Inside the Markel Hit: Meet The Paid Killers Who Exposed the Adelson Family

Psychotherapist Shavaun Scott joins Tony Brueski, Stacy Cole, and Todd Michaels to unpack the warped psychology behind The Perfect Neighbor case — where “fear” became justification for a killing. For two years, Susan Lorincz saw danger in ordinary life: neighborhood kids, laughter, noise. That chronic hyper-vigilance — mixed with grievance and entitlement — built a narrative that only she believed. Scott explores how paranoia and cognitive distortion feed on isolation, turning imagined threat into moral crusade. From micro-aggressions to the myth of the “good citizen,” this interview asks what happens when anxiety weaponizes itself and empathy disappears. Scott also offers trauma-informed insights for the secondary victims — Ajike Owens’ children — and explains how communities can recognize early warning signs before another tragedy repeats. #ThePerfectNeighbor #ShavaunScott #AjikeOwens #HiddenKillersPodcast #TonyBrueski #TrueCrimeAnalysis #FearVsReality #TraumaPsychology #BehavioralHealth #StandYourGround Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

Before Charlie’s smirk, before Donna’s letters, before the Adelson name became synonymous with murder — there were the first flips. In this haunting episode of Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski, we go back to where it all began: the deals, the confessions, and the whispers that cracked open the Daniel Markel murder-for-hire case. This is the untold story of how Luis Rivera — a gang member with nothing left to lose — traded silence for survival, and how Katherine Magbanua — caught between love, money, and manipulation — became the bridge that connected killers to the Adelson family. It’s a chilling portrait of greed, control, and the illusion of safety that defined the Adelsons long before the world saw their faces in court. This is how justice began — not with headlines, but with the first domino that dared to fall. #HiddenKillers #AdelsonFamily #DanMarkel #TrueCrimePodcast #KatherineMagbanua #LuisRivera #DonnaAdelson #CharlieAdelson #MurderForHire #FloridaCrime Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

A mother is dead. A neighbor claims fear. But what really drove Susan Lorincz to pull the trigger through a closed door?  In this exclusive conversation, psychotherapist Shavaun Scott joins Tony Brueski. Stacy Cole, and Todd Michaels to dissect the psychology behind The Perfect Neighbor case — where paranoia, entitlement, and grievance collided in one deadly moment. Scott unpacks the behavioral descent that transforms everyday irritation into lethal certainty. Was Lorincz truly afraid, or was “fear” the mask for long-nurtured anger? From chronic irritability and confirmation bias to the self-righteous delusion of being “under siege,” Scott breaks down the cognitive distortions that rewrite reality until violence feels justified. Together, they examine how “stand-your-ground” culture, racialized fear, and emotional dysregulation converge — and what this case reveals about the American obsession with safety at all costs. This isn’t just a crime story; it’s a psychological autopsy of modern paranoia. #ShavaunScott #HiddenKillers #ThePerfectNeighbor #AjikeOwens #SusanLorincz #TonyBrueski #TrueCrimePodcast #PsychologyOfFear #StandYourGround #BehavioralAnalysis Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

Alex Murdaugh’s name has become synonymous with deceit, greed, and betrayal. The former South Carolina attorney confessed to stealing millions from clients, friends, and even his own firm — but does that make him a murderer? In this explosive episode of Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski, we strip away the money, the scandals, and the headlines to ask one uncomfortable question: did the jury convict Alex Murdaugh for murder, or for being a monster they already hated? In March 2023, Murdaugh was found guilty of killing his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, at their Moselle property. But with no murder weapon, no direct forensic link, and no eyewitnesses, the case depended heavily on his financial crimes to establish motive. His own attorney, Dick Harpootlian, admits Murdaugh is a “horrible person” for what he did financially — but insists that doesn’t mean he pulled the trigger. As the South Carolina Supreme Court weighs whether to grant a new trial amid allegations of jury tampering by former court clerk Becky Hill, the debate over guilt versus prejudice is heating back up. Tony breaks down the real evidence: what points to guilt, what points to innocence, and why removing the financial narrative changes everything. Was Murdaugh’s conviction built on facts — or on disgust? Is he a murderer, or just a morally bankrupt man who became the perfect villain for America’s true-crime obsession? It’s time to separate what can be proven from what just feels true. 🎙️ Subscribe now for more unfiltered true crime breakdowns with Tony Brueski on Hidden Killers. #AlexMurdaugh #HiddenKillersPodcast #TrueCrime #MurdaughMurders #MaggieMurdaugh #PaulMurdaugh #SouthCarolina #JusticeSystem #TrueCrimeCommunity #TonyBrueski Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

When Ajike Owens was killed through a closed door, her four children lost their mother — and a nation faced the consequences of unchecked paranoia. In this exclusive episode, psychotherapist Shavaun Scott joins Tony Brueski, Stacy Cole, and Todd Michaels to dissect the mental chain reaction behind that fatal moment. Scott explores how chronic resentment, fear scripting, and entitlement converge in what she calls “justified aggression”—the mind’s way of excusing harm under the guise of self-protection. She breaks down how fear, when reinforced over years, becomes not a response but an identity. The discussion turns toward healing: what happens to children who witness or lose parents to violence, what recovery actually looks like, and how society can stop mistaking grievance for danger.  This is not just analysis — it’s a human reckoning with how far distorted thinking can go when no one intervenes. #ShavaunScott #HiddenKillersPodcast #ThePerfectNeighbor #AjikeOwens #SusanLorincz #TonyBrueski #TrueCrimeToday #PsychologyOfFear #TraumaRecovery #FearVsAccountability Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

Before there was a “haunted house,” there was a family. And before The Amityville Horror became a pop-culture phenomenon, there was a very real crime scene — six members of the DeFeo family, murdered in their beds on November 13, 1974. In this Hidden Killers deep-dive, Tony Brueski strips away the myth and exposes the true story of Ronald DeFeo Jr. — the 23-year-old son who turned a picture-perfect Long Island home into one of the darkest chapters in American true-crime history. This isn’t about ghosts. It’s about control, pressure, and collapse inside a family that looked flawless from the outside. Through court records, trial transcripts, and eyewitness accounts, we unravel the DeFeo family’s life before the murders — a world of strict rules, generational pride, and a father-son relationship that spiraled from conflict to catastrophe. What happened inside 112 Ocean Avenue wasn’t supernatural. It was psychological. A slow burn of resentment, addiction, and identity loss that ended with a rifle and six bodies. Ronald “Butch” DeFeo Jr. claimed he heard voices telling him to kill. The jury didn’t believe him. He was convicted on six counts of second-degree murder and sentenced to six consecutive life terms. He died in prison in 2021 — leaving behind a trail of lies, contradictions, and one chilling constant: he never showed remorse. Decades later, the Amityville myth still overshadows the truth. This episode reclaims it. Because before it was a franchise, it was a family. And the real horror wasn’t the house — it was what happened inside it. 📺 Watch now and hear the story behind the legend — the DeFeos, the murders, and the night the American Dream died. #AmityvilleMurders #DeFeoFamily #TrueCrime #HiddenKillersPodcast #TonyBrueski #Amityville #RonaldDeFeo #TrueCrimeCommunity #RealHorrorStory #AmericanTrueCrime Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

At Scott Peterson’s 2004 trial, one expert witness sealed his fate. Dr. Terry D’Vor told jurors that baby Connor’s fetal measurements proved Laci Peterson died on or before Christmas Eve 2002—the same day Scott went fishing. Jurors called his testimony “the nail in the coffin.” Now, in 2024, D’Vor has recanted. After reviewing modern NIH and WHO fetal-growth studies, he signed an affidavit admitting the old 1990s charts he used were scientifically obsolete. The updated data show Connor’s gestational age was consistent with a January death, not December 24. That’s when Scott Peterson was already under 24-hour police surveillance. Meaning: he couldn’t have done it. This episode dissects the science that collapsed and the law that lets outdated forensics destroy lives. We’ll explain California’s Penal Code § 1473 (b)(2), written for exactly this scenario—when an expert’s own recantation proves the state’s theory was wrong. If modern science shows Laci and Connor died while Scott was being followed by cops, what’s left of the prosecution’s timeline? #ScottPeterson #LaciPeterson #LAInnocenceProject #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #TonyBrueski #WrongfulConviction #ForensicScience #JusticeForLaci #CrimePodcast Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video?  Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod

Kada Scott should still be alive. But under Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, justice isn’t blind — it’s asleep. In this in-depth investigation, Tony Brueski breaks down the horrific chain of failures that allowed Keon King, a man already charged with kidnapping and strangulation, to walk free on low bail… and allegedly kill Kada Scott just months later. This episode exposes how Larry Krasner’s so-called “progressive reform” has turned Philadelphia’s justice system into a revolving door — where violent offenders walk, victims die, and the DA’s office hides behind slogans about compassion and root causes. We follow the trail from the earlier dropped case against King, to the bail “error” that Krasner now calls “probably incorrect,” to the chilling truth: this death was preventable. And Kada Scott isn’t the only casualty. From the slaying of Philadelphia Police Corporal James O’Connor by another released gun offender, to the hundreds of violent cases dismissed or lost, the pattern is clear — ideology has replaced accountability. Philadelphia deserves a DA who protects the innocent, not excuses the guilty.  If you believe in justice, in public safety, in the idea that compassion means protecting the next victim before it’s too late — then listen to this. Larry Krasner’s record isn’t about reform. It’s about failure. And if you live in Philadelphia, the power to stop it is in your hands. Vote. Demand better. Because Kada Scott deserved better. 🔔 Subscribe for more truth-driven commentary from Hidden Killers with Tony Brueski.  👍 Like | 💬 Comment | 🔁 Share — your voice matters. Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

It’s one of the most shocking allegations to ever surface in a high-profile murder case: that detectives in the Laci Peterson investigation met behind closed doors to discuss discovery—and the very next day, marked key evidence for destruction. According to the new 600-page LA Innocence Project petition, internal Modesto Police logs show that on May 6 2003, investigators gathered to decide what to hand over to the defense. By May 7, they’d ordered the destruction of two critical items: the videotaped interrogations of burglars Steven Todd and Glenn Pierce, and the safe stolen from the Medina home across the street from Scott and Laci. Weeks later—gone. Destroyed. No copies, no transcripts, no forensic testing. This episode breaks down how that single act could unravel the entire case. We’ll look at the timeline, the paper trail, and the California law (Trombetta and Youngblood) that defines intentional destruction of exculpatory evidence as a constitutional violation. If this petition is right, it wasn’t negligence. It was orchestration. And it may be the moment the State of California crossed the line from prosecution … to cover-up. #ScottPeterson #LaciPeterson #LAInnocenceProject #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #JusticeForLaci #WrongfulConviction #TonyBrueski #ForensicEvidence #CriminalJustice Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video?  Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872

This isn’t just a missing-child case. It’s a mirror held up to a system that looked the other way. Melodee Buzzard’s home was reportedly in squalor. No food. No schooling. Prior CPS visits. Still, she remained. Then came the disguise — a wig, a hoodie, a rental car — and a cross-country drive that ended in silence. On Hidden Killers, Tony Brueski and retired FBI Special Agent Jennifer Coffindaffer strip away the excuses and bureaucracy that let it happen. How does a child go unaccounted for months while everyone knew something was wrong? How does a mother stay free when the child she left with never returns? They examine the intersection of law enforcement failure, family neglect, and bureaucratic paralysis — and what it says about the way America protects its most vulnerable. This episode is empathy for the child, outrage for the system, and an unflinching call for accountability. Because Melodee Buzzard didn’t vanish overnight. She disappeared over years of warning signs ignored. Hashtags: #MelodeeBuzzard #SystemFailure #HiddenKillers #TrueCrimeToday #TonyBrueski #JenniferCoffindaffer #MissingChild #JusticeForMelodee Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/ Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspod X Twitter https://x.com/tonybpod Listen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872