01x07 - Mackenzie

[bunniefuu]

(Suspenseful music)

Male narrator: MacKenzie lueck,
a 23 year old college student,

was picked up at salt
lake city international airport

by a rideshare service.

They dropped her off at a desolate
and dark public park at nearly 3am.

The rideshare
driver reported that

she entered another car with a
mysterious man waiting for her.

If that was true,
why didn't that car

pick her up from the airport?

She was reported
missing three days later,

after not being heard
from since arriving in Utah

from her grandmother's
funeral in southern California.

No one else had
reported her missing.

Maybe she didn't
want to be found?

After police dove deeper
into the disappearance

of MacKenzie, all
roads lead to MacKenzie

living a double life,

and meeting men online
for paid companionship.

Man: Yeah, I'd like
to get, if possible,

have a wellness check
done on my daughter.

She, uh, flew in from
California, uh, Sunday night,

she got in about one
and it was the last time

I've heard from her.

I've been trying to get
a hold of her all week.

There is a lot of money in this.

Women can earn in
one night what it takes

to earn in one week
at a regular college job.

Police would use a digital trail
to find the person MacKenzie

arranged to meet online that night
to try and find MacKenzie lueck.

(Theme music)

23-year-old university
of Utah student,

MacKenzie lueck,

landed in salt
lake city just after

1:30am on Monday,
June 17th, 2019.

She had flown in
after attending her

grandmother's funeral
outside of Los Angeles.

Sara: The young woman
was only flying to Utah

to go to her final exams.
To go to her final exams.

She was going to
stay a week before

returning to
southern California.

The plane landed
around 1:30 in the morning

and she texted her mother

that she had arrived safely.

But it would be the
last text message

her mother would
ever receive from her.

MacKenzie lueck was reported
missing three days later by her father.

He called the salt lake police
department from his home

in southern California,
alerting them that his daughter

had not been in contact since
that fateful text to her mother.

But the system just
doesn't work that way.

Police don't just drop
everything because an adult,

such as MacKenzie lueck,
isn't in contact with her father.

They took the call and noted it,

but didn't have much
to go on at that point.

No one else had
reported her missing.

Maybe she didn't
want to be found?

Eldridge: It was three
o'clock in the morning.

She was only eight miles
from her own apartment.

Why she instructed
the driver to drop her off

at a waiting car

at that time of night

is a question we may
is a question we may

never get answered.

According to the lyft driver,

he asked MacKenzie if
she was sure she wanted

to get out at the park.

She said yes. Then she
was never heard from again.

The lyft driver said there
was another car waiting for her.

If that was true, why didn't that
car pick her up at the airport?

Hatch park was where
MacKenzie was dropped off,

the park has security
cameras and detectives wanted

to obtain the footage of the
early morning hours of June 17.

But in a cruel twist of fate,

those cameras weren't
of no use to authorities.

Those cameras were there
to deter any potential vandals.

There were no working
cameras. Only dummies.

The question remained,
did the lyft driver know that?

Or if MacKenzie really
was there to meet someone,

did she or the person meeting
her know they were fake?

Maybe she was meeting
someone and picked that spot

thinking if anything
happened to her,

thinking if anything
happened to her,

she'd at least be on camera?

MacKenzie lueck
never made it back

to her home that night, nor
does she attend her finals

in the following days or make
it to her job as a lab technician.

Texts and calls go unreturned.

She actually mentioned
and said in the conversion,

"that's strange, but not as strange
as where he dropped me off",

in the middle of the park.

So she actually
brought that up and said

that it was odd she was
being dropped off there.

But she actually said that she was
having a friend pick her up there.

Five days after MacKenzie
had last been seen and two days

after she was reported missing,

police started to
worry for her safety.

The police don't have
anything to go on unfortunately.

There is no initial evidence
that MacKenzie was in danger.

And if an adult wants
to go off the grid,

it's not ill*gal to do so.

At this time, there is no evidence
that any harm has come to her.

However, because of the
circumstances of the case,

we want to make
sure she is alright.

When she doesn't show for her
return flight home to California

when she doesn't show for her
return flight home to California

a week later,

the police become convinced
something has happened to her.

They start with footage
of her at the airport.

The first thing
authorities looked at

was her last known location.

Airports have a tonne of footage

and the authorities comb through

and are able to piece
together how she left.

Via lyft.

For the most part, hired
drivers like uber and lyft

are safe and great ways to get
around town by experienced locals.

But do you know what they are?

Complete strangers
that you hire online.

It wouldn't be the first time

a woman went missing after
getting into a taxi or hired driver.

The lyft driver's
story checks out.

He left after dropping
MacKenzie off

and went on to drive several
other customers that night.

Their first lead came up
empty, so salt lake city detectives

began to further decode just
who MacKenzie lueck was.

Began to further decode just
who MacKenzie lueck was.

When a person is missing,

authorities need to get a
sense as to who that person is.

They start with
family and friends

and after talking with
many who knew her,

they find out what
they already suspect

based on their initial search.

By most accounts,
MacKenzie was a shy,

friendly and caring woman
when she came to college.

Friends say she would
leave messages to herself

telling herself to be more
confident and assertive.

She preached safety to her
friends. Everyone liked her.

They can't find a single shred
of evidence pointing to a person

who would slink around
in the dead of night

getting into strange cars.

Something wasn't adding up.

Here was a woman who
seemingly had her head on straight.

She was studying to be a
nurse. Majoring in kinesiology.

She was in a
sorority, had a pet cat,

and had a steady
job in her future field.

The other girls she
rented a house from

said she was clean
and tidy and respectful.

Said she was clean
and tidy and respectful.

They even laughed fondly as they

told stories of her
hiking with her cat.

Detectives were baffled
by her disappearance.

Even her phone records show
the phone turned off at 2.59am.

The very same time
she got into the car

in that park in
north salt lake city.

Did she turn it off?
Or was she forced to?

As of now, we have
activated a tip line

for this specific case and are
asking for anyone with information

on the possible whereabouts
of MacKenzie to please call.

23-year-old MacKenzie lueck
disappeared after getting into

an unknown car at a local
park in the middle of the night.

The case, however,
takes a drastic turn

after police receive a tip.

As it turns out,

MacKenzie met this man in a bar.

It wasn't a date or anything.

Just a random occurrence and her

and her friends are
casually talking to him.

MacKenzie reveals
something about herself

MacKenzie reveals
something about herself

that even her
friends didn't know.

Ron: She was currently in an
arrangement with somebody

who was quite considerably older

and I'm just like "you
really need to have

a serious look at this because

you have no idea
who these people are".

And because of what
I've done in my work

over the years, I
know how easy it is

for these people to
create fake profiles,

misrepresent themselves.

I just looked at her, like I
said from the beginning,

good family, education,
I really don't understand

what you're doing,

but she assured me
that she was safe,

she would be safe,

she'd had a good experience

and she was open to
continuing that experience.

It wasn't until
three weeks later,

when MacKenzie's
face had been plastered

all over the news, did things
start to come together for the pi.

The pi, a man by the
name of Rob Joseph,

the pi, a man by the
name of Rob Joseph,

was contacted by his friend

who was at the bar

when Rob met MacKenzie

and said something like,

"I think that's the girl

we talked to a few weeks ago."

Rob, an experienced
investigator himself,

remembered the
conversation well,

including a bit of information
MacKenzie revealed about herself

that so far he hadn't seen in
any news reports about her.

MacKenzie was keeping a secret

from her mormon
family and her friends.

There was more than this sweet
nursing student than met the eye.

And Rob Joseph wasted
no time in cluing in the police.

The private investigator then
drops a bombshell to the detectives.

MacKenzie told
this random stranger

that she is part of
various online dating sites.

And he even remembered
the specific one

MacKenzie told him about,
seeking arrangements.

Seeking arrangements
is a site for young people

seeking arrangements
is a site for young people

to meet wealthy older people.

In most cases, it is older
men meeting younger women.

Her profile matches up with
her experience on the site.

According to the investigation,
MacKenzie had only signed up

for seeking arrangements one
month prior to her disappearance.

It's true that she seemed to be

a novice to that
particular site,

but she may not have been
new to the whole sugar daddy

and sugar baby relationship.

Online comments she made
to private Facebook posts

point to someone who
had experience in this world.

This was a confident woman
and wasn't her first time doing this.

If she was meeting
someone she met online,

she must have felt safe to meet

with this person
at this time of night.

She seemed too smart
to meet with someone

with whom she had
no relationship with

at three in the morning.

At three in the morning.

It isn't very typical
for a sugar baby

to meet up with a sugar
daddy she just met online.

Or at least it isn't
recommended.

These relationships are built on

many different
conversations over time.

It's not always a sex thing.

If she was meeting a sugar
daddy, I bet she had been

conversing with him either
over the phone or online

for quite a while.

But that car MacKenzie so
casually walked into that night

was the last time
she'd be seen alive.

The lyft driver confirmed MacKenzie
seemed unfazed by the meeting.

Days pass, police then
turn to the dark underbelly

of social media
and take a deep dive

into her connection
with online dating sites.

Nothing against strippers
or anything like that,

but this is not the road

you want to go down,

because of what
you want to get in life.

And this is not going to get you

where you want to go in
life with your education.

She was eyes wide open and said

she was eyes wide open and said

"I'm in, this is what
I'm doing, I'm ok with it".

If she was meeting
someone as a sugar baby,

who was her sugar daddy?

Authorities found
profiles for her

on several sites and it
appears she had logged onto

the seeking arrangement site
one day before she went missing.

One of the problems with these
sites is there is very little oversight.

Profiles can say
whatever they want,

which is why late night
meetings aren't recommended,

unless there is already an
established safe relationship.

Police can't answer why
her phone was turned off

almost immediately
after she left the lyft.

There is another
rule on these sites;

don't lose or turn
off your phone.

It might be your only lifeline.

When police bring to light

MacKenzie's sugar
baby relationships,

friends don't even know about
it, or don't want to talk about it.

Friends don't even know about
it, or don't want to talk about it.

There's this misconception
that this doesn't happen

at religious universities,

but in fact it happens
all over the country,

college students
know all these websites

but it's taboo to talk about it.

There's a lot of money in this,
women can earn in one night

what it takes to earn in one
week at a regular college job.

And I'm not even talking
about sex or prostitution,

it happens, yes,

but many sugar daddy,
sugar baby relationships

are just about connecting.

The older man feels
good about himself

that he is seen with a
younger attractive woman

that he's providing for.

And the woman is empowered

because she is setting
the boundaries and pay.

The revelation of
MacKenzie's dating profiles

starts to connect the dots.

Detectives have
spoken with the lyft driver

and learned that MacKenzie
was met at hatch park

by an individual in a vehicle.

The lyft driver left MacKenzie
at the park with that person

and stated that
MacKenzie did not appear

and stated that
MacKenzie did not appear

to be in any type of distress.

We have not yet confirmed

the make and model of the car,
or a description of the person,

but may release further details

once we have verified
that information.

To date, her family
and her friends

have not heard from her,

she missed a mid-term
exam and a flight.

We want to make
sure that she is alright.

MacKenzie lueck was last seen

getting into a car at an
empty parking lot at 3am.

As the FBI joins the search,

MacKenzie's subpoenaed phone
records point authorities to a new suspect.

Phones are an
extension of oneself.

If you really want to
know who a person is

and what they've been doing,

get a look at their
phone records.

After MacKenzie disappeared,

her Instagram account had
been used to follow someone.

That clue, as well
as recovered texts,

allowed police to pinpoint
where that access had come from.

Police dig through her texts
and find one in particular

that she had sent recently,
and backtrack the number.

As it turns out, police
tracked down the phone

that this text chain belonged to
and began to question their suspect.

Ayoola ajayi is a Nigerian-born

legal immigrant in
the United States.

At the time of MacKenzie's
disappearance,

the 31-year-old was living
just outside salt lake city,

in a home he owned.

Ayoola, or aj as
he was often called,

was a former member
of the national guard.

While the national
guard lists ajayi

as one-time enlisted,

he didn't attend any
basic or advanced training

and was discharged
after six months.

Police arrive at his house,

about ten days after
MacKenzie was last seen.

Sara: Police arrive
at ajayi's house

and he is personable
and cooperates with them.

He informs them that there is
another person in the house.

An airbnb renter.

An airbnb renter.

He is renting out the basement.

Now police have two suspects.

The initial search of the
house doesn't reveal much.

Police wait for a warrant
so they can perform

a more thorough search of ajayi,
his phone, and the airbnb renter.

The airbnb renter was
interviewed but eventually cleared.

He had nothing to
do with MacKenzie,

but the case against
ajayi was gaining steam.

Police body cam
showed how relaxed

ajayi seemed during
that initial search.

He waited patiently for
investigators to finish.

But it didn't take
long for authorities

to find evidence that
ajayi needed to answer to.

One such piece of evidence was his
connection to seeking arrangements.

In particular, to a relationship he
had developed to beachbaby96.

The same profile belonging
to MacKenzie lueck.

Who he also messaged the
day before she disappeared.

During police interrogation,
ajayi said he had no idea

who MacKenzie was other than
what he had recently seen on the news.

Who MacKenzie was other than
what he had recently seen on the news.

Police reveal they know
MacKenzie lueck's photos

were on his phone
before she disappeared,

causing ajayi to admit they
had a relationship online

but had never met in person.

Police also canvas
the neighbours

and they report
smelling a horrible smell

from a bonfire coming
from ajayi's house

sometime in the past week.

The case against ajayi was
building, but they had to let him go.

Police weren't ready to
charge him with anything.

They had texts and pictures

and neighbours reports,

as well as the airbnb guy
saying he went with ajayi

to purchase and fill up a gas can
because he wanted to burn something.

Police investigate the
bonfire in the backyard,

going so far as to
bring in cadaver dogs.

What they find blows
the case wide open.

Ayoola ajayi, the 31-year-old
techy and part-time model,

ayoola ajayi, the 31-year-old
techy and part-time model,

is questioned by police on the
disappearance of MacKenzie lueck.

The evidence that he had
an online relationship with her

is overwhelming.

But the question remains,
where is MacKenzie?

All these messages are messaging
her phone, from your WiFi,

from your ip. Really?

Police dug up his
entire backyard.

They worked tirelessly

throughout the night

and found over 20
boxes of evidence.

Cameras installed in
and around the house

coincidentally had no footage
from the night of June 17th.

In the backyard,
they found all sorts

of incriminating evidence,

including burnt
pieces of cell phone,

pieces of other
interesting material

that related to MacKenzie.

Charred bone and
tissue determined

to belong to a female was also

found in the backyard.

Time had run out
on ayoola ajayi.

Police charge ajayi with,

among other things,
aggravated m*rder

and desecrating a body.

He pleads not guilty.

With no body, other
than some charred bits,

police want to know
where MacKenzie was.

Ajayi still doesn't play ball

and says he didn't
know where she was...

But his phone says otherwise.

Ajayi's phone pinged
him in the same park

as MacKenzie on the
night of her disappearance

and at the same time,

his phone showed him
going to a secluded location

almost 90 miles
away in Logan canyon.

He was there for two
hours and then came back.

Police wanted to know why.

Thanks to phone
records and GPS locators,

police backtracked where
ajayi's phone had been and,

on July 5th, 2019

after more than two weeks,

MacKenzie lueck's
burnt body is found.

Her arms had been tied
behind her back with zip ties.

Her arms had been tied
behind her back with zip ties.

In October 2019, nearly four
months after MacKenzie lueck

entered his car
that fateful night,

ayoola ajayi was
convicted of m*rder

and sentenced to life without
the possibility of parole.

Still, questions
remain as to why

this young girl's life had to
end in such a horrible way.

The cause of death
had been determined

to be a blow to the
left side of her head.

After some time, aj
admitted to everything.

He said he turned
off the cameras

so there wouldn't be any trace,

he even strangled her with a
belt as she plead for her life,

then she passed out.

Then he delivered
the fatal blow.

Police also charge him with
additional crimes sexual in nature.

A woman came forward
after seeing him in the news

and claimed that
he had r*ped her.

As part as the guilty
plea for m*rder,

he also admitted to that
woman's sexual abuse.

He also admitted to that
woman's sexual abuse.

Friends of MacKenzie
are using her name

to help make sure the same thing
doesn't happen to someone else.

A foundation called
'MacKenzie's voice'

was started as a
way to help others

who might be potential
victims of online meetups.

Through MacKenzie's voice,
they have already helped

one 16-year-old
girl return home safe,

and they helped
convince city officials

to put working
cameras in hatch park,

where it all started.

MacKenzie lueck's tragic death

is a reminder that
strangers online

aren't always what
they appear to be.

And there was no way for MacKenzie
to know that by clicking submit

on her dating profile,

it would be the moment
she met her m*rder*r online.