- 4 months ago
Survivor Brook Weber shares her terrifying story of the Butcher’s Box in Moss Point, Mississippi. Witness the horrific murder of her boyfriend and her brave escape from unimaginable horrors.
Brook Weber | Butcher’s Box case | Gary Carl Simmons | Jeffrey Wolfe murder | Moss Point true crime | 1996 true crime | survival story | kidnapping and rape | dismemberment murder | true crime documentary | shocking murder stories | notorious murderers | crime investigation | evil lives here | heroic survivor
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Brook Weber, Butcher’s Box, Gary Carl Simmons, Jeffrey Wolfe, Moss Point murder, 1996 crime, survival story, kidnapping, rape, dismemberment, notorious true crime, crime investigation, true crime series, shocking crime stories, heroic survivor
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Brook Weber | Butcher’s Box case | Gary Carl Simmons | Jeffrey Wolfe murder | Moss Point true crime | 1996 true crime | survival story | kidnapping and rape | dismemberment murder | true crime documentary | shocking murder stories | notorious murderers | crime investigation | evil lives here | heroic survivor
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Brook Weber survivor story | Butcher’s Box horror | Gary Carl Simmons death | Moss Point murder 1996 | true crime USA | infamous murder cases | dismemberment crimes | kidnapping cases | rape and captivity | 90s true crime stories | shocking crime documentaries | notorious criminal cases | crime podcasts | heroic escape story
Brook Weber, Butcher’s Box, Gary Carl Simmons, Jeffrey Wolfe, Moss Point murder, 1996 crime, survival story, kidnapping, rape, dismemberment, notorious true crime, crime investigation, true crime series, shocking crime stories, heroic survivor
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NewsTranscript
00:00Okay, let's get into this one. Picture this. August 13th, 1996. You've got a guy in Mobile,
00:07Alabama, just standing in an electronics store, recording himself on camera. Seems pretty normal,
00:13right? Yeah, totally mundane on the surface. But then you find out this guy, he's actually a killer
00:19on the run. Wow. And at almost the exact same time, just over in Moss Point, Mississippi,
00:24there's an 18-year-old girl, Brooke Weber, who's just pulled off this incredible escape from
00:30something truly horrific. It's that contrast, isn't it? The hidden darkness right next to this
00:35desperate fight for survival. Exactly. So today we're doing a deep dive into that story,
00:39the case of Brooke Weber, who some called the girl in the butcher's box and the murder of Jeffrey
00:44Wolf. And we're drawing this from a YouTube transcript, right? It gives a really detailed
00:47account of these just terrifying events. It's chilling stuff. The kind of story that make
00:52you think about, you know, how well you really know anyone, the masks people wear.
00:56Definitely. So let's lay out the key people here. We've got Gary Simmons. He's the killer,
01:01the one making the recording. Okay. Then Brooke Weber, the young woman who escaped,
01:05incredibly brave. And Jeffrey Wolf, the victim, only 21, his life just cut short.
01:12Such a waste. And we also need to mention Jeffrey's dad, Pasquale, and Gary Simmons' wife,
01:16Lori. Her story is, well, it's deeply tangled up in all of this, too.
01:21Right. So how do Jeffrey and Brooke even end up in this situation? It seems like it started
01:27pretty innocently. Yeah. They'd met in Houston, Texas just a few weeks before in August 96.
01:32Uh-huh. Jeffrey was really into Brooke.
01:34Young relationship, just starting out.
01:36Exactly. He even introduced her to his dad, Pasquale, who apparently liked her a lot.
01:41Mm-hmm.
01:41And Jeffrey had this business trip planned to Mississippi, needed to collect some money.
01:46Okay. So it wasn't just a joy ride. There was a reason for the trip.
01:48Right. And he asked Brooke to come along.
01:50And that's how they end up at Gary Simmons' house in Mississippi.
01:54That's it. They arrive on August 12th, late at night, and this is where Brooke gets her first,
01:59like, warning sign, her first bad feeling.
02:02Oh.
02:03What happened?
02:04She said the house was completely dark, no porch light on, even though Gary knew they were coming.
02:10Hmm. That's odd.
02:11Yeah. And she remembers seeing him sitting there on the steps, and she just thought he looked kind of creepy. Her words.
02:17That gut feeling. Intuition.
02:20Totally. But, you know, Jeffrey had presented Gary as this friend, this business associate, so she trusted Jeffrey's judgment.
02:27Which is understandable. You trust the person you're with.
02:29Right.
02:30We often override those little internal alarms, don't we?
02:33Yeah.
02:33Especially when someone reassures us.
02:34It's so true. And then things take just a horrific turn. They're inside, in the kitchen, talking about the money, the business deal.
02:43Brooke isn't even really tuned in, thinking it'll be quick.
02:46Just a normal conversation, seemingly.
02:49And then suddenly, bang. Gunshots.
02:51Oh, my God.
02:52Jeffrey shot. Right through the chest. Falls right there in front of her.
02:54No warning.
02:55Just like that.
02:56Just like that. And then she sees another guy she doesn't even know holding the gun.
02:59We later find out this is Timothy Milano.
03:01A second person involved. Wow.
03:03Her first thought. Pure terror. She literally thought, oh, F, I'm going to die.
03:08I can't even imagine. That shift from normalcy to absolute horror in a split second, and a stranger there, too, that just ramps up the fear, the confusion.
03:17And it gets worse. Fast. Gary grabs Brooke, drags her into another room.
03:22Oh, no.
03:22He hog ties her hands and feet bound behind her back, gags her.
03:26Oh, God.
03:28And then he forces her into this human-sized wooden box and locks it.
03:32A box.
03:33A box, like, big enough for a person.
03:34Exactly. Just locked inside. Total darkness.
03:37Completely helpless.
03:38Can you even begin to comprehend that level of terror?
03:41It's dehumanizing more than just being tied up.
03:43It's like being buried alive.
03:44That complete loss of control, sensory deprivation.
03:47It's psychological torture designed to break someone.
03:49And incredibly, the horror doesn't stop there.
03:51At some point, Gary takes her out of the box.
03:54Okay.
03:54And he makes this awful demand, basically implying her survival depends on sexual compliance.
04:02Oh, no.
04:04She was sexually assaulted.
04:05Yeah.
04:05And they put her back in the box.
04:07Back in the box after that.
04:09That's monstrous.
04:11It's pure power, control, degradation, pushing her back into that helplessness.
04:16Just leaving her there with the trauma, the fear, not knowing what would happen next.
04:20But she survives the night.
04:23Incredible resilience already.
04:24And the next morning, something happens.
04:27A 911 call comes in.
04:29Someone reports a young woman, clearly in shock, banging on their door.
04:32Is it Brooke?
04:33It's Brooke.
04:34She's got a butcher knife.
04:35She's frantic, just repeating, they shot him.
04:37They shot him.
04:38She got out.
04:39Ow.
04:40We'll get to the details of the escape, but yes.
04:42To go through all that and find the strength to break free.
04:45Yeah.
04:46It's just astounding.
04:47She's just remarkable.
04:48That image, clenching a butcher knife, fighting for help, it's not just a victim anymore.
04:52It's just a survivor fighting back.
04:54So the police get involved, obviously.
04:55They go to Gary's house.
04:57What do they find?
04:58Well, that's the creepy part.
04:59The house itself.
05:01It's weirdly clean.
05:02Almost sterile.
05:03No obvious signs of struggle.
05:05No blood visible right away.
05:06He tried to clean up.
05:07Seems like it.
05:09But they do find the box.
05:10And the house is near a bayou.
05:12Investigators start looking around outside.
05:14They find blood drops on a boat.
05:16And nearby, a bloody axe.
05:18Oh, God.
05:20No.
05:20And that leads them to the bayou itself, where they find 88 pieces of human remains.
05:2588 pieces.
05:27Oh, my God.
05:28Jeffrey.
05:29Jeffrey Wolf.
05:30Dismembered.
05:31The contrast is just sickening the clean house.
05:33And then this absolute butchery just outside.
05:35The level of violence is extreme.
05:37And the capulation to clean the inside, but dump the evidence like that?
05:42It's chilling.
05:43While all this is unfolding, Gary does something else.
05:46He sends a VHS tape to his wife, Lori.
05:49A VHS tape?
05:50What was on it?
05:50It's him talking.
05:52Saying it's a real mess that it wasn't supposed to go like that.
05:54He sounds almost remorseful, but then he says he didn't have much of a choice after he took Jeffrey's money.
05:59Didn't have a choice.
06:00After taking the money.
06:01That's trying to shift the blame, isn't it?
06:02Yeah.
06:03Minimizing the murder.
06:04Completely.
06:05And the transcript notes he had a history of abusing Lori.
06:07So this tape is this really disturbing window into his mind.
06:11Self-pity, justification, control.
06:13Yeah, that history of abuse is crucial context, isn't it?
06:16Suggests a pattern.
06:17This wasn't just out of the blue.
06:18Not at all.
06:19And Lori's story.
06:21It adds another layer of horror.
06:23Turns out, early in their marriage, back in like 1990, Gary told her he liked to write short stories.
06:29Okay, a hobby.
06:30Seemed like it, until she found his binders full of these graphic, awful stories about women being held captive, used as sex slaves.
06:38Whoa.
06:39Okay, that's not just a hobby.
06:40That's deeply disturbing.
06:42She confronted him, obviously horrified.
06:45And his response, he apparently said, well, these are my fantasies.
06:49I have secrets you know nothing about.
06:51Chilling.
06:52That's more than a red flag.
06:53That's a blaring siren.
06:55Did she realize the danger then?
06:56It's hard to say how much, but the abuse started physically, too.
07:00Not long after their first daughter was born, he forced himself on her.
07:04Marital rape.
07:05Which back then wasn't always legally recognized or understood the way it is now, right?
07:10Exactly.
07:11She was in shock, confused if it even counted as rape within a marriage.
07:15Then she found the box he'd built, like the ones in his stories.
07:18He actually built one?
07:19Oh my God.
07:20When she confronted him about that, he attacked her, choked her unconscious, tied her to the bed, held a butcher knife to her face, like he was acting out those fantasies.
07:30That's terrifying.
07:31He was escalating, bringing the fantasies into reality.
07:35She must have felt completely trapped.
07:37Desperately.
07:38She did try to get help, went to the police about the rape and torture.
07:41Yeah.
07:41They told her there wasn't enough evidence.
07:43Ugh.
07:45So frustrating.
07:46So common.
07:47She tried to file for a divorce, but found out she was pregnant again.
07:51And apparently, in Mississippi at that time, you couldn't get divorced while pregnant.
07:55Seriously.
07:56Another barrier trapping her.
07:58Yeah.
07:59She felt totally stuck, terrified for herself and her kids.
08:02Eventually, she did connect with domestic violence support groups, found an apartment, and managed to get herself and the kids out of the house.
08:09Thank goodness.
08:10That takes incredible strength, navigating all those obstacles.
08:12It really does.
08:13But here's another really tragic twist involving her family.
08:17Her younger brother, Timothy Milano.
08:19Wait.
08:19Timothy, the guy who was there during this shooting?
08:22The very same one.
08:23He'd actually been supportive of Lori after she moved out, helping her.
08:27Okay.
08:28So what happened?
08:29On the night of the murder, Timothy shows up at Lori's.
08:34Says Gary called him.
08:35Needed his help with something.
08:36And Lori knew about the abuse.
08:38Right.
08:38She must have warned him.
08:39She strongly objected.
08:41Begged him not to go.
08:43But he insisted.
08:44Said Gary sounded desperate.
08:45Maybe threatened him.
08:46He promised he'd be back in an hour.
08:48Well, let me guess.
08:49He wasn't.
08:49Nope.
08:50Over four hours passed.
08:52Lori was frantic, calling Gary's house over and over.
08:55Just hearing it ring and ring, going to the answering machine.
08:58That unanswered ringing.
09:00That's actually connected to Brooke's escape, isn't it?
09:02It is.
09:02While Larry's calling, Brooke is still in that box.
09:05Yeah.
09:05But the ringing phone actually wakes her up.
09:08Wow.
09:08She hears the answering machine pick up.
09:10Maybe hears Lori's voice.
09:11And crucially, realizes the house is empty.
09:15Gary and Timothy aren't there.
09:17Her chance.
09:18Her only chance.
09:19And somehow, even hogtied, she managed to work her hands free.
09:23She breaks out of the wooden box.
09:25Unbelievable determination.
09:27She grabs a butcher knife from the kitchen, the same kind Gary had threatened Lori with.
09:30And she runs for her life.
09:32Goal Brooke.
09:32But as she's escaping, she sees Gary's car returning.
09:36Oh no.
09:37Close call.
09:38Terrifyingly close.
09:39She hides, watching him go back inside.
09:41Ah.
09:42A few moments later, he comes rushing back out, realizes she's gone, and speeds off in a panic.
09:47He knew the game was up.
09:49She waits until he's gone, then runs to the nearest neighbor's house, banging on the door,
09:53knife in hand.
09:55And that's when the 911 call is made.
09:56What an incredible sequence of events.
09:58The phone call, the realization, the fight.
10:01Just wow.
10:02So, Brooke is now safe, relatively speaking, at the sheriff's department.
10:06But she starts overhearing things.
10:08Chatter about body parts being found in the bayou.
10:11Oh, God.
10:12She must have realized.
10:13Yeah.
10:14The horrible truth about what happened to Jeffrey.
10:17Meanwhile, Jeffrey's father, Pascal, gets the news.
10:20And guess who delivers it?
10:21Not Timothy.
10:22Timothy Milano.
10:23He tells Pascal that his son, Jeffrey, has been dismembered into 88 pieces.
10:27How could he?
10:28The man who helped do it.
10:29That's beyond cruel.
10:30Imagine Pascal's grief and horror.
10:33Unimaginable.
10:34And then Timothy goes back to Laurie's apartment.
10:37And he confesses.
10:39To Laurie?
10:39What does he say?
10:40He admits he helped Gary.
10:42Admits he shot Jeffrey.
10:44But he claims Gary threatened him.
10:47Forced him.
10:47Threatened him or not, he still participated.
10:49He pulled the trigger multiple times.
10:51Yes.
10:52The autopsy later showed Jeffrey was shot seven times in the back, twice in the chest.
10:58Just brutal overkill.
10:59And Pascal.
11:01The report said he felt utterly betrayed, right?
11:04Because he'd actually helped Timothy out in the past.
11:06Exactly.
11:07Just layers upon layers of betrayal and violence.
11:09So what happens to Gary and Timothy?
11:11Well, the next day, Gary actually calls the police himself.
11:15Says he wants to turn himself in.
11:16Really?
11:17Where was he?
11:18Bizarrely, they arrest him just a few blocks from Laurie's workplace.
11:21That seems intentional.
11:22Like a final act of control or something.
11:24It feels that way.
11:25So both Gary Simmons and Timothy Milano are indicted for capital murder.
11:29And Brooke's testimony is obviously going to be absolutely vital.
11:33But she must have been terrified, even with them arrested.
11:36Completely.
11:37Living in constant fear, knowing what Gary was capable of.
11:41The psychological impact doesn't just stop when the immediate danger is over.
11:45No, it lingers for a long, long time.
11:49The trial happens about a year later.
11:51Brooke has to get on the stand and face Gary Simmons in court.
11:54That takes incredible courage.
11:57Facing the person who did that to you.
11:58She said she was terrified, shaking.
12:01But she saw Jeffrey's parents there.
12:03And that gave her strength.
12:05She had to do it for Jeffrey.
12:06Her testimony must have been powerful.
12:08Devastatingly effective.
12:10The jury found them both guilty.
12:11Gary Simmons got the death sentence for murder, kidnapping, and the sexual abuse.
12:17Timothy Milano got life without parole for murder and kidnapping.
12:20Justice served, in a legal sense at least.
12:23But that doesn't just erase the trauma for Brooke, does it?
12:25Not even close.
12:26The aftermath for her was long and difficult.
12:29She spent years living in fear.
12:31Even with him on death row.
12:32Yeah.
12:33She changed her name, her appearance, always looking over her shoulder.
12:37Convinced he could somehow still get to her, maybe hire someone.
12:40That sounds exhausting, living like that.
12:43Totally.
12:44And sadly, she felt she had to cut ties with Lori and even Gary's family.
12:48She had this misconception, this guilt, that they blamed her for Gary being in prison.
12:53That she'd ruined their lives, ruined the marriage.
12:56Wow.
12:56Carrying that misplaced guilt on top of everything else.
12:59That's heartbreaking.
13:00Trauma really does distort your perception of things.
13:03It really does.
13:04She felt like she'd lost herself for years because of that fear and isolation.
13:08So how did she ever start to heal from that?
13:11Well, it took a long, long time.
13:13But then something unexpected happened in 2023.
13:1627 years later.
13:18What was that?
13:19Brooke, now a mother herself, was finally ready to talk about her past more publicly.
13:23She was doing an interview, sharing her story.
13:25That's a huge step.
13:26Huge.
13:27And during that process, she found out that Lori Simmons, Gary's ex-wife, had actually reached out.
13:33Lori wanted to meet her.
13:34Wow.
13:35After all that time, how did Brooke react?
13:39Apprehensive, naturally.
13:40I mean, who wouldn't be?
13:41But also maybe curious.
13:44Hopeful for some kind of closure.
13:46She agreed to meet Lori.
13:47That must have been an incredibly intense meeting.
13:49Incredibly emotional.
13:51Lori apparently just expressed this profound gratitude to Brooke.
13:55She called Brooke her hero.
13:57Her shero?
13:58Why?
13:58Lori explained that Brooke's escape, her bravery in getting away and going to the police,
14:03is what finally exposed Gary and saved Lori and her children from potentially even more harm.
14:09She said she'd thank God for Brooke every single day since 1996.
14:14Oh my goodness.
14:15To hear that after carrying so much guilt.
14:17It was overwhelming for Brooke.
14:19All those years thinking she was somehow responsible, and here was Lori telling her she was a savior.
14:24It was this massive release, this validation she desperately needed.
14:27What an amazing, unexpected connection.
14:29That shared trauma, but viewed from such different perspectives, finally meeting.
14:34It was transformative for Brooke.
14:36That meeting really seemed to shift something fundamental inside her.
14:39How so?
14:40She realized she wasn't defined by what happened to her.
14:42She wasn't just a victim.
14:43She was a survivor.
14:45She started reclaiming her identity.
14:46She even said powerfully, I am Brooke Weber, period.
14:50I'm not a victim anymore.
14:51I'm a survivor.
14:52And we're going to make it through it.
14:53That's incredible.
14:54Finding her voice, her strength, owning her survival.
14:58Absolutely.
14:58So when you look back at this whole horrific story, the key takeaways are pretty stark, aren't they?
15:04Definitely.
15:05You've got Brooke's unbelievable resilience.
15:07Just sheer will to live.
15:09Then Lori's own nightmare.
15:11Years of abuse hidden behind closed doors.
15:14Timothy's betrayal.
15:15The brother who should have protected his sister getting drawn in.
15:18And just the devastating ripple effect of Gary's violence on so many lives.
15:22But then, against all that darkness, you have that final, unexpected moment of connection and healing between Brooke and Lori decades later.
15:31It shows that hope can exist even after the worst imaginable things.
15:34It really does.
15:35But it still leaves you with questions, you know?
15:37For sure.
15:38Like, what makes someone like Gary Simmons tick?
15:40What drives that level of depravity?
15:42And how do you even begin to rebuild your life after surviving something like that, living with that fear for so long?
15:48Yeah. And what role do support systems, or even these surprising connections like the one with Lori, play in actually finding a way to heal?
15:55It's complex.
15:57Ultimately, I think this deep dive really hammers home the power of survival.
16:01Brooke's story is terrifying, but her strength is inspiring.
16:04It is.
16:04And it shows that even in the face of absolute darkness, understanding and maybe even some form of peace can eventually emerge.
16:11Often in ways you'd never expect.
16:13A really powerful reminder of the complexities of victimhood survival and that long, hard road toward healing makes you think.
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