September 4, 2025 • 15 mins
In this episode of Hunting 4 Answers: In February 2022, 32-year-old Irene Gakwa vanished from Gillette, Wyoming, after a final video call with her family in Kenya. What began as a young woman’s pursuit of the American Dream quickly unraveled into a story of deception, financial exploitation, and unanswered questions. Despite international attention, tireless searches, and her boyfriend being named a person of interest, Irene’s whereabouts remain unknown. Anyone with information about this case should contact the Gillette Police Department at 307-682-5155.
This is the story of Irene Gakwa.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect
Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a
true crime podcast. I'm your host Hunter, and today we're
highlighting a tragic case where a young woman's American dream
turned into her family's worst nightmare. On February twenty fourth,
(00:22):
twenty twenty two, a thirty two year old woman had
her last video call with her family in Kenya. Within hours,
not weeks, her bank accounts would be compromised and she
would vanish without a trace. What started as a nursing
student's pursuit of a better life in America became a
(00:44):
twisted tale of financial exploitation, digital deception, and control. Despite
extensive searches across Wyoming and international attention, her remains have
never been fun. This is the story of Irene Goqua.
(01:09):
Irene Goqua was a woman of determination in dreams. Born
in Kenya, she arrived in the United States in twenty
nineteen with a clear mission to become a registered nurse.
For Irene, this wasn't just about personal success. It represented
hope for her entire family back home, who had supported
(01:33):
her journey to a new continent. She initially settled in Boise, Idaho,
where she began pursuing her nursing degree. Two of her
older brothers, Chris Goqua and Kennedy y Nina, were also
living in Idaho in the Boise area, giving Irene a
family support system as she adjusted to life in America
(01:56):
while her parents lived overseas in Kenya. Irene was described
by those who knew her as bright, hardworking, and deeply
connected to her family. She maintained regular video calls with
her loved ones in Kenya, a routine that would later
become crucial to understanding her disappearance. In the summer of
(02:21):
twenty twenty, Irene's life took a romantic turn when she
met Nathan Hetman on a Craigslist forum. What started as
an online connection gradually became a relationship that would change
the trajectory of her life and ultimately end it. By
(02:41):
July twenty twenty one, Irene had made a significant decision.
She would leave Idaho and move to Gellette, Wyoming, to
live with Nathan Heytman. Jellette was a small city in
northeastern Wyoming, known for its coal mining and oil industry,
was worlds away from both Kenya, and the city life
(03:04):
she'd known in Boise, but love, or what she believed
to be loved, had convinced her to start fresh in
this remote corner of America. To her family back in Kenya,
everything initially seemed to be progressing well. Irene continued her
regular video calls sharing updates about her new life in Wyoming.
(03:29):
But what her family didn't know was that beneath the surface,
troubling patterns were emerging. As twenty twenty one turned into
twenty twenty two, concerning incidents began to accumulate. In January
twenty twenty two, just one month before Irene's disappearance, Nathan
(03:53):
and Irene sold her car to a dealership for two
thousand dollars. The car dealership owner would later tell police
that Heytman's behavior during the transaction was odd and controlling.
Witnesses noticed that Irene seemed subdued and that Heypman appeared
(04:14):
to be managing all aspects of the sale despite the
car being registered in her name. This incident seemed a
bit suspicious. Was Heypman already planning something? Was he isolating
Irene by removing her means of transportation? Questions like these
(04:35):
would haunt investigators as they tried to piece together the
final weeks of Irene's life. February twenty fourth, twenty twenty two,
It started like any other day for Irene's family in Kenya.
They had their regular video call with Irene, which was
(04:55):
a routine that was keeping them connected. During that phone call,
Irene appeared to be her normal self. She spoke with
her family, sharing updates about her life in Wyoming. There
were no obvious signs of distress, no indication that anything
was wrong. It was just another conversation between a daughter
(05:19):
and her loving family. But that video call on February
twenty fourth would be the last time Irene's family would
ever see her face or hear her voice directly. But
her family didn't know was that within twenty four hours
of that call back in America, someone would begin taking
(05:43):
money out of Irene's financial accounts. The theft began on
February twenty fifth, just one day after she was last
seen alive. In the weeks following that last video call,
Irene's family continued to receive text messages from her phone
(06:03):
via WhatsApp. The messages came throughout March twenty twenty two,
maintaining the appearance that everything was normal and that she
was still sharing details of her life in Wyoming, but
these were not video calls, just texts. The tone sometimes
seemed off, not quite matching Irene's usual way of communicating.
(06:29):
Her family started to sense that something was wrong. During
this same time period, someone had gained access to Irene's
digital life. Her Gmail account was deleted, her banking passwords
were changed, and her financial accounts were drained. As March
turned to April, the text messages stopped entirely, leaving her
(06:53):
family alarmed and very worried. On March twenty two, twenty
twenty two, Irene's family reported her missing. Her brothers in Idaho,
who had access to her phone records through a family plan,
were the first point of contact for their parents backing Kenya.
(07:14):
They reviewed the records and spoke with one of Irene's
close friends, discovering she had been living with her boyfriend,
Nathan Hetman, in Gellette, Wyoming, information previously unknown to the family.
They relayed these concerns to local authorities and personally reported
Irene missing to Gellette police. What they discovered painted a
(07:39):
disturbing picture of financial exploitation and premeditated deception. The financial
crimes had begun immediately after Irene's disappearance. Nearly three thy
seven hundred dollars had been stolen from her checking account,
over six hundred and four dollars had been charged on
(08:00):
her visa, and her Capital one credit card had been
maxed out to the tune of over thirty two hundred dollars.
The person responsible for the theft was Nathan Heytman, the
same man that Irene had been living with. In April
twenty twenty two, just weeks after Irene was reported missing,
(08:24):
Nathan Heypman was officially named a person of interest. The
investigation had revealed not only the financial crimes, but also
inconsistencies in Heyman's account of events.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
The evidence against him was mounting.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
Beyond the financial theft, investigators discovered he had deleted Irene's
Gmail account and changed her banking passwords. On May twelfth,
twenty twenty two, Jellette police arrested Heypman. While he wasn't
charged with Irene's disappe, adherents no body had been found,
(09:03):
and there wasn't enough evidence to prove a homicide, he
was only charged with the financial crimes committed against her.
The arrest brought some measure of justice for the financial exploitation,
but it did nothing to answer the burning question that
haunted her family.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Where was Irene.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
As the legal case against Nathan Heyman progressed, the search
for Irene continued. Volunteer searchers joined the effort, understanding that
Wyoming's vast and unforgiving landscape could be challenging to navigate.
Stacy Coaster, a dedicated volunteer searcher, organized extensive search efforts.
(09:49):
She brought in horses specifically trained to detect human decomposition,
deployed kadaver dogs, and covered hundreds of miles of Wyoming terrain.
The searches were methodical and thorough, but the landscape of
Wyoming is enormous, vast stretches of prairie mountains and remote
(10:11):
areas where someone could disappear without a trace. The terrain
is harsh, with countless places where evidence could be hidden
or destroyed by the elements. Despite these extensive efforts, no
trace of Irene was found. The commitment of the volunteers
(10:32):
showed the community's dedication to finding answers, but it also
underscored the magnitude of the challenge that they were facing.
In the fall of twenty twenty three, more than a
year and a half after Irene's disappearance, Nathan Heytman pleaded
guilty to the financial crimes he had committed against her.
(10:55):
The guilty plea was an admission of what investigators already
suspected that Heyman had stolen from and financially exploited the
missing woman. The judge sentenced him to three to six
years in prison and ordered him to pay more than
thirteen thousand dollars in fines and restitution. However, the sentencing
(11:19):
covered only the theft and credit card fraud, not the
mystery of what happened to Irene herself. For Irene's family,
the guilty plea was bittersweet. It didn't answer the questions
that mattered the most. Where was Irene, what happened to her?
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And was she still alive.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
Heyman remains a person of interest in her disappearance, and
investigators made it clear that the search for answers continues.
In February twenty twenty four, nearly two years after Irene's disappearance,
a new development and emerged. A neighboring law enforcement agency
(12:04):
opened a new and unrelated investigation into Nathan Heytman. The
details of this investigation were not made public, but it
indicated that Heyman's legal troubles were far from over. This
new development raised questions about whether there were other victims,
other crimes, or other pieces of the puzzle that hadn't
(12:28):
been uncovered. For Irene's family, it was both hopeful and concerning.
As of today, Heyman is serving his sentence in Wyoming
State Prison, where he remains a person of interest in
Irene's disappearance. The case officially remains open and active, though
(12:50):
investigators acknowledge they have had faced significant challenges in developing
new leads. Irene's family continues to adv kate for her,
working with American authorities and keeping her story alive. They
remain convinced that someone knows what happened to her, and
(13:11):
they continue to hope that person will come forward for
her loved ones, Irene's disappearance represents more than just a
missing person case.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
It's a loss of a beloved daughter and sister who had.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Traveled thousands of miles to pursue her dreams, only to
vanish without a trace. They are left in a state
of the unknown unable to grieve properly without knowing exactly
what happened to her. My thoughts and prayers are with
the family and friends of Irene Gagua. Anyone with information
(13:49):
about her disappearance to contact the Jillette Police Department.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
You can find their.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
Number and the case number in the description box below.
As we close out this episode, don't forget to click
the follow button to stay updated on Irene's case and
others like it. Be sure to subscribe to Hunting for
Answers on YouTube and follow us on Instagram and TikTok
for our true crime content and case updates. Share Irene's story.
(14:20):
Bringing awareness could bring more answers. Also, if you're watching
us on YouTube, drop your thoughts on this case in
the comments below. Thank you so much for joining us
on another episode.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
Until next time.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect
Podcast Network. For more podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast Network,
visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen
to your favorite shows.
Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect
Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. Welcome to Hunting for Answers, a
true crime podcast. I'm your host Hunter, and today we're
highlighting a tragic case where a young woman's American dream
turned into her family's worst nightmare. On February twenty fourth,
(00:22):
twenty twenty two, a thirty two year old woman had
her last video call with her family in Kenya. Within hours,
not weeks, her bank accounts would be compromised and she
would vanish without a trace. What started as a nursing
student's pursuit of a better life in America became a
(00:44):
twisted tale of financial exploitation, digital deception, and control. Despite
extensive searches across Wyoming and international attention, her remains have
never been fun. This is the story of Irene Goqua.
(01:09):
Irene Goqua was a woman of determination in dreams. Born
in Kenya, she arrived in the United States in twenty
nineteen with a clear mission to become a registered nurse.
For Irene, this wasn't just about personal success. It represented
hope for her entire family back home, who had supported
(01:33):
her journey to a new continent. She initially settled in Boise, Idaho,
where she began pursuing her nursing degree. Two of her
older brothers, Chris Goqua and Kennedy y Nina, were also
living in Idaho in the Boise area, giving Irene a
family support system as she adjusted to life in America
(01:56):
while her parents lived overseas in Kenya. Irene was described
by those who knew her as bright, hardworking, and deeply
connected to her family. She maintained regular video calls with
her loved ones in Kenya, a routine that would later
become crucial to understanding her disappearance. In the summer of
(02:21):
twenty twenty, Irene's life took a romantic turn when she
met Nathan Hetman on a Craigslist forum. What started as
an online connection gradually became a relationship that would change
the trajectory of her life and ultimately end it. By
(02:41):
July twenty twenty one, Irene had made a significant decision.
She would leave Idaho and move to Gellette, Wyoming, to
live with Nathan Heytman. Jellette was a small city in
northeastern Wyoming, known for its coal mining and oil industry,
was worlds away from both Kenya, and the city life
(03:04):
she'd known in Boise, but love, or what she believed
to be loved, had convinced her to start fresh in
this remote corner of America. To her family back in Kenya,
everything initially seemed to be progressing well. Irene continued her
regular video calls sharing updates about her new life in Wyoming.
(03:29):
But what her family didn't know was that beneath the surface,
troubling patterns were emerging. As twenty twenty one turned into
twenty twenty two, concerning incidents began to accumulate. In January
twenty twenty two, just one month before Irene's disappearance, Nathan
(03:53):
and Irene sold her car to a dealership for two
thousand dollars. The car dealership owner would later tell police
that Heytman's behavior during the transaction was odd and controlling.
Witnesses noticed that Irene seemed subdued and that Heypman appeared
(04:14):
to be managing all aspects of the sale despite the
car being registered in her name. This incident seemed a
bit suspicious. Was Heypman already planning something? Was he isolating
Irene by removing her means of transportation? Questions like these
(04:35):
would haunt investigators as they tried to piece together the
final weeks of Irene's life. February twenty fourth, twenty twenty two,
It started like any other day for Irene's family in Kenya.
They had their regular video call with Irene, which was
(04:55):
a routine that was keeping them connected. During that phone call,
Irene appeared to be her normal self. She spoke with
her family, sharing updates about her life in Wyoming. There
were no obvious signs of distress, no indication that anything
was wrong. It was just another conversation between a daughter
(05:19):
and her loving family. But that video call on February
twenty fourth would be the last time Irene's family would
ever see her face or hear her voice directly. But
her family didn't know was that within twenty four hours
of that call back in America, someone would begin taking
(05:43):
money out of Irene's financial accounts. The theft began on
February twenty fifth, just one day after she was last
seen alive. In the weeks following that last video call,
Irene's family continued to receive text messages from her phone
(06:03):
via WhatsApp. The messages came throughout March twenty twenty two,
maintaining the appearance that everything was normal and that she
was still sharing details of her life in Wyoming, but
these were not video calls, just texts. The tone sometimes
seemed off, not quite matching Irene's usual way of communicating.
(06:29):
Her family started to sense that something was wrong. During
this same time period, someone had gained access to Irene's
digital life. Her Gmail account was deleted, her banking passwords
were changed, and her financial accounts were drained. As March
turned to April, the text messages stopped entirely, leaving her
(06:53):
family alarmed and very worried. On March twenty two, twenty
twenty two, Irene's family reported her missing. Her brothers in Idaho,
who had access to her phone records through a family plan,
were the first point of contact for their parents backing Kenya.
(07:14):
They reviewed the records and spoke with one of Irene's
close friends, discovering she had been living with her boyfriend,
Nathan Hetman, in Gellette, Wyoming, information previously unknown to the family.
They relayed these concerns to local authorities and personally reported
Irene missing to Gellette police. What they discovered painted a
(07:39):
disturbing picture of financial exploitation and premeditated deception. The financial
crimes had begun immediately after Irene's disappearance. Nearly three thy
seven hundred dollars had been stolen from her checking account,
over six hundred and four dollars had been charged on
(08:00):
her visa, and her Capital one credit card had been
maxed out to the tune of over thirty two hundred dollars.
The person responsible for the theft was Nathan Heytman, the
same man that Irene had been living with. In April
twenty twenty two, just weeks after Irene was reported missing,
(08:24):
Nathan Heypman was officially named a person of interest. The
investigation had revealed not only the financial crimes, but also
inconsistencies in Heyman's account of events.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
The evidence against him was mounting.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
Beyond the financial theft, investigators discovered he had deleted Irene's
Gmail account and changed her banking passwords. On May twelfth,
twenty twenty two, Jellette police arrested Heypman. While he wasn't
charged with Irene's disappe, adherents no body had been found,
(09:03):
and there wasn't enough evidence to prove a homicide, he
was only charged with the financial crimes committed against her.
The arrest brought some measure of justice for the financial exploitation,
but it did nothing to answer the burning question that
haunted her family.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Where was Irene.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
As the legal case against Nathan Heyman progressed, the search
for Irene continued. Volunteer searchers joined the effort, understanding that
Wyoming's vast and unforgiving landscape could be challenging to navigate.
Stacy Coaster, a dedicated volunteer searcher, organized extensive search efforts.
(09:49):
She brought in horses specifically trained to detect human decomposition,
deployed kadaver dogs, and covered hundreds of miles of Wyoming terrain.
The searches were methodical and thorough, but the landscape of
Wyoming is enormous, vast stretches of prairie mountains and remote
(10:11):
areas where someone could disappear without a trace. The terrain
is harsh, with countless places where evidence could be hidden
or destroyed by the elements. Despite these extensive efforts, no
trace of Irene was found. The commitment of the volunteers
(10:32):
showed the community's dedication to finding answers, but it also
underscored the magnitude of the challenge that they were facing.
In the fall of twenty twenty three, more than a
year and a half after Irene's disappearance, Nathan Heytman pleaded
guilty to the financial crimes he had committed against her.
(10:55):
The guilty plea was an admission of what investigators already
suspected that Heyman had stolen from and financially exploited the
missing woman. The judge sentenced him to three to six
years in prison and ordered him to pay more than
thirteen thousand dollars in fines and restitution. However, the sentencing
(11:19):
covered only the theft and credit card fraud, not the
mystery of what happened to Irene herself. For Irene's family,
the guilty plea was bittersweet. It didn't answer the questions
that mattered the most. Where was Irene, what happened to her?
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And was she still alive.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
Heyman remains a person of interest in her disappearance, and
investigators made it clear that the search for answers continues.
In February twenty twenty four, nearly two years after Irene's disappearance,
a new development and emerged. A neighboring law enforcement agency
(12:04):
opened a new and unrelated investigation into Nathan Heytman. The
details of this investigation were not made public, but it
indicated that Heyman's legal troubles were far from over. This
new development raised questions about whether there were other victims,
other crimes, or other pieces of the puzzle that hadn't
(12:28):
been uncovered. For Irene's family, it was both hopeful and concerning.
As of today, Heyman is serving his sentence in Wyoming
State Prison, where he remains a person of interest in
Irene's disappearance. The case officially remains open and active, though
(12:50):
investigators acknowledge they have had faced significant challenges in developing
new leads. Irene's family continues to adv kate for her,
working with American authorities and keeping her story alive. They
remain convinced that someone knows what happened to her, and
(13:11):
they continue to hope that person will come forward for
her loved ones, Irene's disappearance represents more than just a
missing person case.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
It's a loss of a beloved daughter and sister who had.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Traveled thousands of miles to pursue her dreams, only to
vanish without a trace. They are left in a state
of the unknown unable to grieve properly without knowing exactly
what happened to her. My thoughts and prayers are with
the family and friends of Irene Gagua. Anyone with information
(13:49):
about her disappearance to contact the Jillette Police Department.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
You can find their.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
Number and the case number in the description box below.
As we close out this episode, don't forget to click
the follow button to stay updated on Irene's case and
others like it. Be sure to subscribe to Hunting for
Answers on YouTube and follow us on Instagram and TikTok
for our true crime content and case updates. Share Irene's story.
(14:20):
Bringing awareness could bring more answers. Also, if you're watching
us on YouTube, drop your thoughts on this case in
the comments below. Thank you so much for joining us
on another episode.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
Until next time.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Hunting for Answers is a production of the Black Effect
Podcast Network. For more podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast Network,
visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen
to your favorite shows.
Host
Hunter Gilmore
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