Episode 2: Witness protection | Sweet Bobby | Full podcast episode

[@Marcel_Audubon]

That ain't how witness protection works

[@aaronw365]

i could definitely see how someone could fall for this. one difficult thing about telling stories like this is that six years of communications are covered in an hour or two and no one listening has the kind of emotional investment you'd naturally gain over that time. in the same way that no-one joins a cult, no-one gets into an abusive relationship. they get into a relationship with someone nice who treats them well, shares their emotional vulnerabilities and who they enjoy talking to. it's only after this connection has been formed that abusers will shift their behaviour, knowing that their target will try to justify their actions and bring them in line with their image of the abuser. it is difficult to admit when you're wrong normally, even more so when the thing you believe is such an integral part of your identity and relationships. getting out of situations like this takes a tremendous amount of courage and self-belief, which often needs to be built up over time.

[@Ahornaiya]

well said

[@Ahornaiya]

the people in the comments clearly aren’t listening to the podcast - this is not your usual catfishing scheme. the catfisher had a whole cast of characters constantly messaging kirat and interacting with each other. Who has time for that? Some of them were based on real people too. It was also a slow burn romance over years, not your typical lovebombing. So many factors makes this case unusual and trickier than the average scheme. Yes there’s loopholes but this is way more elaborate than any other typical catfishing scheme. I can see why kirat got tied into it and believed it.

[@coopernecole7962]

Yeah but the gifts and phone calls would only go so far. I've been in a long distance relationship with someone REAL and I had to see to see him at least 3 times a year and broke up due to that distance. 9 YEARS?!!!!!!!!

[@Marcel_Audubon]

what would I do? for starters I would question the legitimacy of any witness protection program that lets me, an internet acquaintance, in on the witness protection cover story ... 🤯

[@taigmanianderson9367]

Thank you saying he’ll go on walks with his nurse 😀😀😀😀 that’s a temu witness protection program with no money back guarantee 🙄🙄🙄🙄

[@eleanoramara]

​@@taigmanianderson9367😂🤣Temu witness protection program made me holler

[@KATMMUTLOANE]

I’m victim blaming at this point

[@dc704]

She's no victim she was a willing participant ​@@KATMMUTLOANE

[@absurdlyy9009]

this is gonna happen more often. people feel lonely. lonely people make themselves believe the wildest things bc they don't want to lose the connection. its sad but some of us will only learn to be content with what we have after someone almost destroys their whole life.

[@taigmanianderson9367]

How many hours in a day did this 17 year old girl have??? Im sure she had a full cork board in her room mapping out a whole maze of plans!!!

[@shranjitkaur9243]

Watched this on Netflix before coming to listen to this. Listening to this episode I felt vulnerable as kirat. I can understand why she went through this for so long😢

[@bordendonna]

Fantasy … she is engaging in fantasy. He is playing a game.

[@justanotherviewer00]

Delusional

[@beegorjyus]

I will never understand how a grown intelligent woman continued believing someone who had never spoken to her, video called or made efforts to actually meet her for so many years!

[@xoxox903]

loneliness....

[@hargun3062]

@@xoxox903agree being lonely, once you start liking someone you are blind and deaf

[@NanaYLeonard]

Unless your cousin who knows you very well has orchestrated this together with 39 different characters who seem unrelated

[@beegorjyus]

@@NanaYLeonard Agreed that her cousin orchestrated this entire thing which was beyond cruel. But after a certain point instincts start kicking in. Especially when you are feeling the pressure to get married and the person you have been speaking to has made zero efforts to validate the relationship. Not for weeks or months but for YEARS. The fact that she didn’t find anything shady about this for so long is what I don’t understand.

[@vivavidadela]

She was sending videos to him crying, begging, neglecting herself and her life for someone who can’t call or send a voice/video message? I think she was mentally ill and at some point woke up from her fantasy.

[@ElectroPoofGirl]

Where was this girls friends!??? Why didn’t they step in when they could see how bad it was for her

[@megiwpiegi773]

or family

[@musicmuse09]

All this was happening possibly from her room away from friends and family. She was feeling lonely.

[@sbdemos]

This is phenomenal content.

[@Marcel_Audubon]

lol your sarcasm is delicious!!

[@iamastrangeloop9204]

@@Marcel_Audubon it is phenomenal content.

[@Marcel_Audubon]

@@iamastrangeloop9204 doubling down on the sarcasm is doubling down on the delicious! 🤣🤣🤣

[@shougokawada8491]

@@Marcel_Audubon It's actually one of the best podcasts ever made. Where is sarcasm?

[@johnsmithda4th]

Let's be honest here, Kirat believed what she wanted to believe. There was clearly evidence of in denial and her not wanting to hear the truth. Even in the Netflix documentary when her parents/aunty were saying stuff like "this doesn't seem right" or "his voice is really funny" Kirat would shut it down. That's classic behaviour of not wanting to face the truth. There's always something similar in all these catfishing stories and that is that the victim is in so deep that they themselves suspect something is wrong but go along with it anyways just to avoid that realisation/confrontation that they have been scammed/fooled/tricked. I do feel sorry for her and other people who have been scammed in similar ways but by no means is Kirat absence of blame.

[@the-girly-talks]

in a way i agree. but after being friends for years with bobby on facebook, being tangled in so many conversations with his friends and family, the previous toxic relationship she was in, i think for a lot of people it would be hard to face the truth. i have my own questions about this story, but i think the question „why she believed” was not that serious. her loneliness, the pressure to marry she was under… i think she actually made herself believe in a fairytale, she closed her eyes for the redflags. let’s note that some people in her family also believed in the same lie.

[@mozzarella3991]

He never turned his camera on and that wasn’t a red flag for her??? Cmon this was 2015/2016. How dump a person must be to fall for this

[@dc704]

I'm thinking the same thing in the age of technology why did she go along without demanding to see him on video. What's the purpose of being on Skype if she can't see him? She's a damn fool. I'm not gonna let any pressure from my parents to be married to where I become a desperate noodle brain. At this point she's no victim she is a willing participant.

[@Simonegabs]

Unbelievable how the catfish can do this. In some cultures you don’t meet someone for years… and this can easily happen to anyone.

[@audreybaxter-l3n]

It's unbelievable how gullible people are 😂 she's very stupid this kerat woman.. her cousin was 17 !!

[@kati_nixie]

​@audreybaxter-l3n that's exactly why these things happen.. cause many believe it can never happen to them 😅

[@carmelpereira6003]

Definitely not her culture. Parents won’t be allowing it.

[@Saradin_Gein]

I'm sorry but no Kirat's just gullible

[@leyakawamba8012]

It is not Kirat with the fault. It is the perpetrator/con artist. Society always blames the victim

[@Saradin_Gein]

You can claim whatever you want but she fell for this obvious garbage and chose to delve deeper into it, she's an idiot go somewhere else with that. How do you listen to the fact she met the real person and he didn't know who she was or all the other red flags and how she ignored them and go "she did nothing wrong"? it's people like you that fall for this shit, She gaslit herself most of the way and you're defending it. Yes what that lady did was wrong but come on. @@leyakawamba8012

[@iamastrangeloop9204]

@@leyakawamba8012 I think there are certain ppl who will fall for this, and certain ppl who won’t.

[@Marcel_Audubon]

@@leyakawamba8012 in this case, the victim played a central role

[@eleanoramara]

​@leyakawamba8012 NO she is at fault too. She was a victim for a year or two...she had 9 years of red flags. She was in an online relationship with a married man. He had a child while he was in a relationship with Kirat...she could have gone then. When she knew he was back w the mother of hslis child, she could have blocked him and walked away she didn't. She was in her 30s when this started. Her 30s!! She made conscious decisions to not make good decisions. No one introduces you to their family in a FB group chat. He's in the witness protection program but can still talk to her using his old name? He was still allowed to keep old connections?! Only a certified fool would believe that. Simran knew early on who and what she was dealing with. Is Simran diabolical, YES. Kirat was a beyond desperate and foolish beyond comprehension. Kirat wasted 9 years od her life in a relationship that wasn't real to anyone but her and Simran betrayed her family for sh*ts and giggles. He could give her cousin a shirt but couldn't simply video call his 3rd wife to be? GTFOH

[@taigmanianderson9367]

If this is what witness protection is well I don’t know.. he’s in witness protection going for walks, having access to social media!! He’s in witness protection for a business deal gone bad. I would not want to have any type of association with somone who needs to be in “witness protection” for a business deal what type of business was that?? So many questions this girl never asked herself. Her women’s intuition muscle needs some serious working out

[@TedaR]

To quote Count Arthur Strong, the voice of all reason & sanity that he is, “You couldn’t make it up, eh” 😂😮😅

[@harryisamuggle]

I will never understand and hopefully it stays that way, how do some people change their whole lives for someone they are not related to, in this case, someone you have never met!!

[@richardkimani2872]

I think it was easy because it was actually someone she DID know -- her cousin. She knew her inside out -- what she likes, her hobbies, how she thinks.. Which made it easy to manipulate her

[@Tumaaraimi]

I have so many questions.. How could someone so intelligent be so gullible. But I guess it could happen to the best of us huh?

[@eleanoramara]

Not the best of us. She ignored red flags for years. He was married and she pursued a romantic rerelationship with him. Got upset when he got his wife pregnant and they were still in a relationship....she was ok having an affair as long as she got the outcome she wanted. She wanted to be with a man who had a child with another woman but said she didn't want the child's mother in her life?? But was friends with her at one point. She was beyond delusional. They gloss over the side chick part

[@TedaR]

None of these people were really her friends or tuned in to her horrific choices at the time. If she was even telling anyone what she doing. Someone should’ve smacked her & taken her phone etc & reported, blocked, deleted all! Then gotten her some help! Good lord🙄

[@musicmuse09]

During the first few years of facebook it was possible to hv a deep relationship with someone as back in the day, it was not really instant messaging, it was still long letter style and you could start feeling for someone without video calls. It was all just through chatting.

[@musicmuse09]

The part with the wife disappearing and escaping to drink would hv been very fishy.

[@anabmohamed9342]

I dont think I am ever that attached someone to give them. that power over me

[@ShivaniBasnet]

But what about the voice? Whose voice did Simran use to talk as Bobby on the phone calls?

[@iamjulian2810]

Her own. She says that she only ever heard him talk in a whisper because of the shooting incident so it “changed” his voice forever.

[@the-girly-talks]

also she talked to one of bobby’s cousins or friends over the phone, who turned out to not be a real person too. who’s voice was it? i’m sorry but i refuse to believe that simran was the only one responsible for this

[@TravellerGirl07]

This podcast is different to the documentary in many parts

[@TedaR]

And talk about the long con! In a way you can see how someone so lonely and or vulnerable would never even fathom someone would carry out such an elaborate long con! 😳🤯

[@123carol321]

I would be very suspicious of the camera situation

[@NaNgNg0]

I understand that bobby couldn't talk because he claimed his vocal cords are damaged. But how do you explain the cousin calling to stop Kirat from going to New York when she was at the airport? 27:48 like how was that orchestrated?

[@michelledangirwa5662]

Mmm first episode got me but u lost me 2nd episode. I mean witness protection in America😅 wife telling her to call cousin. I mean really we all know no1 knows u r in witness protection.im sorry this women fell for a scam but there were so many signs Bobby was not real. Let us learn to be cautious with internet love.

[@Sonibablaa]

I still don’t understand how the Skype calls happened I mean how could the cat fisher have a man’s voice

[@megiwpiegi773]

yeah I was asking the same

[@TheBlackSimp-x2g]

He said he damaged his vocal cords during a surgery, she was talking abd he was texting.​@@megiwpiegi773

[@taigmanianderson9367]

They never spoke it was always a whisper due to him “losing his voice from surgery”

[@nasimabegum6820]

I don't know if it's just me but this girl keeps laughing as she's talking and it makes me feel like I can't take her side seriously. Laughing while saying 'I was scared of him accusing me of anything' ....yes sad but why you laughing as you talk about it?!

[@asakaur8610]

I agree with you, I think she’s obviously traumatised and this has left a huge impact on her psyche. You’re right though the laughing makes it hard to take what she is saying seriously..

[@WellISaidIt]

Have you heard the saying "you've got to laugh or else you'd cry"? I would do exactly the same when reciting a story this absurd. While you are telling it you are just laughing at yourself for having been so stupid to believe this s**t or else you'd give way to your tears. After my fathers funeral I just sat in my room with my then boyfriend and a mate and took turns between laughing and crying. I believe I also used the phrase "can you go get me some water from downstairs, obviously I can't go as I've just buried my father" while laughing. They knew how I was feeling but also told me I only get one of those and no more. Human emotions are complicated.

[@eleanoramara]

​@@asakaur8610 it's nervous laughter or she realizes how silly this whole thing was

[@vivavidadela]

I laugh when I talk about serious matters, I can’t control it, I think it’s a way to cover up my true emotions because I wasn’t allowed to show sad/bad emotions as a child.

[@treyblue800]

its a coping mechanism i also do it when im nervous , anxious or uncomfortable

[@MISSYF27]

What I dont get is, if she knew of his family and her friends knew of the family. Surely they would have known he wasnt shot, his brother wasnt dead etc. Asians know everyones business

[@GG-cj4jx]

Todo mi respeto por el dolor y devastación de Kira pero esto no oculta el hecho de que ella debió no dejarse envolver por esta fantasía elaborada y rocambolesca. Una mujer adulta que está en el mundo, paga sus cuentas y se relaciona con todo tipo de personas en el trabajo, socialmente debió ver red flags por todas partes. Entiendo que quizá aún así la fantasía fuera poderosa y envolvente pero ella debió parar y buscar ayuda terapeútica. Hay muchas relaciones tóxicas, románticas o no, platónicas o no y uno debe ser consciente de ello e intentar salir de ese círculo vicioso que convierte tu vida en un infierno. Bobby podría haber sido un asesino, un violador, y ella estaría muerta. No estoy culpando a las víctimas pero cada uno debe asumir su responsabilidad en los desastres de su vida. Espero que Kira esté bien y sea féliz pero justificar su enfermizo comportamiento no beneficia a nadie. Ella podría haber investigado más a fondo, incluso en los mensajes que "Bobby" enviaba, se nota que es una voz de mujer. Por favor una simple foto de él en el hospital hubiera sido suficiente. Tendría que haber habido cientos si la relación era tan íntima. Y en cualquier caso repito, parar y buscar ayuda, un terapeúta podría haberle evitado años de angustia y dolor y por desgracia en muchos casos algo aún peor. NO SÓLO HAY TOXICIDAD, MANIPULACIÓN Y ENGAÑO EN INTERNET ESTO PUEDE PROVENIR DE UN AMIGO, UN COMPAÑERO DE TRABAJO, UN EX, UN VÍNCULO SENTIMENTAL POCO CLARO. SI CUALQUIERA ESTÁ AFECTANDO A TU VIDA PERSONAL, LABORAL BUSCA AYUDA. ESE ES REALMENTE EL APRENDIZAJE DE TODO ESTO, NO CÚAN "ENGAÑOSAS" PUEDEN SER LAS REDES SOCIALES. ESTO TAMBIÉN PASA EN LA VIDA REAL.

[@TedaR]

This dude is an evil genius. Sick and twisted genius. One could teach a course, for good or evil in equal measure, on this case alone. Would take yrs to break it all down.EDIT WAIT WHAT? I just heard the very last bit & wish I hadn’t caught that. SPOILER ALERT AHEAD: “she” should be prosecuted?!?! 🫤🤔