WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.680 --> 00:00:04.599 Hello, folks, I'm very, very excited today to share with you a 2 00:00:04.639 --> 00:00:10.880 preview to our new show called Sword and Scale Nightmares. We've been working on 3 00:00:10.919 --> 00:00:15.519 this show behind the scenes since last year, and we think you're really gonna 4 00:00:15.560 --> 00:00:20.559 like it. One of the wonderful things about Sword and Scale that really set 5 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:26.879 us apart early on was the use of audio clips such as interrogation audio and 6 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:32.240 trial testimony, which adds a level of immersion to the story that feels like 7 00:00:32.240 --> 00:00:38.679 you're watching a well produced TV documentary. But not every story lends itself well 8 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:44.880 to this format, and sometimes the clips simply don't exist. Not to mention, 9 00:00:45.479 --> 00:00:50.240 we've heard directly from you over the years. We've heard what you like 10 00:00:50.920 --> 00:00:56.000 and what you don't like, and that you all don't like the same things 11 00:00:56.560 --> 00:01:02.600 necessarily, So we've gone back to the drawing board and reimagined how to tell 12 00:01:02.640 --> 00:01:07.920 these stories in a refreshing new way for this new series. That means no 13 00:01:08.079 --> 00:01:14.879 clips, no jump scares, no loud techno music, and no unsolicited, 14 00:01:15.359 --> 00:01:22.239 unnecessary opinions from that over opinionated narrator What an ass that guy is. The 15 00:01:22.359 --> 00:01:29.400 result is what we're calling true crime for bedtime, i e. Bedtime Stories. 16 00:01:29.480 --> 00:01:34.439 For adults. Now, we've tried something like this before. You might 17 00:01:34.519 --> 00:01:40.680 remember Monstro, but let's face it, the feeling, the vibe wasn't quite 18 00:01:40.760 --> 00:01:44.840 right. But I think we've finally nailed it though. And if you like 19 00:01:44.920 --> 00:01:49.519 Sword and Scale, you'll most likely enjoy Sword and Scale Nightmares. You might 20 00:01:49.560 --> 00:01:55.359 even like it more. By the same token, if you don't like Sword 21 00:01:55.400 --> 00:01:59.280 and Scale for all the reasons I just stated, then maybe you'll still enjoy 22 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:02.280 then you show. Now, in order for this show to be a success, 23 00:02:02.359 --> 00:02:06.680 we need your help, so I'm going to ask you for a favor. 24 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:10.080 If you're listening to this right now, please take a moment and head 25 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:16.919 on over to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast listening platform and 26 00:02:17.039 --> 00:02:23.680 subscribe to Sword and Scale Nightmares right now. It really is going to make 27 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:30.240 a world of difference if you do. And just so you know, Nightmares 28 00:02:30.280 --> 00:02:34.520 will eventually be part of Sword and Scale Plus, but for now, we're 29 00:02:34.560 --> 00:02:38.639 only going to be releasing it as a freely distributed podcast on all major podcast 30 00:02:38.719 --> 00:02:44.960 platforms. The response we get will allow us to see if you guys like 31 00:02:45.080 --> 00:02:51.759 it or not and whether it's worth continuing. So thank you in advance and 32 00:02:51.879 --> 00:02:59.680 without further ado. Here's a preview to Sword and Scale Nightmares Sweet Dreams. 33 00:03:15.039 --> 00:03:21.120 Saint John's, Arizona is a tiny little town in Apache County with just over 34 00:03:21.400 --> 00:03:27.400 three thousand residents. It's a little blip on the map north of the Apache 35 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:34.719 National Forest. The town's motto is the Town of Friendly Neighbors and quite literally, 36 00:03:35.400 --> 00:03:39.960 everyone knows everyone. On November fifth, two thousand and eight, Debbie 37 00:03:40.039 --> 00:03:46.520 Nickel was celebrating she'd just been promoted to detective at the Saint John's Police Department 38 00:03:46.639 --> 00:03:53.560 the day prior. This was her second year in the department, which in 39 00:03:53.639 --> 00:03:58.520 the line of police work, is not very long at all. Given that 40 00:03:58.599 --> 00:04:04.039 her new title was so fresh, Debbie was understandably nervous about the responsibilities it 41 00:04:04.280 --> 00:04:11.240 entailed. Before her promotion, Debbie worked as a school resource officer, so 42 00:04:11.280 --> 00:04:16.639 the types of situations she dealt with involved scuffles between kids. Now her job 43 00:04:16.720 --> 00:04:23.720 would be to respond to real crime scenes. She knew she had entered the 44 00:04:23.720 --> 00:04:28.639 big leagues, and she was about to get a taste of how gruesome reality 45 00:04:28.720 --> 00:04:34.000 can get. On this particular Wednesday, a little after five pm, someone 46 00:04:34.120 --> 00:04:41.759 called the police department to report hearing shots fired and then seeing something strange on 47 00:04:41.759 --> 00:04:47.040 someone's front porch. It looked like a dead body. Now, this was 48 00:04:47.079 --> 00:04:51.680 only a few days after Halloween, so Debbie and her partner, Sergeant Lucas 49 00:04:51.759 --> 00:04:59.759 Rodriguez, weren't totally convinced this call would even amount to anything. But they 50 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:05.839 strapped up their bulletproof vests and jumped in their cruiser, Debbie in the passenger 51 00:05:05.920 --> 00:05:13.480 seat and Sergeant Rodriguez driving. So as they're driving, their lights flashing through 52 00:05:13.480 --> 00:05:17.879 the streets of this quiet town, Debbie's looking out the window waiting for the 53 00:05:17.959 --> 00:05:24.439 house to emerge. She's a little nervous, but you know, how bad 54 00:05:24.519 --> 00:05:29.399 could it be. This was probably just a leftover scarecrow that had gotten blown 55 00:05:29.439 --> 00:05:33.160 over by the harsh winds that they'd had over the last few days. Nothing 56 00:05:33.199 --> 00:05:39.839 to worry about. On the corner of fifteenth Place West and seventh North, 57 00:05:40.199 --> 00:05:45.680 they see the house. It's a blue, two story single family home sitting 58 00:05:45.839 --> 00:05:49.759 close to the street. It's got a little front yard and a truck parked 59 00:05:49.839 --> 00:05:57.680 partially up onto a small gravel driveway. As the police cruiser pulls closer, 60 00:05:58.639 --> 00:06:05.000 Debbie sees what the caller was referring to. Even from that distance, she 61 00:06:05.079 --> 00:06:14.680 could tell This was not a piece of decor. This looks real. She 62 00:06:14.800 --> 00:06:19.160 squints her eyes and realizes that the lump on the porch is in fact, 63 00:06:19.920 --> 00:06:28.680 a dark complexed male wearing a heavy Carhart jacket, lying face down. They 64 00:06:28.720 --> 00:06:32.639 see someone else, too, a frightened little boy standing outside the home, 65 00:06:32.759 --> 00:06:40.279 waiting for law enforcement to arrive and help him. Debbie quickly realizes that she 66 00:06:40.439 --> 00:06:46.600 recognizes this child living in the neighborhood herself. She knew him as the happy 67 00:06:46.720 --> 00:06:51.560 child who jumped on the trampoline with his cousins and always yelled have a good 68 00:06:51.639 --> 00:06:58.759 day, missus Nickle when she left for work. This kid was Vincent Romero's 69 00:06:58.839 --> 00:07:04.560 son. He's standing alongside an adult man and a teenage boy. They seem 70 00:07:04.600 --> 00:07:10.360 to be hovering over him in kind of a protective way. Debbie looks at 71 00:07:10.480 --> 00:07:15.199 Rodriguez as they're sitting on the street in front of the house. They're both 72 00:07:15.240 --> 00:07:20.079 wide eyed because they're realizing this might not be such an easy call after all. 73 00:07:21.480 --> 00:07:27.879 Rodriguez opens his door first, telling Debbie to stay behind while he assesses 74 00:07:27.920 --> 00:07:32.079 the victim and scopes the area. Debbie stays in the passenger seat, looking 75 00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:39.759 out the window. She's getting progressively more and more nervous. Now her partner 76 00:07:40.360 --> 00:07:45.800 is in this house with a real dead body on the front porch, and 77 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:50.120 now she's thinking about what else might be inside. For all they knew, 78 00:07:50.839 --> 00:07:57.560 the murderer could still be hiding in the closet. Pretty soon after that, 79 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:03.839 Debbie hears shouts coming from the house. She opens her door and starts towards 80 00:08:03.879 --> 00:08:07.800 the porch, noticing blood droplets on the sidewalk As she makes her way forward, 81 00:08:09.839 --> 00:08:13.240 Rodriguez pushes the screen door from the front of the house, opening it 82 00:08:13.399 --> 00:08:20.279 from the inside, being careful to avoid this dead man lying on the door's 83 00:08:20.319 --> 00:08:28.720 path. Debbie sees her partner's face and knows it's bad. Rodriguez yells out 84 00:08:28.759 --> 00:08:33.799 to her, informing her of another dead body on the stairway to the second 85 00:08:33.879 --> 00:08:39.600 floor. Both men had been shot to death with a twenty two caliber weapon, 86 00:08:41.120 --> 00:08:46.360 one of which was a familiar neighbor, Vincent Romero, the little boy's 87 00:08:46.399 --> 00:08:54.559 father. Both bodies were still warm. While Rodriguez secured the area, Debbie 88 00:08:54.559 --> 00:08:58.799 went around the neighborhood asking if anyone had seen or heard anything. At this 89 00:08:58.840 --> 00:09:03.960 point, more officers were arriving on scene, so they split up across the 90 00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:09.960 neighborhood and started knocking on doors. The people who lived in the house right 91 00:09:09.000 --> 00:09:16.080 across the street confirmed that they heard several shots right around five pm. Throughout 92 00:09:16.159 --> 00:09:22.360 this long night of witness interviews, police summarized that the two men were twenty 93 00:09:22.440 --> 00:09:28.039 nine year old Vincent Romero and his friend, thirty nine year old Timothy Romans. 94 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:35.120 They also learned that Vincent and tim were not only friends, but co 95 00:09:35.279 --> 00:09:41.960 workers and part time roommates. The two worked for SRP or Salt River Project, 96 00:09:43.399 --> 00:09:48.759 a power company in Arizona. Vincent and his wife owned the house and 97 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:52.039 allowed Timothy to rent a room so that he could be closer to work during 98 00:09:52.080 --> 00:09:58.039 the week. The little boy who was found standing in the front yard when 99 00:09:58.120 --> 00:10:03.960 Debbie and her partner arrived on was eight year old Christian Romero. He had 100 00:10:05.039 --> 00:10:09.480 run to a neighbor for help and they called nine one one and stayed to 101 00:10:09.559 --> 00:10:16.120 wait with him. So Debbie is just shocked that such a crazy tragedy could 102 00:10:16.159 --> 00:10:20.879 strike her tiny little neighborhood. She feels bad for this poor child, this 103 00:10:22.519 --> 00:10:26.120 kid who's just lost his father, so she has to find out if he 104 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:31.759 saw or heard anything. She sits down next to the kid and says, 105 00:10:31.440 --> 00:10:37.919 okay, just tell us from the beginning. Christian starts to explain that his 106 00:10:39.039 --> 00:10:43.639 step mom isn't home on Mondays and Wednesdays. She works until five, and 107 00:10:43.759 --> 00:10:48.639 so he got off the school bus and walked around the neighborhood for a while 108 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:52.679 waiting for her to get home. When five o'clock came and went, he 109 00:10:52.759 --> 00:10:56.840 figured he'd make his way back to the house. He says that as he 110 00:10:56.879 --> 00:11:01.960 approached, he saw a truck parked out front and started to call out, 111 00:11:01.279 --> 00:11:07.559 Tim, are you home. Then Christian tells them about the car that went 112 00:11:07.639 --> 00:11:11.600 past him as he approached the home. He says it seemed it could have 113 00:11:11.639 --> 00:11:18.759 been leaving his family's house. He describes the car. It's a white car 114 00:11:18.799 --> 00:11:22.679 with no hubcaps on the back. So the police are like, we got 115 00:11:22.679 --> 00:11:28.759 to send out a blow immediately, meaning be on the lookout for this vehicle. 116 00:11:28.639 --> 00:11:33.000 Christian goes on to tell them that when he got to the front porch, 117 00:11:33.639 --> 00:11:39.960 he saw Tim lying face down. There was a lot of blood and 118 00:11:39.080 --> 00:11:46.679 even bits of brain. The little boy continues, explaining that once he saw 119 00:11:46.720 --> 00:11:50.240 Tim's body, he started to yell for his father, Vincent, but got 120 00:11:50.279 --> 00:11:56.320 no response. He says he carefully opened the front door and went inside, 121 00:11:56.919 --> 00:12:03.440 still calling for his dad, and then he saw him lying motionless on the 122 00:12:03.600 --> 00:12:09.960 stairway. At this point, Debby's thinking, Holy Moley, Thank goodness, 123 00:12:11.000 --> 00:12:15.759 this child didn't get home just a few hours earlier. He could have been 124 00:12:15.840 --> 00:12:22.679 killed two. Debbie knew they'd have to get Christian in for a forensic interview 125 00:12:22.679 --> 00:12:28.679 in the morning. First, they'd have to deal with Tanya Romans, Tim's 126 00:12:28.679 --> 00:12:35.279 wife. Tanya lived far enough from the power plant that it made more sense 127 00:12:35.320 --> 00:12:39.519 for Tim to stay with his friend during the week. Tanya, though far 128 00:12:39.559 --> 00:12:46.799 away from the crime scene, had some information about the previous day that Debbi 129 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:58.679 hoped would shed light on why two people had suddenly been murdered. Please head 130 00:12:58.679 --> 00:13:05.279 on over to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform and subscribe. 131 00:13:05.000 --> 00:13:09.960 Sword in Scale Nightmares will launch its first three episodes on March second, 132 00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:16.519 at three twenty three Eastern daylight savings. Thank you, and goodnight.