The Elizabeth Journals

Jeff Shane. As always, it's important to note that George Wagner has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His father, Billy Wagner, whose child is upcoming, has also pleaded not guilty to all charges. Hours of testimony by investigators and relatives have painted a dark picture of the Wagner family and the contentious custody battle between Jake Wagner and Anna

Rodin over their daughter. Today, one of the most mysterious and least known figures involved in the case takes the stand Elizabeth Armor, Jake Wagner's ex wife, who we met in Alaska. We've reached out to her before, but had never spoken directly with her. We've only heard from Elizabeth on the occasion she posted to social media. Like Tabitha Clayton, George Wagner's ex wife, Elizabeth is one of the few people uniquely positioned to discuss the dynamics of the close

knit Wagner family. The murder trial of George Wagner the fourth continued in Pike County today with new testimony from the ex wife of Jake Wagner. It was one of the most anticipated moments of George Wagner's trial. When Elizabeth armor entered the courtroom, George Wagner's eyes followed her. He glared as she walked across the room and took her seat to be sworn in. Sorry, nervous, I've said this before.

We give him a lot of that particular chair. So we'll just speak this so and if I say anything that you don't look to that understand, or is a confusing question, just let me know that. Okay, can you please sea dream and started. Last name. My name is E. Elizabeth Armor. My last name is A R. M. E. R. The twenty nine year old spoke softly as she described growing up in a religiously conservative community in eastern Tennessee

and what led to her move to Alaska. I grew up in a Machelevelite community for most of my teen years, and because of that, I did not have a high school education, since they would go to eighth grade. And so friends of mine in from the same room that I lived on that I had kind of grown up

with a little bit. We're working with the church there in Alaska that had like a parish school, and so they had offered to help me get my high school education because I was interested in pursuing a more standard kind of lifestyle. Even though Elizabeth wanted a more traditional life, she still stayed close to her conservative religious roots and attended a fundamentalist Baptist church in Alaska where she met the Wagner's how did you come to start attending that church?

So the particular church was the church that my friends from Tennessee were attending, and that at the church which had the school as part of it, and the teachers at that school were going to give me classts after school to help me get up to see this gd and so I was going or just you know, because my friends are okay, were very involved in the church. Above the watch gave a MDDU. I worked in the nurseries sometimes, and I say with the choir because I loved to sing um. I hoped one of the teachers

with a like a Christmas program the church for them. Okay, while you were there in attending Matt Church, did you come to learn or know some individuals known as the family? I did. The Wagner family moved from Ohio to Alaska in the summer of twenty seventeen, a little more than a year after the murders. Elizabeth met them through the church shortly after they arrived. And you tell us what would your first encounter with one more? My first memory

of the Latners was Drake and Angela. People badly, but I just remember Jake and Angela and the children walking into church, and I remember thinking they were acohol with the child. I think you have any interactions with them at that time or Rebecca's an observation. It's just an observation, okay. And then with their another time where you had another awareness of that they're one of their one or more

of them. So my next memory of the one there's one so that I had come out of the nursery for taking care of the children, and I looked down the hallway and looked like Jake was at the other end in the hallway kind of noticing me. And then remember like feeling nervous. But I didn't really have experience with any kind of dating or anything like that, so I thought made him was attracted to him because I was. It was just an intense failing. Jake later found her

on Facebook and asked Elizabeth out. Despite her interest in Jake, Elizabeth told him she wasn't comfortable going out with someone she didn't know. So what happened next? So he made a point of introducing himself to me personally next time when he was at church and wanted to jab me in the gym. Soon after Jake and Elizabeth began dating. Their life as a couple revolved around the church and the small community they lived in. Sometimes we would go out and get meals, just her local. I wasna with

bastood restaurants. I remember getting ice cream him thinking it for walks, and you would sometimes just go for a dive. Okay, was there a point where you learned that there were some negative information? We are in Jay in the same way. Yes, so sure that they're so Lemer started coming to the church.

The pastor of the church basically in front of the church and Um saying that he had known them in Ohio and that there was some kind of news story out about UM and that they had been bothered by the news, and that because they've been bothered by the news, they moved to Ohio to Alaska and that we should not really pay attention to the news about them and just welcome them into the community. And did you also asked for you. Jake offered an explanation of it as well.

He did, and what did he back? He said, basically what the pastor had that his family had been had god by the news media, that they had there was some scandal where he grew up, that was I think ex girlfriend had been murdered and that people were putting him under suspicion because he had dated her, and that that was one it was the news story. Act. Okay, again, did you did you more exact those explanations from the

pastor and from Jake? I did because the family I was loving with was ex law enforcement and so they talked with them about it and they said that basically, if there had been any truth to these stories, they would have already been rested since it had been two years time. As Jake and Elizabeth's relationship grew more serious, Elizabeth meant more of his family. She also witnessed firsthand

the family dynamics. So when they met them, basically what I remember from going to their house was that everybody was yelling. That was my impression that everybody was yelling, and he said there was, Yeah, tell me about that. Um, well, just seem like everybody was really angry and stressed and that they were all shouting. I hadn't really heard people shout that lovely in my life. And I remember Jake saying that they were stressed and that you know, everybody

was stressed. Okay, and Katy tell us, Um, was there a point were who were relationship got serious? Jake, nine months after I met him, he asked me to marry him. Initially, Jake promised Elizabeth a long engagement so they could continue to get to know each other, but according to Elizabeth, he kept changing his timeline and pressured her to marry quickly.

So Jake go changing the nine wine so like. Initially he said it would be engaged for two years, and then as time went on, he kept giving reasons why, Ah, well, we have to move the data all we have to move the data up. And he just kept doing that over and over and over and over. And you know, here I am in the middle of making wedding plans and then suddenly I have to move, and I'm busy

and trying to manage everything. And he just kept moving the day blah blaf until literally it was doctor and ultimately what was the reason as to why it happy? That time he said that he was moving and knowing basically break it off or coming them. Jake told Elizabeth his entire family planned on moving to a farm in Missouri to raise camels and pigs, and that they would have to get married quickly, which they did. He tell us, what happened up on your way night? Since I grew

up Polish, basically I wasn't actually Amish. What I grew up in that kind of lifestyle, that community, very so their lifestyle. I had to David anybody um and didn't have any experience with men, and so I had requested in no in certain terms, that we not consummate marriage on that night, which Jake had agreed to, but they not honor after forcing Elizabeth to have sex on their wedding night. Elizabeth says Jake demanded access to all of her personal information. And would you say he asked for

your personal information? What kind of personal information are you talking about? I think account access numbers, my social Security card numbers, my phone pass code, and at the same time, you also, like saint my phone with his so that you could see all of my cons and texts. She also had to sign agreements prior or any time. Yes, I remember in jalone them asking me to sign a paper that basically my understanding was that it was to keep me from trying to get custody of any event

of the divorce and what any event of lone divorce? Okay, and you did actually sign, correct, I did. But Jake Wagner's desire to control his new wife didn't stop there on your wedding night. Did he also discuss with you that you should not have contact with your feeling? He did, and tell me about that. So two of my brothers um in their early childhood and sexually experimented with me, and it was quite young. My family didn't have um

like sex education. So they were both of the age of ten, and so the first one had kind of approached me inappropriately when I was three or four years old, and then not a lot of completely different occasions when I was seven years old, And so because of that, Jake asked me to cut contact with my family on my wedding night, your entire family, or I remember it as my entire family. The day after the wedding, all of the Wagners accept its newest member, Elizabeth, left by

car from Missouri. A week later after sorting out her passport. Elizabeth joined the entire family Jake, George, Angela, Billy, and the children living in one small, cramed hotel room. Elizabeth was horrified at the living situation and tried to leave, but when she left the overcrowded hotel room to call her brother for help, Jake found her and brought her back. So when I got back to the hotel room, everybody

was agitated. Angela, George, Jake that kind of confronted me about having left the room by myself, and I said that it wasn't really safe for me to leave the room by myself because news reporters might be, you know, I'm trying to bother me, or the need to talk to every more something like that than I needed to only room with someone with me. The Wagner's time in Missouri was short. Even though Jake promised Elizabeth they would never move back to Ohio because of the news coverage

and the police investigation. The family returned a few days after failing to find a farm in Missouri. I was unhappy about it because Jake had basically promised me we were never going back to Ohio because of the news story. But after being in a hotel for I thought anything might be better. Okay. Life in Ohio was just as cramped and chaotic as ever, with the entire Wagner family living under one roof. Tensions were always near a boiling point.

Can you describe to as the family dynamics when you were learning there that between Jacob, George and Angela, I'm probably they need to bat with each other. How are decisions made all that? Okay? So usually interactions were strength as far as I remember, where they were usually highly

stress and emotional angry. Um Again, the shadow continued. The decisions were typically made as a group, so they would discuss what they were going to do, commune decision, and then that so anybody would do they make improof decisions. Though she was now a member of the Wagner family, Elizabeth was often asked to leave the room. Angela and George Wagner particularly did not trust her. Can you tell us about those discussions weirding with her? How did occur?

Usually they would happen in the kitchen. Um. I wasn't usually asked to join them. I just remember that I would hear people discussing things in the kitchen, and because it was so loud to hear people talking and all about what they're going to do so their plans, or how they were going to answer certain questions when people ask them, how do we done these certain finances? All

that in the kitchen. So those were the general ties you would hear the assess they would talking about finances, how they would answer media questions or I think of that, how they were mentioning BCLI questions or police questions about the children or about their clothes and shoes. Are angries

off the children again? Okay, here's Stephanie and Jeff. She makes mention of growing up kind of amish like in her words, and I assume that means that she was a bit insulated and that she was maybe raised in a bit of a bubble, and on the one hand, that would make her a prime target for a family of predators because she's potentially naive and unaware of the

outside world. And on the other side of that, we've also heard rumors that some of the Wagners were very paranoid that she was working for law enforcement from day one and they just didn't trust her. So the fact that she's opted in to be recorded and have video to tell her story is extremely big and very brave. Obviously, we can't know what she's feeling, but to face George Wagner in court and to put her face and likeness out there, I think says a lot about where she is.

It's also interesting Steph. Obviously we don't know what George Wagner was feeling, but we do know that he rarely looks up or shows any sort of emotion, and he definitely looked up at Elizabeth and almost looked like he was glaring, and he then tracked her as she walked into the courtroom. So if we're trying to surmise what he might be feeling, he definitely has some strong feelings about the fact that she's testified. One discussion stuck out.

Elizabeth remembered the Wagners talking about creating a bulletproof bulldozer to knock down prison walls if any of the Wagners landed in jail, and she remembered them talking about key aspects of the investigation, tell us what discussion did you hear about? And mostly remembered them talking about tennis shoes and saying something about, like some of tennis shoes from Walmart, but that were ridiculous because they wore boots, and they

kind of like impressed that only multiple times. Do you think we even buying tensions and boots because we were boots and they rentioned it multiple times. Going back to your living with the Waers, didn't you whatever had conversations with you about the sexual relations you were having with Jake And yes, okay, I can you remember what she what specifica she discussed to you. So I remember her asking if Jake and I were trying to have child and telling me that it wasn't a good time for

to have your child. And I remember her asking if Jakee and I had sexual relations with in the room, and I remember her suggesting that that was inappropriate. And I remember Jake and I having that discussion, and I remember telling them that I did not think it was appropriate and that he did not listen. So you basically read that I was great. Yes, can you expect that to Jake? Yes? Angela ever a huge of things free already, I went, Yes, if I remember it was food poisoning.

She accused me of telling intentionally food poisoned the children. And was there a time when she accused Yes, there was a time when it was brought to my attention my Jake that she said that I had inappropriately touched and can you tell us what happens as a result of that. So when Jake came to me and told me that his mom but that I had touched inappropriately, I was also informed that because of that aliation, George wasn't comfortable with my living in the house, and then

I needed to go somewhere else. Ian, can you tell us did you ever have a conversation with both Jakie and Angela about these specific alliations? Yes? Can you tell us what happened during that conversation or what we said. Elizabeth described this heated conversation as the final showdown between her and the Wagner family and the moment she knew she had to get away from them as soon as possible. Jake said that he didn't believe I had done it, but that you know, I need to explain myself because

Angela believed that inappropriately. She was acting very high mighty so this week, and I was very shocked, and I remember Jake questioning you, very starred me, like did you do this? And he laid it out very clearly to me that if I had done it, that that the right thing to do would be to create Lucille the baseball bat from the Walking Dead and string me up in the barn, beat me to death with the baseball bat, both those the barn, let it down and hunt down

and kill my family. And then he didn't do it. His mom would do it. If his mom didn't do it, his dad would do it, or George would do it, or Billy or you know. He just kept saying, any of them would be willing to do this because it being the ruddy Elizabeth says she went to her room, packed her bag and called a friend for help. I was making plans to leave the house immediately. Us friend, Okay, we're going to take a break. We'll be back in a moment, Elizabeth Armor was determined to flee Jake and

the rest of the Wagners. Elizabeth began pushing back against the Wagner's rules, taking walks to the library and the local cemetery. She also kept a diary and one screen. One of my journal entries, all right, go ahead, space in your Granddaddy. The people I live with are all right, I guess. They're constantly yelling and hitting, and not one of them understands the concept or need for privacy. Even the most private of all human doings are open for

discussion and comment. In this family. It grates on my nerves. Also, nobody seems to understand basic ownership. Okay, And he tells us, is that one of the journal entries written that was discovered by other people living in the home. Yes, and were you seeing about them in that journal? Country, I mean self speaking about George, Jake Angela, George Chicken Angela, Yeah, okay. The prosecution then Elizabeth to read another entry about the Wagner family. Dear Granddaddy, I try so hard not to

hate people. Proof of this is that out of my entire crazy, big family, there are only two people I truly hate. But now Granddaddy, there are free Daniel, Isaac, and Angela. I'm going to call her miss Angela because of the name of it's her anyways. Miss Angela is horrible for all these reasons. One she married unwisely and

believes all marriages destined to end like hers. Two she has her fingers and my husband's pocketbook and makes exorbitant demands on his salary, holding her own quote unquote, and help over his head like a glove to emphasize her demands. Three she has more say over my life right now than I do because she controls my husband through his child. Four she verbally abuses and yells insinuations at my husband,

which he doesn't understand what I do. Five she dislikes and ridicules books were how to read less that that says. Six because she is a manipulative liar, she is teaching our daughters to manipulate and lie. Seven My husband would listen to her far rather than to me, because she has raised his daughter thus far. Eight she believes me to be a replica of Tabby and treats me as such. She has insinuated several arms that she expects me to

poison her Nine. She has repeatedly declared that she will see to it that will always prefer her to be with her and never accept me as her mama. Ken. She has threatened my husband with custody battles. Eleven. The most horrible thing is I have her totally within my power. All I would have to do would be to tell people she did it to get away from her abused mother, and I would get her the lifetime sentence like that. The only thing is much as I hate the woman Scots,

it would not be true. Twelve. She loves and encourages boys Obeski. Thirteen. She treats the children's second work first in kids second, continuing the same donory entry to me to read as fourteen. She keeps tabs on me, always watching and listening to see where I am. Fifteen and having to live in her house under her direct control and condescension plan to crush her. Want to treat her only commonly and respectfully to trying to become her friend.

She's like Kwanda, so she really only respects working. I'm sorry, my handring is terrible working. Three, be nice because I'm bigger than her, or once I have her trust in friendship, slam the relationship door and shut in her face. She lines blue animals, gardening, money, money, money, her kids, grandkids, working, cooking fingers, and hospitality. She sent him about her weight and appearance. She either was physically abused of her else

mistreated and her childhood. Basically all bosses want agins. Elizabeth tried to hide her diary from the Wagners, but they later found it and confronted her. What they asked you to do to these items? Would say the barge with them. I think it was Angela Jake, and I feel like George was near life, possibly read up as well by I don't remember exactly that some of those things for me and right because the media or the police or somebody might get a hold of what I had wrote.

And so they asked if I would burn the general and flush it down the toilet, it's not too it than I did. The Wagner's demand for control over Elizabeth led to more threats against her life, indicating it on the way Jake indicated should cut out contact with the same way, um but forever a time where he told you what would happen if one of them showed up at your house? Yes, and what did he say? He said that he would kill them. Determined to leave, Elizabeth

began making arrangements with her father to escape. On July six of twenty eighteen, less than four months after Mary and Jake, Elizabeth fled the Wagner's script, can you tell us what happened on the day to do that? We all have the parking lot. I walked into the Walmart, change my girls halfway through the Walmart one minute, changing station so that I wouldn't hold the same and left out the back through the entire section. Because I was

pretty they were following me. I was concerned and go into a rented car, picked the same corn out of my phone because I was concerned I was being tracked. My father was there in the car and we drove them a bunch of sun roads and hit in the car for a period of time, and then when we knew we weren't being followed, we drove to a restaurant where I swached vehicles. My friend depicted me off and to clean the rest of the way to Virginia. Elizabeth

Armor fled the Wagners and initiated a divorce. George Wagner's defense team Cross examined her and questioned Elizabeth about her relationship with George and how serious a person he was who didn't really know him at all in him last that church that you saw, Yeah, and did you add long conversations with him at the church. Yeah, So you met him at the church once or twice, were introduced him after Jake, after Jake had proposed to you, and then you helped. That's kind of the extent of your

kindtact with George when you were in a last that's fair, Harry. Okay. Soon after escaping to Virginia, Elizabeth testified she was contacted by BCI agents and asked note only about Angela and Jake, but also George. During cross examination, the defense question Armor about her interviews with BCI agents after she left the family, asking her whether she thought those threats were real during

that interview, right during the interview in Virginia, Virginia. Yes, And I think that one of the things about door life is that right. Yes. As Elizabeth answers from across the courtroom, George Wagner has seen smiling, he seems to enjoy being described this way. Okay, yes, perhaps, yes, all right, Topics that you've disapproved them. He didn't approve thee right. They were quite prude, very rush right, you want to

do things about jewels. But then not only would he tell you the jokes or Steve jokes, um, not only would he say these jokes, but he said other things. And you came to an opinion that you've thought he was kind of Look, blowhard is that kind of saying? And we have to look up the definition of blowhard? But that sounds reasonable, Okay. He would say things he really didn't. That person had block off Steve. I'm not sure if he meant them or not. I don't want

to infer his meeting. And when you talked to the officers in Virginia, they asked me, can you tell us about George? I think he told him, isn't that your kind of person? He seems like a sweet kind of guy, but not the kind of person I would feel safe because he's because of this the best interest in hors and not discriminate choices in that area. That would be my reason for that feeling comfortable with definitely one of my reasons. Here's Jeff speaking with forensic expert Joseph Scott Morgan.

What do you make of George kind of smiling. He shows so little emotion, and he sort of lights up when he's just talking about his sexist jokes and calling woman horse and stuff. Is that I mean that must be that's a pretty bad look. Yeah, it is, particularly when you're sitting there and you know you've got a panel of twelve people that are trying to sub what's going to happen with the rest of your life. You know,

you're in a five for your life. Literally. It's powerful in the sense that you see George's behavior exhibited before them. So if it wasn't accented before, then is dam will accented after that? When he smirks about this, maybe giggles a little bit, you know, and you know in a very you know, the same way that some middle school child. It's like he has no self awareness at that point. He has no self awareness of what he's up. We're going to take a break. We'll be back in a moment.

George Wagner's defense attorney John Parker continued to press Elizabeth about whether or not she thought George was someone she took serious or someone who simply ran his mouth about one interviewing you in Virginia, so that had been drive twenty eighteen actually ask you about George particular. They asked you, when George specifically would talk about fuck he would do? What would he say that he was going to do to those people if he got his hands on them?

I believe your response laws he would say things like I had my way, we wouldn't be hiding out like this, we would be stormy my dawns office, unting and themos you know, just blows. The agent asked you, is that what you perceived them to be? Who didn't perceive them to be viable threats? He thought? And your answer was, I thought they're just blows, just like blowing off. Do you recall it? I didn't recall that in your name.

But Elizabeth later corrected the defense lawyer and insisted that she was as scared of George Wagner as any of the others. When you left Ohio back in twenty eighteen, we were escaping from Angelas Andrew and Jean, I've belaved myself to me? Is kaping from here again? Jeff and Joseph Scott Morgan? And do you think is she in a factive witness for the prosecution? I think she is an excellent witness for the prosecution, you know, and I'm

friends with guy, as you will know. But to have this kind of circumstantial witness that's up there where they can kind of paint a picture of what life was like on the inside. You can have all the blood events in the world that you want, you can have all the ballistic evidence that you want in the world. You can see bodies ripped shreds, but when you have a person that survived, it is there to tell the tale. She's potentially nailing the coffin. More on that next time.

For more information on the case and relevant photos, follow us on Instagram at Katie Underscore Studios. The Pacton Masker is produced by Stephanie Lydecker, Jeff Shane, Connor Howell, Andrew Arnow, Gabriel Castillo and me Courtney Armstrong. Editing and sound designed by Jeff Tis, Music by Jared Aston. The Pike Damasacer

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