Vile Evil Creature
Exploring the true crime story that never happened
Happy Sunday. I’m back today with a story so wild I nearly fell off my seat the first time I read about it. Until I learned that not a single word of it was true. On to that in a minute.
Something I’ve been thinking about lately…it seems to me we’re months not even years away from a world where deciphering what is a real crime story online from one that is manufactured maliciously will be impossible. AI is powerful enough to make the real and the imagined barely distinguishable. Or at least close enough that a majority will give false truths the airtime needed to drown out reality. We’re already seeing stories like this cropping up around the world.
In a way it brought me back to this story.
March 13th, 1990. The Mabels (Olivia, Aiden, and Travis) were at their home in Celina, TX, a rural exurb of Dallas. Police reports say husband Travis went to look for his son Aiden outside after not hearing from him. He found the boy laying face-down in the small lake on the property. Aiden was dead.
In the wake of their son’s tragic death, Olivia and Travis grew apart. Travis moved out. Olivia grew increasingly reclusive. Few had seen or heard from her in four years. She stayed holed up in that haunted house. Until a 911 operator received a call. Several in fact…with no voice coming from the other end of the line. Police reports indicate that the authorities were promptly dispatched to the Mabel family home at this time. Entering the house, it was a mess. Every room was piled to the ceiling with trash. Except the Mabel’s son Aiden’s room. That’s where they found Olivia.
She was sitting in front of a makeshift shrine dedicated to him. In her hands she clutched a crude doll made from sticks and Aiden’s clothing. On the shrine was a cryptic note that read:
“My Aiden,
I’m sorry.
I’m so sorry.
I should have never let it get like this.
I’m leaving.
I will not let you keep me you ViLE, EViL CREATURE.
Mommy’s coming for you, Aiden, my sweet Aiden.
Mommy loves you.”
Olivia’s death certificate indicates that signs of decomposition placed the actual time of her death at least three months before that day.
On the suicide note was a handwritten Sanskrit word that translated roughly as to build. Many people saw this as clear evidence that, racked by grief, Olivia had become possessed, after invoking a spirit that entered her body, known in the Tibetan traditions as a Tulpa, though metaphysical traditions related to the Sanskrit language and those located in Tibet are not at all related.
A production company in Los Angeles known as Elftree produced a podcast pilot about the case, while raising money to make a horror movie feature inspired by the details of Mabel’s death. The story and sources for her case seem to all have originated from this website: oliviamabel.com. Following its publication, the story went viral. There have now been dozens of “true crime storytelling” podcasts, Youtube episodes, and blog posts about the case. The death of Aiden and Olivia Mabel quickly rose the ranks to become one of the most notorious, spooky mysterious death stories in the genre. There’s only one problem.
The story of Olivia Mabel would appear to be created in a lab, to be spoon fed to a hungry true crime superfan…and that’s because…it was. The entire story, and all the supporting documents, are a lie.
There are no vital records best we can tell for Travis, Aiden, or Olivia. The address in Celina, Texas does exist, but it’s been held by the same owner for 25 years. The police department is there, but named officers don’t appear to have ever worked there. The story is so ubiquitous and widely documented that the train has all the way left the station.
The story and its proliferation reveal how untethered from factual reporting we’ve really become. I have no doubt the production company that put this together thought it was a clever way to create hype about their movie. The promotional materials leveraged true crime super-fans’ unquenchable thirst for the most unimaginable and stranger-than-fiction true story. In this case, what they got was in no way stranger than fiction. It was simply fiction.
So I thought of this story again this week. As we begin to see a proliferation of AI manufactured stories online — including stories of crimes and violence that never happened — we’ve long laid the groundwork online for a “spun yarn” to spin out of control.
It did make me wonder…if I investigated this false crime, what would I find along the way? I have to imagine all the online sleuths who first jumped on this, and the Celina TX PD, and people named Olivia Mabel, will have strong opinions on this story. You tell me. Should I do it?
SOME NEWS
The 48 Hours/Sony Music series I EP’d “Blood Is Thicker” is still sitting at #1 on the charts, now in its fifth week. If you haven’t heard it yet give it a listen. It truly is the kind of story you can listen to all in one sitting. I’m going to share a conversation with the writer and producer of the series here either this week or next.
And also, our new Binge title, and the 9th season of Smoke Screen, is now live.
My Friend, The Serial Killer details the story of a newsroom intern who broke his first big story by gaining access to a violent serial killer in prison. But in so doing, he blurred the lines between reporter and friend in a way that haunts him to this day. One of the best titles I believe we’ve ever done, so check that out too. I’ll do a deeper dive into the host Steve Fishman’s show here soon too.
I can never say it enough: thank you for subscribing and following along with me here. I absolutely love hearing from everyone who is reading, so don’t ever hesitate to drop me a line…even if I’m slow to respond.
Just know I’m likely chasing down the next story to grace these missives.