The Murder of Sydney Loofe: Aubrey Trial and Bailey Boswell | #472

Hannah Maguire (0:09)

When Sydney Loofe was swiping through Tinder on the 11th of November 2017, she felt like life had been pretty rough on her recently.

The woman she loved had left her for a man and then almost immediately got pregnant. Sydney was working at Menards, a homeware shop in Lincoln, Nebraska. And the monotony, loneliness, and money worries were all getting on top of her. Earlier that year, she'd taken a month off on mental health leave. Just days before, she told her manager that she was thinking about checking into a hospital for depression and that she couldn't remember the last time she'd woken up without crying.

Suruthi Bala (0:52)

So when Sydney matched on Tinder with a new woman named Audrey, it felt like life might have finely thrown her a bone. Audrey was a 25-year-old beautiful flirty blonde, and they clicked instantly.

So when Audrey invited Sydney to go for a drive in a smoke around Lincoln, it was just too exciting to pass up. They cruised around the outskirts of the city, smoking weed, holding hands and listening to music for hours. Then Audrey dropped Sydney off at home and kissed her good night. They arranged to meet up again the very next night.

Hannah Maguire (1:27)

They sent each other more than 140 messages in the few days after they matched. Sydney texted her friends, things are finally looking up. I had a good day at work yesterday, didn't feel like crying. She had no reason to notice the man in the leather jacket who brushed past her on his way into the store where she worked. A man who called himself the vampire.

He left having purchased a bottle of Drano and a length of nylon rope. Earlier that day, he had also bought a hacksaw, utility knives, plastic drop cloths, and two hand-cranked meat grinders. After work, Sydney posted a picture of her outfit on Snapchat with the caption, ready for my date, and then a heart eyes emoji.

And Sydney would never be seen alive again.

Suruthi Bala (2:23)

So far this story might seem tragically familiar. The sad case of a young girl who had the bad luck to fall into the crosshairs of some sort of crazed killer.

But, this being October, there is so much more darkness to come. In fact, if this case was a horror film, it would probably be From Dusk Till Dawn. And that's because much of it is rooted in the everyday. Sex, weed.

Hannah Maguire (2:49)

When's Salma Hayek getting here? I'm bored.

Suruthi Bala (2:51)

Um, maybe later, in the form of a witch.

Hannah Maguire (2:54)

Okay.

Suruthi Bala (2:55)

And yeah, it fits that movie because much of this story is very rooted in the everyday. Sex, weed and small time cons in small town America. But then halfway through, bam, vampires and witches. By the time this case reached trial, it had exploded into a frenzy of occult rituals, violent sex and lunar magic.

And it reached a very bizarre climax when the man who called himself the vampire shouted out to a Nebraska courtroom, I curse you all, before slashing at his own throat with a razor blade.

Hannah Maguire (3:31)

This man, said vampire, claimed to be a thousand-year-old immortal being, one that could walk through walls, read minds and obviously fly. He told his coven of thirteen adoring witches that they were destined to be together. The witches could even develop special powers, from healing to sensing danger and even conversing with animals. But buried inside the vampire's supernatural mythology and sexual fantasy was something much darker.

Murder. He told his followers that there was only one way for them to take their place at his side and gain their full powers. And that was by torturing a person to death and breathing in their final breath.

Suruthi Bala (4:22)

Nineteen days after Sydney Loofe's disappearance, human remains were found in a ditch.

Her body had been cut into fourteen pieces. Most of the internal organs were missing. And every drop of blood had been drained. A tattoo on a disembodied arm confirmed it was Sydney. In curling text, it read, Everything will be wonderful someday.

Hannah Maguire (4:48)

I'm Hannah.

Suruthi Bala (4:49)

I'm Saruti.

Hannah Maguire (4:51)

This is RedHanded. I'm sad on the inside already. My god.

Suruthi Bala (4:55)

Oh, it's gonna get fucking bonkers. And it's not gonna get less sad, but it is gonna get absolutely fucking batshit crazy. Because first off, let's start with the fact that the woman that Sydney had been texting and meeting up with, the woman that she had met on Tinder, was not in fact somebody called Audrey. Her name was actually Bailey Boswell.