PRETEND
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PRETEND
From cult leaders to con artists and undercover FBI agents, PRETEND exposes those pretending to be someone they're not.
Neueste Episoden
268 Episoden
2302: Cracks in the Fandom part 2
Meghan Walsh says she is being stalked by three people. One of them is Law & Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay. Sounds impossible, right?
...
2301: Cracks in the Fandom part 1
🎧 NEW SERIES: “Cracks in the Fandom”
What would you do if you thought your favorite celebrity was stalking you?
That’s exa...
2210: The High School Hoax Update
A 32-year-old woman enrolled herself in three Boston high schools and passed as a teenager. She sat in classrooms, made friends with freshmen, and eve...
2209: The Stalker: Rick Fernandez’s Guilty Plea
Breaking news in the stalker case: Rick Fernandez has pleaded guilty to harassment. Instead of facing trial, he admitted responsibility for a new wave...
2208: The Monster
Listener discretion is advised. This episode contains discussions of sexual abuse and may not be suitable for all audiences.
2208: State of Corruption: Ohio part 2
Tyler Fehrman went undercover for the FBI after his mentor, Ohio GOP chair Matt Borges, offered him a $15,000 check. His recordings helped uncover a $...
2207: State of Corruption: Ohio part 1
Tyler Fehrman went undercover to bring down the Speaker of the Ohio House. He wore a wire. He met with mentors who turned into suspects. He risked eve...
The Real Donnie Brasco - FBI Case File Review
If you’re a longtime listener, you probably remember my interview with Joe Pistone, the real Donnie Brasco. But I forgot to ask one important question...
2205: Who’s Afraid of LaDonna Humphrey Part 18: The 911 Caller
A 911 call in Madison County, Arkansas reported what sounded like a violent attack. It should have remained confidential. But when LaDonna Humphrey go...
S2204: Who's Afraid of LaDonna Humphrey part 17
LaDonna Humphrey has spent years trying to overturn a $3.57 million judgment. But in a rare legal move, her right to appeal was sold in bankruptcy cou...
"Nobody Should Believe Me" — When the Advocate Is the Abuser
This week on PRETEND, we’re bringing you something special: a feed drop from Nobody Should Believe Me, an award-winning investigative true crime podca...
2203: The Playwright part 3
Melanie dies. Jayson takes control of her estate. Then he moves in with her mother.
Her children are stunned. They suspect something isn’...
Listen Now: Business Wars
In the year 2000, the merger of AOL and Time Warner seemed like the
moment that the pendulum shifted from offline to online media. But th...
2202: The Playwright part 2
In Part 2 of The Playwright, we shift focus to the show at the center of it all: The History of Now.
Written and directed by Jason Bartl...
2201: The Playwright part 1
In this episode, we investigate the mysterious Jayson Bartlett and the many women whose lives he upended.
Emma was a single mother in Eng...
BONUS: The Digital Trail to Epstein’s Island
What if your phone could place you at the scene of a crime—years later?
In this bonus episode of PRETEND, we uncover how ne...
The Pale Faced Lie Revisited
David Crow says he was his father's criminal accomplice.
In today's episode, we delve into the extraordinary story of David Crow, author...
2111: The Stalker - New Charges part 21
Rick Fernandez—yes, the same Rick who thought he’d escaped six felonies—just got slapped with brand-new criminal charges in Phoenix Municipal Court. I...
2110: Cocaine Air
This week on PRETEND, we're doing something different. I’m bringing on my friend Johnathan Walton, the mastermind behind Queen of the Con, to share th...
2109: The Internet Saves the Bachelor part 4
In part 4 of 'The Internet Saves the Bachelor,' we examine the growing cracks in Laura Owens’ story as her pregnancy timeline collapses under scrutiny...
2108: The Internet Saves the Bachelor part 3
In Part 3 of The Internet Saves the Bachelor, the truth—or at least, what remains of it—is put on trial.
Laura Owens takes...
2107: The Internet Saves the Bachelor part 2
The story isn’t over. In Part 2, we dig deeper into the chaos that followed Laura Owens’ accusations against Bachelor star Clayton Echard.
2106: The Internet Saves the Bachelor part 1
After a one-night hookup with a fan-turned-client, former Bachelor star Clayton Echard faced an unexpected legal battle — and public accusations that...
2105: The Man Who Stole 200 Million Identities
In this episode of PRETEND, recorded live at the GISEC cybersecurity conference in Dubai, I spoke with Hieu Minh Ngo, once one of the most prolific id...
2104: The Digital Pickpocket Revisted
While speaking at a hacker conference in Dubai, Javier revisits a conversation with professional pickpocket and entertainer James Freedman. James reve...
2103: LaDonna's Easter Egg Hustle
How LaDonna Humphrey Used a Children's Event to Funnel Money Through Oasis of Northwest Arkansas.
What happens when a glow-in-the-dark E...
2102: Faking Insanity
Can you really fake being insane—and get away with it? In this episode of PRETEND, host Javier Leiva sits down with forensic psychologist Dr. Tristin...
2101: My Wife, the Ponzi Schemer
Interview with a man convicted of a Ponzi scheme. Bill Livolsi says he was just trying to help his wife, Linda—the ringleader of a multi-million dolla...
2013: I Married a Narcissist part 3
Trigger warning: This episode contains graphic discussions of emotional, financial, sexual, and physical abuse. Listener discretion is strongly advise...
2012: I Married a Narcissist part 2 Listener Reactions
After publishing the story of a woman trapped in a marriage with a narcissist, I wasn't sure how it would land. It wasn’t flashy. It didn’t end in vio...
2011: I Married a Narcissist part 1
In this episode of PRETEND, we meet “Ashley”—not her real name—who recorded hours of arguments with her husband in an effort to understand what was ha...
2010: The Keepsake Scandal
It started with a missing breast milk keepsake. But when Cheyna Lee joined an online group of frustrated customers, she uncovered something much bigge...
2009: The Gambler Revisited
Episode Summary:
While working on the new season of Pretend, I wanted to bring back an episode from 2018 that’s worth another listen. It’s the s...
2008: Licensed to Kill part 2
n part two of Licensed to Kill, we continue the shocking investigation into doctors who exploit their patients for profit. This episode follows Patty...
2007: Licensed to Kill part 1
What if your doctor wasn’t trying to save you, but trying to cash in on you?
In this episode of Pretend, we uncover the shocking case of Dr. Tho...
2006: Operation Cock Block
A group of women, all with eerily similar stories, say they were deceived—emotionally and financially—by the same man: William Sullivan. But instead o...
2005: The Telepathy Tapes B-side part 3
Facilitated Communication is marketed as a miraculous tool for non-speaking autistic children. But what happens when this controversial method leads t...
2004: The Telepathy Tapes B-Side part 2
A mother kills her autistic son. Why? Because he asked her to.
The mother claims he used facilitated communication to ask her to help him...
2003: The Telepathy Tapes B-Side part 1
The Telepathy Tapes podcast shot to the top of the charts, making bold claims about telepathic abilities in non-verbal autistic children. But are the...
Criminal Conduct S5: The Life and Death of Buffalo Jim
Hello PRETENDERS! I'm excited to announce that the new season of my other podcast, Criminal Conduct Season, is here! To listen to the rest of the stor...