transcript
Speaker 1:
[00:02] It's just before 7 a.m. on January 29th, 2025 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Speaker 2:
[00:08] Please search warrant.
Speaker 1:
[00:11] Arizona has a reputation for relentless heat, but after years of living there, I know better. Winters in the desert can be chilly, and this morning was one of those days. It was 45 degrees and still dark outside.
Speaker 2:
[00:26] We have a search warrant, okay? We're serving it on the behalf of the Maricopa County's Attorney's Office. You need to open up the door.
Speaker 1:
[00:34] The Scottsdale police are at the home of 34-year-old Laura Owens. She and her parents live in one of the most desirable areas of Scottsdale. Think upscale ranch style homes on spacious lots. It's a rare urban neighborhood that still allows horses. But this morning, the calm and quiet was interrupted.
Speaker 3:
[00:55] We made entry, we're contacting the parents right now.
Speaker 4:
[00:59] You're good to move to the casita.
Speaker 1:
[01:02] Laura lives in a casita on her parents' property, which is kind of like a little studio apartment that's separate from the main house. Through a sliding glass door, officers can see Laura, who is already awake and feeding her dogs.
Speaker 5:
[01:18] Laura, Scottsdale Police. You see my badge? We're with the Scottsdale Police Department.
Speaker 3:
[01:23] Okay.
Speaker 5:
[01:24] Can you come out and talk with us, please?
Speaker 3:
[01:26] No.
Speaker 5:
[01:26] The county attorneys have a search warrant for your property, so we need you to come out.
Speaker 6:
[01:30] Okay.
Speaker 7:
[01:31] I'm sorry, it's not even 7 in the morning.
Speaker 5:
[01:34] Yeah, that's fine.
Speaker 1:
[01:36] Laura looks incredibly thin, dressed in an oversized Fleetwood Mac T-shirt and leggings. Her dark hair is pulled back in a ponytail. She's not exactly shocked to see the police, but she is annoyed by their timing.
Speaker 8:
[01:49] I was told that if the police were going to come, they would come during business hours.
Speaker 7:
[01:53] Can I call my attorney, please?
Speaker 1:
[01:56] Laura reaches for her cell phone and calls her attorney, David Gingras.
Speaker 7:
[02:00] David, do you know what's going on right now?
Speaker 1:
[02:03] The Scottsdale police are trying to handle this as calmly as possible. But Laura's getting more agitated by the minute.
Speaker 5:
[02:11] Our target is very animated at this point. She's refusing to come out. She's speaking to us through a sliding glass door. We're getting her an opportunity to talk to her attorney, saying we have to escalate things, but that's just where we're at right now. She's on speaker with her attorney, and the attorney is advising her to come out.
Speaker 9:
[02:30] There's how many people here?
Speaker 10:
[02:32] A lot. Open the door.
Speaker 9:
[02:34] Do you think I have authority to search bookworms?
Speaker 7:
[02:36] I'm gonna come in the morning.
Speaker 11:
[02:38] Police are there, Laura.
Speaker 12:
[02:39] You can let them do whatever they want.
Speaker 1:
[02:42] With her lawyers okay, she slowly opens her screen door, and the Scottsdale police lead her into the main house where her parents are waiting. Laura's having a meltdown.
Speaker 8:
[02:53] This is not cool! It's not even 7 o'clock in the morning! They're acting like I murdered somebody!
Speaker 2:
[03:01] I agree, honey. I agree. So, Laura is a subject of an investigation by the courts. It's regarding that.
Speaker 8:
[03:11] You know what? It's not even 7 o'clock! I have done nothing except get pregnant by the fucking Bachelor!
Speaker 1:
[03:18] The Bachelor, as in the hit reality TV show. Imagine one of its stars, a former lead, at the center of a major paternity scandal. The man whose story prompted this early morning police raid is none other than Clayton Echard. He's one of the most notorious and unpopular bachelors of all time. His season fell to pieces, leaving him single and rejected by the woman he'd fallen in love with. After the show, he moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, hoping for a fresh start. On the show, Clayton didn't meet his person, but after moving to Arizona, he would meet the person that would change the course of his life forever. I'm Stephani Young, and this is Love Trapped. Nearly two years before the police raid, Laura Owens hooked up with Clayton Echard and allegedly became pregnant. That is only the beginning of the story, a story that is still very much going on. It's about how difficult it can be to verify the truth, especially when facts are constantly shifting.
Speaker 13:
[04:56] Any time someone doesn't want to give you the full information, they lose all credibility.
Speaker 11:
[05:00] I don't know what she did, but we certainly didn't rule out the spit maneuver.
Speaker 10:
[05:05] The things that she said to Clayton, the famous lines about, I want you to feel how tight I am and stuff like that. Why would she have said that if they had already had sex?
Speaker 13:
[05:12] She says, we were sexually intimate. Okay. Well, now he's saying you only had two blowjobs.
Speaker 11:
[05:17] Blowjobs don't make babies.
Speaker 14:
[05:19] It's like a miracle somehow that she got pregnant.
Speaker 13:
[05:23] She could have shot herself in the ass with fertility drugs.
Speaker 14:
[05:26] They hooked up, but they didn't have sex.
Speaker 13:
[05:28] Turkey basters. It's just a chaos.
Speaker 1:
[05:33] In the end, the man at the center of this drama would begin to question everything, setting him on an all-consuming path to prove the truth.
Speaker 15:
[05:49] Hello, this is Clayton speaking.
Speaker 1:
[05:51] Hey Clayton, it's Stephani from Glass Podcasts. How are you today?
Speaker 15:
[05:54] Hey Stephani, I'm doing good.
Speaker 12:
[05:56] It's honestly just another slow Friday today.
Speaker 1:
[06:00] When I first heard about this case, it sounded simple. But as I began looking into it myself, the twists and turns became increasingly strange. So I gave Clayton a call. We have emailed back and forth a few times about this whole Laura Owen saga. And I want to tell your story. I want to tell it in a podcast and get all the details out there. I know you've shared some, but I don't think that you've shared all of them yet.
Speaker 12:
[06:27] I mean, there's so much. I do want it out there. Just full transparency.
Speaker 16:
[06:34] I just, I hope it's told correctly.
Speaker 1:
[06:37] This would be my first of many phone calls with Clayton. I live in Chicago now, but I used to call Arizona home. It's one of my favorite places. It's where I attended college. It's where I got married and began my career in radio and podcasting. I was actually in Arizona shopping for a wedding dress when I first heard about this on the news. And I'll be heading back there soon to start reporting on this case myself. So how do you feel about letting me share your story?
Speaker 12:
[07:09] I mean, Stephani, I hope that like over time, that this becomes a budding friendship and like I can trust you and it can be told in the way that it needs to be told and how I would like for it to be told. But I want to also just again be completely honest because that's how I live my life. I've been screwed over so many times by producers that have told me this is how I'm going to be seen and then it's complete opposite. So like, is there a little bit of hesitancy? Yeah, I'm going to definitely want to be in the know as much as possible.
Speaker 1:
[07:40] Clayton's story is an epic battle of he said, she said. It's a story about who you believe and why. Over the past two years, it's ignited the internet, becoming a kind of viral cautionary tale. Along the way, dozens of citizen sleuths and armchair investigators joined the conversation, scrutinizing every little detail. But here's the thing, when the news broke that Clayton was part of this paternity scandal, no one believed him at first because he was a reality TV star. And an unpopular one at that. All of a sudden, his word was at the center of a case that would put him back in the spotlight in a way he never expected. Just so you know, I have family that lives in Phoenix, so next time I'm in Arizona, I'd love to try to get together and maybe have a conversation to see how we can tell this story together in a way that makes sense.
Speaker 12:
[08:37] Honestly, I think that'd be great. I mean, I'm a huge believer in just face-to-face interaction, and I would really like that that way. Obviously, we can get to know one another and understand what seriously we're both getting into because you were going to be in over your head.
Speaker 1:
[08:53] And he was right. I had no idea how big the story really was. To really understand what's going on here, you first have to understand how Clayton was portrayed on TV and why he was so unpopular. You see, his season of The Bachelor ended in flames.
Speaker 10:
[09:15] The rose ceremony from hell. It's one of the most memorable moments in the history of the show that basically blew up his whole season.
Speaker 9:
[09:24] I promise you that when you look back at this, this is going to haunt you, the fact that you let me go.
Speaker 1:
[09:33] It didn't help that the three final contestants were some of the most likeable in the entire franchise. Clayton came off as almost insensitive, but that's only part of what earned him the title of Most Hated Bachelor ever. He left the show in embarrassment. The internet turned on him.
Speaker 12:
[09:53] This is going down as an all-time bad season. He's going down as an all-time bad bachelor.
Speaker 16:
[09:58] I've been saying all season that I think this guy sucks.
Speaker 6:
[10:00] His words and his actions did not line up. If I see any of these people defending this guy, I'm going to shame on you.
Speaker 1:
[10:10] And in the end, Clayton was left alone. He was at an all-time low.
Speaker 12:
[10:16] I was the worst bachelor ever at this point. People were hating me, everything that they were watching on TV. I thought, how am I ever going to recover from what I've done?
Speaker 1:
[10:43] I'll admit it, I have always been a fan of the Bachelor franchise, but I missed Clayton's season. And it turns out, a lot of people did. Before I began reporting on this story, I went back and watched Clayton's season. I've got to be honest, while I was definitely entertained, it was also a bit of a train wreck. I could see why he got the reputation he did. Even his brother Nate didn't think he did a very good job.
Speaker 16:
[11:10] I wouldn't give him the best grade. I think he was authentic. I think he was himself, but it just ended up getting him in more trouble.
Speaker 1:
[11:18] Respectfully, there have been many other Bachelor contestants who have actually committed crimes. Clayton's only crime was not being likable. He's blunt and truthful. And oftentimes, that lands him in hot water.
Speaker 12:
[11:35] When people watch a show like The Bachelor, they think that they know you based on what they watch on TV. And what sucks is that I didn't get a great edit. And so now people were less likely to want to rally behind me with this whole cause because they didn't like me based off of what they saw on TV.
Speaker 1:
[11:55] I had my own preconceived notions about Clayton before I met him. I kind of thought the same thing a lot of people did. He was your typical playboy. I had to get to know him myself because the story isn't about The Bachelor.
Speaker 12:
[12:15] Hey, how's it going?
Speaker 1:
[12:16] Oh my gosh, you really are that tall.
Speaker 12:
[12:18] I got blessed with some height.
Speaker 1:
[12:20] It's nice to meet you.
Speaker 12:
[12:21] Good to see you too, absolutely. Welcome to the Humble Abode.
Speaker 1:
[12:27] I met Clayton for the first time last August when I was visiting my parents in Arizona. He's a big guy. His hands are double the size of mine. He's got a killer smile, hazel eyes, and a square jaw. He has thick, curly hair. Most men, or women, would die for. And at 6'5, he towers over me.
Speaker 12:
[12:50] I drank cream soda growing up, and my parents said, you know, if you keep drinking that, you're going to stunt your growth. So I switched over to milk, and I think there was hormones in the milk. All those hormones were probably pumping up my height.
Speaker 1:
[13:01] Today, Clayton is a pretty normal guy. He's in solar sails, he's a realtor, he takes hip hop dance classes, and he owns and manages an Airbnb in Scottsdale. In fact, the day I met him, he shared his original concept of an optional Airbnb add-on, where for an additional fee, he would personally provide guests with a private rose ceremony experience.
Speaker 12:
[13:24] I give them the exact same spiel that I would have given to the women on the show. I'm so grateful that you all are here tonight for this incredible moment. What a journey we all have had.
Speaker 1:
[13:36] As a lifelong fan of the franchise, when he recreated this rose ceremony moment for me, it was like Clayton became the Bachelor again.
Speaker 12:
[13:46] I had a videographer here to film all of that, and I released it and the ABC hit me with the Cease and Desist.
Speaker 1:
[13:52] The Cease and Desist wouldn't be the last of his legal troubles, as you'll soon find out. So how did Clayton even get here in the first place? What was his path to becoming the Bachelor? I wanted to start from the beginning. Clayton grew up in Missouri and spent 28 years of his life there. And Clayton is your normal midwest guy.
Speaker 12:
[14:14] I grew up with my two younger brothers and we're just a household of boys. And we competed in every single thing, from sports to grades. So a lot of who I am today stems from those early childhood challenges amongst me and my brothers.
Speaker 1:
[14:33] Clayton says his younger brother outshined him.
Speaker 12:
[14:37] He had a lot of confidence growing up that I never possessed. And so he succeeded at a higher level than me. A lot of the girls loved him. He was smooth because he didn't overthink things. Meanwhile, I was getting friend zoned by all the girls in my grade. Even girls in my grade liked my brother more than they liked me.
Speaker 1:
[14:57] When Clayton got to high school, he was determined to prove himself.
Speaker 12:
[15:01] That's when I decided, hey, the way that I establish worth is by becoming the best on the football field and becoming like the most sought after man that I can be.
Speaker 1:
[15:15] Clayton had a good senior football season. Not good enough to get a scholarship, but good enough to walk on the team at the University of Missouri.
Speaker 12:
[15:23] Everyone expected me not to make it. It's a Division I program, top program in the state.
Speaker 1:
[15:30] And he made it. He became a tight end on the team and even went on to play in the NFL. He was cut early on, but hey, he made it. That's what mattered to him. And this experience led him to the next chapter in his career, medical device sales.
Speaker 12:
[15:46] They love their athletes. So they're like, hey, we don't care if you don't have any sales experience, we love athletes. And so they bring me on, so I get this nice, great job out of college.
Speaker 1:
[15:55] Clayton paid his dues in the industry while living in Columbia, Missouri. He was big into fitness and posting his workout videos on Instagram. But on his 28th birthday, he had what he referred to as a quarter life crisis.
Speaker 12:
[16:10] I had this epiphany where I realized I had not grown as a person in five years. That's how I felt. I was doing the same job that I've been doing for the last five years. Romantically, I was just dating casually. I hadn't grown in that regard whatsoever. And I realized I need to get out of this environment.
Speaker 3:
[16:31] I'm stagnant.
Speaker 1:
[16:32] That's when everything changed for him.
Speaker 12:
[16:35] I got a DM from a casting producer on Instagram. A producer from The Bachelor was searching via fitness hashtags, which I had put on one of my pictures and that's how they found me.
Speaker 1:
[16:48] It wasn't the first time he'd been scouted. He'd been approached to be on Love Island and an HBO Christmas dating show. He turned them both down and told his brother that the only show he would consider was The Bachelorette. But then, when the opportunity was actually presented to him.
Speaker 12:
[17:05] I'm like, there's no way I can do this. My brother brings it up one day and he's like, you're going to go on the show? I said, I don't think so. He goes, oh, so you're not a man of your word. I said, what do you mean? He goes, don't you remember that conversation we had? He said, you said the one show you would go on is The Bachelorette. So now you're not going to do it, so you're not a man of your word. And that's all I needed.
Speaker 1:
[17:29] He agreed to go on The Bachelorette. He barely watched the show, except when he was glancing over his mom's shoulder.
Speaker 12:
[17:35] It was my mom's favorite show growing up. It was always on in our house.
Speaker 1:
[17:41] Clayton was cast on Michelle Young's season of The Bachelorette in 2021. Michelle's a natural beauty with wavy black hair. She's a college basketball player turned elementary school teacher. Clayton thought she was drop dead gorgeous. But when he got on set for the first time, he was overwhelmed by the production of it all.
Speaker 12:
[18:01] I will never forget my first night before I walked on reality television.
Speaker 1:
[18:07] He was a nervous wreck when he got out of the limo to meet Michelle.
Speaker 12:
[18:11] I step out the limo, lights are blinding me. They said, if you mess up, keep going.
Speaker 16:
[18:16] There are no redos.
Speaker 12:
[18:17] When the cameras were thrown on me, it was just a shock. I was in that moment wondering if I was swaying my arms too much while I was walking. That's how hyperfixated I was on the minute things. Because all of a sudden in that moment, you're like, nothing is hidden. Everything is out there.
Speaker 1:
[18:35] And things didn't get any better once you met the other guys.
Speaker 12:
[18:39] First guy I see ends up being the guy that won the whole thing. He's six foot eight, light skin, looks like a model. I'm like, well, I'm done. There's no way I'm gonna make this last longer than one night if this is my competition.
Speaker 1:
[18:51] Clayton made it past night one, but he didn't get a lot of screen time.
Speaker 12:
[18:56] It was hardly any. It was like eight minutes max, maybe.
Speaker 1:
[19:00] Ultimately, he was sent home before hometown dates. Michelle walked into the limo, and he was driven off the set. But the next morning, Clayton was called for one final exit scene. Michelle was an elementary school teacher, and earlier in the episode, Clayton met two of her students. He was brought in to shoot a final scene, where the two kids gave him handwritten goodbye letters. We watched Clayton read each letter, and well up with tears.
Speaker 12:
[19:28] It was surprising because you are super genuine, and I liked you a lot.
Speaker 15:
[19:32] And I know you'd be a really great husband for Miss Young. You'll probably meet someone else and fall in love, and have lots of kids, and be a great dad.
Speaker 1:
[19:45] Clayton didn't realize it in the moment, but this scene was his screen test to be the Bachelor.
Speaker 4:
[19:52] I just want to find love so badly, and have a family, and I'll do whatever it takes to get that.
Speaker 1:
[20:05] He nailed it, and then his producer made the offer. They wanted him to be the next Bachelor. Even Clayton was surprised.
Speaker 12:
[20:16] I got sent home with seven guys ahead of me, so I figured I wasn't even contention. So when he said that, I was like, yeah, I'll do it.
Speaker 1:
[20:23] Clayton said something that stood out to me. He was sent home earlier in the season than most future leads. So picking him was kind of a strange choice. I wanted some insight on this, so I turned to Reality Steve. He's a podcaster, blogger and de facto authority on the Bachelor franchise. He knows how the show works behind the scenes. Here's why he thinks the show cast Clayton as the lead.
Speaker 10:
[20:49] My guess was to control him. A guy that they could clearly see, hey, he's going to do what we tell him to do because he's so grateful for this opportunity.
Speaker 1:
[20:59] The thing is, Clayton was grateful for the opportunity.
Speaker 12:
[21:03] It was validation that I was special, which the people pleaser in me was always chasing. So to have that moment come to a place where it was like, we want you to be the guy. I was like, I'm the guy. And you don't just become the guy without having a whole track record of success.
Speaker 1:
[21:24] He finally found the validation he was looking for. But he didn't realize that once you invite the world in, you can't tell them when to leave.
Speaker 12:
[21:32] I'll never forget, this producer looks at me and she goes, take this moment in because this is the last moment of silence that you'll likely have in your life for a long time, if ever. That's the moment I remember because my life has never been the same since that point, the noise has never stopped.
Speaker 1:
[21:53] Clayton began filming his season of The Bachelor in late September of 2021, and he was ready to find love.
Speaker 12:
[21:59] At that point, I was so overcome with just excitement. What is my life? This isn't even real. Pinch me, but don't actually pinch me because if this is a dream, I don't want to wake up from it. That's how grateful and excited I was. I was just soaking it all in, and I felt like I'm going to give everyone the love story that they're looking for because I got the genuine heart that's actually looking for something serious. This is going to be a fairy tale ending. I'm going to ride off into the sunset and be the hero that everybody was anticipating I'd be or wants me to be. That's what I believe was going to happen. I really believed it up until like the last week. Where the fuck did I go wrong?
Speaker 1:
[22:42] So here's what happened. When Clayton got down to the finalists, he broke an unspoken rule of The Bachelor, which is the show doesn't really work if you tell all the finalists you're in love with them, especially while they're all standing in front of you.
Speaker 12:
[22:58] I still, to this day, didn't realize that was an untold rule. I believe in radical honesty. It's probably gotten me, and actually it has gotten me in trouble more than a few times in my life.
Speaker 1:
[23:09] Not only did Clayton admit to falling in love with all of the finalists, he also revealed that he'd had sex with two of them. Here's what he said he was thinking.
Speaker 12:
[23:18] Every emotion was rushing in. It was a lot. I mean, I was so drained at that point. I had a mix of frustration with myself, sadness to see the looks on the faces of the women. I realized that things were going in the exact opposite direction that I planned for them to go.
Speaker 1:
[23:40] The Rose Ceremony from Hell was filmed in Iceland, and Clayton's parents and two brothers were there too. While it was being filmed, his family was out to dinner with some of the show's producers, who were getting frantic texts from the production team. Here's Clayton's dad, Brian.
Speaker 3:
[23:56] Even the producer told me when I was sitting in a room with her, she goes, you know, Mr. Echard, your son gave us some great material. Unfortunately, it's just going to look like shit. She goes, I don't know any way to save him. I was like, well, we'll see what it looks like when it comes out.
Speaker 1:
[24:13] The producers were right. It didn't look good for Clayton. In the end, there were three women. The first was Rachel, a radiant blonde who was also a pilot. Next was Gabby Windy, a nurse and former NFL cheerleader with a quick wit. She's since become a pop culture icon who you might have seen on The Traders and Dancing with the Stars. When she was on Clayton's season of The Bachelor, she was not happy with how he handled himself.
Speaker 6:
[24:44] I'm pissed because I spent the last two days away from my family and my friends who actually give a shit about me, and you don't.
Speaker 1:
[24:53] That was rough. Then there was Suzie. She was a wedding photographer, former Miss Virginia actually. And she was the one Clayton was leaning towards. But Suzie decided to leave the competition early, right before the finale. She got cold feet about getting engaged. In a very unusual and risky move, Clayton sent the other two finalists home. He wanted to propose to Suzie. And surprise, surprise, she was still in Iceland. So he made a grand gesture and asked her to come to the final rose ceremony. She agreed to show up. And when he handed her the rose, she said what no other contestant has ever said before.
Speaker 17:
[25:35] I have made the decision to leave Iceland alone. It doesn't like take away from everything that we've had and the love that I genuinely like feel in my heart for you.
Speaker 1:
[25:46] In other words, she said no. I asked Clayton if in that moment he regretted becoming The Bachelor.
Speaker 12:
[25:54] Yes, 1,000%. I wish I had never answered that DM when I, yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 16:
[26:01] That's how I felt.
Speaker 1:
[26:03] Clayton told me that he felt like the producers pushed him to develop a strong connection with more than one woman. And they encouraged him to try that last-ditch effort with Suzy.
Speaker 12:
[26:14] I felt like the producers were trying to lead me and potentially produce me into reacting a certain way. And so I started to question, are we on the same team? Am I able to really just do what I want or is there some type of motive here from you all that I need to fall in line with?
Speaker 1:
[26:33] It's telling that Clayton didn't realize this until the end. Here's Reality Steve.
Speaker 10:
[26:39] They took advantage of a naïve guy who didn't know television and didn't know the process of this show and had a field day with him.
Speaker 1:
[26:48] Shortly after Clayton returned from filming the show, he received a DM from Suzy on Instagram asking if they could talk about what happened in Iceland, and Clayton agreed.
Speaker 12:
[26:58] We had a three-hour conversation that night and talked a lot about producer involvement and how it stopped us from being able to pursue the relationship further.
Speaker 1:
[27:12] Suzy felt the same way, that producers forced them into a decision at the end.
Speaker 14:
[27:17] It just felt like producers got really involved and I felt like the whole situation felt manipulated and orchestrated and I didn't know who to trust anymore, whether it was not trusting Clayton or producers. I was like, I just need to leave here.
Speaker 1:
[27:33] After that conversation, they decided to reconnect and give the relationship a go on their own terms without cameras. But America couldn't know yet because the show hadn't premiered. Living through it had been one thing. Then Clayton joined the millions of Americans watching his season play out on TV. It did not go well.
Speaker 12:
[27:57] The premiere trailer, it started off all happy-go-lucky and then the back half of the trailer, they just showed everything blowing up. They showed that clearly there's no love story here, it's full drama and they set me up for failure right out the gate.
Speaker 1:
[28:13] And the internet was ruthless. Clayton knew it had been bad. He didn't know it had been this bad.
Speaker 12:
[28:21] So many of those people that sent me death threats told me that I never deserved love, told me that they would put a bullet in my head if they ever saw me in person, and tell me I'm stupid, ugly. My physique was attacked, my actions were attacked, and it's like they all forgot that I was a human. I'm like, guys, I'm still a human being. This stuff hurts.
Speaker 1:
[28:39] The show provided mental health resources for as long as Clayton needed them.
Speaker 12:
[28:44] It's just a shame because you would hope that you wouldn't have to ever utilize them in the first place.
Speaker 1:
[28:54] Clayton knew he wasn't perfect. But as the finale approached, the online hate took its toll on him.
Speaker 12:
[29:01] My mental health was the worst it's ever been in my life. I thought, wouldn't it be better if I just wasn't here? There was a point where I focus in on the clothes drawer in front of me that had my pistol inside the drawer. And I start having the thought just that it's there. And I felt weak in that moment. And I almost felt guilty for even considering that, because I thought there's no way I could ever put this type of pain on my family. And I knew at that point, I was like, I got to get out of this environment. This is not good.
Speaker 1:
[29:46] Clayton reached out to the Bachelor producers for help.
Speaker 12:
[29:49] I said, I am in a terrible place right now. I'm having extremely dark thoughts. I feel worthless. I need support.
Speaker 1:
[29:59] He desperately wanted to see his girlfriend, Susie. But the rules were, if they wanted to meet in person, they had to go through producers first, since the show was still airing. Susie was genuinely worried about him. Here's Susie.
Speaker 14:
[30:15] At the time, he didn't mention the gun in the drawer. But I remember also calling producers at that same time, and I said, hey, I really think something is very wrong, and I don't think he should be alone right now.
Speaker 12:
[30:32] Thankfully, they understood the severity of it. They got me out on a red eye. They got her out on a red eye. And I then had at least Susie there to support me.
Speaker 1:
[30:44] Soon, during the live finale, America would find out the truth about Clayton and Susie's relationship.
Speaker 12:
[30:51] Are you guys back together?
Speaker 17:
[30:53] That's my boyfriend.
Speaker 1:
[30:58] You'd think this news would have started Clayton's redemption arc. He and Susie did end up together after all. But that's not what happened. The online trolls started to come for Susie too.
Speaker 14:
[31:10] I received some of the most disgusting, graphic, nasty messages I've ever received in my life after the final show. That was a lot to go through.
Speaker 1:
[31:24] Susie felt like The Bachelor left them out to dry, and let them take the fall for producers' decisions.
Speaker 14:
[31:31] There's a lot of criticism on Clayton on how things happened, and I think some of that is deserved, and some of it is also like, okay, we have to take a step back and recognize that there's a whole production behind it.
Speaker 1:
[31:42] When the show wrapped, Clayton and Susie had to deal with being a publicly hated couple. Their relationship wasn't celebrated like most Bachelor couples, and their social media accounts were spammed with hate comments. They were both just trying to feel normal again. After nine months of dating under intense online scrutiny, Clayton and Susie decided to call it quits.
Speaker 14:
[32:08] I think our relationship was just too tumultuous to last. Like, I think that we went through something really, really traumatic together, and that could have brought us closer, but we both were two people that went through something really, really hard, and we just didn't have the toolkit to, like, make it work.
Speaker 12:
[32:26] When I lost her, I lost a rock. You know, I lost somebody that really fully understood me.
Speaker 1:
[32:31] He took the break up hard, so he spent the next year working on himself. At the end of 2022, Clayton wanted a fresh start.
Speaker 12:
[32:40] I moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, which is the hot spot. There is so much happening here. It's very close to all the West Coast cities.
Speaker 1:
[32:49] Having lived there, I can tell you it's kind of a party town.
Speaker 12:
[32:53] Very fast paced, a lot of distractions, a lot of problems as well.
Speaker 1:
[32:59] It's almost fitting that Scottsdale is one of the most popular destinations for bachelorette parties.
Speaker 12:
[33:04] When I got to Scottsdale, I didn't have dating on my mind. I had a big old party mindset, and I thought, I get to be single, and I get to be single as the bachelor, former bachelor. And I'm going to just milk this moment, and I'm going to have my fun.
Speaker 1:
[33:26] He thought it would be smooth sailing now that the bachelor was behind him. Damn, was he wrong. After a nightmarish stint in the public eye, Clayton Echard began building a new life in Scottsdale, Arizona. In April of 2023, he announced on Instagram that he got his real estate license. He figured that his notoriety from the show might even help him launch his career. A few short weeks later, he got a message on LinkedIn from a potential real estate client, someone named Laura Owens.
Speaker 12:
[34:11] The LinkedIn message said, Hi, I'm looking to connect with similar minded young entrepreneurs in Scottsdale. I see that you work for the **** and I actually contacted them recently. They were going to connect me with someone who could help me find investment properties but haven't yet. Let me know if you can help.
Speaker 1:
[34:31] Laura's LinkedIn profile didn't have a photo, but Clayton's did.
Speaker 12:
[34:35] It was my bachelor photo. The photo from night one of The Bachelor.
Speaker 1:
[34:39] You'd think that her not having a photo might be a red flag, right? Well, Clayton saw it differently.
Speaker 12:
[34:46] I figured, I'm The Bachelor and I have a level of fame to me. This is not at all that surprising. I mean, I had people that came up to me once at a coffee shop and said they wanted to work with me in real estate. So I exchanged my contact info with her to get in front of her so that I could hopefully get my first real estate deal done.
Speaker 1:
[35:03] And Laura didn't waste any time.
Speaker 12:
[35:05] The text messages started right away. Constant texting and she knew a lot about real estate, more than I even knew because I just got my license. So I felt like I was trying to play keep up with her.
Speaker 1:
[35:18] Laura was asking all the right questions. But Clayton also realized she was testing the waters.
Speaker 12:
[35:24] At first, she was flirting a bit. I was keeping it very professional. It was $20,000 commission on the line, good amount of money, and I was trying to keep the transaction going along.
Speaker 1:
[35:36] I sat down with Clayton and had him walk me through the printouts of their initial messages. You mentioned she was flirting with you a little bit. Can you read one of those messages and give me an example of what you're talking about?
Speaker 12:
[35:50] In all honesty though, I had a great time talking to you and would actually love to get a drink with you next week if you want to.
Speaker 1:
[35:57] How did you handle that flirtation?
Speaker 12:
[35:59] I thought I'll just continue to be professional, push this along, let her feel however she feels, and if she wants to flirt here and there, whatever, we can let that be.
Speaker 1:
[36:09] So you told me your profile picture was the photo of you from The Bachelor. Do you think she had any idea of who you were?
Speaker 12:
[36:17] I don't think she did know who I was. I mean, of course, you know, she could have Googled me and found out very quickly, but based on what she had said to me and her tonality, I assumed that she didn't know.
Speaker 1:
[36:29] Okay, so then you thought she was flirting with you not because you were famous or the former bachelor, but because you're you, a tall 30-something-year-old guy, handsome.
Speaker 12:
[36:38] I mean, hey, I appreciate all those compliments. But yeah, I mean, truthfully, I just thought like, yeah, she thinks I'm attractive. Okay, no big deal. I'm just really fixated on getting my first real estate deal done and starting a new chapter out here in Scottsdale. And also just having people see me for what I truly am, not what was shown on TV, which was produced and edited.
Speaker 1:
[37:02] Clayton set up some showings for Laura later that week, and the flirtatious messages continued.
Speaker 12:
[37:07] And then obviously there was a turn of events one night.
Speaker 1:
[37:12] Clayton had just moved into a new apartment. That evening, he went to Ikea, ordered a pizza, and started to put his new furniture together.
Speaker 12:
[37:21] So I took this edible and Laura was texting me, so I sent her a text back.
Speaker 1:
[37:28] This was three days after Laura's initial message to Clayton. At that point, Clayton started to feed into the flirting. Then Laura made a bold move. She sent a photo.
Speaker 12:
[37:39] The second I got that photo, I was like, okay, well, the logical brain kicked off.
Speaker 1:
[37:46] Clayton invited her to come over.
Speaker 12:
[37:48] She was a little hesitant at first. I think she was surprised that I was inviting her over, but then she decided that she would come over from there.
Speaker 1:
[37:55] The exact details of what happened that night are only known to two people, Clayton and Laura. As we continue this series, we'll hear a few different versions of what allegedly went down, but we're going to start with Clayton's version.
Speaker 12:
[38:09] That night, I was looking for a hookup, a thousand percent. I assumed we both were on the same page because she was coming over at 8 o'clock at night on a Friday. We know why you're coming. You just sent me a photo of your ass.
Speaker 1:
[38:21] Technically, she's wearing leggings in the photo. I've seen a copy of it. And if you can believe it, this picture would later be released as part of an investigation report by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office. To call a spade a spade, the photo looks like a thirst trap. That night, Laura arrived at Clayton's apartment. They started talking and getting to know each other a little better.
Speaker 12:
[38:47] I'll be honest with you, all of the conversation was forgettable. And then probably after an hour, hour and a half, I told her to like come over closer to me and she did. And then that's when we started hooking up.
Speaker 1:
[39:00] It's awkward to go into these details with Clayton, but they all become critical to this story. So I asked him to define what he means when he says he and Laura started hooking up.
Speaker 12:
[39:11] I don't know how descriptive you want me to get, but like there was no penis and vagina penetration.
Speaker 1:
[39:18] Laura spent the night and left early the next morning.
Speaker 12:
[39:22] 11 days later, I received a message from Laura stating that she was pregnant and attached was a photo of a positive pregnancy test.
Speaker 1:
[39:33] Clayton couldn't believe it.
Speaker 12:
[39:36] And there's no way that she could have been pregnant because we did not have sex. I mean, not in the way that would get you pregnant.
Speaker 1:
[39:45] Everything that happens next all comes back to this one night and two blowjobs. On one of our first phone calls, you said that I was going to be in over my head. And I'm kind of understanding a little bit why you said that, but like, what did you mean?
Speaker 12:
[40:03] Once you get fully caught up to speed, in over your head just doesn't do it justice. Every time you think it couldn't get crazier, it just does. You have the dating contract, you have forged medical documents. There are so many layers to this story that you peel back one, couldn't get crazier. Oh, surprise, there's another layer. And it just keeps going, restraining orders, a criminal investigation, and also just the hope that at the end of it all, someone's going to be held accountable.
Speaker 1:
[40:40] This season on Love Trapped.
Speaker 7:
[40:43] Hey, Clayton, this is not your typical naked video of a woman trying to impress you.
Speaker 12:
[40:50] My life is ruined. Everything that I'm working towards is gone.
Speaker 13:
[40:54] This is either the craziest story of a bachelor villain, or the biggest scam is happening. It's one or the other.
Speaker 7:
[41:01] I'm not the devil. I'm genuinely not wanting to cause any trouble in your life.
Speaker 12:
[41:06] This is where it was a whirlwind of text messages. She's probably texted me 25, 30 times a day.
Speaker 13:
[41:11] It's hard to explain to somebody how the hairs on your neck immediately go up when you see you get an email from Laura Owens.
Speaker 7:
[41:18] No privacy anymore. No reputation.
Speaker 8:
[41:22] No name.
Speaker 11:
[41:23] I can't even count how many armchair investigators who did 10 times better than any PI I have ever hired.
Speaker 7:
[41:31] We need accountability and more importantly, we need protection.
Speaker 13:
[41:34] No human could imagine another person would fake something that is so sensitive.
Speaker 12:
[41:40] The crazy thing about all of this is if I was not the bachelor, none of this would have happened to me.
Speaker 1:
[42:10] Thank you so much for listening. Please be sure to follow Loved Trapped on Apple podcasts, the iHeart Radio app, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And please leave us a review. A five-star rating helps others find this show. We're grateful for your support. If you would like to reach out to the Loved Trapped team, email us at lovetrappedpod at gmail.com. That's lovetrapped, P-O-D, at gmail.com. Loved Trapped is a production of Glass Podcasts, a division of Glass Entertainment Group in partnership with iHeart Podcasts. This show was executive produced by Nancy Glass, Andrea Gunning, and Ben Federman. Written, produced, and hosted by me, Stephanie Young. Our story editor is Monique Laborde. Additional production support from Todd Gans. Our production manager is Kristen Malkiri. For iHeart Podcasts, Ali Perry was our executive producer. Audio editing and mastering by Anna McClain and Matt Delvecchio. Additional editing support by Zach Proto. This podcast was developed in collaboration with Danny Passman and Leb Abramoff at Crybaby Media. The Love Trapped theme is composed by Oliver Baines. Music library provided by MIBE Music. A special thanks to Kerry Lieberman, Will Pearson, Jessica Kreincheck, Ali Cantor, and the entire iHeart Podcasts team. And for more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.