on the family 51 00:02:51,692 --> 00:02:55,000 and the 16-year-old has been searching for a father figure 52 00:02:55,043 --> 00:02:56,567 ever since. 53 00:02:56,610 --> 00:02:58,525 She is just with a single mom. 54 00:03:21,331 --> 00:03:22,854 if she needed something. 55 00:03:22,897 --> 00:03:24,812 In high school, a lot of us had that similar situation, 56 00:03:24,856 --> 00:03:27,293 so we all kind of looked out for each other 57 00:03:27,337 --> 00:03:29,077 and became a nice tight knit group of friends 58 00:03:29,121 --> 00:03:30,949 that were more like family. 59 00:03:32,037 --> 00:03:34,692 I remember hanging out and having a really good time, 60 00:03:34,735 --> 00:03:37,216 we'd party at my house, go to raves. 61 00:03:39,479 --> 00:03:41,264 Joy had a little bit of a wild side, 62 00:03:41,307 --> 00:03:43,048 all in good fun. 63 00:03:43,614 --> 00:03:47,400 Joy was straddling that line of being a kid and having fun, 64 00:03:47,444 --> 00:03:52,797 while also trying to maintain respect for her mom. 65 00:03:54,364 --> 00:03:56,409 She would tell us like, I can't go out this Saturday, 66 00:03:56,453 --> 00:03:58,411 because my mom doesn't want me to be going out, 67 00:03:58,455 --> 00:04:01,414 'cause I'm supposed to be going to church on Sunday. 68 00:04:01,458 --> 00:04:03,851 Joy would go to church for her mom's sake. 69 00:04:05,331 --> 00:04:07,855 On one of those Sundays at Gwen's church, 70 00:04:07,899 --> 00:04:12,251 Joy and her mom meet a dynamic 27-year-old youth pastor 71 00:04:12,295 --> 00:04:14,471 named Sean Goff. 72 00:04:14,514 --> 00:04:16,908 Sean was one of the best preachers I've ever heard. 73 00:04:16,951 --> 00:04:20,303 When I walk, I know that Jesus is walking with me 74 00:04:20,346 --> 00:04:22,348 and when I speak, I know that Jesus 75 00:04:22,392 --> 00:04:24,307 is speaking through me, amen? 76 00:04:24,350 --> 00:04:26,744 He was a very good-looking dude. 77 00:04:26,787 --> 00:04:30,617 He had the power of a Pentecostal minister, 78 00:04:30,661 --> 00:04:33,316 but the intelligence of someone who's actually done 79 00:04:33,359 --> 00:04:35,970 the research and the study on the doctrines 80 00:04:36,014 --> 00:04:37,711 that he is espousing. 81 00:04:38,843 --> 00:04:41,324 Sean worked closely with my father, 82 00:04:41,367 --> 00:04:44,239 who was the chaplain of the church. 83 00:04:44,283 --> 00:04:46,459 And because Sean was a charismatic person, 84 00:04:46,503 --> 00:04:48,200 he was mentioned to me, you know, 85 00:04:48,243 --> 00:04:50,724 as someone I should get to know. 86 00:04:50,768 --> 00:04:53,423 Everything that Sean did, he became a leader in. 87 00:04:54,685 --> 00:04:57,383 Gwen believes that Sean is just the right person 88 00:04:57,427 --> 00:04:59,733 to push Joy closer to God 89 00:04:59,777 --> 00:05:02,823 and out of the party circuit for good. 90 00:05:02,867 --> 00:05:05,696 Gwen sought Sean out for advice on how 91 00:05:05,739 --> 00:05:08,351 to get her daughter more involved in the church, 92 00:05:08,394 --> 00:05:11,832 on how to get her daughter to not go to raves, 93 00:05:11,876 --> 00:05:13,051 things like that, 94 00:05:13,094 --> 00:05:14,661 and Sean was willing to help. 95 00:05:15,096 --> 00:05:16,707 You see people today, they're walking around 96 00:05:16,750 --> 00:05:18,273 and wearing their feelings on their sleeve, 97 00:05:18,317 --> 00:05:20,232 having problems left and right, 98 00:05:20,275 --> 00:05:22,060 always in some kind of a turmoil. 99 00:05:22,103 --> 00:05:25,193 God is not the most important thing in their life, 100 00:05:25,237 --> 00:05:28,066 it's themselves, amen? 101 00:05:29,328 --> 00:05:32,636 I don't think Joy expected to go to church and meet a man 102 00:05:32,679 --> 00:05:35,987 that's attractive and cool and understanding. 103 00:05:37,902 --> 00:05:41,384 Every Friday, our ministry would have chapel, 104 00:05:41,427 --> 00:05:44,865 and Joy would just, you know, dance in the halls. 105 00:05:44,909 --> 00:05:48,739 So Joy joined the youth group to get closer to Sean. 106 00:05:49,827 --> 00:05:53,439 In Sean, Joy finds a strong male presence, 107 00:05:53,483 --> 00:05:55,354 while the youth group provides the stability 108 00:05:55,398 --> 00:05:57,661 she's always craved. 109 00:05:57,704 --> 00:06:00,577 She trades nightlife for volunteer work at the church 110 00:06:00,620 --> 00:06:03,406 and ends up becoming Sean's assistant. 111 00:06:03,449 --> 00:06:06,757 For Joy's mom, Gwen, it's a positive development. 112 00:06:07,714 --> 00:06:11,762 At work, Joy and Sean were inseparable. 113 00:06:12,806 --> 00:06:15,287 He came on and started to take care of her 114 00:06:15,330 --> 00:06:17,115 and started to pay attention to her, 115 00:06:17,158 --> 00:06:20,423 things that she hadn't had before in her life. 116 00:06:20,466 --> 00:06:23,817 She had a father figure view towards Sean. 117 00:06:25,602 --> 00:06:27,734 We were used to seeing her multiple times a week 118 00:06:27,778 --> 00:06:30,694 and then suddenly it was like getting her out once a week 119 00:06:30,737 --> 00:06:32,130 was tough. 120 00:06:32,173 --> 00:06:35,786 Joy had officially gone on to new adventures. 121 00:06:38,005 --> 00:06:41,269 As someone who has gone to church her entire life, 122 00:06:41,313 --> 00:06:43,576 I can tell you, there's a sacred trust 123 00:06:43,620 --> 00:06:46,797 between a youth pastor and his congregant. 124 00:06:46,840 --> 00:06:49,582 Who in this case happens to be a young woman, 125 00:06:49,626 --> 00:06:52,498 who now sees him as a father figure. 126 00:06:52,542 --> 00:06:56,154 And when she's 18, Joy comes to him for guidance. 127 00:06:57,982 --> 00:07:01,594 She was looking for a way to get out of her mother's house 128 00:07:01,638 --> 00:07:04,075 and to be independent. 129 00:07:04,118 --> 00:07:06,512 Sean offers Joy a room in the home that he shares 130 00:07:06,556 --> 00:07:10,777 with his wife, Sheila, who's also part of the ministry. 131 00:07:11,691 --> 00:07:15,303 In exchange, he asked Joy to help Sheila keep up the house, 132 00:07:15,347 --> 00:07:17,828 and babysit their newborn son. 133 00:07:17,871 --> 00:07:22,310 Joy loved children, so I could see how that would 134 00:07:22,354 --> 00:07:26,010 also kind of fill that void in her life, 135 00:07:26,053 --> 00:07:29,927 give her that sense of family that she was missing. 136 00:07:31,581 --> 00:07:33,147 They had two bedrooms. 137 00:07:33,191 --> 00:07:34,192 Joy had her own room 138 00:07:34,235 --> 00:07:36,499 and then Sean and Sheila had a room 139 00:07:36,542 --> 00:07:39,371 where they kept their young son with them. 140 00:07:39,414 --> 00:07:41,591 Sean was offering, at least in her mind, 141 00:07:41,634 --> 00:07:43,593 some sort of freedom. 142 00:07:43,636 --> 00:07:46,770 Joy's mom, Gwen, is supportive of, 143 00:07:46,813 --> 00:07:50,034 even encouraged by, the move to Sean and Sheila's. 144 00:07:50,077 --> 00:07:52,602 What better person to be sharing a roof with 145 00:07:52,645 --> 00:07:54,560 than your own pastor? 146 00:07:54,604 --> 00:07:58,477 Her daughter is finally on the right spiritual path. 147 00:07:58,521 --> 00:08:01,915 Gwen accepted Sean as a father figure for her. 148 00:08:01,959 --> 00:08:04,135 She saw him as a positive influence. 149 00:08:04,178 --> 00:08:07,834 So now she's got this strong, charismatic man in her life, 150 00:08:07,878 --> 00:08:11,621 who's taking care of her and another young woman, 151 00:08:11,664 --> 00:08:14,537 almost like a sister figure to her. 152 00:08:14,580 --> 00:08:16,626 Joy's friends and church community 153 00:08:16,669 --> 00:08:18,410 are also supportive. 154 00:08:18,453 --> 00:08:19,933 They see Joy flourishing 155 00:08:19,977 --> 00:08:22,283 and pastor Sean and his wife, Sheila, 156 00:08:22,327 --> 00:08:24,721 seem to be a great influence on her. 157 00:08:24,764 --> 00:08:30,117 Then, in September, 1997, about a year after Joy moved in, 158 00:08:30,161 --> 00:08:34,513 Sean's friend, Leif, is at the church office one afternoon, 159 00:08:34,557 --> 00:08:37,385 when an unusual message pops up in his inbox. 160 00:08:38,343 --> 00:08:41,041 So Sean and I would email back and forth all the time, 161 00:08:41,085 --> 00:08:44,392 both for work and just for conversation. 162 00:08:44,436 --> 00:08:46,394 And at the very bottom of the email, 163 00:08:46,438 --> 00:08:50,877 I saw a conversation between him and an unknown man. 164 00:08:50,921 --> 00:08:54,011 It appears Sean accidentally copied and pasted 165 00:08:54,054 --> 00:08:58,711 a message history that was never meant for Leif's eyes. 166 00:08:58,755 --> 00:09:01,018 It was talking about how Sean was grateful 167 00:09:01,061 --> 00:09:04,238 that he had performed the ceremony to marry him and Joy. 168 00:09:06,458 --> 00:09:09,156 Sean is married to Joy 169 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:11,724 and married to Sheila -- 170 00:09:11,768 --> 00:09:13,596 he's in a polygamous relationship. 171 00:09:17,295 --> 00:09:20,820 If he was outed, it could destroy the ministry. 172 00:09:21,778 --> 00:09:24,084 I was scared when I heard that Joy was missing, 173 00:09:24,128 --> 00:09:26,304 because I didn't believe that she would have run off. 174 00:09:27,131 --> 00:09:30,395 He was very vague about how it happened. 175 00:09:30,438 --> 00:09:32,702 He described as being accidental 176 00:09:32,745 --> 00:09:35,792 and he would use the word kill. 177 00:09:43,930 --> 00:09:46,324 Polygamy, it's an illegal practice 178 00:09:46,367 --> 00:09:48,587 in the United States, 179 00:09:48,631 --> 00:09:50,545 but that hasn't stopped 30-year-old, 180 00:09:50,589 --> 00:09:55,246 San Diego-based minister, Sean Goff, from pursuing it. 181 00:09:55,289 --> 00:10:00,991 In August of 1997, Sean takes a second wife, Joy Risker, 182 00:10:01,034 --> 00:10:05,560 the now 19-year-old woman he nurtured, guided and mentored, 183 00:10:05,604 --> 00:10:07,693 when she was yearning for direction 184 00:10:07,737 --> 00:10:10,391 from a male authority figure. 185 00:10:10,435 --> 00:10:14,308 Turns out the couple was married in secret. 186 00:10:16,006 --> 00:10:19,139 I called Sean up and said, this is some abhorrent doctrine 187 00:10:19,183 --> 00:10:20,793 that you're playing with here. 188 00:10:20,837 --> 00:10:25,232 And at first he denied it, until I read him the email, 189 00:10:25,276 --> 00:10:28,235 and then he said, "Okay, that's true." 190 00:10:28,279 --> 00:10:30,716 I'd been friends with him at that point, 15 years. 191 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:34,241 Even though I didn't approve what he was doing, 192 00:10:34,285 --> 00:10:38,289 I also didn't like the idea of making him lose his job. 193 00:10:38,332 --> 00:10:42,554 Exposed, Sean attempts to justify a choice he made 194 00:10:56,699 --> 00:10:59,353 they were all polygamous. 195 00:10:59,397 --> 00:11:03,488 Sean was able to make rational and believable cases 196 00:11:03,531 --> 00:11:08,493 for whatever he was trying to do, based on the scripture. 197 00:11:08,536 --> 00:11:11,626 Each of the wives lived in a separate bedroom 198 00:11:11,670 --> 00:11:15,152 and Sean would just alternate between bedrooms, 199 00:11:15,195 --> 00:11:18,503 and Sheila agreed with it because she was raised 200 00:11:18,546 --> 00:11:22,812 to believe that the man was the ultimate authority. 201 00:11:24,204 --> 00:11:26,772 I actually called Sean's brother and told him 202 00:11:26,816 --> 00:11:31,385 what was going on and what should I do? 203 00:11:31,429 --> 00:11:33,648 His brother has always been no nonsense, 204 00:11:33,692 --> 00:11:36,564 and he said, "You need to tell him he has to tell 205 00:11:36,608 --> 00:11:40,873 the ministry he's working for, or you will." 206 00:11:42,745 --> 00:11:47,445 If he was outed, it could destroy the ministry, 207 00:11:47,488 --> 00:11:49,708 it could cost people their jobs, their livelihoods, 208 00:11:49,752 --> 00:11:52,537 bring disgrace upon people of faith. 209 00:11:52,580 --> 00:11:55,758 He just needed to end his relationship. 210 00:11:55,801 --> 00:11:58,238 Sean's brother also gets in touch 211 00:11:58,282 --> 00:12:02,068 with Joy's mother, Gwen, who is shocked to discover 212 00:12:02,112 --> 00:12:05,463 that the man she'd grown to see as her daughter's mentor, 213 00:12:05,506 --> 00:12:08,118 has taken her as his bride. 214 00:12:08,161 --> 00:12:11,512 I don't think her mother was open to the idea of polygamy. 215 00:12:11,556 --> 00:12:14,864 Societally, culturally speaking, even in her church, 216 00:12:14,907 --> 00:12:16,213 it's unacceptable. 217 00:12:16,256 --> 00:12:18,737 But I do think that Sean was so coercive 218 00:12:18,781 --> 00:12:22,219 that he could make her mom believe maybe 219 00:12:22,262 --> 00:12:26,136 it was not so outlandish. 220 00:12:26,701 --> 00:12:32,011 At the same time, she wanted to make Joy feel supported. 221 00:12:33,752 --> 00:12:38,888 So Joy's mom finally came around and accepted him 222 00:12:38,931 --> 00:12:40,541 as Joy's husband. 223 00:12:41,412 --> 00:12:42,805 With Gwen's support, 224 00:12:42,848 --> 00:12:46,069 Sean feels even more validated and resolute 225 00:12:46,112 --> 00:12:47,897 in the sanctity of his marriage, 226 00:12:47,940 --> 00:12:49,333 and tells Leif 227 00:12:49,376 --> 00:12:53,337 he has no intention of discontinuing his lifestyle. 228 00:12:53,380 --> 00:12:55,905 I had to tell the ministry what he was doing. 229 00:12:55,948 --> 00:12:59,604 And at that point, he was kicked out of church. 230 00:13:05,915 --> 00:13:07,830 I was in complete disbelief. 231 00:13:09,744 --> 00:13:13,966 I told her, I said, "Joy, if you ever want out, 232 00:13:14,010 --> 00:13:15,794 I am here for you." 233 00:13:15,838 --> 00:13:18,797 Joy's response was, "This is what I want, 234 00:13:18,841 --> 00:13:21,844 this is where, you know, God wants me." 235 00:13:23,584 --> 00:13:26,196 Now that her secret is out at church, 236 00:13:26,239 --> 00:13:29,242 Joy shows up at a party and shares the news 237 00:13:29,286 --> 00:13:31,679 with her old high school friends. 238 00:13:31,723 --> 00:13:33,986 There was Joy and we hadn't seen her 239 00:13:34,030 --> 00:13:35,553 or heard from her in years. 240 00:13:35,596 --> 00:13:37,947 That just made everybody feel so warm and happy 241 00:13:37,990 --> 00:13:39,426 to see her again. 242 00:13:39,470 --> 00:13:41,211 As the night progressed, 243 00:13:41,254 --> 00:13:43,343 she decided to tell us all 244 00:13:43,387 --> 00:13:46,520 about what had been happening in her life. 245 00:13:48,348 --> 00:13:50,829 I was just, okay, 246 00:13:50,873 --> 00:13:52,570 tell me more about that, 247 00:13:52,613 --> 00:13:53,832 I'm not gonna judge you, 248 00:13:53,876 --> 00:13:56,748 and that was true. 249 00:13:56,791 --> 00:14:02,972 But I also, once the whole story came out and how they met, 250 00:14:03,015 --> 00:14:05,888 I certainly started to have growing concerns. 251 00:14:06,453 --> 00:14:08,847 I felt a bit disappointed to be honest, 252 00:14:08,891 --> 00:14:15,593 because I know Joy was looking for someone to be her guy. 253 00:14:15,636 --> 00:14:18,291 And I don't see how that was gonna happen 254 00:14:18,335 --> 00:14:20,380 in a polygamous relationship. 255 00:14:21,425 --> 00:14:23,209 Despite their concerns, 256 00:14:23,253 --> 00:14:26,343 Joy assures her friends that she's happy. 257 00:14:26,386 --> 00:14:28,562 She just swore like, "No, he has a big heart 258 00:14:28,606 --> 00:14:30,477 and he's a good person." 259 00:14:31,174 --> 00:14:34,090 And that he was good for her. 260 00:14:35,134 --> 00:14:37,006 Joy feels isolated. 261 00:14:37,049 --> 00:14:39,486 She's been kicked out of her church community 262 00:14:39,530 --> 00:14:40,705 and she can't fully connect 263 00:14:40,748 --> 00:14:43,534 with her high school friends anymore. 264 00:14:43,577 --> 00:14:46,972 All of this drives her closer to the people who actually 265 00:14:47,016 --> 00:14:48,452 do share her beliefs, 266 00:14:48,495 --> 00:14:51,368 and especially to Sean. 267 00:14:51,411 --> 00:14:54,197 In 2000, when Joy is 22, 268 00:14:54,240 --> 00:14:56,460 she and Sean welcome their first child, 269 00:14:56,503 --> 00:14:58,549 a son named Snow. 270 00:14:58,592 --> 00:15:01,900 The family is elated by its new addition, 271 00:15:01,944 --> 00:15:05,599 but the next day, they receive heartbreaking news. 272 00:15:08,602 --> 00:15:12,476 Joy's mother died the day after her child was born. 273 00:15:16,262 --> 00:15:17,829 Joy really cared about her mom a lot, 274 00:15:17,872 --> 00:15:21,398 and I think wanted to make her mom proud of her. 275 00:15:21,441 --> 00:15:23,574 It was just the two of them, that was it, 276 00:15:23,617 --> 00:15:26,142 that's who Joy had, you know, was her mom. 277 00:15:27,404 --> 00:15:29,754 And now her mom is gone. 278 00:15:29,797 --> 00:15:33,801 Without her mom and friends around, 279 00:15:43,811 --> 00:15:46,945 Joy and Sheila started off a little rough, 280 00:15:46,989 --> 00:15:48,512 they had arguments, 281 00:15:48,555 --> 00:15:51,036 but I think they just liked each other. 282 00:15:51,080 --> 00:15:54,605 Sheila would watch the boys when Joy was at work or school 283 00:15:54,648 --> 00:15:58,261 and Joy would watch the boys whenever Sheila was at work. 284 00:15:58,304 --> 00:16:01,960 Sheila said she saw Joy as a sister. 285 00:16:05,790 --> 00:16:09,620 A year later, Joy discovers she's pregnant once again. 286 00:16:09,663 --> 00:16:11,622 Sean decides to hold a shower 287 00:16:11,665 --> 00:16:15,017 and invite some of Joy's old church friends. 288 00:16:15,582 --> 00:16:18,629 I went to the baby shower of her second child 289 00:16:18,672 --> 00:16:21,980 and she seemed to be the old Joy that I knew. 290 00:16:22,024 --> 00:16:24,461 We were playing all the baby shower games, 291 00:16:24,504 --> 00:16:27,899 so measuring the belly and different things, 292 00:16:27,942 --> 00:16:31,642 then Sean seemed to be in rare form. 293 00:16:32,382 --> 00:16:34,297 Just, I'm in charge and I'm the boss, 294 00:16:34,340 --> 00:16:36,038 and look at my world. 295 00:16:37,517 --> 00:16:39,824 I avoided really speaking with him, 296 00:16:39,867 --> 00:16:43,523 I wasn't sure what I would say 'cause this was 297 00:16:43,567 --> 00:16:45,786 not the situation that I wanted my friend in, 298 00:16:45,830 --> 00:16:48,963 but I went because I wanted to support her. 299 00:16:50,313 --> 00:16:54,360 Nine months later, Joy and Sean are invited to attend 300 00:16:54,404 --> 00:16:56,928 one of her high school friend's weddings. 301 00:16:57,798 --> 00:17:00,627 This was the first time we met Sean. 302 00:17:01,802 --> 00:17:04,327 Sean definitely had a commanding presence with her, 303 00:17:04,370 --> 00:17:06,155 like, go get me another drink, 304 00:17:06,198 --> 00:17:07,634 go get me, do this. 305 00:17:07,678 --> 00:17:10,550 And it was like, this is my girl 306 00:17:10,594 --> 00:17:14,685 and I'm making her life into what I want it to be. 307 00:17:14,728 --> 00:17:20,125 It was clear that she was feeling stuck and not happy. 308 00:17:20,169 --> 00:17:24,129 She did say that they were arguing more 309 00:17:24,173 --> 00:17:28,307 and that she had shared that she wanted more freedom. 310 00:17:29,091 --> 00:17:32,398 He never let her out of his sight that night. 311 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:35,053 Sean was very controlling and very much trying 312 00:17:35,097 --> 00:17:37,360 to dominate her. 313 00:17:39,797 --> 00:17:42,278 I remember her saying, "I don't wanna hurt Sean, 314 00:17:42,321 --> 00:17:44,106 but I'm also not happy." 315 00:17:45,324 --> 00:17:48,501 I made the assumption that she was trapped, in a way. 316 00:17:49,459 --> 00:17:52,897 At the wedding, we all made plans to see each other again 317 00:17:52,940 --> 00:17:55,552 real soon, and she said, she'd get a hold of us. 318 00:17:58,207 --> 00:18:01,079 But Joy never does get a hold of them. 319 00:18:01,123 --> 00:18:03,212 And when they try to reach out to her, 320 00:18:03,255 --> 00:18:05,562 their calls go unanswered. 321 00:18:05,605 --> 00:18:07,912 Okay, we've been calling her, no word. 322 00:18:07,955 --> 00:18:09,957 We went by her house, no word. 323 00:18:10,001 --> 00:18:13,135 And then we find out, it was about a week, 324 00:18:13,178 --> 00:18:15,006 nobody's heard from her. 325 00:18:17,008 --> 00:18:22,535 And when we found out that her kids were at home, 326 00:18:22,579 --> 00:18:24,624 we knew something was definitely wrong. 327 00:18:24,668 --> 00:18:27,366 That was immediately, there's something wrong. 328 00:18:33,242 --> 00:18:35,766 It's late September of 2003 329 00:18:35,809 --> 00:18:40,205 and 25-year-old Joy Risker's friends fear she's missing. 330 00:18:40,249 --> 00:18:43,208 The last time they saw her, Joy divulged that she's 331 00:18:43,252 --> 00:18:47,604 in a polygamous marriage with a preacher named Sean Goff. 332 00:18:47,647 --> 00:18:50,389 And she's really unhappy. 333 00:18:51,608 --> 00:18:54,219 Joy's friends started calling Sean, 334 00:18:54,263 --> 00:18:56,178 saying, "Where is Joy? 335 00:18:56,221 --> 00:18:57,614 What happened?" 336 00:18:58,745 --> 00:19:02,096 He told them that Joy had run off to Europe 337 00:19:02,140 --> 00:19:04,316 and that she had left the kids behind 338 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:06,579 and that he was distraught. 339 00:19:07,667 --> 00:19:10,496 I was scared when I heard that Joy was missing, 340 00:19:10,540 --> 00:19:12,411 because I didn't believe that she would have run off. 341 00:19:12,455 --> 00:19:15,849 I didn't think that she would do that to her kids. 342 00:19:15,893 --> 00:19:17,286 It didn't seem right. 343 00:19:18,591 --> 00:19:20,985 Worried that they still haven't heard from her, 344 00:19:21,028 --> 00:19:24,771 Joy's friends reach out to law enforcement on October 5th 345 00:19:24,815 --> 00:19:26,686 and report her missing. 346 00:19:26,730 --> 00:19:29,776 One of the things that's so interesting about this story, 347 00:19:29,820 --> 00:19:33,780 is that those friends don't say anything to police 348 00:19:33,824 --> 00:19:35,652 about her polygamous marriage. 349 00:19:35,695 --> 00:19:37,958 It's an important fact to leave out. 350 00:19:40,439 --> 00:19:43,399 This was my second month in that unit. 351 00:19:43,442 --> 00:19:46,140 So up to then all my cases were pretty mundane. 352 00:19:46,184 --> 00:19:48,012 It was, you know that wife that took off? 353 00:19:48,055 --> 00:19:50,014 Oh, she came back the next day. 354 00:19:50,057 --> 00:19:52,886 A great majority of missing person cases, 355 00:19:52,930 --> 00:19:54,758 people would eventually come back. 356 00:19:54,801 --> 00:19:56,542 So I received the report 357 00:19:56,586 --> 00:19:59,241 and first I talked to Joy's husband. 358 00:20:01,460 --> 00:20:05,421 Sean said to Linda, that Joy left him 359 00:20:05,464 --> 00:20:07,292 and that he was stuck with the kids, 360 00:20:07,336 --> 00:20:09,207 that she had taken money. 361 00:20:09,251 --> 00:20:11,992 He just seemed off balance and distraught 362 00:20:12,036 --> 00:20:16,475 and upset about what had happened. 363 00:20:16,519 --> 00:20:19,826 He said Joy had reconnected with an old boyfriend 364 00:20:19,870 --> 00:20:22,481 and that they had exchanged emails 365 00:20:22,525 --> 00:20:27,225 and they had decided to backpack through Europe together. 366 00:20:27,269 --> 00:20:30,620 So I asked for her email. 367 00:20:30,663 --> 00:20:33,623 I needed more information about the boyfriend. 368 00:20:34,841 --> 00:20:37,975 Detective Koozin also reaches out to Joy's friends 369 00:20:38,018 --> 00:20:39,933 to see what they may know. 370 00:20:42,719 --> 00:20:47,114 A few friends said they did receive emails after she left, 371 00:20:47,158 --> 00:20:51,510 stating that she had run off with an old friend 372 00:20:51,554 --> 00:20:54,383 and that she just needed time. 373 00:20:55,384 --> 00:20:56,863 There were a couple of friends that said, 374 00:20:56,907 --> 00:21:00,867 "Yeah, I could see her, you know, just taking off. 375 00:21:00,911 --> 00:21:03,348 She's always talked about wanting to go to Europe, 376 00:21:03,392 --> 00:21:05,481 so I could see her doing that." 377 00:21:06,482 --> 00:21:09,615 The messages seemed to lend support to Sean's statement, 378 00:21:09,659 --> 00:21:13,793 but those closest to Joy feel that something is off. 379 00:21:16,187 --> 00:21:18,494 I was contacted by detectives 380 00:21:18,537 --> 00:21:23,412 and I was just like, there is no, no, no way, 381 00:21:23,455 --> 00:21:25,370 ever, she would do that. 382 00:21:25,414 --> 00:21:27,372 She would not have left her children, 383 00:21:27,416 --> 00:21:29,331 just, no matter what. 384 00:21:29,374 --> 00:21:32,072 In the back of my mind, I'm thinking, 385 00:21:32,116 --> 00:21:34,727 no, she wouldn't have left her two sons, 386 00:21:34,771 --> 00:21:36,729 but then I'm thinking, 387 00:21:36,773 --> 00:21:38,427 I don't know, would she, or wouldn't she? 388 00:21:38,470 --> 00:21:40,907 She's so much younger than him. 389 00:21:40,951 --> 00:21:44,433 The way their friends described her, very happy-go-lucky, 390 00:21:44,476 --> 00:21:47,479 she had all these things she wanted to do. 391 00:21:47,523 --> 00:21:50,482 Was she a person who could say, you know, "I need to take 392 00:21:50,526 --> 00:21:53,790 time out for myself and improve myself 393 00:21:53,833 --> 00:21:56,140 and then come back and be a better person, 394 00:21:56,183 --> 00:21:58,055 be a better mother." 395 00:21:59,361 --> 00:22:00,927 Keeping an open mind, 396 00:22:00,971 --> 00:22:04,627 detective Koozin looks deeper into the email Sean provided 397 00:22:04,670 --> 00:22:07,717 and makes contact with Joy's ex-boyfriend 398 00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:09,588 and supposed lover. 399 00:22:10,546 --> 00:22:12,939 He was living in Massachusetts, 400 00:22:12,983 --> 00:22:15,768 and he said, "Yeah, we had texted back and forth 401 00:22:15,812 --> 00:22:17,161 I think once, 402 00:22:17,204 --> 00:22:18,423 but it was just kinda like, hey, how's it going? 403 00:22:18,467 --> 00:22:21,383 Kind of thing, but no, we don't have any plans, 404 00:22:21,426 --> 00:22:23,559 we weren't gonna meet." 405 00:22:23,602 --> 00:22:26,823 And he hadn't seen her for years. 406 00:22:26,866 --> 00:22:28,390 I believed him. 407 00:22:28,825 --> 00:22:31,436 If Joy didn't run off with her ex, 408 00:22:31,480 --> 00:22:33,003 where could she be? 409 00:22:34,918 --> 00:22:37,399 Now we knew we had to get going on this one, 410 00:22:37,442 --> 00:22:39,096 we needed to find her immediately. 411 00:22:40,010 --> 00:22:42,447 Considering that maybe Joy didn't just 412 00:22:42,491 --> 00:22:45,407 run off on her own, the detectives decide 413 00:22:45,450 --> 00:22:49,454 to examine Joy's phone activity over the last few weeks, 414 00:22:49,498 --> 00:22:52,805 hoping to uncover any cell tower locations 415 00:22:52,849 --> 00:22:55,591 that might point to her whereabouts. 416 00:22:55,634 --> 00:22:58,855 The last call that Joy had made was to Sean. 417 00:22:59,856 --> 00:23:02,336 That last call from Joy's phone was placed 418 00:23:02,380 --> 00:23:07,298 at 9:34 PM on September 19th, 2003. 419 00:23:07,777 --> 00:23:11,215 Sixteen days prior to her friends reporting her missing. 420 00:23:12,259 --> 00:23:16,263 Joy's phone records completely drop off after that. 421 00:23:17,047 --> 00:23:21,355 There's no more interactions with friends, 422 00:23:21,399 --> 00:23:23,053 cell site, nothing. 423 00:23:24,663 --> 00:23:27,623 Anyone who's ever watched a true crime show can tell you 424 00:23:27,666 --> 00:23:30,190 that when a cell phone goes dead, 425 00:23:30,234 --> 00:23:31,714 it's not a good sign. 426 00:23:31,757 --> 00:23:35,152 Either Joy got rid of her phone when she left, 427 00:23:35,195 --> 00:23:37,110 or someone did it for her. 428 00:23:37,154 --> 00:23:39,765 But what's even more troubling to investigators, 429 00:23:39,809 --> 00:23:44,074 is that Sean never mentioned anything about Joy's last call 430 00:23:44,117 --> 00:23:45,641 in his initial interview. 431 00:23:46,903 --> 00:23:48,426 Sean was withholding. 432 00:23:48,470 --> 00:23:51,124 That was a big red flag for me. 433 00:23:52,386 --> 00:23:55,651 I called Sean and I asked him about that. 434 00:23:55,694 --> 00:23:59,176 He said that weekend that Joy had disappeared, 435 00:23:59,219 --> 00:24:01,439 they had had a big argument 436 00:24:01,483 --> 00:24:04,311 and he had left the house. 437 00:24:04,355 --> 00:24:07,358 Joy had called, asking him to come back, 438 00:24:07,401 --> 00:24:09,795 that they needed to talk about it. 439 00:24:11,275 --> 00:24:14,060 And so he came back, 440 00:24:14,104 --> 00:24:15,409 they went to bed 441 00:24:15,453 --> 00:24:18,456 and then the next morning he woke up 442 00:24:18,500 --> 00:24:21,894 and he saw Joy leaving with two suitcases 443 00:24:21,938 --> 00:24:25,419 and getting into a car and driving off. 444 00:24:29,554 --> 00:24:31,991 And it's like, Sean, why didn't you mention that before? 445 00:24:32,035 --> 00:24:33,732 That's big. 446 00:24:39,521 --> 00:24:42,785 Twenty-five-year-old Joy Risker was last seen 447 00:24:42,828 --> 00:24:44,569 almost three weeks ago. 448 00:24:44,613 --> 00:24:48,225 Her husband Sean has just revealed important details 449 00:24:48,268 --> 00:24:50,357 to detectives in San Diego. 450 00:24:50,401 --> 00:24:54,100 Details he failed to provide in his initial interview. 451 00:24:55,841 --> 00:24:59,236 To me, it was odd that he waited so long 452 00:24:59,279 --> 00:25:04,458 to go into detail on how he knew that Joy had left. 453 00:25:21,998 --> 00:25:23,782 Very good friend of Joy's told me 454 00:25:23,826 --> 00:25:25,610 "Well, you know he has another wife." 455 00:25:28,352 --> 00:25:31,442 He's married to Sheila and to Joy 456 00:25:31,485 --> 00:25:33,575 and they live together in the house. 457 00:25:34,706 --> 00:25:36,186 I mean, all this time, I've been talking to people 458 00:25:36,229 --> 00:25:37,840 and they were holding that back. 459 00:25:37,883 --> 00:25:40,233 It's like, why didn't you tell me that? 460 00:25:41,452 --> 00:25:44,368 During the first calls, they thought Joy might come back. 461 00:25:44,411 --> 00:25:46,544 And so they thought, well, when she comes back, 462 00:25:46,588 --> 00:25:48,807 is she gonna get in trouble? 463 00:25:48,851 --> 00:25:51,157 Now she's been gone for how long? 464 00:25:51,984 --> 00:25:53,638 Well, maybe she's not coming back. 465 00:25:55,118 --> 00:25:58,121 The startling revelation forces Detective Koozin 466 00:25:58,164 --> 00:26:02,168 to reconsider everything she's learned so far. 467 00:26:03,169 --> 00:26:04,562 That's where you got to go sit down, okay, 468 00:26:04,606 --> 00:26:07,347 and then you read through all this stuff again. 469 00:26:07,391 --> 00:26:09,785 Along with Sean, it also provides her 470 00:26:09,828 --> 00:26:12,222 with another person of interest. 471 00:26:12,526 --> 00:26:16,530 Sheila, the other wife lived in the house. 472 00:26:17,096 --> 00:26:19,838 I mean, what was her relationship with Joy? 473 00:26:22,319 --> 00:26:24,756 I did some work on Sheila and then just showed up 474 00:26:24,800 --> 00:26:26,410 at her workplace. 475 00:26:26,453 --> 00:26:28,847 It's always best to do a little surprise. 476 00:26:29,500 --> 00:26:31,720 We told her we're looking into the Joy Risker 477 00:26:31,763 --> 00:26:35,201 missing person case and she was a little shocked. 478 00:26:36,072 --> 00:26:38,988 And so Linda starts to question, 479 00:26:39,031 --> 00:26:40,946 "Did she let you know that she was leaving? 480 00:26:40,990 --> 00:26:43,166 Did she leave any clothes behind?" 481 00:26:43,209 --> 00:26:45,385 And Sheila was like, "Well, I don't know. 482 00:26:45,429 --> 00:26:48,084 She just left and didn't say anything." 483 00:26:49,259 --> 00:26:52,349 That's when she told me that the weekend Joy 484 00:26:52,392 --> 00:26:55,831 had disappeared, she had gone to Santa Barbara 485 00:26:55,874 --> 00:26:57,615 with the three kids. 486 00:26:58,355 --> 00:27:01,358 When I asked Sheila why she went to Santa Barbara, 487 00:27:01,401 --> 00:27:05,536 she said, "Well, Sean wanted a special weekend with Joy." 488 00:27:05,579 --> 00:27:10,062 She goes, "Yeah, I came back and Sean just said she had gone." 489 00:27:10,759 --> 00:27:13,283 Yeah, that was interesting. 490 00:27:14,023 --> 00:27:17,287 You have to question why would Sheila 491 00:27:17,330 --> 00:27:21,857 not question Joy missing or leaving her children? 492 00:27:25,208 --> 00:27:28,646 She had explained to us that Sean and Joy were 493 00:27:28,690 --> 00:27:34,347 having problems, so she thought that makes sense to me. 494 00:27:35,261 --> 00:27:37,742 Investigators aren't sure if Joy is 495 00:27:37,786 --> 00:27:39,396 dead or alive, 496 00:27:39,439 --> 00:27:41,746 or if Sheila has anything to do 497 00:27:41,790 --> 00:27:43,356 with her disappearance, 498 00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:45,619 but it's looking more and more plausible 499 00:27:45,663 --> 00:27:47,360 that Sean did. 500 00:27:49,536 --> 00:27:52,496 It's a red flag that Sean would want Sheila 501 00:27:52,539 --> 00:27:54,716 and all three kids out of the house the weekend 502 00:27:54,759 --> 00:27:56,630 that Joy disappeared. 503 00:27:57,719 --> 00:28:01,635 Also, why didn't he tell me about Sheila before? 504 00:28:02,158 --> 00:28:03,463 So I said, "Hey, you know, is it okay 505 00:28:03,507 --> 00:28:05,596 if I come over tomorrow morning?" 506 00:28:05,639 --> 00:28:08,468 He said, "Yeah, nine o'clock, fine." 507 00:28:09,426 --> 00:28:11,776 But I never got there because that evening, 508 00:28:11,820 --> 00:28:14,518 he actually went into the police department. 509 00:28:16,128 --> 00:28:19,131 Linda Koozin, by questioning him, 510 00:28:19,175 --> 00:28:20,785 asking for phone records, 511 00:28:20,829 --> 00:28:22,439 interviewing Sheila, 512 00:28:22,482 --> 00:28:25,790 puts so much pressure on him that he felt he needed 513 00:28:25,834 --> 00:28:28,837 to come to the police station to explain himself. 514 00:28:31,970 --> 00:28:33,189 When Sean arrives at the 515 00:28:33,232 --> 00:28:35,582 San Diego Police Department headquarters, 516 00:28:35,626 --> 00:28:38,760 he meets with veteran detective John Tefft. 517 00:28:38,803 --> 00:28:40,239 We take him into the interview room. 518 00:28:40,283 --> 00:28:42,285 I introduced myself to him. 519 00:28:42,328 --> 00:28:44,896 He basically tells me about the relationship, 520 00:28:44,940 --> 00:28:46,506 that he had this relationship, 521 00:28:46,550 --> 00:28:49,074 that he had two wives and that this wife 522 00:28:49,118 --> 00:28:50,772 wanted to go missing. 523 00:28:51,729 --> 00:28:55,080 He then told me that there was an accident 524 00:28:55,124 --> 00:28:57,300 and that she was killed. 525 00:29:13,359 --> 00:29:14,883 there's a difference between killing someone 526 00:29:14,926 --> 00:29:16,362 and murdering someone. 527 00:29:17,537 --> 00:29:19,626 You may be driving down the street and someone jumped 528 00:29:19,670 --> 00:29:22,238 in front of you and you run over and kill them, 529 00:29:22,281 --> 00:29:24,675 doesn't mean you murdered them. 530 00:29:24,718 --> 00:29:27,243 Murder has malice of forethought. 531 00:29:28,374 --> 00:29:29,854 So obviously he knew the difference, 532 00:29:29,898 --> 00:29:31,334 I clearly knew the difference, 533 00:29:31,377 --> 00:29:34,163 and so we would dance around this. 534 00:29:36,774 --> 00:29:38,428 The more I pressed him about the details 535 00:29:38,471 --> 00:29:40,082 of this accidental killing, 536 00:29:40,125 --> 00:29:43,999 the more I pressed him about the details of where her body is. 537 00:29:44,042 --> 00:29:45,217 At that point, he then says, 538 00:29:45,261 --> 00:29:46,871 "I don't wanna talk to you anymore, 539 00:29:46,915 --> 00:29:48,568 I'd like to have an attorney." 540 00:29:49,265 --> 00:29:51,223 So we ended the interview. 541 00:29:51,267 --> 00:29:54,705 We arrested him for murder and we put in jail. 542 00:29:57,447 --> 00:30:01,016 We are looking at a hacksaw, 543 00:30:01,059 --> 00:30:02,626 a shovel, 544 00:30:02,669 --> 00:30:03,975 an ice pick, 545 00:30:04,019 --> 00:30:05,977 a sledge hammer, 546 00:30:06,021 --> 00:30:07,631 a tarp. 547 00:30:13,550 --> 00:30:17,293 After claiming she left their family of her own free will, 548 00:30:17,336 --> 00:30:19,599 Sean Goff, a minister, 549 00:30:19,643 --> 00:30:20,862 spiritual guide 550 00:30:20,905 --> 00:30:23,777 and a trusted mentor to his young wife, 551 00:30:23,821 --> 00:30:26,519 knows exactly what happened to her. 552 00:30:26,563 --> 00:30:28,304 She's not missing, 553 00:30:28,347 --> 00:30:31,263 Joy Risker is dead. 554 00:30:33,265 --> 00:30:36,051 He was very vague about how it happened. 555 00:30:36,094 --> 00:30:38,967 He described it as being accidental 556 00:30:39,010 --> 00:30:42,144 and he would use the word kill. 557 00:30:42,187 --> 00:30:44,973 I would use the word murder and he would correct me. 558 00:30:45,016 --> 00:30:48,454 No, "I killed her, I didn't murder her." 559 00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:52,937 The partial confession is enough 560 00:30:52,981 --> 00:30:56,071 to keep Sean in jail for 72 hours, 561 00:30:56,114 --> 00:30:59,248 but not enough to charge him with murder. 562 00:31:00,423 --> 00:31:02,599 The race is on to gather evidence. 563 00:31:02,642 --> 00:31:05,471 And the first stop is back at Sean's home, 564 00:31:05,515 --> 00:31:06,864 with his other wife. 565 00:31:07,517 --> 00:31:10,737 I interviewed Sheila, and when I sat down with her, 566 00:31:10,781 --> 00:31:13,044 I don't know if Sheila is just a key witness 567 00:31:13,088 --> 00:31:15,003 or is she a co-conspirator? 568 00:31:16,352 --> 00:31:19,224 So I was very understanding, I was talking to her 569 00:31:19,268 --> 00:31:22,924 and Sheila says she is with the kids in Santa Barbara, 570 00:31:22,967 --> 00:31:27,232 Sean calls her says, "Hey, Joy's gonna move on, 571 00:31:27,276 --> 00:31:29,713 she's gonna leave and in fact, when you get home, 572 00:31:29,756 --> 00:31:31,584 she's not gonna be here, 573 00:31:31,628 --> 00:31:32,934 and I won't be here 574 00:31:32,977 --> 00:31:35,937 'cause I'm gonna assist her in her moving on, 575 00:31:35,980 --> 00:31:38,287 and when you get home, 576 00:31:38,330 --> 00:31:40,419 there was an accident. 577 00:31:40,463 --> 00:31:41,681 We had a little minor accident, 578 00:31:41,725 --> 00:31:43,640 wasn't a big deal." 579 00:31:43,683 --> 00:31:47,122 He said, "When Joy left, she got injured 580 00:31:47,165 --> 00:31:50,212 and there might be some blood in the room. 581 00:31:50,734 --> 00:31:53,476 Can you go home and clean up the mess?" 582 00:31:54,433 --> 00:31:56,000 At the time, Sheila, 583 00:31:56,044 --> 00:31:59,482 she didn't even ask why or what happened. 584 00:31:59,525 --> 00:32:01,745 Instead, she chose to believe Sean. 585 00:32:01,788 --> 00:32:04,095 That's the kind of hold he had on her. 586 00:32:05,357 --> 00:32:06,924 You have to remember, 587 00:32:06,968 --> 00:32:12,974 Sheila had been controlled by his manipulations for years. 588 00:32:13,017 --> 00:32:16,586 So, at that point, she was inclined to believe him, 589 00:32:16,629 --> 00:32:18,370 almost no matter what he said. 590 00:32:20,024 --> 00:32:22,984 When I was talking to her, Sheila was cooperative, 591 00:32:23,027 --> 00:32:26,813 she answered my questions, she appeared very candid. 592 00:32:29,686 --> 00:32:31,818 We had to run down leads involving her, 593 00:32:31,862 --> 00:32:35,170 like checking her gas, credit cards, 594 00:32:35,213 --> 00:32:37,346 to see if she went to the hotel, 595 00:32:37,389 --> 00:32:39,043 how long was at the hotel? 596 00:32:39,087 --> 00:32:40,610 What was her cell site, 597 00:32:40,653 --> 00:32:41,741 her phone records? 598 00:32:41,785 --> 00:32:43,308 What did they depict? 599 00:32:43,352 --> 00:32:46,355 The receipts and cell tower information 600 00:32:46,398 --> 00:32:49,706 confirm Sheila was in Santa Barbara with the kids 601 00:32:49,749 --> 00:32:52,013 the weekend of Joy's disappearance. 602 00:32:52,317 --> 00:32:55,016 We were very confident that she was not involved 603 00:32:55,059 --> 00:32:57,409 in making Joy disappear. 604 00:32:58,280 --> 00:33:01,413 With Sean still in jail on the 72-hour hold, 605 00:33:01,457 --> 00:33:04,199 detectives ask Sheila if she'll consent to a search 606 00:33:04,242 --> 00:33:05,591 of their home. 607 00:33:05,635 --> 00:33:06,984 She agrees. 608 00:33:07,637 --> 00:33:10,422 There's chemicals that our forensic people spray 609 00:33:10,466 --> 00:33:11,728 where blood will illuminate 610 00:33:11,771 --> 00:33:13,164 even though you've cleaned it up 611 00:33:13,208 --> 00:33:14,861 and you've you think you got it all, 612 00:33:14,905 --> 00:33:16,080 it's still in the cracks, 613 00:33:16,124 --> 00:33:18,865 it's in the crevices of the floor. 614 00:33:18,909 --> 00:33:20,171 When people get stabbed, 615 00:33:20,215 --> 00:33:22,086 blood will spatter and go places 616 00:33:22,130 --> 00:33:24,088 and you can tell the directionality 617 00:33:24,132 --> 00:33:25,698 of what's going on. 618 00:33:26,656 --> 00:33:30,355 There were droplets of blood on some of the walls 619 00:33:30,399 --> 00:33:31,878 in the living room 620 00:33:31,922 --> 00:33:33,271 and the bedroom -- 621 00:33:34,316 --> 00:33:37,014 as if someone bled 622 00:33:37,058 --> 00:33:39,364 and was moving at the same time. 623 00:33:39,930 --> 00:33:41,366 Like possibly being chased 624 00:33:41,410 --> 00:33:43,803 or trying to get away from someone. 625 00:33:44,456 --> 00:33:47,633 The victim was stabbed multiple times. 626 00:33:48,069 --> 00:33:50,288 It appeared to end in the bathroom, 627 00:33:50,332 --> 00:33:53,074 where there was large pools of blood. 628 00:33:53,726 --> 00:33:55,380 During the search, 629 00:33:55,424 --> 00:33:58,905 detectives also gain access to Sean's computer. 630 00:33:58,949 --> 00:34:00,777 When we collected the computer, 631 00:34:00,820 --> 00:34:03,214 a forensic examination was done 632 00:34:03,258 --> 00:34:06,696 and the emails that were sent to Joy's friends 633 00:34:06,739 --> 00:34:08,132 came from this computer 634 00:34:08,176 --> 00:34:10,874 that belonged to Sean. 635 00:34:11,570 --> 00:34:14,704 We've now connected Sean to the computer 636 00:34:14,747 --> 00:34:16,009 and the emails. 637 00:34:18,795 --> 00:34:20,927 The forensic evidence at the house 638 00:34:20,971 --> 00:34:23,974 is enough to charge Sean with murder, 639 00:34:24,017 --> 00:34:25,889 but he still isn't talking. 640 00:34:25,932 --> 00:34:28,152 And without Joy's body to prove the case 641 00:34:28,196 --> 00:34:30,111 beyond a reasonable doubt, 642 00:34:30,154 --> 00:34:32,591 I can tell you as a former prosecutor, 643 00:34:32,635 --> 00:34:37,335 it's going to be difficult securing a conviction at trial. 644 00:34:37,683 --> 00:34:39,337 So investigators get a warrant 645 00:34:39,381 --> 00:34:41,687 for Sean's credit card statements, 646 00:34:41,731 --> 00:34:45,430 hoping to track his movements the weekend Joy went missing. 647 00:34:45,474 --> 00:34:47,040 And fingers crossed, 648 00:34:47,084 --> 00:34:49,739 to ultimately locate her body. 649 00:34:50,827 --> 00:34:54,004 We are looking at his credit cards 650 00:34:54,047 --> 00:34:57,050 prior to Joy going missing 651 00:34:57,094 --> 00:34:59,270 and then we found out 652 00:34:59,314 --> 00:35:01,751 that he made a purchase at a hardware store. 653 00:35:03,709 --> 00:35:05,624 A hacksaw, 654 00:35:05,668 --> 00:35:07,017 a shovel, 655 00:35:07,060 --> 00:35:08,627 an ice pick, 656 00:35:08,671 --> 00:35:10,847 a sledgehammer, 657 00:35:10,890 --> 00:35:12,022 a tarp. 658 00:35:14,024 --> 00:35:16,505 We never found those items afterwards. 659 00:35:17,636 --> 00:35:21,597 So Sean knew that he was gonna kill her 660 00:35:21,640 --> 00:35:22,598 ahead of time. 661 00:35:23,599 --> 00:35:27,080 And we also learn that he had rented a car 662 00:35:27,124 --> 00:35:29,822 when Joy went missing 663 00:35:29,866 --> 00:35:31,607 and he drove it 800 miles. 664 00:35:33,130 --> 00:35:35,263 From the mileage on the rental car, 665 00:35:35,306 --> 00:35:39,223 detectives believe that Sean may have disposed of Joy's body, 666 00:35:39,267 --> 00:35:43,401 somewhere approximately 400 miles from San Diego, 667 00:35:43,445 --> 00:35:45,751 but that still leaves an area of more than 668 00:35:45,795 --> 00:35:50,234 half-a-million square miles where her remains could be. 669 00:35:50,278 --> 00:35:53,890 And that hopelessness is an unsettling reality 670 00:35:53,933 --> 00:35:56,153 for Joy's friends and family. 671 00:35:58,851 --> 00:36:01,941 We just wanted to find her body 672 00:36:01,985 --> 00:36:05,684 so that she can be properly laid to rest. 673 00:36:08,121 --> 00:36:11,995 I was just pissed and sad. 674 00:36:12,038 --> 00:36:13,997 When he turned himself in, 675 00:36:14,040 --> 00:36:15,825 he was definitely presenting himself 676 00:36:15,868 --> 00:36:18,175 as the one who was hurt. 677 00:36:18,741 --> 00:36:20,264 It was just lies. 678 00:36:23,136 --> 00:36:26,096 Law enforcement search turns up nothing. 679 00:36:26,139 --> 00:36:30,056 But three months later, in January, 2004, 680 00:36:30,100 --> 00:36:32,363 two hikers walking along a trail, 681 00:36:32,407 --> 00:36:34,757 discover something horrifying, 682 00:36:34,800 --> 00:36:37,194 in Maricopa County, Arizona. 683 00:36:37,629 --> 00:36:42,243 Almost exactly 400 miles away from San Diego. 684 00:36:43,113 --> 00:36:45,811 They could smell decomposition. 685 00:36:45,855 --> 00:36:48,249 They saw this little debris of rocks, 686 00:36:48,292 --> 00:36:50,468 like a little makeshift grave. 687 00:36:52,165 --> 00:36:57,083 A federal ranger comes out and he starts 688 00:36:57,127 --> 00:37:01,871 taking the rocks apart from the shrine 689 00:37:01,914 --> 00:37:05,091 and he notices an arm. 690 00:37:06,702 --> 00:37:08,269 And hair. 691 00:37:38,603 --> 00:37:41,389 from a pile of rocks in the Arizona desert, 692 00:37:41,432 --> 00:37:44,261 on January 10th, 2004. 693 00:37:46,481 --> 00:37:48,744 The bones on the face were crushed, 694 00:38:07,415 --> 00:38:11,332 through the bone marrow and then put it in their data bank. 695 00:38:13,464 --> 00:38:15,292 When the DNA was submitted into 696 00:38:15,336 --> 00:38:17,990 the FBI national data bank, 697 00:38:18,034 --> 00:38:22,778 it connected to the San Diego data bank 698 00:38:34,746 --> 00:38:35,834 and you've got it. 699 00:38:37,053 --> 00:38:39,316 It's enough for prosecutors to feel ready 700 00:38:39,360 --> 00:38:40,491 to go to trial. 701 00:38:40,535 --> 00:38:42,798 And in July, 2006, 702 00:38:42,841 --> 00:38:44,277 Sean finds himself, 703 00:38:44,321 --> 00:38:47,629 not in front of a wrapped congregation of devotees, 704 00:38:47,672 --> 00:38:50,283 but rather a jury of his peers. 705 00:38:51,676 --> 00:38:55,332 He tried to make it look like she came after him 706 00:38:55,376 --> 00:38:58,901 with a knife and that they struggled with this knife 707 00:38:58,944 --> 00:39:02,295 and he stabs her accidentally, 708 00:39:02,339 --> 00:39:05,734 but then he panicked and stabbed her a second time. 709 00:39:06,909 --> 00:39:09,390 At that point, she kind of just went limp. 710 00:39:11,696 --> 00:39:13,872 I couldn't believe that she was dead. 711 00:39:15,700 --> 00:39:17,659 If I call the police, 712 00:39:17,702 --> 00:39:18,790 they're gonna arrest me, 713 00:39:18,834 --> 00:39:19,922 they're going to charge me with murder 714 00:39:19,965 --> 00:39:23,229 and I'll be away from my kids forever. 715 00:39:24,013 --> 00:39:27,495 It seemed totally fake. 716 00:39:28,104 --> 00:39:32,064 And his fake cry was ridiculous. 717 00:39:33,022 --> 00:39:35,024 Law enforcement agrees. 718 00:39:35,067 --> 00:39:37,461 After a thorough investigation, 719 00:39:37,505 --> 00:39:39,463 their theory on Joy's fate 720 00:39:39,507 --> 00:39:41,465 and her husband's role in it, 721 00:39:41,509 --> 00:39:43,293 is spine-chilling. 722 00:39:43,336 --> 00:39:47,297 Just based on the things that he did 723 00:39:47,340 --> 00:39:51,693 and how manipulating and controlling that he was, 724 00:39:51,736 --> 00:39:54,043 it appeared to me that he was 725 00:39:54,086 --> 00:39:59,091 the kind of person that did not want her to leave him. 726 00:39:59,309 --> 00:40:01,920 That that would kind of be like, I would say, 727 00:40:01,964 --> 00:40:03,922 kind of leave a stain on him, like, you know, 728 00:40:03,966 --> 00:40:05,968 you're not this perfect guy. 729 00:40:06,621 --> 00:40:10,886 So I think Joy ended up wanting to meet with Sean. 730 00:40:10,929 --> 00:40:12,061 She wanted to leave, 731 00:40:12,104 --> 00:40:14,498 she expressed that she was gonna leave, 732 00:40:14,542 --> 00:40:19,416 but Sean somehow managed to lure Joy to having dinner 733 00:40:19,460 --> 00:40:20,896 at a restaurant. 734 00:40:20,939 --> 00:40:24,943 When they get back to the house, 735 00:40:24,987 --> 00:40:27,859 Sean came after her with a knife. 736 00:40:29,165 --> 00:40:32,560 The way the blood was captured on the wall, 737 00:40:32,603 --> 00:40:34,475 showed she was chased. 738 00:40:35,084 --> 00:40:36,825 There was multiple stab wounds, 739 00:40:36,868 --> 00:40:39,131 not two, more than that. 740 00:40:40,524 --> 00:40:43,135 And she eventually goes down, 741 00:40:43,179 --> 00:40:45,921 the large pools of blood showed that she was later 742 00:40:45,964 --> 00:40:49,011 taken into the bathtub 743 00:40:49,054 --> 00:40:51,448 and we believe that's where she was dismembered. 744 00:40:56,975 --> 00:40:59,630 He thinks that he can get away with the perfect crime 745 00:40:59,674 --> 00:41:01,806 by removing her fingers, 746 00:41:01,850 --> 00:41:03,416 by removing her teeth. 747 00:41:04,548 --> 00:41:07,246 He then took these various parts of her body 748 00:41:07,290 --> 00:41:11,468 and then he traveled from San Diego to Phoenix 749 00:41:11,512 --> 00:41:14,906 and he would stop periodically behind like dumpsters 750 00:41:14,950 --> 00:41:17,343 and dumped the various parts 751 00:41:17,387 --> 00:41:18,780 and continue moving east 752 00:41:18,823 --> 00:41:21,478 until he had basically her torso left. 753 00:41:23,175 --> 00:41:26,570 He went off the road and took a shovel 754 00:41:26,614 --> 00:41:28,572 and then he buried her there. 755 00:41:28,616 --> 00:41:31,314 He basically covered her with rock 756 00:41:31,357 --> 00:41:33,142 and made like a grave. 757 00:41:34,665 --> 00:41:36,972 And when he got back to the house, 758 00:41:37,015 --> 00:41:40,628 Sean sent these emails to people, 759 00:41:40,671 --> 00:41:43,848 making it seem like Joy sent the emails. 760 00:41:43,892 --> 00:41:45,589 When you take everything in totality 761 00:41:45,633 --> 00:41:47,983 and you put it all together, 762 00:41:48,026 --> 00:41:49,637 the evidence is there. 763 00:41:49,680 --> 00:41:51,639 The premeditation, 764 00:41:51,682 --> 00:41:53,031 the malice, 765 00:41:53,075 --> 00:41:54,598 behind closed doors, 766 00:41:54,642 --> 00:41:55,947 the real evil comes out. 767 00:42:00,256 --> 00:42:02,301 After five days of testimony, 768 00:42:02,345 --> 00:42:06,392 the jury comes back with a verdict in just three hours. 769 00:42:09,352 --> 00:42:10,962 We, the jury in the above entitled cause, 770 00:42:11,006 --> 00:42:13,182 find the defendant, Sean Barclay Goff, 771 00:42:13,225 --> 00:42:15,010 guilty of the crime of murder. 772 00:42:17,578 --> 00:42:22,191 Sean is sentenced to 26 years behind bars. 773 00:42:22,234 --> 00:42:25,542 He's currently serving his time at Valley State Prison 774 00:42:25,586 --> 00:42:28,110 in Chowchilla, California. 775 00:42:28,153 --> 00:42:29,894 I don't think it's possible to feel like 776 00:42:29,938 --> 00:42:32,027 justice can be fully served, 777 00:42:32,070 --> 00:42:35,813 because what he did is forever, 778 00:42:35,857 --> 00:42:37,467 and he still gets to live. 779 00:42:38,903 --> 00:42:41,645 And the extra victims in this whole story 780 00:42:41,689 --> 00:42:42,690 are the children. 781 00:42:42,733 --> 00:42:46,084 I just hope that they know truly, 782 00:42:46,128 --> 00:42:48,478 how wonderful their mother was. 783 00:42:51,307 --> 00:42:53,831 Joy was too vibrant, she was too big 784 00:42:53,875 --> 00:42:56,573 for someone as small-minded as Sean. 785 00:43:01,926 --> 00:43:04,668 Sean Goff twisted the words of the Bible, 786 00:43:04,712 --> 00:43:07,062 to justify his behavior. 787 00:43:07,105 --> 00:43:10,674 His marriages to both Sheila and Joy were not about love 788 00:43:10,718 --> 00:43:12,067 or commitment 789 00:43:12,110 --> 00:43:14,591 or devotion to anything 790 00:43:14,635 --> 00:43:18,334 except his all-consuming need to exert control. 791 00:43:18,377 --> 00:43:20,945 And when Joy pushed back against that control 792 00:43:20,989 --> 00:43:22,947 and wanted to leave him, 793 00:43:22,991 --> 00:43:24,906 rather than letting her go, 794 00:43:24,949 --> 00:43:26,734 he turned their marriage 795 00:43:26,777 --> 00:43:29,084 into a killer relationship.