Cold Case Kansas: A Social Detective Podcast · Cold Case Kansas: A Social Detective Podcast

Justice By Proxy

·19 min·1 clip

Kendra Botello represents hundreds of missing Indigenous women whose cases remain invisible despite epidemic violence.

This episode of Cold Case Kansas investigates the 2022 disappearance of 24-year-old Kendra Botello from Enid, Oklahoma, and the vigilante murder of her boyfriend, Colby Shepard. Host Marianne examines how online speculation and family trauma spiraled into real-world violence. The case is framed within the wider crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women. Kendra Botello vanished after leaving a house on West Randolph in Enid following an argument with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Colby Shepard. Their relationship was volatile, with a history of domestic violence allegations and dropped assault charges against Shepard. With no official suspects, Kendra's family used social media to publicly accuse Colby of involvement in her disappearance. Colby Shepard was later lured to a residence and beaten to death; his body was discovered in a storm cellar in August 2024. Four people were arrested, including Kendra's uncle, Victor Botello, who allegedly orchestrated the attack to extract information. A witness stated Victor Botello said, "I had to kill Colby because of what he did to Kendra." In a news interview, Kendra's grandmother, Lillian Reyes, expressed her conviction that Colby was responsible, despite Enid police stating no evidence tied him to the disappearance. The episode reveals that Kendra is a member of the Muskogee Creek Nation, placing her case within the under-investigated epidemic of violence against Indigenous women. Over 43% of Native women report being raped in their lifetime, with homicide being a leading cause of death. The host argues that internet vigilantism created a "digital echo chamber" where suspicion of Colby became accepted as fact, ultimately pressuring fragile individuals and sparking retaliation. This cycle of blame and vengeance failed to produce answers, leaving Kendra still missing and two families shattered. The episode notes that someone in Pawnee, Oklahoma, reported a woman matching Kendra's description asking for water days after she vanished, but this was never confirmed. Kendra's mother, Amy Botello, sent her money for a hotel room hours after she was last seen, but no hotel check-in was ever found. Marianne provides guidelines for ethical online sleuthing, urging listeners to protect the presumption of innocence and share verified facts instead of feelings. The tone is analytical, empathetic, and cautionary, blending narrative storytelling with social commentary. It adopts an educational style to dissect the dangerous intersection of true crime fandom, social media, and unresolved grief. Listeners interested in the societal impact of true crime culture and complex, unresolved mysteries will find this episode compelling. Those seeking a straightforward, solved case or who are sensitive to descriptions of domestic violence and vigilante murder may want to skip it.

As heard by us

A sober reminder that evidence matters more than speculation.

Cold Case Kansas: Justice By Proxy keeps its focus on the tension between speculation and proof. It follows the pressure points around Kendra Botello and Shepard, and it keeps circling back to police statements, an affidavit, and the discipline of checking what can actually be…

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Why you'd press play

You want a true-crime trip that keeps the hard facts in front of the story.

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