What is the episode about?
The murder of Erica Gene Shultz is the focal point of this episode of Crime Junkie , where host Ashley Flowers details the disappearance and subsequent murder of a 26-year-old autistic woman from Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. The case began on November 14, 2020, when Erica Gene Shultz left her home to meet a man she had met through a dating app. When she failed to show up for her job at a local supermarket on December 6, 2020, she was officially reported missing, which initiated an extensive investigation led by both authorities and her own family.
The case behind the episode
The perpetrator behind the cynical murder was 47-year-old Harold David Haulman III. He had built a relationship with Erica Gene Shultz through online dating and lured her into a wooded area in Butler Township. There, he assaulted her with a hammer-like tool, striking her approximately 12 times, after which he escalated the violence by stabbing her with a knife another dozen times in the face and head. Erica Gene Shultz was found dead on December 27, 2020, in the remote wooded area.
The resolution of the case is largely due to Erica's sister, Emily Corbin. By using methods she had learned through her consumption of true crime content, including Crime Junkie , she was able to trace Erica's digital footprint and identify Harold David Haulman III as a suspect. Her persistence not only led to justice for Erica but also revealed that Haulman was a serial killer. He was later convicted of the murder of Tianna Phillips in 2021 and is linked to another murder in Germany from the 1990s. In September 2021, Harold David Haulman III