The Observera new Netflix series released last week, has many people talking about the unsolved mystery that inspired the show.
Trying to figure out who the Watcher is by watching Netflix’s The Watcher, knowing full well that the real case was never solved.
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The story, which was first reported by The Cut in 2018, follows the Broaddus family, who began receiving disturbing letters from an unknown stalker after buying a house in Westfield, New Jersey.
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Whether you’ve already watched the entire series and are dying for more details or just curious about the incredibly chilling circumstances surrounding the series, here are 15 details about the real-life mystery that inspired The Observer:
1.
In June 2014, Derek and Maria Broaddus purchased 657 Boulevard, a home in Westfield, New Jersey. The couple, who had three children, planned to do some renovations before moving in. Maria had grown up in Westfield and their new home was a few blocks from her childhood home.
2.
Derek told The Cut that when he checked the mail one evening, he found an envelope addressed to “The New Owner.” The note welcomed the family home before taking a strange turn. “My grandfather watched the house in the 1920s and my father in the 1960s. Now is my time,” the letter read. “Do you know the history of the house?” Do you know what is hidden within the walls of 657 Boulevard? Why are you here ? I will inquire.
The writer also mentioned that they were watching the family’s three children. “Do you need to fill the house with the young blood I asked for? Better for me. Was your old house too small for the growing family? Or was it out of greed to bring me your children? Once I know their names, I will call them and draw them too [sic] me. The letter was signed by ‘The Watcher.’ After receiving the letter, Derek told The Cut that he alerted the police and contacted the Woods family, who the Broadduses bought the house from. According to the article, Andrea Woods told Derek they received a similar letter a few days before leaving the house.
3.
Two weeks after receiving the first letter, Maria found another letter in the mail. The second letter referred to the family by name, although it was misspelled, leading them to wonder if “The Watcher [had] been close enough to hear one of the contractors from the Broadduses addressing them. The writer also knew the names and ages of the three children in the family and even mentioned that they had noticed one of the children painting on an easel inside a closed porch, which the The family later told authorities they were in an area that was difficult to see unless the person was right next to the house.
The letter then asked if the children were too scared to play in the basement. “I want [be] very scared if I was them. He is far from the rest of the house. If you were upstairs, you would never hear them screaming.” The Observer also asked which rooms the family would sleep in, saying it would help them “plan better.” After receiving the letter, the family decided to stop bringing their children home.
4.
Derek told The Cut that he heard about the Langford family from one of his neighbors. The neighbor told Derek that Michael Langford, who lived with his elderly mother in the house next door, was “a kind of Boo Radley character”. According to The Cut, Derek thought Michael must be the culprit because the Langford home was close to the porch where the easel was kept. When he approached the police about this theory, they told him they had already looked at Michael but there was not much they could do without more hard evidence. “It’s someone who threatened my kids, and the police say, ‘Probably nothing will happen,'” Derek told The Cut. “Most likely is not good enough for me.”
5.
According to The Cut, Derek was frustrated that the police weren’t making progress on the case and decided to launch their own investigation. In addition to installing cameras, he hired several investigators to investigate the house and analyze the letters for clues. Robert Lenehan, a former FBI agent, “recognized several old-fashioned mannerisms in the letters that pointed to an older writer”, including double spaces between sentences and the fact that the letter was addressed to “Mr. /M Braddus”, an old-fashioned form of writing an address. Lenehan also deduced that a “lack of profanity” meant the writer was likely “less macho”.
6.
Although Derek claimed he believed the Langfords were the culprits, private investigators found several other leads. According to The Cut, two child sex offenders lived near the house. Bill Woodward, a painter working at the house, said he noticed people who lived in the house behind the Broadduses had two chairs placed suspiciously near their house. “I was looking out the window one day and saw this older guy sitting in one of the chairs,” Woodward told The Cut. “He wasn’t facing his house – he was facing the Broadduses’.”
seven.
Some people in Westfield began spreading theories that the Broadduses themselves were behind the letters. One theory claimed the family “suffered from buyer’s remorse, or realized they couldn’t afford the house, and concocted an elaborate scheme to back out of the sale.” Others believed the pair were trying to defraud insurance, while another theory claimed the pair were looking for a potential film deal. Derek said he believed the theories were spreading because it would ruin Westfield’s reputation as a safe place to live. “People don’t want to believe this could happen to Westfield,” he told The Cut.
8.
Years before the Broadduses moved to Westfield, John List murdered his mother, wife and young children in his home, which was also in Westfield. The show, which refers to List as John Graff, claims he received similar letters that were the catalyst for the brutal murder of his family. In reality, John List lost his job and began spending the $200,000 in savings his mother had before he shot and killed him, his wife and their three teenage children on November 9, 1971.
It took authorities more than a month to find the bodies. They only searched the Lists’ home after neighbors raised concerns with the police. Inside the house, they also found a note from List that said he had killed his family to protect them from harm in the world. By this point, List had fled Westfield and authorities had no leads. An episode of America’s Most Wanted about the case aired in 1989. A woman watching the episode in Richmond, Virginia thought List looked like her neighbor Robert Clark and alerted the police, who arrested him. List had lived in Richmond for 18 years, worked as an accountant and had married a woman he met at a religious event. He was convicted and sentenced to five life terms. List died in prison in 2008.
9.
The Broadduses eventually determined it would be unsafe to move their family into the house, and they moved in with Maria’s parents. Six months after the letters began, the couple decided to sell the house. According to The Cut, they couldn’t find a buyer because there was so much gossip surrounding the letters, even after dropping the price. “A broker emailed to say his client ‘loves it’ but ‘there are so many unsubstantiated rumors going around’ ranging from ‘sexual predator to stalker’ that they need to get it out. find out more,” the Cut reported. As the couple revealed the story to The Watcher, they said they were reluctant to show the letters to others unless they knew they were serious about buying the house.
ten.
In June 2015, the Broadduses filed a legal complaint against the Woods, the couple they bought the house from, for failing to disclose that they had received a letter from The Watcher just before moving out. Soon the media started picking up the story. While the Broadduses claim to have received more than 300 media requests, The Cut reported that they ultimately “decided not to speak publicly to spare their children even more attention” and left town.
11.
The Broadduses eventually found a family willing to rent the house to them, on the condition that the Broadduses include a clause that would allow them to break the lease if another letter was sent to the house. Two weeks after they moved in, a letter arrived, reading: “Strong winds and freezing cold / To the vile and wicked Derek and his wife’s daughter Maria.” This letter reportedly included specific details about the media coverage and Derek’s investigation. According to The Cut, the tenant, who was briefly mentioned in the letter, decided to stay in the house after Derek told him he would be installing security cameras.
12.
On Christmas Eve in 2017, several families who had spoken out against the Broadduses received anonymous letters in their mailboxes. These letters were not signed by “The Watcher”, but rather by “Friends of the Broaddus Family”. Derek later admitted to The Cut that he wrote the letters, but they were the only letters he sent. “He had felt pushed to the limit, fed up with watching in silence as people threw accusations at his family based on next to nothing,” the Cut reported.
13.
In 2022, The Cut published a follow-up article detailing new discoveries that have surfaced since their original article was published. A new theory that also appears on the show is that Robert Kaplow, a recently retired English teacher and the author of Me and Orson Welles, was behind the letters. His former students told The Cut that he often talked about writing letters to a home in his hometown. Kaplow denied any involvement and told the Cut that he wrote “admiring and non-threatening” letters to another Westfield home.
14.
Although “The Watcher” has still not been identified, authorities believe the culprit is an elderly woman who lives near 657 Boulevard. After the original article was published, the Union County District Attorney’s office approached those who lived near the house for saliva samples to be DNA tested against the envelopes. Two neighbors refused. The Cut reported that “at least one of [those who refused] was a “close neighbor” of 657 Boulevard and someone the police had considered a suspect.”
15.
The Cut reported that the Broadduses sold their home in 2019. In 2022, the new owners reported receiving no letters from “The Watcher”.
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