Mike Matheny
Appearances
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 4. We All Became Investigators
We're, like, in the middle of it. Tara's got our money. We're already in Detroit.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 4. We All Became Investigators
By Tuesday, I literally was like, if this dinner, like, if we don't meet these people today, like, we're leaving. I'm out of here. Next time on Baby Broker. As we drive to Port Huron, it's supposed to be me and Teresa, birth mom, birth father, and Tara. The FBI gets involved.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 4. We All Became Investigators
We don't know anything about birth mom's medical condition. It was high risk.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 4. We All Became Investigators
She said, it's got to be business as usual.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 4. We All Became Investigators
We're still trying to figure out which way is up. Who's on our team? Who's not? What's true? What's real? Don't talk to these women.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 7. Gotcha Day
Basically drove from Atlanta to Michigan, not knowing whether our adoption was real, whether our birth mom was real.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 7. Gotcha Day
Somebody asked me yesterday what I would say to you if you were in front of me, and the only thing I kept coming back to was, what if it was one of your children? What if it was your daughter that was pregnant or your daughter that couldn't have children who was trying to adopt, and somebody came in, a predator, and preyed on them?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 7. Gotcha Day
It was just this, like, holy shit moment. Oh my gosh, this is Nick. This is the family.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 7. Gotcha Day
And so I think by connecting and meeting us and seeing how S was thriving, right, it also gave them that answer of like, okay, we did the right thing for us and he's where he's supposed to be.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 6. Don’t F**k With Parents
And they eventually give like Interpol what they need to find this guy. I feel like it's a good analogy for sort of our little Facebook group. The rule of the group was once you're admitted, you have to sort of write out your family's story with how you connected with Tara.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 6. Don’t F**k With Parents
there were so many lies it's like you're almost able to piece things together in your story based on the information in other people's stories yeah there was like someone that said that you know tara collected eight ten fifteen thousand dollars or whatever you know on october 25th and we're like we were with her in the hospital that whole day so it's like where she was clickety clacking on her cell phone it's like she was in there robbing people blind while our son was being born
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 6. Don’t F**k With Parents
Nick was in the back of the courtroom and heard us read our impact statement. And he was the one that made the connection that, oh my gosh, this is the family that was matched with Stephanie.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 6. Don’t F**k With Parents
Did you ever see the documentary, Don't Fuck With Cats? I have not seen it, no. Guy starts out hurting animals online and ends up killing a human. It's like this group of normal people come together online where they're like putting together pieces of the puzzle, like the wrapper from the cigarette and the picture on the wall in the hotel to track this guy down.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
With no Tara. And so we just kind of start talking and we find one of those just little random like sitting areas. She was like, oh, Tara's upset with you guys about something. Okay. I said, she wants us to pay her more money and we're not going to pay her. She's not providing the services. The rent wasn't paid. Their electric was about to be cut off. No insurance on the cars.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
The tires hadn't been put on. There's no food in the house. I said, I can do one of two things. I said, I can either pay Tara so that she goes away, or we can tell Tara to fuck off, and I can put that money to use to help you guys. I had spoken to the attorneys.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
The attorneys confirmed that as long as everything was documented and we weren't giving cash, I could pay their rent and then submit receipts directly myself. And so that was what we chose to do.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
Tara was literally marching around the hospital trying to find us. And we're sitting at a table and Tanya's got her phone. Tara called her no less than 15 times.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
Just calling over and over and over again. Like this is how convoluted it got. Talia called me and said, hey, I've got to send your wife a text. I want you to know it's not real. I need to send it so I can screenshot it and send it back to Tara. It was time to turn Tara Lee's tactics against her.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
And so Talia sends Teresa this text basically like demanding the attorney's fee, accusing us of being shady and blah, blah, blah. Talia was like, now I need your wife to respond back to that text so I can screenshot and send the answer. So, like, we answer from Teresa's phone saying, oh, I'm so sorry. We don't mean to be shady. I have to transfer some money from a brokerage account.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
The transfer is going to take a few days. You know, blah, blah, blah. Like, you know, so that was how we bought time. So, of course, you know, I'm like... And please let Tara know that she's been such an angel through this whole process, you know, like just like really like overplaying the hand.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
It was like after Talia sends it to Tara, then Tara responds and was like, well, at least she recognizes it. Tara Lee never got her $4,000.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
It's like my first time driving with a baby. Yeah.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
And it's pouring and he screamed like the whole way.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
He decided that he was over it by the time we hit like southern Ohio. And then it rained. Yes, the entire way home. I'm talking port from southern Ohio through Kentucky, through Tennessee, all the way to the doorstep.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
It was 100% that the birth mom was terrified of Tara.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
Tara's got our money. We're already in Detroit. We're like in the middle of it. You keep asking for more money and it's like nobody wants to cut ties.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
We met Tara in Chick-fil-A downstairs, which was like, we're like on pins and needles. And Tara was like, I'm famished, you know? Like, we're going to go sit in Chick-fil-A and have a chicken sandwich.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
This bullshit story about how, you know, that morning she was at the bank, at Bank of America, blah, blah, blah, like conducting some business. And she, you know, she blacked out and she fell and she hit her head and she had to go get multiple stitches.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
And she was telling us that she probably had a concussion and that the doctor told her that she needed bed rest, but it was so important for her to be there for us. for the birth of this baby. And the reason I say that's important is because there were so many of those type of stories.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
Gunshot. Did she seem like she had a concussion?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
Tara's sitting in the corner of the table. Teresa and I are literally sitting in chairs against the wall. Facing the bed. While Tara is, you know, on her cell phone, Like, the whole dynamic was just so freaking weird.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
And Tara comes to me and was basically like, so, can I get that check? I walked past her like she didn't exist.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
I think she had every intention of having us drive to Detroit. I don't think she had any intention of us going home with the baby.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
She's camped out waiting for us, and she is pissed off. because she wants her money. Teresa said they ignored Tara Lee's demand for her final $4,000 payment. And that's when we put the hospital on notice that we didn't want Tara anywhere near the NICU.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 5. The Last Adoption
And so I called what turned out to be Matt's cell phone, left him a voicemail. And then it was like, I don't know, probably lunchtime. I was walking into the hospital by myself. I had just parked the car. It was snowing. I see this 313 number. Mike answered.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
Well, and then we're freaking out because we're like, wait a second, this baby's supposed to be born in less than two weeks.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
She goes to Ghana, she comes back. It was once she got back and we knew that she was back, that's when I started reaching out to her. I would text her and be like, hey, how are you? I heard you're back from Ghana. And she'd be like, yeah, I'm back. How was your trip? Great. We'd exchange pleasantries and go back and forth.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
And the minute that I asked anything regarding S's birth mom, medical, anything of substance, she went dark. She wouldn't respond. It was such a mind fuck, pardon my language.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
This is like where it all started to get weird, where I started to kind of raise an eyebrow.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
One of sort of the MO for Tara, which comes up over and over again, is, you know, she used to always go back to, you know, her, you know how these girls are. Talking about women at the methadone clinic, women on drugs, you know how these girls are. And what did you think she meant by that?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
I'm also in recovery. So, myself, you know, I've been sober for a long time. I find it kind of offensive. It's like, you know how those people are, you know? It's like, no, tell me, how are they?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
And that we were going to be in Michigan in October.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
When Teresa was talking about Tara, our first conversation with her, God, I hope she hears this, I hate her voice, okay? Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard for me. And from the very beginning, I had like this spidey sense that like something was not right with her.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
We didn't know what to believe, what was true.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
Anything's better than Matheny.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
That's how we identify telemarketers. Or people asking if we want to sell our house.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
At the time I was a recruiter, Mike helps people find jobs, you know, et cetera, et cetera.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
We'll just say these are not our people. Yes, yes, yes. And get to throw on a shirt and tie and pretend like we belong there, you know what I mean?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
Two weeks to the day from when we had this phone call. We're looking at each other going like, oh my God, this is happening. Like, this is amazing.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
She was like, I'll send you guys a contract and you guys can get me the money, you know. Just, okay, where do I send it?
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
We're driving back from dinner, and that is when everything sort of flipped upside down.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
Which was two weeks to the day from when we had this phone call. So we were literally thinking like, oh my God, we're going to have to go home after this wedding and literally pack our stuff and go to Michigan.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
She literally said like, I'm just here in case things get weird.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
We're scrambling. We don't know how long we need to be in Michigan. I don't know where we need to even stay.
The Binge Cases: Baby Broker
Baby Broker | 1. You Cannot Tell Anyone
And then that's where I'm like, I think it was like Monday where I started to wait a second. She never sent us the contract. You know, I'm still not seeing a contract. I'm trying to get Tara on the phone. I can't get her on the phone.