The best musical instrument is a love triangle. In terms of pure execution, it's probably the best narrative true-crime podcast I've heard all year. Meanwhile, Fair's attorneys would argue that this was not a valid argument: the state couldn't have their cake and eat it, too. He later told investigators that he was sexually attracted to Arpana, and was hoping to "hook up" with her that evening (his words, not mine). The Washington State Department of Commerce on March 2 released its final housing needs projections, which suggest the state needs to add 1.1 million homes over the next 20 years and more than half of those homes need to be affordable for residents at the lowest income levels. Benson: I think no one feels satisfied with the outcome. He then heard the sound of running water in Arpana's apartment, which lasted for about an hour, but wouldn't give these bizarre sounds any second thoughts in the days to come. as an uncharged accomplice). Redmond, a suburb on the outskirts of Seattle, is located just on the other side of scenic Lake Washington and is known as a bit of a tech mecca (having served as the homes for both Microsoft and Nintendo). It would soon become clear to them that someone had attempted to scrub the apartment of their presence, wiping bleach onto several pieces of furniture, as well as a table in the living room (from which, fluid had spilled down onto the carpet, permanently staining it). Guest on Suspect. Muhammad Ali, one of Arpana's co-workers at EMC in Bellevue, would attempt to call her but was unable to get through to her cell phone. She had traveled the globe in pursuit of an exciting and adventurous life, made a name for herself in the notoriously-competitive tech sector by the age of 24, endeared herself to dozens of strangers and it had all ended with one senseless act of violence. Oh, you like podcasts? Speaking to the Redmond Reporter, Lt. Doug Shepard said: "She did not make enemies, she just made friends and a lot of them. There are even awkward smash cuts to ads, a stylistic staple nowadays, where you dont quite realize youre listening to a host-read ad for the shows presenting sponsor (and not a continuation of the actual episode) until a few seconds into the read. There, she lived in Apartment 8946, on the top floor of the complex. However, over the next several days, they would eventually bring themselves to a consensus, and delivered their findings the following Tuesday, June 11th: not guilty. had even asked people whether or not he had killed Arpana, seeming to be unsure of the answer himself. Hes dangerous, hes terrifying, hes an extra in, How to Watch the 2023 Oscars Celebrate All 23 Categories Live Again. Meanwhile, the shift in the podcasts emphasis does mean that Jinagas own story ends up fading into the background a little bit. Things you buy through our links may earnVox Mediaa commission. Even though he claimed to have gone home to his friend's apartment at around 1:00 AM to sleep, cell phone records indicated that Fair made dozens of phone calls to numerous women between 2:00 and 5:00 AM; including several calls to Leslie, the woman whose apartment he claimed to have been sleeping at. I hope that answers can still be found in this case, but until such a time, the story of Arpana Jinaga will remain unresolved. There, she would receive her master's degree in electrical and computer engineering in December of 2007. During his interviews with investigators, C.J. In addition to having at least one brief encounter with Arpana at the party, police were able to determine that Fair had spent time at the party with "C.J." And there is nobody in prison or even charged with this murder right now. Chef Ethan Stowell buys a historic Seattle dive bar, 4 steep Seattle stair climbs to get you in shape for WA hiking season, WA volunteer details Colchuck Peak avalanche search-and-rescue effort, How one Ballard newbie became pinballs international rookie of the year, Restaurant review: Itsumono is making some of Seattles best food and great drinks, too, Arpana Jinaga was found strangled in her apartment, U.S. rankings of most listened to Apple podcasts, After nearly 11 years and two trials, killing of Redmond woman who had been living her dream remains unsolved, Woman found dead in Redmond was slain, police say, article about DNA forensic science for The Atlantic. Arpana Jinaga was a 24-year-old computer programmer, who had moved to the Pacific Northwest in March of 2008. More than two dozen people would filter through the numerous apartments that evening, including Arpana's. In that sense, the end of Suspect could very well be the start of the rest of the story. Months later, members of the Pacific Northwest Riders, the motorcycle club that Arpana had joined, would organize memorial rides in her honor (which took them out to Snoqualmie Falls, one of Arpana's favorite places to visit in Washington). "Classic City Crime," a true-crime podcast hosted by Cameron Jay, centers around the tragic death of Tara Louise Baker. Some were also concerned about his emotional state at the time, due to his prior relationship with Arpana, and him seeming to have become resentful towards her because of her newer friendships. In fact, she was the fifth student or worker from India to be murdered in the United States that year; a fact that ultimately led to the United States Hindu Alliance calling for the FBI to investigate this case, as they feared that it could be tied to a widespread rash of hate crimes sweeping the nation. She recalled one of these voicemails sounding like constant movement on the other end, but nothing verbally being said. How did that happen? Witnesses would recall this incident being "race-related," likely due to comments the man had made, but Arpana would quickly move on and seemed to enjoy the rest of the party. Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: As part of your account, youll receive occasional updates and offers from New York, which you can opt out of anytime. . as a suspect which is why they ultimately presented a case that didn't do so. Prosecutors made it clear that they'd be pursuing a life sentence, due to the brutality of the crime (not the standard 35-45 year sentence for 1st-degree murder). In that case, police learned everything they needed to know from the crime scene itself. They dance and drink. That night, Arpana and at least three of her neighbors would open up their apartments for the party, which would move throughout the complex over several hours. Investigators had seemed particularly hostile towards Fair and had not extended that hostility towards other white suspects (who may have had more of a motive to target Arpana). He only admitted to three crimes in particular - Bill and Lorraine Currier from Vermont in 2009, and Samantha Koenig from Alaska in 2012 - but is believed to have committed several other murders, as well as separate rapes, assaults, and bank robberies over an extended period (possibly decades). The demeaning comments against Alanis continues and the guards purposely made the comments to cause him more stress, the lawsuit states. They do unearth some new information and context, but this remains a story whose outcome can be easily Googled, even as Suspect underlines the details and the stakes with a more prominent shade. Cameron County officials did not respond to The Brownsville Herald for comment by press time. would admit that during this time, he had stopped taking his psychiatric medication. As they were walking to a jail cell where Alanis was to be housed, they continued to yell at him and at one point Galarza then proceeds "without provocation or justification to push Alanis forward," the lawsuit stated. Emanuel Fair's defense attorneys, on the other hand, didn't see it that way. Specifically, it is a software that uses thousands of algorithms to read DNA and translate it, essentially, into evidence that investigators and prosecutors can then use. Shortly after moving to Redmond, the 24-year-old Arpana decided to purchase a motorcycle. and on their website: sarahneilsonwriter.com. In October of 2010, King County prosecutors announced that they were filing charges against Emanuel Fair for the murder of Arpana Jinaga, based on evidence they had accumulated over nearly two years of investigating. The semen from an unnamed neighbor was found on a towel near Arpana's body, while another neighbor's DNA was found on a bootlace that investigators theorized had been used to strangle Arpana (this neighbor, it's worth pointing out, had an alibi for the time of the murder, and had not been at the Halloween party). At points, C.J. Suspect podcast on Wondery : r/TrueCrimePodcasts - reddit Reply . For three and a half decades, her disappearance was a mystery - a riddle neither authorities . would attend a party at a friend's house in Everett, and while there, attempted to wrestle them. Speaking to the Redmond Reporter, some of the club's members would remember Arpana as the fun-loving, ambitious young woman she had been - not just the victim she had become in local newspapers. Sign up for Vultures new recommendation newsletter 1.5x Speed here. Of course, for [Arpanas] family, its crushing. New true-crime podcast reexamines the unsolved murder of a Redmond Prosecutors made it clear that they were seeking more than the recommended sentence - 45 years - which they were allowed to pursue because of the aggravated circumstances of her death. Thats where a lot of the drama is for us, and where we wanted to investigate what had happened. Fair and C.J. Whats Next for Convicted Sex Criminals Harvey Weinstein and R. Kelly? By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us. Lt. Brian Coats would later tell reporters about the crime scene: "It was a scene where the suspect or suspects spent a considerable amount of time covering the evidence of crime. It was the culmination of a long and tortured relationship with the criminal justice system. And while TrueAllele had not yet been used by a prosecution in Washington state at this point, it had been used to obtain dozens of convictions all over the country and was seen as a reliable tool for law enforcement. claimed to not remember anything about them. This is when police learned about the argument Arpana had gotten in with another partygoer, which was described as being "race-related." But just a few days before the retrial was set to begin (September 11th, 2017), the trial was placed on hold pending a discretionary review by the Court of Appeals. She even participated in Taekwondo classes and dabbled in a couple of musical ventures (including singing in a band back east while attending university). Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. And when they wake up the next morning, one resident is dead. Why did it play out like it did? Shaer: Its astonishing when you look at a case in this way, the power that every decision has over the rest of the investigation and the trial, the power that individuals have, prosecutors, police, jurors especially. She would even join a local motorcycle club, the Pacific Northwest Riders, and many of those in the PNW Riders chat-room would later reminisce about her lack of knowledge when it came to riding bikes, but how she came prepared to take on the challenge with a smile on her face, and her participation on lengthy rides throughout scenic western Washington that summer. And soon, she was able to build an entire social circle around herself, due to her bubbly personality and her willingness to try anything at least once. Among thousands of contestants, she was singled out as a top-20 performer and was the only participant from Asia to be featured in the subsequent awards. Many had written off the case long ago, due to the belief that DNA had correctly tagged Fair as the killer back in 2010, but the truth is that the story is much more complicated than that. claim that over the next several days and weeks, he made vague statements alluding to him going over to Arpana's apartment in his sleep; which, when you factor in him having quit psychiatric medication a short time prior, seems worrisome. When residents of the Valley View Apartments in Redmond, Wash . As you can imagine, this analysis was seen as invaluable to the prosecution, who saw this as being ironclad proof of Fair's guilt. Two, that there was a noxious smell emanating throughout the apartment, which indicated the widespread use of chemical cleaning agents, which now proliferated the small living quarters. Alanis Mejia is also accused of striking Galarza in the chest. One of Arpana's neighbors (Kyle R.) would later remark that at around 8:00 AM, he was awoken by a "horrible growling" sound, which persisted for about 20 seconds and was punctuated with a solid thud sound. Shaer and Benson previously collaborated on another true-crime podcast calledOver My Dead Body.. In October of 2008, a 24-year-old computer programmer living in the Seattle area would attend a Halloween party in her apartment complex. While border officials were able to quickly stop him, they ordered a search of his vehicle and ultimately turned him away because he didn't have a passport on him. The crime scene itself was a maelstrom of forensic evidence because more than a dozen people had been inside of Arpana Jinaga's apartment just hours before her death, attending the Halloween party. Then, in a strange turn of fate, he decided to drive up to the Canadian border, where he attempted to drive through the border without stopping or declaring himself. After his release from prison in November of 2006, Fair would begin a three-year process of floating between prison and homelessness; this included the period in which Arpana Jinaga was murdered. Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance: In this Part 2 Episode: 1. The oil would contribute to the odd smell throughout the apartment, and was reportedly found all over the carpet of the bedroom. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google The final stretch of the series lingers in the bittersweet of the triumph: Its justice, but it comes after great loss. Several items found inside of the apartment had also been burned by the killer, including a green blanket that belonged to Arpana, the red cape she had been wearing to the Halloween party, other pieces of her costume, a black sheet, and portions of carpet. 4A former Cameron County inmate is suing the county and two of its jailers for $1 million alleging he was beaten by the jailers while incarcerated. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Joel Alonso Alanis-Mejia, alleges the county jail system has a history of jailers using excessive force against inmates. You see the consequences of a decision, even a relatively small decision. Over nine episodes, true crime podcast Suspect hosts Matthew Shaer and Eric Benson return to the scene of the 2008 crime over a decade later to uncover what happened, and speak with everyone about . After being held in custody for nine years, he was found not guilty of Jinagas murder and released in 2019. Arpana Jinaga. Or it might not. Other witnesses that knew C.J. But because of his prior criminal record, he would remain at the top of their suspect list for some time until the results from the forensic analysis came back from the Washington state crime lab, which seemed to implicate his involvement in the murder. He was arrested for this crime and ended up pleading guilty to avoid a decade-plus prison sentence (pleading down from 2nd degree to 3rd-degree rape). TikToks Favorite Celebrity Couple Is Kim Kardashian and Michael Cera. C.J. While Arpana would show an affinity for art, writing, and even gymnastics from an early age, she seemed destined to follow in her father's footsteps, becoming a bit of a tech prodigy in her teenage years. He was originally charged with Arpana's murder in October of 2010 and acquitted in June of 2019 - nearly nine years, in which there was little movement in Arpana's case. Shaer: It might be different from other types of true-crime shows that people are used to where theres an agenda as to who ultimately committed the crime or who didnt. Typically, when police recommend filing charges against someone, they don't follow that up with any investigation of their own and that's sadly what happened here. Fair's attorneys claim that he had been treated negatively during interviews, while other suspects with more incriminating evidence pointing to their guilty were treated with metaphorical kid's gloves. Dispatchers would tell both of the men to leave the apartment but remain nearby, and wait for investigators to arrive. Terms of Service apply. The jailers are further accused in the lawsuit of fabricating their statements. The state was attempting to build a case around the possibility of Emanuel Fair acting alongside an accomplice; who, they had alleged in the first trial, had acted alongside Fair to commit the crime but was not charged with anything for the time being. However, without charging C.J. Even though Arpana Jinaga had not been back home to visit her family in India in more than two years, she still talked to them over the phone regularly and had spoken to them the night before the Halloween party (Thursday, October 30th). Writing the Atlantic story was a bit of a wake [up] call in all the different ways that DNA can be misused. Friends recall that she spoke of opening an animal sanctuary for endangered species in the future. On November 21st, 2008 - three weeks after the murder - he spoke to investigators and admitted to being inside of Arpana's apartment during the Halloween party. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Joel Alonso Alanis-Mejia, alleges the county jail system has a history of jailers using excessive force against inmates. When I started talking to Emanuel and then to Ben Goldsmith, his attorney, I was like, Wow, this case is sort of exactly what Ive been thinking about. It was DNA that drew us to it initially. to give the unexplained injury an innocuous excuse. A Review of the 2008 Murder Mystery of Indian immigrant - Medium Together, they decided to enter Arpana's apartment to check in on her, but when they knocked on the apartment door, it swung open. (Arpana's neighbor, who would co-discover her body days later). Short of clear leads and smoking guns, the authorities ultimately pin the crime on the lone Black man at the party, Emanuel Fair, who had a prior criminal record. Fair was unable to recall these phone calls, stating that he had likely dialed this young woman's number on accident. Season 2: Vanished in the Snow chronicles the disappearance of 12-year-old Jonelle Matthews. Now, nearly two years later, Emanuel Fair was being charged with 1st-degree murder and was transferred to the King County jail to await trial. TrueAllele was utilized heavily by this investigation and was able to come up with results that were far more definitive than anything the crime lab itself had been able to determine. Later on, during Emanuel Fair's first trial, prosecutors even alleged that this neighbor had been an accomplice in the murder. Inside the apartment, it became clear to investigators that a struggle had taken place. I hope we did something to draw attention to that. Her body was then flown back to India, to be properly buried by her family, who struggled to move on after her sudden loss. Rather than an 'other suspect,' [C.J.] It was important for us to take the case as a whole and consider all the directions that it mightve gone, yes, but not to draw any conclusions. The autopsy revealed that Arpana had been strangled and asphyxiated to death, roughly two days before her body was discovered. The two hung out often after Arpana moved to the Redmond area, but had begun to drift apart in the weeks before the murder (due to Arpana spending her free time volunteering and participating in her motorcycle club). theres no closure for them, certainly from the justice system. might have been involved). According to prosecutors, Emanuel Fair claimed to have gone back to his friend Leslie's apartment at around 1:00 AM but would make nearly two dozen calls to three separate women (none of whom were Arpana) between 2:00 and 5:00 AM. While Emanuel Fair was acquitted of the charges levied against him, the jurors that decided his fate claim that it had little to do with his innocence; but, rather, the level of reasonable doubt that his attorneys were able to raise. I hope people think about that, but I also hope that they think about the way that justice is carried out or not, in cities across the country and in a really liberal place like Seattle. It is . This is a series whose internal universe pretty much stops at the very edges of its specific case. She moved into the Valley View Apartments just north of Marymoor Park, along the 8900 block of Redmond-Woodinville Road. I hope I never have to investigate a case like this again.". [In the 1980s], you really needed a lot of body fluid, so there was no ambiguity about whose DNA it was. She Hosted a Halloween Party, Then Turned Up Dead: Podcast - MSN Those that remembered the incident thought that the man involved should be investigated as a suspect, but investigators probing this altercation didn't believe that there was anything to it. The last episode is called Haunted because thats how everyone feels by what happened there. This was paired with several inconsistencies in Emanuel Fair's story; which included - but was not limited to - calls he had made during the time of Arpana's murder. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, of course. Regardless, more than a decade has passed since the mysterious death of Arpana Jinaga, and no one has been held responsible for it. He said that he met her briefly that night, and seemed to get along well with her; she briefly showed him photos from her bedroom computer, but that was about the extent of their interaction. Police had publicly speculated that Arpana's killer - who had stolen her cell phone and digital camera - might have attempted to distribute the stolen items through pawn shops, so this seems to be more than pure coincidence. You can listen early and ad-free by subscribing to Wondery+ in Apple Podcasts or the Wondery App. We didnt want to make a promise up front that we will reveal who did this or who didnt. Episode 1: The Halloween Party | Suspect | Full Episode Both jailers acted under color and are not entitled to qualify for immunity because the excessive use of force violated Alanis-Mejia's Fourteen Amendment constitutional rights, the lawsuit alleged. That day, Arpana showed up for work as if it were any other workday, but told some of her coworkers about a party being held that evening at her apartment complex. Police would arrive at the apartment complex a short time later, and immediately noticed two things that stood out about this crime. That was surprising. This killer had kicked in the front door to the apartment, which had been locked beforehand by not only the doorknob itself but the deadbolt. The prosecution would quickly decide that they wanted to retry Emanuel Fair for the murder of Arpana Jinaga, and the court would set a date for that September.