- 10 hours ago
Toxic Town S01E05 (2025) [Full Movie] [Watch Free Online]Full EP - Full
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:11In the early 2010s, Sarma Magallis had it all.
00:15She was beautiful, talented, successful.
00:19The owner of one of the hottest restaurants in New York City.
00:22Then everything turned upside down.
00:25When she met a man online named Anthony Strangis.
00:28Listen up, you old s**t.
00:31Together, they built her investors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
00:35They were caught.
00:37But there's a lot more to their story.
00:41And one of them seems to be at it again.
00:44Dearest Anthony, you stole from my family.
00:47Allegedly, Anthony is leaving a string of victims in his wake.
00:50And he's doing it in the sickest way possible.
00:52My brother ruined a lot of people's lives.
00:54I think he's probably got his metaphorical claws into somebody.
01:01In this special two-part episode of Toxic, we go in search of notorious con man Anthony Strangis.
01:07Could be him.
01:08That definitely could be him.
01:10Will we find him?
01:11Or will he slip through the cracks and disappear?
01:14Anthony.
01:17When it comes to love, betrayal is the death of a thousand dreams.
01:22Anthony, Elizabeth!
01:23Who are you?
01:25And the unraveling of countless lies.
01:28You can spend years picking up the pieces.
01:31Examining them.
01:33Rearranging them.
01:36Digging through the past to make sense of it all.
01:39Navigating through my personal heartbreak took me back to my roots as an investigative journalist.
01:44Hi, I'm Elizabeth Chambers.
01:45Elizabeth Chambers.
01:46Elizabeth Chambers outside the Los Angeles Police Department.
01:50It ignited a curiosity inside of me about love that fractured.
01:53Oh my God.
01:55Inflicts lasting trauma.
01:56Hi, I wanted to see if they could ask you some questions.
01:58Absolutely not.
02:00And can lead to tragedy.
02:01And that's when my world ended.
02:03I feel that it's part of my calling to meet with the victims, the survivors, to listen
02:09to their stories, show how it can happen to anyone, and expose the truth.
02:16I'm Elizabeth Chambers, and this is Toxic.
02:28In 2016, a real-life Bonnie and Clyde story broke nationwide.
02:33Detectives say Sarma Melengalas was wanted in New York.
02:37She was the owner of a popular vegan restaurant in Manhattan before disappearing last year
02:41without paying her staff.
02:43She's facing several lawsuits from them and many felony charges.
02:47Detectives tracked her and another wanted man down after they ordered a pizza from Mr.
02:51Mirville Domino's.
02:52Police confirmed the two were staying at a nearby hotel and arrested them Tuesday afternoon.
02:57How Sarma went from plant food queen to vegan Bernie Madoff.
03:02In 2016, this was the story.
03:05And then, in the spring of 2022, we got what we thought was the full story.
03:12When the documentary series Bad Vegan was released, and Sarma revealed to the world that Anthony
03:17was a con man who carefully manipulated her into believing and doing truly outlandish things,
03:23Sarma claimed that through gaslighting techniques, Strangis had her believing that if she endured
03:28a series of humiliating tests, including sending him money, she would pass into a new reality
03:33where she and her beloved pit bull Leon would be immortal.
03:37The docuseries focused heavily on the fantastical elements of the story, rather than dissecting
03:43how Anthony Strangis was able to manipulate Sarma into marrying him, making what was hers now
03:48also his, convincing Sarma to drain her bank account for him, and then defrauding her investors
03:54to cover those debts, ultimately bankrupting her restaurant.
03:59Bad Vegan left the viewer questioning Sarma's true intent and involvement in the fraud,
04:04instead of showcasing her as a victim of Anthony's manipulation and coercion.
04:11Sarma was charged as a co-conspirator and pled guilty to three felonies.
04:15She spent four months in Rikers Island prison and agreed to pay $1 million in restitution.
04:21Anthony got a year in prison and five years probation.
04:26While Sarma has very publicly returned to New York to pay restitution to their victims,
04:31Anthony seems to have disappeared.
04:34As someone who defends victims of love cons, I can read between the lines here.
04:38I am sure people think she's responsible, but that's what's so insidious about being
04:43manipulated by a loved one.
04:46I so badly wanted to speak with Sarma about her experience with Anthony, so I reached out
04:52to Sarma, and she agreed to speak with me.
04:54So I flew to New York to meet with her.
04:57Sarma was understandably cautious because she felt misrepresented in Bad Vegan.
05:02It's very understandable that she doesn't trust anyone, right?
05:05Her words have been twisted, so she's not open to doing a sit-down interview.
05:09She's not open to doing anything formal.
05:12In terms of just connecting with her, we'll take whatever we can get.
05:16She asked that we not record the conversation for fear that her story would again be manipulated,
05:20which I fully respected.
05:23How are you?
05:26We discussed facts of the case, her experience with Anthony, and how he was able to take millions
05:32from her and her business.
05:35Ultimately, I don't think that the documentary did Sarma any favors.
05:38It almost sensationalized everything, and I personally believe that it re-victimized her
05:44in a way.
05:46After I left New York, Sarma and I stayed in touch.
05:48I didn't expect we'd ever speak in an official on-camera capacity, but to my surprise...
05:57Hi, Sarma.
05:59Hi.
06:01Sarma did agree to let me record a conversation we had on a video call.
06:05Talk to me about what is the actuality of your story, and how is it misrepresented in
06:14that docuseries?
06:15They perverted my story.
06:17You know, they made this series.
06:18They titled it Bad Vegan, implying I'm the bad one.
06:22The stories are like, oh, they ran off together.
06:25Well, no, we didn't run off together.
06:27That series didn't explain how this happened.
06:32If all they do is show the sort of fantastical, crazy elements of it, that person and people
06:38like him, they're just going to keep doing what they do and hurting more people.
06:42Mm-hmm.
06:43How do you think you got to that place?
06:46You know, he sort of got to me at a time where I was heartbroken and incredibly overwhelmed
06:53in my business.
06:54I was just sort of very ripe for him to be able to come in and target me.
06:59How long were you guys together before he asked you for money?
07:02It was at least four or five months.
07:05And, you know, when he asked me for it, it was in this way as if it was like this
07:10huge
07:10emergency.
07:11And, you know, again, I'm like a pretty trusting, nice person.
07:14It's like if you think somebody's having like this emergency and it's this temporary thing,
07:19you're going to want to help.
07:20Well, now he owes me money and I want it.
07:23So I'm going to keep that door open.
07:24And that's how they get in and ultimately stay in is that door being open.
07:30What kind of abuse did you endure in the hands of Anthony?
07:34Overall, it was, you know, psychological and financial.
07:39Later on, grotesquely, it was sexual.
07:42You know, I was asked about the sexual abuse part of it in my interview for Batnegan.
07:47And it was really hard to talk about because that was that much sooner from when it happened.
07:54And I was shocked when they cut that out of the series.
07:57You know, as much as it was embarrassing and hard, it's like they just invalidated it
08:02by completely leaving it out as if it never happened.
08:06I can't imagine how frustrating that must have been.
08:08You feel you're more of a victim of his crimes.
08:10And people don't understand when you plead guilty to something, that doesn't mean that
08:14you actually are guilty.
08:16It just means that that was like the only option you had at that time.
08:20And on top of all the financial debt, I also carry the shame that comes along with that.
08:25Because even if I know it wasn't my fault in my heart, I feel responsible.
08:30And shame just comes along with that.
08:32And he doesn't feel shame.
08:34So he gets to go off clean slate.
08:37I feel very, very strongly about the fact that so often perpetrators are not held accountable.
08:43He got out with really, for all intents and purposes, very little repercussions in comparison
08:51to what you're facing.
08:52I've lost my whole business, lost everything I cared about, and then also had my reputation destroyed.
08:58You would think that there would have been an effort to charge him, not just for the damage
09:03that had been caused, but specifically for what he did to me psychologically.
09:08And because I still have that fear.
09:10And sometimes I'll see somebody from really far away that has the same build, you know?
09:15And I'll get this jolt of kind of fear that like, you know, what if he appeared on the
09:23street or something like that?
09:24Do you think he's on to other victims?
09:28Yeah, I'm sure.
09:29I'm sure he's on to other victims.
09:31And I think he's probably, sadly, got his metaphorical claws into somebody.
09:39You know, if there's something I could do to help, I would.
09:41That's kind of why I'm doing this.
09:46If Anthony was capable of what Starmer was alleging then, then he still could be capable
09:51of them now.
09:52I know that a tiger doesn't change their stripes.
09:54I want to know what Anthony's up to.
09:57Where is he?
09:58What is he doing?
09:59Who is he doing it to?
10:01I can't find an email address for him.
10:03I can't find a phone number.
10:05With Anthony all but non-existent, I decided to reach out to the author of the original
10:10Bad Vegan article, Alan Sulkin, who's been covering the story for nearly a decade and
10:14still regularly communicates with Sarmer.
10:17Hi.
10:18Hello, how are you?
10:19I'm Elizabeth.
10:20I'm glad you're here.
10:21Come on in.
10:21Have a seat.
10:22Thank you so much.
10:24So the story that hasn't really been told is after Anthony went to jail, after conning
10:30people out of millions of dollars and allegedly sexually assaulting Sarmer, where did he go
10:36and what did he do?
10:37Well, first, when he got out of Rikers, basically he went to live in his mom's house up in Massachusetts.
10:46He was just sort of trolling around on Twitter for hours and hours and changing his Twitter
10:52handles all the time, but it was the same account.
10:55And he was probably searching for his next mark.
10:57You know, this is all the research I did, and I got all these tweets, and then I also got
11:02some of the text messages that were going back and forth between Anthony and Sarmer.
11:07They're still in touch.
11:08They have been in touch on and off since Anthony has gotten out of jail.
11:13I start to see him mention things about politics.
11:19You know, Anthony says, saw your tweets.
11:21Katie Hill had to be removed.
11:23Katie Hill was a Democratic U.S. representative who won a very close election in a typically
11:31conservative district.
11:32Her downfall came when a reporter named Jennifer Van Laar published photos of her basically
11:39naked, having a threesome on this thing called Red State, this right-wing publication.
11:48Her seat will prove to be important down the line.
11:51Powerful people decide things like that.
11:53She was a corrupt mess, as are most politicians, but she has a seat that was important to someone
11:58for something.
11:59As if he knows.
12:00Right.
12:01I remember when the story broke.
12:03It was a huge story.
12:05Every single major news organization was covering it.
12:08The fall from grace for a California congresswoman once seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party.
12:13Congresswoman Katie Hill is stepping down.
12:15A conservative blog posted an explicit photo of her.
12:20All these years later, it's wild to hear these texts from Anthony DeSarma implying that
12:26he had intel or insider knowledge about this huge scandal.
12:29It does make you wonder, was he involved in that?
12:34Somebody gave me a tip.
12:36He had his probation transferred to California, and then he had gotten married.
12:44And I found that he had gotten married in Nevada, in Las Vegas.
12:50I see that the bride is, you know, Jennifer Louise.
12:54And I'm like, okay.
12:56I look it up in a database, and I see, you know, AKA Jennifer Van Laar.
13:02And I'm like, oh, that's all Jennifer.
13:03That's a familiar name.
13:04She's the journalist who published the Katie Hill photos.
13:10Once I knew that he had married Jennifer Van Laar, then everything else starts to click into place.
13:16That he had been texting with Sarma about politics.
13:21And then it's easy for me to go back on Twitter and search, like, what interactions was he having with
13:26her?
13:27Yep, turns out, connected with her the same way he's connected with Sarma.
13:31Like, oh my God, here we go again.
13:34I am now armed with all this, and I keep calling Jennifer Van Laar, looking for a comment about, you
13:40know, Anthony Strangis.
13:41Do you know him?
13:43What?
13:43No.
13:44I have no idea who that is.
13:46I don't know what you're talking about.
13:48Then she gives me this statement.
13:50So she says, I met Anthony Strangis in 2019, and since 2020, he has performed bodyguard services for me.
13:58As an investigative journalist, I sometimes receive death threats or other threats to minor my family's safety.
14:05In August 2021, when we were both in Las Vegas with friends, on a lark, we decided to get married.
14:10We talked for a few weeks about whether it could actually work, but eventually decided that we worked best as
14:16just friends.
14:16He has never asked me or my friends for money.
14:19I have filed for divorce, but we remain on good terms.
14:30However, I realize when I look at the marriage record that he goes into that marriage, Anthony Strangis.
14:39But he comes out Anthony Knight.
14:47Anthony Patrick Strangis, he wishes to use the name Anthony Patrick Knight after marriage.
14:53He took a real last name.
14:54Why would he do that?
14:56You know, he's infamous now.
14:58And so now he's got a new name.
15:00That is an extreme use to somebody like him.
15:03And so now you go back to the statement Jennifer Van Laar gave me, which you can tell is very
15:08carefully crafted.
15:09And then you think, is what she's covering up this?
15:15That he was involved somehow in that.
15:18Because we don't know how Jennifer Van Laar got those naked drug-using photos of Katie Hill.
15:26All it takes is people talking on Reddit or talking on Twitter.
15:29He had been flirting with Jennifer Van Laar.
15:31He knew, oh, she's a journalist.
15:33And so he put two and two together and said, oh, I can connect these two.
15:37And then maybe he says to her, hey, I want one thing from you.
15:42Let's go to Vegas.
15:43I need your last name.
15:45And do you think that was a pivotal moment in Jennifer's career when she released the photos?
15:48It made it.
15:49It kind of put her on the map.
15:49It made Jennifer Van Laar.
15:51She would definitely feel beholden to somebody who would help her that way.
15:55Learning this information about Jennifer Van Laar made Sarma's words echo in my head.
15:59It's part of Anthony's MO to find women with ambition and resources that he can use for his own personal
16:05gain.
16:06People like Anthony Strangers, they find people who are a good target.
16:10They find people who are public about their goals and ambitions.
16:13So he didn't even have to take the time that they usually have to take to study somebody and learn
16:18all their insecurities and what their goals are.
16:21And that stuff was all out there for him to know and read about.
16:24And then they weaponize it.
16:26Unfortunately, I made a very good target.
16:28This is not him starting his life over and finding his happily ever after.
16:32Is it a working theory?
16:34Is there anything for sure to knock it down?
16:36No.
16:37Is there anyone else whose story hasn't been told or anyone you think we should focus on?
16:41Her.
16:42Michaela Coulter.
16:43Anthony's half-sister.
16:45She's never given an interview.
16:48I wanted to know how Anthony became this way.
16:51What drives him to do these things?
16:54His own sister Michaela agreed to fill me in.
16:59Growing up, I would say I looked up to Anthony.
17:02Me and Anthony, we have a 13-year age difference.
17:04We do have two separate fathers, which I think that context is important.
17:09My dad was not around, so growing up, Anthony was one of my main caregivers along with my mom.
17:15So he was the one putting me to bed.
17:17He was the one taking care of me.
17:18He was, like, normal and caring.
17:21And he wouldn't hurt a fly.
17:24Tell me about Anthony's dad.
17:26What was he like?
17:27His dad was always very nice to me.
17:30But I know he's done a lot of terrible things.
17:33He was a cop.
17:34His dad was not nice.
17:35His dad was not a good person.
17:37He's a compulsive liar and gambler.
17:39He taught Anthony how to lie.
17:41He taught Anthony how to gamble.
17:42Lavish trips and cruises.
17:44Disney World.
17:46His father created a world that Anthony wanted to live in that wasn't realistic.
17:54I was seven or eight.
17:55I was still pretty young when he moved out.
17:57He was, like, 18, 19.
18:00He moved to Florida with his father.
18:02I sat on the road crying and, like, watched him drive away because I was so upset.
18:06Like, I did not want him to go.
18:09And that was, to me, like, the last time I ever, like, had my brother.
18:12Like, that was him.
18:14And then that's kind of where it all started to change.
18:17Anthony spent the next few years in Florida getting in some trouble with the law
18:21and was charged with impersonating a police officer and grand larceny.
18:25He eventually made his way up to New York, where he spent the year scamming Sarma and her employees,
18:32going on the run, and eventually getting caught.
18:37People don't understand how bad gambling addictions are.
18:43It should be spoken about more, his gambling problem, because I think that's the root of it.
18:51His addiction is what feeds all of it.
18:55I will say when he got arrested, me and my mother were relieved.
19:00We were happy, which sounds terrible, but we wanted him to get help for so long.
19:05So when he was in jail, I didn't talk to him at all.
19:07And then when he got out is when he came to live with us, because he really didn't have anywhere
19:12else to go.
19:13Anthony lived at my mom's house for a couple years.
19:16He was there until he got almost off probation.
19:19He got permission from his parole officer and everything to move to California.
19:23And he told us he got a job working for the Republican Party.
19:28Did he specify to you what kind of job he was taking for the Republican Party?
19:32No.
19:33We were like 50-50.
19:35Could be a lie, could be fake.
19:36He had paperwork to give to the judge and the parole officer to prove what he was going to go
19:42do.
19:43So we had to believe it.
19:45We had a real person saying he was going to go and work for the Republican Party.
19:48So Anthony went from being in a relationship with Sarma, a liberal vegan, to allegedly working for the GOP.
19:55How do you think that happened?
19:58So Anthony's relationship with politics, my personal opinion, is all about the game.
20:06And I think he sees an opportunity to take advantage and manipulate.
20:13And I think that's where his political belief is, the power.
20:17It's just where can he get more power at that point?
20:20For him, it's not just money.
20:22It's like, it's power.
20:23The whole thing is a game to him.
20:25So it's not just money.
20:27Because once he got all the money he could from me, he would have, like, left and got on a
20:32plane to Mexico and he wouldn't have just sort of spent it.
20:34It's like, he doesn't really care about it.
20:36It's the whole weird power trip.
20:37But I think it's dangerous to underestimate these people because they are very, very, very smart.
20:44As I'm starting to understand Anthony more, what makes him tick and how he pulls off these cons, it's eerie
20:51how those who know him best have encounters that mirror each other.
20:56It seems his gambling addiction drives his compulsion to steal money from people.
21:00But it's the notoriety, the illusion of importance that Anthony is really chasing.
21:06And what's bigger than embedding yourself in American politics?
21:14Some of this is just really weird, right?
21:19We're all in this together.
21:21There was a video that somebody sent me from this new Twitter handle.
21:27The videos were made early in the COVID pandemic.
21:32They are these dark, weird, black and white, like, rants.
21:37So I went to Stop and Shop, I asked the manager, where's all the toilet paper and the paper towels?
21:42Why don't you get that in?
21:43Oh, we've been getting it in, he says.
21:46Usually sells out between 6 and 7.30 in the morning, the senior hours.
21:50So listen up, you old ****, who apparently we're shutting everything down for.
21:55Stop buying all the **** toilet paper and the **** paper towels.
21:59Anthony has clearly figured out that now he's in this sort of conservative or right wing.
22:07world, and this is the world that he's going to now operate in.
22:12And you're probably buying it for your ****, ****, 40-something-year-old, **** kids.
22:17Stop being a greedy **** prick.
22:19You're supposed to know better.
22:20You're older.
22:20It's almost to me like he's testing out a new persona.
22:24We're all in this together.
22:25Drink this Kool-Aid.
22:27Here.
22:28Don't you want this Kool-Aid?
22:31What am I going to catch with this voice?
22:34And I think what he caught was Jennifer Van Laar and all these other people in Southern California.
22:42When I spoke to Alan, he suggested that I reach out to Eddie McClintock, an actor in Los Angeles, who
22:48met Anthony on, you guessed it.
22:50Uh, well, he slid in my DMs on Twitter.
22:54Eddie was part of this group of conservative guys online that consisted of former and current active military members, as
23:02well as some Secret Service agents.
23:04Eddie describes Anthony as funny and irreverent.
23:06He really won a lot of these guys over by sharing videos during the pandemic about his disdain for the
23:12shutdowns.
23:13You know what's really creepy?
23:14Is everybody saying, we're all in this together.
23:17It was politically tinged.
23:19He says he's a conservative.
23:21What?
23:22I just want some **** paper towels.
23:24I don't want to join a cult.
23:26One day, Anthony invited Eddie and the group to Las Vegas for a hot-ticket event.
23:31A Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier fight.
23:35Anthony told them he'd handle everything from the hotel suite to the tickets to their food and all their drinks.
23:41I flew into Vegas and I was at the hotel and he was like, I'm in the Rolex shop.
23:46Come to the Rolex shop.
23:48I'm looking down in the hall and I can see into the Rolex shop and there's one other person.
23:53And that person was not in good shape.
24:00Immediately, I thought, I've been catfished.
24:03Because on Twitter, he kind of came off as being in really good shape, saying perhaps he worked for Blackwater.
24:11You're getting some steps in if you work for Blackwater.
24:14Yeah.
24:14But Eddie's friends had been with Anthony for a day at this point and they vouched for him for being
24:20legit.
24:21When we get back to L.A., that's when Anthony and I really became closer, you know, because my dad
24:28was dying.
24:30Anthony and I would talk pretty much every night on the phone.
24:33He asked about my dad.
24:34And my dad, you know, my dad passed in March of 2022.
24:45And it was the hardest day of my life, you know.
24:50And when I got home after my dad died and Anthony called me, he was showing up for me as
25:01a friend.
25:03And then at one point, we started talking about Rolex watches.
25:07Eddie had been eyeing a rare Rolex, a James Cameron deep sea dweller.
25:12I told Anthony, I'd really like to get that watch.
25:16And he was like, bro, bro, I can get you that watch.
25:19No problem.
25:21Because it'll take a couple of months.
25:22Because there's a waiting list for like a year and a half.
25:25And Anthony was like, yeah, I'll get you this watch.
25:27So I gave him $13,000 in cash.
25:32And I started getting excuses.
25:35And then one day, my buddy sent me this trailer for Netflix on my phone.
25:40He was like, watch this right now.
25:42And then it was him.
25:49After Matt Began came out, we called him and said, what's going on with this?
25:55And Anthony said that his wife used the liberal media to, you know, make him out to look like a
26:04bad guy.
26:05Months and months passed.
26:06And Anthony is giving Eddie excuse after excuse as to why he can't get him the watch or return his
26:12money.
26:13The last correspondence that I had from him, he said, you know, hey, man, I'm not ghosting you.
26:19The watch is fine.
26:20I just was like, Anthony, come on.
26:23What watch?
26:24And ultimately, you never saw the watches.
26:26You never saw the money.
26:28No.
26:28And it was really the ultimate form of betrayal by somebody you considered a really good friend.
26:35Yeah.
26:36And now that, you know, Anthony's gone and my dad's gone and he should have to, you know, pay for
26:42it like everybody else does.
26:46Eddie's story shares so many similarities with Sarma's.
26:50As Anthony's first publicly known victim and probably the person he spent the most time conning,
26:55every conversation I had with Sarma gave incredible insight into how Anthony operates.
26:59And it seems as though his tactics have remained the same.
27:04Anthony Stranges was incredibly intuitive about people's behavior and feelings and how to weaponize that.
27:13And it's so slow that by the time you even realize that, like, something's wrong and off, it's like it's
27:19too late.
27:19They've already got you.
27:20They know what they're doing.
27:22They anticipate what's coming.
27:23And so they know how to, you know, find the out because it's like part of a plan all along.
27:28And again, that's why it's so important, I think, to get to know people and meet them in person versus,
27:33you know, getting to know somebody online.
27:36Eddie never pressed charges, knowing that it would be costly and an uphill battle,
27:40especially considering that Anthony technically never stole money from him.
27:44He just convinced Eddie to give it to him.
27:47It seems like he found a loophole to get what he wanted.
27:50Some more money to fund his gambling habit.
27:56Where do you think he went after he left Orange County?
28:01I just know he's in Texas somewhere.
28:03And I would assume he's probably with another girl and doing some other scheme.
28:12At this point, based on my conversations, it seems like Anthony conned his way through California.
28:19He's got a new identity.
28:21He's built this year-long friendship with Eddie only to steal from him and disappear.
28:28All of this after he allegedly coerced Sarma and left her in New York to pay back all of his
28:34victims.
28:35So I decided that Anthony doesn't get to hide anymore.
28:40Because right now, he could have a new, unsuspecting victim in his grasp.
28:45If there's a way to prevent it, I will not sit here and let one more person fall victim to
28:50Anthony.
28:55Michaela suspects that Anthony is in Texas, although he was very careful not to tell her which city.
29:00She has no recent photos of him, but their last correspondence included photos of some dogs.
29:06Unfortunately, he turned off the metadata.
29:08So again, no real way to figure out exactly where he is.
29:12So, I brought on a private investigator in Texas, Catherine Meyer.
29:18Catherine immediately found an address in Austin that matched Anthony Knight, his new identity.
29:23There's 65 pages here.
29:27And she also found his name registered to an Audi SUV.
29:31We have another name linked to the one we believe he's driving now.
29:35So, I sent a crew to Texas to go stake out the apartment with Catherine.
29:40Can you hear us?
29:41Hello, hello.
29:42We're on our way to location number one right now.
29:46You guys know what you're looking for?
29:48A mountain of a man.
29:49This is a location confirmation.
29:52We do not want to approach him.
29:53We do not want to give him any indication that he is being watched.
29:57I have done some OSINT, open source intelligence searches, and haven't found much more than the articles that have already
30:06been written on him.
30:07So, that obviously tells me that he is trying to keep a low profile.
30:13So, that's all I really have to go on right now.
30:16I'm hoping that we have a lot more by the end of the day.
30:19I just cannot stress enough how high the stakes are because if he even senses anything, he's gone.
30:25And I don't want him to run before I get an opportunity to speak with him and find out if
30:29he has a new victim in his grasp.
30:30You got it.
30:31We're doing everything we can.
30:33We'll keep you posted.
30:54We'll keep you posted.
31:04Anthony, to no surprise, picked this very small, insular, and affluent coastal town in Orange County.
31:12So, here is the Johnson's house, and it definitely looks like someone is home.
31:33Hi, Mrs. Johnson.
31:54Hi, Mrs. Johnson.
31:56My name is Elizabeth Chambers.
31:57We're doing a documentary on Anthony Strangus, and I wanted to see if I could possibly have a few minutes
32:01of your time to ask you some questions.
32:04No, I'm not interested in talking about this.
32:06It would just take a couple minutes.
32:08Absolutely not, no.
32:09Do you know him?
32:10Do you know Anthony?
32:11No, sorry, sorry.
32:19Mrs. Johnson was home and answered the door, but her reaction when I asked her about Anthony was very unusual.
32:26That was weird.
32:27She turned completely white, so freaked out.
32:29Yeah.
32:31Like, I'm shaking.
32:32There's just so much history there, you can tell.
32:34She completely froze.
32:36She knew exactly who he was.
32:37Her face completely fell.
32:39She turned white.
32:40Do you think they're just embarrassed?
32:41I think that for people in general, when people are conned, there's always an element of shame.
32:48If it were me, I'd say, what do you know about him?
32:51There's clearly a lot more to this story.
32:54A lot.
32:57According to Allen, they had a neighbor named Glenn who saw Anthony coming and going, and rightfully so.
33:04I thought that was very, very strange, so I think we've got to try him, and maybe he'll be more
33:09open to talking.
33:17As I was on the trail in Southern California, Catherine and my team were looking deeper into this vehicle that
33:22was registered to Anthony,
33:23and they found another person attached to it as well, a woman.
33:27She's listed as the co-owner of this car this year.
33:32Owners, Anthony Nyan.
33:41And the same woman was also listed on the address in Austin.
33:47Is that one, two?
33:49Perfect.
33:50Yeah, that's her.
33:50So not only had we potentially located Anthony, but as Kayla suspected, he may be living there with a new
33:57girlfriend, who could potentially be his next victim.
34:12Hello.
34:13Hey, so we actually got in touch with Glenn.
34:15Amazing.
34:16Amazing news.
34:17Is he still in this town?
34:19He is.
34:20So he's got an office.
34:21We found the office, and we called him there, and he said he could come talk to him.
34:25Today, right now?
34:27Yeah.
34:28Let's go.
34:31After seeing Mrs. Johnson's reaction, it seemed emotional, very, very emotional for her.
34:36So I'm really looking forward to seeing and hearing what Glenn noticed, what he witnessed.
34:55Hey, dude.
34:57You see this guy?
34:59Which one?
35:00This guy just pulled up in a Hyundai.
35:04Dog in the car.
35:08That could be him.
35:10That definitely could be him.
35:12I am now as well.
35:13He's right on the other side of that track.
35:15No, yeah, we see him.
35:16Oh, it's a little corgi.
35:17Okay.
35:27My team in Texas spotted someone who perfectly matched the physical description I had for
35:33Anthony Strangis.
35:35Nope.
35:39But he went into the wrong apartment.
35:41Damn it.
35:43With no sign of Anthony, the team decided to get a closer look.
35:47Just a little ribbon cam.
35:49Wired with a button cam, Catherine, posing as a leasing agent, went to knock on the door.
35:55All right.
35:56Wish me luck.
36:08Thank you so much for taking this time.
36:11We have a lot of questions about Anthony and the Johnson family.
36:14Tell me a little bit about your first impression.
36:17He was introduced to us through, uh, Lindsay.
36:22Hi, Mrs. Johnson.
36:24Yeah.
36:25She brought him over for a game of cards.
36:28Anthony was very bright, very articulate.
36:32I would say he's a very commanding sort of person, but he was kind of elusive and said, well, what
36:38do you do, Anthony?
36:39And, well, you know, work for the government, kind of in special operations and black ops.
36:45Immediately, my wife thought, hmm, I don't know about this guy.
36:51She never sort of gave him the benefit of the doubt, but I did.
36:58So I'll give an example.
37:00He knew I was very interested in politics at the time.
37:03It was the 2020 election.
37:05I was actually very interested in running for some sort of seat.
37:09And then all of a sudden, he was an expert in super PACs.
37:12A super PAC is a political action committee.
37:16Essentially, it's a recognized group used to raise funds for campaigns or political figures.
37:21There is no limit to the funds raised, and they've gotten the reputation for being fertile ground for scams.
37:26We actually got to the point where we started a super PAC.
37:31His motivation was, if you raise money as a super PAC, you're entitled to take 20% of the money
37:37you raise for expenses and overhead.
37:40And so he could see a super PAC providing him cash.
37:46Anthony is a compulsive gambler, and I think all his motivation for money and everything else is to feed that
37:52habit.
37:53He asked myself and Lindsay combined, and give him $150,000.
38:00And my wife said, are you nuts?
38:03So I just did as I was told and told him to get lost.
38:06Honestly, based on how he's treated people in the past, I think you would have never seen that money again.
38:10We know his patterns.
38:11We know what he does.
38:12He steals from people, and nobody ever, ever, ever sees that money.
38:17But I think Lindsay might have given him the money.
38:22Now, Mr. Johnson had a medical condition.
38:26He is 80.
38:28Mrs. Johnson is quite significantly younger.
38:31About 20 years younger, yeah.
38:33And what do you think Mrs. Johnson's relationship with Anthony was?
38:37How would you describe it?
38:39They obviously were very close.
38:40He was very embedded into the family life.
38:43I surmised there was a relationship going on there.
38:47And I know Mr. Johnson's oldest son, Mark, was concerned about what was going on here.
38:54Mark decided it was time to end it and force the issue, especially after Bad Vegan came out.
39:04We saw the show, and we were just gobsmacked.
39:07I mean, we just couldn't believe it.
39:08Everyone was numb, really, because he'd been into our lives.
39:13He was part of the culture of our friendship, right?
39:17Did you and your wife reach out to Lindsay after Bad Vegan came out?
39:20I know my wife reached out to her and said, listen, stuff happens in life.
39:25You know, we've always been friends.
39:27Can we sit down and talk about it?
39:29And Lindsay never responded, never has.
39:33Maybe she feels like she loves him, and, you know, he's convinced her that it's just a story.
39:40It's all a pack of lies.
39:42I believe he'd have that ability over her.
39:45I mean, but that is a testament to how manipulative and controlling he is.
39:49Exactly.
39:53If you could say one thing to Anthony, what would that be?
39:58Why?
39:59I understand you've got a gambling habit, but why would you just rip people off?
40:07And he's just a bad guy, and that's really what it comes down to.
40:11Allegedly, Anthony is leaving a string of victims in his wake, and he's doing it in the sickest
40:17way possible.
40:18By leveraging people's love and trust in him as family and friends and otherwise, and
40:24he needs to be exposed.
40:27Hey!
40:37Next time on Toxic.
40:40He has obviously eluded us, and I want to know how he did it.
40:45This is interesting.
40:47She has phone numbers that come back to defense contractors.
40:51This is major.
40:52Holy f***.
40:54This is like the girl that we believe Anthony's with.
40:56Everything matches.
40:58Everything lines up.
40:59She's an outspoken Republican.
41:01This is on her social media.
41:02She may have no idea who she's dealing with.
41:06His current alias, Anthony Knight, was listed in a directory.
41:12That's huge.
41:13That's huge.
41:14Everyone in Anthony's life is a potential victim.
41:18I knew I had to act fast.
41:24Anthony, we gotta go.
41:25We gotta go.
41:26We gotta go.
41:26We gotta go.
41:30We gotta go.
41:31We gotta go.
Comments