SOLVED_ The Twisted Case of Joleen Cummings

"When Joleen Cummings didn't pick up her children on Mother's Day 2018, her family knew something was wrong. They couldn't have imagined the truth: she had already been murdered, dismembered, and thrown in a dumpster—by the new co-worker she had just begun to suspect wasn't who she claimed to be."In this chilling true crime episode, we investigate the 2018 murder of Joleen Cummings, a 34-year-old mother of three and hairstylist at Tangles Hair Salon in Fernandina Beach, Florida [citation:1][citation:3]. The last person to see her was a co-worker named Jennifer Sybert—who promptly quit her job and fled when police arrived [citation:1][citation:6]. But Jennifer Sybert didn't exist. The real Jennifer Sybert had died as a teenager in Pennsylvania. The woman using her identity was Kimberly Kessler, a fugitive who had been missing from Butler County since 2004 and had lived under at least 18 aliases across 30 cities in 14 states [citation:3][citation:8].Kessler had been running from the FBI for 25 years [citation:4]. But she made one fatal mistake: she left Joleen's blood all over the salon. Crime scene investigators used Luminol, and the entire salon "lit up"—blood on walls, chairs, cabinets, scissors, mop handles, even a bleach bottle [citation:6][citation:8]. Kessler's internet searches included "how to dismember a body," and surveillance showed her buying an electric carving knife, gloves, and trash bags [citation:2][citation:4]. She was also seen on camera dumping heavy garbage bags into a dumpster behind the salon—bags that were never recovered [citation:6][citation:8].After a hunger strike that dropped her weight to 74 pounds and bizarre behavior including smearing feces on herself, Kessler was ruled competent for trial [citation:3][citation:6]. The jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding her guilty of first-degree murder [citation:4][citation:7]. She was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Joleen's body has never been found [citation:1][citation:5]. But justice was served. Listener discretion advised.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/red-tree-crime--6847553/support.