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Each episode is produced with the utmost respect to the victims, their families and loved ones. 00:01:09 While on vacation on a gorgeous island in Southeast Asia, a woman named Sheila von Wiese smack. 00:01:14 Learn the hard. 00:01:15 Way that you can't always trust family, even if they are your only daughter. 00:01:20 A gruesome murder happened. 00:01:21 In the middle of paradise, when a pregnant teenager participated in a ghastly scheme in order to inherit the family fortune. 00:01:28 This money hungry heiress and daughter of a famous composer would soon find herself facing a potential firing squad after being caught stuffing her mother's body inside a suitcase at their luxurious vacation resort. 00:01:40 I don't regret killing my mother. 00:01:43 As evil as that would seem, that's my reality. 00:01:46 Those are the words of American heiress Heather Mack. 00:01:50 A few weeks before that fateful family vacation, her mother wrote a friend expressing concern about her daughter's behaviour, the email read. 00:01:59 Heather was violent tonight and left. 00:02:01 Very scary for me and I am always worried about her. I realised even more after the appointment today with my psych facility that. 00:02:07 She's so disturbed and very, very sick. 00:02:11 When you live the way I have with Heather for so many years, problems become almost your new normal way of life, the team told me they wanted to put her in a psych hospital then and there, but she would not have complied. 00:02:23 I'm really scared of what you might do next. 00:02:26 In August of 2014, nineteen year old Heather Mack, along with her 21 year old boyfriend Tommy Schaffer, murdered Heather's mother in her Bali hotel room. 00:02:37 There they proceeded to stuff Sheila into a suitcase, leaving her inside the trunk of a taxi before running off. 00:02:44 When police opened the suitcase expecting to find closer identification for the owners. 00:02:47 Of the lost luggage. 00:02:49 They discovered when the worst things imaginable, A mutilated dead body. 00:02:54 This murder immediately became a meaty sensation as Heather Mack became a world famous killer due to her questionable behaviour following the incident in the unfathomable circumstances of a daughter murdering her own mother and stuffing her corpse in a travel bag. 00:03:08 Over the years, Heather has remained in the spotlight because of her active social media presence and her interaction with the media from behind bars. 00:03:17 On the surface, Heather seemed like your typical rich heiress, having the time of her life with her mother on a luxurious vacation. 00:03:24 Despite her vicious actions, she still doesn't fit the popular description of a killer. She's young, giggly, and has her whole. 00:03:31 Life in front of her. 00:03:34 But Heather Mack conspired with her boyfriend to kill her mother and instead will spend the rest of her life with blood on her hands. 00:04:13 Now the southern Mack was born and raised in Chicago, IL. Her father was famous jazz composer, conductor and producer James Mack. 00:04:21 James worked on over 60 albums for artists such as Nancy Wilson, Jerry Butler and Tyrone Davis. 00:04:27 Her mother was an academic socialite named Sheila von Wiese Mack. On the outside, their life seemed perfect. They were a wealthy Chicago family who lived in a nice house in Oak Park, and one of fancy vacations. 00:04:40 Unfortunately, tragedy struck on one particular vacation. 00:04:43 In 2005. 00:04:45 Other James had just. 00:04:46 Been diagnosed with colon cancer while on vacation in Greece. He suffered A pulmonary embolism and died. He was 76 years old. 00:04:54 Heather was just 10 at the time. This caused the already tumultuous relationship between Heather and her mother to take a turn for the worst. 00:05:02 Have you seen the view of mom as a competitor for attention? 00:05:05 When James was alive, the root of that jealousy grew and the relationship with her mother began to crack. 00:05:12 When James died, the floodgates opened and the cracks became too much for either of them to handle. 00:05:18 Heather has been described. 00:05:19 As defiant and not wanting to listen or follow rules. 00:05:23 According to police reports and family accounts, Heather abused. 00:05:26 Sheila, physically and emotionally. 00:05:29 Over the years. 00:05:30 Police were called to their house over 80 times with the counts of domestic violence. Such incidents included bidding, pushing and hitting, all done by Heather to her own mother. 00:05:41 In January 2010, Heather punched her mother's already broken ankle. 00:05:45 In February 2011, Heather broke her mother's arm by pushing her in the bathroom and then removed the phone cord to prevent her from. 00:05:52 Calling 911 for help. 00:05:54 In July of that same year, Heather threatened her mother, and in November the following year she bit her mother again. 00:06:00 Leaving a bruise. 00:06:02 Sheila refused to allow police to. 00:06:03 Take a photograph of the bite. 00:06:05 Mark and never press charges against her daughter. 00:06:09 Police were also called because that there. 00:06:11 Had been caught stealing. 00:06:13 She stole large. 00:06:14 Sums of money from her mother and started skipping school. 00:06:17 She attended Oak Park and River Forest High School from 2010 to 2014. 00:06:23 Heather's troubling behaviour continued through her teenage years. 00:06:27 While she was a senior at Oak Park, she started dating a 21 year old named Tommy Schaefer. 00:06:32 She never liked Tommy. She viewed him as a bad influence. He was a college dropout, an aspiring rapper. 00:06:39 His non-existent music career, along with his past with petty crime, didn't make Sheila feel great about where her daughter was spending her time. 00:06:47 Heather's behaviour had been disturbing for years. 00:06:50 Reports of physical abuse, skipping school and hanging out with the wrong crowd could have all. 00:06:54 Been warning signs. 00:06:56 Heather needed some sort of intervention or at least needed to face the consequences of her actions. 00:07:01 Although Heather's. 00:07:02 Behaviour should have elicited a form of punishment. She always forgave her and offered her a chance after chance. 00:07:08 Was Sheila afraid of her own daughter? 00:07:11 On Friday, August 8th, 2014, Sheila sent an email to one of her long term friends, Elliot Jacobson. 00:07:18 I have been waiting for the car to pick us up at the W resort to take us back to the Saint Regis. 00:07:23 Heather ran off a few hours ago and she cannot be located upon checkout. I discovered that she visited the clinic here and fraudulently signed my name and room number for prescription painkillers. 00:07:32 Four days ago, she secured quite a. 00:07:34 Supply, it seems I am more frightened than ever. I will keep in touch. 00:07:39 Three days later, she was dead. 00:07:43 After Heather graduated from high school in a desperate attempt to mend their broken relationship header, when Sheila took a girls trip to Bali in the summer of 2014 with just the two of them on the trip, they embarked on a journey to Paradise and checked into a 5 star resort. 00:07:58 The trip to Bali was supposed to be a reset, a way to fix their rocky relationship. They flew to Bali business class and checked into the Saint Regis Resort in Nusa Dua. All of the pictures from those first two weeks of vacation showed no signs of struggle or animosity. 00:08:13 The images of a happy mother and daughter posing against the sun, the ocean and the sand, offer no insight on lingering trouble. 00:08:20 Like their lives leading up to that moment on the surface, perfection is assumed. But what lies beneath was about to erupt. 00:08:28 Bali is an island located in the Indonesian archipelago and is considered one of the best travel spots. 00:08:34 Often described as a magical blend of culture, nature and people's, Bali is the picture perfect destination for those seeking to visit one of the most beautiful places in the world, meaning volcanoes, fields of rice, thick jungles and giant waves have catapulted body to the top of the list. For those looking for adventure, relaxation or cultural immersion, it's as close to paradise as you can get. 00:08:55 But that doesn't mean it can't. 00:08:56 Be his setting for nightmares. 00:08:58 For the most part. 00:08:59 Body is known for only petty crimes such as pickpocketing, bag snatching. 00:09:03 And various low level scams. 00:09:06 Tourists are warned about these possibilities before they arrive and prepare themselves for such like most vigilant tourists and vacation destinations around the world. 00:09:15 While these consistently been rated a safe place for Americans to visit, a violent crime taking place with a tropical paradise for a backdrop still does not seem real. How can anything so terrible happen in? 00:09:25 Such a beautiful place. 00:09:27 Unfortunately, not even Paradise has avoided danger. 00:09:31 Less than two weeks into their trip, Tommy Schaffer, Heathers boyfriend, arrived on a $12,000 flight from Chicago. 00:09:39 Sheila had no idea Tommy was coming. She didn't like Tommy and felt he was a bad influence on her daughter. 00:09:45 Tommy's flight and room was financed by a credit card Heather had taken from. 00:09:48 Her mom. 00:09:49 Needless to say, Sheila was livid. 00:09:52 According to local police, Colonel Joko Hari Otomo and The Associated Press CCTV footage showed Sheila in an argument with Tommy in the lobby of the Saint Regis Hotel on the day he checked in. 00:10:05 The exact nature and transcript of the argument remains unknown, but speculation suggests Sheila was letting Tommy know that she didn't want him in Bali and considered he and Heather's actions of using their credit card stealing. 00:10:18 Father, according to Captain Manga Satyarth, a police detective, chief of Bally's Capital Denpasar. Heather told police that Sheila called Tommy a racial slur. 00:10:27 Sheila is a white woman and her late husband James Back was a black man. 00:10:32 Tommy Schaefer is black and Heather claims her mother called Tommy the Edward multiple times and even brought up her late husband's race, but still referred to him with the slur. And this can be proven, however, as police only have Heather. 00:10:44 'S word for it. 00:10:47 We'll take a quick break. 00:10:47 For a word from our sponsors. 00:10:50 Are you tired of the? 00:10:50 Hassle of meal planning and grocery shopping. 00:10:52 Every week, if so. 00:10:54 Let me tell you about gusto, a meal delivery service that will change the way you think about cooking with gusto. 00:11:00 You'll receive a box of fresh, pre portioned ingredients and easy to follow recipe cards delivered straight to your doorstep. 00:11:08 No more wandering aimlessly. 00:11:09 Through the grocery store, they're staring blankly at your pantry, trying to come up with new ideas. 00:11:14 I'd say what really sets gusto apart is the variety and the quality of their ingredients. 00:11:20 They work directly with suppliers to ensure that you're getting the freshest, most flavorful ingredients possible. 00:11:26 And with over 250 recipes to choose from. 00:11:28 Each month, you'll never get bored. 00:11:31 What I love about gusto is the sustainability factor. All of their packaging is recyclable and biodegradable, and they even offer recycling programme for the plastic bags that the ingredients come in. 00:11:42 Whether you're a meat lover, a vegetarian, or looking for healthier options. 00:11:46 Gusto as you. 00:11:49 Plus, the recipes are designed to be cooked in 30 minutes or less, so you spend less time in the kitchen and more time doing the things you love. 00:11:57 So if you're looking to. 00:11:58 Simplify your meal planning and try. 00:12:00 Out new and exciting recipes give gusto a go. 00:12:04 Head to gusto.co.uk and use code evidence for 60% off your first box and 25% off all boxes for two months. 00:12:14 You can find the link in the show notes. 00:12:17 Back to today's episode. 00:12:20 On August 12th, 2014, within 10 hours of Tommy's plane landing, security footage shows him heading toward Chili's Room with a handle of a metal fruit bowl stuffed under his shirt. 00:12:30 The blurry footage proves he was on his way to Sheila's hotel room right before her time of death. 00:12:35 With a blunt object stuffed under his shirt, it's clear Tommy had some sort of. 00:12:40 An hour later. 00:12:41 Security footage captured Heather and Tommy roaming out a metal suitcase from the room, continuing downstairs. 00:12:46 To the lobby. 00:12:48 They hand the suitcase off to a taxi driver, who then puts it in the taxi's trunk. The couple went off, leaving their luggage with. 00:12:53 The taxi driver. 00:12:55 The driver waited. 00:12:56 A while before taking the suitcase out of his trunk and handing it. 00:12:58 Off to hotel security. 00:12:59 Who kept the suitcase for several hours? 00:13:02 But Tommy and Heather never came back to collect their luggage. They abandoned the suitcase and the lifeless body stuffed inside. 00:13:09 When the driver eventually took the abandoned luggage to the police station, they discovered the partially naked body of Sheila von Wiese snack. 00:13:17 She had been bludgeoned repeatedly before she asphyxiated on her own blood and died. 00:13:23 Within a few hours of Sheila's body being recovered, Heather and Tommy were found at a nearby hotel. The initial story coming from Heather was that the three of them had been abducted by a gang and that the gang members were the ones who killed Sheila. 00:13:35 But there was no evidence to corroborate the story. 00:13:38 How could Heather and Tommy be left completely unscathed? But Sheila wind up being brutally murdered and stuffed inside of a suitcase like she was nothing more than vacation clothes. 00:13:48 Her story wasn't adding up for Heather. That would be a reoccurring theme. 00:13:53 Police Colonel Joko Hari Utomo explained to The Associated Press that Mac and Schaeffer hired the taxi and then placed the suitcase inside the car's trunk. 00:14:02 The two then told the taxi driver that they were going to check out of a hotel and would return. They never did. 00:14:08 Hotel security noticed spots that look like blood on the suitcase and they took the luggage to the police station out of suspicion. 00:14:14 Officers there opened a suitcase and discovered. 00:14:17 The battered body. 00:14:20 During the investigation, police found a pair of cell phones containing a digital trail leading right to Sheila's final moments in Bali. 00:14:28 Tommy Schaffer texted his cousin, Robert Bibbs, in Chicago. The text revealed that Tommy told Robert that he and Heather were planning to murder Sheila. 00:14:36 Tommy claimed Heather offered him $50,000 to. 00:14:39 Kill her mom. 00:14:40 Over text messages, Tommy and Robert proceeded to discuss possible ways. 00:14:44 They could do the job. 00:14:46 Robert suggested smothering her with a pillow or drowning her in the ocean to make it. 00:14:50 Look like an accident. 00:14:52 The motive behind the murder appeared to be inheriting Sheila's fortune. 00:14:56 What Tommy didn't know was that Heather lied about the amount of money she would be set to inherit. 00:15:02 While still a sizable amount, it wasn't nearly the amount of money, Heather told Tommy they were going to bathe in once Sheila was out of the picture. 00:15:10 Police reports also indicated that there was a flurry of text messages between Heather and Tommy right before the murder. 00:15:16 The pair mapped out how the murder was going to play out and what each of them needed to do. 00:15:20 After Sheila and Heather had gone back to their suite, Heather was texting back and forth with Tommy about their next course of action. Initially, the plan was for Heather to. 00:15:29 Kill her mother herself. 00:15:30 Over text, Tommy told her to try your best. 00:15:34 Can you whack her? 00:15:35 In the head with a big *** pole. 00:15:37 But Heather had trouble doing the deed herself. 00:15:40 She responded to this message. 00:15:42 Can you? 00:15:43 He told her that he could. 00:15:45 Once he came in the suite, he hid in the bathroom while Heather waited for the right moment. 00:15:49 They were still texting back and forth, plotting and planning, while a clueless Sheila relaxed in her room. 00:15:55 She's so awake. I can't hit her, Heather texts. 00:15:59 Tommy responds. Can we suffocate her together? 00:16:02 Then trying to work up the courage to finish their plan, let me just creep up and whack her once I do it. She was drunk and slipped and fell. 00:16:10 Tommy Wright, Sir, attempting to justify her injuries. Heather text back. OK, just knock her out. It'll be much easier. 00:16:18 They had their plan now. 00:16:19 All they needed to do was follow through. 00:16:22 They wanted to try and cover up the murder or make it look like some sort of accident. 00:16:27 But along the way, they decided to hide the body. 00:16:29 By getting rid of it. 00:16:30 They decided to stuff Sheila's body in a suitcase, wrapping it in duct tape and leaving it in the trunk of a taxi. 00:16:37 But their plan to not go off without a hitch, Chili's body was discovered and Heather and Tommy found themselves being questioned by police. 00:16:46 On August 15th, 2014, Heather and Tommy were designated prisoners. The next day, the 86 passed police reports and statements from neighbours were uncovered by investigators. On August 20th, a bombshell regarding the case was dropped. Heather's urine confirmed she was pregnant. 00:17:03 Police conducted both a urine test and an ultrasound because Heather had insisted that she was pregnant. She was actually telling the truth. 00:17:11 On September 19th, Tommy admitted to killing Sheila and Heather admitted to helping him stuff her body. 00:17:16 In a suitcase. 00:17:17 By December 8th, 2014, police concluded their investigation of the case. Heather and Tommy were reunited briefly before being transferred to the custody of the prosecutors. Both were charged with premeditated murder on January 14th, 2015. 00:17:32 A panel of Indonesian judges found them guilty of murder. 00:17:36 Heather was given 10 years in prison. Tommy was given 18. 00:17:40 That sentence in most cases in Indonesia is death by firing squad. 00:17:45 But instead they were sentenced to years in prison on April 15th. 00:17:50 The judges reported being. 00:17:51 More lenient on Heather in light of her pregnancy. 00:17:54 Luckily for them, they both avoided the death penalty. 00:17:58 The day after her conviction, Heather sued her uncle, William von Wiese, for access to her mother's estate. Heather was the beneficiary of a $1.6 million trust fund from her mother. This was a hefty fund, but not close to the $11 million payout Heather promised Tommy. 00:18:14 A Cook County. 00:18:15 Judge ruled that Heather still have the right to access the fund established by her late mother. 00:18:19 Therefore, the trust would pay her small annual payments until she was 30 years old, and then the remaining balance at that time. 00:18:27 During the court case, up to $150,000 was initially approved to cover legal expenses, along with smaller payments for food and personal expenses. 00:18:37 Cheetah's brother, William, the administrator of the estate, expressed concern after a suspicious interaction with Heather's Indonesian lawyer. 00:18:45 He feared the money was. 00:18:46 Being used to cover bribes and demand came from her Indonesian lawyer for a further 200,000 lump sum which caused William to raise his eyebrow. 00:18:55 Therefore, the final disposition of the Trust Fund was resolved in the 2018 settlement in favour of Heather's daughter. 00:19:03 Inside the prison, Heather posted videos and pictures on her social media. She was smoking, dancing and laughing. All of the videos and pictures on social media brought even more criticism to Heather around the world. People were wondering how a murderer could have such a wonderful time inside prison. 00:19:19 Heather, however, claims it wasn't all fun and games. 00:19:21 She may laugh. 00:19:22 And dance occasionally, but she's still in prison. She's also trying to raise a daughter behind bars. 00:19:28 Heather gave birth to a daughter named Stella on March 17th, 2015, while still imprisoned. 00:19:34 She had no choice but to. 00:19:35 Raise her baby in gaol. 00:19:37 According to Heather, her pregnancy, along with Tommy's surprise arrival to Bali, were the main contributing factors to her mother's death. 00:19:44 She claims her mother went nuts after learning Tommy checked into their hotel with their credit card. Security footage confirms that Sheila was upset with Tommy in the lobby, but while she had said enough to threaten the life. 00:19:55 Of an unborn child. 00:19:57 Heather says she stuck off to the beach with Tommy while her mother was asleep, then went back to the room and then went to sleep. Everyone was upset, but there was nothing premeditated about it. 00:20:07 Tommy tried talking to. 00:20:08 Sheila, but things kept escalating. She told her mother that she was pregnant with Tommy's child. 00:20:13 She was so angry, she went around the room looking for a knife, saying that Heather was going to die, afraid for her life, Heather asked Tommy to help save her from her mother. 00:20:22 Tommy went over to Sheila and she grabbed his neck. Tommy could have hurt her if you wanted to, she claims. 00:20:27 But he didn't at first. 00:20:29 But as she continued to choke him, he smacked her. Heather ran to the bathroom, cowering in fear. She claimed she was panicked and pondered what she and Tommy were going to do next in light of what happened. 00:20:40 Of course, this is all solely according to Heather Mack. 00:20:45 In February of 2015, Heather gave a series of interviews to the Chicago Tribune where she insisted she was petrified about the future of her child. 00:20:54 She told the Tribune that she felt compelled to reach out because her Indonesian lawyer wasn't being paid from her trust fund as requested. 00:21:01 She claimed citizens were helping her get food and vitamins but never divulged any details about those individuals. 00:21:07 Indonesia has been great. 00:21:08 To both me and Stella, she told them. 00:21:11 On September 23rd, 2015, Tommy's cousin Robert Biggs was arrested in Chicago on federal charges of conspiracy for advising Heather and Tommy about. 00:21:19 How to kill Heather's mother? 00:21:21 He was sentenced to nine years in prison on June 2nd, 2017, on one count of conspiracy to commit foreign murder. 00:21:28 The plea deal stated that Bibbs was aware that Heather had offered Tommy a large sum of money to kill. 00:21:33 Her mother and that. 00:21:34 He not only advised Tommy on how to kill her, but that. 00:21:36 He encouraged him to kill her as well. 00:21:39 Tommy claimed that he killed Sheila in reaction to threats Heather received about Sheila killing their unborn child. According to him, Sheila threatened to kill her child when she found out the conversation escalated and Sheila choked him. 00:21:53 He hesitated at first, but then reacted to Sheila's aggressions, and he took the moment. He shoved her away, and she died of her injuries. 00:22:01 Tommy and Heather were sticking to their stories. 00:22:04 A few years ago, Heather told Matt Doran, a reporter from True Crime Daily, that her mother was an alcoholic with multiple personality disorder. 00:22:13 Heather says her mother didn't want her and that she grew up in a violent household, claiming Sheila was jealous of her. 00:22:19 She also told the reporter that her parents were violent towards each other and would hit one another actually. 00:22:25 The entire family would hit each other, Heather insisted. 00:22:28 Heather Russell told the reporter that she was pregnant once before. She had Stella when her mother found out she was furious and chased her around the house with a knife. 00:22:35 Through the middle of the. 00:22:36 Right. 00:22:38 Sheila, according to Heather, told her that she would stab the baby out of her stomach. 00:22:43 That back story. 00:22:44 Led her to where she is today. 00:22:47 That's where all the anger comes from. That's her story. 00:22:50 Sheila's brother said that Sheila knew Heather was pregnant before they left for Bali, so she would not have gone into a rage about it in a hotel room on holiday. 00:23:00 An email Sheila sent to her friend Elliot also confirms that she knew about the pregnancy on August 1st, 2014, before they even left for Bali. 00:23:08 The pregnancy news could not. 00:23:09 Have been the trigger for. 00:23:10 Sheila's anger. 00:23:12 Heather had expressed remorse in the past and insisted it was only after her mother attacked her that she and Tommy committed the crime. 00:23:19 The evidence, however, shows that it was premeditated. She says that in her head it was never going to actually happen. 00:23:26 When confronted about the text messages by the reporter, Heather said she needed to call them right back, but she never did. 00:23:34 Despite her anger with her mother, Heather explains that she hugged her mother's body after the incident. She didn't want to leave her mother. That's why she stuffed her in a suitcase. She was taking her with them. 00:23:44 She says she still cries at night because she. 00:23:46 Misses her mother. 00:23:47 But that hasn't always been her attitude. 00:23:51 In 2018, Heather confessed to killing her mother in a video she shot and released from her prison in Bali. 00:23:57 I regret killing my mother, as evil as that would. 00:23:59 Seem that's my reality. 00:24:02 She said calmly to the camera. 00:24:04 She justified her actions by saying that a mother had killed her father in their hotel room. 00:24:08 When she was a child. 00:24:09 His death certificate indicated that he died of pulmonary embolism and at the time of his death there was no. 00:24:14 Indication of foul play or murder. 00:24:16 Sheila's friend Elliot Jacobson called the accusation against Sheila preposterous. 00:24:21 Was this all another lie told by Heather? 00:24:24 According to Inside Edition, Heather told prison authorities that her video confession was coerced. 00:24:30 In early 2017, Heather gave custody of her daughter to an Australian woman until her release from prison, and in the summer of 2018 Heather relinquished claims to her mother's estate. All of the money is now set to go to Heather's daughter, Stella. 00:24:44 In 2021, Tommy's mother and grandmother to Stella came forward, saying that she would like custody of the young girl. 00:24:51 Seller was raised in prison, but also lived with a foster family for a short time. 00:24:56 Upon landing in America with her mother, she was assigned a court ordered guardian. 00:25:01 The paternal grandmother now wants custody as new charges keep. 00:25:04 Heather, away from her daughter. 00:25:06 Heather sentence received a 34 month remission and she was freed from prison on October 29th, 2021. 00:25:14 She claims she wanted to stay in Indonesia with her daughter because it was safer. 00:25:18 But Indonesian immigration deported Heather and her daughter immediately under Indonesia's just sanguinis national law. Under this law, citizenship is determined or acquired by the nationality or ethnicity of 1 or both parents. 00:25:32 No one in their family was in illusion. Therefore, Heather had no choice but to return to America and face whatever consequences came her way. 00:25:40 After serving seven years in Indonesia, Heather returned to the United States on November 3rd, 2021. 00:25:46 Upon landing at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, however, she was arrested by authorities and faced new charges. 00:25:52 In a federal courtroom in Chicago, a judge ordered Heather to be detained. 00:25:57 At a consequent hearing, she was charged with conspiracy to kill in a foreign country, conspiracy to commit foreign murder of a U.S. National and obstruction of justice. These new charges stemmed from a sealed 2017 federal indictment. 00:26:11 Mack pleaded not guilty to the US charges in her new trial is set to begin on July 1st of 2023. 00:26:18 She is forced to remain in custody at the Metropolitan Correctional Centre in Chicago as she awaits that trial. 00:26:24 The judge denied the notion for bond, citing the significant weight of evidence supporting that Heather Mack so poses a danger to other people. If convicted, Heather Mack could face a life sentence. 00:26:36 Sheila's siblings William and Debbie are heartbroken over the action of their niece and have made their thoughts on the young murderer very clear. 00:26:43 Had his actions are inexcusable and her lies continue to devastate the van Reese. 00:26:47 Family, both of Sheila's siblings stood in court, begging the judge to keep Heather locked up, claiming she is a master manipulator. 00:26:55 Although Heather must remain in gaol, a judge awarded temporary custody of Stella to Heather's cousin and daughter of Debbie, who lives in Colorado. 00:27:04 Authorities eventually recovered a recorded call having made to a relative after the murder. 00:27:09 On the call, Heather said she covered her mother's mouth with her hand and said her mother had to die because Tommy would have been an even bigger trouble if she survived. 00:27:18 She was just 19 years old when she committed the murder, now already through most of her 20s. She faces trial for her actions. 00:27:26 Jealousy, greed, recklessness and callousness. 00:27:29 Led her to. 00:27:29 Committing a crime that irrevocably changed her life while taking the. 00:27:33 Life of her mother. 00:27:36 Heather Mack is now known around the world not for being a witch heiress or a popular socialite, but for being what the media has called the suitcase. 00:27:46 Her case is ongoing and she awaits another verdict this summer. 00:27:50 This is perhaps the case with little intrigue but unsettling all the same. 00:27:55 Regardless of their reasons, Heather and Tommy killed Sheila in cold blood and set out to dispose of her body and the savage manner Sheila paid with her life and the two greedy young lovers never got their happy ending. 00:28:13 We'd like to thank today's sponsors gusto for 60% off your first box and 25% off fall boxes for two months. Go to gusto.co.uk and use code evidence. 00:28:25 If you'd like. 00:28:25 To read more about this case, have a look at the. 00:28:27 Resources used for this. 00:28:27 Episode in the show notes. 00:28:29 Also visit us on social media to see. 00:28:31 More about today's case. 00:28:32 We're on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. You can also check out our channel on YouTube if you like. What we do here at Evidence Locker subscribe on Apple Podcast or wherever you are listening right now and kindly leave a 5 star review. 00:28:44 This was the evidence locker. Thank you for listening.