When you log on to your social media accounts, you expect to see some harmless videos, pictures, or postings. You might find a few angry rants but nothing to really concern you. However, an unfortunate few have logged on to discover that one of their friends was a killer or worse yet, that one of their family or friends had been brutally killed.
10 Jacob Rogers
On the morning of March 2, 2015, 27-year-old Andrew Jones was sleeping on a couch in his apartment in Racine County, Wisconsin, when his 27-year-old roommate and supposed friend, Jacob Rogers, woke him up and shot him a few times. Rogers momentarily walked away and then returned to fire more shots into Jones. Watch this video on YouTube Another man who was sleeping in the apartment, 27-year-old Jacob Albright, was awakened by the gunshots. After the murder, Albright hid the gun in a snow bank beside a gas station’s dumpster while Rogers fled the scene. The police were called, and they found Jones dead from gunshot wounds. They started a search for Rogers, who was using that time to apparently confess his crime on Facebook. His post said, “That’s the truth. I DID IT. Stole money n threatened the wrong person. I’ll surrender when they find me.” At about 8:30 PM on the night after the murder, Rogers was peacefully taken into custody. Over the next couple of days, the police gathered evidence on him. This included his confessions on Facebook and to the police. According to Rogers, he believed that Jones had stolen money from him, so Rogers confronted and shot Jones. Besides the two confessions, the police have Albright—who is charged with helping Rogers with his crime—as a witness. Probably most damning, the apartment was wired for video, so there is footage of Rogers shooting Jones as he lay on the couch. Rogers has pleaded not guilty and is currently awaiting trial.
9 Kashawn Hines
On November 18, 2012, 13-year-old Lamonee Johnson-Chisholm and his best friend were standing outside a convenience store in Newport News, Virginia, when someone opened fire on them. Johnson-Chisholm was killed. His friend was shot in the arm but survived. Watch this video on YouTube The police quickly found a suspect. The day after the murder, 15-year-old Kashawn Hines used Facebook to send a direct message to Johnson-Chisholm that said, “I ain’t know I was going to kill you. . . . I swear to God I didn’t mean to kill you. What I’m trying to say is that I’m sorry.” Johnson-Chisholm’s mother found the message a few days later and informed the police. After Hines was arrested, he confessed to the police but later recanted. He claimed that he was joking when he admitted to the murder. Nevertheless, Hines was found guilty and later sentenced to 46 years in prison for both the murder of Johnson-Chisholm and a separate robbery.
8 James Thomas
On the night of June 28, 2015, police were called to the Chicago apartment of Vanessa Taylor and her boyfriend James Thomas, both 49 years old, for a reported disturbance. As a result, Thomas was taken away from the apartment and brought to a mental hospital for an examination. Released the next day, he returned to his apartment. In the early hours of June 30, the police received a call from Taylor’s 28-year-old son. He told the police that his older brother was getting strange notifications from his mother’s Facebook account, such as: “My girlfriend was part of the mob. She came to kill me, so I killed her.” The police went to the apartment and found Taylor dead on the floor. Thomas had strangled her to death with a computer cord and then logged on to her Facebook account where he wrote his apparent confession. He was arrested and is currently awaiting trial.
7 Samantha Stansifer
For three years, 20-year-old Samantha Stansifer and 23-year-old Jim Anthony Hall had an on-again-off-again relationship. In June 2015, they were broken up, but Hall was letting Stansifer stay at his home in Henryetta, Oklahoma. On the night of June 13, they were at a party when Stansifer noticed that Hall was getting text messages from another woman. After they left the party, Stansifer and Hall went back to Hall’s house, where he fell asleep. Stansifer was still awake when she saw more texts from the girl. Stansifer then went to the kitchen to get a drink. She noticed two knives lying out. She brought them back to the bedroom, stabbed Hall to death, and mutilated his body. After killing Hall, she made a post on Facebook that said: “I did it. He deserved it.” That’s how Hall’s sister found out that her brother had been murdered. After killing Hall, Stansifer called 911 where she again admitted to the murder. When the police arrived, they found Stansifer covered in blood. One investigator said it was the worst crime scene that he had ever worked. Stansifer was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
6 Rosemarie Farid
The morning of June 30, 2014, started off tumultuously in the Sunrise, Florida, home of 40-year-old Rosemarie Farid and her 64-year-old roommate, Donald Gavagni. According to Farid, Gavagni was playing his guitar so loud in the living room that it woke her up. They argued, and she went back to sleep. Later that day, they got into a fight over Farid’s dog. Gavagni shoved Farid, so she shoved him back. He fell and hit his head on the tile. Farid then straddled Gavagni, grabbed him by his hair, and beat his head against the floor a number of times. After the beating, she took his cell phone (so he couldn’t call for help) and stole $50 out of his wallet. He slowly died from his injuries. On the same day, Farid made a four-minute video of only her mouth, in which she confesses to the murder, saying things like: “Donny was driving me so insane that I was like delirious from the fighting. I couldn’t take it anymore. I was having fantasies about stabbing him in the neck with a very sharp little knife—I knew I had to get out.” She also talked about bashing his head. Police said that she was quite proud of the video and posted it to her Facebook page on the day of the murder. She also encouraged her friends to watch it. However, if people did watch it, they didn’t report it to the police. The body wasn’t discovered until July 2, when a friend of Gavagni came looking for him after she hadn’t seen him in days. The police were called. Along with large amounts of blood throughout the house, they found Gavagni’s body in the bathtub. Farid was arrested and charged with premeditated murder.
5 Matthew Cordle
In the early morning hours of June 22, 2013, 61-year-old Vincent Canzani was heading home after having a few Diet Cokes and cigars with friends at a bar in Columbus, Ohio. At around 2:30 AM, a pickup truck driven by 22-year-old Matthew Cordle slammed head-on into Canzani. Cordle was “black out drunk” and driving on the wrong side of the highway. His blood alcohol level was 0.191, which is more than twice the legal limit in Ohio. In the collision, Cordle burned his arm and fractured his skull in two places. Sadly, Canzani lost his life in the accident. On September 3, 2013, a few weeks before he was set to go to trial, Cordle released a YouTube video called “I killed a man.” It was uploaded to the “Because I Said I Would” YouTube account. In the video, Cordle talks about the night that Canzani lost his life and how Cordle later got in touch with lawyers who thought they might be able to get him off without any jail time. However, in the video, Cordle takes full responsibility for the accident and pledges to plead guilty in court. He also pleads with viewers not to drink and drive. The video went viral and has been watched over three million times. When Cordle went to trial, he kept his word from the video and pled guilty. In October 2013, Cordle was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison.
4 Gypsy Blancharde
On the morning of June 14, 2015, a disturbing post was made on the Facebook account that 19-year-old Gypsy Blancharde shared with her 48-year-old mom, Dee Dee Blancharde. The status update said: “That Bitch is dead!” When some people immediately asked what was happening, the person writing the post made it clear in the comments section: “I fen SLASHED THAT FAT PIG AND RAPED HER SWEET INNOCENT DAUGHTER . . . HER SCREAM WAS SOOOO FEN LOUD LOL.” When police entered the Blancharde home in Springfield, Missouri, they found Dee Dee stabbed to death. However, Gypsy, who suffered from leukemia and was confined to a wheelchair from muscular dystrophy, was missing. The police tracked the Facebook posting to Big Bend, Wisconsin, where they found Gypsy with her 26-year-old boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn. Apparently, Gypsy had asked Godejohn to drive from his home in Wisconsin to kill her mother. When he arrived, Gypsy gave him a knife and hid in the washroom while her mother was stabbed to death. After the murder, Gypsy helped to clean up the blood. Allegedly, she also took thousands of dollars from her mother’s safe before fleeing to Wisconsin with Godejohn. From there, she posted the Facebook message so that someone would find her mother’s body. After arresting Gypsy and Godejohn, investigators discovered that Gypsy was 23, not 19, and that she could walk. Gypsy’s illnesses had been faked to profit from fraud. The Blanchardes had also fraudulently obtained a house built by Habit for Humanity by claiming that they had lost a house in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. No evidence has been found to support their claim. With such a large fraud scheme, the police aren’t sure about the extent of Dee Dee’s involvement. But a family member revealed that Dee Dee had forced Gypsy to use the wheelchair, shave her head, and even take antiseizure medicine that caused Gypsy’s teeth to fall out. Police are currently investigating the full extent of the Blanchardes’ fraud. Both Gypsy and Godejohn were charged with murder.
3 Derek Medina
In South Miami on the morning of August 8, 2013, the Facebook friends of 31-year-old Derek Medina were in for a terrible surprise when they logged on to Facebook and saw a picture that he had posted. It was the bloodstained body of his 26-year-old wife, Jennifer Alfonso, crumpled up and lying in an unnatural position. Although it was obvious that she was dead, Medina posted the caption: “Im going to prison or death sentence for killing my wife love you guys miss you guys takecare Facebook people you will see me in the news.” For at least the next five hours, the photo shocked people, including Alfonso’s family and friends. It had even started to go viral before it was taken down. Medina said that he posted the picture to notify the family. After posting the picture, Medina confessed to his family before turning himself in. He claims that the shooting was done in self-defense. According to Medina, Alfonso punched him during an argument, so he shot her multiple times. However, the angle of the shots seemed to indicate that Alfonso was on her knees when she was shot. Medina’s trial is set for October 2015.
2 Bart Heller
In Fort Wayne, Indiana, Bart Heller had been dating 19-year-old Erin Jehl, a woman about 20 years his junior, but they broke up in early December 2011. A few days later, Jehl and her 19-year-old friend Ryann Tipton went to Heller’s house to get some of Jehl’s belongings, including a pet. Expecting to be in and out of the house in a few minutes, Jehl and Tipton left the car running. Little did they know that they would never leave Heller’s house alive. Heller shot his ex-girlfriend and her friend to death. Watch this video on YouTube After the two murders and before he turned the gun on himself, Heller posted on his Facebook page: “someone call 911. three dead bodies at 3229 lima road fort wayne indiana. I’ve killed ryann, erin, and myself. people were warned not to f***ing play me and ruin me. they didn’t listen. sorry about your luck.” A Facebook friend of Heller’s who lived in Washington called the police in Fort Wayne. When they responded to the scene, they found all three people dead from gunshot wounds.
1 Randy Janzen
On May 7, 2015, police in Chilliwack, British Columbia, received a tip from a Facebook user, leading them to view the Facebook profile of Randy Janzen. In the opening of his post, Janzen said that over the past 10 days, he’d done some horrible things. He described the debilitating nature of his daughter Emily’s migraines, which caused her to have severe bouts of depression. He claimed that seeing his daughter that way made him feel horrible. So Janzen shot Emily in the head to free her from her migraines. He then admitted to killing his wife and Emily’s mother, Laurel, so that she wouldn’t hear about Emily’s death. He also confessed to killing his 53-year-old sister Shelly Janzen so that she wouldn’t have to live with the shame of what he’d done. Janzen then signed off the post: “Rest in peace my little family Love Daddio xoxo.” Police first went to the home of Shelly and found her dead. The police then descended on the Janzen house, where shots were fired during a short standoff between the police and Randy Janzen. After police threw smoke bombs into the house, a fire broke out, gutting the house. Inside, they found three bodies, matching the description of the victims in the Facebook posting. Robert Grimminck is a Canadian freelance writer. You can friend him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter and Pinterest, and visit his website.
