Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed sought support at least five Islamic centers with histories of extremist rhetoric, including statements describing the United States as “the House of Satan” and calling for “the final annihilation of Jews,” The Post has learned.

In March 2026, El-Sayed visited the Islamic Center of Detroit to build support for his campaign. He addressed a packed gathering of men during a Ramadan prayer service and asked worshippers to sign petitions allowing him to qualify for the Michigan Democratic primary ballot.

“I have to get on the ballot to be able to get your vote, inshallah. So, my team is here in the back … we need your signature to get on the ballot,” El-Sayed told the congregation. A mosque leader had welcomed him to the pulpit, introducing him as “our beloved brother Dr. Abdulrahman.”

“Please don’t leave here without doing that,” he said, according to video from the center’s YouTube channel reviewed by The Post.

During the same service, a leader delivered a closing prayer in Arabic asking Allah to take the “worst revenge” against Zionists.

“The Zionists have spread corruption in the land. Your forbearance has deceived them, so show them your power … They killed our brothers and sisters, so take the worst revenge upon them,” the leader sang, according to the footage.

“Raise no banner for them in the lands of the Muslims … foil their plans in every time and place,” he continued.

In 2025, an Islamic scholar told the congregation that Muslims were “living here in America, in the house of Satan,” while also making the unsubstantiated claim that the US Constitution was based on Islam.

“I’m expecting some rough time during the next four years, so it is important for us to be able and ready to say no, this is not a Christian country, this was not built by the Judeo-Christian tradition,” Dr. Zulfiqar Shah said during a recorded service in January 2025.

“It was built upon the Islamic ideology.”

In March 2024, another religious leader at the center called for the killing of all “Zionist aggressors.”

“Count them one by one and kill them all, scattering them, and leave not one of them,” he said, according to videos translated by the Middle East Forum.

El-Sayed, 41, has appeared at multiple events at the Islamic Center of Detroit over the years, dating back to at least 2017. News reports also show that he attended a political meeting at the mosque in 2019.

The Detroit center is not the only tax-exempt Islamic institution where El-Sayed has sought campaign support despite a record of hateful rhetoric from speakers.

El-Sayed also appeared at the Islamic Organization of North America in Warren, which has hosted speakers who called for “the final annihilation of Jews.”

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The Senate candidate visited the organization in September, when his campaign set up a booth to seek donations and volunteers and distribute campaign flyers.

“They will be exterminated. … And actually, this greater Israel would become their greater graveyard. And it has been established to drag all the Israelis from all the corners of the world to their graveyard. And here they will perish,” a speaker said at the organization in 2013.

At the American Moslem Society in Dearborn, one of the Detroit area’s largest and oldest mosques, El-Sayed campaigned last week. Leaders there have previously prayed to “let us live upon jihad and cause us to die upon martyrdom.”

During his appearance, El-Sayed invoked faith and moral responsibility as he urged the crowd to support his campaign, while also condemning US backing for Israel.

“We deserve to know that our money isn’t being wasted to make war, to do genocide, to backstop apartheid,” he told the crowded room.

El-Sayed also spoke at the Islamic Institute of America — which prayed for Allah to “show vengeance and wrath against the criminal Zionists” — and the Islamic House of Wisdom — which called for “disbelievers to be neutralized if not destroyed” — both in Dearborn Heights in June.

“El-Sayed is a terrorist sympathizer who has taken every opportunity to excuse Islamic extremism and platform radical imams, Muslim Brotherhood-linked networks, and people who said America deserved 9/11,” slammed Natalie Baldassarre, National Press Secretary for the Republican National Committee.

“He’s a better fit for Guantanamo Bay than the halls of Congress, and Michiganders should keep this jihadist as far away from power as possible.”

Meanwhile two other centers that have a history of violent speech — the Muslim Educational Community Center of America in Canton and the American Muslim Diversity Association in Sterling Heights — urged worshippers to send El-Sayed to the Senate. 

“It’s mandatory to go and to elect brother Abdul El-Sayed because at least we know he’s a Muslim,” Saleh Qazwini, imam for the former, said. “We have to all come out in numbers.”

El-Sayed’s family ties and own associations with designated terror and extremist groups have dogged his campaign.

His father, Mohammed El-Sayed, sits on the board of Life for Relief and Development, an Islamic charity accused of funneling money to Hamas and Saddam Hussein.

His mother, Fatten Elkomy, worked for the Islamic American Relief Agency, a group accused of funding bin Laden, Hamas and Taliban, and was an activist with Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement that seeks to establish Sharia law.

And El-Sayed himself penned a 2012 letter in support of the Brotherhood, a designated a terrorist organization by the State Department.

He’s denied his ties and did not return The Post’s request for comment.

A shooting at a Spirit Halloween store in Fairfield, California, left one person dead and at least six others injured Friday evening, on the eve of Halloween.

The Fairfield Police Department said officers were called to the Spirit Halloween location inside Solano Town Center mall after receiving reports of gunfire at about 8:30 p.m. local time.

Authorities confirmed that seven people were struck by gunfire. One of the victims later died from their injuries.

The six surviving victims were transported to area hospitals, and at least three were listed in critical condition, police said.

Officials had not released the victims’ names.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims of this heartbreaking incident,” police said in a statement.

Police did not immediately identify a suspect or suspects. Detectives were interviewing witnesses and working to determine who was responsible for the shooting.

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No arrests had been reported in connection with the shooting.

The investigation remains ongoing, police said.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Fairfield Police Department at 707-428-7600 or email 1030mall@fairfield.ca.gov.

Suisun City Mayor Alma Hernandez, whose community borders Fairfield, expressed concern for the victims and their families after the shooting.

“Please join us in praying for the victims and their families, and for the officers working to bring the suspect into custody,” Hernandez said.

A houndstooth blazer, a distinctly British Mulberry handbag and a London-style front step dressed for Christmas: every detail in Meghan’s latest image appears carefully chosen.

Little about Meghan’s public image is left to accident. The photograph, featured in As Ever’s holiday catalogue, offers a particularly polished—and pointedly British—presentation of the Duchess of Sussex.

This is Meghan in her British Influencer Edition. Since launching her lifestyle brand in April 2025, she has remained at its centre, usually promoting a distinctly Californian vision of life: oversized sunhats, bright gardens and plenty of barefoot ease.

Now, however, the mood has shifted. Meghan appears to be embracing a country-house persona, entering territory long associated with Carole Bamford and her luxury wellness and organic farming business, Daylesford Organic.

The move may also invite fresh scrutiny of the Sandringham agreement. Following Megxit, Meghan and Prince Harry agreed with the late Queen that they would not remain “half in and half out” of royal life, although the Sussexes have indicated this year that they did not accept all of its terms.

That backdrop gives added significance to Meghan’s latest commercial push. It comes shortly after a day of charity engagements in Nottingham that carried an unmistakably royal tone.

This time, the offering is not another jar of jam. Instead, As Ever is presenting a “refined” collection designed around entertaining at home, with a distinctly British feel.

The range includes blue-and-white tableware, among it a porcelain Trellis teapot priced at $98 (£73) and a matching teacup and saucer costing $68 (£51).

The collection also features a leather notebook with a British penny tucked into its front pocket and the phrase “A penny for your thoughts” printed on the cover. It sells for $185 (£138), while the most expensive item is a $398 (£297) tablecloth.

The Christmas shopping season continues regardless, but the timing comes during a particularly difficult week for the Sussexes.

Attention remains focused on disturbing allegations involving Meghan’s father, Thomas Markle, which he denies.

The Daily Mail reported yesterday that it had contacted the FBI after the discovery of alleged child-abuse material in a storage unit rented by Thomas Markle near his former home in Mexico. The report is understood to have caused further distress for Meghan, who is said to have recently left Britain for several days with Harry and their children, Archie, seven, and Lilibet, five.

“She’s just really, really upset,” a friend told Hello! magazine this week. “She keeps on looking at Lili and she’s in tears, and thinking about all the children, the alleged victims. It’s just devastating.”

The family controversy was followed by another setback on Thursday, when a YouGov poll suggested that Harry and Meghan are now less popular in Britain than they were before returning to the country in August.

Just 29 per cent of Britons expressed a favourable view of Harry, a four-point drop since July, while 60 per cent viewed him negatively. Meghan recorded a 20 per cent positive rating and a 68 per cent negative one, giving her a net score of minus 48—the lowest YouGov has recorded for her.

In stark terms, more than two-thirds of those surveyed said they viewed the Duchess of Sussex unfavourably. Only former Prince Andrew ranked lower in the poll.

The couple’s apparent strategy for rebuilding their standing—keeping a low profile, avoiding apologies and focusing on charitable work—has so far produced little evidence of a turnaround.

The poll results raise a difficult question: would the public be more willing to offer a second chance if it heard an apology first?

That’s certainly the opinion of renowned royal author Robert Jobson who said this week: ‘I am not mean-spirited. But I believe that to be granted a second chance you must first earn it. Oh, and yes, you need to apologise for what you did wrong too . . . and mean it. As yet, this entitled pair – H & M – haven’t, and don’t think they should.’

So has the Sussexes’ bold gambit failed? Friends of the couple waft away talk of a crisis, and deride reports circulating which suggest that they might just declare the whole attempt a bust and go back to Montecito, California, after Christmas, for good.

‘There is no buyer’s remorse!’ one insists.

The family is on a short planned break out of the UK – possibly at their home in Portugal – and will be returning this weekend so that the children are ready to start the second half of term in their new schools. They are occupying a house on the estate of a wealthy friend in the Cotswolds.

There is no question of giving up on the reverse Megxit. A source says: ‘They have definitely not gone back to Montecito for half term. They are just away for a few days. They have been focused on the children spending some time with their new English friends as they are still very much settling in.

‘After half term it will be a big change for Archie as they start to play sport on Saturdays. They are still absolutely committed to their life in Britain and to making it work.’

The friend adds: ‘Meghan is trying to fit into British society and doing a lot of things differently from last time around.

‘When she was first here [when she moved to the UK and married Prince Harry] she wanted to send out signals with her clothes about uplifting this designer or that cause but she gets it now, people don’t want that. A lesson has been learned.

‘She wants to come across as low-key and respectful rather than all guns blazing. This is very early days and a new chapter and they are treading carefully.

‘She sort of needs one of the local grandes dames to adopt her, take her under their wing. It only takes one matriarch!’

Good luck with that, as all the signs are that the couple are making very little headway socially in the Cotswolds or in London.

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They have been visited by friends from America and Meghan has seen US comedian Ellen DeGeneres, who lives in the Cotswolds, but aside from a few sightings at Soho Farmhouse they haven’t been in evidence at social events.

Perhaps there is some hesitating among the smart set over inviting them to break bread. But the pair are apparently sincere in their wish to be accepted in the UK and to ‘do good’ here.

There is to be another public engagement for both of them between now and Christmas and Harry also has a number of yet-to-be-announced public appearances at charity events.

And those close to the couple don’t place too much stock in the poll of 2,000 people.

‘The whole vibe in the country is generally soaring, people can see that they are not bad people,’ says the friend. ‘They were so happy with the Nottingham visit. They are looking seriously at where and when to buy now but I know that the place they are in has started to feel special to them so there is no rush.’

He adds: ‘They are very well aware that they need to build bridges. They really have gone out of their way to make a quiet start and to be humble. The King sees Harry as a naughty rogue and really there is no problem between father and son. They chat regularly and things are all moving in the right direction.

‘There was a sense of trepidation in coming back for the pair of them and in particular for Meghan.

‘It was a heart-wrenching moment giving up her life in Montecito and coming back to a country which, rightly or wrongly, has not made her feel the most welcome.

‘She was very aware at that point that she was to some degree unwelcome in the UK. There were deep breaths to do it. It was a decision made for the sake of the family that this would be the best place to educate the children, that an English public school education was second to none and that it needed to start this year so that Archie could begin at prep school at the same time as everyone else.

‘They are still very committed to that, although there are now some conversations around a possible different tack at secondary school level rather than going to Eton, Wellington or Marlborough.

‘They are UK residents now and will be for decades to come but have discussed the idea of sending the kids abroad for secondary education.’ One possibility is boarding at Upper Canada College, a leading private school in Toronto.

Meghan will continue to ‘come and go’ from the UK as she carries on with her lifestyle brand and also takes on any other media work.

It won’t include series three of the Netflix hit The Gentlemen – reports that she was ‘in conversations’ for a role in the gangster drama – which seemed to be seeded from the Sussex side just as they came back to the UK – didn’t turn into casting.

So what else will she do? Ari Emanuel, formerly her agent and chairman of William Morris Endeavor agency, made waves a few weeks ago when he revealed she was ‘actually getting booked’ for ‘reality stuff and TV stuff’ by other members of his team.

What that meant became clear this week when it was announced that Meghan is to be a guest judge on Junior MasterChef, filmed in Melbourne, next year. She did a day’s filming with the Australian version of MasterChef when the couple were visiting this spring.

In a statement she said: ‘I had an incredible time with the whole team at MasterChef this past April, so when they approached me to come back and work with this young group of talent, it was an easy yes.

‘I love cooking with my own kids, so seeing what these young stars create in the kitchen is going to be a lot of fun. I can’t wait to see what they cook up.’

I’m told that the appearance will be more than just a guest spot this time. ‘She is going to go for a few weeks,’ says a source. Despite speculation: ‘None of the family will go, it will just be her.’

The source adds: ‘She will continue to work in the US and globally and be very, very careful about what she does in the UK and how she does it. She is aware that the consequences if she gets the optics wrong can be really bad.’

We can expect further announcements from Meghan of new patronages and initiatives involving UK charities particularly relating to women, children and digital harm.

And what of the ghastly Thomas Markle allegations? His son, Thomas Jr, has told a newspaper that he found a sickening trove of paedophile pornography among his father’s belongings and police in the Philippines are investigating.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police has referred itself to the police watchdog for failing to pass allegations about Thomas Markle to the FBI and other foreign forces.

It received a letter in 2019 accusing the Duchess of Sussex’s father of being a paedophile and committing crimes overseas but took no action beyond handing a copy of the letter, believed to have been written by Mr Markle’s late ex-wife, Roslyn Loveless, to the duchess.

Embarrassingly for the Met, when the new allegations emerged, it had to ask the duchess for a copy of the letter as it had lost the original.

Meghan said in a statement last week: ‘I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed. In 2018 [sic], a letter was sent to the Metropolitan Police and Royalty and Specialist Protection [Rasp]. That letter was subsequently shared with me. It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these were being investigated.

‘I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications’ distortion over the years, any distance from my father, and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children, was for one reason: to protect them. I trusted that the authorities were doing the same for other families.

‘Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children.’

One source tells me that the characterisation of Meghan as in tears over her father this past week is not correct. On the contrary, she is ‘relieved’ that the world now knows the allegations about him.

He said: ‘She is relieved that it is being looked into properly and she is also relieved to some extent that things are out in the public because she feels that the way it’s being dealt with now indicated how significant it is. She just wants the right outcome for any victims.’

The source adds of Thomas Markle: ‘There has always been a thick layer of oddity about the man.’

A layer the duchess will want to distance herself from as soon as possible as she continues to forge her reinvention as a domestic goddess.

Los Angeles voters voiced sharp doubts about Mayor Karen Bass’ approach to homelessness and public safety after reviewing her policy proposals without being told which mayoral candidate had endorsed them.

Bass is heading into the November 3 mayoral election amid broad public discontent. She will face socialist challenger and Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman.

Several Angelenos questioned whether the city should continue spending hundreds of millions of dollars to move unhoused residents from encampments into temporary hotel rooms while they await permanent housing through Bass’ signature “Inside Safe” initiative.

“I don’t believe a hotel is the right setting for people experiencing homelessness,” Val Villanueva said. “Many are dealing with mental health challenges, and some may be going through withdrawal in those environments.

“We need something more structured, with support services available right away—possibly a recovery center or another setting focused on rehabilitation.”

Bass’ record on homelessness is a central reason Villanueva plans to support Raman in the mayoral contest.

“She isn’t really resolving the homelessness problem. She’s moving people from one place to another, and doing it in a very aggressive way. There are police raids on encampments, and homeless people are often confronted by police while they’re trying to sleep.”

Villanueva added that Los Angeles has become “complacent” and is slowly moving in the wrong direction.

Adrian Guess said public funding for homelessness can be justified when housing is paired with mental health care, addiction treatment and financial literacy programs. “If you provide housing without addressing those other needs, you’re only putting a bandage over the problem,” he said. Guess has not yet decided how he will vote.

Amy Zhao opposed the scale of Bass’ spending on homelessness, arguing that taxpayers deserve a more effective strategy. “That’s a significant amount of money, especially for people like me who pay substantial taxes,” she said. “There have to be better ways to address homelessness. Simply throwing money at the issue doesn’t seem like the best solution.” Zhao does not plan to vote in this year’s election.

Voters were also asked whether the next mayor should increase the Los Angeles Police Department by roughly 1,000 officers. At the time, they were not told that Bass supports the proposal. Some said a larger force could merely mask deeper problems.

“I don’t think the police department is being used effectively right now,” Villanueva said. “In the part of the city where I live, I see a lot of—at least in the area that I’m at—

a serious problem with how officers are deployed.”

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Villanueva said he has also noticed what he considers unnecessary aggression from officers, adding that hiring more than 1,000 additional police would not solve it. “We don’t necessarily need more officers who aren’t properly trained. We need officers with better training,” he said.

Caitlene Navalta said Los Angeles should look beyond punishment and examine the conditions that lead to situations requiring police intervention.

“If young people are getting into situations that cause someone to call the police, we also need to ask why,” she said. “Do they have other resources, outlets or constructive ways to spend their time?” Navalta declined to say which candidate she supports.

Other residents expressed more support for investing in public safety, though they said accountability should come with it. “The most important thing is making sure everyone is treated with respect,” Morgan Huang said.

Zhao said additional funding could help if city officials are careful about recruitment and hiring. “If the city is responsible about how it hires and who it brings in, I think there could be a benefit,” she said.

Guess said police are an important part of public safety, but argued that expanding the force should happen alongside investments in mental health professionals, homelessness outreach workers and other social services. “If you’re going to add police, you also need to expand those other services,” he said.

Voters we spoke to were generally more supportive of a couple policies we proposed from Raman, without knowing she was behind them – around increasing housing density and maintaining Airbnb restrictions in the city.  

When asked whether Los Angeles should allow duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes in neighborhoods traditionally reserved for single-family homes, Lucas Robles said, “I think it might be a good idea because overpopulation in the world is a very common trend right now. I think we should probably build more vertically instead of horizontally.” Robles still hasn’t decided who he’s voting for. 

Zhao added, “I can’t afford a house. So, like, honestly, if it brings down, like, the price of some of those properties, like, sure. I mean, I don’t see a problem with that.”

When asked whether Los Angeles should maintain restrictions that generally prohibit homeowners from using second properties as short-term rentals on platforms like Airbnb, Villanueva staunchly agreed. 

He said that greed is causing Airbnb to drift too far from its original mission: helping people rent out a spare bedroom. 

“It is kind of evolving into something very different where people are buying a bunch of houses and then they’re remodeling them for cheap and then they are just renting them out for so much,” he said. 

Guess agreed. “I feel like with the Airbnb housing, it does jack up the prices for people who live in the city,” he said. “You’ve got people turning more housing into more tourist spots and taking them away from local people who live here.”

However Robles disagreed. “I feel like if you have ownership over another home, I think you should be able to do what you want with that home. If that means renting it out to an Airbnb, I think you should be able to have power to do that,” he said. 

Sydney Loofe believed she was meeting a woman for a second date after connecting on Tinder. Instead, the 24-year-old disappeared, beginning a case that would end with her killer making a chilling confession about why he believed she had been the “wrong person” to target.

“I don’t regret killing Sydney,” Aubrey Trail said, according to filmmaker Christopher St. John. “I don’t regret killing somebody, but I regret killing … I picked the wrong person.”

Trail, a 52-year-old con man at the time, was convicted of killing the Nebraska store clerk in 2017. Prosecutors said he strangled Loofe with an electrical cord, dismembered her body into 14 pieces, sealed the remains in garbage bags and left them in roadside ditches. During the trial, witnesses described how Trail and his girlfriend, Bailey Boswell, then 25, approached people about group sex and spoke of the occult, including their belief that killing could help them gain “powers.”

“One of the FBI agents said the culprits were in a frenzy,” St. John told News Media. “They were looking to do this, and Sydney was the available target. She was trusting and innocent and fit the profile. Later, you hear Aubrey Trail, the murderer, say, ‘I picked the wrong person.’”

“That is incredibly chilling to me because he feels no remorse. He only regrets choosing someone whose strong network of family and friends ultimately helped expose him and bring about his capture.”

The murder of Loofe by Trail, who called himself a “powerful warlock” and claimed to lead a sex cult, is revisited in Hulu’s new true crime docuseries, “Swipe Right on the Devil.” The three-episode production includes interviews with Loofe’s family and friends, investigators and recordings of Trail from death row.

Loofe worked as a cashier at Menards, a home improvement retailer, and lived by herself with her cat, Mimsy. Friends said she hoped to find a relationship. Through Tinder, she matched with a woman named Audrey—a false identity used by Boswell. After messaging one another, the pair went on a first date and arranged to meet again the following day. Loofe appeared genuinely excited about the connection.

“Sydney was like any one of us,” St. John said. “She was lonely and looking for a sense of belonging. She went on a date with this woman and was so excited that she immediately told her friends. They said, ‘Great, nothing to worry about.’ Then they never heard from her again. Something horrific had emerged from the darkness.”

When Loofe failed to report for her morning shift, her family asked police to conduct a welfare check. Officers found her vehicle at home, along with her work clothes and purse prepared for the day. Her cat had not been fed.

Loofe’s friend Brooklyn McCrystal knew she had gone on a date the night before she vanished. Hoping to identify Audrey and obtain contact information, McCrystal created her own Tinder account. After matching with the profile, she exchanged phone numbers with Boswell and passed the information to police. Friends also showed investigators Loofe’s final Snapchat post, a selfie captioned “Ready for my date.”

“Brooklyn delivered the first major breakthrough,” St. John said. “She catfished the people responsible. The case involved digital tracking and all the elements of a remarkable investigation. But in the end, it was Sydney’s loved ones—people determined to find answers—who helped lead authorities to Aubrey and Bailey.”

Boswell declined to assist investigators. Authorities discovered that the phone they were tracking was a burner device obtained under a false name. Its signal led them to nearby hotels, where surveillance footage and the state-issued identification used during check-in helped police determine that Boswell was the woman using the name “Audrey.” The footage also showed her with an older man later identified as Trail. The Lincoln Journal Star reported that Loofe’s phone last connected to the location of Boswell and Trail’s apartment that night.

Police secured a search warrant for the apartment and found that it reeked of bleach. By then, Boswell and Trail had paid their rent ahead of time and abandoned the property.

Police named Boswell and Trail as persons of interest. On Nov. 29, 2017, the couple released a video on social media denying any involvement in Loofe’s disappearance. Boswell said she had gone on two dates with Loofe, but after their second date, she had dropped Loofe off at a friend’s house. Despite maintaining their innocence, they went on the run.

Boswell and Trail were arrested on Nov. 30, 2017, near Branson, Missouri, on unrelated federal fraud charges.

Nearly three weeks after Loofe disappeared, investigators used cellphone data to trace Boswell and Trail’s movements and identify rural areas where they appeared to have slowed down or stopped.

On Dec. 4, 2017, investigators searched a roadside ditch near Edgar, Nebraska. They found car keys, a phone, a label with Loofe’s name and her dismembered upper arm, which bore a tattoo that read “Everything will be wonderful someday.” The Lincoln Journal Star reported that some garbage bags contained her clothing.

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According to court documents, Trail and Boswell were captured on surveillance video at a Home Depot in Lincoln on Nov. 15, 2017, buying tools investigators believed were used to dismember Loofe, hours before her death. Investigators believed Boswell and Trail had lured Loofe through Tinder before killing her and dismembering her body.

“During the trial, the prosecutor said that Aubrey and Bailey had four arms, four legs and one mind,” director Brian Biegel told News Media. “That speaks to how intertwined they were, how they fed off of each other’s darkness and desire for evil.”

After his arrest, investigators questioned Trail about accounts that he portrayed himself as a powerful warlock and surrounded himself with women he called witches. Trail initially dismissed the occult talk as role-playing, but later told investigators, “Witches kill … the more they kill, their power increases.”

“I spoke to Aubrey Trail for over two years on the telephone and on video conferences,” said Biegel. “I do believe that he believes, based on his history growing up in rural Tennessee and the people that he was groomed by, which, according to him, were witches and they believe in dark magic.”

“I believe, that he believes, that he has special powers and he can use them mostly to manipulate vulnerable people into bending to his will,” Biegel continued. “And I think that’s an important distinction because yes, in his words, he was trying to form a coven of witches and groom them to do awful, terrible things. It’s his belief that if they had done that, they would have superpowers.”

St. John said the filmmakers were aware during production that Trail was “a liar and a serial one.”

“There’s truth in and among the lies, so we were constantly trying to check ourselves and be like, ‘Are we being manipulated by him just like he manipulated these young women?’ And honestly, we didn’t want to give him more of a platform for his, frankly, out-there views.”

The docuseries also examines how Boswell used multiple identities on Tinder to meet women, including Loofe.

Ana Golyakova said Trail required her and Boswell to be intimate in front of him, while Ashley Hills said Trail beat her if she disobeyed his demands. Hills said Trail’s rules included remaining naked, asking permission to do virtually anything — even to use the bathroom — and not speaking to other men.

Several women described similar patterns of control. Hills also said Trail told her he practiced witchcraft and could control people’s minds.

The filmmakers said the women’s accounts were crucial to understanding how Trail and Boswell operated — and how investigators ultimately brought them to justice.

“At the heart of this story is Sydney Loofe and the women who were pulled into the orbit of Aubrey and Bailey,” said St. John.

“These were young women who, in a very universal way, were searching for belonging in a place that was hard for them to find that. It made them vulnerable and, as a result, they fell into this awful situation. But they were incredibly brave. Other than Sydney, who unfortunately was killed, these young women have told their story in court, and they’re responsible for putting these people away.”

Trail was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in 2019. He also pleaded no contest to improper disposal of human skeletal remains. He was sentenced to death in 2021.

Boswell was convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and improper disposal of human skeletal remains in 2020. She was sentenced to life in prison the following year.

“There was a thirst for doing something really awful to someone that had built up in Bailey and Aubrey’s orbit,” said Biegel. “And so, Sydney was at the wrong place at the wrong time. She came into their world at a time when they were ready to perform some of their supposed beliefs in witchcraft and dark magic.”

“This is obviously a cautionary tale about not knowing who’s on the other side of the screen,” Biegel said. “But had it not been for the brilliant work of the Lincoln Police Department and the FBI, there would probably still be two killers on the streets. Who knows how many other people they would have killed?”

A lively New England city is split over a proposed downtown redesign that would add protected bike lanes—but could take five years to complete. Local business owners worry the prolonged construction may keep customers away.

The debate is unfolding in Northampton, Massachusetts, a city of roughly 31,000 people known as the “Paradise City.” Northampton is located about 100 miles west of Boston.

The $43.3 million proposal would transform Northampton’s Main Street with separated bicycle lanes, fewer parking spaces and a narrower roadway. In some sections, the street would shrink from approximately 90 feet wide.

Construction on the first phase of the project is expected to begin in 2028. The full downtown redevelopment, known as Picture Main Street, could take five years to complete, according to the Boston Globe.

Robert McGovern, the 81-year-old owner of Packard’s bar, said the plan could seriously damage downtown businesses. “People are not going to bicycle in town to go shopping,” he said, describing the proposal as a “kiss of death for downtown.”

“Grandma is not going to be sitting in a … basket while you pedal her to Packard’s for a beer,” McGovern told the outlet. “It’s not going to happen.”

Still, the proposed Main Street redesign has attracted strong support from residents who believe the project should go even further in prioritizing pedestrians and cyclists.

“I would love to do away with all parking on Main Street,” Jennifer Nery, a local acupuncturist, told the outlet.

Nery said she would prefer to see “an even stronger version of a public square” incorporated into the Northampton downtown plan.

McGovern, however, argued that years of construction could make downtown Northampton even less appealing to visitors and shoppers.

“The big crowds of people we had in the 80s and 90s, they’ve gone away,” McGovern said. “And they’re not coming back.”

Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra is among Picture Main Street’s most prominent supporters. She has called the proposal a “once-in-a-generation opportunity to redesign downtown Northampton.”

Sciarra said the city should create “all available opportunities to minimize our reliance on motorized vehicles for trips that can be completed by other means.”

“Some people need to roll, walk, or bike,” she said.

Anna Bowen, who owns Strada Shoes on Main Street, said the proposed construction has left her “very nervous.”

“I’ve survived online shopping,” Bowen told the outlet. “I’ve survived Trump twice now. I’ve survived COVID.”

Even so, Bowen acknowledged that she was “not 100 percent sure” her store could survive the disruption caused by the Main Street redesign.

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Wayne Feiden, who previously led Northampton’s planning department for 25 years, said Main Street was built in the 19th century.

People had to visit downtown to shop then, but ‘they have other options’ now.

‘It has to be a different kind of place,’ Feiden told the Boston Globe.

Northampton resident Liza Styles said she was excited about the bike lanes, though she noted that other locals might have a difficult time adjusting to the redesign.

‘It is a huge change, and change is hard,’ Styles said.

Elizabeth Sharpe, the co-director of the Historic Northampton museum, said Main Street was ‘an idea’ that some locals might feel nostalgic for.

‘It represents order, your values, responsibility, civic virtues,’ Sharpe told the outlet. ‘It’s a place where people come together.’

Northampton’s website for the proposal said the dedicated bike lanes would be ‘great for everyone.’

‘They result in fewer injuries, improved traffic flow, safer sidewalks, they’re better for the environment, and they make people healthier,’ the plan said.

Of the redesign’s projected $43.3 million cost, only $11.8 million is expected to be paid by the city.

The rest of the $31.5 million will come from state and federal funds for construction.

Though Northampton is known as ‘Paradise City,’ it has struggled with affordable housing and traffic accidents.

There were 497 accidents investigated in 2025, according to the Northampton Police Department.

Of those, 421 involved personal injury or property damage exceeding more than $1,000.

The Daily Mail has reached out to the Northampton Mayor’s office for further comment.