Donisha | Betrayal Weekly

Hi everyone, we have some exciting news to share. ABC News Studios has turned Caroline Berega's story from betrayal season four into a docu-series. You'll get to meet the people involved. You'll hear from people who have never spoken before, and you get to see where the story took place. We are so proud and excited to share it with you all. Stream betrayal dirty secrets now, on Hulu, or Hulu for Disney Plus. This is an iHeart podcast, guaranteed human. Need dating or relationship advice or help figuring out what to say in a really awkward conversation. We've gotcha. I'm Ellen Kaye, and by popular demand, we've turned our fan favorite segment therapy Thursday into a full length podcast. Each episode, Ryan Manow and I sit down with licensed therapist Sarah Dash to answer your questions and offer therapy you can actually use. Sarah's the expert, and Ryan and I, but we're not. I don't feel chosen anymore, so I'm wondering, is this normal after you get engaged? I think he sounds like a psychopath. Oh, this is a fiancee. No, I'm so sorry, Sonya. Listen to therapy Thursday with me, Ellen Kaye, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Why do some women yearn for Shakira's black hair to make a comeback? And whatever happened to the power couple of my dreams, Mariah Carey and Luis Miguel. I'm Maria Garcia. You may remember me from my podcast, Anything for Selena, or my Divo. And now I'm back to unpack more stories from the present and the past. Listen to Mui excited with Maria Garcia on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi listeners, I'm Nell McShane Wolfhardt, the host of The Girlfriends, Flight or Fight Podcast. I'm excited to share The Girlfriends, Flight or Fight Story with you. And want to let you know that you can get access to all episodes of season one, two, three, four, and five of The Girlfriends. And every single episode of The Girlfriends, Flight or Fight, 100% Add Free. With an iHeart True Crime Plus subscription, available exclusively on Apple Podcasts. Plus, you'll get access to all episodes of The Girlfriends, Flight or Fight, one week ahead of everyone else, available only to iHeart True Crime Plus subscribers. So don't wait. Head to Apple Podcasts, search for iHeart True Crime Plus and subscribe today. If you've been dominating on social media, we have our eye on it all. Listen to the Amy and TJ podcast on The iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. I cannot have this. I have worked very hard to have a life of peace. And we have a child now. I cannot have US Marshalls knocking on my door, asking me where you are. (upbeat music) I'm Andrea Gunning and this is Betrayal, a show about the people we trust the most and the deceptions that change everything. Really quick before we get into the episode, I have a small favor to ask you. If you're enjoying listening to Betrayal, please take a second to hit the follow button on your podcast app and please rate and review. We read all the comments and your voices help our show improve and evolve. I really mean it when I say thank you for listening and helping us grow. Also, if you want behind-the-scenes content or resources, follow @betrayalpod on Instagram or follow me at It's Andray Gunning. All right, onto the show. Growing up, Denisha Quiller was used to chaos. She was one of seven kids. I have a brother, a sister, a half-brother, and then my mom adopted three of her nieces. They lived in a two-bedroom house in Long Beach, California. Eight people. It was very chaotic, a lot of fighting for attention. Denisha had a good relationship with her father, but he was in and out of the house when she was growing up. As the primary caregiver, her mom held everything together. With seven kids, it was an exhausting job. She was super mom. She was stressed out and it wasn't easy. When the house got too loud, Denisha escaped into her bedroom and watched her favorite TV shows. She practically had the TV guide memorized. I'm an 80s kid, so it was full house and perfect strangers. Denisha's mom ran a tight chip, especially when it came to dating. My mom was anti-boys, anti-dating. She would tell me constantly that you don't trust men, you don't rely on men. On Sundays, Denisha's family attended church. They were penicostle, and that came with its own expectations. There were so many rules. Sex was on the top of the list. If you did that, you were just done for. Denisha followed all of the rules very carefully. There were certain movies she couldn't watch, certain clothes she wasn't allowed to wear. So she had to find creative ways to express herself. I got extensions, and they were always rainbow colored. And that was exciting. It was pretty much the only thing my mom would allow-- In high school, Denisha made a plan for her future. I thought that immediately after high school, I would go to college, find my husband by a house, have a couple kids, and then be a career woman. After graduating, Denisha enrolled at Biola University, an evangelical Christian university in Southeast LA. She graduated with a degree in communication disorders. I was really looking forward to doing either speech therapy or some sort of work with the deaf community. After college, she was eager to start her life. She couldn't wait to get a job, get married, and start a family. I was like, doors are going to open, right? This is obvious. She started applying to jobs in speech therapy, but she was rejected again and again. It was discouraging. I had to chip on my shoulder because I had a degree. And that wasn't the only thing that wasn't going to plan. Denisha struggled to find a romantic partner. She put herself out there and went on dates. But she didn't meet anyone she genuinely connected with. I was miserable. This was not what I signed up for. Her childhood in the church hadn't prepared her for this disappointment. I was doing everything right. It loved God. I talked to God. I read the Bible. I thought, why am I not getting my husband? She'd always believed that there was a formula to a fulfilling life. But now that she was an adult, she began to see-- the formula doesn't exist. Everybody's on their own journey. She had to start figuring out what she truly wanted when she wasn't trying to follow other people's rules. So she decided to go back to school for accounting. I love accounting. I am very Virgo and I want the receipts. I want to know the proof. Denisha worked hard and excelled at school. After getting her graduate certificate in accounting, she quickly found a job. She'd been ambitious her whole life. But in her 20s, she found a way to channel her hard work towards schools that genuinely excited and challenged her. She was finally living life on her own terms. She started saving up money and bought her first condo by her 30s. I was feeling like the badass bitch. Like I am doing this life stuff. While going back to school for accounting, she established a serious relationship. She and her boyfriend had been together for years. But as she excelled, she noticed he wasn't growing with her. This man was just kind of bumming. He was a very nice man, but he was not motivated. And it was bumming me out. She wanted a life partner who was as ambitious as she was. Someone who she could rely on. Who she could trust enough to build a family with. I had enough. And I said you have to go, you have to go. And so he went and I felt like this weight off my shoulders. After the breakup, Denisha decided to live on her own. She was surprised at how much she loved her newfound independence. I smoothly walked into having my own place in my own space in peace of mind. I started working out. I had a personal trainer. I had people over when I wanted to have people over. I had a jet tub in my condo. My favorite thing to do was get a glass of wine and some snacks. I could go take a nice hot bath. As she got into her late 30s, she knew the window to have kids was closing. She started considering the idea of pursuing motherhood on her own. I had the career. I had a home. So this kid would not miss out on anything. But ideally, ideally, I would love a great partner. So she decided to give dating one more shot. After her last break up, She had a clear picture of what she wanted in a romantic partner. "I desired somebody who really took responsibility for his family and led his family." Denise, I made a profile on a dating app called Woo. "It's an app for people who love to date bigger people, mainly men and bigger women. I was a thick girl and proud of it." After a few days, she matched with a man who stood out from the rest. His name was Lorenzo. "His pictures were just everything. He was super sexy." They messaged back and forth a bit. At first, it was casual. "We rarely talked about the times that we did. It was a fruitful conversation. I really liked them." Lorenzo wasn't pushy or overbearing. If anything, he was more reserved. He had a military background. "I just remember being impressed with him and really wanting to crack this nut, but he would not open up as much as I wanted him to." Denise was hoping that Lorenzo would ask her out. He hadn't been forthcoming about what he wanted yet. In the meantime, Denise went on dates with other guys she met on Woo. But none of them meant she was meeting Impressor. "One night, I had a date with a man named Richard. He was okay. He was not a bad guy. It was just not for me. I got home and I was really not feeling well about that. This keeps happening. I keep meeting okay man, but I'm not meeting the man." She was starting to lose hope that the man of her dreams was out there. But in that exact moment, her phone rang. Lorenzo called and said, "I have some time off of work. Do you want to meet?" I was still in my outfit from the date prior that evening and I absolutely wanted to meet. I could not wait. Even though it was late at night, they made plans to meet up for their first date. We found a bar called the Stash on the fourth street in Long Beach and they had seating outside. When she got there, she locked eyes with Lorenzo. It was beautiful to look at, six four, just towered over me, big guy, dressed to the nine, smelled so good. They made their way to the bar's outside patio. He pulled my chair out, such a gentleman. We talked about our upbringing and our goals and our careers. On other dates, making conversation felt like pulling teeth. But talking to Lorenzo was effortless. And then we got on the conversation of, "Do you want kids?" He didn't have kids. I didn't have kids and I said, "I'm willing if I find the right person." Lorenzo said he'd always wanted to be a dad. This made Dinesha lean in. Usually the guy she met either already had kids or weren't interested in starting a family. When Dinesha looked at her watch, she was surprised to see that hours had gone by. I told him it was getting kind of late and when he walked me to my car, made sure I was on the inside of the sidewalk which was so sweet. Standing on the sidewalk next to Dinesha's car, Lorenzo leaned in to kiss her. It was the best kiss that I've ever had in my life, it was just amazing. Lorenzo didn't walk away until he was sure Dinesha was safely on her way home. He watched as I averaged onto the main street, made sure I got home by a text. I got home with a smile from ear to ear. I was fascist but so excited, it was a great night. The best date I've ever had. This was the kind of guy she'd been waiting for. When she woke up the next morning, a text from Lorenzo greeted her. He had left me a text message and dedicated a song to me. It made me smile and get butterflies in my stomach. Her second date followed soon after and then their third. We were joined at the hip since our first date. Soon they made their relationship official. Dinesha's knowledge of Lorenzo's life grew from a few bullet points on his dating profile to the full story. He grew up in Puerto Rico for the first portion of his life. His mom was still there. He had been in the military for most of his life. He had enlisted right after high school. He started in the army and then matriculated into marines. And then he went all the way up the ranks to colonel. He showed Dinesha some of his old uniforms, decked out with military pins and accolades. He shared stories from his ears in the service. He told Dinesha about the time he stepped on a homemade bomb while on deployment. He really destroyed his body and then was put back together in Germany. Yeah, like titanium and everything. He'd since retired from active military service, but he still worked for the Department of Defense. He worked for DCIS. DCIS or Defense Criminal Investigative Service investigates fraud and corruption within the Department of Defense. He had a gun on him all the time, no matter where we were. He had a gun in his badge. After dating man who lacked direction, Lorenzo's passion for his work was a breath of fresh air. I was really impressed. The military, the high profile government job. It just was like a cherry on top of this sexy man. Like he's on the right side of things, making sure our military is safe. And I felt safe with him. I felt protected. Because the time they spent together grew, so did their feelings. It didn't take long for us to be telling each other we loved each other. Soon Lorenzo moved in with Dinesha. They spent countless hours watching movies and TV shows together, and debriefing about the characters and themes of the story afterwards. We would have long conversations and it would morph into like philosophical conversations and we would get deep into our religious backgrounds and he also was deconstructing his faith. They could talk about anything. When conflicts did arise, they worked through them together with patience and care. The disagreements we had were short and sporadic and it was more of a conversation. It felt so adult. It felt so good to just be able to express something I didn't like or something that was bothering me and we could just talk it out. The only thing they couldn't really talk about was Lorenzo's job. It was super secret. I couldn't know too much. Every once in a while he'd give me a little bit of an inkling about a case that he was working on but no names, no details. Lorenzo worked long hours. He would come home at like four o'clock in the morning or he would be gone for a week. Lorenzo told Dineshia he had to travel often for work. Me and my girlfriend called him FBI because we knew he was working for the federal government and some high profile thing and so I would call him FBI babe when I was referring to him. When Lorenzo was traveling for work, he always stayed in touch over text. He would send me pictures of the plane he was going on, he would send me pictures of him in uniform, going into a high profile meeting before he had turned his phone in. At work, Lorenzo was fearless and with Dineshia, he was caring, gentle and patient. She felt at home by his side. She'd been waiting for a love like this her whole life and I've heard stories before that if you know you know and I just I knew I knew this was him, I knew this was my guy. They had only been dating for a couple of months but she knew what she wanted. Dineshia was in her late thirties and she told him her priority was starting a family. Finally you know and two grown up nerds were both almost in our forties, never married, no kids, let's do this together. So they made the unconventional decision to prioritize starting a family as soon as possible. If it happened in my mind it would be just a blessing and then it happened I was so elated. She was pregnant, it felt like fate but she was nervous to tell Lorenzo. Now that being a dad wasn't just an idea but a reality, what if he changed his mind? I told him you don't have to stay, I could do this on my own and he said absolutely not that was not even a question this mind, we're going to do this first time parents, let's do this. But Dineshia had a lot of complications with her pregnancy. I had everything in the book because I'm older, I was already high risk and then 12 week mark they did the diabetes test, had diabetes, had to go on a very strict diet. Around 34, 35 weeks I started getting high blood pressures, I had a test by blood pressure. Several times a day I was going in for non-stress tests, two times a week, it was a lot. Lorenzo was by her side through everything. Lorenzo was my anchor, he came to most of the appointments, drove me there, he stayed with me the entire time. Dineshia was Lorenzo's top priority, even when he got home from work at 4 in the morning. He got up two hours later to prepare her breakfast in bed. He really was focused on making me happy and making me comfortable, lots of massage. is lots of love. Lorenzo started putting together the nursery, hanging up shelves and doing the physical labor so that Dinesha could rest. Watching him take care of her gave Dinesha confidence that he would be a great dad. He was just so gentle with me and I was a mess. I was crying all the time and he made me feel happy and he got me in a better mood every time. I knew that he was going to be an amazing father. When their daughter was born Lorenzo was right there by her side. When you got to cut her cord and he was the first person she touched. It was so amazing and the nurses try to bring her to me and I'm like please give her your dad. It was a magical moment. Looking at her daughter in Lorenzo's arms, Dinesha was filled with pride for her family. I could not believe I had my man and my baby. I was just so excited. Finally her fairy tale was coming to fruition. When I was 14 years old I was kidnapped and health captive for nine months. I survived and I've spent my life exploring how other people survive what should have destroyed them. I'm Elizabeth Smart and these are the survivor files. I just remember this low taunting voice next to my ear saying shut up. Don't say anything. Every week I'm with survivors who lived through the unthinkable. I knew if he woke up without a doubt he was going to hurt me. I started feeling that there was someone at the end of my bed and I just started screaming. They are abducted, stalked, controlled and nearly silenced but these aren't stories about what's taken from them. Their stories about what it takes to make it out alive. Listen to the survivor files with Elizabeth Smart on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Mungusha together and I'm back with a new season of the podcast Skyline Drive. This time I'm diving into a rabbit hole of peptides, organoids, blood boys, blue zones and brain replacement to try to understand what this longevity obsession is all about and what it really means to live forever for all of us. I learned about some rad science. I can make a brain for you and then we can test what draw is the best for your brain, as opposed to his brain. Here's some hard truths. I would expect Indians to age faster but I did not expect it to be almost a four to five year acceleration and get myself into a world of trouble. I'd say probably start bone smashing. I don't know. Listen to Skyline Drive, how to live forever on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. On the new podcast, Solita, we share the messy reality of traveling alone as a woman. I can wait four hours for the next bus or this random dude is offering me a ride on his motorcycle. I choose option B. I'm Julie Pinierro and I travel by myself because it's a rare space where I can say yes without asking anyone else first. I'm on a mission to reclaim the word Solita, trading the pity for possibility. Every time I tried to be alone I kept meeting people and they were like, you smiled at us not a lot of people smile around here. It's when you're alone that you're most receptive to the world as it is and not the lies you're sold about it. It can be a time where you push your limits, change your mind or wake up to a new version of yourself. So whether you're a solo travel veteran or you're too nervous to book your first trip, I hope you listen to Solita on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're bookshelf and you're for you page are equally important to your personality, welcome home. This is Pro's Society, the weekly podcast that's part book club, part group chat for thought daughters, pop culture obsessives and anyone who thinks pride and prejudice and love island deserve the same level of discourse. I'm Eli Rallo and every week we're connecting the dots between books, the internet and the conversations everyone can't stop having. I'm gonna have to look up this story. I'm obsessed. From best selling authors and your favorite book talk creators to the latest pop culture moments, nothing is off the table. So like if you can hide some real messages inside compelling characters and that is the Trojan horse, whether you're looking for literary deep dives, smart pop culture conversations or a community of readers who love to think a little too much, you're in the right place. Listen to Pro's Society on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, see you between the pages. When Dinesha became a mom, she was overjoyed. Watching Lorenzo care for her and their daughter felt like a dream come true. The type of love she'd always wished for. They had a baby shower. Lorenzo's mom and sister traveled in from Puerto Rico to be there. I got them gifts and I thank them for coming to be with us and celebrate this new journey and how amazing it is that this is their first grandchild and niece and they were really receptive. Because of the nature of Lorenzo's job, he didn't have paternity leave. He was only home for a week. His job did not want him to be off for that long. He demanded that week. Him having to go back to work was really hard. I really wanted him there. Lorenzo worked a lot but he still did everything he could to be a great dad. When he wasn't working, he jumped in to help Dinesha. He was helping me figure out lactation and breastfeeding. He was always washing the baby bottles and when baby was stressed out and wouldn't sleep and she was screaming, screaming, he would take over. One day in August when their daughter was three months old, Dinesha and Lorenzo were spending time together. Suddenly he turned to face her. He looked anxious. Out of nowhere, he just says that he had to tell me something. Then Lorenzo dropped a bombshell and he confessed that our baby was not his first baby. He actually had three additional children, 12-year-old, a ten-year-old, and an eight-year-old, with two other women. Dinesha was completely taken aback to say that I was shocked. His ununderstatement. She was numb and angry. She left the house to get some space. And then when I got back, I just begged him to tell me everything. What do you mean you're not a first-time dad? I don't understand. He said the kids were from two different relationships he'd had in his 20s. They didn't live in the area and he wasn't involved in the kids' lives. Lorenzo tried to explain why he'd kept this from Dinesha. He said he didn't want me to leave. He thought that if I knew he had other children, I wouldn't not be into him anymore. And my response was that was my choice. You took that choice away from me. He explained that he'd never been given the opportunity to parent his older kids. So when he met Dinesha, it felt like a fresh start. I asked a lot. Please tell me everything. No more secrets. We're in this together. Anything else. Are you married? Like, what is going on? What about these other women? And he assured me nothing else. There's nothing else. And he is very, very sorry that he did not tell me about these other children. The lie stung, but Lorenzo seemed genuinely sorry. He admitted that hiding this was a mistake. He was apologetic and wasn't defensive. I really wanted to let it go. I kind of understood where he was coming from, why he would keep that from me. She asked if she could meet his other children. I would love it. I would get stacks. We would watch movies and he was really reluctant. He did not like that idea. And then told me that the other children's mothers would not be on board. That he rarely gets to see them anyways. There was a lot of animosity between him and the other mothers. Denisha believed him. She was on maternity leave busy with their newborn. And after Lorenzo came clean, he showed his remorse with his actions, doting on Denisha and their daughter. We had a great time all through my maternity leave. He was really attentive. Even after this ball that he dropped, we tried to get past it. And I thought it was doable. When Lorenzo had to travel for work, he found creative ways to stay in touch. Baby girl and I would hang out in the living room. We had the nanny cam right next to the TV. And it was one of those nanny cams that you can patch through and talk through. Lorenzo would log into the nanny cam so he could see Denisha and his daughter and talk to them while they hung out at home. And it felt really good actually. It was really sweet. He was watching all the time. He just popped in and watched. I would hear his voice and he's like, "Daddy's girl. Daddy's here and talks to baby and talks to me." And it just was lovely. to see that he was connecting, even though he had to be away. By Thanksgiving of that year, their daughter was six months old. Dinesha and Lorenzo were in the car driving to her family's house for Thanksgiving dinner. When Dinesha saw that she had a missed call from an unknown number, "There's a message from the call I asked him to play it out loud as I'm driving and it's this woman that I've never heard from or heard of and she says she's looking for her husband Lorenzo." Dinesha nearly swirled off the road. My heart drops and I'm like, "What is going on?" Just a couple months ago, you told me you had three kids and now some stranger is calling my phone saying that she is looking for her husband. What is happening? She expected Lorenzo to be panicked and apologetic, but he was unfazed. He had an explanation. "He assured me, that's my ex, she's crazy, don't believe her, please don't let this ruin everything. I think good, I love you, this is our family, don't let her get in your head." But the whole time she was at Thanksgiving dinner, the woman's words, "My husband Lorenzo echoed in her mind." But it was maybe girls first Thanksgiving, so I pretend it like everything was great. She put on a brave face around her family. When they got home that night, Lorenzo tried to reassure Dinesha that there was nothing going on with his ex. He showed her the text messages between them, to prove there was nothing to worry about. I saw the text messages and it seemed legit, so it helped me kind of let it go. She was still suspicious, but she wanted to believe Lorenzo. They had just started a family together. "I was fighting for my little family, I thought for sure this was my time and I'm fighting to the nail to keep it as much as possible." One night Dinesha and Lorenzo were at home watching a show together as they often did. "Baby girl was in bed already, it was late at night, we were watching Dexter, and he pulled out a ring." Lorenzo asked Dinesha to marry him. She said yes. "We took a little happy picture and posted it on social media and I was engaged. The next day I squealed with my mom on the phone and all that stuff. But to be honest in the back of my mind, I'm like something felt off." She had always imagined that getting engaged would be one of the happiest moments of her life, but her happiness was laced with doubt. I kept thinking about the other mother that called me, like where is she in this story and this engagement, I don't know why, but I could not get her out of my mind. Lorenzo was passionate about his role as a federal agent, but as time went on, he wanted to start a side venture. "He was really into arbitration, which is like the middleman when somebody has an argument with another person." Lorenzo decided to open a consulting business, where he would use his negotiation and conflict management skills to help clients navigate complex custody battles or divorce proceedings. He told Dinesha that his specialization within the federal government allowed him to be an arbitrator. This wasn't her area of expertise, so she didn't think much of it. She offered to use her accounting skills to help get the business set up. "I helped him draw out like a policy and how to get paid and all that stuff." Then Lorenzo started taking on clients. His first case was a family here in Southern California. It was a child custody case. The mom was not attentive to the child and the dad really wanted custody, but they were not seeing eye to eye, so he was going to see both sides and file paperwork. One day, Dinesha was hanging out with some friends when she got a call from Lorenzo. Right away, she could tell something was off with him. He seemed flustered, he told her, "I have to tell you what happened today, please don't be mad." And I was like, "Okay, what happened?" There had been an explosive dispute in the child custody case he'd been working on. The mom was supposed to drop the baby back off at dad's house and never did. So Lorenzo went with dad to go and look for the child. He said they found mom and child and Lorenzo got out to get the child and the mom fought with him and he held her back, authorities were called and the mom went to the hospital. When the police came, they arrested Lorenzo and his client, the child's father. So Lorenzo and the father went to jail, but he had bailed himself out. He was calling her after posting bail. Dinesha was stunned and furious. This was a client of yours, your first case. Why were you on the street looking for people and grabbing kids out of people's arms? Why would you do that? Lorenzo didn't have much to say in his own defense. He said, "I just got passionate, you know, it was a mess." He brushed off the altercation as merely a one-off. He did have one major worry though. He said he was concerned because he did not reveal his arrest to his superior at work. Because he works for such a high-profile government job, that could be a whole thing. So it's like so then tell them. To Dinesha, reporting it seemed like the obvious thing to do, but Lorenzo told her it wasn't that easy. A little while after that, Dinesha was home alone with her baby when she heard a commotion outside her front door. They are knocking at my neighbors right across from me, really loud, aggressive, not. And I hear whoever is knocking, asking for Larry. The neighbors didn't answer. Dinesha heard footsteps walking away. And suddenly, the knock is on my door. I opened the door. These two men in street clothes are claiming to be U.S. marshals and they're looking for Larry. I explained I don't know Larry and they said, "Well, he goes by Lorenzo." When I was 14 years old, I was kidnapped and health captive for nine months. I just remember this low taunting voice next to my ear saying, "Shut up, don't say anything." Every week, I'm with survivors who live through the unthinkable. I knew if he woke up, without a doubt, he was going to hurt me. They are abducted, stalked, controlled, and nearly silenced. But these aren't stories about what's taken from them. Their stories about what it takes to make it out alive, listen to the survivor files with the Elizabeth Smart on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Munga Shatekater and I'm back with a new season of the podcast Skyline Drive. This time I'm diving into a rabbit hole of peptides, organoids, blood boys, blue zones, brain replacement to try to understand what this longevity obsession is all about. And what it really means to live forever for all of us. I can make a brain for you. And then we can test what draw is the best for your brain, as opposed to his brain. Here are some hard truths. I would expect Indians to age faster, but I did not expect it to be almost a four to five-year acceleration. And get myself into a world of trouble. That doesn't work. Make you look more defined. They say it works. I don't know. Hey, this is Hayes Davenport and Sean Clements. We host the podcast Hollywood Handbook on the Big Money Players Network. Our show is extremely accessible to first-time listeners. Each week, we talk to someone in show business, aka The Biz, and try to help them with their careers and see what they have to offer us. Everyone has a good time and no one gets mad at their publicists for letting them do our show. We've had a lot of great guests like Sarah Sherman. Not that great. Can you help me shape this? How about we flip it on his head? How about we flip this around? Okay. What is the surprise one, man? Actually, you think as the straight man is actually the one who's acting weird. I'm Scott. This entire time, you've been expecting Adam Sandler to come to visit the show. I would never let go of that. I would never set expectations for something like that. It seems like if the universe allows for something like that to happen, I am open to it. I'm always going to accept, you know, Danny McBride, fine. Yeah. It's all this fragile masculinity exuding. I can smell it. it walking on the hallway to be honest with you. I was like, I was like, is that what you need? Nope, it's fragile masculinity. Ben stiller, no. I think there's a lot of times out of context, people don't get it or even know what a circle is. You know what I mean? Like you're like, oh, it's just so stupid. Everyone's so dumb. Ben, fake. Right, fake and also not interested, or just like, oh, I've got my life. I don't care about your life. And a lot of other big shots that wouldn't be where they are without us. Oh, and by the way, Will Ferrell told us personally he loves the show and he wants to be a guest on every episode, but he's just so busy. Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I can wait four hours for the next bus, or this random dude is offering me a ride on his motorcycle. I choose option B. I'm Julie Piñero, and I travel by myself because it's a rare space where I can say yes without asking anyone else first. Every time I try to be alone, I kept meeting people, and they were like, you smiled at us, not a lot of people smile around here. It can be a time where you push your limits, change your mind, or wake up to a new version of yourself. So whether you're a solo travel veteran or you're too nervous to book your first trip, I hope you listen to Solita on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. - Sanitia and Lorenzo were making things work raising their one-year-old daughter together. Lorenzo's work as an agent with DCIS meant he was often away from home. One day, Denisha was at home with her baby when she heard a knock at the door. When she opened it, two US Marshals were standing on her front porch. - And they're looking for Larry, and I explain I don't know Larry. - This didn't make sense. Surely the agents had the details mixed up and were at the wrong house. - And they explain, well, he goes by Lorenzo sometimes. My whole body is hot. I feel like my stomach has dropped. - Then one of the marshals pulled out a photo of the man they were looking for. - And they showed me a picture. And it's the first thing I ever saw. It's this dating profile picture. I was like, yeah, that is my fiance. They repeat that they're from the US Marshals and he is wanted. - Sanitia's head was spinning. She needed more information. - What are you talking about? What is this about? And they said, we can't really tell you much, but he is wanted for a weapons charge. And I said, well, that doesn't make sense. He's an agent with our government. He wears a badge and a gun. - The US Marshals asked if Lorenzo was home. Dinesha said he was not, but they told her they needed to come in and search the house themselves. Her heart was beating out of her chest. - I've never been in trouble, not even a little bit. I mean, a couple of detentions in junior high. So I don't know the law like that. So I allowed one of them to look. I asked them to be quiet 'cause baby girl was sleeping. - One of the Marshals searched the house while the other asked Dinesha questions about Lorenzo. When they were certain he wasn't hiding inside the house, they gave Dinesha their contact information and left. Dinesha felt like the ground beneath her was shifting, like she couldn't take a full breath. - My mind is all over the place. It's totally nervous in a fog. I was so scared that I did something wrong. I immediately called Lorenzo. - But he already knew. - He's like, yeah, I saw it on the nanny cam. - He'd been watching the US Marshals search their home through the nanny cam. He set up in their living room. - It was as if he were waiting for this to happen. Why would he watch at that very moment? - Why now? He knew. He knew something. - As always, Lorenzo was calm and had an explanation. - Don't worry, babe. It's just some misunderstanding. It's because I didn't tell my boss about their rest. - To Dinesha, that explanation didn't seem to add up. The US Marshals said he was wanted for a weapons charge. Lorenzo's arrest had been months ago and he never made any mention of a weapon. Plus, as part of his job, he was required to carry. None of this made sense. - I don't know why the government would be this mad about a stupid arrest you got in the fight, like that's not a big deal. - Lorenzo assured her that he had everything under control. - This is nothing, and he will fix it. Don't worry, I'm gonna clean it up. - First, there was a lying about his kids. The secrecy around his job, then there was his arrest. And now, he was wanted by US Marshals? - I cannot have this. I cannot have US Marshals knocking on my door, asking me where you are. Like, this is ridiculous, what is happening? - Even though Lorenzo seemed calm on the phone, it became clear to Dinesha that he was hiding something. Because that day, she waited for him to come home, but he never did, not that day or the next day. And he wasn't answering her calls. That's when she realized. - He was essentially on the run, trying to avoid the US Marshals trying to avoid arrest. I had no information, I didn't know where he was, I didn't know what was happening. Nothing felt normal. - Lorenzo called her a few times. He'd tell Dinesha he was safe. He was still sorting it all out. She kept urging him to just be honest and turn himself in. - I don't understand why people are looking for you and why it would be so hard for you to just go ahead and tell your boss, get your punishment and get it over with. - As the days turned into weeks, she clung onto the idea that he could fix it and come home to their daughter. But his absence meant Dinesha was suddenly responsible for running the household. - I hadn't seen him, he is not helping me take care of the baby. He is not financially there either. I'm doing this all by myself. - The longer Lorenzo was on the run, the more Dinesha questioned the stories he'd been telling her. - It was a balance of really scared, angry, and missing him all at the same time. I was so anxious in my neck hurt, I was so tense. - Lorenzo had been gone for nearly a month. Dinesha was in denial. - I have a baby with him and I love him so much. I didn't need perfection, I just wanted my family together. Even if it's fake peace, it's peace. And I could pretend like nothing else is wrong. - When she didn't hear from him, she started checking online, googling his name to see if there was any news. That's how she saw the picture. - They actually posted on Twitter. - It's just so weird to me. But I see my big, strong man with handcuffs. - Lorenzo had been arrested. - They found him, the US Marshal's found him. I don't know where they found him. I always try to look at the background. It looks like a house, maybe a parking garage. But yeah, they got him. - But Dinesha still didn't know what exactly Lorenzo had done. - All of those arrested are public records, so I was able to look everything up. And his charges were child endangerment, false imprisonment, conspiracy, violence impersonating a peace officer. All of them are horrible. But the one that released it out to me was impersonating a peace officer. - Peace officer is a blanket turn to describe law enforcement officers. It includes the police, sheriffs, and special agents. Seeing that charge was the first time Dinesha realized Lorenzo wasn't who he said he was. - He was not an agent with the government. All of that's made up and because he's not an agent with the government, he's in big big trouble 'cause he's pretending. That made more sense to me than just the stupid fight. - There were no further details in the arrest record. What did they mean by child endangerment and false imprisonment? In the moment, all she knew for sure was that he'd been lying to her. And seeing his charges, she knew that his lies were serious, criminal. - Emotionally, I was a mess. I was embarrassed and shocked. - She struggled to accept that this was really happening. Worst of all, was accepting that the future they'd been planning together was gone. - And this is after these fantasy conversations that I would have with him getting married and buying a house and really living our lives out as a power couple. All that went out the window. - She was left to raise their daughter on her own while Lorenzo sat in jail. - I'm still going through this part of him and I'm working full time trying to keep up with the bills and life and cleaning. It's all on me. It's all on me. So because he's in prison, I'm only able to talk to him and calls me. - The first time they talked on the phone, Lorenzo didn't have any answers. He's stuck by his story that he was a federal agent and his arrest was all a big misunderstanding. - His perspective of the story of how he got arrested in the first place does not add up. So what is happening is all I kept thinking like, what is happening? Am I ignoring something? Then one day, Dinesha got a phone call while she was at work. She recognized the caller ID. It was Lorenzo's ex, the woman who'd called on Thanksgiving. I answer and she comes in hot. She comes in like, who is this? And she sounds like she's ready to fight. I say I'm Lorenzo's fiancee. She said, I'm Lorenzo's fiancee. But the truth was, Dinesha needed her help. Maybe this woman had the answers she didn't. She asked her, can you tell me what's going on? Tell me your perspective. She tells me he was never working. Every time he was not at my house, he was at her house. That he is sleeping around and I need to get tested. It's really serious. It turned out they weren't the only two women. Lorenzo had been in multiple relationships at the same time. And he made all of the women he was with believe they were the only one. But that wasn't even the worst of it. The woman on the phone said that Lorenzo had gotten another woman pregnant around the same time that Dinesha had been pregnant with their daughter. And this other woman apparently lived in Dinesha's neighborhood. And she said she lived just next door and has a baby around the same age as my baby. And this was on top of the three-secret children he had before he met Dinesha. She recognized the pain in this woman's voice. And she believed her. Lorenzo had deceived them both. Later that same day, Lorenzo called Dinesha from present. She answered on the first ring. And I let him have it for the first time since all of this has been going on. You're trash. I don't trust anything you're saying. I'm going to get full custody. I don't want to ever see you again. We're not getting over this. We're done. And I don't say things unless I meet them and I meant them. - She hung up the phone. - I was sad that I'm losing what I really wanted. But also I'm in a space where I cannot continue to pretend like everything's okay. This is not okay, it's not normal. - The man she loved felt more like a phantom now. - What can I say is even real? Did he love me? Why me? Why did you choose me? - Dinesha kept in touch with Lorenzo's mom. One day when they were out to lunch, his mom said something that exposed yet another lie. - I asked his mom how Puerto Rico was and she says that she's never been there. Not only were they not there, but he was not born in Puerto Rico. So that was a lie. He was born in LA. He was named Larry. Before Lorenzo's arrest, she'd seen a copy of his birth certificate. - Which showed me that he was born in Puerto Rico and his name was Lorenzo. I saw the birth certificate, it said Puerto Rico. - But that document must have been forged. - So who doctored this document? That's so weird. And why lie about that? - Hearing this reveal through Dinesha off, she was too flustered to ask his mom any follow-up questions in the moment. But later when she was alone, she realized she needed more answers. She didn't even know who Lorenzo was. And she wanted to find out. - Now I know Larry is officially who he is and born in LA. I was able to get deeper and look for more receipts. - She scoured the internet for everything she could find about Lorenzo, aka Larry. Her search for the truth took years. We want to walk you through Lorenzo's criminal past, combining what Dinesha and our team has found out. His given name at birth was Larry Cornell Diamond Jr. In total, he had six arrests and convictions. We're going to detail a few of them. It all started in 2000 in Los Angeles. Larry was 22 at the time. He and his friend, Robert Hune, showed up unannounced at a woman's apartment. They knocked on her door and told her that they were FBI agents. They said that they needed to search her home. They were armed and she let them in. But they weren't FBI agents. They were bounty hunters. The Los Angeles Times reported on the crime. Here's part of that reporting read by a voice actor. - Hune and Diamond proclaimed to be affiliated with a non-existent branch of the FBI. Hune and Diamond created a fake search warrant and claimed they were FBI agents when they made their way through a woman's sandpager apartment searching for stolen computers. Both men were wearing holstered semi-automatic guns and silver badges that they claimed were FBI badges. That was the start of a pattern, an almost pathological scheme of impersonating authority, like FBI, CIA, or police, as means of extortion. After he was released, Larry went right back to it. In 2003, he walked into a hardware store where he intended to carry out his next crime. The District Attorney's Office in Central California released a statement explaining what happened that day. We've had a voice actor read part of it. - Diamond went to the hardware company dressed like a law enforcement officer. He was wearing all black, displaying a badge, and claimed that he was an FBI agent with the American consulate. He then threatened to arrest the owner. Unless the owner paid $10,000 directly to Diamond. - For that offense, he served a four-year prison sentence. This was so much darker than Dineshia imagined. Lorenzo wasn't just lying about his identity. He was threatening and exploiting innocent people. He would show up armed and indescribable, then demand money or valuables. He abused authority he didn't even have, and he did that over and over again for his entire adult life. Lorenzo wasn't just unfaithful or delusional. He was dangerous. In September of 2016, he legally changed his name to Lorenzo Sanchez Diamond. The very next week, he was arrested again. This time for possession of a firearm. Dineshia poured over all of these documents. I'm reading the whole thing, and they catch him at a dinnys in his military gear with guns and his trunk, and he gets arrested. - None of his arrests or prison sentences deterred him. Each time he was released, he picked up where he left off, and continued his impersonation con. Even after Dineshia ended things with Lorenzo, and he was imprisoned for the sixth time in 2023, he would insist that he was always a federal agent. At least, that's what he told Dineshia. But he asked her not to come to his sentencing hearing. There, he pled guilty to all the counts he was facing. He was sentenced to another 18 months in prison. Dineshia thought that would be the end of the story, but while Lorenzo was behind bars, she got a strange email. - I got a mysterious email from a bubble walker, never heard of this person. They introduced themselves as CIA agents, and then there was a MP3 voicemail in it. It was a computerized female voice. - The sender claimed to be an employee at the CIA, singing Lorenzo's praises for his invaluable efforts in the global war on terrorism. They said Lorenzo was a good man, with more intelligence than most. - The recording just was like, Lorenzo Sanchez is a great person, and he is a great stand-up citizen that I should trust him. And also said not to tell anybody about this message and to destroy the message after I got it. I told everybody. (laughing) My sister was like, "Well, I can say a lot of bad things about this man, "but people go through the ends of the earth "to fake a CIA call, "to get you to believe his bullshit." Like this is so stupid. - It was laughable. She no longer believed anything Lorenzo said. After nine months behind bars, Lorenzo was released on good behavior. Even though things were over between them, she let Lorenzo FaceTime their daughter occasionally. On one of those calls, Lorenzo said he had some grave news. - That's when he revealed he had cancer. I thought it was another tactic, another lie. Maybe to get my walls down again, to see if he can get back into my good graces. - So she told him, "You're not invited in my home or my heart anymore, "if you're sick, I hope you feel better soon." - But the next time they had a video call, Dinesha noticed that the room he was calling from was different. He was in the hospital and he looked gone. He'd lied about so much, but this time he was telling the truth. - He has, stage four, calling cancer. He's very sick. - Lorenzo's health only declined from there. He went into hospice. Dinesha decided to visit him and say goodbye. - He looks really frail. You could push him over with just the breath. - Seeing him at the end of his life, brought up overwhelming conflicting emotions. - Before all the things that went wrong, he showed me love like no one else had showed me before this. I felt respected, I felt loved and desired. Having him destroy my life, and now if he was dying, me. She walked over to his bedside. I was so sad. It was so sad to see. I never wished this for anyone. I held his hand and told him I forgave him and that I got this and I will take care of our daughter. You can let go. She left his room, but in 48 hours Lorenzo passed away. The kneesha reached out to us a few months later. She's still processing the loss. It's unending grief. Grieving the life that I thought I had, the husband, the baby, the house, all of those things had it for so little. Such a little time. I'm grieving that all the time. I'm grieving the single motherhood of it all. And I grieve for my baby. That grief is muddied by confusion. It's really hard to determine who this person was. Lorenzo's obituary describes him as a doctor, author, poet, and rapper who loved macaroni and cheese and watching Jeopardy. His LinkedIn profile describes him as a legal expert and human rights consultant. Lorenzo tried on so many disguises, so many prestigious careers. Dr. Lawyer, federal agent. Donisha knows now he wasn't any of those things. She's left wondering if anything he ever told her was real. I still am not 100% sure what the truth is. Donisha has had to make peace with the confusion and grief Lorenzo left behind. She hasn't been in contact with the other women Lorenzo deceived. For her, reaching out with reopen wounds, she is trying to heal. My focus is on my baby and doing my job well. She has built an impressive career. I'm making six figures at a nonprofit as the accounting manager. I'm so proud of me to be in this role. I worked hard to get here. She's created a safe and loving home where her daughter gets to express herself authentically. Baby girl is thriving. She loves school and it's already time to enroll her in regular elementary school and that's emotional. And she loves dancing, loves ballet. These days, Donisha sees her own strength clearly. I'm resilient because I struggle with depression, anxiety, but this does not strike me. I am still going. I'm still standing strong and I'm going to be fine. We end every weekly episode with the same question. Why do you want to share your story? I cycle through grief on a daily basis. I feel very lonely, having experienced this and not having a lot of people that understand where I'm at, that wore these same shoes and had the same thoughts. So I really wanted to find my people, tell other people they're not alone and to just know that somebody knows what I'm going through. On the next episode of Betrayal Weekly, you've got to arrest him because I don't know where this is going to end. He's a liar. He's a manipulator and he's an abuser and I don't think he'll stop unless he's made to stop. If you'd like to share your story on Betrayal, please email [email protected]. That is [email protected]. Please note that we are not a mental health organization. If you are in crisis or currently experiencing domestic violence, we encourage you to seek local help or dial 911. Please contact organizations that offer immediate support. In our show notes, we've included a list of US-based resources. You can follow us on Instagram @betrayalPod or find me @it'sundrayagunning. To access our newsletter and additional content and to connect with the Betrayal community, join us at www.betrayal.substack.com. We're grateful for your support. One way to show support is by subscribing to our show on Apple Podcasts. Don't forget to rate and review Betrayal. Five star reviews go a long way. Big thank you to all of our listeners. Betrayal is a production of Glass Podcasts, a division of Glass Entertainment Group and partnership with iHeart Podcasts. The show is executive produced by Nancy Glass and Jennifer Fason, hosted and produced by me @it'sundrayagunning. Written and produced by Olivia Hewitt, our story editor is Monique LeBord, also produced by Ben Federman. Our associate producer is Leah Jablow, production management by Kristen Melcuri, booking support by Curry Richmond. Our iHeart team is Ali Perri and Jessica Crinecheck, audio editing by Tanner Robbins with additional editing and mixing by Matt Ovechio, Betrayal's theme composed by Oliver Baines, music library provided by my music, and for more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Need dating or relationship advice or help figuring out what to say in a really awkward conversation we've gotcha. I'm Ellen Kay and by popular demand. We've turned our fan favorite segment therapy Thursday into a full length podcast. Each episode Ryan Mano and I sit down with licensed therapist Sarah Dash to answer your questions and offer therapy you can actually use. Sarah's the expert and Ryan and I, well we're not. This is a fiancee. I'm so sorry, Sonya, listen to therapy Thursday with me, Ellen Kay on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Maria Garcia. You may remember me from my podcasts, anything for Selena or my devil, and now I'm back to unpack more stories from the present and the past. Listen to me excited with Maria Garcia on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. High listeners, I'm Nell McShane Wolfhardt, the host of the Girlfriends Flight or Fight Podcast. I'm excited to share the Girlfriends Flight or Fight story with you and want to let you know that you can get access to all episodes of season one, two, three, four, and five of the Girl Friends and every single episode of the Girlfriends Flight or Fight 100% Add Free with an iHeart True Crime Plus subscription available exclusively on Apple Podcasts. Plus you'll get access to all episodes of the Girlfriends Flight or Fight one week ahead of everyone else, available only to iHeart True Crime Plus subscribers. So don't wait, head to Apple Podcasts, search for iHeart True Crime Plus and subscribe today. Hey there everybody, Amy Robock and TJ Holmes here from the Amy and TJ podcast. A lot of times, the story of the day is what we're all talking about and buzzing about, and yes, sometimes it's love island and sometimes it's serena ropes. Coming back to the US Open, sometimes it's obsession and Spider-Man making box office history. Hopefully Rose, people get our point. Listen to Amy and TJ on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.