Who Is Chris Spotz? New Details About The Suspect "To Live And Die In LA" Focuses On
He is suspected of killing Adea Shabani.
Facebook The new true crime podcast To Live and Die in LA focuses on the murder of Adea Shabani and the role her boyfriend, Chris Spotz, may have played in her disappearance and death.
Spotz, 34, has been considered the main suspect in Shabani's slaying. She was last seen leaving her Los Angeles apartment with Spotz on Feb. 23, 2018. Her body was found in a ditch a month later.
The 12-part podcast from Tenderfoot TV, hosted by Rolling Stone editor and author of The Game Neil Strauss, dives into the unsolved homicide of the 25-year-old Hollywood actress and evaluates her case, which is still open a year later.
“This podcast is for the victims of this story and those who love them,” Strauss said in a statement. “I hope to bring them the answers and the closure they deserve after so much pain and uncertainty. There are a lot of problems with procedure after a person goes missing. I hope this series can shed light on them, inform families in similar situations, and lead to a change in procedure, especially in the crucial first week.”
So who is Chris Spotz and why is he a suspect in Shabani's murder? Here's what we know so far.
1. He was an aspiring actor.
Spotz attended the University of Northern Colorado, where he earned a degree in Psychology in 2009. Following his graduation, Spotz moved to L.A. to pursue an acting career. He enrolled at Stella Adler Academy of Acting, where it is believed he met Shabani.
On IMDb, he is credited with four roles in short films, including "Pickman's Model" (2015), "Statues" (2018), and "Silent and Forgotten" (2018).
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2. He was dating Shabani.
A friend of Shabani told Strauss that Spotz and Shabani began dating in September 2017 after acting in a play together. At the time, though, Spotz was engaged to another woman, a nurse named Mary Elmalak. He kept his relationship with Shabani a secret, although she knew about his fiancé.
“I did not agree at all about the circumstances,” the friend said. “I was like ‘You’re crazy, how can you trust someone that’s engaged?’ She said: ‘You know how I like drama.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah but it’s too dramatic! It’s too much!’”
According to friends, their relationship was on-and-off again, but Spotz planned to leave Elmalak for Shabani, who he reportedly proposed to in January 2018.
As the days went on, their relationship became more and more problematic, filled with constant fighting, which even turned physical.
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3. His story didn't add up.
On Feb. 21, Spotz and Shabani were seeing a movie when he got a phone call saying his uncle had a heart attack. He left the theater halfway through the film.
The night before her disappearance, Shabani and Spotz spent time with friends. Shabani reportedly turned down an invitation to Mexico in order to attend Spotz's uncle's funeral.
On the day Shabani was last seen, Spotz and Shabani were spotted on surveillance footage leaving her apartment around noon with luggage as if they were going on a trip. That night, Spotz' father, Chris Morez, said Spotz showed up at his home in Sacramento by himself.
But here's where things get weird.
According to Morez, Spotz' uncle never suffered a heart attack and was alive and well. Spotz also told friends that he and Shabani spent most of their trip to Sacramento fighting, so he dropped her off in Santa Clarita.
“On Friday the last thing she told me was that I would never see her again,” Spotz texted a friend on Feb. 25. But authorities could find no evidence to back up his story.
"We have no corroborating information that supports his statements that he had an argument with her and put her out on the side of the freeway," LAPD Capt. William Hayes said at a March 27, 2018 press conference. "We went up and checked the area and there was nothing to corroborate what he was saying."
4. He was named a suspect shortly after Shabani's body was found.
The day after Shabani's body was found, police named Spotz a suspect in her death. Spotz "was somehow involved in her death," Hayes said, although authorities were unsure how he played a part in the murder.
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5. He shot and killed himself.
Spotz wasted no time taking a trip with Elmalak following Shabani's disappearance and headed over to Fort Morgan with her to visit his mother. But authorities wanted to question him regarding his missing girlfriend so they put out an alert for his vehicle, which was later discovered to be stolen. His car was spotted in San Bernadino on March 22 and police set out to catch him.
Spotz led police on a 60-mile car chase before fatally shooting himself.
“He remained in the vehicle and at some point committed suicide, dying as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound," Hayes said at the time.
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Sarah Gangraw writes about all things news, entertainment and crime. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.