Warning, this is a true crime podcast and is not suitable for all audiences. Please use discretion.

Using a child as a weapon in a failing relationship, unfortunately, is more common than we perhaps

realise. Parental alienation is a pattern of behaviour by one parent that causes a child to

unjustifiably reject or show hostility towards the other parent. Studies have indicated that as

many as 40% of children are alienated from one of their parents, though it's important to note in some cases

this is because of legitimate concerns, for example, a previous history of domestic abuse.

But in today's case, one parent committed two horrific crimes, the murder of the other parent,

and then inciting their young child into covering it up.

I'm Naomi Channel, and this is real. The

The On Christmas Eve 2015, 42-year-old Robert Rhodes was at his home near Red Hill in Surrey, England, when his wife

dawn returned home from a night out with friends. As she went to bed, something in Robert made him

want to check his wife's mobile phone. While she was sleeping, he started to look through her text messages,

and he found the evidence that his gut instinct had been looking for. He read messages

that confirmed his suspicions. His wife Dawn had developed a relationship with another man.

He also found a handwritten Christmas card from this man in Dawn's purse, and he woke her up to confront her. Dawn

confirmed that she had started an intimate relationship with this other man. Over the next few

weeks, Dawn said that she wanted

to end their marriage, and they started sleeping in separate bedrooms. They had one child together

who was under the age of 10, and over the next few months, Dawn would continue her relationship

with her new partner, often meeting him in

the evenings when Robert would look after their child. But Robert became obsessed with Dawn's new

partner. From the moment he learnt the truth about his wife's affair, he was obsessing over their relationship.

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