03x09 - Cold as Ice

[bunniefuu]

[ominous music playing]

[Maggie]
She was one of those people

who behaves like they're
instantly your friend.

It was kind of hard
to shake her.

[Sable] It was like, one minute,
"Oh, she's just a friend.

Now she's my best friend."

[Alisha]
They couldn't be more opposite.

But they did actually have
things in common -- boys.

[Sable]
Having someone to help us
escape Alaska was a big thing.

It was just a matter
of escaping the isolation.

She trusted everybody,
and I was scared for her.

[Maggie] When people go
missing in Alaska,

it can feel really hopeless.

A vicious m*rder,
from thousands of miles away.

[Leslie] I was praying to God,

"Please be some form
of good news...please."

[Sable] When I found out about
the Snapchat post, I was like,

"What the F is going on?"

[rock music playing]

[dogs barking and howling]

I was born and raised
in Anchorage.

Anchorage
is pretty desolate, right?

The winters are pretty
long and dark.

I mean, the highway
that connects from Alaska

into the Lower 48
is really long.

If you don't stop for gas
at the right times,

you'll never get gas again.

[soft techno music playing]

[Maggie] It feels like growing
up and seeing teenagers

from the Lower 48 almost felt
like a novelty because

they were so different and they
had these different lives.

They had lives that, like,
to me,

were like people on TV, almost.

Like, the people in commercials
get to do those things.

But, like,
no, we don't have an IKEA.

We don't have any of that.

[narrator] Way up north
in the last frontier,

teenage girls
are just built different.

They have to be.

I was raised in a long standing
Alaskan family.

A lot of kids and teens here
are self reliant.

We were raised
as we were foragers.

We are here to be ourselves.

We're not here
to please anybody.

It was our way of surviving.

And if there's a teenage girl
in Anchorage who embodies

the independent
frontier spirit,

it's Denali Brehmer.

Denali is the highest mountain
in North America,

and it matches her personality

because Denali has a very
powerful personality.

She's not a meek young woman.

Denali had a very difficult
early childhood.

As a child, Denali
had no control over her life,

and she was very self reliant.

[soft, hopeful music]

[Maggie] The time
that I first met Denali Brehmer,

would have been 2017.

She had joined cross country
running at Service High School.

Denali was very friendly,

and she was very, like,
outgoing and gregarious,

and she was funny
in kind of a quirky way.

Denali played by her own rules.
She was kind of edgy that way.

[Robin] Denali did not easily
make friends with girls.

She just seemed to like hanging
around with boys

younger than her,
including Caleb Leyland

and Kayden McIntosh.

Denali and her guys were doing

pretty typical
teenage rebellions.

They were skipping school
here and there.

They would flip off cop cars
when they went by.

They were a group of misfits
up to some mischief.

Denali, being
this boss leader lady,

enjoyed having this group
that she could really command.

And like male drones
to their queen bee,

Caleb and Kayden are loyal
and always ready to serve.

Every time I met Denali,
there was a driver,

and that was Caleb.

Caleb helped Denali
go wherever she wanted.

[Alisha] If you were her friend,

you were almost a minion.

Denali had no problem
telling people off

and doing whatever
she wanted to do.

She was a very intense person,
and if you got on her bad side,

she made sure that you knew it.

Denali might be the captain
of her own band of lost boys,

but in the fall of 2018,
a new student

at Service High School
will show her that girls play

by a different set of rules.

[Alisha]
Cynthia Hoffman transferred
into Service High School

because it was a bigger school,
more diverse, more able to meet

everyone's academic needs.

As Cynthia was going
into her senior year,

she starts going by Cece.

First time I met Cece,

I was walking down
the Service corridor

going to the cafeteria.

Cece had a very outgoing
personality,

and that was
really comforting for me

'cause I was very reclusive.

It could be tough
at Service finding

kind of where you belong,

and she brought me
out of my shell.

We did a lot of things.

We did slumber parties
with our friend, Bailey.

I first met Cece
at Robert Service High School.

She was a confident person.

She would go up to everybody
and make friends with them.

She's very, like, that loud,
bubbly person, but I absolutely

love that about her.

She liked music, boys, you know,

the normal teenager stuff.

She just wanted to have friends.

She just wanted to fit in.

[Sable]
She introduced me into anime.

There was an anime club
at Service, and she was like,

"Oh, you should come
to this club with me at lunch."

We were the misfits.

We didn't really
belong anywhere.

We just kind of
belonged everywhere.

This tight circle of friends
seemed unbreakable

until the day Cece
meets Denali at school.

Instantly,
the two girls are inseparable.

[Sable] For Cynthia,
when she met Denali,

that friendship was very quick.

It was, like, one minute
she's just a friend,

now she's my best friend.

Like, what changed there
from one minute to the next?

[Alisha] It's not surprising
that she was drawn to Denali

because she couldn't be more
opposite than Cece.

Denali was living her life
and had no rules.

I'm sure that was, kind of,
a draw for Cece

to look at someone
living that way

and have some curiosity

about getting
in trouble a little bit.

[Melissa]
The things I saw about Denali
on Cynthia's social media

was like,
"Hey, this is my new bestie.

She's really cool."

You know,
I would fight anyone for her.

I think that Cece saw Denali
as, like, a fun person

to be around, and she liked
the rebellious nature

of Denali, just because, like,
"Ooh, I can never do

this, I'll get in trouble."

[Alisha] As they start to spend
more time together

they realized they did actually
have things in common.

They like to go outdoors.

They like to talk about boys.

And Denali started to realize,
"Oh, I actually do enjoy having

a female friend."

Cynthia was interested
in dating.

She was a little more awkward
about it.

She was very much
someone who would

wait for you to make
the first move.

Cece -- she had a few crushes.

They would just get really
giggly and excited about it.

And then, if they end dating
is super fun,

but it's never very long.

[Robin]
Both Cece and Denali love boys,

but they were very,
very different.

Denali went after what
she wanted very aggressively.

Denali wanted what Denali
wanted,

and she would do
whatever it took to get it.

♪ Then I am leaving 'till I get
my dose of dopamine ♪

Cece may be 100% team Denali,

but the members of her girl
squad have... questions.

[tense music plays]

[Sable]
Denali did have a "I don't give
a [bleep] attitude," you know?

And it was very
concerning for me

to see Cynthia
with someone like that

because Cynthia was
very much eager to please...

Denali.
-[Maggie] Is one of those people

who kind of behaves like they're
instantly your best friend

and is like by your side and is
constantly talking to you,

constantly asking questions,
constantly involving themselves

in, you know,
your conversations.

It was kind of hard
to shake her.

The girls grow even closer
until the spring semester

of Cece's senior year, when
her fantasy of a true romance

finally starts to look
like a reality.

There was one boy named Zack.

They had more
of a situationship.

They would flirt
off and on, and,

"Are we an item, are we not?"

[Bailey] Cece always talked
to me about Zack.

Cece would be like,

"Zack and I
were really good at first,

but now we don't know
what's gonna happen next"

in their relationship.
But at the end of May,

she said that her
and Zack broke up.

And the reason why
shocks everybody.

Denali claimed that she ended up
sleeping with Zack.

[tense music plays]

And this led to a huge blow out.

You can imagine both sides
of Denali saying,

"I do what I want."

And Cece being,

"You're my friend,
you're not supposed

to break these, kind, of
girl code rules."

For Denali, to sleep with Zack,
I could understand Cece's anger.

Having someone betray you
like that,

I could see why that
would cause a fight.

I would be very angry,
very hurt.

For Cece, this was a line

that should not have ever
been crossed.

Many of us have had
relationships

where you tolerate
certain things,

but what you don't really
realize is,

slowly, those resentments
are building up.

Even the most patient friends
have their breaking points.

[tense music builds]

[music stops]

[Alisha] After everyone found
out about Denali and Zack,

Cece's friends began to notice
slight changes in Cece.

She'd get in her head and,
kind of,

shut down a little bit.

And that, I mean, for most of us

here in Alaska, that's normal.

We weren't raised to talk
about our feelings.

She was almost avoidant
of conflict.

I talked to Cece.

I told her that Denali probably
wouldn't be the best friend

that Cece wanted her to be.

But Cece really did believe
in that friendship.

She wanted to keep
their friendship going

as best as she could.

Cece wouldn't push back
on anything.

[Melissa]
She really cared for Zack,

but she didn't wanna,

like, be in the middle
of conflict all the time,

so she would just let it go.

[Alisha]
Cece and Denali made up.

They were able
to move on past that

and continued
with their friendship.

No one knows for sure if Denali
really hooked up with Zack.

But Cece writes it off
as a one time thing

and is ready to move on,

especially when a new guy
slides into her DM's.

[Bailey]
When she said that her and Zack
broke up,

Cece also said,

"Hey, I might have found
a new guy online named Joseph.

She wanted to find another guy
to be with.

And I'm like,
"OK, that's a little odd.

"How do you go from one person
to the next in, like,

the next week or so?"

Cece trusted everybody.

The thought of not having
anybody there

or anybody to listen
scared Cynthia.

And having that caring aspect
was very important for her.

After her blow up
with Denali over Zack,

Cece keeps her new flirtation

with Joseph under the radar.

Meanwhile,
never one to play it safe,

Denali jumps head first
into her own online romance

with a handsome stranger.

Denali went online often,
and she would try to lure

much older men.

She would say,
"I will do certain things.

If you are interested, text me."

And then she would send photos
to them for money

of her doing certain things
that they wanted her to do.

One of the men that responded
to her was named Tyler.

And Tyler was
this good looking guy

who said he was a millionaire
who lived in Kansas.

He and Denali
began corresponding.

She called Tyler "Babe"
and he called her "Angel."

She got to know him,
got to like him,

claimed she fell
in love with him.

[Alisha] In the spring of 2019.

Cece was graduating high school,
which was a huge deal.

Academics didn't come
the easiest to her,

so, for her to be graduating,
it brought out the whole family

to the ceremony.

All of her siblings
and her parents

were cheering her on.

It was a really big deal.

After Cynthia graduated
high school,

her main goal was to work
with her dad, Tim Hoffman,

at his handyman service.

Cynthia loved working
with her dad.

She loved to do the prepping,
taping everything off.

She just really loved
the hands-on learning.

She and Denali still say
they are thick as thieves,

but those who know Cece best
are starting to see cracks

in their friendship.

After graduation,
I feel like Denali and Cynthia

did become closer.

It was almost like
they were inseparable.

But a lot of the friendship
that Cece and Denali had,

it seemed very transactional.

Denali never had an issue
asking for anything.

She'd ask Cynthia
to buy her things.

"Oh, I don't have enough
for this.

"Can you buy me food?

Can you buy me..."
Just random things.

Denali saw someone that she
could have control over,

someone who she could influence.

[phone rings]

I feel like Denali might
have been unwilling

to let her have other friends.

A couple times,
I tried reaching out to her

and being like, "Hey, you wanna
hang out today?

She'd be like, "Oh, I'm hanging
out with friends."

Like, she wouldn't really
even specify

who she was hanging out with.

It was just friends
or very short, simple answers

that were very vague.

I didn't get to see her as much.

It was overwhelming to...

kind of realize that,
in a sense,

I was losing my friend.

[suspenseful music plays]

Cynthia is really into anime.

It was a tradition for us to go
together, kind of, as a group.

We'd go to Comic Con,
Senshi Con,

sometimes they call it
Arctic Con.

Cynthia always seemed happiest
at the conventions.

But that year, the two days
or three days beforehand,

she had called me
and she was like,

"Hey, I'm gonna go
with someone else."

I ended up going,

and I saw her there...

with Denali.

[suspenseful music continues]

And it was almost she wasn't
even acknowledging me.

It was very unlike her,
because usually,

when she saw people she knew,

it was, "Hey, how you doing?"

And it was almost like,
in a sense,

like she was on a leash.

She didn't feel comfortable
enough to come say hello.

And it kind of hurt.

I respected
Cynthia's friendship.

I wanted her to be able
to go out there

and make friends in the world.

But, while we were
at Senshi Con,

I had heard something
I was concerned about.

There was a couple of times
Denali would make jokes,

calling Cynthia [bleep]
to her face.

And that was
very emotional for me,

because it did hurt
Cynthia a lot.

You could kind of see it in
her face,

but she would always, kind of,
fix that mask

and make it look
like she was OK.

Cece's cold shoulder might
leave it chill,

but a true best friend

will always have
your back and lend an ear,

no matter what.

[tense music plays]

There were times where Cynthia
would have a bit of a meltdown.

She'd be very emotional.

There was one time
on a phone call

after her and Denali
had gotten in a fight

that Cynthia was like,
"Denali is mad at me.

I don't understand
what I did wrong."

And I'm like,
"What did you do wrong?"

Like, "What are we talking
about here?"

And I just remember her
repeating,

"I don't know what I did wrong.
I don't know what I did wrong."

Cece started to become like,
secretive.

Cece didn't want anyone to know
what her and Denali were,

like, fighting about,

'cause Cece wanted to try
to deal with it on her own.

And it was weird,
because we all saw that.

Cece was trying to find ways
to get out of that relationship.

And just when it seems,
Cece has decided to cut bait

with Denali, she gets an offer,

no true Alaskan girl
can refuse.

[soft, suspenseful
music playing]

[Donald]
On June 2nd, Cynthia and one
of her sisters went to the mall.

They were hanging out,
having fun,

looking for makeup, clothes,

and just, you know,
clowning around in the mall.

[Alisha]
And while she was at the mall,
she received a text from Denali

asking her if she wanted to go
on a hike that day.

So they make a plan to have
Kayden and Denali pick Cece up

from the mall and head off
to Thunderbird Falls

to take a nice and easy hike.

[Bailey] Cece always loved
hiking and outdoors.

And Thunderbird Falls was
always a popular place to go.

There's areas
in Thunderbird Falls

where it's very private.

We used to throw parties
up there as kids.

They have their own main trails
and stuff like that,

but you can get off
the beaten path,

you know, and find little
private spots on the creek.

Once Kayden and Denali arrive at
the mall,

Cece tells her sister goodbye,
and she's off.

That day,
Tim called me up and said,

"We're gonna go do a job.

Go grab Cynthia
and bring her to the job site."

So I called Cynthia.

-[cellphone rings]
-And there was no answer,

which...

was not normal.

She always answers when I call.

You just could sense
that there was something off.

I have a bad feeling about this.

[girl screaming]

[soft, suspenseful music plays]

Later that afternoon,
Timothy Hoffman is waiting

for Cece to return home
from her hike,

and he starts to get
a little nervous

because he's
not hearing from her

with their normal check-ins.

Timothy asked me
if I knew where Cece was.

And I told him, "No, but I can
give her a call and see

where she is myself."

-And every time I would try...
-[long beep on the phone]

to call Cece,
and straight to voicemail.

It was very concerning

because Cece would always
pick up her phone

whenever we need to talk to her.

Eventually, he did receive
a text from Cece...

that said, "Oh, yep, I went
on this hike,

and my friends dropped me off
at a park."

But when he tried to call,

there's no answer.

So even though he got that text,

he was already on edge,

feeling like something
was wrong.

Later on that evening,
Timothy is so concerned,

he actually does go
to the police department,

'cause he wants to file
a missing persons report.

The police were trying
to tell him that not to worry,

you know,
kids do this all the time.

He goes,
"No, you don't understand,"

You know, "My kids
check-in every two hours.

"We don't have that kind
of relationship.

"We let each other know

where we are
and what we're doing."

He told me,
"I got texts from her, but...

"she wouldn't answer
her phone if I called.

Dad calls, you answer."

[Alisha] They were not able to
take a police report that night

because number one, she was
responding to text messages,

and number two,
she was 19 years old.

She's technically an adult.
She can do whatever she wants.

She doesn't have to answer
the phone for her dad.

Every minute that Cece is
gone feels like an eternity.

And in Alaska,
time is the enemy.

[Maggie] Honestly, teens
go missing in Anchorage a lot

because of various, you know,
disasters that occur,

like a bear attack
or a moose attack.

Constantly,
there are missing flyers

for teens in Anchorage.

We definitely have a really big
issue with, like,

missing and m*rder*d
indigenous women.

One study put Alaska fourth
in the nation for missing

and m*rder*d indigenous people,
mostly women.

And that same study said

Anchorage has
the third highest number

of cases of any city
in the country.

[Maggie]
Depending on, like, what you're
doing and who you're with,

it's really easy to get,
kind of,

mixed up in sex trafficking
and also drug trafficking.

When people go missing in Alaska
and in Anchorage specifically,

it can feel really hopeless
because it's really spread out.

And so there's a lot of places
a person could go or be taken.

[ominous music plays]

Timothy did know that Cece
was supposed to be going

on a hike with Denali.

So he reached out
to Denali, going,

"You're her best friend,
you were supposedly with her
this afternoon.

What the heck is going on?"

Denali said she wanted me
to drop her off

at the Polar Bear Playground,

and she was supposed
to meet a guy.

And I don't know much
about the guy.

I'm a little bit worried
about what happened to her.

Once things fell apart
with Zack,

Cece was still
seeking that great love

that every teenage girl
is looking for.

As a teenager in Alaska,
she's online,

and she's on social media,

and it's there
that she's meeting people

from all around the world,
and really opening her eyes

to a lot of possibilities.

Could this guy Denali
is concerned about be Joseph?

The mystery man Cece
told Bailey about?

[Alisha] There had been
some boys in Cece's life

that Denali just
had a bad feeling about.

Denali had this theory
that Cece was very innocent.

You would even say naive.

And Cece was going to be
meeting up with a boy,

which was kind of scandalous,

so that's why she wouldn't
have told her father.

Was she meeting up with someone

that the family
didn't know about

and putting herself
in a really dangerous situation?

Everything was concerning.

[tense music builds]

Cece has been missing for less
than 24 hours,

so police can't pull her
phone records just yet.

But those closest to Cece
can't help worrying that Joseph

or some other guy
she met online

could have pushed her
to meet up in real life.

[Maggie] It is really hard
to get out of Anchorage,

and it can be really frustrating
and really lonely.

A lot of people would use,
like, online chat rooms

and dating to connect
with people in the Lower 48,

and some of them did go
and, like, meet those people.

[Sable] For us, having someone
to help us escape Alaska

was a big thing, um...

and it wasn't even, like,
a matter of,

like, and escaping Alaska

it was just a matter
of escaping the isolation.

Talking to the people
in the Lower 48 made us feel

a little more connected.

It made us feel like we weren't
so far away or so foreign.

[ominous music playing]

I thought that Cece was
kidnapped by this guy

named Joseph,

who probably would
have been way over her age.

I was scared for her.

[eerie music plays]

[Leslie] On June 2nd,
we had a hard time sleeping.

We were all worried sick.

We'd all stay up,
doing shifts of staying up

just to see
when Cynthia comes home.

But she never came home
that night.

[Alisha]
After a sleepless night,

the morning of the 3rd,

Tim went back
to the police station

and once again tried
to file a police report.

This time they did take
the information down

and started
that investigative process.

Given what Denali had said
about Cece's disappearance,

that when she dropped her off,
it seemed like

she was maybe gonna go meet
with a boy,

that was the first direction
everyone thought to look.

But there just wasn't really
any evidence

of a secret boyfriend.

So Timothy took it upon himself

to do what he called
"going hunting,"

and he contacted
all of his motorcycle friends

and asked them to help
in the search.

The search party
focuses their effort

on Russian Jack Springs Park,

where Denali dropped
Cece off the day before.

[Donald] We went to that park,

and I had a group of 10 people.

There's a big wooded area,

which used to be a camping area.

It starts
at the Polar Bear Park,

and we were gonna just go

comb through the woods.

We thought, you know,
if anything happened,

we'd find her.

We were all walking the trails,
calling her name.

We were trying to go
to the park and just see

if we'd seen anything,
and at that point, you know

I'm a little anxious,
but I'm also more hopeful

because we had a couple kids
come up and say,

"Hey, we think that we saw
Cynthia just here with a guy."

We're like excited
'cause we got a lead.

It did give me a little bit
of hope that everything

was gonna be OK.

"She's gonna come home,
we're gonna find her."

But the next day,
the news broke out.

[dramatic music plays]

[Alisha] While everyone is still
searching for Cece,

her uncle Don went
to Polar Bear Playground

just to look for himself,

to see if there was
any sign of her.

And what he was shocked
to find...

was nothing.

[suspenseful rumble echoes]

There were no investigators,
no police presence.

No one else was there.
And he couldn't understand why.

[Donald] A cop happened
to be in the parking lot

of the Polar Bear Park,

and I said, "How come there's
nobody out here

"from the police, you know,

searching for Cynthia?"

And they go,
"Oh, we already got news

"that Cynthia was up
at Thunderbird Falls.

And we're looking
for her there."

And that's when I knew that it
was not gonna be good.

I could just feel it
right down in my bones.

Anchorage police have received
a tip that directs them

to retrace Cece's steps
all the way back

to Thunderbird Falls.

All her family can do is wait.

Tim and I were in his office,
and he gets a knock on the door.

He goes, "I need
to step out for a minute."

[exhales] "Please."

And I just pray.
I was praying to God,

"Please be some form
of good news.

Please."

And he comes
to the door, silent,

slams the door,

doesn't say a word,

and punched a hole in the wall.

[melancholic music plays]

Tim got the news
that they found Cynthia

at Thunderbird Falls...

[sniffs]

...shot in the back
of the head...

execution style...

in the river.

And we just...

We just all cried.

We cried.

Hard. So hard.

I remember feeling,
when I found out

what had happened,
just this gut wrenching anger.

This hurt,

and this fire.

I don't remember
much after that day.

I think I locked myself
in my room for 48 hours.

And I didn't want
to be bothered.

I didn't want to talk
to anybody.

I just shut down.

[Donald] She just...

had her whole future
ahead of her.

She wanted to get married,

have kids.

She knew nothing was easy
in life,

but she just wanted
to enjoy her life.

So...

If you could just give me
a second,

-[production crew] Yes, yes.
-Oh, my God.

[Alisha] Because Denali had been
the last person known

to be with Cece, she was brought
in for questioning.

They wanted to know,
"Where did you go hiking?

Was there anyone there?
What happened?"

And what police find
is a terrified Denali,

who is finally ready to tell
a harrowing story.

[footsteps crunching leaves]

[ominous music plays]

Denali told the police
that she and Cece and Kayden

went for a walk in the woods.

Kayden said, "Let's tie each
other up and take photos."

He had duct tape in his pocket,
just by chance.

She said, "I had this plan
of taking these funny photos

or prank photos."

They were going to be bound
with duct tape.

They said,
"Cece, you wanna go first?"

and of course, she wanted to do
what they wanted her to do.

So she said, "Yes."

And when they duct taped
her hands, and her ankles,

and her mouth,
she started to panic.

[Alisha]
Once she starts freaking out,

they take the tape off
of Cece's mouth.

And she's so upset,
she starts saying,

"I'm gonna call the cops.
I'm gonna say you guys

"kidnapped me, assaulted me.

Whatever it is, I need to say
to make this stop."

Kayden starts freaking out
because Cece is saying

she's gonna call the cops.

Denali did have
a handgun with her.

It was part
of her bad girl image.

And at that point,
according to Denali,

Kayden rips the g*n out
of her hands and shoots Cece.

[g*nsh*t going off]

[Alisha]
She falls to the ground.

Kayden then pushes her body off
of this steep edge

into the water.

Denali now has just watched
her best friend be m*rder*d

in front of her, and this friend
of hers is now armed.

Denali was scared.

She thought he was going
to sh**t her next.

This had escalated so quickly
to the point of m*rder.

She doesn't know what to do
except to keep Kayden happy

so that he doesn't do
the same to her.

[Robin] They went back down
to the vehicle,

and he told her
to text Cece's parents

on Cece's phone

and tell them that she
had been dropped off somewhere,

acting like she had
no idea what happened to Cece.

And then they burned some
clothes, burned Cece's purse,

got rid of her phone.

News of an arrest
in this terrible crime spreads

through Anchorage
like wildfire.

Sixteen-year-old Kayden McIntosh
is under arrest,

charged in Cynthia's death.

Her father attended
McIntosh's arraignment

this afternoon,
hoping to block his bail.

[Tim] This is Cynthia.

My daughter was an angel.
She was Daddy's girl.

Kayden claims
he doesn't remember much,

but he admits
to pulling the trigger.

[Donald]
Kayden shot her and just
kicked her right into the river,

like she was nothing,
like she was a piece of meat.

I hope he rots in hell.

In the days that follow,
Denali appears traumatized

by the tragedy of what happened

at Thunderbird Falls
that afternoon.

Denali and Cece had both been
victims of Kayden.

Denali had survived
a horrible scene.

But for those who follow her
on social media,

her behavior starts to tell
a very different story

from the one she told police.

When I found out
about the Snapchat post.

I'm sorry.

I was like, "What the F
is going on, you know?"

Like, "What... What is this?"

I'm sorry.

[Alisha] Two days after
they arrest Kayden,

a social media contact
of Denali's

reached out to police
and informed them of this video.

I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to do it.

I didn't mean to do it.

[Alisha] In the video, Denali
is seen wearing the same clothes

she was wearing when she was
interviewed on the 3rd.

And she seems to be admitting
guilt to something.

[Denali] I didn't mean to do it.

[intriguing music plays]

[Alisha] Police brought Denali
in for questioning once again,

and the story overall
was the same.

But because this video had been
posted on social media,

that allowed them
to get a search warrant

to check Denali's phone.

And once they searched
her phone,

they see unbelievably horrific
pictures of Cece

when she was m*rder*d,

and Denali had taken
those pictures

and sent them to Tyler.

[ominous music plays]

After investigators found
these horrible images,

they wanted to know
who Tyler was.

So they asked Denali,
and she explained

that that's her boyfriend.
They met online.

His name is Tyler.
He lives in Kansas.

And he's a multimillionaire.

Denali did sexual favors
for him online.

And Denali kept doing riskier
and riskier things for Tyler

because he paid her very well.

And she fell in love with him.

And then she told
the police everything.

Denali tells investigators
that for Tyler,

the ultimate thrill
isn't online fantasy.

It's real life violence.

Three weeks before the m*rder,

Tyler had actually
made a proposal.

If Denali Brehmer would be
willing to m*rder someone

and send him
photographic evidence,

he was going to send
her $9 million.

For a teenager in Anchorage,
that's a ticket

to a whole new life.

The biggest issue Denali
had was that she didn't know

who to k*ll.

Fast forward a couple weeks,
and she and Cece

have their huge fight
about Zack.

That's when Tyler recommends
that Cece should be the victim.

She's emotional, she's angry,
and Denali agrees.

Once Denali decides on Cece
as her m*rder victim,

she knows just who to call
to make certain

the deed gets done --

Kayden and Caleb.

They spend weeks
plotting the m*rder.

Their roles were Kayden
went with Denali
to Thunderbird Falls,

and Caleb let them borrow
his vehicle and helped them plot

what they were going to do.

They purposely took her
to Thunderbird Falls.

They knew the area,
and they knew that they were

taking her back there
to m*rder her.

They knew that the duct tape
was part of the m*rder plot,

not a photo sh**t.

[Robin] After they took the duct
tape off her mouth,

she started screaming,

and Denali pulled the g*n,
and she told Kayden

to sh**t her in the back
of the head.

[g*nsh*t goes off]

[Melissa]
I couldn't shake the fact
that Denali was the mastermind

between all of this.

Even when Kayden was the one
that shot the g*n,

it was still
under Denali's instructions.

Don't be fooled by their age.
They knew what they were doing.

They knew exactly
what they were doing.

Cynthia just wanted to fit in.

She just wanted to have friends,

and Denali was showing her
a lot of attention.

That's how she got suckered in.

I think Denali's
a horrible person.

You know, to befriend somebody,
to k*ll them,

she wanted money.
That is not a juvenile crime.

That's an adult crime.

It was sickening.

As shocking as the details
of Cece's m*rder are,

it's Denali who receives
the biggest surprise of all.

Now that he's part
of this m*rder,

police start looking into Tyler.

And they learn that Tyler
doesn't exist.

Tyler is actually 21-year-old
Darin Schilmiller,

who lives in his grandparents'
basement in Indiana.

And he is
not a multimillionaire.

She was being catfished
by Tyler.

And actually, when they showed
her a photo of the real Darin,

which did not look like Tyler,
she just tore it up.

She was not pleased,
to say the least.

Three days after
Cynthia Hoffman's body is found,

18-year-old Denali Brehmer
is arrested for her m*rder.

It takes almost five years,
but in early 2024,

Denali Brehmer pleads guilty
to m*rder,

and Darin Schilmiller
pleads guilty

to the solicitation of m*rder
of Cynthia Hoffman.

Both are sentenced
to 99 years in prison.

When we went to federal court
for sentencing,

Denali is trying
to make herself,

"Well, I'm not that bad
of a person,"

but she is.

I spoke to the judge directly
and pushed

for the maximum sentence.

There is no death penalty up
here,

so they got the max -- 99 years.

Six months later,

Caleb Leyland is sentenced
to 40 years in prison

after pleading guilty
to m*rder.

Kayden McIntosh
still awaits sentencing.

[soft, piano music plays]

[Sable] Cynthia was someone
good, someone amazing,

someone who knew right
from wrong,

someone who knew how to love.

She was literally
my life support

for the longest time.

Denali has hurt more people
than she could ever realize.

She took my best friend.

[soft piano music continues]

[Leslie]
We lost two wonderful people.

I just feel like Cynthia
wanted Dad home.

[Donald] I miss my brother.

I miss Cynthia.

But it does bring a lot of peace
to know they're together now.

[music stops]

On the next
Mean Girl Murders...

They go to church together.

It was good girl
versus bad girl.

The good girl never wins.

She was the queen scorpion.

Girl on girl crime
can be very very cruel.

Nobody saw it coming.

I think absolutely the devil
has a hand in this crime.