While Elizabeth Thomas’ father complains he was never told a teacher was romantically involved with his daughter, it’s revealed Tad Cummins’ wife works for a high-ranking school official. Police fear the teacher and the 15-year-old girl may be hiding far away from their Tennessee hometown. They reveal Cummins had search the web for info on marrying a teen. Nancy Grace and Alan Duke look at the latest in this episode.
      

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While Elizabeth Thomas’ father complains he was never told a teacher was romantically involved with his daughter, it’s revealed Tad Cummins’ wife works for a high-ranking school official. Police fear the teacher and the 15-year-old girl may be hiding far away from their Tennessee hometown. They reveal Cummins had search the web for info on marrying a teen. Nancy Grace and Alan Duke look at the latest in this episode.
 Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>

Nancy Grace dives deep into the day’s most shocking crimes and asks the tough questions in her new daily podcast – Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Nancy Grace had a perfect conviction record during her decade as a prosecutor and used her TV show to find missing people, fugitives on the run and unseen clues. Now, she will use the power of her huge social media following and the immediacy of the internet to deliver daily bombshells!

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Crime Stories with Nancy Grace

While Elizabeth Thomas’ father complains he was never told a teacher was romantically involved with his daughter, it’s revealed Tad Cummins’ wife works for a high-ranking school official. Police fear the teacher and the 15-year-old girl may be hiding far away from their Tennessee hometown. They reveal Cummins had search the web for info on marrying a teen. Nancy Grace and Alan Duke look at the latest in this episode.

New revelations about runaway Tennessee teacher Tad Cummins

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/2c307a7b-bfae-40bc-8b16-ae5100e04931/transcript

Mercedes Vega is seen on video at 9:15 p.m. leaving her apartment complex in Tempe, Arizona.

In the video Vega is seen walking with her face looking down as if she was on Facetime. Mercedes Vegas is texting multiple people on the night of April 16. And looking at those messages as a whole, she is either going to meet friends for Sushi, meet other friends at "Dave&Busters,"  or, as she indicates in another text, go to work.

In one of her text messages Mercedes Vega says, "I just feel weird, like maybe I shouldn't go anywhere." 

In the early morning hours of April 17, the Harquahala Fire Department responds to a report of a burning car on the “north hand shoulder” of the I-10 highway, west of Tonopah, Arizona. Firefighters find a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu on fire.

Once the fire is put out, a deceased human body is found in the rear passenger seat. 

At 1:15 a.m.  Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies are called to a scene to assist the Arizona Department of Public Safety on a death investigation.  Investigators talk to the man who called law enforcement about the car on fire. Robert Miller tells officials he saw a person walking outside the vehicle.  

Using fingerprints, investigators can identify the woman found inside the burning Malibu as 22-year-old Mercedes Vega. The 2018 Chevrolet Malibu in which her body was found, does not belong to Vega. The car has a Salvage Title vehicle registered to State Farm Insurance and the burning car is 60 miles from Vega's Tempe, Arizona apartment. Mercedes' 2019, White, Dodge Charger is found illegally parked near First Street and Farmer Avenue, 1.5 miles south of where she lives.

According to her mother, the car is parked while running with the keys in the ignition so it would be stolen or towed.  The MCSO has video surveillance of Vega's Charger from the time it is left parked on the road until the time police recover it. Vega didn't park it where it was found. 

Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s report states the cause of death was “conflagration, blunt force and ballistic injuries," and the Manner of Death is Homicide.  The death report also states she has blunt force trauma and gunshot injuries that contributed to her death, and an odor of bleach within the larynx. 

The report notes the presence of gloves and bleach found in front of the car and lighter fluid in the backseat. 

JOINING NANCY TODAY: 
Tom and Erika Pillsbury - Mercedes Vega's parents,  FB: Justice for Mercedes Marianna Vega
Sarah Ford – Legal Director of South Carolina Victim Assistance Network, Former Prosecutor (focusing on crimes against women and children) & Host of “Stepping Toward Justice” podcast; X: @Sarahafordfordesq
Robin Dreeke – Behavior Expert & Retired FBI Special Agent / Chief of the FBI Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program; Author: “Sizing People Up: A Veteran FBI Agents Manual for Behavior Prediction;” X: @rdreekeke
Dr. Michelle DuPre – Former Forensic Pathologist, Medical Examiner and Detective: Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, Author: “Homicide Investigation Field Guide” & “Investigating Child Abuse Field Guide;” Forensic Consultant
Bianca Buono – Reporter, 12 News (Phoenix, AZ), X: @BiancaBuono

Mercedes Vega is seen on video at 9:15 p.m. leaving her apartment complex in Tempe, Arizona.
In the video Vega is seen walking with her face looking down as if she was on Facetime. Mercedes Vegas is texting multiple people on the night of April 16. And looking at those messages as a whole, she is either going to meet friends for Sushi, meet other friends at "Dave&amp;Busters,"  or, as she indicates in another text, go to work.
In one of her text messages Mercedes Vega says, "I just feel weird, like maybe I shouldn't go anywhere." 
In the early morning hours of April 17, the Harquahala Fire Department responds to a report of a burning car on the “north hand shoulder” of the I-10 highway, west of Tonopah, Arizona. Firefighters find a 2018 Chevrolet Malibu on fire.
Once the fire is put out, a deceased human body is found in the rear passenger seat. 
At 1:15 a.m.  Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies are called to a scene to assist the Arizona Department of Public Safety on a death investigation.  Investigators talk to the man who called law enforcement about the car on fire. Robert Miller tells officials he saw a person walking outside the vehicle.  
Using fingerprints, investigators can identify the woman found inside the burning Malibu as 22-year-old Mercedes Vega. The 2018 Chevrolet Malibu in which her body was found, does not belong to Vega. The car has a Salvage Title vehicle registered to State Farm Insurance and the burning car is 60 miles from Vega's Tempe, Arizona apartment. Mercedes' 2019, White, Dodge Charger is found illegally parked near First Street and Farmer Avenue, 1.5 miles south of where she lives.
According to her mother, the car is parked while running with the keys in the ignition so it would be stolen or towed.  The MCSO has video surveillance of Vega's Charger from the time it is left parked on the road until the time police recover it. Vega didn't park it where it was found. 
Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s report states the cause of death was “conflagration, blunt force and ballistic injuries," and the Manner of Death is Homicide.  The death report also states she has blunt force trauma and gunshot injuries that contributed to her death, and an odor of bleach within the larynx. 
The report notes the presence of gloves and bleach found in front of the car and lighter fluid in the backseat. 
JOINING NANCY TODAY: 
<ul>
<li>Tom and Erika Pillsbury - Mercedes Vega's parents,  FB: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/1041193393898060/" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-loopstyle="linkonly" data-linkindex="3">Justice for Mercedes Marianna Vega</a> </li>
<li>Sarah Ford – Legal Director of South Carolina Victim Assistance Network, Former Prosecutor (focusing on crimes against women and children) &amp; Host of “Stepping Toward Justice” podcast; X: @Sarahafordfordesq</li>
<li><a href="http://peopleformula.com/">Robin Dreeke</a> – Behavior Expert &amp; Retired FBI Special Agent / Chief of the FBI Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program; Author: “Sizing People Up: A Veteran FBI Agents Manual for Behavior Prediction;” X: @rdreekeke</li>
<li><a href="http://dmichelledupremd.com/">Dr. Michelle DuPre</a> – Former Forensic Pathologist, Medical Examiner and Detective: Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, Author: “Homicide Investigation Field Guide” &amp; “Investigating Child Abuse Field Guide;” Forensic Consultant</li>
<li><a href="http://12news.com/">Bianca Buono</a> – Reporter, 12 News (Phoenix, AZ), X: @BiancaBuono</li>
</ul>

GIFTED DANCER, 22, FOUND DEAD IN BURNING CAR:  WHO KILLED MERCEDES?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/702a7466-09d8-44fe-b8f6-b17001269b04/transcript

Man tries to shoot pastor during live-streamed services. This neighbor really must've really needed a cup of sugar!

For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.com

Man tries to shoot pastor during live-streamed services. This neighbor really must've really needed a cup of sugar!
For more crime and justice news go to <a href="https://www.crimeonline.com/">crimeonline.com</a>

Crime Alert 05.14.24

Ashlin Couch, former roommate of the Idaho students killed, is speaking out. Couch transferred her lease at 1122 King Road to Xana Kernodle just six months before Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves were slain in the home.

Couch remembers getting an alert from the University and immediately reaching out to friends still in Moscow. Couch’s last text to Mogen before learning of her death was “Are you OK?” Couch followed up in a group chat with friends, “Has anyone heard from Maddie?” Couch says the thought that the murders could have happened earlier is unsettling, commenting that ‘you never know how long someone is watching your house.’

We also learn a friend of an officer working on the Bryan Kohberger murder investigation says Kohberger was very careful in the days before his arrest. The source says the cop followed Kohberger in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, and observed him wearing plastic gloves while picking up groceries at a local Giant store. The cop also said that Kohberger’s cellphone pings matched the movements of the victims for weeks before the murders.

Joining Nancy Grace Today:
Mark Tate - Trial Lawyer / Legal Analyst - Tate Law Group- TateLawGroup.com
Caryn L. Stark – Psychologist, Renowned TV and Radio Trauma Expert and Consultant; Instagram: carynpsych/FB: Caryn Stark Private Practice
Chris McDonough – Director At the Cold Case Foundation, Former Homicide Detective, coldcasefoundation.org,  Host of YouTube channel: “The Interview Room” 
Joe Scott Morgan – Professor of Forensics: Jacksonville State University, Author, “Blood Beneath My Feet,” and Host: “Body Bags with Joseph Scott Morgan;” Twitter/X: @JoScottForensic
Dave Mack- CrimeOnline Investigative Reporter  

Ashlin Couch, former roommate of the Idaho students killed, is speaking out. Couch transferred her lease at 1122 King Road to Xana Kernodle just six months before Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves were slain in the home.
Couch remembers getting an alert from the University and immediately reaching out to friends still in Moscow. Couch’s last text to Mogen before learning of her death was “Are you OK?” Couch followed up in a group chat with friends, “Has anyone heard from Maddie?” Couch says the thought that the murders could have happened earlier is unsettling, commenting that ‘you never know how long someone is watching your house.’
We also learn a friend of an officer working on the Bryan Kohberger murder investigation says Kohberger was very careful in the days before his arrest. The source says the cop followed Kohberger in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, and observed him wearing plastic gloves while picking up groceries at a local Giant store. The cop also said that Kohberger’s cellphone pings matched the movements of the victims for weeks before the murders.
Joining Nancy Grace Today:
<ul>
<li>Mark Tate - Trial Lawyer / Legal Analyst - Tate Law Group- TateLawGroup.com</li>
<li><a href="http://www.carynstark.com/">Caryn L. Stark</a> – Psychologist, Renowned TV and Radio Trauma Expert and Consultant; Instagram: carynpsych/FB: Caryn Stark Private Practice</li>
<li><a href="ColdCaseFoundation.org">Chris McDonough</a> – Director At the Cold Case Foundation, Former Homicide Detective, coldcasefoundation.org,  Host of YouTube channel: “The Interview Room” </li>
<li>Joe Scott Morgan – Professor of Forensics: Jacksonville State University, Author, “Blood Beneath My Feet,” and Host: “<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/body-bags-with-joseph-scott-morgan/id1587763116">Body Bags with Joseph Scott Morgan</a>;” Twitter/X: @JoScottForensic</li>
<li>Dave Mack- CrimeOnline Investigative Reporter  </li>
</ul>

BRYAN KOHBERGER WORE PLASTIC GLOVES TO GROCERY STORE AFTER MURDERS?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8a31253a-df6d-46b1-9972-b16f0114dfbc/transcript

New revelations about runaway Tennessee teacher Tad Cummins

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