01x04 - Brian Barrett

[bunniefuu]

Brian: Tom!

Narrator: In 2006,

a twisted love triangle
would become a m*rder

made on the Internet.

(Dramatic music)

You see that stuff at school.

See. You see
that stuff at school?

Yeah. No.

Thomas Montgomery was 46 years
old when his life was changed forever.

Thomas lived a quiet life
in the suburbs of buffalo.

He and his wife, Carol,
had two beautiful daughters

and he worked at
a nearby factory.

This former marine

had achieved the American dream,

a perfect nuclear family.

But there was something
missing deep down.

Oh, my gosh. Yeah.

It is very possible

Thomas was going through
a sort of mid-life crisis

if you will.

But he was now in his 40s

craving some sort of
excitement in his life,

which can lead to a number
of questionable choices.

Thomas joined a
website called pogo.

Pogo was a very
popular site for teens

pogo was a very
popular site for teens

that contained games
and chat rooms.

Perhaps it was to check on a site
that his daughters would frequent

or just to k*ll time
on a quiet evening.

Either way, Thomas signed under
the screen name, marinesniper.

His profile lists him as
age 18 and in the marines.

While it was true that
Thomas was a marine,

there is no record of him
ever training as a sn*per.

It was a small harmless lie

but the first of what would become
a long series of dishonest claims.

Most of the time
when I was on there

I'd play Texas hold
'em and played polka

in some of the game rooms.

And it made me relax.

I could talk to people

that I knew I was never gonna
meet face to face and never see.

And you could tell them things.

While on the site, he comes
across user, talhotblond.

And her profile
matches her username.

She was indeed
tall, hot, and blond.

She was indeed
tall, hot, and blond.

She reaches out to him

and they begin flirting with
each other back and forth.

Hi, marinesniper.

Are you really a sn*per?

I'm 18 and I'm
from West Virginia.

Thomas, in an effort
to escape the reality

of him being a middle aged
man who is out of shape,

lied and said he was a marine
sn*per who had done some bad deeds.

I don't wanna talk about it.

We can talk about
whatever you want.

This opened Montgomery
up to blackmail,

how could he know
who her true identity?

Or even if she was a woman?

What are her motives?

Is she a Russian spy?

Unknown.

Now, this may have been
a new concept back in 2005

but nowadays, meeting
someone romantically online

has become commonplace.

Not just through dating
apps, like tinder or okcupid

but through chat
rooms like Facebook

or even discord servers.
Or even discord servers.

But back then it was very
easy to lie about who you were.

Thomas: I was in a game
room playing Blackjack,

I recall her name
was talhotblond.

She said, "hi."
I said, "hi," back

and we started talking.

And she said, "you're
in the wrong room."

I said, "what are
you talking about?"

She says, "this is a kids room."

And I panicked.

Because I heard about
all the stings in the Internet.

I didn't wanna
become involved in that.

So, I told her I was 18.

Thomas would further
his lie about who he was,

calling himself Tommy, an
Iraq bound 18-year-old marine.

Thomas used an old photo of
himself to legitimise his claim.

Talhotblond revealed
herself to be Jessi,

a softball player in her
senior year of high school,

living in West Virginia.

As the two become closer,

Jessi would send Tommy risque
photos and videos of herself,

believing she was sending
them to a young hot marine.

Yeah, you're gonna
get on pogo tonight,

you're gonna play a little bit?

Yeah, I'll be there. Let's go!

Thomas invited Brian to
play on pogo with Jessi online.

Thomas invited Brian to
play on pogo with Jessi online.

Let's play a couple
of games. Ok.

In a possible ploy to make himself
seem like he had young friends,

Thomas lured Brian
into his new world.

(Upbeat music)

Hey, boys, talhotblond
in the house.

It is still insanely
inappropriate

when you consider
his wife, daughters

and the facts that Jessi
is a high school student.

At first, Thomas
was still hesitant,

he knows that the two
will never be able to meet

and the thrill of flirting
seems harmless.

Jessi would request
photos of him

and he would send old
pictures of him at boot camp.

He would inflate
himself as young Tommy,

saying that he had been covert
ops with deeds best left unsaid.

As the lie deepened, so did
their feelings for each other.

Soon, the relationship
shifted to the real world.

Jessi and Thomas began
talking on the phone,

sending love letters
and graphic virtual sex.

Sending love letters
and graphic virtual sex.

This caused Thomas
some discomfort

because in a stroke of
irony, Thomas was impotent.

I mean, I had a desire, but...

..There was times I
couldn't do anything

because it was like...

..I put so much pressure on
myself that maybe doing this

we could get back together but..

..Sex in a relationship
is only part of it,

there's communication's
the other part.

In a sense, their relationship
evolved like any other.

They began with
harmless flirting

but as they started to
learn more about each other

and spend more time
with each other online,

the feelings grew.

But just because
Tommy was a lie,

doesn't mean that his
feelings for Jessi were.

Thomas would begin
to obsess over her,

cutting off time
spent with his family

so he could race
back the computer.

To Tommy,

this online relationship
was becoming a reality

that was more real than the
family that was right in front of him.

It was the life that he wanted.

In a world where he was
still this young, fit 18-year-old

with no responsibilities

and he had this young
18-year-old that was into him.

And he had this young
18-year-old that was into him.

Thomas would even go as far

as keeping a diary of
his experience with Jessi.

In it, he describes
a pivotal moment.

On 2 January, 2006,

Tom Montgomery, 46
years old, ceases to exist

and is replaced by an
18-year-old battle scarred marine.

He is moving to West Virginia

to be with the love of his life.

By march, 2006, the
fantasy would come to end.

Woman: "Thomas
would even go as far

"as keeping a diary of
his experience with Jessi."

Journalist, Barbara schroeder.

Barbara: Here's what he
wrote - "on 2 January, 2006,

"Thomas Montgomery" - in
parentheses he writes "46 years old,

"ceases to exist

"and is replaced by an
18-year-old battle-scarred marine."

In march, 2006,

the fantasy comes
to a screeching halt,

after Thomas' daughter
found a message from Jessi.

Cindy found evidence of her
husband's possible infidelity.

What she finds is heartbreaking.

Love letters exchanged
between the two of them,

photos and other mementos

and a pair of red panties.

Patricia: This must have
been devastating for Cindy.

The man who she
had built a life with,

raised two children with,

was cheating on her with a
teenager that he's never even met.

She made sure to put
an end to it immediately.

She said, "red panty."
She said, "pink panty."

Just to stoke desire
and you know,

all the emotions
that she was so...

..She got off on stoking
all these emotions

in Thomas Montgomery

and the other guys

that she would string
along at the time

that he didn't know about.

Cindy writes her
own letter to Jessi,

explaining who Tommy really is
along with a picture of their family.

The letter read,

"enclosed you will find
a picture of my family.

"Let me introduce
you to these people...

"The man in the centre
is Tom, my husband.

"There is no Tommy.

"He is taking advantage of you.

"You need to be much more
cautious with your safety.

"You will only be hurt by a man

"you will only be hurt by a man

"who has mastered the
art of manipulation and lies.

"Do not trust words on a
computer, Cindy Montgomery."

Jesse is horrified

to learn that the
handsome young marine

that she had been
falling in love with

turned out to be a middle
aged man with a family.

She immediately
cuts ties with Thomas.

But Jessi still isn't sure,

so she reaches out to one
of Montgomery's co-workers,

22-year-old Brian Barret.

Brian, who did indeed
work at the factory part time

with Montgomery as a machinist,

was a good looking
college student

and perhaps a
better fit for Jessi.

He confirms for
Jessi that Montgomery

was in fact 46 years
old and had a family.

Using the screen name, beefcake,

he consoles Jessi online and
the two begin their own romance.

Come to West Virginia.

Given how distraught
Jessi must have felt

after learning the truth,

it's no wonder that she would latch
onto an actual handsome young man

as a rebound. As a rebound.

Maybe even as a way to
get back at that marine sn*per

that never existed.

Jessi and Brian would go on
to reveal the truth about Thomas

in all of the same message
boards that Tommy used to frequent.

I mean, he was
kind of a pedophile.

There was really nothing
Montgomery could do.

He was the one
who created this lie

and all of it was being
laid out in the same place

he had fallen in
love, on the Internet.

The comments they made

almost made him
come off as a pedophile.

Montgomery was devastated

as he watched Brian
and Jessi fall in love

in the same chat rooms that
he had once courted Jessi.

Thomas was tormented

imagining Brian and Jessi

sharing the same intimate moments
that he had once shared with her.

Soon, his devastation
turned to rage.

He vowed to get his revenge,

even messaging Jessi,
"Brian will pay in blood."

His feelings for Jessi were about
to take him to a place of no return.

But he wasn't the only one

who seemed to be
upset with the break up.

Who seemed to be
upset with the break up.

It seemed that Jessi had
some regrets of her own.

Sometimes in a
real relationship,

there is that pull to
get back with your ex.

Because that's something
you're familiar with,

no matter how toxic
it may have been.

I just told her if she...

..Didn't leave me alone

I would come down there
and physically hurt her.

"Or I would take something
away from you that you love."

Meaning her mum. I'd come
down and hurt her mum.

And...

So, for a while she didn't talk.

Then she came
back and talked to me

and said, "my mum
wants to talk to you."

I said, "ok, I'll
talk to your mum."

She came and talked to me

and told me to stay
away from Jessie.

I said, "ok, yeah, I will

"but please tell her to
stay away from me too.

"Reciprocate, you know,
your request to your daughter."

She said, "ok."

So...

..A couple of weeks
went by, nothing.

I didn't hear from
Jessie, nothing.

Next thing I know,
Jessie comes back.

I said, "wait a minute.

"Your mum told me
to stay away from you

"and you were gonna
stay away from me."

She responds,
"she'll never know."

I ache to be with Tommy.

I ache to be with Tommy.

Jessi would reach
out to Montgomery,

expressing a longing

for the relationship
she had with Tommy.

Like a dream come true,

Jessi rekindled the romance with
the now 47-year-old Montgomery.

More than you'll ever know.

This must have come
as a relief to Montgomery.

Not only did he have
this beautiful blond

back in his virtual arms

but the truth was about to
come out and he was ready for it.

Montgomery was
more in love than ever

and his marriage
suffered even further.

His wife would tell him
to get off the computer,

he would dismiss her,

now fully unashamed
of his virtual relationship.

But this second wind of
romance wouldn't last forever.

Jessi cuts things off with
Montgomery and turns back to Brian.

Montgomery's virtual life
had crashed around him

and now he was desperate.

She got angry and
told me, she goes,

"I'm sitting right here."

And then I told her, I
said, "it's easy for me

"to talk to somebody
that I can't see."

She says, "I wanna
see the emotions."

I said, "look at how
angry you are now.

"Like I said, I don't blame you for being angry."
"Like I said, I don't blame you for being angry."

Brian Barrett is
in love with Jessi

and the next step in this love
story is to finally meet in person.

Brian is about to head
out to north Carolina

and would be passing Jessi's
house on the way back home.

Jessi tries to convince
him not to come

but by then it was
already too late.

Meeting in person was a
huge step for Jessi and Brian

however, Jessi seems
reluctant to meet.

Perhaps she's just being safe

or maybe it's too soon after
her break up with Tommy?

But before Jessi
can call off the visit,

her jealous ex catches
wind of the proposed trip

and is filled with conviction.

Montgomery's jealousy has
finally reached its breaking point.

He's no longer content
with trying to win Jessi back,

he's out for revenge.

In 2006,

Thomas Montgomery,

a 46-year-old factory
worker in buffalo, New York

was using the Internet

to lure an 18-year-old
woman, named Jessi

from West Virginia, online.

This baffling attempt by an
impotent middle aged husband

and father of two daughters nearly
the same age as his new flame

and father of two daughters nearly
the same age as his new flame

was becoming an
intense love triangle

with a co-worker
named Brian Barrett.

In this attempt to deceive,

it truly became an
intricate online web

that Thomas Montgomery weaved.

15 September, 2006,

Montgomery stands by his car,

r*fle in hand

and he prepares himself
to end this lovers quarrel

once and for all.

(Dramatic music)

(Keys rattling)

Tom!

Brian may have been a
key factor in this drama

but in Montgomery's mind,

the source of his grief and
sorrow was still out there.

My question for
Montgomery would be,

"hey, how do you feel

"you have the right
to get Jessi back,

"you have a wife, you have kids,

"you have no stand
in this matter?"

He should have
simply taken his wounds

he should have simply
taken his wounds

and went away.

His body wouldn't be
found until two days later

when a co-worker spotted his
truck in the company parking lot.

Police arrive on the scene
but Montgomery is long gone.

After being briefed
on the situation,

their main concern
becomes Jessi's safety.

Police rush to West Virginia,

hoping to get Jessi
before Montgomery does.

Police find the
home of Mary shieler.

Police arrive at Jessi's house
and her mother answers the door.

She seems confused.

The police explain the situation

and that her daughter,
Jessi, may be in danger.

I'm Jessi.

It must have been devastating

to learn that so much
of your daughter's life

was a secret.

And in turn led to a death
of someone she met online.

In a stunning turn of events,

it appears that Thomas
wasn't the only liar.

Two can play the
game of deception

as Jessi was actually Mary,

who was the one
behind talhotblond,

using Jessi for her age,
likeness and beauty.

Using Jessi for her
age, likeness and beauty.

More than likely
this shocked police

to find out that the two people
in this online love triangle

were actually
catfishing each other.

This went from an older man,

who was a wannabe sn*per marine

possibly taking
advantage of a younger girl

playing softball in high school.

To the death of Brian Barrett,

a young promising
man with a future.

Caused by two selfish liars who
just wanted to feel young again.

Tom!

Like I say, when I
found out who she was

I was shocked big time.

I really thought she
was an 18-year-old girl.

I mean, she played
the part to a t.

She was a great
actress what she did.

Mary shieler, a
45-year-old homemaker

living in West Virginia,

created an online persona

based on her real
life daughter, Jessi.

She claims it began
through boredom,

something to pass the
time as a stay at home mum.

Very similar to Montgomery,

it seems like this online persona
started off as something small,

with no intention of
becoming serious.

With no intention
of becoming serious.

But it seemed to get
out of hand pretty quickly.

Montgomery and Brian
weren't the only ones

Mary was talking to.

They were apparently
just two men

on a long list Mary
was lying to online.

Mary not only had quantity

but she also took
her lie much further.

Mary would sneak provocative pictures
of her daughter unbeknownst to her.

She would even go as far
as to get a video up her skirt.

These photos and videos would
be used to propagate Mary's lies

to her list of online
relationships.

With a list like that,

it was only a matter of time
before she met her match

and things would just
go out of complete control.

A big question will be,

how much responsibility
does she bear

for the m*rder of Brian Barrett?

Of course we know

that she could bear
50% of the responsibility.

She was a liar,
Thomas was a liar,

this young man, Brian,
was a victim of their lies.

Because did she have

the same problems
that I had, you know,

lack of communications
in her marriage

and this and that.

And this and that.

But why use your kid?
Why use your real daughter?

You could have made up
a name or somebody else.

That's all I would wanna know

is why, you know,
why she did it?

Don't make the mistakes I made.

Don't sit and keep
everything inside.

Don't think you
can settle your...

..Your problems by talking
to somebody on the Internet

'cause all it does
is make it worse.

And don't...

..Don't push your
family away from you.

When you have problems,
pull your family even closer,

so you'll be stronger.

'Cause I know, I see
the hurt in my kids eyes

every time I see them.

And it just hurts me even more.

You know, the guilt
kills me everyday.

But before she can
deal with Brian's death,

her own house falls apart.

Mary's husband divorces
her almost immediately.

Her daughter can't believe

that her mother could
invade her privacy

and expose her to strangers.
And expose her to strangers.

But her mother shows no remorse

and doesn't understand
why Jessi can't just get over it.

Mary, the mother,

was taking explicit...

..Photos of her daughter, naked,

taking showers, laying in bed,

to continue this
charade of lies.

Wow. Amazing.

The astonishing
part of all of this

was the mother's apathy
towards the people she hurt.

Her actions led to a m*rder

and spread of inappropriate
photos of her daughter,

creating two broken families.

As far as we know,

Jessi has cut all
ties from her mother.

On the other side of
this online romance,

Montgomery is being arrested
for the m*rder of Brian Barrett.

DNA at the crime

and photos of his g*n cabinet
were compelling enough for an arrest.

Montgomery would
later plead guilty

to first degree manslaughter
and receive 20 years in prison.

His wife would also
proceed to divorce him, good.

His wife would also
proceed to divorce him, good.

Mary was a different case.

Since she played no
part in the actual m*rder,

there was no law in place

that outlined consequences
for her part in this.

However, we all know that
she was wrong for her behaviour

and you reap what you sow.

If anything,

do not get discouraged
about meeting people

off the Internet,

sometimes it could
be a really good thing.

I talk about true crime all day

and I personally met my
current partner on a dating site.

But there are ways
to do it appropriately

and there are
ways to do it safely.

That's the biggest key here,

when I was meeting up
with my current partner,

we actually went and got
milkshakes on our first date.

And that sounds cute and cheesy

but it was actually
a very safe option

because one, it
was in a public place.

But also, I let people
know where I was

and I made sure that people
knew who I was meeting

and made sure that I looked
them up before I met them.

I did a little Google search
and I did a little Facebook search

just to make sure that
they were an actual person.

Just to make sure that
they were an actual person.

And when I verified this,
it made me feel a lot safer.

Another thing that I've noticed

is do not give out
your number too soon.

I even have a fake
Google account number

that I just give out

if I don't necessarily
know who I'm talking to yet,

so they don't have
my personal number.

These are just a few
things that you could do

to stay safe out there.

Mary would get off Scott free,

with only a broken household
to remind her of what she did.

But the real tragedy
is Brian Barrett.

Brian was a promising young man,

aspiring to be an
industrial arts teacher.

He was an accomplished athlete,

coached little league
during the summer

and helped his dad coach soccer.

People would describe the
buffalo state college student

as quiet and unassuming.

The last person you would expect

to be caught in the middle of
a middle aged lovers' quarrel.

Luckily, since 2006,

online safety has become
more readily available.

And adults are able to
monitor their kids' activity online

and catfishing,

which the process of luring
someone into a relationship

using an online
fictional persona,

is now more widely known.

Is now more widely known.

Catfishing itself
is not a crime,

using the fake
relationship as a leverage

to obtain personal or
financial gain is ill*gal.

Often times, people
in law enforcement

and the military

will use fake accomplishments
to bolster up themselves

and be more attractive
to the opposite sex.

Obviously, Thomas was not a
member of the elite sn*per squad.

He was just a illicit
member of the military,

he was a liar.

The reckless actions of
two middle aged adults

who didn't know when to quit,

led to the m*rder of
Brian Barrett, online.