He's Turning On You

The Snare

A deep dive into the unsolved 1996 murder of Angie Dodge, focusing on shifting suspicions between friends Chris Tapp and Ben Hobbs. As investigators probe conflicting testimonies, polygraph results, and DNA evidence, the case reveals how trauma, loyalty, and unreliable memories complicate justice. The episode explores how one man’s confession may have been coerced, while another’s alibi remains un

Key takeaways

• Polygraph results influenced suspect credibility despite legal limitations.
• Chris Tapp’s testimony evolved dramatically under pressure.
• Ben Hobbs’ alibi was unverifiable but DNA exonerated him.

Transcript preview

On a quiet Saturday morning, five women walked into a Lane Bryant store and never came home. The man responsible for their deaths was heard and even described by the lone survivor, but despite nearly being caught, he vanished into thin air. In the years since, new technology, new investigators, and new questions have changed what's possible. But the families are still waiting for answers. The evidence is still there. In this case isn't cold. It's unfinished. Listen to Counterclock season. It's January, 1997, about seven months since Angie Dodge was brutally murdered at knife point. For months, police have had no solid leads, no suspects in Angie's murder. They talked to dozens of local Idaho Falls residents, collecting DNA samples, chasing tips, but it hadn't brought them any closer to solving this case. Until they got word about an arrest in Nevada, for sexual sexual assault. assault. Idaho Falls investigators were told by Nevada police that the alleged perpetrator held a knife to the victim's throat. To detectives, this detail about the knife seemed similar to Angie's murder. They made the trip to speak with the man in custody. How did you know Angie? She's very good friend of mine. You guys used to hang around together. Dodge. His name is Ben Hobbs. Just seven months earlier, Ben had been at Angie's funeral, a 24-year-old with short blonde hair and a mustache. Ben had carried a flower arrangement in the processional line, wearing jeans and a checkered shirt. Now, he's sitting in front of Idaho Falls investigators in an orange prison jumpsuit. shocking. One of his friends told police that Ben had something to do with Angie's death. We've got Chris admitting to knowing about it and implicating you in the homicide. That's doing it. He's got details, about what happened. How you did it, then what went on. Chris, as in Chris Tapp, who you heard talking to police in the last episode. Why would Chris say on that, sir? I don't know. I have no idea. Ben had actually spoken to police months earlier in the initial days after the murder. He was among the many Idaho Falls residents police interviewed. But now things are different. Detectives are focused on Ben. What exactly has Chris Tapp told police? What does Chris know about Angie's death? Two men who were once very good friend. would have two very different stories. But only one of them is telling the truth. From ABC Audio in 2020, I'm Maggie Brulie, and this is the snare. Episode 2, he's turning on you. A few days before questioning Ben Hobbs in Nevada, investigators brought Chris Tapp into the Idaho Falls Police Station. This will be the beginning of an intense month-long probe, a probe that will come under scrutiny years later. Chris doesn't know what awaits him. For now, he's going to the police station as someone who just wants to help. He's led into a small room with a table in two chairs, surrounded by white beige walls, wearing a dark plaid shirt, jeans, and a raider's cap. Chris takes a seat in the corner. The detective reassures Chris that he's not in any trouble, just that he wants to pick his brain. You're not uner nervous. You can get up and say, hey, I'm done, take me home. I'll try to help you as best I can. When Chris and Ben met a couple years ago, Chris says the pair became fast friends. They were part of a larger crew that he says were inseparable the summer Angie was killed. But Chris tells detectives that it's been a while since he and Ben last saw each other. had left Idaho Falls to seek treatment for drug abuse. Chris is a high school dropout with some minor run-ins with the law, but now he says he's focused on getting his life straight. He's been living a quieter life at his mom's house. He even tells the detective that his girlfriend might be pregnant. Does the mom's dad know? Like, yeah. Is it? Yeah. There's a familiar report between the two. This detective was a former school drug counselor. Someone Chris has known since he was a kid. You got a lot to lose now, though even this today you're going to be a dad. Well, we got a lot of crap going down right now, okay? I'm going to share some of it with you. I mean, I trust you and hopefully you trust me. The detective tells Chris that Ben's been arrested for sexual assault. And they think Ben might have something to do. with Angie's murder. But the investigator tells Chris that they suspect he is also somehow involved. That people they've talked to keep mentioning Chris's name. Chris looks confused. He says he had nothing to do with Angie's murder and doesn't know who could have done it. I mean if my name keeps coming up, which I can't understand why. I don't try to clear it up. Chris tells the detective that on the night of Angie's murder, he thinks he was at the Snake River with some friends. He says Angie was there too, but they didn't talk. They weren't really friends, more like acquaintances. He says he's never been to her apartment and doesn't even know where she lives. Eventually, Chris says he left the river and went home. He says he doesn't know where Ben was that night. And that's all he knows. seems skeptical. Well, let's put it this way. Okay, did you kill Angie? No. No, Chris says he did not kill Angie. The detective warns him that there could be consequences for not cooperating. But then he says he wants to help Chris. That he might be able to get him a deal with the county prosecutor's office if Chris speaks up now. But then he says he wants to help Chris. That he might be able to get him a deal with the county prosecutor's office if Chris speaks up now. But I can tell you that because of my position and everything I can attempt to pull some serious strings and I'm trying to keep your hand completely out of everything and that's a pretty generous offer considering that you decide not to work with us and it comes out later that I knew something. Yeah. In other words, tell us what you know, before it's too late. late. But for the almost 90 minutes, Chris bends in the interrogation room that night, he stays adamant. He didn't kill Angie and knows nothing about her murder. I need I'll take a lie detector test. I will sign anything that would just verify what I said. I need to take it to court. Three days after Chris's meeting with police, investigators take him up on his offer to take a polygraph test. Well, you're not there, you're not some fraud. You have speakers. Sitting in a big cushion chair, Chris says he's nervous. The polygraph examiner sets up his machine on the desk behind him. The examiner straps various black cuffs on Chris's right arm and fingers. Then he clips two wires tightly across his