230

The Fatal Abduction of Aniah Blanchard

August 19, 2024

In this episode, Payton and Garrett dive into the case of Aniah Blanchard.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on spotify

No items found.

Case Sources

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

Hey everyone, welcome back to our podcast. This is Murder with My Husband.

I'm Payton Moreland, and I'm Garrett Moreland, and he's the husband.

I'm the husband.

You know what's weird? Just like, what is weird?

The fact that we just started doing that one day and now, years later, we're still doing it.

It was all improvised, too! Didn't you just say, "I'm Payton Moreland," and then I said, "I'm Garrett Moreland"?

I don’t even think I said "Moreland" the first time. I don’t know what we said, we just started, and we never even planned it. We just started saying it, and then it just kept happening.

We need to go back to the very first time that it happened. I think it’s like episode six or seven. Maybe it’s a little earlier. I can’t remember.

I’m scared to listen to our old episodes. Everyone, do not go back, okay? Don’t go back and tell us. I don’t listen to it.

Nah, I’m okay. No thank you. I’ll stay out of that, I’ll stay out of those old episodes.

I just wanted to let everyone know who has been asking—not this week, but next week—we have a merch drop coming. It is, again, one of our basic lines. We actually changed the fit of the shirt and the sweatshirt; it’s a little bit more boxy, loose fit. Again, just one of our basics: MW MH.

You could wear it anywhere, it doesn’t say murder on it. They’re really freaking cute.

Yeah, like I said, really cute, different style shirts. Just premium quality—higher quality.

Yeah, I would say a little less “merch” and a little bit more like you could find this at a store, like their clothing. It’s good quality, really excited.

So, you’ll be hearing it from us right now, but it won’t be dropping until the next episode—just letting you guys, you know, get ready. I don’t know, just teasing.

Being losers.

Oh, also, before we do your 10 seconds: yes, everyone, we are back streaming on Twitch again. That is live streaming. You can tune in and watch Garrett and I live on Twitch. We react to true crime videos, police body cam footage, high-speed chases—literally anything. We hang out and talk with chat, so it’s super fun. Again, we stream on Twitch every single Thursday. Thursday at 5:30 PST.

You’re doing great, baby.

Have you seen that new New Girl ad, where the two—it’s like Schmidt and, I can’t remember, but they’re talking to a local news station, and they’re advertising New Girl. They’re like, "Okay, you guys, head down to Broadway Street and watch it." And she’s like, "Broadway’s in Nashville. It’s actually Center Street here." And they start laughing, and he goes— Okay, tune in at 5:30 PST, and she’s like, "That would be 7:30 local time."

Yes, I’ve seen this. That’s so funny.

And they just botch the entire thing—that’s literally what just happened.

No, you’re doing good. Every Thursday at 5:30 Pacific Standard Time, we stream on Twitch.

As well, Dear Daisies are back—not right now when you’re listening to this, but maybe in a couple days.

I think I just need to give a broad apology out here right now, because the last couple months Garrett and I have not been on our game. Well, Garrett and I have been MIA completely—mentally and physically. So, we are back. We are getting our crap together, slowly but surely.

We've gotten back on Twitch. We actually have put Dear Daisies together.

Okay, okay, I have done enough research for some Patreon episodes, so thank you for being patient and loving, and honestly, continuing to support us even through the hard times. But we are back and better than ever, and this is a broad apology for anyone who has, you know, been affected.

But you know what? We're here, we're alive, we're back, and we love true crime. At least Payton does.

Are you ready for your 10 seconds?

Well, I'm currently dressed in a golf outfit because I'm going to go golfing after this—AKA I am going to lose a pack of balls. Yep, that's basically what's going to happen. I'm just doing nine holes. It’s been a second, I’m rusty, but I’m ready to get back out there and start golfing. So, here we go again. I'm just going to go lose a bunch of balls and probably look like an idiot.

You know, the only downside is I think it’s just two of us going, and I hate sometimes getting paired with other random two people, especially when they're good, 'cause I just look like a loser. But you know what? I’m confident enough to be like, I don’t care, I might be a loser at golf, but I'll beat you at something else. You know what? Name it.

Name it.

Badminton.

Okay, okay, I can do that. Name it, just name it.

Ping pong.

Okay.

Plumbing.

Okay. Like anything—anything A to Z except golf, I could probably beat you at.

Unless—unless...

That is such a crazy—

No, no, no, okay listen, you misunderstood.

Oh, okay.

All the listeners, did you misunderstand?

They misunderstood too.

I meant if I’m out on the golf course, and I’m sizing you up, and I’m like, "Okay, I could probably beat you at most things." But if you're a listener, and you're an electrician or a plumber, no, I cannot beat you at that.

You're saying random things?

Correct.

That you both have never done, you step into it, and you're going to beat them?

Yes, 100%. 110%.

Is that confidence or skill?

Both.

Oh, okay.

I would say so.

That is a hot take if I've ever heard one.

No, I like the confidence.

Thanks, babe.

I like it.

Yeah, it’s kind of what I got for my 10 seconds.

So if you randomly see Payton and I out and about, and there’s something you want to challenge me at, challenge me. Let's see what happens. No cameras allowed. But remember, you can't be an expert at it.

Yeah, you can’t. It can't be your main thing. You can't come up to me and be like, "Hey, let's play basketball," and you played like D1 basketball somewhere. That's not—that's not how it works.

I mean, I guess it is how it works, yeah, but come up, challenge me, we'll see what happens. I'll put some money on the line.

Basically, Simone Biles, if you're listening to this—you can't challenge him to the vault.

You just can’t. You can't do that.

Now, let’s hop into today’s case.

Our sources for this episode are CBS News, Distractify.com, CNN.com, People.com, CourtTV.com, Montgomery Advertiser, WSFA 12, AL.com, and CBS News 3.

Have you ever stopped to think about all of the little decisions that we make every single day, like ordering takeout or meeting up with a friend, avoiding the highway during rush hour? Some of these things we do pretty mindlessly, right? At the very least, we probably never think that any of these choices really could make a huge impact on our lives.

But the reality is, any one of them could be a matter of life or death, and it would maybe be the last choice you would ever make. Take 19-year-old Aniahh Blanchard, for example. On the night of October 23, 2019, she ran into a convenience store for a late-night bag of sour cream and onion chips and soda.

Oh, sounds so good.

What Aniahh didn’t know was that spur-of-the-moment decision to just stop, pull off, and get a late-night snack would actually end up costing her her life.

So it’s June 22, 2000, and we are in the little town of Homewood, Alabama. That day, a nurse named Angela Harris is actually celebrating her birthday in the most unusual of ways: she is giving birth to a little girl named Aniahh. Angela and Aniahh are not just bonded by blood and genes—they now share this special day too, and every year, they relish just how connected the two of them are because of it.

Mom and daughter, sharing a birthday.

Okay, so for the first four years of her life, her father, Elijah Blanchard, was a local pastor and businessman. And Aniahh had an older brother, Elijah Jr., who was only 17 months older than her, so they were very close, and she looked up to him. But by 2004, just four years after she was born, things between Angela (her mother) and Elijah Sr. (her father) were no longer working out. The two got a divorce but agreed to remain a strong presence together in the kids’ lives.

Even though things got rocky at home, Aniahh actually seemed to handle it pretty well, because as the years passed, she remained as resilient and compassionate as ever. And as Aniahh grew into a teenager, it became clear that she was someone special, not just to her parents, but to basically everyone she met. People said that Aniahh had this infectious laugh that made others just want to laugh with her—I love when you meet people like that.

She was loving, she was giving, and she was someone who always put others ahead of her own feelings. She was the kind of person who was always there to give advice when someone needed it, and she seemed destined to go on and become a leader. Someone who had not just the heart, but actually the intelligence to become a future teacher, doctor, lawyer, maybe even president. She really was on the road to becoming something amazing.

And it was a quality that was extremely apparent in the place Aniahh thrived the most: the softball field.

During her time at Homewood High School, Aniahh was not only the star player, but she acted as a leader for her team. Friends said it was practically tradition for Aniahh, after every softball game, to invite the opposing team to meet them on the pitcher's mound to share a prayer, some encouraging words, and high-fives—no matter who won or lost. Aniahh was always just trying to bring people together.

Although her biological parents were no longer together, Angela and Elijah Sr. had created a new kind of family to support Aniahh and Elijah Jr. Elijah Sr. had found love in a Birmingham, Alabama, attorney named Yiba.

And in 2010, Angela had married a man that Aniahh loved like her own father. He was a famous UFC fighter named Walt Harris. In the ring, Walt was formidable, but at home, the 250 lb, 6'5" stepdad was nothing more than a gentle giant. Life was going well for everyone involved. Walt and Angela actually went on to give Aniahh and Elijah two new siblings named Asa and AA, and with her mother working nights at the Birmingham hospital, Aniahh often helped Walt care for her new little brother and sister.

So she has two new step-siblings, and they’re a lot younger than her because she’s in high school now. She helps her stepdad take care of them.

Side note: if you make it to the UFC, you're a badass.

As a result, Aniahh and Walt actually grew incredibly close over the years. He treated Aniahh and Elijah Jr. like they were his own children, and the respect and admiration was mutual. There were even times when Walt turned to Aniahh when the going got tough. She would be the one to pick him up emotionally after he lost a fight, encouraging him to keep going, to keep fighting. And this was something that Walt would soon have to do in more ways than one.

In 2018, Aniahh was done with high school and had just started the next chapter of her life at Southern Union State Community College in Wadley, Alabama. The following year, she transferred to Auburn University to study childhood education. Her brother Elijah Jr., who was also enrolled there, was actually the one who inspired her to choose that school. Needless to say, the two were extremely close. They were both in college together. Aniahh even rented an apartment in Auburn, just minutes away from where her brother was living.

But on October 23, 2019, Elijah and Aniahh met up with their mother in Northern Alabama under less-than-ideal circumstances. A friend of theirs had passed away, and they were all attending the funeral. The service ended at around 7:00 p.m. that night, and Aniahh told her mother that she needed to hit the road. Both she and Elijah had work in the morning, and they had a 4-hour drive ahead of them to get back to college. Angela offered her son and daughter her goodbyes, gave them hugs, I love yous, maybe even like, "I'll see you next time," not knowing that this was actually the very last time that she would say goodbye to her own daughter.

Aniahh and Elijah drove through the town of Birmingham and stopped on their way to see Walt, who was there training for his next fight. The catchup was short, and Walt was like, "Hey, you guys should just pull off and stay the night somewhere because it's getting so late." But Aniahh said, "We only have two more hours left. It’s both of us in the car. I’m not going to fall asleep. Everything’s going to be fine."

Walt hugged them and sent them on their way. Elijah and Aniahh finally made it back to Elijah’s place in Auburn around 11:00 p.m. that evening. Aniahh’s apartment was less than a 10-minute drive down the road, but Elijah knew it was late and asked his sister, as always, "Hey, just text me when you get home safe." She laughed off his concern, still offering to keep the promise, put the car in reverse, and backed out of her brother’s driveway.

But Elijah wasn't the only one at this point who was concerned about Aniah's whereabouts. Her roommate, Sarah O'Brien, was also texting her for updates at around 11:09 p.m. She asked Aniah if she was close to being home, and Aniah replied back with, "Yeah, Sarah.

Aniah had also shared each other's locations for extra caution, but Sarah's concerns for her friend were appreciated because Aniah had this crippling, deep-seated fear—one that she had shared with Sarah and several people she knew. Ever since she was a little girl, she had this weird, maybe even intuitive feeling that she might get kidnapped or murdered. She would tell people this all of the time.

This wasn't just something that Aniah mentioned in passing. She would say, "Do you ever think about that?" all the time. Growing up, her biggest fear was getting kidnapped—always. She wouldn't just mention this in passing; it would keep her up at night, give her nightmares. It made her anxious to the point that she would actually check for intruders when she entered a room.

I'm going to assume that a lot of people listening to this can relate.

The other night, Payton and I were going to sleep, and we had some people doing some work on the internet. I went through the entire house while Payton was in bed and made sure every window was locked and no one had opened or unlocked any windows. I know it might sound crazy, but you never know. I'm just doing what I need to do.

I think that this is devastating because she had mentioned to friends and family that she was so scared about being kidnapped or murdered or thought that maybe this would happen to her. Obviously, we're on the "Murder with My Husband" podcast, and as you guys already know, this is going to be her fate.

By 11:30 p.m., Aniah still hadn't made it home. She had left her brother's place; it’s only a 10-minute drive. She had checked in with her roommate, saying, "Yeah, I'm coming home." She told her brother she'd text him. Now it’s 11:30, and she is still not home. I want to know where her location is, like if it's off at this point. If her friend is still tracking her, what's going on there? So Sarah texts her once more, asking if she had changed her mind—like, "Hey, are you coming home, or did you decide to go out and see someone?" A minute later, Sarah got a bizarre text. Aniah texted her back and said she was smoking a blunt.

Now, that's not her. This was very out of character for her. So Sarah's like, "Well, who are you with?" Aniah goes, "Oh, I just met a guy. His name's Eric." So Sarah's like, "Where are you, Eric?" But after that, the texts stop. Sarah doesn’t get a text back. So Sarah checks Aniah's location. Aniah—or at least her cell phone—was at an apartment complex just a few blocks away. This was a spot where a bunch of other students lived. I mean, remember, we’re in a college town. So to Sarah, she’s like, "Okay, I don’t know why she wouldn’t invite me or tell me, but it’s not that weird. It’s not that alarming." Also, it’s sad because she’s so close—she’s so close, right?

So Sarah decides to go to bed, figuring that she would just catch up with Aniah in the morning. The following day, October 24th, 2019, Angela, Aniah's mother, FaceTimes Aniah at around 8:00 a.m. It was something they did almost every morning; this was when they would talk, and Angela also wanted to make sure that Aniah had gotten home safely, just as her brother did. Only, Aniah doesn’t answer the phone. Angela thinks, "Okay, she’s probably busy." She knew Aniah was scheduled to work; Aniah actually babysat for a family that she always watched, so her mother thought maybe she just couldn’t answer the phone. She brushes it off.

But when Sarah, her roommate, wakes up, she notices that things are just not right. She immediately heads to Aniah’s room, excited to hear about Eric—like, "Who's the guy you met? How did that even happen?" Only, Aniah’s bed is still made and it looks like she hadn’t come home that night. This is when Sarah starts to panic, mainly because Aniah has a dog named Blue, and Aniah never left Blue alone.

It might be normal for another college student to not come home for the night, but Sarah knows Aniah would never leave Blue alone.

When you have a dog, especially if you’re a single college student, you wouldn’t just leave your dog without telling anybody.

Normally, Aniah would tell Sarah if she was going to have to leave Blue overnight, asking if she could watch him or take him out. Aniah was usually very responsible when it came to Blue.

So Sarah grabs her phone and checks Aniah’s location again. This time it says "No location found," which means the phone is either dead or she has manually turned her location off. At this point, Sarah is worried. Aniah didn’t come home, she was acting weird last night, and she left Blue alone.

Sarah decides to call the woman that Aniah babysat for, a woman named Karina Thomas. Karina also says she doesn’t know where Aniah is; she didn’t show up to babysit that morning and completely ghosted her. This is a scary thought since Aniah would never do that. She loved the kids she babysat and would never not show up without calling.

Sarah decides to get in her car. At this point, her heart is pounding, and she begins driving around Auburn looking for any sign of Aniah. She also calls Aniah’s brother, Elijah Jr., who says that after Aniah dropped him off, she was planning on going straight home. He has no idea who Eric is and no idea that she was even planning to see someone. Knowing something is probably wrong, Sarah and Elijah decide to alert the rest of Aniah’s family. That morning, Angela and Waltz hop in the car and drive the two hours to Auburn to start looking for their daughter and stepdaughter.

Almost immediately, the family alerts the police, who seem a bit shocked to hear about Aniah’s disappearance. This is rough for a couple of reasons. The main reason is that she’s over 18, she’s in college, and anytime that happens, they’re just going to wait 72 hours. But by then, we already know—we do not have that time to waste.

But how many times in college did you go somewhere overnight? Did you just ghost?

I did it. I did it. I mean, I think I would check in with my roommates and be like, "Hey, I'm not coming home," but like, I did it.

So, we were just sleeping around in college, is that what you’re trying to get at?

No, that's not even what that means. Just kidding.

So, Auburn is considered a pretty safe college town—there's not much crime in this town. But from what they heard from Aniah's friends and family, they actually didn’t think that Aniah was someone who would run away or maybe just party a little too hard and not come home. So, Aniah's disappearance becomes breaking news pretty quickly. The police actually take it seriously and are like, "Hey, we have a college student who is missing." That surprises me.

Me too.

So officers put out bulletins in search of Aniah or her black Honda CRV because her car is missing. She drove, and now they can't find her car. But for the next day and a half, nothing. Aniah stays missing. You have to believe that in the first couple of hours, her friends and family are thinking this is just a big misunderstanding. She’s somewhere; she’s just acting out of character. She’s going to come home. But as the hours turn into days and then nights, that has to be so devastating, gut-wrenching—like, still no answer. I can’t even imagine.

I can’t imagine.

So, a day and a half goes by, and Aniah's whereabouts remain completely unknown. On October 25th, 2019, though, police receive a tip: Aniah's car had been spotted 55 miles away from her home in Auburn.

55 miles? That’s so far.

It was parked in an apartment complex lot over in Montgomery, Alabama. But there was more. There was significant damage to the passenger side of her vehicle, from the bumper all the way up to the front tire. On top of that, there was a bullet hole in the passenger side door.

Oh gosh. I just can’t imagine being parents in that situation.

Yeah, there were shell casings in the cup holder. There was blood in the front passenger seat. It was such a large amount that it definitely signaled foul play to the Alabama Department of Forensics. More specifically, they said it was indicative of someone suffering a life-threatening injury—that’s how much blood was found in the passenger seat of her car. Also, the smell of ammonia in the car seemed to indicate that someone had tried to cover their tracks and clean the blood.

But the question now was: They’ve found Aniah's car, and it does not look good. Does the blood belong to Aniah, or is something else going on?

Okay, so three days after Aniah’s car was discovered, police find another clue. They’re testing the blood, but as we know, it takes forever. Aniah had been spotted on security cameras at a gas station convenience store just two minutes away from her apartment. As they’re investigating, they look at the security camera footage and find her on the gas station footage. The timestamp on the footage was from the night she went missing, October 23rd, at 11:21 p.m. So this was just minutes after she had dropped her brother off at his apartment. It seems like she dropped her brother off, then stopped at the gas station, and then that’s where everything went wrong.

Yeah, like maybe she was intending to go home. But just minutes after the gas station, we know that she’s going to disappear.

Aniah's time in the store was really quick. She spent only a minute or two in there. She bought a drink and a bag of sour cream and onion chips and then she left. But after that, as we know, Aniah’s trail goes cold.

When Aniah’s parents see the video, they say it is undoubtedly Aniah. Those sour cream and onion chips were her pre-bedtime snack; this was her comfort food. It had been ever since she was a kid. What those tapes didn’t reveal was anything alarming to investigators, which has to be so frustrating. You finally find footage of her, and you’re like, "This is major. We’re going to figure out what happens next," and then there’s nothing—at least not at first.

Aniah appeared to be alone at the gas station in the footage. She seems calm, minding her own business. If she was buying those chips, it probably signaled to her family that she was planning to go home and wind down for the night, not head out to see some guy named Eric and spend the night somewhere new.

A week after Aniah’s disappearance, police formed a task force with members from 60 different agencies, from the Department of Homeland Security to the FBI.

I mean, it’s great. I’m glad they’re taking this so seriously.

By Halloween Day 2019, there was a big reward posted for any information on Aniah’s whereabouts. Among the contributors were some of Walt’s UFC supporters, including the president of the UFC himself, Dana White.

Wow, I’m surprised.

This is how they get the large reward.

I’m really surprised I haven’t heard of this.

Perhaps because her stepfather was a somewhat famous athlete, Aniah’s case did get a lot of media attention. Though it wasn’t until the first week of November that police discovered another clue of note.

A clerk from the convenience store finally worked up the courage to come forward and say, “Hey, I was working the night that Aniah disappeared,” and he says, “I’m pretty sure that I saw someone forcing Aniah into her car.”

Oh gosh, at the gas station.

I think the reason the worker didn’t come forward at first was because once he found out that Aniah was missing and her car was found, he was probably like, “Why didn’t I call the police that night?”

Which is so hard because I’ve seen situations where I’m like, “Oh, is that something happening?” and it turns out, “No, I’m overthinking it.” So it’s just hard, and now the guilt—the guilt—it’s hard to ever know.

When he comes forward and says, “Hey, I’ve been scared to tell you, but I’m pretty sure I saw this happen,” police begin combing the surveillance footage from both inside and outside the convenience store that night. They’re like, “Maybe we can find the guy.” And eventually, they do. They find the person in question.

Wow.

It was a man who was seen purchasing alcohol in the store and then looking in Aniah's direction. They also discovered a video that showed him entering the passenger side of Aniah's vehicle before they drove away together. After releasing a local news report with an image of the suspect, tips began flooding in immediately. It revealed that the man in the store at the same time as Aniah, and who was seen getting into her car, was a 29-year-old man named Ibrahim Yazid. He had an extensive rap sheet.

What a surprise, man. What a surprise.

So, earlier that year, in January 2019, Ibrahim had been arrested and charged with kidnapping, robbing, and beating a 77-year-old man within inches of his life. And he’s not in prison? Apparently, this was after he had done a similar thing—robbed and beaten another individual. Ibrahim was now facing possible jail time for both of those crimes, and his trial was actually right around the corner. He just wasn’t in jail.

I never understand. I don’t know. I guess another time, another place. That’s ridiculous, though. So why is he out on bond? Why is he even allowed to be out on bail? Yeah, it’s so hard to understand.

So, the night of October 23rd, 2019, when Aniah went missing, he was out on bail—sorry, bail; it’s the same thing basically. So he was walking free around the college town of Auburn, Alabama. By the way, those weren’t the only crimes Ibrahim had committed in the past. He also had charges against him for aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, felony drug possession, and in 2012, he was charged with attempted murder after he drove his car into a Montgomery, Alabama, police cruiser.

Okay, this is insane that they let him out. That’s insane.

It was actually a grand jury that decided not to indict him.

Who are you?

And for the drug possession, he only received a 13-month sentence.

So, when police began asking around about Ibrahim, they found another witness who said shortly after Aniah’s disappearance, he was seen walking around with a gun tucked into his shorts while in possession of Aniah’s vehicle. But that witness made no mention of seeing Aniah herself.

So basically, this case is just unfolding for police like everyone’s coming forward being like, “Oh yeah, I saw him driving her car, and he had a gun, and he’s out on bail,” which none of that he should be doing.

By November 7th, 2019, police had more than enough to move in and arrest him. Ibrahim knew police were on his trail, so he had actually been hiding out in the woods near Pensacola, Florida.

What a loser.

So when police finally tracked him down, Ibrahim fled on foot and refused to surrender to the U.S. Marshals who were chasing him.

What a coward.

Eventually, he was apprehended and physically removed from his hiding spot. This is what the sources say; I’m not sure exactly what that means, but I know that when he showed up in a Florida courtroom the following morning, his eye was so swollen that he could barely open it. So I’m going to say there was a fight.

Let’s close those babies back up.

After that hearing, Ibrahim was extradited back to Alabama and placed in solitary confinement.

Okay, so thank goodness. It’s about time. The next time, I don’t know. Sometimes they shouldn’t put people in solitary confinement, you know? Let the jail run its course.

But I don’t know if anyone would have. I don’t know. It’s just so hard. Yeah, maybe not. Yeah, you’re right.

I mean, it is like, okay, let the jail run its course. Natural selection, man.

I mean, Jeffrey Dahmer was literally murdered in jail because of what he did.

That’s what I’m saying. Sometimes, we— I know there’s a lot of people in jail for bad reasons, but sometimes they do good things.

Okay, another hot take from Garrett Morland.

It’s true. I’ll take that one to the grave.

So, the next time Ibrahim appeared in court, Walt and Angela Harris were there to witness it. But it only made them angrier because Ibrahim sat there with a smug smirk on his face, all the while maintaining his innocence, saying he had no part in Aniah’s disappearance. And with Aniah’s body still missing, prosecutors are like, "This is going to be hard. No body, no crime," as we all know.

So, at the very least, Ibrahim Yazid was held this time without bond while he awaited his trial on charges of kidnapping the 19-year-old Aniah Blanchard. I mean, even then, he had possession of a firearm, which he can’t do because of all his past records. There are so many charges they could be charging him with. Well, and I just got—I—it’s 2019. DNA evidence has to be coming soon, you know what I mean?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That’s where I would feel if I were her parents at this point—there has to be DNA that puts him in the car 100%.

So, shockingly, Ibrahim wasn’t the only one facing charges for Aniah’s disappearance. When police were doing the investigation, they actually came forward and said that he had an accomplice.

35-year-old Antwain Fiser, who was known as “Squirmy” around these parts, was identified. Police had learned that after Ibrahim committed his crime, Antwain gave him a ride and helped him dispose of the evidence. So, he called up his friend Squirmy and said, “I did a no-no. Can you please help me cover this up?” And Squirmy was like, “I got you. I got you.”

Ibrahim and Antwain had a rap sheet of his own. In 2007, he pleaded guilty to a drug-deal-related murder charge and served 3 years in prison.

Bro, I don’t understand. I need the statistics on the amount of people who reoffend. No, no, no. Who go to jail for something violent. I’m not saying like weed or coke. I’m talking about something violent—like obviously violent—and then get out of jail and commit another violent crime, or actually almost like a murder—something drastic, kidnapping, something like that. I don’t know if those statistics even exist.

I bet they do, but it’s got to be high. It has to be high.

Like, I’m going to be honest, when I try to look up statistics for the podcast, they’re just not organized well. They need to be better.

No, they’re not. It’s like—yeah, they’re just not organized well. They’re confusing. I just need a data analyst to literally read and organize the statistics for us so that we can understand them in, like, dumb people language.

Dumb people terms, correct.

So now it’s November 22, 2019, and Ibrahim Yazid has been arrested on charges of kidnapping Aniah Blanchard. Two days later, 63-year-old David Lee Johnson is also arrested. It’s unclear exactly what his involvement was, but he was charged with hindering the prosecution, possibly for knowing about the crime and not reporting it.

One of these two men became a crucial asset for the prosecution: Antwain Fiser, aka “Squirmy,” agreed to cooperate with authorities in exchange for a deal. He claimed to know where Aniah Blanchard’s body had been hidden, which would be critical for the prosecution because it would provide them with a body.

Antwain’s story goes something like this: On the morning of October 24th, around 5:00 a.m., Ibrahim approached Antwain and asked for help. Antwain drove him to an apartment complex—same one where Aniah’s car was later found. Then, without asking questions, Antwain drove Ibrahim to another location: a church parking lot. There, Antwain said he saw Ibrahim dragging something wrapped in a comforter with two human legs sticking out.

Antwain claimed that he watched Ibrahim drag the body into the woods near the church cemetery. Afterward, when Ibrahim returned to the car, Antwain reportedly asked him, “Tell me that’s not a body.” Ibrahim then confessed that he had shot and killed a girl the previous night.

Following Antwain’s confession, authorities on November 25, 2019, traced his directions to the wooded area near the church in Monroe County, Alabama, about 55 miles from the convenience store where Aniah was last seen. They discovered clothing matching the outfit Aniah was wearing when she was last spotted and, after a more extensive search, found human remains that had suffered a gunshot wound to the skull.

When police showed Walt and Angela Harris photos of the clothing found, there was no doubt it belonged to Aniah. Walt recognized the pair of boots he had given her as a gift. On November 27, DNA confirmed that the remains were Aniah’s. The autopsy revealed she had been killed by a gunshot wound to the head. Consequently, the kidnapping charges against Ibrahim were upgraded from first-degree kidnapping to capital murder.

The only thing left for the Blanchard and Harris families was to wait for Ibrahim’s trial. On December 21, 2019, the family held a memorial service for Aniah, and nearly 2,000 people showed up to pay their respects. Walt Harris said the events nearly broke him and, understandably, he focused solely on seeking justice for Aniah, putting his career as a UFC fighter on hold. He even considered quitting altogether.

Which is so true. I mean, when things happen that involve family or a significant other, the last thing you're thinking about is anything else, right? That's sad.

But he said as thoughts of retiring set in, he actually had an eye-opening experience. He said that Aniah had come to him one night in a dream, and Walt said she was sitting in his living room with a beam of light on her. Walt pulled her in for a hug, and she whispered to him, "Keep going."

Wow.

When Walt woke up from that dream, he said that he felt a renewed sense of purpose. After that, he decided to return to the sport, even fighting on the one-year anniversary of Aniah's disappearance in Abu Dhabi. So what Walt also learned was that Aniah herself had fought in the moments before her death. This comes out as they get closer to trial. According to affidavits, Ibrahim had told one of the witnesses that before she had been shot, Aniah had gone for the gun and actually tried to get it away from him. Obviously, she wasn't able to get it.

Nobody heard the gunshots? Sorry, it’s sidetracked, but just thinking about that.

So the following year, COVID-19 happened, which meant Ibrahim's trial would see postponement after postponement. In the meantime, Aniah's family did what they could to preserve her legacy. In June 2020, they established a scholarship in her memory and soon began a nonprofit called Aniah’s Heart. Their mission statement is: "Dedicated to the preservation of life through prevention, awareness, and empowering the vulnerable to significantly impact violence." The organization offers self-defense classes, advocates for victims' rights, and raises awareness around other missing persons' cases.

But the Blanchards and Harrises took on another big challenge. They actually got a law passed in Aniah's name. In January 2020, the family proposed Aniah’s Law, which was a bill meant to deny bond to suspects accused of violent crimes. This is why I thought it was so ironic that you even brought that up. In November 2022, the bill was passed by Alabama voters and was officially enacted in November 2023 with 80% of the voters' support.

That should be in every single state in the U.S.

So the new law ultimately gives judges more discretion when deciding if bail should be granted or not. Instead of it being black and white, they can kind of go, "Wait, if it's a violent crime, I shouldn't do this," or "I don't want to do this," whatever.

So Aniah’s family hopes that this will prevent what happened to Aniah from happening to other victims. If more violent criminals can just be kept behind bars while awaiting trial, maybe more lives can be saved.

Now, Anne Squirmy Fisher has since had the case against him dismissed after cooperating with authorities. Okay, so because he kind of—I'm not going to say much about that because he made a plea deal. The district attorney also stated the investigation has since revealed that Fisher was not present during the commission of the offense, obviously. But in March of 2023, Ibrahim Yazid was still pleading not guilty.

Not guilty! What is wrong with him?

As of this reporting, he is still awaiting trial. If found guilty, he could face the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

Yes, sir.

Aniah's father has actually said that regardless of the outcome, his life will never be the same. He told the press, "Your mind will never forget the day when your child disappeared. You forget everything that happened prior to that day, but you'll never forget that day. You remember some stuff that happened after that day, but that day will never leave your mind."

He also thinks that Aniah's abduction wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision but instead something that was strategically planned. He believes that Ibrahim may have been watching the convenience store, looking for a target. While Aniah might have been at the wrong place at the wrong time, he thinks if it hadn't been her, it would have been someone else—someone else’s spur-of-the-moment decision to stop for a soda, ice cream, a pack of gum, and never make it home that night.

Luckily, Aniah's Law might be able to keep that sort of thing from happening to someone else in the future. But that is the case of Aniah Blanchard.

I think it's so inspiring when we see families come forward and make change. It’s always so devastating because things like this shouldn’t happen for change to actually take place.

I know, but it's how it always works, and it’s sad because it is inspiring.

Yeah, it does suck because it’s 2022 and that wasn’t a law until then, right? I don’t understand how that wasn’t a law.

But also, I think at trial a lot of answers will come out, at least for the public, about, you know, was she forced into the car? Was she held at gunpoint? How did all of this even happen? What is the prosecution's theory?

So, we will be covering the trial over on Rise N’ Crime when it does finally take place. But yeah, for now, that is all we have on this case. We will see you next time with another episode. And I love it.

I hate it.

Goodbye.

‍

Sorry, no sources available yet.