the best place to listen. to start your free 30-day trial, text listen5 to 500500 today. ♪ . i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is "dateline." >> she was receiving long, rambling emails threatening her life, saying that her husband is cheating on her. she's telling her to watch her back. she better get out of the picture. >> menacing emails sent to a newlywed. >> what arrived next was far worse. >> strange men arrived at her door and trying to attack her.

>> people posing online, they want to fulfill a rape fantasy. >> everything pointed to her ex. >> they said we have to take you into custody. >> potentially for the rest of my life. >> hiding behind the threats was a cyber seeker. >> evil. something the devil might do. >> so, who was the real devil? >> the da in this case would use the word diabolical. >> i think he's close to the mark. >> hello and welcome to "dateline." michelle hadley seemed to have it all. a loving family, solid education, with the opportunities and support to help her fill the promises of youth. and now she had a fiancee she was crazy about. but her life was about to be turned upside down. here's dennis murphy with "diabolical."

>> reporter: locked in a cage. the shrieks of women howling in the night. >> this isn't real. this is like something you would see in a movie. this doesn't happen in real life. >> how does a self-described goody-too-shoes get swept away in something so convoluted. >> this is one of the most well thought out, well-executed plans and it's scary. >> diabolical. >> absolutely. >> a tangled web, you bet. an all-together bizarre plot. >> she complicated. >> this is the most shocking form of love rivally i've ever seen. >> there will be allegations of cyber stalking, rape. someone was going to get hurt. someone was going to jail. at the end of the nightmare, well, no one saw that coming. you decide whether it was a love rivalry. but in the beginning, it was clearly a boy meets girl love story. >> it was a very intense period.

of my life in terms of a whirlwind kind of romance. >> august 2013, 20-something michelle hadley met a u.s. marshal named ian diaz over a cup of coffee. things moved fast. he told you he loved you. you were beautiful. >> yes. >> he sort of hit you with a thunderbolt. >> early on, yeah. by the second date he was telling me he loved me. >> did you think, slow down here, buddy, or did you welcome it? >> i think when you're a young girl who's kind of been raised on the fairytale princess dream, it's very exciting and flattering. >> could this be her prince charming she was meeting over a cappuccino, the man she dreamed of since she was a little girl? >> she was very imaginative, very intelligent and she just loved to play and create. >> michelle's mother, suzanne, father michael, raised her and her younger sister in this

modest home in ontario, california. she was a cross-country runner, good student. >> i was an overachiever. >> you're the kid who ruined the curve for everybody else. >> yeah, sometimes. >> michelle was offered a scholarship to attend dickinson in pennsylvania. >> you might have been proud of how your child was working out. >> oh, yes. >> very proud. >> after graduation she tried various careers before landing a marketing job at disney. now she met this man, ian diaz, a u.s. marshal, her very own prince charming. in december 2014 for her 21st birthday, he whisked her off to new york, took her to the sweeping vistas of rockefeller center and proposed. >> and you said? >> yes. i said yes. >> it was time to find a starter castle to complete the fairytale. just minutes from her job at disney, they bought into a new condo development in anaheim. she would be able to watch the

disneyland fireworks from the roof. >> i put the whole down payment. >> you paid the whole down? >> you paid the whole down payment, yes. >> they waited for the condo to be finished and in june they moved in. but michelle said that's when the relationship changed, fell apart. two months later she packed her jetta with whatever she could fit in it and arrived at her parents' doorstep. >> surprised? >> i received a text saying, can i come home? i said, you don't even need to ask. >> why were you not suited for him, in your opinion? >> i didn't feel the relationship was not healthy for me. >> not nurturing? >> not nurturing. >> tempers? >> let's just say i'm not a strong personality, so i have to be very careful the kind of people i surround myself with. it's better not to be in a relationship than to be in a bad one. >> there were still ties, the mortgage, the deed in anaheim,

which became a source of tension. both hired lawyers, but it got personal. michelle claimed ian was unfaithful, even abusive. she sent him a strange email. the language laced with religiosity and the bible, satan and a mythical woman named lilith. please explain to your lawyer that all law the law of man. it is a weak shield that will bend and track against the sword of god. ian denied her allegations and said he was so alarmed for michelle's email, that he applied for a restraining order against her. he accused her of infidelity and said because of her instability, fits of rage, i fear for my safety. the request for the restraining order was dismissed a few weeks later and the law of man prevailed, or so it seemed. the lawyers hashed out a

compromise. >> we ended up getting a settlement agreement. >> they signed it in november 2015. the deal allowed ian to stay in the condo but he had six months to get his own mortgage. failing that, he'd have to sell the condo and split any profits with michelle. michelle stood to lose most of her down payment, almost $10,000, but she said it was worth it. >> i moved on with my life completely, 100% completely. i had actually started dating again. >> it was not a major part of your life. >> once the settlement agreement was signed, it was just a waiting game. >> she went back to school, started an mba program at chatman university. ian, too, moved on quickly. married a woman named angela. but the nagging condo issue still wasn't resolved and the six-month deadline was approaching. >> that's when all the fireworks started happening. >> soon, more emails, really frightening ones.

and at a new target. coming up -- >> angela was claiming that she was receiving long, rambling emails saying that her husband, ian, doesn't love her. that she better get out of the picture, soon, before he hurts her. >> and not long after the emails arrived, so do police. >> i said, what's going on out here? the guy said, we just arrested michelle. t arrested michelle with this one little nexgard chew comes power, confidence, reassurance you're doing what's right to protect your dog from fleas and ticks for a full month. this one little nexgard chew is the #1 vet recommended protection. and it's the only chew fda approved to prevent infections that cause lyme disease. plus, it's safe for puppies. there's a lot of power in this one little nexgard chew. nexgard. what one little chew can do.

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>> reporter: by june 1st, 2016, tension over the anaheim condo michelle hadley and ian diaz had shared was once again starting to peak. the deadline was fast approaching. ian needed to take over the mortgage or sell the condo. and that's when some odd events began to unfold. michelle's father michael was at work. his youngest daughter was at their home in ontario. >> i get a phone call from my youngest daughter saying, "hey. somebody's knoc -- beating on the door." and i said, "look outside. is there police cars?" she says, "yeah. there's two of them." i said, "well, then open the door," 'cause it scared her, i guess. >> reporter: yeah. >> and so a woman throws down a restraining order. >> reporter: here. you've been served, kind of thing? >> yeah. here, you've been served. with the police. two officers there. and it was from angela diaz. >> reporter: the restraining order was for michelle who was still living at her parents' home. it came from angela diaz, ian's wife of three months.

who had recently announced she was pregnant. >> angela came into the picture not long after ian and michelle had actually broken up. >> reporter: reporter kate briquelet covered this story for the daily beast. she spent hours digging through the curious emails michelle sent ian during the condo dispute. >> one minute she's very polite and thanking him for reminders on her car insurance. the next minute, you know, she's saying that he's satan and the anti-christ. >> reporter: even after they signed the agreement on the condo, the emails kept coming. ian got this one on may 22. "you told me i was your first love, but you did not treat me like the precious, perfect treasure i am. you have sinned against god, and i want my power back because it belongs to us, the daughters of god." then, something new and strange started happening. angela began receiving emails, too. >> long, rambling emails saying that, you know, her husband ian

doesn't love her, that michelle is, you know, his one true love and that ian is cheating on her. he manipulates women. she better get out of the picture soon before he hurts her. >> reporter: these new emails to angela sounded like michelle's emails to ian, complete with biblical imagery. but they came from multiple email addresses and were signed, "jason ray." >> telling angela that she would always be eve and that michelle was ian's lilith, his truth, and that angela would never be his one true love. >> reporter: then another email to angela appeared. the subject line: "die." the message, "i hope you are scared of death tomorrow. be prepared. don't sleep, be watchful of the daughters of god," the email continued. "we will steal your child and we will watch as it dies." angela said when she looked to

see who sent this email it was from, michelle hadley. >> reporter: you can understand from angela's point of view why she'd be so rattled. >> right. >> reporter: a barrage of emails arrived on may 31, 2016. "be warned: angela, you've lost. i am going to end you. you will suffer. i will pray for you." the next morning, june 1, angela filed for that restraining order. the one police served at the hadley's home. it read in part: "ms. hadley has been emailing me for over one week, repeatedly threatening my life, my marriage, my safety, slandering my husband." >> reporter: the rhetorical language you used in your email to your ex. >> yeah. >> reporter: had a kind of biblical, old testament veracity to it. they said, "this is the same person." >> well, no comment on that. but, you know -- >> reporter: but to your ears it was not at all? >> no. no. >> reporter: michelle admits she did send fire and brimstone emails to ian. although she was reluctant to discuss them on camera. she later told us, "it was a

symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder, which she blamed on her volatile relationship with her ex. but, she told us, she never sent any emails to angela. in fact, michelle says she didn't even know her. >> i've never heard of her, i've never communicated with her. >> reporter: couldn't say where she lived or pick her out of a lineup. >> exactly. i mean, i'm assuming she lives in the condo with him. but aside from that, that's the extent of what i know about her. i don't know what her job is. i don't know where she works. i know nothing about her background. >> reporter: or so she said. police thought otherwise. >> there was very compelling evidence. >> reporter: sergeant darren wyatt is the public information officer for the anaheim police department. there was some very vivid religious, ferocious imagery that was clearly written by michelle to her ex that seems to be the same kind of emails that

are coming to angela. did that drive some of your theory about the case? >> i can't talk about specifics, but there was clear and convincing evidence to believe that michelle hadley was the person who was sending the emails. >> reporter: a judge ordered michelle to cease all contact with angela and ian. but the emails continued. june 6th: "you will pay for this. i hope to god you are ready for the pain i will show you." then this: "burn in the fiery pits of hell tonight, as by god's law. you will be hurt." three weeks after the restraining order was filed, police returned to michelle's parents' house. >> they have a search warrant for my devices. and so i hand all my devices over, i give them all the pass codes. and he opens up my cell phone. >> reporter: the officer looked through her email account. checked the activity there. then arrested michelle for violating the restraining order. >> i heard doors slamming out in front. and i went out in the front and i said, "what's going on out here?" and the guy said, "we just arrested michelle." >> reporter: arrested your michelle? >> yes. >> reporter: she was placed in a holding cell. her parents posted a bond to get her out and after a very long night, they picked her up from the anaheim police department.

>> there she was sitting on the steps out in front. >> reporter: it's one of the stranger days of your life. >> the strangest. >> reporter: but strange days were only beginning. >> coming up - from daggers by email to danger at the front door. >> somebody was posting ads online through craigslist saying that they wanted to fulfill this rape fantasy. >> when "dateline" continues. too many people in pain settle for

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>> reporter: june, 2016. michelle hadley was out on bail living with her parents. anaheim police suspected michelle had sent threatening emails to her ex-boyfriend, ian, and his pregnant wife, angela. even though on its face it didn't make much sense. >> reporter: a young woman who lived an exemplary life, good student, she's trying to get an mba, and -- >> well, there's two sides to every person, and all we're seeing is the evidence that looks very clear that everything is -- is originating from michelle hadley. >> reporter: but the case against michelle went way beyond threatening emails. police had evidence she was up to something much more sinister, something stomach-churning. it began in early june about the same time as the deadline on the condo was approaching. >> somebody was posting ads online through craigslist saying that they wanted to fulfill this rape fantasy.

>> reporter: rape fantasy as a genre? i don't think i've ever heard of this. >> i had never heard of it either, until this particular case. but apparently yes, there's a market for it. >> reporter: it's a type of personal ad you can find them on craigslist and elsewhere online. men seeking women who want to meet and act out a rape. a woman responded to the ad: "i have been dying to have a rape fantasy occur. if you can fulfill this tonight, please let me know. i am 30, tall, gorgeous and ready. i have a yorkie i walk every night. come find me." the email gave an address, the condo in anaheim where angela and ian lived. on june 13, angela and ian told police a man showed up at their door expecting to have violent sex with angela. they told police they sent him away, but other men followed all invited by email responses to "rape fantasy" ads. >> it escalates again, now to the point that angela diaz calls the police department, reports that another person had shown up

and had actually tried to rape her. >> reporter: police officers responded to angela's 9-1-1 call. >> reporter: what do they encounter? >> they encounter a very distraught angela diaz who says that another person has shown up, and -- and -- >> reporter: and she's got abrasions, "look here," right? >> correct, on her neck. and her shirt is torn. >> reporter: this is way beyond internet misdemeanor mischief, this is a criminal act in your city -- >> oh, mo -- most definitely a criminal act. >> reporter: who was inviting men to rape angela? police believed there was no question it was michelle hadley. that's what led them to arrest michelle outside her parents' home. angela reported that during the night michelle spent in jail. she received no threatening emails. but then michelle made bail. she was out. >> and almost immediately the emails start again. >> reporter: so is there kind of a feel here, "look, we warned you about this activity." >> correct. >> reporter: and it's continuing. >> correct. >> reporter: this is a very complicated scheme, kate. >> yes. >> reporter: daily beast

reporter kate briquelet tried to unravel the story from her office in new york city. angela diaz appeared to be the victim at the center of an increasingly dangerous game. >> she was afraid for her life. she was afraid to go anywhere. she felt that she had to uproot her whole life, take down her online profiles, and hide. >> reporter: july 11, two weeks after michelle bailed out of jail. a new "rape fantasy" ad appeared on craigslist and a response. once again, the email directed the man who placed the ad to the home of angela diaz. >> reporter: and what would michelle's motivation be in doing this campaign? >> it's interesting. i mean, there's th -- fact that there's some sort of a love triangle going on, right? there's two women, one guy. and there's also the unsold condominium. >> reporter: the condo was still a factor in the story. the bank had not approved ian and angela for a mortgage. so, it was time to sell, as agreed to. but that wasn't going to happen, according to michelle's father. the ex-boyfriend was digging in his heels.

>> he's not gonna sell the condo. he does not want to move out. period. he made that clear. >> reporter: on july 12, 2016 even as she remained under investigation for cyber-stalking and worse, michelle filed a breach of contract lawsuit against ian over the condo. the next day angela called police. another man was outside her condo. anaheim detectives found a 17-year-old in the courtyard. he told police he was responding to a craigslist ad. orange county district attorney tony rackauckas. >> we gotta get her off the street. it's hazardous to angela at this point. >> reporter: michelle looked like a loose cannon out there. >> she did. >> reporter: capable of harm. >> absolutely. absolutely. >> reporter: police got a warrant, and once again arrested michelle hadley. >> it's very hard to see your daughter being placed in handcuffs. and i just kept saying to him, "no. no, i can't believe it."

>> reporter: this time it was much more serious. michelle was charged with stalking, making criminal threats and six counts of attempted rape for directing those men to angela diaz's door. michelle's second arrest got the attention of reporters both in orange county and across the country. >> the headline seemed too kooky and convoluted to even be true. >> reporter: bail this time was $1 million. michelle faced life in prison. >> reporter: this rock bottom moment for you, michelle? >> absolutely. it's the scariest moment of my life. date "dateline" returns after the break. date "dateline" returns after the break. -we bought a house in a neighborhood

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formally nominate mark esper to head the defense department. he'll be one of four to head the department in three years. now is back to "dateline." welcome back to "dateline." i'm craig melvin. michelle hadley was in jail. accused of multiple felonies, including stalking and attempted forcible rape. had she sent those threatening emails to her former fiancee's wife or was this all a terrible mistake? her parents thought so. and were determined to help. but where to even start. here again is dennis murphy. >> reporter: the charges, and the headlines, were devastating. in an article in her hometown paper, the shorthand was that michelle hadley was the psycho ex-girlfriend from hell, the mover behind a lurid and devious plot. her parents, michael and suzanne, couldn't, wouldn't

believe it. >> there's nothing in character with the michelle that you've raised here? >> not at all. >> it's actually 180 degrees so out of sync with her behavior. >> reporter: they went to see michelle on her first day in jail after being charged. >> is this gonna be a conversation with phones through glass? >> yes. >> yes. >> there's cells without cages, but she's in a caged one. you know, i don't know why she always has to be in a caged one, but she does. >> reporter: michelle's bail was set at a million dollars. to get her out, mike and suzanne would have to come up with about 10 percent of that. that's $100,000 cash. they told their daughter they had enough to do that, or to hire a good lawyer, but not both. >> bottom line is we're just gonna have to fight this, and there's no bail, and that's it. >> how tough is that, suzanne? you -- you had the money. you could've had her home for dinner. >> yeah, it was pretty tough. >> i told my dad i was scared to death. i didn't know what was gonna happen in jail.

but i told my dad, i was like, "i can handle it. don't worry about me. go get a good attorney." >> and you're incarcerated. >> yup, for potentially the rest of my life. >> reporter: the girl who loved disneyland, fairy tale princesses, and her morning starbucks', said she'd stay behind bars and tough it out. jailhouse denims were her new black. >> well, i stood out like a sore thumb. >> what is your cell like? >> tiny. they have two bunk beds, a table and two chairs, and then your toilet is actually attached to your sink. and so everyone can kind of see in. so you never get any privacy. >> what is the day in jail? >> it -- they wake you up at 4:30 a.m. then they bring you your breakfast. >> which is what? >> it's usually some sort of gruel looking potato mash. i don't even know how to describe it. >> and i'm guessing not a foamy starbucks. >> no starbucks. >> while we're talking about food, what's lunch? >> bologna sandwich, and really, really nasty bologna. i almost didn't eat for the first, you know, three or four

days. >> michelle, the sounds of the jailhouse. >> yeah, good luck sleeping in jail. [ laughs ] the door slamming, it's very loud. and the women at night sometimes scream like banshees. so you'll hear it echoing throughout the jail. >> reporter: the population of street hardened prisoners took a close look at the petite young woman from the good home now living in their cell block, checked her out especially after that story about her in the local paper got passed around. >> after that article, i had women coming up to my cell door harassing me about it. i got a death threat letter at one point slipped under my cell door. what if one of the girls goes after me? what happens then? >> one of the women who took you under your wing said, "you gotta toughen up, girl." >> yeah. [ laugh ] she did -- >> talking to you. >> yeah. [ laugh ] >> you need to develop a little swagger in you -- >> yeah, well, apparently i walk like a church mouse and that's not cool.

and she said, "you're gonna get hurt in here because you look weak when you walk." >> you need to become scarface, huh? >> yeah, yeah, yeah. >> reporter: of course, to the outside world, she already was scarface. kate briquelet of "the daily beast" reported on the case. >> these were incredibly serious charges that michelle was facing, felony charges that included attempted forcible rape. >> reporter: meanwhile, michelle's parents were in crisis mode looking for an attorney. >> you don't have criminal defense attorneys on your speed dial, i'm guessing. >> correct, we do not. >> reporter: mike and suzanne wanted the right lawyer to deal with a cyber crime. they also wanted to start working on michelle's defense right away. their daughter was in trouble, so they started their own investigation. >> was it clear to you, mike, that if you're gonna claw your way out of this thing, you've gotta understand the story told by the computers? >> correct. >> the forensics of this case. >> absolutely. >> so you've gotta learn a whole bunch of jargon here. >> i know ip addresses and all the other stuff. >> reporter: an ip address is a numeric code that identifies a computer network or an individual device.

mike had copies of all the incriminating emails from the evidence filed with that restraining order. he started going through them with software that traces ip addresses. >> this investigative software that you used to become your own detective, is that something you gotta go to cal tech to get a copy of? is this, nsa material? >> oh, gosh, no. it's the -- the 15-year-old kid material. >> reporter: as mike got results, suzanne would organize them. >> he would print out on yellow pads of legal paper, all the ip addresses and then i would take all of them and i'd put them on a spreadsheet and then we highlighted where certain ip addresses were the same. >> the idea being that this ip address is gonna go back to a physical location. >> yes. >> reporter: if they could trace an email sent from one location and prove michelle was somewhere else at the same time, it could be an alibi. but to d.a. tony rackauckas, it looked like a bad set of facts for michelle hadley. >> looking at the emails and the -- and the pictures and the ads looked like michelle hadley

was just doing this, this terrible thing, stalking and victimizing of -- of angela. >> reporter: the wheels of justice were grinding slowly, and the lives of two young women were hanging in the balance. "dateline" returns after the break. "dateline" returns after the break. this is a commercial about insurance and i know you're thinking. i don't want to hear about insurance. 'cause let's be honest... nobody likes dealing with insurance. right? see, esurance knows it's expensive.

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>> reporter: each day in jail was a struggle for michelle hadley. not just the daily grind, but the death threats, the fear, living in legal limbo. she took comfort writing long letters to her family. trying to convince them, and maybe herself, that she was okay. >> july 21st, 2016. dear ma, daddy and rebecca, my commissary order finally arrived today. so i have paper and decent pencils among other goodies. >> writing has always relaxed me and since i'm pretty sure this ordeal is the most stressful of my life to date, you can expect to get letters from me. i wanted to send you one positive thing and one thing i want to do when i'm free as much for my mood and sanity as for yours. one positive thing, i haven't had this much time to read in a long time. >> wish list, a gourmet burger and a glass of red wine.

all my love, michelle. >> reporter: i hear a lot of you reassuring them in that. >> that was exactly what was happening. i didn't want them to worry too much. i didn't want them to be afraid. they were already fighting so much on the outside and doing so much work. and i wanted them to be proud of what a brave girl they had raised. >> reporter: but as the weeks turned into months, her brave front started to crack. >> there were mornings when i would wake up and i would open my eyes and i would see the white jail cell wall and i would think, okay, i'm gonna wake up a second time. this is just a nightmare. and it wasn't. it was for real. i was starting to feel like i was slipping away. >> reporter: you felt your humanity slipping away? >> yeah. >> she looked absolutely not

even close to a criminal. >> reporter: that you're gut talking, right? >> my gut's pretty good. >> reporter: michelle's parents hired defense attorney michael guisti to defend their daughter. guisti felt an instant connection to the hadleys. >> i looked at michelle's family and to a large extent i saw my family. i saw -- i saw a working class family who fiercely defended their child. she was a young, ambitious mba student who was nothing but bright-eyed and optimistic. >> reporter: and who was facing life in prison. >> for no reason. no reason. >> reporter: so this is, kind of, the case you go to law school for. >> this is the reason you become a lawyer. >> reporter: guisti had more than faith in michelle. he also had the computer research michelle's mom and dad had done on the emails at the heart of the case. michael hadley was convinced they'd found something crucial. >> reporter: why are michelle's

digital fingerprints on this thing? >> they're not. there's no digital fingerprints whatsoever. >> reporter: it looks like it's coming from michelle. >> it looks like somebody's trying to make it look like it's coming from michelle. that's for sure. >> reporter: the hadleys' spreadsheet showed some of the incriminating emails were sent when michelle could prove she was in a classroom at chapman university. >> here's michelle at school. she's at chapman and here's emails coming. and she's in class. >> she was in class doing her final course presentation. there's no way she's gonna be sending this email. >> reporter: the hadleys and defense attorney guisti thought they had it, proof that michelle was innocent. but they knew it would be tougher to convince prosecutors. >> a district attorney is never gonna buy my evidence. a district attorney is gonna have to convince themselves that they have evidence which might accidentally coincide with what i have. >> reporter: in fact, police and prosecutors were still doing everything they could to link

those emails to michelle. >> we have a very skilled detective that was working on the case and he was in constant communications with the district attorney's office and trying to piece it together, to help prove a case and solidify it for court. >> reporter: problem was -- >> it just -- it wasn't coming together. these electronic messages were coming from -- from a different place. and we couldn't verify that it was coming from michelle hadley's device. >> reporter: it was a blow to the prosecution's case, but there was more evidence than just ip addresses. there was the bad blood between michelle and ian, the restraining orders, those harrowing attempted rapes of ian's new wife, angela. and that fire and brimstone language of the threatening emails, so distinctive and seemingly in michelle's voice. >> reporter: so that language of religious retribution -- >> made it appear to be michelle. >> reporter: you stand before god on this thing and -- >> that's right. and that caused the police and -- and our investigators as well to look at it and say, "well, this is michelle writing this."

>> reporter: one thing was clear, though. the computer forensics had blown a sizable hole in the prosecution's case. guisti seized the moment and worked out a deal. the da would release michelle from jail. but he would not drop the charges against her. and the investigation would continue. after 88 days, michelle walked out of jail. >> on the outside, basically my parents. they were there waiting for me and got my coffee. got my -- >> reporter: famous coffee. the good cup of coffee, huh? >> yeah. the good cup of coffee which oh man i had been dreaming about that for so long. >> reporter: it was an incredible moment for the hadleys. a legal victory, but not the end of the road. >> she's still in jeopardy. she's still charged with the same crimes. >> reporter: and she's got an ankle bracelet on. >> she had an ankle bracelet on. >> i already felt like i was so scarred from jail. and wearing that device, you kind of still feel like you're

an animal. and i just remember thinking, "how did i get here? i didn't do anything." >> coming up - if michelle wasn't sending the emails, who was? and why? the da has a word for it. >> diabolical. how did that word come to you? >> diabolical is something evil. >> when "dateline" continues. ess that mean everything when you live with migraine... "i am here." aim to say that more with aimovig. a preventive treatment for migraine in adults that reduces the number of monthly migraine days. for some, that number can be cut in half or more. don't take aimovig if you're allergic to it. allergic reactions like rash or swelling can happen hours to days after use. common side effects include injection site reactions and constipation. aim to be there more. talk to your doctor about aimovig.

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>> welcome back. michelle hadley had been released from jail but if she hadn't sent those ominous e-mails to satan and threatening death, who did? >> with every thump of her heart, michelle felt as if she was losing a little part of herself. out of jail but not out of jeopardy. free go to a high-end coffee shop but not free to remove the ankle bandage. >> i wrapped it in a sports bandage. >> after a thorough search, investigators concluded the

damming e-mails did not come from them. >> we have a lab and people that are very well trained. that's how we were able to determine michelle hadley wasn't the suspect. >> after months in jail, after the ankle bracelet, she was cleared. >> you are happy but your emotions are all over the place. you are coming out of this fog. >> the daunting investigation, the suspect could be anybody with a cell phone or access to the internet. >> we can't show where it is coming through without access to a search warrant. >> police needed critical data of the precise crimes. they issued a search warrant during the investigation. >> there are very few cases we had to write that many search

warrants. when they timely started to get the information they needed, the results were stunning. the ugly trails of 1s and 0s were coming from the condo in anaheim. the one they went to court over and where ian and and law were living. suddenly looking like the scene of the crime and motive all in one. >> this is where they were living and i don't think they want to leave. >> if the crazy, psychoex girlfriend is out of the way, that relieves some financial evidence? >> right. both of them were suspects. >> in a way, it would make sense if it was the ex boyfriend, rather than the woman he married. >> the deeper they looked, they

zero in on the woman ian married. one that stood out was angela's report that someone tried rain her in the garage of the apartment. >> you had to go to the alley and there is no address visible. and there are cameras. >> what about the scene itself. the story about how she fought the guy off and the rather light injuries she was showing. it was sketchy. >> investigators uncover more sketchy behavior. angela had a sketchy history. >> we start to see some of the fraudulent things. bad checks, faking a cancer episode. >> and she lied about something else too. she was not pregnant with ians

child. it was not the trail of lies but the trail of e-mails. it turned out the e-mails sent from the condo didn't come from a computer at all but from a cell phone. angela's cell phone. in an already strange case, this turns up to an 11. >> their original victim turns up to be the victim. >> how is that for whiplash? >> six months later, angela was arrested. the d.a. held a press conference and delivered the stunning news. >> i'm here to announce the filing of a felony complaint. there were no charges against ian, the man in the middle. the d.a. said angela was the

mastermind in a theme to portray herself as a victim. she had simply framed michelle. >> so charges were just that con v convoluted. writing herself threatening e-mails, inviting men to the apartment to rape her and injurying herself all to put her husband's former girlfriend behind bars. >> it is not just a bad day, it is a nightmare. it needs to be made clear, ms. hadley is an innocent victim of a diabolical scheme. >> something evil. something the devil might do.

>> your theory was wrong but you unravelled it? >> you are sorry the theory was wrong? >> absolutely. were the apologies enough? >> i appreciate the apologies but the apologies don't rebill your life, the apologies don't undo what has been done. i'll carry this around for the rest of my life. >> to attempt to get justice for michelle, her lawyer filed a lawsuit against angela diaz, ian diaz and the city of anaheim. >> the anaheim police department didn't create the situation. angela diaz did. we did what we had to do as the

circumstances came about and as evidence presented itself. up to and including exonerating michelle. >> the court had considered the impact on michelle hadley's life by being wrongfully accused, through no fault of law enforcement. in fact it was through the tremendous efforts of law enforcement that the truth was finally uncovered. it was a tragedy and waist of resources to have law enforcement running around in circles chasing miss hadley and the repeated accusations. >> angela faced criminal charges. she pleaded not guilty to all of them. but in october 2017, she changed her plea to guilty. going before the judge to learn her fate.

>> the court will sentence you to state prison for a period of five years. >> angela's defense attorney believes ian deserves a closer look. >> the failure to investigate adequately the role of ian diaz is a concern. >> we reached out to ian but got no response. >> is he in on this thing? >> at this point, there is no evidence. everything points to her. >> one thing angela lost is her husband. he had their marriage annulled. >> when we sat down with her, her personal struggle is far from over. the struggle of an innocent woman whose life was changed forever by something diabolical. >> i don't think there is anything more impossible than finding a girl who believes deep

in humanity and making her question who she is and her faith in humanity. >> that's all for this edition of "dateline." thank you for watching. good morning, i'm jo ling kent. 6:00 here out east, 3:00 out west. back from the brink. what it says it didn't do. the white house on how and why the president stopped a counter attack. the government plans to crack down this weekend on undock you meanted immigrants and some cities are refusing to help the feds.