September 10, 2022 • 38 mins
"Who exactly is on the other side of the webcam? We come face to face with the kind of men exploiting Ruby. "
Just who are these perpetrators who commit this heinous crime, and why? This episode opens a little differently: from the point of view of an overseas perpetrator. If we want to combat this crime, we need to understand something about those who commit it.
We rejoin Ruby as she attempts for the first time to escape the online sex trafficking den.
Ruby reaches an all time low and turns to her last resource: prayer.
Hope is on the horizon. Although Ruby has no way of knowing it, a team of rescuers is busy preparing the last steps to come for her and the other girls
You won’t want to miss what happens next.
Issues this episode explores:
- Who are these overseas consumers of OSEC? Is there one ‘type’ of perpetrator? Hint: the answer may shock you.
- Is there any hope of change or rehabilitation for those who commit the crime?
Show website: fightofmy.life
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CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains descriptions of sexual violence. Listener discretion is advised.
Please seek help if you need to.
To speak to a trained crisis supporter at Lifeline (24-hours): 131 114
To report a crime to the Australian Federal Police: 1800 333 000
For emergency assistance: 000
FOR THE PHILIPPINES:
If you have suspicions about the occurrence of online sexual exploitation of children in your community, immediately report to: www.1343actionline.ph
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Finding Ruby is a production of Cadence Productions.
Show written and edited by Nikki Florence Thompson and Rich Thompson.
Additional production by Lydia Bowden, Anthea Godsmark, and Brendan Ridley.
Sound design and mix by Rich Thompson and Brendan Ridley.
Graphic design and social media by Sayaka Miyashita, Carla Moran, and Alyssa Sheridan.
Director of photography is Brad Conomy.
Matt Tooker is the executive producer.
Show Music
- "Homeland" by Searching for Light, featuring Jenna Carlie.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
(bright music)- Cadence Productions.
- Before we begin, a warning,this podcast contains
descriptions of sexual violence.
Listener discretion is advised.
(dramatic music)- June, 2013, United Kingdom.
(gentle music)
- It's around 10 (00:23):
00 PM when 67 year old, Mark
kisses his wife goodnight.
She's fallen asleep againwith a book splayed open on her chest.
He gently removes itand pauses for a moment
to listen to the steady riseand fall of her breath.
(gentle music)They've been married for over 30 years,
(00:47):
had children and nowgrandchildren together.
Sometimes he thinks he knows her facebetter than he knows his own.
(gentle music)He dims the lights as
he leaves their room,but leaves the lamp on in the hallway
in case she wakes suddenly.
(01:08):
Nightmares, even in oldage, are powerful things.
(gentle music)The lamp casts a small pool of light.
The rest of the hallway is dark,but another light in
the living room beckons,not the light of a lamp,
but the brighter, morecompelling beam of a screen.
(01:30):
(footsteps thumping)He is aware of a familiar
feeling inside him.
Is it power, excitement, freedom?
For the next few hours,the whole house is his.
He is in charge.
The thought pulls him on.
♪ Never say ♪(gentle music)- He could sit in the lounge
(01:52):
and watch TV of courselike he and his wife do
so many nights together,but tonight he is restless.
He needs a break.
He deserves one.
That's what he tells himselfas he sits down at his desk
and clasps the mouse.
(02:14):
He lets his fingers make the clicksthat take him outside of the house,
outside of his ordinary lifeand somewhere entirely different.
♪ All the memories ♪♪ All the words ♪
♪ Is all the stuff I'll never say ♪♪ All the memories ♪
♪ All the words ♪♪ The stuff I'll never say ♪
♪ All the memories ♪♪ All the words ♪
♪ All the stuff I'll never say ♪- He didn't intend to come back again.
(02:39):
He swore to himself thathe wouldn't do anything
like that again.
The images had been a shock,But for some reason he can't explain
or perhaps he doesn't want to,this is where he finds himself now,
somewhere even furtherthan he went before,
even more exhilarating,even more unstoppable.
(03:00):
(keyboard clicking)He cannot, he will not stop.
He chooses not to.
(keyboard clicking)Tonight, he will use Skype.
For in this place,this place of directing live shows,
he thinks he cannot be found.
(keyboard clicking)He taps the keys that open the door.
(03:22):
A few more keys later,and he is going down a corridor
he tries not to thinkabout in the daylight.
(keyboard clicking)Who will he find tonight?
With one last glance over his shoulder,he types in the words that begin it all.
He strikes the match.
"Hello, I like your photo."He waits.
(03:46):
Electricity running down his arms now.
Mark lean's forward.
All tiredness and frustrationis suddenly forgotten.
He is buzzing with ideas and directions.
He runs this show.
In no time at all,the match he chose to light
has become a burning raging fire.
(04:09):
(fire crackling)♪ Far in the distance ♪
♪ There's a promise. ♪- From Caden's productions,
this is "Finding Ruby."♪ I put it on the alter ♪
(04:29):
♪ Though it was mine ♪- A true story of loss and trauma
at the hands of one of theworld's fastest growing crimes,
but also a story of triumph,of rescue and resilience.
♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪
(04:50):
- This is the story of 16-year-old Rubythrown into the fight of her life
and of those who have chosento come alongside her
and make it the fightof their lives too.
(gentle music)Episode three, The Trespass.
(05:18):
- Okay, I'm gonna ask you a questionthat this may be impossible to answer.
But is the prevalenceof the crime growing,
that is, is it just that thepeople who are consuming it
are consuming more of itor that there are actually
more people consuming it?
- Yeah, that's a really good question.
(05:39):
- Remember John Tanagho from episode one?
He's the executive director of IJM Centerto End Online Sexual
Exploitation of Children.
- The short answer is,no one really knows
the scale of online sexualexploitation of children,
but we're working withpartners to find out.
- John and his team havestarted what they call
(05:59):
a Scale of Harm Project.
They are working with 24 external partnersacross child protection,
tech, financial research,government, gathering as
much information as they canto start being able to measure
the prevalence of OSEC.
This crime is movingso fast in the shadows
that the world is playingcatch-up on measuring it.
(06:23):
Here's what we do know.
There is a stat put out by the FBIthat says they believe
that at any given moment,there are around 750,000 predators online.
750,000.
But here's the thing,that stat is 10 years old.
(06:43):
In 2021, the UK National Crime Agencyput out a stat that
said that there are nowabout that amount of
people in the UK alonethat pose a sexual risk to children.
- And they said that thescale of this threat continues
to grow exacerbated byrising online activity.
So there's there's datathat indicates the demand
(07:06):
for this crime is growingnot only in individuals
seeking more of it,but in more individuals demanding
child sexual abuse materials.
(gentle music)- Supply and demand,
you'd normally hear these termsin the context of say the housing market
or a new product launch.
(07:28):
We're talking about children,the supply and demand for children.
(gentle music)We looked at the supply
side in the last episode,people who are willing
to sell their childrento earn what is comparatively
quite a lot of money.
The Philippines is a hotspot for thisbecause there is English fluency,
(07:50):
easy access to internationalmoney transfers,
and of course a reallyfavorable exchange rate.
But this crime wouldn't even be a thingif there was no demand for it.
If men around the worldweren't asking for it.
So what is driving this demand?
(08:11):
This ferocious rate of growth?
We have to at least beasking that question.
(gentle music)I don't know how John does his job.
He's a dad himself,and he is going up against
what seems to be an everincreasing hoard of men,
including dads, seeking to harm children.
(08:33):
It makes you wonder, how does John do it?
- Yeah, I think one thingthat I often know for myself
and my colleagues in thiswork is we're close to tears.
That's the way I kind of put it.
It doesn't take a lot to cry,but they're tears both
(08:55):
of pain and sadness,but also tears of joy.
So we are actually like...
We've come so close to this ugly abuse,this reality in our world,
but it's both the highs and the lows,the highs of children
being rescued and protectedand restored and becoming
(09:19):
leaders and getting justice.
The lows of knowing thereare still children out there
being abused and who wedon't know where they are yet
and who haven't been rescued.
But I actually feel likethe closer you are to tears,
the closer you are to love,because the closer you are to tears,
(09:39):
that means the closer you are to meaningand to helping people
and you actually get to a place of caring.
And so, yeah, I care for myself,but I'm not trying to get to
a place of total carefree,peace and joy and no concern in life.
(10:00):
Because I feel like ifyou get to that place,
you're actually gettingfar away from meaning
and being able to help people.
So I've sort of accepted thatI'm gonna be close to tears
as I do this work and that's just okay.
- This crime makes me despairat the state of so many people,
particularly men in our world today.
(10:23):
But talking to John,I am reminded that there
are of course good men too.
- And so that's why the issueof online sexual exploitation of children
is really one that, youknow, I've committed my life
to addressing, to just try tomake the world a safer place
for children just to bechildren, just like they deserve.
(10:49):
- Until now we've talkedin fairly general terms,
but just what sort ofsituations are victims
of OSEC exposed to?
Well, Colonel Sheilashares an example here
of just how far the abuse can extend.
And this, in a child's very own home.
- We've encountered acase wherein the customer,
(11:10):
the foreign customer paid for a mom,the child was ordered to
pee and then drink it back.
And then after that-- We're going to cut that there
because it gets really disturbing.
The kind of thing you can't unhear.
The kind of thing that makes you wonderat the darkness of some imaginations.
(11:33):
And it makes you wonder justwho are these consumers,
these shadowy men on theother side of the screen.
(gentle music)Now that opening we wrote about
67-year-old, Mark committingthis crime while his wife slept
peacefully in the other roomis sadly based on a true story.
(11:56):
We've changed his name,but kept everything else in line
with what we could find out about him.
We're going to hear therest of his story later
in this episode.
(gentle music)Now, we don't know if Mark and
Ruby's paths crossed online,it all happened at about the same time,
but if it wasn't him, it wascertainly men just like him.
(12:17):
And of course we don't knowexactly what he was thinking,
what was going through his mindwhile he committed the crimes.
And honestly, it's reallydisturbing to try and guess.
(gentle music)But if we had to have any
chance of fighting backand protecting vulnerable children,
we need to know who it isthat's causing the harm
(12:37):
because of course they are humans tooall with their own story.
So as hard as it is to do,I think we need to spend a
little bit of time tryingto understand them.
Who are these men?
Where are they coming from?
What brings them here and why?
(gentle music)- The Saskatchewan Internet
(13:00):
Child Exploitation Unit saysthe 27-year-old arranged access to video
and facilitated live streamingof child pornography in Romania
and the Philippines.
Police say he did itwith help from a number
of female suspects in those countries.
An investigation in thePhilippines is ongoing
while the women in Romaniahave been arrested.
(13:21):
- That clip is from Global News,a Canadian news outlet.
To date, Canadian Philips Chicoineis one of the worst
offenders to be caught.
He spent more than $20,000 over five yearsto pay for the live streamed,
often violent sexualexploitation of children
in the Philippines and Romania.
(13:41):
He was arrested in 2017 whenhe was just 27 years old
and he had more than10,000 pictures and videos
of child sexual abuse in his possession.
It was said in court that it's impossibleto know how many children were
victimized by his actions.
(14:02):
Those victims range fromchildren, 14 years old,
all the way down to infants.
I suppose Philip is closeto the kind of person
we'd normally imaginewhen it comes to the
consumers of this crime.
In the news, he is described as a loner,ostracized at school, and then at work.
(14:24):
He lived in his parents' basement.
Police raided Philip's homeWhen he was preparing to
travel to the Philippinesto engage in direct physical abuse.
The sheer depth ofdepravity explored by Philip
left the lead investigator,a Corporal Jared Clark, deeply disturbed.
(14:45):
- The material in his collectionwas some of the worst
stuff I've ever seen.
And like I said, it caused nightmares.
It caused me to have trouble even dealingwith my own kids at home.
- It's really, really dark.
Like I said, Philip feels likethe quintessential predator.
He fits the stereotypes well.
(15:06):
(gentle music)But I am slowly beginning to see
that one of the key ways weare gonna put an end to OSEC
is by first realizing that these predatorsare not all Philip Chicoines.
The hard truth is that offenders comein all shapes and sizes.
(15:26):
(gentle music)Back to Mark from the UK,
from all that we can read about him,it seems that he had a
very successful life.
He was retired after spendinghis years climbing the ladder
of his career.
He reached financial director level.
That's a big deal.
He was loved by his church communityand spent many days volunteering there.
(15:50):
He is a husband, a dad, and a grandfather.
It was 2012 when Mark turnedhimself into the police.
He had found himselflooking at underaged girls
in a corner of the internet hedidn't really want to be in.
The judge passed a threeyear community order
with a conditionthat he attended a sex
(16:11):
offender group program.
The judge said this,"I have taken account
of your good character,your guilty plea,
and that it was you whonotified the police.
Go away and don't come back."Mark had to register as a
sex offender for five years.
(16:31):
And police installedsoftware on his computer
to monitor his use.
His wife was mortifiedas was his whole family.
Mark himself said he was "totally ashamedand embarrassed."
And yet less than ayear later, he was back.
(16:55):
This time, he was using Skypeas he had heard that the installed
software couldn't monitorthe activity on it.
Now I want to stop herebecause we've all heard stories like this,
and perhaps we're numb tothem, but it's odd, right?
Mark seemed to have it all together.
He lived most of his lifeas far as we can tell
(17:18):
as an upstanding member of our society.
So what would lead him tostart exploiting children?
How did he end up down that pathand so late in his life?
- As I say, we work with thousands of menon the helpline each year.
(17:40):
And we work with about 250,300 guys in face-to-face works
following their arrest.
And that is a typical story,that they can think of
a time in their lifewhen they could never
have imagined gettingsexually involved in images of children.
But their pornography usage has degradedto such an extent that
(18:02):
that's where they went.
- That's Donald Findlater,Donald is the director of Stop it Now!
UK and Ireland.
It's a project within thebroader children's charity
called the Lucy FaithfulFoundation based in the UK.
Stop it Now! exists toprevent these sexual abuse
of children from happeningin the first place.
(18:23):
One of the services they offeris a confidential help line,
both over the phone andvia chat functionality.
They've set this up inpart for men worried
about their own sexual thoughts,feelings, and behaviors towards children.
This service was set up in the UKafter Donald ran a treatment program
all the way back in 1995.
(18:44):
Donald is a veteran in this areaand it's worth listening
to what he has to sayeven if it goes against
the grain of our culture.
I'm gonna let a part ofour chat play out here.
At times, the audio can be a little dodgy,so apologies for that.
But stick with it, I thinkyou'll find it quite revealing.
(gentle music)- We've worked with tens
(19:05):
of thousands of peopleon that basis since we set up Stop it Now!
And I think one of the verymore recent sort of realizations
and recognitionwhich I think the world of
research is waking up tois the number of people
that are getting involvedin viewing sexual images of children
from having a previousheavy adult pornography use.
(19:28):
Now there is absolutely zero excusefor anyone viewing sexual
images of children, no.
But we need to understandhow do people start that.
Some people start it becausetheir primary sex interest
is children.
So conventionally we mightcall those people pedophiles.
So some people are pedophiles,their sexual interest in children,
(19:49):
that's their primary interestor their sole interest
and what their online activity will match.
But for many people who get involvedin viewing sexual images of children,
what we see when they're arrestedis their online life had
a previous saturationof adult pornography.
And one of the challenges we havewith adult pornography online
(20:11):
is that there's a temptationto just keep looking
for something different,something else, something more shocking,
something kind of like thatI wouldn't normally expect
to see.
And because they'reonline, you can do that.
And unfortunately in people's journeyingin that pornography space,
some of them will journeyinto viewing underage images.
So they're viewingindecent images of children
(20:33):
or child sexual abuse materialsfrom wherever they can find it.
And then they can potentiallyget enmeshed in that world,
and that can shift their sexualinterest quite materially.
So it is that journey,it's not progression, in
a way it's deterioratingsexual behaviors into
more egregious materialsinvolving violence,
(20:55):
involving extreme content,including children that some
individuals will get into.
And that's a pathway thattoo many people are on
and maybe lots of people viewingadult pornography today
don't think that's a journeythey'll ever go on.
But frankly, rather, a lot of themare over months and years.
Some of them willdefinitely be doing that.
(21:16):
(gentle music)What you need to recognize
when people are viewing adult pornography,they're in a sexually aroused,
sexually excited state.
(21:40):
That's a moment for making bad decisions.
That's a moment for reallymaking poor judgments
and too many people arein that horrendous state,
making poor judgments,making bad decisions.
And tomorrow morning they will wake upand realize what they've done.
And maybe bitterly regret that.
And some people will not return,will resolve never to do that again.
(22:00):
But unfortunately offendingchanges offenders.
Once you've been in that space,for many there'll be a
temptation to go back.
(gentle music)- Back to Mark, we don't
actually know what led him downthe path that he traveled,
but it is important tonote that even family men
who are part of lovingenvironments at home
(22:21):
seem to be susceptible totraveling down this path.
- It's a tragic story for those guys,but it's additionally
tragic for all the childrenthat are adversely
impacted by this behavior,but also for the families of those men.
Because many of themen we're talking about
are regular guys with families,often with children and
(22:41):
often their nighttime worldis a sinister and a tragic place.
(gentle music)- John Tanagho puts it like this.
- The best way I can describeit is it's like a fire.
The more fuel you add tothe fire, the more it grows.
Offenders aren't just, youknow, satisfying themselves
(23:06):
because they've seen new material.
They see new material andthen it's like going down
the rabbit hole, theywanna see more and more
and more of it and so thedemand continues to grow.
- June, 2013, United Kingdom.
(suspenseful music)(sirens wailing)(door thudding)
(23:28):
- It's nighttime again,but this time Mark's wife isn't asleep.
(door thudding)She's woken to a loud noise
to find her husband isn't beside her.
The bed covers on his sidehaven't even been touched.
(door thudding)She feels a rising panic in her chest.
(23:51):
The sound becomes louder,banging.
They have a doorbell, why isher husband not answering?
(door thudding)She pulls her sleepy legs
over the side of the bed,steps unsteadily down onto the rug.
She makes her way on heavyfeet to the living room
where her husband isbent over the computer,
(24:13):
his face red and flushed, hismovements erratic, desperate.
"What's going on?" She asks, pleads.
(door thudding)(sirens wailing)The noise is louder and
the police through the doorbefore he can answer.
She doesn't need toask any more questions.
She can see all the answerson her husband's face.
(24:35):
So much less and so muchmore than she needs to know.
It is like a movie,like someone else's life
as she watches them take him by the armsand say the words that
change their lives again.
- You are under arrest.
- Her husband of 35 years,her children's father,
(24:58):
her grandchildren'sgrandfather is now a stranger.
A stranger on his way to jailfor acts he cannot even begin to imagine.
(gentle music)Months later, as she
sits in the courtroom,the bench beneath her back hard and cold.
(25:22):
Mark's wife can hardlybelieve the man on trial
is someone she once knew,someone she lived with,
someone she had loved or thought she did.
Someone who would willfully hurt children,not just hurt them,
no it is worse than that, destroy them.
(25:43):
She listens to the chargesas they are read and wonders
if she will ever be able to stop the echoof them in her mind.
The judge's words are likebullets, but they are true.
She knows that now.
Her husband, he says, was a serious riskto children and arranging the abuse
for his own gratificationwas unspeakably vile.
(26:08):
The judge sums it up like this.
The cold-hearted cruelty ofit is beyond comprehension.
(gentle music)Yes, this is true, it is incomprehensible.
How did they ever arrive here?
What will everyone think?
Members of their church,their children, grandchildren.
(26:28):
How will she ever face anyone again?
(gavel thudding)Mark is sentenced to 14 years in prison.
She won't have to see himanymore, this is something.
But in a way, it is likeshe is now in prison too.
(26:54):
Again, this retelling of Mark's storyis based on a true story.
We've included as many ofthe facts as we could find
through our research.
In this case, Mark'sarrest came on the back
of what was known as Operation Endeavor.
This global coordinatedstrike led to 29 arrests
across 12 countries.
(27:15):
There is a collective sigh of reliefwhen someone like Mark is put behind bars.
A wrong has been made right.
It is a satisfying result,but of course a much better result
would've been stopping him earlierbefore any of the damage or harm or abuse
had been done in the first place.
(27:41):
- (pants) You knew you weredying from the start. (sighs)
- We're all dying from the start,I just got moved to the head of the line.
- But you lied to me.
- I would've lied to myselfif I thought I'd believe it.
- (pants) So this whole thing,this whole summer having
me here was for your sake,having me here trying
(28:04):
to get me to like you.
- No, Sam, I wasn't tryingto get you to like me.
I was trying to get you to love me.
- Well, congratulations,because you pulled it off.
- We talked about crying before.
(28:26):
Well, it's about here inthe movie, "Life is a House"
that the ugly crying starts for me.
Kevin Kline finallywins his rebellious son,
Hayden Christensen over,and the relationship is given a chance.
The term ugly crying is about right, hey,where your face kinda gives up on you.
You seem to no longer have controlover your facial muscles
(28:47):
or the awkward soundsescaping from your mouth.
It's not an enjoyable moment, is it?
I mean, you don't want tolook or sound like that,
but every now and then the movie writerswill manage to tug at the heartstrings
in just the ride sequence andin an instant, you're gone.
Heartstrings, whatever we mean by that,are a very powerful force.
(29:12):
I bring this up because during the chat,Donald said something very interesting.
Something that has reallystayed with me since.
He said one of the best weapons they havein rescuing men from going
down this path of destructionis their heartstrings.
(gentle music)- But they also need to
understand the harm to childrenthat all these things do,
(29:34):
and we need to tug on their heartstrings.
And most of them have heartstrings,they've just turned off something,
which we need to turn back on againto making sure they realize
illegality and the harm.
But also after all of that,we need to show them help
is available to stop.
(gentle music)I work for a child protection charity.
I want children to be safe.
(29:54):
And if that involves the guysthat have caused the harm
going to prison,then I don't bat an eyelid about
that having to be the case.
But I also want peopleto take responsibility
to prevent sexual crimes.
So we need there to be aplace where they can contact.
And change is utterly feasible.
(30:15):
I mean, that's been mybusiness for 30 years,
helping those who commitsexual offending to change
and to realize a different way of living.
Just as if people gorgeon adult pornography
then start into childabuse materials online
that can shift their sexualinterests materially,
(30:36):
we can shift it back again.
So we have to have anappetite for doing that
and have to offer servicesthat will achieve that.
I'm not pretending these are easy steps,but they're achievable steps
if we invest in them seriously.
And frankly, children are important enoughthat we have no choice
but to invest in them.
(30:56):
We have to do that.
(gentle music)- As I listen to Donald,
I found myself againso thankful for men like him.
He has given his life tobeing on the coal face
and not just dismissing theperpetrators of this crime,
but instead coming alongside themin order to protect children.
(31:19):
(gentle music)It seems a story like
Ruby's is full of good guysand bad guys,
but where that line is,where one side starts
and the other finishesand what sits in between
and the possibility thatthere can be movement
between the two poles, isdefinitely worth considering.
(31:42):
Because to be dealt with,evil must first be exposed.
Nothing good can growwhen hidden in darkness.
- July 11th, 2013.
- For two months nowRuby has performed live
in front of the cameras for the customers.
(32:04):
Eight hours a day, six days a week,she has been subjected to
the whims of these men.
Nadine's right hand woman isthere to ensure she complies
with whatever is asked of her.
She does her best not to look at them.
She does not.
She cannot remember their faces.
(32:25):
What she does remember ishow they make her feel.
- I was really disgusted,like literally disgusted.
You know, when I say disgusted,it's beyond that feeling
that I felt towards those customers.
Like, you know, they would do anyways,you know, like just to, you
know, satisfy themselves.
(32:51):
- When she hears those sirens,the sirens going past the house
that suggests the firstreal possibility of escape,
it is like an alarm that awakens her.
She is sure they will hear herif only she can make enough noise.
She charges to the frontdoor and bangs on it
with all her might and screams for helpat the top of her lungs.
(33:16):
(sirens wailing)(door thudding)A few things happen next
in quick succession.
Firstly, the boss's righthand sprints to the kitchen
and grabs a small carving knife.
Then she runs to the front door,turns Ruby and forces
her against the door.
She puts the knife against Ruby's throatand she has fury in her eyes.
(33:41):
- She actually told me,you know, "If you won't
stop, I will kill you."She actually looked like
she would kill me any time.
She doesn't care at all.
I'm not her relatives.
And no one would knowif I get killed there.
No one would really know.
(suspenseful music)- The second thing that happens
is that all the othergirls come out to see
what the noise is.
(34:03):
They stand silently watching on.
- And I was actuallyhoping that the other girls
would take my side becausethey would also want to escape,
but nobody did.
When I looked around,they were also scared
and I didn't see any sympathy.
(34:24):
- And the third thing thathappens is that the sound
of the sirens, the sound ofhope recedes into the distance,
taking Ruby's sole chanceof escape with them.
- And at the momentactually I felt very weak.
I dunno if you've experienced alreadythat, you know, your knees
are shaking your nerves.
(34:47):
And I dunno where my strengthsuddenly left my body.
- Somehow Ruby manages to make her wayto the bathroom where she
lets her whole body collapse.
She feels all her energy leave her,seeping out of her onto the
tiles and down the drain.
(35:09):
All she can see again, andagain is the glint of the knife
so close to her skin, thewoman could've killed her
and no one would've known, no one,because the fact is no one
knows she is even here.
She wonders if this is indeed the end.
(suspenseful music)It is at this point, the end of her rope,
(35:35):
that Ruby finds herself doing somethingshe has never done before.
- I cried out loud.
I couldn't even see clearlybecause my tears were
really filling my eyesand I could not stop myself from crying.
So I just cried out with the Lord.
Maybe, you know, at thatmoment, I was thinking
(35:56):
maybe He could hear me.
So I cried out.
I said, "Lord, God, if you are real,please take me out of here."
So those were the lastlines that I was able to say
(36:18):
before I actually fell asleep from crying.
I was feeling very pity.
I was feeling very bit pitiful,so hopeless and so dark.
- The cold tiles become her bed.
Desperate loneliness is her blanket.
(36:39):
If only she knew then whatthe morning would bring,
perhaps she would've stayed awake.
For in that very moment,as Ruby lay there on the bathroom floor,
in her moment of greatest desperation,there was a small group
of people meeting togetheron the other side of town.
There were police officers, investigators,lawyers, and aftercare workers,
(37:04):
and they were puttingtogether the final plans
for the rescue that would takeplace the very next morning.
(gentle music)On the next episode of "Finding Ruby."
- The technical guy shoutedthat there's a police like
the house is getting raid.
♪ Far in the distance, there's a promise ♪- Finding Ruby is a project of Cadence,
(37:29):
a creative agency forgood in Sydney, Australia.
♪ We're all waiting in the in between ♪♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪
- This podcast is written and editedby Nikki Florence Thompson
and me, Rich Thompson.
Sound design and mix byme and Brendan Ridley.
(37:51):
Our theme song is "Homeland"by Searching for Light.
A special thanks to Lydia Bowden,Evelyn Pingul, Meryl Saco, Lani Alana
and all the team at IJM Philippinesfor opening the doors to us.
And of course a big thanks toRuby for telling her story.
And finally, a big thanks to youfor choosing to come on
(38:11):
this journey with us.
We'll see you on the next episode.
(gentle music)
(bright music)- Cadence Productions.
- Before we begin, a warning,this podcast contains
descriptions of sexual violence.
Listener discretion is advised.
(dramatic music)- June, 2013, United Kingdom.
(gentle music)
- It's around 10 (00:23):
00 PM when 67 year old, Mark
kisses his wife goodnight.
She's fallen asleep againwith a book splayed open on her chest.
He gently removes itand pauses for a moment
to listen to the steady riseand fall of her breath.
(gentle music)They've been married for over 30 years,
(00:47):
had children and nowgrandchildren together.
Sometimes he thinks he knows her facebetter than he knows his own.
(gentle music)He dims the lights as
he leaves their room,but leaves the lamp on in the hallway
in case she wakes suddenly.
(01:08):
Nightmares, even in oldage, are powerful things.
(gentle music)The lamp casts a small pool of light.
The rest of the hallway is dark,but another light in
the living room beckons,not the light of a lamp,
but the brighter, morecompelling beam of a screen.
(01:30):
(footsteps thumping)He is aware of a familiar
feeling inside him.
Is it power, excitement, freedom?
For the next few hours,the whole house is his.
He is in charge.
The thought pulls him on.
♪ Never say ♪(gentle music)- He could sit in the lounge
(01:52):
and watch TV of courselike he and his wife do
so many nights together,but tonight he is restless.
He needs a break.
He deserves one.
That's what he tells himselfas he sits down at his desk
and clasps the mouse.
(02:14):
He lets his fingers make the clicksthat take him outside of the house,
outside of his ordinary lifeand somewhere entirely different.
♪ All the memories ♪♪ All the words ♪
♪ Is all the stuff I'll never say ♪♪ All the memories ♪
♪ All the words ♪♪ The stuff I'll never say ♪
♪ All the memories ♪♪ All the words ♪
♪ All the stuff I'll never say ♪- He didn't intend to come back again.
(02:39):
He swore to himself thathe wouldn't do anything
like that again.
The images had been a shock,But for some reason he can't explain
or perhaps he doesn't want to,this is where he finds himself now,
somewhere even furtherthan he went before,
even more exhilarating,even more unstoppable.
(03:00):
(keyboard clicking)He cannot, he will not stop.
He chooses not to.
(keyboard clicking)Tonight, he will use Skype.
For in this place,this place of directing live shows,
he thinks he cannot be found.
(keyboard clicking)He taps the keys that open the door.
(03:22):
A few more keys later,and he is going down a corridor
he tries not to thinkabout in the daylight.
(keyboard clicking)Who will he find tonight?
With one last glance over his shoulder,he types in the words that begin it all.
He strikes the match.
"Hello, I like your photo."He waits.
(03:46):
Electricity running down his arms now.
Mark lean's forward.
All tiredness and frustrationis suddenly forgotten.
He is buzzing with ideas and directions.
He runs this show.
In no time at all,the match he chose to light
has become a burning raging fire.
(04:09):
(fire crackling)♪ Far in the distance ♪
♪ There's a promise. ♪- From Caden's productions,
this is "Finding Ruby."♪ I put it on the alter ♪
(04:29):
♪ Though it was mine ♪- A true story of loss and trauma
at the hands of one of theworld's fastest growing crimes,
but also a story of triumph,of rescue and resilience.
♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪
(04:50):
- This is the story of 16-year-old Rubythrown into the fight of her life
and of those who have chosento come alongside her
and make it the fightof their lives too.
(gentle music)Episode three, The Trespass.
(05:18):
- Okay, I'm gonna ask you a questionthat this may be impossible to answer.
But is the prevalenceof the crime growing,
that is, is it just that thepeople who are consuming it
are consuming more of itor that there are actually
more people consuming it?
- Yeah, that's a really good question.
(05:39):
- Remember John Tanagho from episode one?
He's the executive director of IJM Centerto End Online Sexual
Exploitation of Children.
- The short answer is,no one really knows
the scale of online sexualexploitation of children,
but we're working withpartners to find out.
- John and his team havestarted what they call
(05:59):
a Scale of Harm Project.
They are working with 24 external partnersacross child protection,
tech, financial research,government, gathering as
much information as they canto start being able to measure
the prevalence of OSEC.
This crime is movingso fast in the shadows
that the world is playingcatch-up on measuring it.
(06:23):
Here's what we do know.
There is a stat put out by the FBIthat says they believe
that at any given moment,there are around 750,000 predators online.
750,000.
But here's the thing,that stat is 10 years old.
(06:43):
In 2021, the UK National Crime Agencyput out a stat that
said that there are nowabout that amount of
people in the UK alonethat pose a sexual risk to children.
- And they said that thescale of this threat continues
to grow exacerbated byrising online activity.
So there's there's datathat indicates the demand
(07:06):
for this crime is growingnot only in individuals
seeking more of it,but in more individuals demanding
child sexual abuse materials.
(gentle music)- Supply and demand,
you'd normally hear these termsin the context of say the housing market
or a new product launch.
(07:28):
We're talking about children,the supply and demand for children.
(gentle music)We looked at the supply
side in the last episode,people who are willing
to sell their childrento earn what is comparatively
quite a lot of money.
The Philippines is a hotspot for thisbecause there is English fluency,
(07:50):
easy access to internationalmoney transfers,
and of course a reallyfavorable exchange rate.
But this crime wouldn't even be a thingif there was no demand for it.
If men around the worldweren't asking for it.
So what is driving this demand?
(08:11):
This ferocious rate of growth?
We have to at least beasking that question.
(gentle music)I don't know how John does his job.
He's a dad himself,and he is going up against
what seems to be an everincreasing hoard of men,
including dads, seeking to harm children.
(08:33):
It makes you wonder, how does John do it?
- Yeah, I think one thingthat I often know for myself
and my colleagues in thiswork is we're close to tears.
That's the way I kind of put it.
It doesn't take a lot to cry,but they're tears both
(08:55):
of pain and sadness,but also tears of joy.
So we are actually like...
We've come so close to this ugly abuse,this reality in our world,
but it's both the highs and the lows,the highs of children
being rescued and protectedand restored and becoming
(09:19):
leaders and getting justice.
The lows of knowing thereare still children out there
being abused and who wedon't know where they are yet
and who haven't been rescued.
But I actually feel likethe closer you are to tears,
the closer you are to love,because the closer you are to tears,
(09:39):
that means the closer you are to meaningand to helping people
and you actually get to a place of caring.
And so, yeah, I care for myself,but I'm not trying to get to
a place of total carefree,peace and joy and no concern in life.
(10:00):
Because I feel like ifyou get to that place,
you're actually gettingfar away from meaning
and being able to help people.
So I've sort of accepted thatI'm gonna be close to tears
as I do this work and that's just okay.
- This crime makes me despairat the state of so many people,
particularly men in our world today.
(10:23):
But talking to John,I am reminded that there
are of course good men too.
- And so that's why the issueof online sexual exploitation of children
is really one that, youknow, I've committed my life
to addressing, to just try tomake the world a safer place
for children just to bechildren, just like they deserve.
(10:49):
- Until now we've talkedin fairly general terms,
but just what sort ofsituations are victims
of OSEC exposed to?
Well, Colonel Sheilashares an example here
of just how far the abuse can extend.
And this, in a child's very own home.
- We've encountered acase wherein the customer,
(11:10):
the foreign customer paid for a mom,the child was ordered to
pee and then drink it back.
And then after that-- We're going to cut that there
because it gets really disturbing.
The kind of thing you can't unhear.
The kind of thing that makes you wonderat the darkness of some imaginations.
(11:33):
And it makes you wonder justwho are these consumers,
these shadowy men on theother side of the screen.
(gentle music)Now that opening we wrote about
67-year-old, Mark committingthis crime while his wife slept
peacefully in the other roomis sadly based on a true story.
(11:56):
We've changed his name,but kept everything else in line
with what we could find out about him.
We're going to hear therest of his story later
in this episode.
(gentle music)Now, we don't know if Mark and
Ruby's paths crossed online,it all happened at about the same time,
but if it wasn't him, it wascertainly men just like him.
(12:17):
And of course we don't knowexactly what he was thinking,
what was going through his mindwhile he committed the crimes.
And honestly, it's reallydisturbing to try and guess.
(gentle music)But if we had to have any
chance of fighting backand protecting vulnerable children,
we need to know who it isthat's causing the harm
(12:37):
because of course they are humans tooall with their own story.
So as hard as it is to do,I think we need to spend a
little bit of time tryingto understand them.
Who are these men?
Where are they coming from?
What brings them here and why?
(gentle music)- The Saskatchewan Internet
(13:00):
Child Exploitation Unit saysthe 27-year-old arranged access to video
and facilitated live streamingof child pornography in Romania
and the Philippines.
Police say he did itwith help from a number
of female suspects in those countries.
An investigation in thePhilippines is ongoing
while the women in Romaniahave been arrested.
(13:21):
- That clip is from Global News,a Canadian news outlet.
To date, Canadian Philips Chicoineis one of the worst
offenders to be caught.
He spent more than $20,000 over five yearsto pay for the live streamed,
often violent sexualexploitation of children
in the Philippines and Romania.
(13:41):
He was arrested in 2017 whenhe was just 27 years old
and he had more than10,000 pictures and videos
of child sexual abuse in his possession.
It was said in court that it's impossibleto know how many children were
victimized by his actions.
(14:02):
Those victims range fromchildren, 14 years old,
all the way down to infants.
I suppose Philip is closeto the kind of person
we'd normally imaginewhen it comes to the
consumers of this crime.
In the news, he is described as a loner,ostracized at school, and then at work.
(14:24):
He lived in his parents' basement.
Police raided Philip's homeWhen he was preparing to
travel to the Philippinesto engage in direct physical abuse.
The sheer depth ofdepravity explored by Philip
left the lead investigator,a Corporal Jared Clark, deeply disturbed.
(14:45):
- The material in his collectionwas some of the worst
stuff I've ever seen.
And like I said, it caused nightmares.
It caused me to have trouble even dealingwith my own kids at home.
- It's really, really dark.
Like I said, Philip feels likethe quintessential predator.
He fits the stereotypes well.
(15:06):
(gentle music)But I am slowly beginning to see
that one of the key ways weare gonna put an end to OSEC
is by first realizing that these predatorsare not all Philip Chicoines.
The hard truth is that offenders comein all shapes and sizes.
(15:26):
(gentle music)Back to Mark from the UK,
from all that we can read about him,it seems that he had a
very successful life.
He was retired after spendinghis years climbing the ladder
of his career.
He reached financial director level.
That's a big deal.
He was loved by his church communityand spent many days volunteering there.
(15:50):
He is a husband, a dad, and a grandfather.
It was 2012 when Mark turnedhimself into the police.
He had found himselflooking at underaged girls
in a corner of the internet hedidn't really want to be in.
The judge passed a threeyear community order
with a conditionthat he attended a sex
(16:11):
offender group program.
The judge said this,"I have taken account
of your good character,your guilty plea,
and that it was you whonotified the police.
Go away and don't come back."Mark had to register as a
sex offender for five years.
(16:31):
And police installedsoftware on his computer
to monitor his use.
His wife was mortifiedas was his whole family.
Mark himself said he was "totally ashamedand embarrassed."
And yet less than ayear later, he was back.
(16:55):
This time, he was using Skypeas he had heard that the installed
software couldn't monitorthe activity on it.
Now I want to stop herebecause we've all heard stories like this,
and perhaps we're numb tothem, but it's odd, right?
Mark seemed to have it all together.
He lived most of his lifeas far as we can tell
(17:18):
as an upstanding member of our society.
So what would lead him tostart exploiting children?
How did he end up down that pathand so late in his life?
- As I say, we work with thousands of menon the helpline each year.
(17:40):
And we work with about 250,300 guys in face-to-face works
following their arrest.
And that is a typical story,that they can think of
a time in their lifewhen they could never
have imagined gettingsexually involved in images of children.
But their pornography usage has degradedto such an extent that
(18:02):
that's where they went.
- That's Donald Findlater,Donald is the director of Stop it Now!
UK and Ireland.
It's a project within thebroader children's charity
called the Lucy FaithfulFoundation based in the UK.
Stop it Now! exists toprevent these sexual abuse
of children from happeningin the first place.
(18:23):
One of the services they offeris a confidential help line,
both over the phone andvia chat functionality.
They've set this up inpart for men worried
about their own sexual thoughts,feelings, and behaviors towards children.
This service was set up in the UKafter Donald ran a treatment program
all the way back in 1995.
(18:44):
Donald is a veteran in this areaand it's worth listening
to what he has to sayeven if it goes against
the grain of our culture.
I'm gonna let a part ofour chat play out here.
At times, the audio can be a little dodgy,so apologies for that.
But stick with it, I thinkyou'll find it quite revealing.
(gentle music)- We've worked with tens
(19:05):
of thousands of peopleon that basis since we set up Stop it Now!
And I think one of the verymore recent sort of realizations
and recognitionwhich I think the world of
research is waking up tois the number of people
that are getting involvedin viewing sexual images of children
from having a previousheavy adult pornography use.
(19:28):
Now there is absolutely zero excusefor anyone viewing sexual
images of children, no.
But we need to understandhow do people start that.
Some people start it becausetheir primary sex interest
is children.
So conventionally we mightcall those people pedophiles.
So some people are pedophiles,their sexual interest in children,
(19:49):
that's their primary interestor their sole interest
and what their online activity will match.
But for many people who get involvedin viewing sexual images of children,
what we see when they're arrestedis their online life had
a previous saturationof adult pornography.
And one of the challenges we havewith adult pornography online
(20:11):
is that there's a temptationto just keep looking
for something different,something else, something more shocking,
something kind of like thatI wouldn't normally expect
to see.
And because they'reonline, you can do that.
And unfortunately in people's journeyingin that pornography space,
some of them will journeyinto viewing underage images.
So they're viewingindecent images of children
(20:33):
or child sexual abuse materialsfrom wherever they can find it.
And then they can potentiallyget enmeshed in that world,
and that can shift their sexualinterest quite materially.
So it is that journey,it's not progression, in
a way it's deterioratingsexual behaviors into
more egregious materialsinvolving violence,
(20:55):
involving extreme content,including children that some
individuals will get into.
And that's a pathway thattoo many people are on
and maybe lots of people viewingadult pornography today
don't think that's a journeythey'll ever go on.
But frankly, rather, a lot of themare over months and years.
Some of them willdefinitely be doing that.
(21:16):
(gentle music)What you need to recognize
when people are viewing adult pornography,they're in a sexually aroused,
sexually excited state.
(21:40):
That's a moment for making bad decisions.
That's a moment for reallymaking poor judgments
and too many people arein that horrendous state,
making poor judgments,making bad decisions.
And tomorrow morning they will wake upand realize what they've done.
And maybe bitterly regret that.
And some people will not return,will resolve never to do that again.
(22:00):
But unfortunately offendingchanges offenders.
Once you've been in that space,for many there'll be a
temptation to go back.
(gentle music)- Back to Mark, we don't
actually know what led him downthe path that he traveled,
but it is important tonote that even family men
who are part of lovingenvironments at home
(22:21):
seem to be susceptible totraveling down this path.
- It's a tragic story for those guys,but it's additionally
tragic for all the childrenthat are adversely
impacted by this behavior,but also for the families of those men.
Because many of themen we're talking about
are regular guys with families,often with children and
(22:41):
often their nighttime worldis a sinister and a tragic place.
(gentle music)- John Tanagho puts it like this.
- The best way I can describeit is it's like a fire.
The more fuel you add tothe fire, the more it grows.
Offenders aren't just, youknow, satisfying themselves
(23:06):
because they've seen new material.
They see new material andthen it's like going down
the rabbit hole, theywanna see more and more
and more of it and so thedemand continues to grow.
- June, 2013, United Kingdom.
(suspenseful music)(sirens wailing)(door thudding)
(23:28):
- It's nighttime again,but this time Mark's wife isn't asleep.
(door thudding)She's woken to a loud noise
to find her husband isn't beside her.
The bed covers on his sidehaven't even been touched.
(door thudding)She feels a rising panic in her chest.
(23:51):
The sound becomes louder,banging.
They have a doorbell, why isher husband not answering?
(door thudding)She pulls her sleepy legs
over the side of the bed,steps unsteadily down onto the rug.
She makes her way on heavyfeet to the living room
where her husband isbent over the computer,
(24:13):
his face red and flushed, hismovements erratic, desperate.
"What's going on?" She asks, pleads.
(door thudding)(sirens wailing)The noise is louder and
the police through the doorbefore he can answer.
She doesn't need toask any more questions.
She can see all the answerson her husband's face.
(24:35):
So much less and so muchmore than she needs to know.
It is like a movie,like someone else's life
as she watches them take him by the armsand say the words that
change their lives again.
- You are under arrest.
- Her husband of 35 years,her children's father,
(24:58):
her grandchildren'sgrandfather is now a stranger.
A stranger on his way to jailfor acts he cannot even begin to imagine.
(gentle music)Months later, as she
sits in the courtroom,the bench beneath her back hard and cold.
(25:22):
Mark's wife can hardlybelieve the man on trial
is someone she once knew,someone she lived with,
someone she had loved or thought she did.
Someone who would willfully hurt children,not just hurt them,
no it is worse than that, destroy them.
(25:43):
She listens to the chargesas they are read and wonders
if she will ever be able to stop the echoof them in her mind.
The judge's words are likebullets, but they are true.
She knows that now.
Her husband, he says, was a serious riskto children and arranging the abuse
for his own gratificationwas unspeakably vile.
(26:08):
The judge sums it up like this.
The cold-hearted cruelty ofit is beyond comprehension.
(gentle music)Yes, this is true, it is incomprehensible.
How did they ever arrive here?
What will everyone think?
Members of their church,their children, grandchildren.
(26:28):
How will she ever face anyone again?
(gavel thudding)Mark is sentenced to 14 years in prison.
She won't have to see himanymore, this is something.
But in a way, it is likeshe is now in prison too.
(26:54):
Again, this retelling of Mark's storyis based on a true story.
We've included as many ofthe facts as we could find
through our research.
In this case, Mark'sarrest came on the back
of what was known as Operation Endeavor.
This global coordinatedstrike led to 29 arrests
across 12 countries.
(27:15):
There is a collective sigh of reliefwhen someone like Mark is put behind bars.
A wrong has been made right.
It is a satisfying result,but of course a much better result
would've been stopping him earlierbefore any of the damage or harm or abuse
had been done in the first place.
(27:41):
- (pants) You knew you weredying from the start. (sighs)
- We're all dying from the start,I just got moved to the head of the line.
- But you lied to me.
- I would've lied to myselfif I thought I'd believe it.
- (pants) So this whole thing,this whole summer having
me here was for your sake,having me here trying
(28:04):
to get me to like you.
- No, Sam, I wasn't tryingto get you to like me.
I was trying to get you to love me.
- Well, congratulations,because you pulled it off.
- We talked about crying before.
(28:26):
Well, it's about here inthe movie, "Life is a House"
that the ugly crying starts for me.
Kevin Kline finallywins his rebellious son,
Hayden Christensen over,and the relationship is given a chance.
The term ugly crying is about right, hey,where your face kinda gives up on you.
You seem to no longer have controlover your facial muscles
(28:47):
or the awkward soundsescaping from your mouth.
It's not an enjoyable moment, is it?
I mean, you don't want tolook or sound like that,
but every now and then the movie writerswill manage to tug at the heartstrings
in just the ride sequence andin an instant, you're gone.
Heartstrings, whatever we mean by that,are a very powerful force.
(29:12):
I bring this up because during the chat,Donald said something very interesting.
Something that has reallystayed with me since.
He said one of the best weapons they havein rescuing men from going
down this path of destructionis their heartstrings.
(gentle music)- But they also need to
understand the harm to childrenthat all these things do,
(29:34):
and we need to tug on their heartstrings.
And most of them have heartstrings,they've just turned off something,
which we need to turn back on againto making sure they realize
illegality and the harm.
But also after all of that,we need to show them help
is available to stop.
(gentle music)I work for a child protection charity.
I want children to be safe.
(29:54):
And if that involves the guysthat have caused the harm
going to prison,then I don't bat an eyelid about
that having to be the case.
But I also want peopleto take responsibility
to prevent sexual crimes.
So we need there to be aplace where they can contact.
And change is utterly feasible.
(30:15):
I mean, that's been mybusiness for 30 years,
helping those who commitsexual offending to change
and to realize a different way of living.
Just as if people gorgeon adult pornography
then start into childabuse materials online
that can shift their sexualinterests materially,
(30:36):
we can shift it back again.
So we have to have anappetite for doing that
and have to offer servicesthat will achieve that.
I'm not pretending these are easy steps,but they're achievable steps
if we invest in them seriously.
And frankly, children are important enoughthat we have no choice
but to invest in them.
(30:56):
We have to do that.
(gentle music)- As I listen to Donald,
I found myself againso thankful for men like him.
He has given his life tobeing on the coal face
and not just dismissing theperpetrators of this crime,
but instead coming alongside themin order to protect children.
(31:19):
(gentle music)It seems a story like
Ruby's is full of good guysand bad guys,
but where that line is,where one side starts
and the other finishesand what sits in between
and the possibility thatthere can be movement
between the two poles, isdefinitely worth considering.
(31:42):
Because to be dealt with,evil must first be exposed.
Nothing good can growwhen hidden in darkness.
- July 11th, 2013.
- For two months nowRuby has performed live
in front of the cameras for the customers.
(32:04):
Eight hours a day, six days a week,she has been subjected to
the whims of these men.
Nadine's right hand woman isthere to ensure she complies
with whatever is asked of her.
She does her best not to look at them.
She does not.
She cannot remember their faces.
(32:25):
What she does remember ishow they make her feel.
- I was really disgusted,like literally disgusted.
You know, when I say disgusted,it's beyond that feeling
that I felt towards those customers.
Like, you know, they would do anyways,you know, like just to, you
know, satisfy themselves.
(32:51):
- When she hears those sirens,the sirens going past the house
that suggests the firstreal possibility of escape,
it is like an alarm that awakens her.
She is sure they will hear herif only she can make enough noise.
She charges to the frontdoor and bangs on it
with all her might and screams for helpat the top of her lungs.
(33:16):
(sirens wailing)(door thudding)A few things happen next
in quick succession.
Firstly, the boss's righthand sprints to the kitchen
and grabs a small carving knife.
Then she runs to the front door,turns Ruby and forces
her against the door.
She puts the knife against Ruby's throatand she has fury in her eyes.
(33:41):
- She actually told me,you know, "If you won't
stop, I will kill you."She actually looked like
she would kill me any time.
She doesn't care at all.
I'm not her relatives.
And no one would knowif I get killed there.
No one would really know.
(suspenseful music)- The second thing that happens
is that all the othergirls come out to see
what the noise is.
(34:03):
They stand silently watching on.
- And I was actuallyhoping that the other girls
would take my side becausethey would also want to escape,
but nobody did.
When I looked around,they were also scared
and I didn't see any sympathy.
(34:24):
- And the third thing thathappens is that the sound
of the sirens, the sound ofhope recedes into the distance,
taking Ruby's sole chanceof escape with them.
- And at the momentactually I felt very weak.
I dunno if you've experienced alreadythat, you know, your knees
are shaking your nerves.
(34:47):
And I dunno where my strengthsuddenly left my body.
- Somehow Ruby manages to make her wayto the bathroom where she
lets her whole body collapse.
She feels all her energy leave her,seeping out of her onto the
tiles and down the drain.
(35:09):
All she can see again, andagain is the glint of the knife
so close to her skin, thewoman could've killed her
and no one would've known, no one,because the fact is no one
knows she is even here.
She wonders if this is indeed the end.
(suspenseful music)It is at this point, the end of her rope,
(35:35):
that Ruby finds herself doing somethingshe has never done before.
- I cried out loud.
I couldn't even see clearlybecause my tears were
really filling my eyesand I could not stop myself from crying.
So I just cried out with the Lord.
Maybe, you know, at thatmoment, I was thinking
(35:56):
maybe He could hear me.
So I cried out.
I said, "Lord, God, if you are real,please take me out of here."
So those were the lastlines that I was able to say
(36:18):
before I actually fell asleep from crying.
I was feeling very pity.
I was feeling very bit pitiful,so hopeless and so dark.
- The cold tiles become her bed.
Desperate loneliness is her blanket.
(36:39):
If only she knew then whatthe morning would bring,
perhaps she would've stayed awake.
For in that very moment,as Ruby lay there on the bathroom floor,
in her moment of greatest desperation,there was a small group
of people meeting togetheron the other side of town.
There were police officers, investigators,lawyers, and aftercare workers,
(37:04):
and they were puttingtogether the final plans
for the rescue that would takeplace the very next morning.
(gentle music)On the next episode of "Finding Ruby."
- The technical guy shoutedthat there's a police like
the house is getting raid.
♪ Far in the distance, there's a promise ♪- Finding Ruby is a project of Cadence,
(37:29):
a creative agency forgood in Sydney, Australia.
♪ We're all waiting in the in between ♪♪ We're all seeking a homeland ♪
- This podcast is written and editedby Nikki Florence Thompson
and me, Rich Thompson.
Sound design and mix byme and Brendan Ridley.
(37:51):
Our theme song is "Homeland"by Searching for Light.
A special thanks to Lydia Bowden,Evelyn Pingul, Meryl Saco, Lani Alana
and all the team at IJM Philippinesfor opening the doors to us.
And of course a big thanks toRuby for telling her story.
And finally, a big thanks to youfor choosing to come on
(38:11):
this journey with us.
We'll see you on the next episode.
(gentle music)
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