Woman Lured to Her Death by Ex and Friends

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But when they lift up the tarp, their curiosity turns to terror. It's a dead body. In a panic, they run outside and call 911. Within minutes, Michigan State police troopers are on the scene. While several troopers perform a security sweep. Uh, a couple rooms. This way. This way. This way. Others head straight to the gymnasium to get a look at the body. The victim is a Caucasian female, fully clothed then lying face up. Near her body. The troopers clock multiple shell casings. But it's two other clues that grab their attention. Her body is covered in a mysterious liquid substance. And there's a small, metal t-shirt. The t-shirt is a small, metal t-shirt. She threatened my son. She said that she did it because she threatened her son. Yeah. Do you know, do you know some more information about that? No, that's all I know. I don't go to church. Like, apparently she threatened her son at church. That's the most I know of that. And she, how'd she kill her? She said this. She shot her twice. Okay. On the video. Where did you put the gun? In the river. Who's the other person with you when this is being recorded? That's Steve. He was with me when I recorded this. Okay. So what's Steve's connection with this homicide? I have no clue. I was not there. I don't know anything. Did you have any involvement with her murder or anything? No, I didn't even know what happened. Okay. Until I was on Facebook and Kayla's missing. Hey, Kayla's missing. Wow. I'm going to send that to the officer. Shelby police contact the Michigan State Police and relay the information. And detectives make the two-hour drive to Ohio to meet with Brynn. But as Brynn waits for them to arrive, what he doesn't know, is that detectives already have proof he's lying. After her body was found, detectives learned from Kayla's family and friends that she communicated primarily through social media. So police obtained warrants for her accounts and they've been combing through all of her messages, looking for any clues that might point to her killer. That's how detectives found out that on February 10th, five days before Kayla's murder, Brynn sent her a message saying Stephen kicked him out of his apartment. And he wanted to know if she'd be interested in hanging out. Kayla responded that she would. Afterwards, Brynn messaged Stephen and said, I got Kayla. She is in my hands now. She fell right into my trap. Stephen replied, LOL. Over the next several days, Brynn and Kayla exchanged several flirty messages. And Kayla had no idea. That behind Brynn's loving words, something calculated and evil was brewing. On the night of Kayla's murder, Stephen and Brynn's plan went into action. Brynn messaged Kayla and asked where she was so he could come pick her up. Based on these messages and Kalen Ramsey's alleged video confession, detectives suspect Stephen, Brynn, and Kalen were involved in a conspiracy to murder Kayla. Now they're hoping Brynn and Kalen will be together. They're hoping Brynn and Kalen will be together. They're hoping Brynn and Kalen will crack and tell them exactly what happened. They're hoping Kyla will be together. out. blue because Norena changed her hair color as well. So Norena changed her hair color. Her hair was blonde. It's now blue, which matches the car. Brynn says he, Steven, and Norena were in Florida until a few days ago. On their way back to Michigan, he says he convinced Steven to drop him off in Ohio so Brynn could see his girlfriend. But that was just a cover story. Brynn claims his real reason for coming to Ohio was so he could get away from Steven and go to police. Despite what he's telling them, detectives know Brynn wasn't just a pawn in Steven's murderous game, and they confront him. There's information in the investigation that says otherwise about your involvement at Boydsville, and I can tell you what it is if you want. Please. Think about the communications you had on Facebook. I think it's Facebook. I don't think it's text messages, and forgive me on that. I'm not positive. Messenger. Yes. There's a communication. She fell for my trap. Does that make sense to you? Do you remember that communication you sent out? No. Yeah, it is. It's you. It's your Facebook. I don't. Looting my trap. Let me ask you this. On a scale of one. I'm already in there because I told you. On a scale of one to ten. Ten being you telling me everything that happened, and zero being you lying about everything. Where are we on that scale? I'm a ten. You're not a ten. I am a ten because I drove there, and I told you what the f*** I did, and I told you what happened. Yes, but to communicate. Here's my problem. Is that. I have no reason to lie to you. The detective points out another hole in Brynn's story. Kaylin Ramsey's alleged confession. The one that Brynn and Steven recorded. So why are the, why are the videos of Kaylin saying that she shot this girl? How did those come about? I'm gonna tell you about that. So we were in the apartments, and remember I told you I confronted Steve? Like, yo, why'd you do what you did? You know? Well, Kaylin was acting weird after I said some s*** like that. After he went in the room, about an hour later, the day, that whole day, Kaylin acted really weird. You know, leg shaking, you know, fist pumping, you know, red, pacing around, sweating, didn't seem right. So when we left for Florida, I called her on an iPhone. You've seen the videos. It was on a call, and I interrogated the s*** on her. What you got is what I got. Okay, so you're telling me there's no editing to any of those videos? No. I don't even know how to do that s***. I don't know how to do that s***. Okay, so, uh, so she's basically confessing to a crime that you know for a fact that Steve Bales did. Yeah. Right? Basically. Basically, she's taking the rap for somebody else. So, does that make sense to you that she would confess to a crime that you said you witnessed Steve Bales do? No. Only if she was threatened. Okay. So, are you, did you witness any of that? Yeah. That just, that's one of my beliefs because I was threatened by him. The detective senses Brynn is lying again, so he goes back to the night of the crime. Who else was there? Steve. So, why is he not in jail? Who else was there? Steve. Besides Steve. And Kayla. I thought only one there. And Kayla. And who else? Nobody. Yes, they were. The heirs to you don't work either. Yeah, they are. Who? That's what I'm asking you. And I'll try and vote. It looks like you have a lawyer because this is, this is irritating. Okay. I didn't, I didn't want to irritate you, but again, I was trying to. I told you what I did. Okay. All right. Even though Brynn refuses to cooperate any further, detectives are confident they're getting closer to the truth about what really happened to Kayla Sadowski. The following day, as the search for Stephen Bales and his wife, Norena, intensifies, detectives sit down with Kaylin Ramsey and her lawyer. Do you know why I want to talk to you today or why we want to talk to you today? I do not. Okay. So, there are people who are alleging that you are responsible for Kayla's death. And I'm going to ask you straight, is that true? No. It's not true. Okay. I know nothing about her death. Absolutely nothing. Okay. Who do you think is responsible for her death? Stephen Bales. Why? Because he's threatened to kill her too. How do you know? I heard him on, on the phone with somebody saying, I'm going to kill her. Okay. Do you remember a talking to Steve and Brynn on the phone? Um, you were on FaceTime and they were talking about Kayla's death. Do you remember that? I do not. Okay. Would it surprise you to, if I told you, and again, I'm not lying. Uh, if I told you they recorded you saying that you killed Kayla, would that surprise you? Are you serious? Because I would never kill anybody a day in my life. Another detective joins the interview and he plays the video Brynn gave police. The perfect lunch combo. That first bite of your favorite sub followed by ice cold Pepsi. Add a couple of friends. And now that's next level. Suddenly the laughs get louder. The stories keep flowing and the food tastes better because Pepsi brings out more flavor, more fun, and more of the moment. Food deserves Pepsi. Tammy regularly hauls stuff to her kids at college. That's why she shops at BJ's wholesale club, saving up to 25% off grocery store prices, beef jerky, microwave meals, laundry pods. Even they can't screw up. Have you met my kids? And with BJ's gas, she gets there for less. They call me the road warrior. This is your home road warrior mom. Home of the save. Join for just $20 at bjs.com slash mesquite and save 10 cents per gallon for six months. Open soon. Limited time offer new members only. BJ's home of the save. But Kaylin insists her so-called confession isn't what it seems. Things literally tell you're trying to set me up. I've never killed anybody. That was all coerced. I saw a lie right there. Okay. They maybe say all that. How do they make you say all that? They were sitting there before they left trying to rehearse things. Okay. And then I guess before they started recording. They were rehearsing it with me without me even knowing it. What do you mean they were rehearsing with you? Telling me to say all this stuff. What did they tell you to say? Exactly what was said in those videos. So tell me about that whole conversation because I guess I'm not understanding because if I knew someone were dead, right? Right. Hypothetically. And if someone were saying, hey, I want you to say, we're going to be talking to taste them. Let's rehearse this. I want you to say you shot her. Is that logical for you to say? Okay. Yeah. Let's have a game. That's not really logical. And I don't know that anyone's going to believe that. And again, this is your chance because you can, I will not make promises, but this might be your chance to help yourself and say, all right, look, this is what happened because there's no doubt. I'm being truthful. There's no doubt. You know, more, there's absolutely no doubt, but you were not the mastermind here. Okay. Don't take the fall for this whole thing. Kaylin requests to speak with her attorney in private. After a short break, she agrees to tell detectives what she says actually happened. Once you talk about what happened, I'm 15. Okay. You said he had finally done it. Okay. And I looked at him like, why? And what did he say? He said, I killed Kayla. Okay. Because she owed me money. I don't know the exact amount. I don't know what for. What did he tell you? What more did he tell you though? That's all he told me. All he said is he killed Kaylin. He didn't say how or when or where. Okay. So how does that explain the video? He said he'd kill me if I didn't do it on those videos. When I didn't do those videos, he said he'd kill me. Kaylin maintains she's a victim in all of this too, but detectives call her bluff. I've been doing this job for a long time, but so is he. Can we clean this way to start over and get the full story here? Because right now, Kaylin, that's not it. You're giving me half truths there. Let's start from the beginning. Help me help you. You want to talk to me again? Had they been done for today? Okay. Okay. My stress level's getting too high. They're slowly making me sick. Kaylin shuts down the interview, and detectives decide to let her go for now. Several weeks go by, and Stephen Bales and his wife, Norena, remain. mane on the lamb. In the meantime, detectives locate something else they've been searching for, Stephen's black mercury. Based off intel from his landlord, police track the vehicle to Stephen's mother's house in Michigan. They seize and search the vehicle, and they find more incriminating evidence. On the front passenger fender, they find smudges of an oily liquid substance that appears to be the same liquid substance found on Kayla's body. Samples of the substance are collected from the vehicle and sent to the crime lab for analysis, and the results are a match. Weeks later, detectives get the break they've been waiting for. Cell phone records indicate Stephen and Norena are hiding out at Norena's cousin's house in New Hanover County, North Carolina. With the help of U.S. Marshals, Michigan State Police make their move. After a short standoff, Stephen Bales and his wife Norena are arrested and taken into custody. The next day, detectives sit down with Stephen, and they don't mince words. We've been working this case, you know, when she was found, so we've had a team of detectives. That's all over Facebook. Okay, so we've had a team of detectives working on this since March 2nd, okay? We know, and I'm just letting you know ahead of time, because I'm a very candid guy, right? So we know everything about you, we know everything about Brynn, we know everything about Kaylynn, so the reason why I'm telling you this is we'd love for you to fill in some details, but if you tell us any lies, both of us immediately are going to know. Like, immediately. If you tell us a half-truth, we're immediately going to know. Does that make sense? So when we talk here, honestly, if you're planning on lying, even a little one, let's end it now. I would rather you just walk out now. I want to say, I did not kill that girl. Okay. Me and my wife were on our honeymoon, and that's when you guys started calling me, and that's when you called me that day. You told me you're in Arizona? Yeah, I went to Arizona. Why'd you tell me you're in Arizona? Because my mom told me, she's like, just ignore everybody, just ignore Facebook, just go and have fun with your wife, have fun on your honeymoon. Ignore everybody. Just tell them where you're at, just tell them somewhere where you're at. So I said, okay, I'm made up in Arizona, so everybody would leave me alone. That first bite of your favorite sub, followed by ice-cold Pepsi. Add a next level. Suddenly, the laughs get louder, the stories keep flowing, and the food tastes better. Food deserves Pepsi. That's why she shops at BJ's Wholesale Club, saving up to 25% off grocery store prices. Beef jerky, microwave meals, laundry pods, even they can't screw up. This is your home, road warrior mom. Home of the save. Open soon. Limited time offer, new members only. BJ's, home of the save. We were in Florida the whole time, and then we came back, and then we had nowhere to go. So I'm back. So it was Michigan we were doing, and that's when I had, we were coming to talk to you, and I was like, I'm going to go to Michigan. I'm going to go to Michigan. I'm going to go to you. Me and Norena. But the plans changed. Stephen says that's when Brynn convinced him to go to Ohio so they could meet up with Brynn's girlfriend and lay low for a while. But when they got to Ohio, Brynn went AWOL, and that's when Stephen realized he'd been duped. So I'm like, they tried to set us up, and they tried to set us up. So we get in the truck, and we wait until we leave. Right while we're leaving, three spotter cars come up in the gas station. But we were leaving. So we, Norena's like, well, I have a cousin in North Carolina. So my God, I just left Frank, Carolina. I'm sorry. I must go to North Carolina. It's the best time to look there. I got it down some. I'm going to be there for like maybe four days, five days. So I guess they pinged my phone or something. They said that I heard a little doctor's talking. They pinged my phone. So you know Kayla Sadowski? That's my next girlfriend. We, me and her, have had past for years. Tell me about it. I mean, I miss that girl, but she's just, she's a handful. She's like, in her, we always argued all the time. About what? Just, just anything. Like, she'd get jealous if I'm talking to somebody. Like, if I'm talking to a cousin that's a female, she would think I'm cheating on her. And then she would threaten me, like she could kill me. How long did you date her? It was off and on. So. So frail. I mean, she was like, she, well, she was always my queen bee. She was always my queen bee. So you really loved her? Yeah, I really did. I really, and I still do. Were you upset with her specifically about, say, did you blame her for going to prison or anything like that? No, because that, you want to know the funny thing about that? She put me in prison for a year. Said that I choked her, that I slammed her against the wall. She lied because I was messing with her sister at the time. So you don't really, you didn't blame her? You didn't blame her for putting you in prison? No, because the lawyer, after they dropped the charges, said, you know, we can put her under a prison now, right? I said, I'm a better person. Sure. This is where my exact way. I want this to be dead. I want it, I want it gone. And you love her? I love her. Well, let me ask you this. Do you know why you want to talk to each day? Yeah. About what? Because, because of what Caitlin did to her. Okay. So, um, I'm going to ask you straight up. Are, were you involved in the planning and execution of her murder? No, I wasn't. I was not. So you were not involved in the planning and execution of, of Kayla's death? No, I was not. Stephen swears he wasn't even in town when Kayla was murdered. He says that he, Norena, and Brynn had already left town for their honeymoon trip to Florida. Okay. And you got married when? The 14th. So the night before. So you got married the night before? Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day. No, no question. All right. So have you ever been to the old Boysville facility? One time. When was that? I had it like 20 years ago. 20 years ago? Okay. So, um, and you mentioned that you left for your wedding on, in the afternoon of February 15th, or I should say, would it surprise you to know that we had a Facebook conversation between you and Brynn at Boysville that night? No, you don't. I can guarantee you we do. Well, that's where I need my lawyer then. Okay. Sounds good. Because I know that's a lie. Oh, it's a guarantee. You'll, you'll see that. It's not a lie. The only thing that's not a lie is what you've been telling me since we sat down. Just like Brynn and Kaylin, Stephen refuses to admit the truth about Kayla's murder. But unlike her husband, Norena decides she's done lying. You tell me everything you know about Kayla's death. Everything. Okay. From the very beginning. So this is what actually what happened. Okay. Norena names Stephen, Brynn Smith, Kaylin Ramsey, and Stephen's stepdaughter, 23-year-old Sierra Bemis, as the perpetrators. You did not have just that. And who's dead? Sierra Bemis, Brynn Smith, Kaylin Ramsey. Kaylin? Kaylin, yeah. Um, Steve, they took her and got placed up there on a meadow. Is it, if I give you the, don't tell me if it's wrong. I might hear, is it called voicemail? Yes. Okay. So, Brynn or Brynn was talking to Kayla on Facebook. Yep. Like they're together. Yep. And he said they got her. Who got her to go to voicemail? Brynn, Brynn and Kaylin. How did Brynn and Kaylin get her? Because Steve, Steve and Brynn, Kayla, Kaylin, they all went to get her from where she was at. Okay. So, Steve, Brynn, Kaylin, Sierra went in the little black car to pick up Kaylin. Is that what you're saying? Did they go all together in that car to pick her up? And how do you know this? Because when they, when they left, left me at the house, they told me everything. Okay. So they would pick her up and then what happened? And then they called one of the buddies, Alex, I don't know who that's named, but he had the accident, but actually they went, they had to do it. Using Stephen's cell phone records, detectives identify Alex as 26-year-old Alexander Faco. So he had to, when did he, did he give them the gun? When did he drop it off at the apartment? Okay. And did he know what it was going to be used for? Yeah. Do you know what caliber it was? I believe it was 22. Okay. All right. So let's back up here now. So, and correct me if I say anything wrong. So, Brent, Steve, Kevin, and Sierra all got dressed in black. They jumped in the little, was it the Mercury? Okay. Little Mercury to go pick up Kayla. Is that correct? And to bring her and Boise. Sure. Do you know how they all got her to get in the car with them? That car, I don't know if I was in there to see it. Okay. Norina says Stephen deliberately chose his Mercury because Kayla had ridden in it before. So Steve said that he wanted to pick her up in that. And correct me if I'm wrong. I don't want to put words in your mouth. Right. Steve told you that he wanted to pick her up in that car because she'd been in it before and her DNA was in it. Exactly. And so that would help to, to, uh, avoid police. Yeah. And, uh, yeah, I'm guessing because he didn't want to get caught. Do you know who shot her? Kaylynn. How do you know that Kaylynn shot her? Well, I do have videos on my phone if you want to see the video. Are those the ones where they're at, that Steve and Brynn are asking for questions? Yes. Well, we know about that. Besides, and I'll look at those videos in a second, but besides those videos, how do you know that she shot her? That Kaylynn shot Kayla? Because he called me. They told me about it. Who called you? Steve. And when did he call you? Uh, he called me before they killed her. And what did he tell you? He told me that. We got her. We got her in the right spot. We got, we got what we needed. And Steve off, walked back from, from Kaylynn's, Kaylynn's way. And Kaylynn shot her. But was he the, organizing this whole thing? Was he the one that kind of, uh. That first bite of your favorite sub, followed by ice cold Pepsi. Add a couple of friends, and now that's next level. Food deserves Pepsi. Home of the Save. Join for just $20 at BJ's dot com slash mesquite, and save 10 cents per gallon for six months. Open soon. BJ's. Home of the Save. Trolling it and telling people to do this? Yeah. Okay. Steve said the reason why I would be out here with her is because, um, she put, she put me in prison for two years. Norena tells detectives that Kaylynn had her own reasons. One reason for going along with Steven's murder plot. She said the reason why I'm killing her is because of what she said about my son. Did she say that before or after Kayla was dead? Before. According to Norena, Kaylynn and Kayla got into a big fight over Christmas. Okay, so sometime after Christmas, there was a conversation, an argument between Kayla and Kaylynn. And they were arguing about what? I don't know what they were arguing about. I just don't know if they were arguing. I don't know exactly what they were arguing about. I heard, I was a witness. And Kayla stated what? Kayla stated that she wanted to kill her son. Kaylynn's son? Yeah, my son. And what did Kaylynn say at that time? Kaylynn said, "I'm gonna kill you, and you respect it." With the likely motives established, detectives circle back to more details of the actual crime. What happened, though? What's the next thing you know if that happens? The next thing I know what happened, um, they covered her with tarp. They covered with her, uh, they covered with, um, one of those file cabinets, one of those doors where you get, like, one of those things. Okay, a file cabinet and door? Yeah, um. You said a file cabinet or a door? File cabinet. Um, they, uh, they used a shower, a shower curtain. They used a shower curtain to cover her up. They put lotion on her, like, something lotion, all over her body. Um, they did a lot of stuff to make her smell the best smell. To what, to mask the smell? Yeah. This explains the substance found on Kayla's body and on the fender of Steven's Mercury. And then, uh, they all came back and, you know, the same much. I mean, they did what they did and then they came back, but none of us didn't say nothing, nothing after that. And then we left for our honeymoon to Florida. Norena says when they learned via Facebook that Kayla's body had been found, Steven ordered her to dye her hair and he tried to disguise himself, too. He dyed his, he shaved his head, he dyed his beard black. Black, okay. Um, he's gay. Okay, did he get contacts at all? No. Okay, did he do anything to the car that, uh. Yeah, he painted it blue. Spray paint. Okay, what color did he spray paint? Blue. Why didn't he spray paint? Because he didn't want his part to be found. Okay, did he do anything with the license plate? No. And Norena reveals she was with Steven and Brynn when they called Kalen and recorded her confession. Did she know she'd be recorded? No. Okay. Alright, and why did you, why did they want to get her to confess? Because Steven wanted to actually kill Kayla. So were they trying to get themselves out of trouble? Yes, basically. Alright, um, who was the person, if you could name one person, the head person that planned this whole thing out to kill Kayla, who was it? Steve. Steve. Did Steve convince Kayla to shoot her? Was he the one? And Steve got the gun from Alex? Okay, and Steve, did he convince Sierra to go and help Alex? Yep. Did you see him do that? Yep. Did Steve convince Brynn to assist him as well? Yep. Okay. So far, everything Norena has said lines up with the evidence, but there is no evidence that the gun was used. No evidence that the gun was used. In total, six people are arrested and charged in connection to the murder of Kayla Sadowski. In 2024, Kaylin Ramsey and Brynn Smith both plead no contest to second-degree homicide. A judge sentences them each to 40 to 60 years in prison. Norena Bales pleads no contest to second-degree homicide. She is sentenced to 13 1⁄2 to 30 years in prison. Sierra Bemis also pleads no contest to second-degree homicide. She is sentenced to 18 to 30 years in prison. Alexander Faco pleads guilty to tampering with evidence and three counts of accessory after the fact to a felony. He is sentenced to 5 to 10 years in prison. The lone holdout is Stephen Bales. He pleads not guilty to first-degree homicide and conspiracy to commit homicide. But between the evidence against him and the testimony of Norena, Sierra, and Alexander, his fate is sealed. In March of 2024, Stephen Bales is found guilty on all charges and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. At his sentencing, Kayla's mother addresses the court, saying, "Six people, and not one, had any compassion to stop the others. People who are your friends turn out to be predators and murderers." Today, all that remains of the crime scene is an empty lot, and a small cross placed there in Kayla's memory. It's a touching, yet haunting reminder of her life, and the future of her family. future she was robbed of. Home of the Save. Open soon. BJ's Home of the Save.